Cover Story

Mixed record of UPA government
by Venkitesh Ramakrishnan
Interview:Prakash Karat
On the liberalisation route
by V. Sridhar
Disinvestment designs
A steady course in foreign affairs
by John Cherian
Congress' ways
by Purnima S.Tripathi

Politics
The Bihar drama
The dissolution and the law
A Left sweep in West Bengal

Controversy
Quota trouble in Aligarh

Legislation
Affirming the right to know
The South African experience
A Bill and nuclear hopes

Economic Perspectives
Fraudulent world of U.S. finance
by C.P. Chandrasekhar

Campaigns
A yatra for employment

Drought
Vidarbha's despair

World Affairs
`Anti-terror' outrages
The textile tangle
A Latin American snub
A vote for women in Kuwait
Church under Benedict XVI
The Uzbek turmoil
Outsourcing torture
A French `revolution'
© New York Times Service
Suicide bombing in Pakistan
Iran's nuclear quest
© New York Times Service

Music
A movement for music in Karnataka
An exceptional musician
A school with a difference

Reports
Bhakra dam - a different view
Forced labour and globalisation

Essay
Invective in politics
by A.G. Noorani

Cinema

Exploring Apu's world

Biotechnology
Bt cotton again

Interview
K.N.O. Dharmadasa on Sri Lanka's culture and politics

Livelihood Issues
Hope for scavengers

Crime
Graham Staines case: A lenient verdict
Bomb blasts in Delhi

Insurance
Bringing down an edifice
Beyond struggles

Panchayati Raj
A new political class
An interface in Kolar

Wildlife
In tiger territory
by Binoy Gupta

Column
Jayati Ghosh: The unsung heroines of India
Bhaskar Ghose: An example of the possible
R.K. Raghavan: Promoting foreign investment
Praful Bidwai: A Europe that can say `no'

Books
Management of mutual disappointment?
review by R.S. Anderson
Of freedom and revolution
review by Nalini Taneja

Also
The English Language
Letters