BHASKAR BHAGARE, 53 | NCP(S-P) Dindori (ST), Maharashtra
THE DEBUTANTS GIANT-SLAYERS
It was billed as a David versus Goliath fight-a Union Mos, a legacy politician to boot, against an ordinary school teacher who had spent 33 years awakening kids at Pimpalgaon Baswant to the finer points of history and Marathi. As it happened, Bhagare 'Guruji' dispensed a few lessons even to Dr Bharati Pawar. Associated with the NCP since its 1999 launch, the tribal leader's ambit had hitherto not gone beyond the panchayat samiti and zilla parishad. But the willingness he encountered while raising funds from villagers for the campaign already showed a potent anger was simmering on low flame among onion cultivators.
RAKIBUL HUSSAIN, 59 CONGRESS Dhubri, Assam
The five-time Samaguri MLA has never suffered from a deficit of electoral taurine, aptly enough for a more pugnacious moniker he has stopped using. In 2011, the Congress toro bravo from Nagaon district had thrown even ex-CM Prafulla Kumar Mahanta in an assembly poll bullring. This time, he created history with the highest Lok Sabha victory margin ever: 1,012,476 votes.
The matador who lay gored was multi-millionaire perfume baron and AIUDF chief Badruddin Ajmal, who had won Dhubri since 2009. Not many fancied Hussain's chances: an Assamese speaker in a predominantly Bangla-flavoured immigrant zone, he was a 'non-non-native' in this 85 per cent Muslim seat. The surge of support for him against the self-attested proprietor of local Muslim affections, thus, also became a sign of mainstreaming. Now he's targeting another giant. His demand that six communities be given tribal status, if fulfilled, would make of Assam a tribal majority state. That would disqualify former close ally Himanta Biswa Sarma from CM-ship.
GURMEET SINGH MEET HAYER, 35 AAP Sangrur, Punjab
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THE ETERNAL MOTHER
Prayaag Akbar's new novel delves into the complexities of contemporary India
TURNING A NEW LEAF
Since the turn of the century, we have lost hundreds of thousands of trees. Many had stood for centuries, weathering storms, wars, droughts and famines.
INDIA'S BEATING GREEN HEART
Ramachandra Guha's new book-Speaking with Nature-is a chronicle of homegrown environmentalism that speaks to the world
A NEW LEASE FOR OLD FILMS
NOSTALGIA AND CURIOSITY BRING AUDIENCES BACK TO THE THEATRES TO REVISIT MOVIES OF THE YESTERYEARS
THE HOLY GRAIL OF COMPUTING
IN A GIANT LEAP TOWARDS BRAIN-INSPIRED COMPUTING, IISc RESEARCHERS HAVE ENGINEERED A DEVICE THAT PROCESSES INFORMATION LIKE NEURAL SYNAPSES, AND PROMISES A LEAP IN SPEED, ENERGY EFFICIENCY AND DATA SECURITY
THE MISSING STRIPES
Behind the missing 15 big cats in the Ranthambore National Park are a lax monitoring system by local forest officials, political pressure and unreliable numbers
DECOUPLING DILEMMA
AS TENSIONS BETWEEN INDIA AND CHINA THAW AND THE TRADE BETWEEN THEM GROWS, INDIA FACES THE TOUGH TASK OF KEEPING CHEAP CHINESE IMPORTS AT BAY WHILE ENCOURAGING THOSE THAT ITS DOMESTIC INDUSTRY NEEDS
KILLER STRESS
Unhealthy work practices in Indian companies are taking a toll on employees, triggering health issues and sometimes even death
AMARATHA HEAT WAVE
THE MARATHAS ARE ANGRY AND, UNDER MANOJ JARANGE-PATIL'S SWAY, MARATHWADA COULD WELL DECIDE WHO EVENTUALLY WINS IN MAHARASHTRA
A BOLD CASTE COUNT MOVE
The Telangana government has commissioned a comprehensive socio-economic, employment and caste survey that is far-reaching, with the ruling Congress even saying its results will set the ball rolling for an expansion of constitutional rights.
