
V.S. Achuthanandan, former Kerala CM and Communist veteran, suffers heart attack
Hospital sources said Mr. Achuthanandan has been admitted to the ICU and that his current condition was stable.
Popularly known as 'VS', Mr. Achuthanandan turned 101 on October 20, 2024.
Mr. Achuthanandan had been a towering and fiery presence in Kerala politics for decades.
Mr. Achuthanandan was born into a family of agricultural workers at Punappara in Alappuzha in 1923.
In 1964, Mr. Achuthanandan left the Communist Party of India's (CPI) national council to become one of the founding members of the breakaway CPI(M).
The Punnapra-Vayalar uprising, often called Kerala's October Revolution, against the Travancore Diwan's bid to self-rule and to follow the American model of governance led to a mass uprising in which he was tasked with working underground to organise people. But he was arrested in Poonjar and subjected to the worst custodial torture at the Pala police station.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


NDTV
20 minutes ago
- NDTV
Trump's "Big, Beautiful Bill" Awaits Final Vote: How It Will Impact Indians
Washington: US President Donald Trump's signature tax-and-spending legislation-- " One Big, Beautiful Bill"-- is lined up for final vote over the coming hours in the House of Representatives, the lower chamber of the American Congress. The mega bill, which could define Trump's second term in the White House, has faced an uneasy passage so far. Several members of Trump's own Republican Party have sided with opposition Democrats to criticise the bill for a number of reasons, including the impact on US national debt and healthcare. Trump's sprawling legislation-- which is expected to slash social welfare programs and add an eye-watering $3 trillion to the national debt--was originally approved by the House in May. But it returned to the lower chamber for a rubber stamp after squeezing through the Senate on Tuesday by a solitary vote following several revisions. How The New Version Of The Bill Benefits India Among the revisions in the proposed legislation was a significant dilution of the provision on tax remittances to other countries, including India. In a massive relief for thousands of non-resident Indians (NRIs) and Indian professionals working in the US, who send money back home, the updated draft of the bill released on June 27 showed that the tax rate on remittances was slashed to 1 per cent, down from the 5 per cent proposed originally. The tax rate was brought down to 3.5 per cent in the House version of the bill earlier. The rule will apply to all US residents who aren't US citizens-including Green Card holders, people on temporary visas such as H-1B or H-2A and foreign students. The reduction in tax on all international money transfers will benefit nearly 45 lakh Indians living in the US, including nearly 32 lakh persons of Indian Origin. It will apply to all remittances made via cash, money orders, or cashier's checks. "There is hereby imposed on any remittance transfer a tax equal to 1 per cent of the amount of such tax imposed by this section with respect to any remittance transfer shall be paid by the sender with respect to such transfer," the updated draft of the bill states. The new draft also said that the bill will exempt remittances made from "an account held in or by a financial institution" and those "funded with a debit card or a credit card issued in the United States".


Economic Times
43 minutes ago
- Economic Times
Why are farm goods holding up the India-US trade deal?
Live Events You Might Also Like: Import duty cut on US farm goods under trade pact could undermine India's food security: GTRI You Might Also Like: Modi-govt must hold the line on food and fuel trade when dealing with Trump (You can now subscribe to our (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel U.S. and India trade negotiators were pushing on Wednesday to finalise a tariff-reducing deal ahead of President Donald Trump 's July 9 negotiating deadline, but disagreements over U.S. dairy and agriculture remained ARE FARM GOODS IMPORTS SENSITIVE IN INDIA?Agriculture and its allied areas contribute just 16% to India's $3.9 trillion economy, but sustain nearly half of the country's 1.4 billion population. As farmers remain the most powerful voting bloc, Prime Minister Narendra Modi 's government was forced into a rare retreat four years ago when it tried to push through controversial farm prospect of cheaper imports from the United States threatens to drive down local prices, handing the opposition a fresh opportunity to attack the government. New Delhi has traditionally kept agriculture out of Free Trade Agreements with other nations. Granting market access to the U.S. could force India to extend similar concessions to other trading DO INDIAN AND US FARMS COMPARE?The average Indian farm comprises just 1.08 hectares, compared to 187 hectares in the United States. In dairy, the average herd size in India is two to three animals per farmer, compared to hundreds in the United difference makes it difficult for small Indian farmers to compete with their U.S. in India remains largely unmechanized because small, fragmented land holdings leave little room for large machinery. In many regions, farmers rely on techniques passed down through generations, a sharp contrast to U.S. farms, where cutting-edge equipment and AI-driven technologies have raised PRODUCTS IS US LOBBYING FOR? WHY IS INDIA RESISTING?The United States is pressing India to open its markets to a wide range of American products, including dairy, poultry, corn, soybeans, rice, wheat, ethanol, citrus fruits, almonds, pecans, apples, grapes, canned peaches, chocolates, cookies, and frozen French fries. While India is willing to grant greater access to U.S. dry fruits and apples, it is holding back on allowing imports of corn, soybeans, wheat, and dairy does not allow genetically modified (GM) food crops, while most U.S. corn and soybean production is remains a sensitive issue in India, where cultural and dietary preferences strongly influence food choices. Indian consumers are particularly concerned that cattle in the U.S. are often fed with animal by-products, a practice that conflicts with Indian food DOES INDIA OPPOSE US ETHANOL FOR BLENDING WITH GASOLINE?A key aim of India's Ethanol Blended Petrol (EBP) program is to cut dependence on energy imports by blending domestically-produced ethanol with gasoline. Significant investments by domestic companies mean that India is now close to achieving its ambitious target of blending 20% ethanol. Importing ethanol would undermine those EBP also helps manage surpluses of rice, sugarcane, and corn by diverting them to ethanol production. Allowing imports of U.S. ethanol would be a serious setback for India's emerging distillery sector.


Time of India
43 minutes ago
- Time of India
Zohran Mamdani won because too many elites lost
Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Popular in International Hell hath no fury like the disappointed haute bourgeoisie. A populist revolt has been brewing among the American left since the global financial crisis dealt a severe economic shock to young college graduates. The surprising primary win of 33-year-old Democratic Socialist Zohran Mamdani in New York City 's mayoral primary is the latest manifestation of their economic frustration . And it will only get worse. One of the more surprising results of the Mamdani victoryconcerns his base: Younger, well-educated, fairly affluent and living in Brooklyn — especially the more bohemian Williamsburg and Bushwick neighborhoods. Mamdani was much less popular among lower earners who lived in the Bronx. So it's revealing that the relatively well-off turned out enthusiastically for someone who, only a few years ago, promised to seize the very means of production that underpinned their reason may be that Mamdani's supporters tend to be elite, but don't feel elite enough. They are the ones who suffer from what University of Connecticut professor emeritus and complexity scientist Peter Turchin calls elite overproduction . Many children of middle- and upper middle-class households went to college expecting to have a career that brought wealth and status. But there are a limited number of 'elite' jobs. The result is a surplus of aspiring elites who end up resentful and blame a system they deem unfair. Turchin argues that past periods of social unrest were due to an overabundance of disappointed elites. It also explains recent bouts of populism , including the Occupy Wall Street of the problem is that the divide between culturally and economically elite jobs has widened. Culturally elite jobs, such as working at a high-profile non-profit, media (ahem), the arts, or a university, all come with a certain cache but most pay far less than those in finance, consulting or corporate on the government's Current Population Survey between 2022 and 2025, about 12% of the college graduates who live in Brooklyn work in what I call 'creative' industries (arts, media, non-profits). This may seem low, but Brooklyn is one of the largest counties in the country and is very economically diverse. Creative college graduates here take up a smaller share of graduates in other New York Boroughs (between 5% and 11%) and the US's college educated population overall (7%).The creative college graduates in Brooklyn have a median household income of about $125,000. But that does not go far in New York, especially for those from affluent families who expect to replicate their parents' standard of living. When their parents were young, having a college degree ensured much higher relative pay. Big cities were also less expensive back then, and a non-profit job could afford a decent living 30% of creative college-educated Brooklynites are homeowners, compared to 76% of college graduates in the rest of country. And it gets worse when they compare themselves to their peers who became part of the economic elite. Brooklyn also houses many people who work in finance, law and consulting. Their median household income is more than $290,000, and 58% own their home (though they tend to be a bit older).Although the cultural and economic elite have always lived alongside each other, the reason the divide is getting wider is because in the last few decades being in a big city such as New York has become necessary to elite success, be it cultural or economic. But cities have also become much more expensive, mainly as the result of increased demand for housing and limited supply. Economically elite jobs have also become even better paid relative to cultural elite this is why Mamdani's focus on affordability, his promises to freeze rent, subsidize food costs and impose large taxes on the economic elite, is appealing to so many well-educated voters. To some extent, it is hard to feel sorry for them. They chose to work in professions that pay relatively less given their education. And they are hardly the only ones who struggle with the high cost of living. Don't forget that most college educated workers in New York earn more than those who don't have such degrees, with the median household income in Brooklyn (for all education levels) coming in at $73, this is no comfort for those who feel cheated in a job that a generation ago could have afforded a comfortable lifestyle. It is also a legitimate problem that success in their industry requires living where they can't necessarily afford the lifestyle they want and feel they expects the problem will only get worse. Recent shifts in the labor market due to technology suggest the earnings premium from college may shrink further and cause more economic frustration. At the very least, if these voters turn to populism that pushes more price controls on housing and other necessities there will be even more shortages and higher prices for market-priced goods, and the affordability problem will swell, not only for the disaffected cultural elite but for everyone.