  An outstanding problem in gravitation theory and relativistic astrophysics
today is to understand the final outcome of an endless gravitational collapse.
Such a continual collapse would take place when stars more massive than few
times the mass of the sun collapse under their own gravity on exhausting their
nuclear fuel. According to the general theory of relativity, this results
either in a black hole, or a naked singularity- which can communicate with
faraway observers in the universe. While black holes are (almost) being
detected and are increasingly used to model high energy astrophysical
phenomena, naked singularities have turned into a topic of active discussion,
aimed at understanding their structure and implications. Recent developments
here are reviewed, indicating future directions.
