Articles
Jun 12 2010
ENVIRONMENT/MINING
Blinding lure, dirty lucre
ENVIRONMENT/MINING : Blinding lure, dirty lucre
Extracting enough gold to forge a wedding band leaves behind at least 20-30 tons of waste and environmental devastation. Mahazareen Dastur writes about the costs of gold mining in the first of a two-part series.
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Jun 10 2010
FILM REVIEW
Ring the bell against violence
FILM REVIEW : Ring the bell against violence
Bauddhayan Mukherji's film series hands men a proactive role in tackling domestic violence, simply by letting abusers know that they are being observed. Shoma Chatterji reviews Bell Bajao!
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Jun 07 2010
PUBLIC SERVICES
Better healthcare, on our watch
PUBLIC SERVICES : Better healthcare, on our watch
A pilot project in community-based monitoring under the National Rural Health Mission in three districts of Jharkhand provides encouraging results. Freny Manecksha reports.
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Jun 06 2010
KAZIRANGA PARK
Linking conservation to livelihoods
KAZIRANGA PARK : Linking conservation to livelihoods
A livelihoods programme for villages on the fringes of Kaziranga National Park makes big gains in the fight against poaching, and also recognises the importance of locals as stakeholders in wildlife conservation. Ratna Bharali Talukdar reports.
Jun 02 2010
INVESTIGATING CORRUPTION
Bombay HC sets aside dubious circular
INVESTIGATING CORRUPTION : Bombay HC sets aside dubious circular
Once an offence is disclosed under the Prevention of Corruption Act, then the police must investigate, rules the court, and any government circular that interferes with this must be ignored. Krishnaraj Rao reports.
May 31 2010
WASTE MANAGEMENT
Cost-effective technology stalled by Pune government
WASTE MANAGEMENT : Cost-effective technology stalled by Pune government
In Pune, bureaucratic meddling and lack of vision are threatening a simple, cost-effective eco-technology which treats heavily polluted water and turns messed-up water bodies into clean ones, reports Surekha Sule.
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May 31 2010
RIGHT TO INFORMATION
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Apply to be an Information Commissioner
Civil society candidates should be eligible for appointment to key RTI posts in the States and the Centre. We must apply for such jobs, and help improve the system, writes Krishnaraj Rao.
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May 31 2010
FILM REVIEW
A mother's love
FILM REVIEW : A mother's love
More than half a century after it was produced Shyamchi Aai remains alluring to children and adults alike, with its simple and straightforward message of unconditional love. Shoma Chatterji reviews the film.
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May 29 2010
TACKLING NAXALISM
Pause the mineral economy
TACKLING NAXALISM : Pause the mineral economy
Let the mineral wealth of Central India remain untapped until the people there acquire the capacity to negotiate the terms for its use and benefit directly from doing so, writes Firdaus Ahmed.
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May 29 2010
OPINION
Expand the moral commons
OPINION : Expand the moral commons
Our notions of collateral damage have done enormous harm to the ecological balance which sustains life on this planet. A new politics is needed to recover from this, writes Rajesh Kasturirangan.
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May 24 2010
HEALTH POLICY
Healthcare: A policy of neglect
HEALTH POLICY : Healthcare: A policy of neglect
The main culprit for the low standards of medical education and the credibility of the regulator is government policy itself, which has consistently placed a low priority on healthcare, notes Kannan Kasturi.
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May 20 2010
BREAKING DOWN BARRIERS
Prayers answered: women enter Vaishnavite monastery
BREAKING DOWN BARRIERS : Prayers answered: women enter Vaishnavite monastery
Ban on entry of women into places of worship comes out of deep-seated religious and cultural prejudices. However, a recent development in Western Assam's Barpeta district offers a ray of hope to those in search of justice, reports Teresa Rehman.
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May 18 2010
PUBLIC HEARINGS
Cleared, denied, cleared, ...
PUBLIC HEARINGS : Cleared, denied, cleared, ...
The environment clerance process continues to make a mockery of the law. As the Athena case shows, when a project is pulled up, the Ministry simply finds another channel by which to continue it. Kanchi Kohli reports.
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May 18 2010
CLEAN ENERGY
Solar Mission: More light needed
CLEAN ENERGY : Solar Mission: More light needed
The government's focus on solar energy is driven by the need to demonstrate a commitment to renewable energy. But equity too is vital for the success of the National Solar Mission, writes Sujatha Byravan.
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May 16 2010
MEDIA/WOMEN
Sangham Radio making waves
MEDIA/WOMEN : Sangham Radio making waves
This first all-women community radio in Asia being aired from Medak district in Andhra Pradesh is a genuine story of rural and women empowerment. Ramesh Menon reports from Medak.
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May 16 2010
ACCOUNTABILITY
Private, but not above the RTI
ACCOUNTABILITY : Private, but not above the RTI
Recently, the Chennai High Court ruled that a PPP project falls within the ambit of the RTI Act. The court's reasoning gives hope for a more liberal interpretation of the law itself in the future. Shripad Dharmadhikary reports.
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May 15 2010
WOMEN, WORK AND LIFE
From fields to a BPO in 6 months
WOMEN, WORK AND LIFE : From fields to a BPO in 6 months
A first-of-its-kind women-only BPO started by 'Harva' in a Haryana village is all set to harness the rural talent while changing the rigid mindset of the people, transforming rural economy, writes Hemlata Aithani.
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May 15 2010
RESURRECTED PERMANENT RESIDENTS' BILL
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Kashmiri identity and the onslaught on women
Although dropped for now, a Bill that seeks to disqualify the permanent resident status of J&K women who marry outside the state is pitting their equal rights and dignity against ‘Kashmiri identity’, argues Rekha Chowdhary.
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May 11 2010
DESPITE CAG AUDIT INDICTMENTS
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Narmada authorities allowed to proceed with impunity
Even as the CAG audit findings find faults with SSNNL for diverting the central funds from canal construction to unintended purposes, permission has been granted to raise the Narmada dam height. Himanshu Upadhyaya. points out this irony and more.
May 10 2010
CONSTRUCTION
Building green and thinking green
CONSTRUCTION : Building green and thinking green
Beyond planting trees, what do we need to be really doing that makes for the difference we seek in use and abuse of resources? Chandrashekar Hariharan presents some directions that consumers, citizens, businessmen need to be taking.
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