Articles
Jan 19 2008
OPINION
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Discrimination for dummies: V 2008
Increasingly, job quotas are cited as 'discrimination' - in reverse. But the word discrimination in terms of caste means something very different that the media mostly do not, or choose not to, understand, writes P Sainath.
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Jan 17 2008
URBAN ENVIRONMENT
That 'new type' house
URBAN ENVIRONMENT : That 'new type' house
A university professor in Shimoga had the fore-sight to make his home nearly autonomous from various public utilities, and alongside do his part for the environment. And when his neighbours were slow to learn, he set out to educate them too. Shree Padre reports.
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Jan 16 2008
ENVIRONMENT
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Diesel threat in cities continues to rise
The sulphur content of diesel in India is 350 particles per million, twenty times that of the United States. Diesel exhaust is far more hazardous than petrol exhaust. Yet, diesel cars in Indian cities are rising with the association of automobile manufacturers pushing hard for it. Darryl D'Monte has more.
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Jan 15 2008
PRS LEGISLATIVE BRIEF
Guarding the guardians
PRS LEGISLATIVE BRIEF : Guarding the guardians
The Centre proposes to establish a National Judicial Council to examine allegations of misconduct or incapacity against senior judges, but questions remain over just how much teeth it should have. Omair Ahmed presents a legislative brief on the Judges (Inquiry) Bill.
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Jan 14 2008
FILM REVIEW: EK NODIR GALPO
Of daughter, father and river
FILM REVIEW: EK NODIR GALPO : Of daughter, father and river
Samir Chanda's Ek Nodir Galpo, which premiered in Kolkata in November 2007, offers the moving experience of a father who makes it his mission to name a river after his dead daughter. His struggle evolves into his way of reinventing his daughter. Shoma Chatterji has more.
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Jan 12 2008
BAL PANCHAYATS
Children fix their own schools
BAL PANCHAYATS : Children fix their own schools
Since 1994, the Socio Economic Development Trust has succeeded in drawing some 11,000 dropouts in 220 villages of Maharashtra back to school through unique village-level children's organisations called Bal Panchayats. Aparna Pallavi reports.
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Jan 10 2008
SCIENCE IN INDIA
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The Dr Watson problem
As a young country with many technical problems, we need an army of Holmeses who can solve them. But the Macaulay-inspired education has always suited the Watsons, who cannot. Until this changes, there will be little hope of swaraj in ideas, writes Rajesh Kasturirangan.
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Jan 09 2008
AGRICULTURE
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Soya cultivation rising in crisis-hit Vidarbha
Vidarbha farmers are shifting to soybean and oilseeds as substitute, harangued by dipping cotton prices, highly volatile markets and withdrawal of government support. Jaideep Hardikar reports on the trend, the risks and the other alternatives for the farmers.
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Jan 07 2008
BAMBOO IN HOUSING
New vistas in construction
BAMBOO IN HOUSING : New vistas in construction
Has bamboo's time arrived? The high cost of inputs going into conventional construction is beginning to push more people in the direction of alternatives, and this was topic of a recent seminar at the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore. Ashwin Mahesh has more.
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Jan 06 2008
CHILD AND MATERNAL HEALTH
Tripura aims for total immunisation
CHILD AND MATERNAL HEALTH : Tripura aims for total immunisation
From drum beating at markets to using helicopters, Tripura has been making rapid strides in its immunisation programme, pushing this important health care intervention among tribal as well as non-tribal mothers and children. Ratna Bharali Talukdar reports.
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Jan 04 2008
REHABILITATION AND RESETTLEMENT BILL, 2007
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Right to displace, but no duty to rehabilitate
Acquiring land for a 'public purpose' is claimed as a right by the state under its powers of eminent domain, but it accepts no duty to resettle and rehabilitate all the affected citizens. Instead, rehabilitation is presented as an act of benevolence, writes Kannan Kasturi.
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Jan 03 2008
OPINION
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Internal security agenda for the new year
The happenings in Pakistan, which have culminated in the unfortunate assassination of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, are equally portentuous for India. India needs to contain the Pakistani predicament at the border, notes Firdaus Ahmed.
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Dec 30 2007
MINING IN ORISSA
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Mine today, gone tomorrow
The Supreme Court acknowledges the indictment of Vedanta's operations in India by the Norwegian Council on Ethics, but its recent verdict appears to let the company off lightly, treating the Indian subsidiary as unrelated to its parent. Kanchi Kohli reports.
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Dec 27 2007
THE URBAN FUTURE
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Managing global cities
The recent Urban Age conference in Mumbai brought much needed focus on the difficulties plaguing cities around the world. Several speakers observed that a democratic deficit is now evident in many of them, and tackling this is key to building a strong future for urban areas. Darryl D'Monte reports.
Dec 26 2007
OPINION
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India 2007: High growth, low development
Even nations that are far below us in the Human Development Index rankings - and which have nothing like our growth numbers - have done much better than us on many counts, writes P Sainath.
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Dec 21 2007
MAJULI ISLAND
River erosion threatens Majuli
MAJULI ISLAND : River erosion threatens Majuli
Dramatic erosion of embankments, and continuous siltation threaten to wipe away a large island settlement on the Brahmaputra. Residents unhappy with the government's efforts to stem the erosion are now hoping the island's heritage and ecology will attract more attention. Ratna Bharali Talukdar reports.
Dec 20 2007
WILDLIFE
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Tiger census results may sharpen conservation debate
The formal count of the number of tigers in India's 28 tiger reserves is expected to be announced on 31 December 2007. The report could help formulate policies of land use as well as accentuate the debate on rehabilitation of forest dwellers in favour of wildlife conservation, writes Malini Shankar.
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Dec 18 2007
DEVELOPMENT STRUGGLES
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Unrecognised heroines
Women like Mukta Jodia, the first recipient of the Chingari Award for Women Against Corporate Crime, are a reminder of the other India, the real India. What triggers their struggles is quite often the lack of transparency, writes Kalpana Sharma.
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Dec 17 2007
ANALYSIS: NIRA DEOGHAR DAM
Privatisation in the Krishna basin is recipe for conflict
ANALYSIS: NIRA DEOGHAR DAM : Privatisation in the Krishna basin is recipe for conflict
In September, the Maharashtra Krishna Valley Development Corporation invited expressions of interest from private companies to build the canals for the Nira Deoghar dam on a Build Operate Transfer (BOT) basis. Everything about the process so far indicates the decision is not a well-thought out one, notes Shripad Dharmadhikary.
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Dec 16 2007
RECHARGE WELLS
Percolating young minds
RECHARGE WELLS : Percolating young minds
A far-sighted educational trust is reaping the benefit of digging recharge wells long before the need for them. While its own decision is a lesson in conservation, the institution is also going further, imbibing ecological concerns into the students too. Shree Padre reports.
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