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Why toilets matterNEW Open defecation in urban India is declining very slowly, with over 5 million people in Indian cities still defecating outside. Could this be because the urban middle class monopolises the existing basic services like water supply and sanitation and therefore does not impel change, asks Kalpana Sharma More... Market access and the food crisisWhile the World Bank and WTO say that more market access in developing countries is the only answer to the global food crisis, the UN’s ‘Economic and Social Survey 2008’ claims market liberalisation has actually contributed to the food crisis More... Revolutionising bio-cultural researchNEW'Western' science has treated the knowledge of indigenous peoples and local communities as a resource to be exploited. Now, a more collaborative relationship between the two is being forged. The most remarkable development is the return of 420 potato varieties to the Quechuas of Peru by a scientific establishment More... G8 Hokkaido: An exercise in escapismThe G8 summit concluded with more empty rhetoric on the global fuel, food and climate crisis. The answer might lie in reforming the multilateral United Nations process rather than furthering the quasi-global governance posturing of G8 leaders, says John Samuel More... NREGA: Where is the people's participation?The gram sabha is supposed to decide on the works to be undertaken under NREGS. But most people in the villages surveyed in Bihar recently had no clue how the work or worksite in their village was determined. This is in complete violation of the principles of decentralisation and local participation, which are as central to the objectives of NREGA as economic and political empowerment More... The ‘husband’ in the context of cruelty, dowry death and the validity of marriage NEWHow does one interpret the expression “husband” in the context of the offences of cruelty and dowry demands, in cases where the validity of the marriage is in question? More... Indecent proposalsThe National Commission for Women has recommended amendments to the Indecent Representation of Women Act, broadening the definition of “indecent representation” and introducing more stringent punishment under the law. But with this move, is the NCW taking the debate on representation of women in the media forward in any meaningful way? More... ICT in school education: A flawed policymaking processThe government has proposed a six-fold increase in spending on incorporating ICTs in school education. Government has also formed a group to draft a National Policy on ICT in School Education. Strangely, there are more representatives of IT majors in the group than educationists, says Gurumurthy Kasinathan More... Can the oil crisis usher in a New Deal for the world?We could be on the threshold of a new phase of globalisation, one where there will be a new protectionism, more regional trade and regional economic activism and where governments will be forced to address the problems of the vulnerable middle class and poor, argues John Samuel More... Are we missing the 2010 target?The Convention on Biological Diversity set out to significantly reduce, by 2010, the rate of biodiversity loss, and simultaneously contribute to poverty alleviation. Fifteen years on, the only significant achievement may be the setting up of many new protected areas which, by restricting access to community resources, could end up further impoverishing communities, says Ashish Kothari More... Poised for stagflationIdeas, knowledge, art and travel are things which should be international, but let goods be homespun whenever possible, said John Keynes in 1933. Are we realising the wisdom of Keynes’ statement now, with India facing rising inflation with economic slowdown? Is this the result of the blanket opening up of the Indian economy? Are there lessons to be learnt about the benefits of a more selective opening up, asks economist Aseem Shrivastava More... India silent on biosafety negotiationsIndia has lost out on the opportunity to build a strong liability regime for developing countries which would enable them to protect their farmers and consumers from any damage caused by genetically engineered crops and products, reports Suman Sahai after the recent international convention in Bonn More... Swept off the mapA new book, based on a study of 2,577 households from Yamuna Pushta two years after they had been moved to Bawana in the outskirts of Delhi, documents the devastating impact of urban displacement. The study found that displacement significantly raised both unemployment and dropout rates from schools More... Green reasons for red rageAn expert group of the Planning Commission establishes a strong correlation between social unrest and the spread of Naxalism and poverty, landlessness and inequitable management of natural resources More... Green or greenwashing?At one stage, Bajaj Auto was using captive wind power to generate 90% of its electricity from its own turbines and “banking” the rest. There are indeed businesses that are going green, but the majority of these claims are still greenwash, says Darryl D’Monte More... |
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