 |
Western cow vs Southern farmer: The absurdity of inequality Around 1.5 billion marginal farmers in the developing world live in virtual penury. Simultaneously, 1.5 billion cattle in the industrialised world are reared in luxury, with a cow in the developed world receiving subsidies that amount to almost twice the annual income of an average Third World farmer More... Kerala's tribals fight for their landsIn the last 100 years, over one million acres of land are believed to have been grabbed from Kerala's tribal population. Their long agitation to regain the forests and lands where their ancestors have lived for generations was intensified after the starvation deaths of 32 tribals last year. And the struggle is just about beginning to pay off More... Structural adjustment takes its toll in PakistanThe process of structural adjustment began in Pakistan in 1988. Privatisation and cuts in public sector spending caused a sharp drop in economic growth, an increase in poverty from 17 to 35 per cent and a worsening of people's health. The tragedy is, scarcely anyone in Pakistan is protesting these damaging policies More... A biological apocalypse avertedAlthough supporters of genetically engineered products often claim that rigorous tests have proven the safety of GE products, their opponents argue that the field tests do not provide a track record of safety, but a case of 'don't look, don't find'. And when scientists actually look, what they see can be terrifying More... Inequality and poverty cause mental illnessHealth experts warn that mental health problems are increasing sharply worldwide. According to the World Health Organisation, depression is set to become the main cause of disability and the second leading health problem by the year 2020. In developing countries, inequality, poverty and gender are significant factors contributing to mental illness More... Bt cotton: Stepping into a booby trapOpinions are divided about the wisdom of the Indian government's decision to burn the genetically modified cotton crop on 10,000 acres of farmland in Gujarat. In this article, the author points out why Bt cotton is a biological trap. More... Women in white: India's widowsFollowing the recent announcement that the National Human Rights Commission will now coordinate governmental and non-governmental measures to help the widows of Vrindavan and the rest of the country, this article discusses the situation and problems of widows in India, past and present More... Illiterate women: Scapegoats or beauticiansIn India, the question of literacy seems to have acquired a magical power and legitimacy of late, marginalising many other critical survival issues and defying all rationality More... The beedi-rolling robotsDespite being identified as a hazardous occupation, beedi-rolling remains extremely popular in India especially amongst women. But, hour after hour of rolling beedis (a big revenue earner for our country) takes a huge toll on the health of the beedi workers, many of whom live in unspeakable poverty More... Computer education for rural kids riddled with obstaclesThere are plans afoot to computerise thousands of rural schools across India, attended mainly by poor children. But where is the software that is suitable for use in these schools? More... Bringing schools and children togetherThirty per cent of India's population lives in urban slums. Getting children in these slums to school is a difficult task. Keeping them in school is even more difficult. But several organisations, including Pratham in Mumbai, Cini Asha in Kolkata and Baljyothi in Hyderabad, are succeeding in bringing education to these first-generation learners More... Biotechnology will bypass the hungryThree hundred and twenty million Indians go hungry. That's a third of all the world's hungry and marginalised people. Their hunger cannot be addressed by producing transgenic crops with genes for Vitamin A. The authors of the Human Development Report have confused the ground realities with the commercial interests of biotechnology industries More... |
View articles by page |
| Microsites | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| Newsletter |
|---|
 |
| Syndicate |
|---|
 |