“Aboriginal people in Australia still do not have right over their land”
Poet and writer ALI COBBY ECKERMANN was in India recently to launch her memoir, Too Afraid To Cry. The book is an account of her growing up as a …
Murder mystery in Bihar
The killing of two social activists has left behind a series of unanswered questions. On the evening of January 24 social activists Sarita and …
On The Warpath
They prefer to be called the 'forest castes'. They are the 2,000,000-odd villagers living in some 10,000 villages across Orissa. After …
SEZ, how special?
Despite having burned its fingers with export processing zones, which mainly involved a number of substantial fiscal benefits, the government has …
Mining firms set up shop in Orissa
Lanjigarh block, Kalahandi, Orissa, May 17: At its summit, the northeastern ridge of the Niyamgiri hill range has a bald patch, typical of …
Rights without benefits
Over 1.3 million tribals and forest dwellers have got rights over the land they had been using for years under the Forest Rights Act. This can, …
Defeminisation of Indian agriculture
While reorganising land rights for rural women may be an arduous and long-drawn task, alternative solutions can be adopted
Land grabbing intensity doubled in last four years, says report
Land deals primarily target areas previously used for agriculture, which increases competition for land and the potential for conflicts
Fenced out
The Delhi administration's move to make the Asola and Bhatti sanctuaries exclusively protected areas ring alarm bells in the local villages
Customary land governance holds in Ghana. But times are changing and not for the better
Studies have shown that liberal policies have resulted in a growing tendency of titleholders to abuse their powers
Land for ladies
Rural women in Uttar Pradesh join hands to end gender bias in agriculture and claim joint ownership of land
Steering into turbulence
Australian politicians are finding it hard to live with a landmark judgment, which puts in jeopardy the landholding rights of colonialists by …
Kenya enacts law to give land titles to marginalised communities
The Community Land Bill lays down steps for communities to acquire titles to their ancestral land
Possessed by land
Landholding can affect marital prospects. It can also affect sex ratios and lead to polyandry. A village in Alwar provides a snapshot
No to afforestation
Furious at losing their traditional rights over land, residents of a south Delhi village say...
Whose land is it, anyway?
The Mabo judgement, which recognises Australian aboriginal claims to land, has led to protests from business circles and could have an impact as …
Dupont decried
After the Thapar-Dupont plant was driven out of Goa, and it found a refuge in Tamil Nadu, a ho,n,t's nest has again been stirred up
Chhattisgarh cancels forest rights of tribals in Surguja
Activists claim the move was in response to the tribals’ protest against mining in their forest
A wrong righted: Chhattisgarh becomes first state to give farmers their land back
Chhattisgarh has set an example by returning land acquired forcefully from over 1,700 farmers for a steel plant. Can other states follow suit?
Punjab's marginalised communities struggle for their right to cultivate common lands
People from the scheduled caste have once protested against big landlords who have taken control of fertile common lands and they are all set to …
People of no land
Jharkhand's decision to allow the use of tribal land for non-agricultural purposes could lead to mass displacement
Latin America, the most unequal region of the world in land distribution
Economic elites use their clout to influence regulatory decisions to serve their interest by either funding political parties or controlling the media
Community reserves: Are they forest department’s backdoor entry into North East India
Provisions of Wild Life (Protection) Act apply to an area once it becomes a community reserve; it is also unclear as to which law will apply if …
Going backward
As the Maratha community in Maharashtra finally gets 16 per cent reservation in government jobs and education, Down To Earth profiles other …
Consolidation against commoners
After land consolidation was introduced, the landless poor and agricultural labourers, who depended on common resources, faced tremendous problems