Why shouldn't we tax CNG?
The Union revenue secretary, S Narayan , has no clue as to how fiscal instruments are designed to balance revenue priorities and secure a clean …
Wolf at our door
The US has made the world rewrite the climate agreement so that the targets are based on voluntary action, not science
Workers don’t count
The recent strike reflects how the workers’ bargaining power has been crushed, and the impotence of the Left to lead them
On air
Angry residents of Delhi flooded the chief minister's office with phone calls to protest against the withdrawal of a ban on polluting vehicles
No way out
Officials are now promoting a new paradigm for flood control. They are pushing for a huge dam in Nepal. Does it provide scope for further …
State of despair
Criminals followed corrupt politicians into grabbing contracts related to earthworks. Today, they fund political parties and virtually run the …
The shifting sands
At first the rivers and the people were both unfettered. Then the politicians came between them
A billion strong or weak?
Recently, India crossed the one-billion population mark. The question on everyone's lips is what does the future hold for babies born this …
Riots for water
Faced with a severe drought, the Gujarat government decided to reserve water from a dam for the town of Jamnagar. Rural folk of Saurashtra …
Strings attached
Centre's purpose of reserving 50 per cent seats for women in panchayat elections defeated by puppet candidates
The Global South is on the rise — but what exactly is the Global South?
With an economic shift & enhanced political visibility, countries in the Global South are increasingly asserting themselves on the …
International Women’s Day: Self-help groups are institutions with bargaining power today; now it is time for the next step
Self-help groups bring about socio-economic empowerment of women by providing access to income-generating opportunities. Focus should now be on …
India’s academic freedom declined strongly since 2013: Report
India among populous countries like China, the United States that fared poorly in the latest academic freedom index
Political parties choose farm loan waiver for electoral gains, but at what cost?
Farmers have outstanding loan of Rs12.60 lakh crore, which translates to Rs 100,000 per cultivator
High anxiety
Heated exchanges marked a conference which ended abruptly to hastily patch up a lukewarm agreement
The cost of inaction
Cornered by the SC and buckling under pressure of protesters, the Delhi government dilutes household industry norms
The third wind
The new challenges before Japan require leadership from not just the government and the corporate sector but also the civil society
Will India have its green moment in politics?
The fact that these issues are still remote from our understanding is evidenced by a survey which revealed that more than 74% people between the …
Haunted by the past
Five years ago, Nigerian social activist Ken Saro-Wiwa was killed because he fought against multinational oil companies and dared to assert the …
Yet another pretense
CNG technology is not proven, says the Delhi government to avoid implementing the Supreme Court order
Banking on a flimsy promise
The government is clueless about incentives it has promised under its Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana to bring every family under the formal …
Warm-up to kyoto
The industrialise countries have released billions of tonnes of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere, but want the south to play nanny to them and …
Why history will judge Burundi’s Pierre Nkurunziza harshly
Pierre Nkurunziza ruled with an iron fist, making few compromises: his insistence in 2015 on changing the constitution to enable him to have …
'Relations between non-profits & govt are waning since liberalisation'
In the wake of arrests of 5 human rights activists by Maharashtra police, Down To Earth speaks to activists about what is bringing …
Regreening of Japan
The Japanese have regenerated their forests twice after their large-scale destruction. But today, it is doing so at the cost of tropical forests …