We want to ensure an NGO in every village
Anna Hazare's name is synonymous with rural development and people's power. Hazare had once again hit the headlines in May by undertaking a fast …
Indian science must stop merely aping West
Cynicism is perhaps the natural fallout of a long career within the government machinery. But when Yash Pal, one of the country's leading …
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 …
How MGNREGA blew Rs 10,853 crore
The “little known” success story of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) has unfolded as a disaster. …
Kangra safe corners
The Himalaya is the youngest range of mountains in the world are immensely prone to earthquakes. The entire range falls in seismic zone 5 and 4 - …
Impotent plan?
In August 2005, the Indian Parliament passed the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (nrega). The latest avatar of state-financed employment …
Whose budget is it, Mr Jaitley?
Being the first full year budget of the National Democratic Alliance government, there was expectation that the finance minister's announcements …
Power the people
For the country where only 15 per cent of its population have access to electricity, Nepal has come a long way. It took 84 years to achieve power …
Aaj Ka Roadshow
Liberalisation in India has not only affected humdrum life, but also popular cultural forms. This is palpable in the changing dynamics of the big …
SUBSIDISED KILLING
They may survive the drought. But they cannot survive government policies. When people have to abandon their livestock, they are reduced to misery,…
A watershed plan
Recurrent droughts and floods coupled with mass poverty, chronic unemployment and pervasive malnutrition are the major challenges before India. …
Saga of two villages
Sukhomajri was a dirt-poor village in Haryana. It started pulling itself out of its hole in the late 1970s, making a dizzying ascent to …
The panchayat outrage
It was a vote for self-governance, not self-determination. No panchayat election in the country ever created as much hype as that of Jammu and …
Hiware Bazar - A village with 54 millionaires
Hiware Bazar, a village in Maharashtra's drought-prone Ahmednagar district, was sliding into an abyss after degrading its environment. But in …
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, …
