Analysis of Budget 2012-13

Against the backdrop of a slowdown in growth, deteriorating fiscal conditions, inflationary pressure and political turbulence, Union finance …

Earth crusaders

Ever since the first Earth Day was celebrated in 1970, countries around the world celebrate April 22 by organising programmes to plant saplings, …

Is Internet really free?

The Internet, it is believed, is vital to democracy, a channel that makes possible a continuous worldwide conversation. Its a veritable global …

Urban India's deprived lot

India is becoming dominantly urban, and the urban poor, who are increasing in numbers, face exclusion from basic amenities like safe drinking …

‘Making TB a notifiable disease will benefit patients’

Tuberculosis kills around 1,000 people each day in India and more than two million people are affected by the bacterial disease. This makes India …

Sarpamitras to get ID cards in Maharashtra

Some voluntary snake rescuers were found involved in smuggling snakes or keeping them in captivity, prompting forest department to fix …

‘English wiped out local languages elsewhere, not in India’

Eighty-Five years after George A Grierson, a British administrator, conducted the first survey of languages in India, another such exercise has …

Shift grain bowl status from North to other regions of India

Balwinder Singh Sidhu, agriculture commissioner and chief conservator of soils in Punjab, is known for giving his opinion in a frank and …

‘The role of the state should be pragmatic, not ideological’

Calestous Juma is professor of Practice of International Development and faculty chair of Innovation for Economic Development Program at Harvard …

'I cannot be a mute spectator to the carnage of Ganga'

As Uttarakhand grapples with the task of repair and restoration, octogenarian environmentalist G D Agarwal's fast to free Ganga of dams continues.…

Technology interventions that save water

It was early June. Jaspal Ram of Lehra Turkot in district Bathinda of Punjab was busy in his field putting gunny bags filled with mud on a plank …

Remembering Nammalvar: farewell, organic saint-warrior

G Nammalvar, the agriculture scientist who pioneered organic farming movement in Tamil Nadu, passed away on December 30 at the age of 75. He …

My report is not an industry report: T S R Subramanian

The High Level Committee (HLC), constituted by the Union Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) three months ago to …

‘South-East Asia must remain polio-free after certification’

Poonam Khetrapal Singh became the first woman to assume the office of WHO Regional Director for South-East Asia on February 1, 2014. Her priority …

Village protesting Kundankulam bans poll campaigning by any party

S P Udayakumar, coordinator of Peoples’ Movement Against Nuclear Energy, has been spearheading protests against the Kudankulam Nuclear …

'Biodiversity authority needs autonomy'

Balakrishna Pisupati was the first biodiversity expert to head India's National Biodiversity Authority (NBA) and had more than six months to go …

‘China growth model cannot be universal’

Wen Teijun, dean of Renim University in Beijing, has been documenting the world's agrarian history and turmoils. He initiated the New Rural …

‘Watershed conservation can benefit 700 million people in 100 big cities’

Indian cities are struggling to fight water stress. Cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Jodhpur are going to areas located far away to source …

‘Separate power feeders can greatly improve rural electrification’

Over 65 years after Independence, nearly half of the 800 million people living in rural India are yet to get access to electricity. A major …

Southeast US will bear the worst of this year’s winter, says AccuWeather

This US-based independent weather agency set off gasps of dread and many counter-forecasts last week when it indicated “the return” …

I was dropped because I stood for Western Ghats conservation: P T Thomas

P T Thomas, senior Indian National Congress leader and sitting Member of Parliament from Idukki Lok Sabha constituency, has been denied a ticket …

'Elephant conservation is not exactly anybody’s priority'

M D Madhusudan is an ecologist and conservationist with Nature Conservation Foundation in Mysore, Karnataka. An elephant expert, he is a member …

Lowland rice is a carbon sink

Pratap Bhattacharyya, senior scientist at the Central Rice Research Institute (CRRI) in Odisha, along with his team at the institute, says rice …

Soon, an early warning system for cyclones and floods

Regional Integrated Multi-Hazard Early Warning System (RIMES) for Africa and Asia was put in place soon after the 2004 tsunami hit the Indian …

Iran-India gas pipeline laid low by geopolitics

Mani Shankar Aiyar is known for the many controversies sparked by his provocative comments and controversial ideas. As Minister for Petroleum and …