Women-led and women’s rights organizations are on the frontlines of today’s humanitarian crises—but many are at risk of disappearing. As global needs rise due to conflict, climate change, and displacement, deep cuts to foreign aid are threatening organizations that provide life-saving services for women and girls. In March 2025, UN …
A 25-year-long battle in Taiwan between the area's government and indigenous people has culminated with the government agreeing to shut down a nuclear waste dump in Orchid Island by 2016. The island, about 65 km off Taiwan's southeast coast, is home to indigenous communities and has long been used to …
the stage is set for protests against the Dharavi Redevelopment Project (drp), which envisages transforming Dharavi into an integrated township without people's consent. On June 18, residents will march to the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority's office to voice their protests. Raju Korde, president of Dharavi Bachao Committee is …
At least three major cities saw protests in May against Reliance, India's largest corporation, entering the business of retailing fresh vegetables and fruits through its brand Reliance Fresh. In Ranchi and Indore, the protests had political backing and turned violent. The protestors, mostly street vendors, fear the company's low prices …
it's official. The Reliance special economic zone (sez) project in Haryana is on. On June 5, the Board of Approval of sezs, a government body, gave its nod to the sez, which is to come up in 565 hectares (ha) in Gurgaon and Jhajjar districts of Haryana. Land was acquired …
Industrialist Ratan Tata has reportedly written to the prime minister cribbing about delays in implementing big buck projects. In his capacity as the chair of the government's investment commission he says over us $50 billion is tied up because of delays in allocating land and resources. His list includes major …
Sua Nath is usually an amiable farmer. But ask him about mining in his village, Bagjana, and he flares up. Nath is among those who have taken it upon themselves to protect this village in Rajasthan's Bhilwara district from mining. The anti-mining movement has, in fact, struck roots in many …
while the Supreme Court was deliberating if mining for bauxite at the Niyamgiri hills would irreplaceably affect wildlife there, out at the proposed site, on May 17, a big cat quietly padded past a Down To Earth photographer. Appearance of the leopard (Panthera pardus)
orissa's rich mineral resources have turned the state into a veritable battleground. On May 11, 2007, three Pohang Steel Company (posco) officials were kidnapped in Govindpur village in Jagatsighpur district. One of the officials was released immediately and two others were released after 10 hours of grilling and after giving …
Even as Niger recently permitted uranium mining in the Sahara desert in the country's north, its parliament sanctioned around us $60 million to defend mining companies against attacks by
Thousands of tribals in Madhya Pradesh's Rewa district are on the run after they were allegedly attacked by the local administration and upper caste landlords. On April 19, 2007, tribals in Ghateha village, bordering Uttar Pradesh, were evicted from the over 400-hectare (ha) forestland by a large contingent of police …
Gujarat has received encomiums from many quarters for its rapid industrialisation. Industries have mushroomed all over the state, thanks to investment campaigns like
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has urged Israel to immediately ease restrictions on the waters off the Gaza Strip. The request comes at the beginning of annual fishing high season. The UN body noted that Israel's restrictions have hit more than 40,000 people of the …
Construction work was stopped at a biomedical waste incineration facility in Rajasthan's Kota district following opposition from local people. Construction of the plant started in March 2007 without any environmental impact assessment or permission from the state pollution control board. Residents feared the plant would contaminate their water resources. The …
Nandigram in West Bengal continues to witness sporadic outbreaks of violence between anti- and pro-land acquisition forces. On April 29, one person was killed and two others injured in clashes between ruling CPI-M activists and members of the anti-land acquisition Bhumi Uchchhed Pratirodh Committee (BUPC). While police say one person …
The police recently blocked tribal people's protests in South Tripura district in Tripura over the Gumti Hydro-Electric Project commissioned in 1974. The tribal people want the project scrapped and the land given back to them but the state government is not doing that. "Hydel power is still cheaper, much cheaper …
just after the uk termed climate change a threat to security, the us on April 16, said climate change poses a threat to national security. "Climate change acts as a threat multiplier for instability in some of the most volatile regions of the world,' says a report by the us …
entry of government officials in Chandan Nagar in Sarguja district of Chhattisgarh has been banned with effect from May 1, 2007. This comes after series of long-standing protests by people against a proposed 1,000-mw thermal power plant in the district. iffco Chhattisgarh Power Limited (icpl) is a joint venture between …
Ethnic conflicts have dogged India since independence. The problem has attracted a lot of scholarship. Amarjyoti Borah talks to two eminent academics who have looked at the problem. Ram Dayal Munda, currently chief advisor, Indian Confederation of Indigenous and Tribal Peoples, puts the problem of tribal people in the country …
