As a country grappling with political and infrastructural problems, there are very few issues that do not evoke extreme, often diametrically opposite, reactions in India. Population control Bills, vaccination policy, farmer income initiatives, river water sharing mechanisms or surrogacy laws—there is no dearth of topics that have triggered controversy, and …
the Musi river flowing through Andhra Pradesh will soon disappear due to the state government's Nandanvanam project. The government is planning to utilise the dry river bed of Musi for various purposes such as creating amusement parks, commercial complexes and construction of a road. The project is being strongly opposed …
" before 1996, European tourists would often complain about the poor visibility of the snow-capped mountains from Kathmandu,' says Ishwar Chettri, who runs a travel agency in the Nepalese capital. But the ban on the sale of new diesel vehicles in 1996 and the subsequent blanket ban on diesel-run three-wheelers …
It is a story that the Indian administrative set up has learned to mouth mindlessly every year after floods wreak havoc. All governments in states affected by the recent floods are blaming the respective governments upstream for causing deforestation and not going ahead with dam projects across major rivers. As …
a storm is brewing in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh. It is not one that augurs well for a state known for the progress heralded by its computer-friendly and media-savvy chief minister Chandrababu Naidu. The state government is at an advanced stage of signing a memorandum of understanding ( …
Forest brigand Veerapan has made four fresh demands to release Kannada superstar Raj Kumar and three others held hostage by him. He has also declared himself a Tamil extremist. "My earlier struggle was for six lakh people of the forest area, now I am in the field for the six …
Zimbabwean soldiers are plundering the natural resources of the Democratic Republic of Congo ( drc ), alleges John Makumbe of a corruption watchdog group. Zimbabwe has deployed almost 11,000-12,000 troops in drc since August 1998 to support president Laurent Kabila's government against the rebels in the civil war. "Others countries, …
Guess what's common to plastic wastes and India's present day politicians? Well, for one, both are non-biodegradable. They cause problems long after their utility expires. Most belong, quite rightfully, to the dustbin. Several have no utility to begin with. And both can get recycled and return in deadlier forms. Obviously, …
the floods have once again ravaged Bihar. Claims made by the government that all precautionary measures were taken, embankment and anti-erosion work completed in time and that the floods would not be allowed to occur
Why is Veerappan popular with the residents of some 175 villages from where he operates? Simply because he not only gives them employment, but also facilitates smuggling of small amount of sandalwood in the nearby Salem market in Tamil Nadu. Considering that he has not been actively involved with smuggling …
it all happened on a dark Sunday night. The Kannada screen idol Rajkumar was in Doddagajanur village in Erode district, Tamil Nadu, for a house-warming get together with his family and relatives. The bandit was on the prowl. Before anyone knew what was happening, he had whisked away their dear …
You had mentioned in your article about the attitude and the activities of Indian politicians, officials and the persons responsible for causing pollution. The problem we are facing is a classic example of the above. We have been fighting for the past year to get justice and three of our …
Bangalore, India's Silicon Valley, ground to halt in the first week of August. The rich and the powerful of the software industry would probably have failed to understand why. Ironically, their operating systems have crashed under the collective burden of the cries of the thousands of poor villagers and tribal …
If you are a self-respecting Hindu, have deep religious feelings for the river Narmada, and are worried about what the Sardar Sarovar Dam might do to the river, you don't matter. At least not to the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (vhp). But a dam on the river Ganga in Tehri is …
Is the problem of Kashmir merely one of guns and guards or also one of hearts and minds? Unfortunately, neither the Central and state governments nor the Indian media have paid adequate attention to the latter dimension of the problem. C Subramaniam, the former finance minister, has written an interesting …
don corleone was probably the most popular citizen in the us when Hollywood made the film The Godfather . He used to make people offers they couldn't refuse. If they did they wound up dead. In the case of Africa, the local people and the government have been made an …
even with social activism on the increase, there are cases of powerful industry managing to circumvent rules and bypass procedures to ensure their units get governmental approval to function, regardless of their polluting and degrading natures. An example is Meta Strips Limited (msl), a copper recycling plant, which has got …
The South African government has severely criticised an offer of Pfizer Incorporation, a pharmaceutical company, to supply a powerful and expensive drug called Diflucan free of cost. Diflucan is used to treat a deadly AIDS-related infection. According to government officials, the offer is too restrictive to be of much benefit …
A thin strip of land trapped between the Arabian Sea and the Kerala backwaters. This is Challanam in Ernakulam district. Freshwater used to be very scarce. Although it rains in torrents during the monsoon, the water would flow into the sea. Groundwater was useless due to ingress of saline water. …
Leftist politicians have a reputation across the world for being immensely centralised in their thinking. So, what was different in Kerala, where the major steps in the decentralisation drive have been taken by the ldf alliance? For one, the socioeconomic conditions desperately called for a change. For another, a highly …
