-Economic and Political Weekly The government has notified a Draft Land Reforms Policy which, on paper, has all the requisites of an earnest programme. Yet, the near total failure of earlier efforts at land reforms in India leave little room for hope that something substantial will at last be done to combat landlessness. Harsh Mander (manderharsh@gmail.com) is with the Centre for Equity Studies, New Delhi, and works with survivors of mass violence,...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: Finding tension still simmering in Haryana's Mirchpur village more than three years after dalit houses were torched resulting in a handicapped girl and her father getting burnt to death, the Supreme Court on Monday asked the state, "Who is dividing society on caste lines?" The Haryana government's counsel answered, "The powerful and those in power." The question from a bench of Justices G S Singhvi and V...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: Almost one-fifth of elders surveyed in Delhi have complained of abuse, says the latest data released by an NGO. The capital has the third highest rate of abuse after Hyderabad and Kolkata among five Tier-I cities that were surveyed. The HelpAge India report 'Elder Abuse in India 2013' that has covered 6,748 elders across 24 cities found another also found another unique trend in Delhi. While...

-The Guardian Land rights not just issue for developing world as report shows public subsidies help a few firms 'grab' vast tracts of EU land Vast tracts of land in Europe are being "grabbed" by large companies, speculators, wealthy foreign buyers and pension funds in a similar way to in developing countries, according to a major new report. Chinese corporations, Middle Eastern sovereign wealth and hedge funds, as well as Russian oligarchs and...

-The Hindu Until we embrace the idea of consent in all relationships, including marriage, there can be no gender equality. Its absence makes discussions on sexual abuse meaningless The man who was my abuser was a fine host, a good husband, a caring father, a respected elder whose generosity and kindness were as genuine as the fact of the abuse. These qualities were important, because they helped him conceal the abuse he...