-Frontline Members of denotified, nomadic and semi-nomadic tribes, treated as criminal tribes by the colonial rulers, have no place to call their own and no land, no rights, and no support from the government.  Emaciated, eyes sunken deep into sockets, skin hanging loose, almost gasping for breath, Indro Devi and Sarvnath, a couple in their eighties, lie on polythene sheets in an 8×10 square-foot tent made of rags, by a stinking nullah...

-The Hindu Building ‘capitalism with Indian characteristics’ means decisions cannot ignore concerns of voters and communities As the economy slows down and the rupee wilts, Manmohan Singh has bitten the ‘reforms’ bullet with both eyes on the credit rating agencies whose negative reports have done much to dampen the ‘animal spirits’ of investors, foreign and native. Last November, when the Congress party made a push to introduce foreign direct investment in multi-brand retail,...

-The Times of India The opposition-sponsored Bharat bandh demanding a rollback of the government's decision to hike diesel prices, cap subsidised cooking gas cylinders and allow foreign direct investment in multi-brand retail has evoked mixed response across the nation. Besides the NDA and the Left, the Thursday shutdown has the support of parties like the Samajwadi Party, the TDP, the BJD and many others. In Tamil Nadu, the DMK, which is an ally...

Direct cash transfers or food coupons should be used by the government to provide services to the poor, says Farzana Afridi, Assistant Professor, Economics and Planning Unit, Indian Statistical Institute, New Delhi. Afridi, who obtained her PhD in economics from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, and an MA in economics from the Delhi School of Economics, says that although the Mid Day Meal Programme is having a substantial effect, the...

-Outlook A labour survey underway in Bihar has indicated that outflow of labourers from the state in search of livelihood has further gone down from earlier estimates of 30 per cent on account of development works being carried out in the state. Preliminary reports emanating from the survey suggests a drastic arrest in exodus of workers mainly from districts like Saharsa, Madhubani, Katihar and Purnea in the state. These areas had earlier witnessed...