Members of ‘Bandi Mukti Committee' — a human Rights organisation — and a section of the city's intelligentsia demanded the immediate and unconditional release of renowned physician Binayak Sen here on Thursday. Dr. Sen was sentenced to life imprisonment by a Raipur sessions court on December 24 last year on sedition charges. Criticising the way Dr. Sen's lawyer was not allowed to give explanation supporting his client after the judgement, Magsaysay Award-winning...

Like Kerala’s Kasaragod, neighbouring Dakshina Kannada is bearing the brunt of spraying of endosulfan. While Kasaragod grabbed media spotlight and Kerala banned the pesticide, victims in Karnataka are still struggling for recognition. Karnataka chief minister B S Yeddyurappa in December announced that his government would consider banning endosulfan. The highly toxic pesticide is banned in over 70 countries. The assurance has come too late and is too little for the hundreds of...

In a consultation on minimum wages organized by the Bandhua Mukti Morcha in collaboration with the Planning Commission and NMML in New Delhi on Tuesday and Wednesday , there was overwhelming consensus on the sanctity of Minimum Wages.   Speakers included Justice Shah, Aruna Roy, Harsh Mander, Sitaram Yechury, Montek Singh Ahluwalia, Harish Rawat, Jayati Ghosh, B.D. Sharma, D Raja, Swamy Agnivesh, and Prashant Bhushan Justice Shah established that repeated Supreme Court...

Expressing concern about the food security of poor people in poverty-stricken KBK (Kalahandi-Balangir-Koraput) region, National Human Rights Commission today directed the Orissa government to present status of its recommendation on implementation of welfare schemes in the area. "The state government has been directed to depute an officer to be present before the commission on March 21, 2011 giving status on the implementation of recommendations of the commission," NHRC Chairperson Justice K...

The National Advisory Council headed by Congress president Sonia Gandhi is unhappy with the poor implementation of the Scheduled Tribes and Other Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, which was once billed as a landmark initiative of the UPA I for economic empowerment of the tribal people. The NAC now wants the government to change the law to make it more effective and has recommended several amendments, including one to...