-The Hindu The Araku valley saw its first childbirth in a hospital, thanks to young nurses drawn from the tribes themselves On an ordinary workday, 27-year-old Pramila Bariki hikes up steep slopes, across fields, through ankle-deep rivulets, often walking up to 14 km. She gets a ride until the road is motorable, from which point she has to walk. Her job? She doles out healthcare advice to mothers and children in the remotest...

-Hindustan Times In India, it’s difficult to find accurate estimates of campaign spending. Research also shows that illicit funds are important in funding elections in the country. Despite constant chatter about the massive (and rising) costs of election campaigns in India, there is a dearth of credible data on the actual costs, the sources of support for candidates, and the implications of campaign costs on governance between elections. However, newly available survey data...

-TheWire.in With the final draft NRC expected soon, there is still no visible mechanism in place for the EC to continuously update its list based on the judgements by tribunals clearing 'D voters'. Guwahati: Shah Alam Bhuyan, an assistant inspector in the Assam police, reminded me of a stark truth about policemen on election duty: “We just help others vote, most of us can’t vote because we are usually on election...

-PTI NEW DELHI: The finance mnistry has refused to share copy of three reports on the quantum of black money held by Indians inside the country and abroad, saying its disclosure would cause a breach of privilege of Parliament. The then UPA government had in 2011 commissioned these studies by Delhi-based National Institute of Public Finance and Policy (NIPFP) and National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER) as well as the National...

-The Hindu Recent Census data appear to inadequately reflect India’s linguistic composition, and are inconsistent with global ideas The story, “Death of Jagmohan, the Elephant”, by Bengali writer Mahasweta Devi, is about the death of an elephant. For a reader, the story may appear to be about a rather “big death”, but what the writer wanted to say was that there are also many “small deaths”. They include the deaths of Dalits...