A huge quantity of rice, enough to feed thousands of hungry mouths, has been allowed to rot in drought-hit Jharkhand. Nearly 14,000 quintals of rice perished thanks to the negligence of the East Singhbhum district administration which did precious little to stop sacks of staple from being reduced to an inedible heap at a block office godown near Parsudih. Officials said scrapping of the Sampurn Gramin Rojgar Yojana (SGRY) in 2006 was...

Rubber growers and traders of Kerala are up in arms against the Union Government’s decision to slash the import duty of natural rubber to 7.5 per cent from 20 per cent. Economists, farmers and traders feel that Central decision would cause the biggest agricultural crisis of recent times. The steep cut in the import duty is sure to push the farmers and traders of Kerala, which accounts for more than 90...

Janardhana Reddy insists he is not a king. No, no, no, he protested, as a servant trotted across the courtyard to deliver a cup of cooled water. Men with machine guns stood outside. An architect waited to discuss the new mansion, while another man hovered nearby, sitting in the grass. “He’s the state minister of health,” Mr. Reddy said of the man in the grass, who stood up, made a little...

A 68-year-old Right to Information activist in Kancheepuram was found dead on the side of a road in Velathottam in Kancheepuram district on Thursday evening. V Balasubrmanian had filed a number of applications under the Right To Information (RTI) Act seeking information about alleged irregularities in several handloom weavers' cooperative societies in Kancheepuram district, it was learnt. Federation of Anti-Corruption Teams-India general secretary T Retnapandian of Chennai told TOI that...

Experts show how electricity for poor people is possible Is electricity for all a pipe dream? Should we forget about electricity for all until we are able to provide more basic amenities like drinking water, nutritious food, education and healthcare?   India is home to the largest number of people without electricity. Half of Indian households do not have access to power, which constitute a third of the world's population without electricity. Though...