Tribal communities are vulnerable not only because they are poor, assetless and illiterate compared to the general population, their distinct vulnerability arises from their inability to negotiate and cope with the consequences of their forced integration with the mainstream economy, society, and cultural and political system. The repercussions for the already fragile socio-economic livelihood base of the tribals have been devastating—ranging from loss of livelihoods, land alienation on a vast...

India’s rulers have found a new vocation – maligning environmentalists and questioning the very idea of regulating industry for pollution. Thus, faced with criticism of Lavasa, an artificial gated city of the super-rich near Pune, in which his family has invested crores, Agriculture Minister, Sharad Pawar, lashed out at well-known activist Medha Patkar and other “vested interests” for obstructing this “pioneering” project. Lavasa’s promoters built the project without seeking environmental clearance...

The Environment Ministry's clearance of projects such as Posco, Jaitapur and Lavasa will cause havoc in our gravely endangered environment. EVEN the worst pessimist could not have imagined that the January 31 order of the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) approving the South Korean-origin company Posco's steel project in Orissa would be as bad as it actually is. Construction of the Rs.54,000-crore steel plant, its captive power unit and private...

A shocking statistic has revealed that India is highly vulnerable to harassment towards women, with one woman molested every 26 minutes. The study by the South India Cell for Human Rights Education and Monitoring said one woman is raped every 34 minutes, while among 15 million girls born every year, one-fourth don’t get to celebrate their 15th birthday. Many villages, despite dearth of basic amenities, have ultrasound machines to check the...

Thousands of children and women die every year in India due to lack of access to basic healthcare. Why is it that, in the Mecca of medical tourism, the poor continue to be denied the right to health? A national television channel had a 30-minute special recently on how private hospitals are denying free medical treatment to poor patients. Under a quota, private hospitals are expected to provide medical treatment...