Despite criticism of the appointment process, and pendency , the Supreme Court appears to enjoy public confidence like no other institution As the Supreme Court of India approaches its final week of hearings for the year, a look back shows it has dominated the national consciousness by ruling on myriad issues. The court was conceived by the framers of the constitution to deal mainly with fundamental questions of law. But India’s top...

The winds of democracy are making it harder for India to negotiate the construction of mega hydel projects in Bhutan. Fixing terms and conditions for bringing power from Bhutan was a cakewalk with the first three hydel projects five years ago. With newspapers other than the Kuensel , a tiny but vocal Opposition in Bhutanese Parliament and exiled leaders raising issues relating to sovereignty, Indian officials are now having to work...

Global retail chains looking to set up shop in India may face several challenges such as delay in the implementation of goods and services tax and restrictions imposed by the Agricultural Produce Marketing Committee (APMC) Act, besides political opposition. These hurdles can be roadblocks in providing real benefits to farmers and consumers as intended by the government in opening the multi-brand retail sector to foreign direct investment. “GST (goods and services tax)...

We have five million children in the labour market, say official figures. Their actual numbers may be four times as many. As a nation, we have failed each one of them…   Millions of our children still labour today, in factories, farms, kilns, mines, homes and city waste dumps, when they should be in school or in a playground. We profoundly fail these children, collectively depriving them of education, play, rest, healthy...

CHANDRAWAL, India—Satbir Sharma's wife is dead. His family lives in fear. His father's left leg is shattered, leaving him on crutches for life.   Sharma's only hope lies in a new law that gives him the right to know what is happening in the investigation of his wife's death. Most of all, he wants to know what will happen to the village mayor, now in jail on murder charges. He talks quietly, under...