Some 350km (220 miles) from India's commercial capital, Mumbai, lies the village of Madban overlooking the vast expanse of the Arabian Sea. It is in this village that a 10,000 megawatt nuclear power plant is proposed - and farmers and fishermen, backed by campaigners, are hardening their stance against it. People from Madban believe the project will cause havoc to the environment and to their livelihoods. Stunning beauty Pravin Gavhankar, a...

Human rights activist Irom Sharmila, jailed since 2000 for resorting to a hunger strike against alleged rights violations by the security forces in Manipur, was once again arrested by police on charges of attempted suicide. The activist continued her refusal to eat a single morsel of food. Sharmila, who earned the sobriquet Iron Lady of Manipur and is now in her 10th year of judicial custody, was arrested Wednesday night and...

The countries of Asia and the Pacific have not duplicated their economic success in the realm of gender equality, according to a new United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) report, which found that discrimination and neglect are threatening the very survival of women in the region. “Empowering women is vital for achieving development goals overall and for boosting economic growth and sustainable development,” said UNDP Administrator Helen Clark, who unveiled the...

A United Nations independent human rights expert today voiced concern over the deaths of homeless people in India’s capital from a cold wave, underscoring the need for adequate shelter to protect them from harsh weather. “The lives of hundreds of homeless people in India are at risk as temperatures near zero degrees,” said Raquel Rolnik, the Special Rapporteur on the right to adequate housing. Ten homeless people have lost their...

The poor health indices and health care in rural India have always been met with lofty ideals sans action; they demand urgent and radical solutions.  The recent proposal to introduce a new medical course, Bachelor of Rural Health Care, has been met with resistance from many sections of the medical fraternity. Its opponents argue that it will result in second-class health care for rural India and increase the rural-urban divide....