-Livemint.com Conviction rates for crimes against Dalits have declined sharply since 2011 The recent clashes between Dalits and Thakurs in Saharanpur district of Uttar Pradesh (UP) have once again thrown the spotlight on the deep fault lines in Indian society. While violence against lower caste groups such as Dalits or scheduled castes (SCs) has a long history in the country, such crimes have been on the rise over the past few years, data...

-The Telegraph New Delhi: The government's ban on cattle and buffalo sales for slaughter in animal markets will hurt not just meat sellers but also farmers across communities and could spark a milk shortage, meat dealers today said. "This is a very impractical move. It is totally anti-farmer," said Yusuf Quraishi, president of the Uttar Pradesh unit of the All India Jamiat-ul-Quraish. Most of those engaged in slaughtering animals are Muslims from...

-Frontline.in The Aadhaar project’s headlong push towards “total” enrolment of Indian citizens threatens the privacy of individuals on an unprecedented scale, while its patchy biometric system acts as a tool of denial for the most vulnerable. Meanwhile, the UID chugs along, regardless, fuelled by the avarice of private interests who seek to cash in on citizen data. IN the last seven years, the right to privacy of Indian citizens has been...

-The Times of India At the age of 18, Anwar Ali was the sole breadwinner for his family. Last week, he was hit by a Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation bus while cycling to work in Koppal. He lay bleeding on the road. Instead of rushing him to hospital, most passersby took out their mobile phones to click pictures of the bloodied man. A morbid, voyeuristic urge to upload heart-rending photos of...

-Bangalore Mirror The issue of encroachments in Devammachi Reserved Forests in Diddalli, Kodagu has thankfully evoked a balanced response from political leaders cutting across party lines. The Chief Minister, the District Minister, the Member of Parliament and the Virajpet MLA have all taken a clear stand that such fresh forest encroachments cannot be permitted while maintaining that poor people would be rehabilitated outside. However, the ill informed actions and statements of...