While renewable energy was always considered more desirable from the point of view of environment protection, its importance has increased several times in these times of climate change. Solar energy is particularly seen as a very promising source in energy planning for the future in tropical countries like India. Interest in realising the potential of solar energy is fast increasing and organisations which have been pioneers in solar energy are...

The United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government believed in inclusive growth and wanted to ensure that the benefits of growth reached every individual across the country, Congress president Sonia Gandhi said here on Saturday. Over the past six-and-a-half years, the UPA government had strived to ensure economic growth, provide employment to people and raise the resources required for implementing poverty alleviation programmes. “We recognise that growth is necessary for sustaining our programmes. At...

A charred piece of earth and some bits of bones are the only signs of a dastardly killing in the name of honour. No other evidence remains of the spine-chilling crime to mar the rustic charm of Maalaipatti village, perched among the green mountains of the Western Ghats in Dindigul district. On July 28, 2008, a few days after being chained in a bathroom and treated like a rabid dog...

Thousands of poor village youths can now hope to become BPO workers with Ignou training. The Indira Gandhi National Open University will train an estimated 45,000 Rural Youths from below-poverty-line (BPL) families in the areas of telecommunications, business process outsourcing (BPO) and security. It will also teach them soft skills — such as basic spoken English and etiquette — to make easy their shift from agrarian backgrounds to an industry environment. At the...

The West Bengal government has allocated Rs 250 crore for introducing a scheme for generating employment for the urban youth, on the lines of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme. State Finance Minister Asim Dasgupta said that funds allocated for this purpose this year may be augmented according to requirement. Similar schemes have been declared in Tripura and Kerala as well. The scheme, announced by Dr Dasgupta during his budget...