-The Hindu For India, which has successfully kept naturally-occurring ‘wild' polioviruses at bay for three whole years, a new challenge looms. India is among 140 countries that rely on the oral polio vaccine (OPV). These countries have now been asked to introduce an injectable inactivated polio vaccine (IPV) into their routine childhood immunisation programme by the end of next year. The oral vaccine, which is cheap and easily administered, uses live but weakened...

-The Hindu Maoists in Jamui use this tactic in dealings with contractors Jamui (Bihar): After the trucks were loaded with sand and the invoices prepared, Raju Yadav hung his boots for the day. As darkness spread over the Kiyul river, he settled down for a chat with his co-workers at a nearby shelter. "Suddenly, a group of 20 armed Maoists dressed in fatigues swooped down on us and took us hostage. They tied...

-The Hindu   Despite having Dhamanguda minor irrigation project, they could not access water from it Adilabad (Andhra Pradesh): Politicians are not the popular lot among the poor Adivasi voters holding the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) job cards in Adilabad district. As they feel that political leaders are responsible for their present pitiable state of utter poverty. "It's been ten years since the Dhamanguda minor irrigation was built, but we...

-The Hindustan Times It's interesting how some concepts can be mobilising, and their relevance apparently self-evident, while they probably escape any simple analytical definition. ‘Happiness' could be one, despite the celebrated Bhutanese innovation in producing statistics on gross national happiness. ‘Food security' is another. It has been associated with a concern over food price volatility, and the movement of prices was also instrumental in sustaining the debate in India that led to...

-The Hindu Business Line Norman Borlaug is regarded as the ‘father' of the Green Revolution. It's his birth centenary today We cannot talk about India's Green Revolution without mentioning Nobel laureate Norman Borlaug, the globally renowned wheat scientist. He was a great friend of India and the Indian farmer in particular. Indeed, when he died in September 2009 aged 95, there was great sorrow in the Green Revolution belt in Punjab and Haryana. As...