-The Times of India BANGALORE: India's burgeoning population appears to be both a problem and an advantage. Very soon, the southern states are likely to stare at an un-Indian situation: a shrinking populace, owing to a sharp dip in the fertility rate of women. Analyzing the 2011 Census data, the Population Research Centre of the Bangalore-based Institute for Social and Economic Change found that many southern districts, a significant number of them...

-The Business Standard Govt must recognise that RTE is not working as it should There is little doubt that one of the most crucial tasks of the Indian state at present is to ensure that its Young people receive an education sufficient to meet their aspirations. Given India's demographic profile, it could well end up with an under-educated generation if it does not scale up its educational infrastructure and effectiveness of policy....

-The Indian Express Special courts for those falsely held in terror cases would acknowledge the problem, not solve it The Union home ministry has come out in support of demands for the setting up of special courts for speedy disposal of cases of those believed to be falsely accused of involvement in terror cases. As reported in this newspaper on Sunday, Minister Sushilkumar Shinde has also indicated that action would be initiated...

-The Hindu Natpurwa is a village where women have been forced into prostitution for centuries. And one of them is determined to help the others break free. Round faced, stout and dusky, Chandralekha, at age 15, was the most desired girl among the politicians, policemen and senior members of Eastern Uttar Pradesh’s civil society. “They always wanted plump women,” says Chandralekha, now 51 years old. Chandralekha was pushed into prostitution, by her...

-The New York Times Inequality has been rising in most countries around the world, but it has played out in different ways across countries and regions. The US, it is increasingly recognised, has the sad distinction of being the most unequal advanced country. Singapore, meanwhile, has had the distinction of having prioritised social and economic equity while achieving very high rates of growth over the past 30 years: an example par excellence...