-AP   Rural America now accounts for just 16 percent of the U.S. population, the lowest ever. The latest 2010 census numbers hint at an emerging America where, by mid-century, city boundaries become indistinct and rural areas grow ever less relevant. Many communities could shrink to virtual ghost towns as they shutter businesses and close down schools, demographers say. More metro areas are booming into sprawling megalopolises. Barring fresh investment that could...

This essay describes and compares Parliament and the Supreme Court and examines the relationship between them. Parliament may still be a great institution, but its members are no longer great men. How long can a great institution remain great in the hands of small men? The SC has held its place in the public esteem rather better than the Lok Sabha, despite the occasional allegation of financial impropriety. Parliament, the...

What are these books about? They were prepared as part of a common syllabus system by the previous government. Under the Tamil Nadu Uniform System of School Education Act, 2010, “Samacheer Kalvi” was an effort towards a uniform syllabus for the four streams of school education in the state: State Board, Matriculation Schools, Oriental Schools and Anglo-Indian Schools, which follow separate syllabi, textbooks and examination patterns, and are under different boards. How...

-The Economic Times   Rural Indian households are spending more on consumer goods like durables, beverages and services than five years ago, shows the latest expenditure data that debunks the notion that rapid growth in recent years did not benefit the hinterlands. The household consumer expenditure survey for 2009-10, released by the National Sample Survey Office ( NSSO )) on Friday, shows rising real spending in rural areas, even though it...

The current debate on the Lokpal Bill is split along two lines: the UPA’s draft and that of Team Anna Hazare. But now, not just the political establishment, other sections of “civil society” are standing up to call for a wider debate and cautioning against a rush to push any version through. So while the Sonia Gandhi-led National Advisory Council may have made it clear that it wouldn’t discuss the Lokpal...