That women and children are the worst sufferers during any armed conflict has been proved again by a recent study conducted by the West Bengal Women's Commission (WBWC) on women victims of maoist violence in the State's Jangal Mahal region. It was found that the atrocities often go unreported and unaccounted, or are misrepresented by a section of society. Based on the study, the WBWC appealed to the maoists to abjure...

Here’s confirmation for something most people already know.Almost three out of four Indians (73%) are unhappy with policing in their local areas. Then, more than half of Indians (53%) believe maoists are the biggest threat to India. In comparison, only 32% view cross-border terrorism as the most potent threat facing this country. And yes, a large majority (68%) think the government isn’t doing a very good job of combating the red rebels. A...

Neither celebrity nor politician, Sita Murmu, is extraordinary because she is the great survivor of that `other India'. She is not a beneficiary of the job guarantee scheme MGNREGA and doesn't have a BPL card. In her 60s, she lives in a Bhubaneswar slum and describes herself as a tribal widow without any land, regular income or schooling but "surviving —that itself is enough". Railing at the false promises of...

The struggle had asserted the right of the people to their land, water and forests “In the Narmada valley/The fight is still on” – thus sang the people of Bhadal in Madhya Pradesh, where Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA) leader Medha Patkar was heading a prayer meeting as part of the activities marking the completion of 25 years of the people's movement. Rallies, meetings, folk songs and dances formed part of the struggle...

A young woman carries a torn blouse and an undergarment and a lock of her hair in a clear plastic bag that rarely leaves her side. Kunjami Mangli (name changed) of the Bade Bidme panchayat in Chhattisgarh's Dantewada district preserves these items as evidence of the events of the night of October 12. “Four uniformed policemen burst into my house at 2 a.m.,” said Mangli, speaking through a translator. “They ripped...