-Economic and Political Weekly   A report on the 2013 deliberation of the Kolkata Group at its 10th workshop which focused on healthcare, the status of women and social justice in India. A K Shiva Kumar (akshivakumar@gmail.com) is convener of the Kolkata Group workshops which are organised by Pratichi (India) Trust, the Harvard Global Equity Initiative and UNICEF India. At the 10th annual Kolkata Group workshop in February this year, 40 policymakers, development practitioners,...

-Tehelka.com There are few figures from the adivasi community in India who have made a bigger dent in the collective imagination of the country than Dayamani Barla. The "iron lady of Jharkhand" has been instrumental in articulating adivasi struggles against displacement and deprivation on national and international platforms. Dayamani, who was recently imprisoned in Jharkhand for her involvement in the Nagri people's movement, has won the first Ellen L Lutz Indigenous...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: Air conditioners may soon become costlier with chief minister Shiela Dikshit keen to impose higher tax on them. At a meeting with Planning Commission which cleared a plan size of Rs 16,626 crore for the capital for 2013-14, Dikshit said the sale of ACs had increased and power consumption was much higher in the night than during the day. Delhi government told the commission about its...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: The Centre is mulling setting up five universities with 50% seats reserved for religious minorities, a "Muslim outreach" by Congress ahead of the 2014 elections. The universities will come up in the hubs of Muslim and Christian population in five states. "These universities will have 50% reservation for minorities with socio-economic backwardness as key determinant. Minorities are not just religious groups but also social groups as...

-The Telegraph The Union health ministry has signalled its intentions to go ahead with plans to introduce a cadre of rural health care providers through a new BSc course, ignoring objections from a parliamentary panel. The ministry told Delhi High Court this week that it had sent a draft cabinet note on the three-and-a-half-year course in community health to the Prime Minister's Office for comments. This is standard procedure before the matter...