Over 300 of them participate in a discussion organised by him on defending tribal rights  Discussion on ‘Who will defend the defenders of tribal rights?’ ‘State machinery trying to crush peaceful movements against oppression’ MUMBAI: The corridors of the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) rang with the songs of tribals from the Betul, Harda, Hoshangabad and Khandwa districts of Madhya Pradesh on Friday. Over 300 of them came all the...

The widening chasm between India and Bharat is perhaps best reflected in the manner in which electricity is consumed. The neon-lights of Mumbai and Delhi beckon many with their glitter, but large swathes of territory across the country literally remain in the dark more than six decades after political independence. The government remains obsessed till today with building mega power projects — even our first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru had second...

World Vision India organised a public hearing for people living with HIV/AIDS at YMCA here on Thursday to highlight the general discrimination faced by these people, particularly in terms of access to public health care facilities, individual property rights and related issues that violate human rights. It was also aimed at sensitising policy-makers and civil society about the discrimination faced by people with HIV/AIDS. “People living with HIV/AIDS face stigma and...

With inter-state relations getting increasingly focused on integration, the impetus for summits and meetings has been on the increase. However, there is also the resounding feeling that these are becoming more rhetorical than real. Almost every month we hear of a summit or a meeting of states, but the actual progress towards resolution of issues and problems in inter-state relations has been less effective and focused. This was clearly evident...

Seven rounds of trade talks between the EU and India have been concluded without any negotiating texts or positions of either party being made public.  The widespread optimism about the possible signing of the India-European Union (EU) Free Trade Agreement (FTA) sometime in 2010 fails to take into account the many thorny issues that remain to be resolved. Not the least of them are the tariff negotiations on goods and...