-The Hindu   Cases of crime under various categories in the country increased by about 5 per cent last year as compared to 2009, according to a publication of the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB). Besides, road accidents alone claimed 1.33 lakh lives last year, an increase of 5.5 per cent over 2009 that saw 1.26 lakh deaths. According to “Crime in India 2010,” a total of 22,24,831 crimes were reported under the...

Pilot survey under Project Dipankar in four prosperous districts shows 87 per cent class I students of government schools are undernourished Eighty-seven per cent school children in four districts of West Bengal are undernourished right at the entry level. The shocking numbers are from the yet unpublished report of Project Dipankar, a child tracking system initiated by the department of school education in the state. The project tracks the educational performance...

Economic growth and liberalisation have helped lift living standards across the country in the eight years to 2007-08, according to a human development gauge unveiled by Planning Commission deputy chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia. The Human development Index (HDI), which measured living conditions on the basis of consumption expenditure, education and health, rose from 0.387 in 1999-2000 to 0.467 in 2007-08. The index has been compiled by the Institute of Applied Manpower Research,...

Vilas Bhagwan Pote grins as he recalls his election as sarpanch of Ralegan Siddhi, Anna Hazare’s village in Ahmednagar district, 11 years ago. “I was the traitor, the bad guy,” he jokes. “I openly defied Anna because I felt he was wrong.” Pote, a Dalit charmakar (cobbler) then in his 30s, had been unhappy as the 2000 panchayat polls drew close. As always, Anna had nominated a new executive body for the...

In the gathering gloom of slowing growth and political drift, comes some good news to brighten up the festival season. The latest Human Development Report, released today, shows that “inclusive growth” — the mantra of the entire political establishment — may not be just a mere slogan. Socially and economically weaker sections, like scheduled castes, Scheduled Tribes and Muslims, are finally catching up with the rest of the country on important...