-IANS Leh: For Tsetan Punchok, a 50-something farmer from the distant village of Partapur in Ladakh in Jammu and Kashmir, life was difficult in the 3,000-metre highlands where summer lasts barely four months and for long, he could only grow potatoes and turnips. His life, however, changed in the last few years when he came in touch with scientists of the Defence Institute of High Altitude Research (DIHAR). DIHAR, a laboratory of premier...

-The Hindu At least five cases have been reported in recent times from western part of the State Meerut (Uttar Pradesh): When Rahul, a sugarcane farmer in Badaut area of Baghpat district in western U.P., shot himself on the night of September 13, he had a debt of Rs. 12 lakh. Rahul shot himself with his brother's licensed rifle in his house in Dhikana village. Anil Kumar, the Station House Officer of Badaut...

-Down to Earth While the state government aims to cut costs, children in remote tribal areas will be most affected After repeatedly putting off a decision on the matter, the Maharashtra government has finally decided to close down some 13,905 schools which have a student count of less than 20. Notices to this effect have already been sent to education officers in the state. Officials in the state's Directorate of Primary Education...

-The Hindu In addition to adequate provision of funds for cleaning, sanitation training and maintenance of toilets in schools, the issue of fixing accountability must also be addressed The revival of the issue of toilets in schools has brought to the fore a discussion that has for long existed among educationists, with varying positions occupying centre stage at different times. A couple of decades ago, when the deplorable state of education began...

-The United Nations If all women in poor countries completed primary education, child mortality would drop by one-sixth saving almost one million lives, the United Nations educational agency today reported highlighting the links between schooling and achieving a new set of sustainable development targets. "The benefits of education permeate all walks of life right from the moment of birth," said Irina Bokova, Director-General of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)...