-PTI Political leaders may have divergent views on implementation of provisions of Food Safety and Standards Act 2006, but a senior social scientist here feels that it may not be in the interest of countries like India in view of its socio-economic conditions. "The Act in my opinion is not in favour of India in view of its socio-economic conditions. It may be good for foreign countries but definitely not for Hindustan,"...

-Economic and Political Weekly India’s fast food products must be subject to mandatory labelling. The role of fast or “junk” food with its concentration of fats, sugar and salt in the rapid multiplication of non-communicable lifestyle diseases has been the subject of countless studies over the past few decades, especially in the west. (A classic book from the United States with a title that says it all is Fast Food Nation.) Now, the...

Six months ago, 30-year-old Pari came to Gurgaon from Kolkata, hoping to earn enough to support her husband who has cancer. She first found a job as a sales girl at a shopping centre, and a few days ago she was employed as a security guard at Big Bazaar in Sahara Mall. But a day after the Gurgaon administration directed malls and shops to seek permission from the Labour department if...

-Tehelka AFTER A stormy night and a long flight, Rainer Sonntag Hermann reached Essen at 7 pm on 28 February. Hermann is the German tourist who was deported from Chennai the previous day on charges of being involved in the anti-nuke protests at Koodankulam. When TEHELKA tried to contact him via email, he replied, “The last two nights I had no bed and I’m very tired now. So, please allow me...

Muhammad Yunus, the economist who founded Bangladesh’s Grameen Bank, visited Mumbai recently where he spoke to India Ink about his vision of “social businesses,” his forced departure from Grameen and the recent controversies that have dogged micro-finance in India and elsewhere. An edited, condensed version of the interview follows: Q. The microfinance industry has gone through an existential crisis in the last few years. Why did the industry fall from grace? A. See,...