-The Hindu Let us begin by listening to Mira’s story. When I learnt that I have been granted admission in the college of my choice, fear of being part of the “rest of the world” gripped me. Though confident about my academic abilities, I was terrified at the thought of how the “others” would react to me: a cerebral palsy wheelchair user with a speech difficult to comprehend and a drooling mouth....

-The Hindu It was exactly a year ago that The Hindu wrote about the plight of abandoned and destitute women, particularly widows, who take shelter in Vrindavan, prompting the National Legal Services Authorities (NALSA) to take action. It filed a social justice litigation before the Supreme Court for ameliorating the pitiable condition of these women and directing the District Legal Services Authority of Mathura to conduct a survey of these destitute...

-The Business Standard Hiring contract labour must come with more commitments Almost a third of India’s organised labour force is on contract. This is an inevitable consequence of archaic labour laws that make it impossible for India Inc to disengage permanent workers even if they can’t afford them, don’t need them or they don’t perform. Companies such as Maruti Suzuki India have thus used contract workers liberally — almost half the workers...

-DNA It would be sad if the ghastly violence at Maruti Suzuki’s (MSIL) Manesar plant on July 18, 2012, in which a HR manager died, were to be understood simply as a ‘murderous workers’ vs ‘rational management’ kind of an incident. There is a history and a context to this violence, and how that is understood, and acknowledged, by India Inc. will indicate how serious we are about preventing such incidents...

-The United Nations Punitive laws and human rights abuses are costing lives, wasting money and stifling the global AIDS response, according to a report released today by a United Nations-backed commission.   Entitled HIV and the Law: Risks, Rights and Health, the report by the Global Commission on HIV and the Law – made up of former heads of state and leading legal, human rights and HIV experts, and supported by the UN...