Survey shows Congo, Pakistan and Somalia also fail females, with rape, poverty and infanticide rife Targeted violence against female public officials, dismal healthcare and desperate poverty make Afghanistan the world's most dangerous country in which to be born a woman, according to a global survey released on Wednesday. The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Pakistan, India and Somalia feature in descending order after Afghanistan in the list of the five worst...

Whether it is in education, health or jobs, there are enormous differences in outcomes in modern India, so much so that it often seems like two countries exist within one. Economic opportunities have undoubtedly expanded for a section of India's population, but there are serious obstacles in the path of many. Nobel laureate and development economist Amartya Sen has written about the 'conversion handicap' which, quite separately from an 'earnings...

The Congress-led government last week exempted CBI from providing information sought under the Right to Information (RTI) Act. The move has not gone down well with civil society activists who are not only terming the move as “illegal” but are also thinking of challenging it. “It is not only wrong but also illegal. It’s written in the RTI act that only intelligence or security agencies can be exempted but CBI is...

-PTI   Amid a war of words between government and civil society members over Lok Pal Bill, both sides will meet here tomorrow for its drafting even as Anna Hazare today reminded the ministers that differences could be resolved through dialogue and not through confrontation. As the government and Congress continued its attack on the civil society members, Hazare said he cannot force anyone not to level allegations like he was a...

In his lifetime, Nigamanand, an ascetic fighting a lonely battle against quarrying activities in Uttarakhand, tried to draw the attention of the national media to an environmental disaster waiting to happen in the state. In his death, the 36-year-old Sadhu, who went into a coma and died on Wednesday following his four-month-long fast in the same hospital at Dehra Dun where Ramdev was admitted, has forced civil society, politicians and the...