-FAO On the path to Rio+20, FAO calls for a future with both healthier people and healthier ecosystems Sustainable development cannot be realized unless hunger and malnutrition are eradicated, FAO said in a policy document prepared for the Rio+20 Summit to be held in June in Rio de Janeiro. "We cannot call development sustainable while this situation persists, while nearly one out of every seven men, women and children are left behind, victims...

-The Hindu “Elimination of child labour is an article of faith to us” The Centre is committed to protecting the welfare of children, Union Minister for Labour and Employment Mallikarjun Kharge said here on Sunday. “Elimination of child labour is an article of faith and commitment to us,” he asserted. He was happy to point out that there had been a sharp decline in the number of children in the age group of...

Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar’s statement in Parliament that the Government plans to shift subsidies from chemical fertilizers to organic manures has finally earned him some admiration from grassroots organisations working with small and marginal farmers in the country’s vast dry-lands. Pawar’s statement, if translated into policy action, may go a long way in improving the condition of some of India’s poorest farmers in the rain-fed areas which account for...

There is need to find indigenous technologies and equipment to deal with this constant and undeclared threat There is increasing concern in the strategic community and the general public about cyber security and we are in the final stages of preparing a whole-of-government cyber security architecture. Our increasing dependence on cyberspace and the internet is evident. We had over 100 million internet users in India over two years ago. Add to this...

With an eye to mainstreaming sustainability, rural development minister Jairam Ramesh has reached out to the United Nations Development Programme to suggest ways for 'greening' rural development schemes and programmes. "We are spending Rs 99,000 crore this year on rural development programmes and it would be a shame if we don't mainstream green objectives in these programmes. Rural development programmes offer a huge opportunity to deal with green concerns and challenges...