-Frontline A report by ActionAid and the Tata Institute of Social Sciences highlights the vulnerability and tragic living conditions of thousands of children who take shelter in Mumbai's streets. IN 1988, the acclaimed film-maker Mira Nair made Salaam Bombay!, a poignantly revealing film on street children in Mumbai. The plot revolves around the protagonist, Krishna or "Chaipau", who is kicked out of his home by his mother for having damaged his...

-The Hindu Hyderabad: The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has brought in a fresh wave of hope, but it is too early to assess its performance, observed social activist Aruna Roy. "AAP's unique and new strategies have led to their electoral success but water, power and corruption are not the only issues. They need to lay out a broader framework and take a stand on various other issues, especially in rural parts...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: More people are smoking in India now, 110 million, compared to just 74.5 million smokers over three decades back, despite smoking being recognized as the third biggest health risk for Indians and despite all the anti-tobacco and smoke-free laws. While smoking prevalence among men had gone down in 2012, it remains unchanged at 3.2% since 1980 among women. In fact, India with 12.1 million women...

-Deccan Herald A novel technology-aided crop protection programme helps farmers in Raichur combat pests and diseases. M A Siraj reveals the secret behind the healthy produce in Raichur. Information Technology (IT) is no longer the exclusive preserve of the city folk. It is making subtle inroads into farming communities of Karnataka. Those who saw the elitist bias in IT would be better off making amends if they thought an e-future only a...

-The Hindu Health officials on a mission to check illegal use of scanning machines under the Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (Regulation and prevention of misuse) Act 1994 Kochi (Kerala): Is there a potential link between the high number of scanning machines in the private medical institutions, many of them allegedly without proper records, and the dipping child sex ratio in Kerala? Since the health officials don't want to misread the situation, they have been...