-Business Standard The statement of the tribal affairs ministry is contrary to its position stated repeatedly over the past year Whether consent from tribal village councils is essential before using forests could hinge on a case being heard by the National Green Tribunal on the Thoubal multipurpose Dam project, which has been under construction since 1989 in Manipur. The tribal affairs ministry has told the court it does not have the power or...

-FirstPost.com Travelling across the country for the past five months to bring farmers’ voices to urban audiences through a programme called ‘Smart Agriculture’ - to be broadcast every Saturday and Sunday from 25 July on CNN-IBN - we have learnt that agriculture is not a low-profit activity. In fact, it returns more than double the amount of cash invested. Sandipan Suman, a 47 year-old agricultural sciences graduate and maize grower in Bihar’s...

-PTI With barely three weeks left for Independence Day celebrations, Parliament was informed last week that 2.86 lakh toilets have been constructed so far Government seems to be racing against time to fulfill Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s promise of ensuring toilets in all schools across the country in a year as about 1.94 lakh toilets are yet to be made operational as against the target of 4.19 lakh toilets. Modi had in his...

-PTI New Delhi: Government on Friday said that air pollution is killing around 80 people in Delhi every day, according to an international study released recently. In a written reply in Rajya Sabha, environment minister Prakash Javadekar said that polluted air, particularly the respirable particulate matter is one of the several factors responsible for morbidity and premature deaths. "An international study released recently has claimed that foul air is killing up to 80...

-The Hindu A little used provision in the Constitution may hold the key to protecting the interests of Scheduled Tribes as they fight to hold on to their traditional lands Even 67 years after Independence, the problems of Adivasi communities are about access to basic needs. These include, but are not restricted to, elementary education, community healthcare, sustainable livelihood support, the public distribution system, food security, drinking water and sanitation, debt, and...