As non-governmental organisations question the relevance of the World Water Forum being held here this week and slam its "corporate" nature, the United Nations says that a coordinated approach to managing and allocating water is critical. The fourth edition of the triennial World Water Development Report (WWDR), which brings together the work of 28 U.N.-Water members and partners is being officially launched Monday at the Forum. It stresses that water "underpins...

-The Indian Express   Banning cotton exports hurts the farmer, signals India as an unpredictable supplier to the world Two days after the commerce ministry imposed a sudden ban on cotton exports, there are indications the government is preparing grounds for a facesaver. In all likelihood, a limited window may be opened at least for allowing exports for which registration certificates have already been issued by the Directorate General for Foreign Trade. Finance...

-The Telegraph The Canadian Medical Association Journal has sought a ban on the disclosure of foetal sex until after 30 weeks of pregnancy amid concerns that sections of Asian immigrants, including Indians, in Canada selectively abort female foetuses. The journal said the sex of a foetus need not be revealed to any woman before 30 weeks because such information was medically irrelevant and could, in some instances, facilitate female foeticide. Postponing the disclosure...

A non-government assessment has ranked India third from the bottom among the world’s nine nuclear armed states in its ability to secure nuclear materials from theft, with only Pakistan and North Korea with lower scores. The nuclear materials security index, released by the US-based non-profit Nuclear Threat Initiative (NIT) yesterday, is described as “the first, public baseline assessment of the status of nuclear materials security conditions” worldwide. A panel of nuclear and...

-PTI Indian bureaucracy is the worst in Asia with a 9.21 rating out of 10, according to a report by a prestigious consulting firm based in Singapore. India fared worst than Vietnam (rated at 8.54), Indonesia (8.37), Philippines (7.57) and China (7.11), said the report released today by   Hong Kong-based Political & Economic Risk Consultancy Ltd. Singapore remained the best with a rating of 2.25, followed by Hong Kong (3.53), Thailand (5.25) Taiwan...