-The Times of India Days after a two-judge bench of the Supreme Court said it was time to revisit jurisprudence behind imposition of death penalty, the apex court asked the Union government why provisions in some laws mandating compulsory death penalty as punishment be not struck down as unconstitutional. The question from a bench of Justices Aftab Alam and Ranajana Desai put additional solicitor general Siddharth Luthra in a piquant position for...

-The Hindu A recent survey in the Sunderbans region of West Bengal reveals an alarming trend of rising mental health problem among women Everyday, when Badal, a sturdy young man of Sunderbans returns home at dusk, he finds his mother, Kamala, sitting placidly in the verandah, staring into the distance with strangely unseeing eyes. The house, otherwise, is abuzz with activity. His daughter is bringing in the cows, his sons are clamouring...

-The Times of India JAIPUR/ALWAR: While people across the country buy gold and silver to celebrate Diwali and Dhanteras, in Rajasthan's Mewat region girls are "purchased" to mark the occasion. It is the grim reality of rampant human trafficking in the region, consisting of Alwar, Bharatpur and Dholpur districts. Girls bought before Diwali are married off to older men on the occasion of "Dev Uthani Ekadashi", considered an auspicious day — this...

-The Telegraph Ranchi: Jharkhand resolved to eradicate child labour within the next four years with chief minister Arjun Munda unveiling a comprehensive plan today to eliminate the scourge that has victimised over 4.07 lakh youngsters slogging as ragpickers or errand boys at homes, dhabas or roadside garages. The ambitious goal will be pursued by various departments of the state government in conjunction with International Labour Organisation (ILO) by assigning specific roles at...

-The Times of India India's love for a male child has led to cold-blooded murder of three million girl children over the last decade. By government's own admission, the ministry of statistics and programme implementation in its latest report on state of children says three million girl children have gone missing in 2011 compared to 2001. Even as the world celebrates the maiden " International Day of the Girl Child", India doesn't seem...