-The Business Standard Ending open defecation by 2019 will require changing minds, not just allocating money to build latrines for people that will either go unused or not be built at all During Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Independence Day speech, we learned that his Swachch Bharat Mission to eliminate open defecation in India by Mahatma Gandhi's 150th birth anniversary, would begin in less than two months on October 2. What was...

-The Indian Express India needs a national effort to speed up human development. That India was ranked 135 out of 187 countries on UNDP's human development index is perhaps the greatest concern for a nation with global ambition. In order to sustain our growth momentum and translate the gains of growth into wellbeing at a faster pace, India needs to rejig its strategy for accelerated human development. The performance in education and health...

-The Times of India More than three quarters of schools in the country do not have fully equipped science laboratories for students in class 11 and 12, a survey of 2.4 lakh secondary and senior secondary schools has found. For classes 9 and 10, where an integrated science module is taught to students, over 58% schools don't have the requisite lab. "This is an atrocious state of affairs," says a sad Professor...

-The Hindu   More and more parents in big cities are choosing schools that offer an alternative system of education over conventional institutions in the hope that children will grow into well-rounded personalities away from the rat race and uninhibited by the pressure to be in the top percentile For parents of today, finding a "good school" for their children is a quest that requires a lot of thought and effort. But in...

-The Times of India JAIPUR: The number of girls in the state's government schools is decreasing since last three years. For the 2013-14 period, in primary section, for every 100 boys, the ratio of girls enrolled is 87, said the District Information System for Education (DISE) survey. This is less than the national average of 93 girls for 100 boys. The state's performance is poorer compared to states like Bihar (98),...