Are Dalits turning intolerant? Are they emotional and scornful to reason? These are some of the questions the mainstream media asked, following the controversy over publication of an Ambedkar cartoon in an NCERT book. In the process, a new stereotype on Dalits may have been created.  The authors of the NCERT book, 'Indian Constitution at Work,' are amazed at the response of 'emotional-devotional' Dalits. "They have not read the book," and...

Can a city’s bird count impact its health? Well, if ornithologists are to be believed, it can. Jamshedpur has shown two clear trends in terms of its avian population. One, the number of crows has dwindled to less than 5,000 now from 20,000 in the recent past. Two, the number of pigeons (also called rock dove) has increased to 10,000 from4,000 to 5,000. And this, a city ornithologist says, can be dangerous...

Of late, a childhood friend's 80-year-old mother has taken to writing. Emboldened by her single-mindedness, memories dulled by a lifetime of contingencies now respond readily to the daily rustle of pen on paper. One memory stands out in Surjit Kaur's mind. In 1957, as a fresh eyed schoolteacher from Delhi she went on an educational tour to Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar and West Bengal. It was 10 years after Independence...

-IANS It's hard to imagine that a small room in a dingy lane is the training ground for young talent from nearby slums who are on their way to becoming B-Boys (Break Boys) who perform the Breaking or B-boying street dance genre. As one enters the room in the Khirki urban village in South Delhi after climbing steep and dark stairs, one is greeted by sounds of laughing, screaming and hooting. The...

-The Economic Times The Left and the Right came together on Thursday to protest against the steepest petrol price hike, even as the government accused the opposition of unnecessarily politicising the issue. The nation-wide bandh evoked a mixed response, with incidents of violence being reported from Maharashtra, Karnataka and West Bengal. BJP and Left leaders courted arrest in several states. Activists targeted commercial establishments that refused to down shutters. In Delhi, the bandh...