-The Hindu It will need a caring partnership between the Dongria Kondh, civil society organisations and the government to figure out how to navigate the very difficult terrain the tribals face Till last week, I'd never visited Niyamgiri, scene of the iconic fight between the Dongria Kondh tribal group and Vedanta, a powerful multinational corporation bent on mining in the area. So why have I titled this ‘revisiting Niyamgiri'? Partly because I've...

-The Indian Express The first nine months of the new BJP government has only underscored its anti-poor, anti-rural image. The substantive and substantial changes in rural development have been restrictive in nature. The new government has worked to undermine the legal and financial framework of MGNREGA, substantially weakened the provisions of the land acquisition act through an ordinance and, through year-end budget cuts, they have undermined almost every social sector programme, reportedly...

-The Indian Express Prime Minister Narendra Modi might have stressed on building toilets in Schools for both boys and girls, but all the discussion seems to be centred around the lack of toilets for girls. Not much is discussed about lack of toilets for boys. It is true that girls are more prone to dropout from Schools and face crimes because of this, but looking holistically, even boys should have the...

-The Hindu None of our Teacher Education programmes has ever seriously tried to achieve a clear and convincing enough understanding of what one tries to achieve through education. It always has been a rhetoric of larger aims and working for myopically understood parental and market aspirations All curricula are situated in contexts and are simultaneously guided by ideals. Therefore, an understanding of and a balance between the two is essential. We have succeeded...

-The Indian Express On Tuesday morning, Lukumoni Orang gave birth to a baby boy. Less than 12 hours later, she was running through paddy fields, holding the infant close to her chest, chased by suspected NDFB(S) militants firing their AK-series weapons. A resident of Milanpur village, near Sonajuli-Phulbari, where the armed militants struck on Tuesday evening, Lukumoni is among the many Adivasis who have taken shelter at the Tinisuti Middle School, about...