-The Hindu Women’s groups demand a separate Centrally-sponsored scheme with enough funds to ensure proper implementation of the Domestic Violence Act, 2005 Women’s groups have questioned the Centre’s commitment to address the issue of domestic violence and ensuring women’s security in the wake of its failure to allocate sufficient funds for the implementation of the Protection of Women against Domestic Violence Act, 2005. Women’s groups and activists are now demanding a separate...

-The Hindu India’s polio triumph is a rare milestone in its uninspiring public health record. The story so far only strengthens the case for a vastly augmented routine immunisation programme to combat disease. India has been celebrating its near-victory over polio for the past two years, but it often hogs the headlines for unacceptably high mortality and morbidity due to other communicable diseases such as malaria, tuberculosis, dengue and filaria. The government now...

-The Hindu Seeks an exception for the definition of marital rape in the existing laws Backing the long-standing demand of the women’s activists that marital rape be considered as an offence, the Justice J.S. Verma committee has said marriage or any other intimate relationship between a man and a woman is “not a valid” defence against sexual crimes like rape. The three-member panel, which was constituted to recommend amendments to criminal laws in...

-Governance Now However Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Himachal Pradesh and Gujarat are trying hard towards implementing the RTE Act successfully Even after three years of implementation of the Right to Education (RTE) Act, less than 20 percent schools across the country are RTE compliant. The RTE Act, which was implemented in April 2010, specified a time frame of three years for improving schools' infrastructure and hiring teachers. The deadline expires on March 31,...

-Outlook Only 30 per cent of Indian households boast of having at least one member with a ‘portable identity’ like a Passport or a Driving License. Such an identity, points out the economist from New York, is necessary for access to institutions and credit, which is why the biometric based Unique Identification (UID) project is going to be a game-changer. An alumnus of IIT, Madras,, from where he obtained a B.Tech...