Farmland struck by infestations of bugs following widespread adoption of Bt cotton made by biotech giant Monsanto.  Scientists are calling for the long-term risks of GM crops to be reassessed after field studies revealed an explosion in pest numbers around farms growing modified strains of cotton. The unexpected surge of infestations “highlights a critical need” for better ways of predicting the impact of GM crops and spotting potentially damaging knock-on effects...

Regular dialogue between villagers, doctors and elected representatives has reflected in improved health services in rural parts of the state. The data was collected from 220 villages and 40 primary health centres across fifteen blocks in five districts of the state including Pune. Sathi-Cehat, a state nodal NGO, collected the information under Community Based Monitoring (CBM) of the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM). "Nine key health services were rated by...

India’s record in providing education to its children has been very poor. Low education levels have an impact on income, productivity, health status and standard of living. As per 2001 Census, the overall literacy rate of India is still only 65.4%, with many states having a literacy rate less than the national average. While the male literacy rate is around 76%, only about 54% females are literate1. What is important...

The task of providing water where needed is becoming increasingly difficult across the world. Countries have, in recent decades, been investing in infrastructure designed to alleviate water shortages. But the response has, for the most part, overlooked the problem posed by the deteriorating state of aquatic resources. If the growing crisis is to be effectively addressed, water use needs to be linked with environmental care. In many places, even where water...

A new study on nutritional challenges has painted a grim picture of the current Indian scenario where over 50% of child deaths are caused due to malnutrition. Concerned over the high number of child deaths, the ministry of women and child development (WCD) plans to strengthen nutritional surveillance by mapping undernourished endemic zones and identifying "high risk and vulnerable districts". The report recommends developing a nutrition surveillance system to identify...