Coca Cola rejects findings; Pepsico says its plants meet Pollution Control Board norms  Cadmium and lead detected in samples from Ghaziabad Chromium can cause skin rashes, upset stomach, respiratory problems and cancer Your daily dose of cola could be poisoning the lives of communities living near soft drink manufacturing plants, according to a study by Hazards Centre. The NGO found high levels of toxic chromium and other pollutants in the soil and water...

Human rights groups combating sexual assault, women's groups and groups working on child rights have come together to reflect on the extent to which the proposed Criminal Law Amendment Bill 2010 addresses concerns on the ground.  The Criminal Law Amendment Bill 2010, being proposed to bring about changes in the criminal laws with respect to protections against sexual assault, has been a subject of discussion and popular misinterpretation in the...

Aruna Roy, the prominent political and social activist who spearheaded the campaign to institute the Right to Information Act in the 1990s, is an ardent critic of the anti-people and exclusionary policies of the first and the second United Progressive Alliance governments. A recipient of the Ramon Magsaysay Award for community leadership in 2000, she heads the Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathana (a trade union of workers and peasants) in Rajasamand, Rajasthan,...

Quacks cannot play with the lives of “little Indians” on the strength of questionable certificates, the Supreme Court ruled today in a judgment with far-reaching consequences if enforced strictly. The court said an “unqualified, unregistered and unauthorised medical practitioner” who had no “valid” qualification, degree or diploma couldn’t be permitted to “exploit poor Indians” on the basis of a certificate granted by an institution. The vacation bench cleared the air after...

The rollercoaster ride to success of an illiterate Bihar youth, who launched a radio station and promoted social messages on polio, AIDS and other issues but was arrested for illegally running it, has found place in school textbooks. The story of Raghav, in his mid-20s, and his 'Raghav Radio' has been published by the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) in its book Bharat Mein Samajik Parivartan Evam Vikas...