-Pratirodh.com Social activist and National Alliance of People’s Movement (NAPM) leader Medha Patkar along with other activists demanded resignation of Union Agriculture minister Sharad Pawar for his involvement in Lavasa scam.   Here is the full statement:   Corruption of one politician after another in nexus with the builders and corporations are getting exposed. The scandals which were already investigated and prosecution initiated also are to be re-viewed in the renewed context and taken to...

-Reuters   The world's urban areas will more than double in size by 2030, presenting an opportunity to build greener and healthier cities, a UN study showed on Monday.   Simple planning measures such as more parks, trees or roof gardens could make cities less polluted and help protect plants and animals, especially in emerging nations led by China and India where city growth will be fastest, it said. "Rich biodiversity can exist in cities...

-Outlook Out in our streets, disabled people feel the pain everyday The Gaping Holes     India yet to get a cohesive, standardised sign language     Barrier-free infrastructure yet to be implemented in public areas like bus stations, railway stations, schools, cinema halls     Lack of basic, inclusive civic facilities: no audio-enabled traffic signals, pavements with ramps, few disability-friendly toilets, negligible penalties     Poor functional entertainment accessibility, like no subtitling on local language TV channels     Reservation...

-The Indian Express The fact that the urgently needed land acquisition bill is up for debate again within the UPA is symptomatic of why this government stumbles on its economic agenda more often than not. Even as Aadhaar spread of glow of success across the government, doubts have surfaced about the present shape of the land acquisition bill. The Union cabinet had recently the cleared the bill, which says that an...

-The Hindu How is it possible for a teacher to discipline a child even without scolding? I was born in a family of three daughters to parents who were not conversant in English. I was admitted to an Anglo-Indian School in Chennai in the middle level. The school had a lovely campus with a beautiful church inside. I did feel lost for some time, but I quickly fell into the groove mainly...