-The Indian Express Here lies Ashis Nandy, who died of a bad joke". This would be the most appropriate epitaph for Nandy, insisted my colleague and sinologist, late Giri Deshingkar, in his rare moment of black humour. The reference, of course, was to Nandy's unusual way with words. Over the last four decades, Ashis Nandy has presented his insights through some very powerful symbols. He loves paradoxes and uses aphorisms, ironies...

-The Hindu The Justice Verma Committee formed to look into crimes against women on Wednesday ruled against recommending the death penalty even in the rarest of the rare rape cases, and also did not favour lowering the age of a juvenile from 18 to 16. The committee, which was tasked with suggesting legal reforms to deal with sexual assault cases, however said the minimum sentence for a rapist should be enhanced from...

-The Hindu Panel for declaring western districts as ‘child right violation zone’ A public hearing on child rights violations in western districts here has identified caste-based discrimination in classrooms as a major reason for rise in the number of school dropouts in six western districts of the State, especially Salem. Dropout among girls, it is found out, has led to the high rate of child marriages. A shocking 13 per cent of children,...

-Frontine Walmart’s disclosure that it spent huge amounts of money on lobbying in India and the allegation that it entered the retail sector through indirect means highlight the power of global capital in dictating the country’s policies. The world’s largest multi-brand retailer Walmart’s disclosure to the United States Senate that it had spent $25 million (Rs.135 crore) since 2008 on its various lobbying activities, which include enhancing access to the Indian...

-Live Mint National Advisory Council seeks an institutional audit of the implementation of the Right to Education programme In yet another signal that the ruling Congress party is getting ready for the next general election, the National Advisory Council (NAC), which sets the social agenda for the Union government, has sought an institutional audit of the implementation of the government’s marquee Right to Education (RTE) programme. NAC is headed by Congress party...