Nahrani, a 38-year-old in Lalitpur, a village 30km from Jhansi, has an all-too-familiar tale to tell: a recently deceased husband; the lack of a ration card which promises access to free or inexpensive food; and a village without water, power, schools or health centres. Not one child from the 50-odd families in this village goes to school. The menfolk are perennially drifting, looking for jobs. And no one has heard...

Domestic helps, the faceless engine without which daily life will grind to a halt in India, are finally set to get the right to a weekly off and other benefits most citizens take for granted. The Centre is coming up with a policy that stipulates the compulsory weekly off for domestic helps and a few more benefits. Some homes do already extend a few of these benefits but countless others do...

For a man who’s been in the pharmaceutical business all his working life, advocating clean drinking water across the country might seem like a bad business idea. In fact, its health fallout could put me out of business. But there are times when one has to think beyond the balance sheets. Water is one issue that excites passion, yet we give very little thought to it. Those who have seen...

A newly wed couple in Barmer district has approached the district magistrate seeking permission to end their life after a khap Panchayat ordered their separation and payment of Rs 5 lakh. The Panchayat had threatened to kill them if the failed to abide by its diktat. According to local reports, the khap Panchayat of Bhimda village had ruled on March 5 that one Khama would have to severe her relations...

India grapples with endemic backwardness in over 200 districts while some sectors and sections make global headlines. The Centre on Market Solutions to Poverty's report, Creating Vibrant Public-Private-Panchayat Partnerships for Inclusive Growth through Inclusive Governance explores this paradox by looking at the ground-level realities in local governance through the Panchayati Raj, the issues of agricultural productivity and value addition, and the role that the business sector could play in rural...