The “paid news syndrome” in the media should be resisted as part of a larger struggle for democratic rights because corruption in the media directly affects the health of democracy. The struggle has to be waged in the context of media's corporatisation, monopolistic trends and structural decline. These views emerged at a day-long seminar on “Abridging Freedom and Fairness of the Media: Combating Challenges,” organised by the Rajasthan Working Journalists' Union,...

NAC failed to address hunger and malnutrition: Right to Food Campaign Current proposals only offer window-dressing to present Targeted Public Distribution System Arguments suggesting lack of resources cannot be accepted, wrote Campaign members The Right to Food Campaign activists are “extremely disappointed” with the recommendations of the National Advisory Council (NAC) on the proposed Food Security Bill and have said they would continue their struggle for a Comprehensive Food Security Act. Urging the NAC...

The city is teeming with guests. They are migrant workers from neighbouring states who are in the city for work, for better income, for better living conditions and for everything else that makes the city attractive. They are mostly employed in the unorganised sector, as vendors, contract workers at construction sites, rickshaw-pullers or domestic workers. The city does not seem to care for them. They stumble around learning the ways of...

After Ashok Chavan, it's now the turn of the former Chief Minister, Sushilkumar Shinde, to face trouble for “favours” to the Adarsh Society during his tenure from January 18, 2003 to October 31, 2004, according to a complaint filed on Saturday with the Maharashtra State Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB). Mr. Shinde has already denied his role in the scam repeatedly. Advocate Y.P. Singh and activist Simpreet Singh told journalists that Mr. Ashok...

India has been elected to the board of a new UN agency to promote equality for women but Iran failed to win a seat due to strong opposition from the US and Human Rights groups. UN Women is the amalgamation of different United Nations bodies focused on women. It was created this year to look exclusively at gender equality and empowerment of women. The 41-member executive board also includes the US and...