-The Times of India PABNAWA (HARYANA): It has been over 48 hours since the attack took place. But fear still stalks the dalits of Pabnawa village in Haryana's Kaithal district. The young women from the community have been moved out en masse by their families fearing sexual assault by upper-caste goons. Some were picked up by relatives from nearby villages after desperate SOS calls; others were escorted to safety by their...
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FDI in retail: To empower dalits, do away with India’s antiquated retail trading system-Chandra Bhan Prasad and Milind Kamble
-The Economic Times A couple of months ago, the UPA government cleared Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in retail. It is a politically risky step. But for once, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh showed both spine and spunk biting the bullet. Since then, both Left parties and the BJP have expressed serious reservations over the decision. The general view is that it will affect the lakhs of small, indigenous kirana stores spread across...
More »ACs, refrigerators may get more expensive -Nitin Sethi
-The Times of India The cost of air-conditioners and refrigerators could go up considerably starting next summer if the US and other rich countries force a decision at the UN climate talks in November at Doha, to order a global ban on existing refrigerant gases and replace them with costly though relatively more climate-friendly alternatives. One of the alternatives being proposed is produced jointly by DuPont and Honeywell, two US-based multinationals, and...
More »Fighting for a climate change treaty-Matthew Cimitile
-Al Jazeera Treaty to ban chemicals that harmed the ozone layer came about when there was consensus between science and politics. In 1974, chemists Mario Molina and Frank Sherwood Rowland published a landmark article that demonstrated the ability of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) to break down the ozone layer, the atmospheric region that plays a vital role in shielding humans and other life from harmful ultraviolet (UV) radiation. It marked the opening salvo of...
More »Shortfall in monsoon rains widens by Ratnajyoti Dutta
-Reuters A shortfall in monsoon rains has widened to nearly 50 percent of average in the past week, making a revival next week crucial for farmers to sow summer-planted crops such as rice, corn, cane, cotton and soybean. The annual rains are crucial for farm output and economic growth as about 55 percent of the South Asian nation's arable land is rain-fed. Farm sector accounts for about 15 percent of a nearly $2-trillion...
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