-TheThirdPole.net Over thirty years since high levels of arsenic was found in groundwater in West Bengal, little has been done to avert a slow-burn health crisis In the Indo-Gangetic plains, there are many widow-villages where the men have died from drinking water laced with arsenic. Women often come to the area to marry and so are only affected later in life. In India, over one million people have died in the last...

-The Indian Express The Bihar election is being seen as a referendum on Nitish Kumar and his slogan of sushasan or good governance. With the cracks beginning to show days ahead of the first phase of polling for the Bihar Assembly elections, we listen to voices on the ground to see what stands between Nitish and a possible fourth term. Nitish Kumar ko gussa kyon aata hai (why does Nitish Kumar get...

-TheWire.in The water contamination has led to serious health problems and physical disabilities in Churaman Nagar village. Gaya/Patna (Bihar): Krishna Manjhi is only 35, but he looks much older. His neck is bent, making him unable to lift up his head. He cannot straighten his back, and the bones of his feet are thin and crooked. He can’t walk without a stick. Krishna is an orphan and his two brothers live in separate...

-TheWire.in While those living outside the embankment area benefit from less flooding and erosion, those within the embankment area are more prone to risk. Supaul (Bihar): On September 10, a fortnight before the announcement of the state assembly elections, Bihar water resources minister Sanjay Kumar Jha laid the foundation for a 4.6 km long extension of the Sikarhatta-Majhari low embankment from Parsauni to Mahisha in Madhubani’s Baidyanathpur area. “The construction of this embankment...

-The Indian Express In back-to-back moves aimed at controlling onion prices, the government has relaxed import norms and now reintroduced stock limits. Why have prices been rising, and how far can these moves check the rise? With less than a week to go for the Bihar elections, the Centre on Friday reintroduced the stock limit on onions — a move aimed at controlling rising prices, which crossed Rs 80 per kg in...