-IANS The union cabinet Thursday discussed a fresh row between the home ministry and the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) and decided both will collect biometric data of 1.2 billion Indians, said sources.  The home ministry, headed by P. Chidambaram, and the UIDAI, headed by Nandan Nilekani, have been battling over the issue of collection of biometric data which entails the right to scan people's eyes and fingerprints.  In January, a cabinet...

When it comes to thrusting nuclear power down the throats of unwilling people, official India sets a record of violations of dignity and rights that is embarrassing. Which other government but India's maligns all anti-nuclear protesters as foreign-inspired and lacking any agency? Where else would the police file 107 FIRs against 55,795 peaceful anti-nuclear protesters, but at Koodankulam, charging 6,800 with "sedition" and "waging war against the State"? And which...

-Reuters SUPALI: Two years ago, Vilas Yelmar took out a 200,000 rupee ($3,610) bank loan to develop a small grape orchard in a dusty hamlet southeast of Mumbai. The bank has repeatedly asked for the loan to be repaid, but Yelmar, whose annual income has risen to 2 million rupees, has spent the money on a new sport utility vehicle and a lavish family wedding. He is one of an increasing number...

-Rediff.com   Mankind is draining the earth's resources so quickly that the globe would be bled dry before the end of the century at this rate, a new report has revealed. According to the 2012 World Wildlife Fund's 'Living Planet Report' released this month, humans are living outside their means, depleting natural resources like forests, air and water 50 per cent faster than the planet can renew. If the trends aren't reversed, by...

Health activists from across the country have asked the Union Health and Family Welfare Ministry to take immediate cognisance of the recent report of the Department Related Standing Committee that has criticised the functioning of the Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation (CDSCO) for irregular approvals for clinical trials and sale of medicines to pharmaceutical companies that put patients at risk. In a statement issued here on Wednesday, the activists asked the...