-The Times of India SHIMLA: Muck generated by hundreds of hydro power projects in Himachal Pradesh is being dumped along river beds, which has disturbed the natural course of major rivers in the state. With large scale construction of houses and hotels along the banks of major rivers, especially Satluj, Beas and Parbati, even a slight change in the course of these rivers could wreak havoc, like in Uttarakhand, where the...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: Southern states have emerged on top on financial inclusion parameters, while the East and some of the developed states of the West - including Gujarat and Maharashtra - are below the national average. A new index on financial inclusion released by ratings and analytics firm Crisil on Tuesday showed that Puducherry topped the list, followed by Chandigarh and Kerala. In fact, most of the top slots...

-The Times of India MUMBAI: Less than one in five single working women, excluding those divorced and widowed, take their own investment decisions, a recent all-India survey has found. Despite handling responsibilities at their workplace, they depend on parents and family members, friends and financial advisers when it comes to taking a call on money matters such as where and how much to invest. The reasons for this behaviour vary from...

-The Hindu The order may give rise to property and employment benefit claims relating to unmarried people. Parents could find sexual partners of their children making demands for a share of their assets. The discussion on the Madras High Court verdict on the implications of sexual relationships between unmarried couples has been wide-ranging - from mirthful responses to the suggestion that such liaisons could attain marital status under certain circumstances, to sympathetic...

-IPS News ROME: Jassiben, a self-employed potter from Nana Shahpur village in western India, loves summer despite the heat waves and frequent power cuts, because summer days always mean great business. "Poor people like us do not have refrigerators, so they store drinking water in the earthen pots that keep the water cool," says Jassiben, who uses only one name. "This year, the demand has been so high, I am selling at least...