Environment minister Jayanthi Natarajan said she had come with an “open mind” as India showed signs of flexibility on accepting legally binding emission curbs, but wanted more assurances from developed countries before making further commitments. The comments, at the UN climate change summit in this South African city, came days after China for the first time indicated its willingness to accept legally binding cuts after 2020. The hint of a flexible stand...

In possibly the first instance of its kind in the country, the Andhra Pradesh government has decided to compensate 70 victims of police violence following the May 2007 Mecca Masjid blast. The men had been falsely implicated in the case and tortured in custody. The 20 men who were the worst affected would get Rs 3 lakh each, the rest Rs 20,000 each. The announcement of the Rs 70 lakh compensation was...

The scheme seeks to add a superstructure of digital empowerment without laying an adequate foundation Until recently, S. Dhibeka, 16, who had never used a computer until she chose the computer science stream last year at the aging, leafy Kakkalur Government Higher Secondary School near Chennai, could practise programming for only an hour or two a week, often sharing a desktop computer with one or more of her classmates. But since September,...

The top 10 investment destinations for Indian companies in the last three years are all tax havens, if the US and UK which figure at number 4 and number 8, respectively, are discounted. The statistic, released by the Finance ministry, reinforces the belief that the government has failed in curbing the flow of black money out of the country. Around 40% of the total investments in these three years have been...

Chanting loudly, thousands of demonstrators marched through the streets to the venue of the 17th United Nations Climate Change Conference to demand that their voices be heard for "immediate and drastic" carbon emission reductions to save the planet. Dubbing Saturday the "Global Day of Action", demonstrators from international and national non- governmental groups as well as labour, women, youth, academic, religious and environmental organisations came together to highlight civil society’s demands...