-The Times of India CHANDIGARH: A khap panchayat in Haryana's Jind district has blamed consumption of chowmein behind the growing incidents ofrapes in the state saying it leads to hormonal imbalance. "To my understanding, consumption of fast food contributes to such incidents. Chowmein leads to hormonal imbalance evoking an urge to indulge in such acts," said Jitender Chhatar, a resident of Jind's Chhatar village and thua khap panchayat leader. "You also know the...

-The Hindu It is not unusual to hear people talk of fighting fire with fire, but is it appropriate to recommend fighting crime with crime? Former Haryana Chief Minister Om Prakash Chautala apparently thinks it is. Endorsing the regressive views of some khap panchayat leaders in his State, Mr. Chautala suggested that the growing incidence of rape be addressed by relaxing the laws relating to Child marriage (an offence under Prohibition...

-The Hindu ‘Child marriage is not the right way to shield girls from sexual crimes’ As the demand for lowering the age of marriage has sparked outrage, the United Nations has told India that Child marriage is not the right way to shield girls from sexual crimes. In a joint letter to Union Women and Child Development Minister Krishna Tirath, four U.N. organisations have urged India to address the issue of Child marriage...

-The Times of India Four UN agencies urged India to take "incremental action" to fight the scourge of Child marriages in the country on Thursday when the first International Day of the Girl Child was observed across the world. The focus of the first observance of the day is on Child marriage. In a letter to Union minister of women and child development Krishna Tirath, heads of four UN agencies in India...

-The Times of India BANGALORE: After the big fat wedding is done with and the guests have gone home, what remains is the litter, dirty dishes and piles of excess high-calorie food. Enough to feed lakhs of children, in a country where malnutrition has been termed a "national shame" by Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh. Statistics show that every third malnourished child in the world is an Indian. A survey shows that annually,...