In the midst of national debates over the need for labour laws reforms and the efficacy of MG-NREGA in checking distress migration, a new report brings spotlight on the miserable living and working conditions of unorganized migrant workers from Rajasthan. Titled Their Own Country: A Profile of Labor Migration from Rajasthan, the report prepared jointly by Aajeevika Bureau and UNESCO informs us that 70% of seasonal migrant workers from Rajasthan...

-The Times of India AHMEDABAD (Gujarat): The CAG's report on Tuesday revealed that the prohibited practice of carrying night soil is still prevalent in the 'developed state of Gujarat'. The auditor has cited cases listed in the 2011 census report. Manual scavenging was prohibited 21 years ago with Employment of Manual Scavengers and Construction of Dry Latrines (Prohibition) Act, 1993 coming into force. But in Gujarat, this evil practice goes on even...

-Down to Earth Letter to Modi says Indian government should be wary of higher IP standards that are typically demanded by the US administration and its trade negotiators in bilateral negotiations People's organisations have urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to make public the specific purpose of the Indo-US joint working group on Intellectual Property (IP) and pursue inclusive public consultations approach for the formulation of country's IP policy. The demand follows Modi's...

-Kafila.org Dear Prime Minister Modi ji, We, the undersigned, wish to share with you some of our concerns on India's position on intellectual property (IP), particularly in the context of bilateral relations between the United States of America and India. We gather from the US-India Joint Statement dated 30 September 2014 that the Indian Government (a)greeing on the need to foster innovation in a manner that promotes economic growth...

-IANS New Delhi: India's improved ranking in the Global Hunger Index is good news, but the country still has a long way to go as one-third of its women and children under five still underweight, experts said Wednesday. India improved its position from 63rd in 2013 to 55th in 2014 in the Global Hunger Index released recently. "India has clearly made progress towards improving nutrition, but the road ahead is still long,"...