Primary school teachers will have to put in 45 teaching hours per week, instead of the present 30 hours, according to a government resolution (GR) issued on Tuesday. The GR seeks to put into effect a clause in the Right To Education (RTE) Act that came into force last April. The government is in the process of FRAming the rules for the implementation of the entire Act. “The definition of the number...
More »SEARCH RESULT
Development not at the cost of ecology: Jairam by Manas Dasgupta
Agitations show people don't want blind development Launches research centre on marine bio-diversity Minister of State for Environment and Forests Jairam Ramesh on Wednesday criticised the country's “blind development plans” at the cost of ecological balance. “I am not against development but it should not be at the cost of our environment. We are presently following development plans blindly which can only lead to damage of the environment with ultimate impact on the...
More »Bhopal gas victims guinea pigs for drug trials by Hemender Sharma
Bhopal gas victims allege that they are being used as guinea pigs for unethical drug trials without being informed.An RTI has revealed that Bhopal Memorial Hospital has pocketed over Rs 1 crore by allowing pharma companies to conduct clinical trials on disaster victims.Shankar Lal was 33 when the Bhopal Union Carbide leak of 1984 happened. Lal and his pregnant wife Laxmi survived but not their child who died at birth....
More »For India’s Farmers, a Bare-Bones Drip System by Vikas Bajaj
During a recent trip to a rural part of western India to report on rising food prices, I met two kinds of farmers — those with access to irrigation and those without. The differences between the two were stark. Those with drip irrigation or sprinklers invariably were reaping rich harvests and profits. But the vast majority of India’s farmers fall in the second camp: they water their crops by flooding their...
More »Six-phase polls in WB, single-phase elections in TN, Kerala
A six-phased Assembly elections in West Bengal, a two stage poll in Assam and a single day poll in Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Puducherry were today announced by the Election Commission, setting in motion the largest such exercise after 2009 Lok Sabha polls. With parts of the state affected by Maoists activities, West Bengal will have elections in six phases on April 18, 23, 27, May 3, 7 and 10,...
More »