Will a ‘NO’ from a woman remain ‘NO’? Asks Shoma A. Chatterji while reviewing the movie, Pink.

Interactions at the WSF, Tunisia with activists and thinkers from vastly diverse fields, united only by their dream for transformation and alternatives to well-being, inspire Ashish Kothari to hope for another world.

The recent government crackdown on Greenpeace in particular, and the activism sector in general, reeks of arbitrariness and illegitimacy, says Ashish Kothari in a scathing critique. The question is will the people give in to the state’s tactics?

Several newly elected panchayat presidents and and council members attended a unique ceremony in Lalpur, U.P., in late September. Watched by the District Magistrate, they took an oath of 'office and transparency' as opposed to the customary oath of 'office and secrecy'. Sandeep Pandey writes about a new beginning.

Most villagers in U.P.'s Hardoi district, except for a miniscule few associated with social or political organizations, were not aware of the passage of the new Employment Guarantee Law last year. Since then, its coming into force in 22 districts of U.P. has not impressed them either. Sandeep Pandey notes why.

35 Irula (ST) candidates had contested in the recent local body elections in Tamilnadu and 15 won panchayat presidentships. And this, Irulas hope, will translate into creation of a vocal pressure group of leaders that will ensure development for them. Krithika Ramalingam has more.

Community engagement should be born out of respect for the participating community members and their capacities rather than as tokenism needed to fulfill a program requirement, writes R Balasubramaniam.

As the Kerala government takes steps to re-inspire citizens to engage in grassroots level governance, P Mohammad Nizar draws attention to certain critical issues that must be addressed for the Panchayati Raj Institutions in the state to be effectively revitalised.

The imminent Panchayat elections in Karnataka will see 50 percent reservation for women at all tiers, but how can one ensure real authority for them? Proposed amendments to the Panchayat Raj Act may hold some answers.

A new scheme launched by PM Narendra Modi envisages development through a model in which every MP chooses a village to develop, with people’s participation. Vikas Jha looks at the numbers and realities to explore the real needs of rural development at the panchayat level.

Increasing firepower is the answer to the wrong question; security doesn't come neatly defined in military terms alone, says Firdaus Ahmed.

The PM urges pragmatism in relations with China, but the logic of his exertions may be more persuasively applied to our dealings with Pakistan, says Firdaus Ahmed.

Public attention must focus on what Pakistan's options are, both in battlefield tactical terms, and in the face of India's military resurgence, says Firdaus Ahmed.

While defense may be at the heart of security concerns, it is not necessarily the most important sector for security, says Firdaus Ahmed.

India's doctrine of 'deterrence by punishment' is least credible in the most likely scenario of Pakistani nuclear use. But the tenets of this doctrine are not above revision, and times of relative peace offer a better opportunity to find the way forward, says Firdaus Ahmed.

The happenings in Pakistan, which have culminated in the unfortunate assassination of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, are equally portentuous for India. India needs to contain the Pakistani predicament at the border, notes Firdaus Ahmed.

India begins 2009 from a position of strength. But how it approaches security issues in the internaland external security planes will determine how it ends the year, writes Firdaus Ahmed.

India’s foreign policy moves under Narendra Modi have so far been aggressive, but sustaining the heat on the external front, sans resolution of critical internal and regional positions, comes with its own risks, writes  Firdaus Ahmed.

The recent award of life sentences to the army personnel involved in the 2010 Macchil killings in J&K sends out a positive message, but there are deeper layers in the justice system that need introspection and overhaul in the pursuit of reconciliation. Firdaus Ahmed explains.

The Indian defence minister’s recent interactions indicate an overt leaning towards military action against ISIS under the UN flag. While it may not be difficult to explain this stance, or even find apparent justification for it, there is a need for a more cautionary approach, says Firdaus Ahmed.

Is military combat the only way to deal with the Islamic state and its likes? Firdaus Ahmed ponders about the role India can play in making the ongoing temporary ceasefire in the five-year old Syrian civil war a more permanent one.

"India should be worried." Experts reiterate that child malnutrition is not only responsible for 22 per cent of India's disease burden - and for 50 per cent of the 2.3 million child deaths in India -- but is also a serious economic hazard. Neeta Lal reports.

Disillusioned by the total lack of responsiveness from mainstream parties to their plight, displaced tribals from Polavaram decide to contents the assembly elections themselves. R Uma Maheshwari reports.

The Integrated Child Development Services scheme was launched to address the nutrition, health and learning needs of all children below six years of age. Ankita Aggarwal shares findings from a survey that point to the huge variations in implementation and effectiveness. 

Rasika Dhavse reports on the transition from conventional conservation practices to community based ones.

Surendranath C reports on a power project proposal that threatens to put the Kerala biodiversity hotspot at risk.

The Tsunami of 26 December did not invade several coastlines to the degree it did many others because of mangroves and coral reefs. Mangroves offer double protection, but India has seen their rampant cutting down in favour of tourism and shrimp farming, says Devinder Sharma.

The widening rift in the conservationist movement has allowed the bigger and more powerful forest encroachers to hide behind the public controversy over tribal lands and sharing of forest resources. While activists for and against 'tribals in forests' argue and bicker, the rich squat pretty on encroached forest lands, says Keya Acharya.

The Kerala government is proposing to construct a new dam only a few kilometres from the site of one of India's great environment struggles in the Silent Valley National Park. But cooked data and ignored court orders have once again invited the wrath of conservationists. M Suchitra reports.

What is the right compensation for forest lands that are converted to non-forest use? How can this be calculated? Increasingly, one finds that project proponents are mounting a range of arguments to plead for the reduction of, or outright exemption from bearing such costs. Kanchi Kohli reports.

A Jindal group-Government of Tamilnadu firm attempted to get forest clearance for mining in the Eastern Ghats forests of TN. Both the Ministry of Environment and a Supreme Court monitoring committee rejected clearance. Kanchi Kohli has more.

The Cabinet Commitee on Investment, set up with the express aim of expediting projects considered critical to economic growth, has passed several orders overturning regulatory mandates instituted earlier. Kanchi Kohli on where that leaves the environmental laws of the land.

The MoEF’s recent move introducing e-filing of applications for approval of forest land diversion may facilitate procedural agility and efficiency, but precludes the interpretation of environmental and human complexities critical to a fair process. Kanchi Kohli elaborates. 

The 2013 rejection of the bauxite mining plan in Odisha’s Niyamgiri Hills by the local tribal gram sabhas is hailed as the first successful environmental referendum in the country. Meenal Tatpati and Rashi Misra visit the region to find out what led the people to oppose the proposed ‘development’.

Media reports that the National Green Tribunal (NGT) has given clearance to Railways to approach the state government regarding the Hubli-Ankola rail link, which will pass through the dense Western Ghats in Karnataka. Kanchi Kohli writes on how the orders of NGT do not necessarily imply a complete go ahead for the railway line as the seems to suggest.

Newspapers' coverage of the Union budget left little doubt where their class interests lie. The majority of those covering the budget had no clue what it all means for the aam aadmi, or even who this mythical creature might be. Naturally, their hapless readers too were left similarly wondering, writes Ammu Joseph.

The draft Broadcast Bill does not reflect a nuanced understanding of the complex and contentious issues relating to media ownership. At the same time the objections raised by India's media industry do not acknowledge the fact that media regulation in most 'mature democracies' includes restrictions on media ownership, writes Ammu Joseph.

Ammu Joseph

For some time there has been an impasse between media and the government over the media regulation and the Broadcast Bill, with citizens left on the sidelines. A set of documents is being released into the public domain to stimulate public debate. Ammu Joseph has more.

In mid-June, the Election Commmission of India directed Chief Electoral Officers of all states and Union Territories to enforce the law against "paid news" during elections. The institutionalised racket has been running into hundreds of crores of rupees. Ammu Joseph brings you up to speed.

If 34 per cent of current parliamentarians have family ties and all those under 30 years are hereditary MPs, the concern over women alone leveraging family connections in politics seems misplaced. As the Women's Reservation Bill awaits yet another round of consideration, Ammu Joseph wonders if women politicians can and do make a difference.

The pressure of ill-informed popular sentiment coupled with a retributive judicial system may lead to an award of capital punishment for rapists, as it has in the Delhi 2012 case, but that does very little to address the much larger problem of VAW in all its dimensions. Ammu Joseph explains.

The pressure of ill-informed popular sentiment coupled with a retributive judicial system may lead to an award of capital punishment for rapists, as it has in the Delhi 2012 case, but that does very little to address the much larger problem of VAW in all its dimensions. Ammu Joseph explains.

On World Radio Day, Ammu Joseph looks at the representation of women in Indian radio and wonders if the medium can play a more significant role in ensuring empowerment and equal participation.

For a class of people thirsting for recognition in the modern world, the rosy narrative of business is far more seductive than anything else our culture has to offer. Rajesh Kasturirangan says business meets an essential need of middle class Indian culture.

We need to reflect on the political and social possibilities that India has contributed to the modern world. The Indian experience offers new interpretations of key modern concepts such as nationhood, democracy, citizenship and individual freedom, writes Rajesh Kasturirangan.

Just as democracy prevents famines without addressing everyday food scarcity, does it prevent horrendous violence while accepting and even abetting smaller acts of violence, wonders Rajesh Kasturirangan.

A land in which every kind of oppression has a long history is a country in which wounds are deep and forgiveness difficult. Moral indignation comes too easily to us, writes Rajesh Kasturirangan.

The reasons for the decline of Indian academia are more complex than just the influence of IT, however significant that might be, writes Rajesh Kasturirangan.

Corruption is much broader than what we usually imagine it to be, which focuses on bribes and similar illegal monetary transactions. A number of other practices are corrupt, even if they are legal, writes Rajesh Kasturirangan.