Lakshmi K argues that we must integrate mentally disabled children in the mainstream schooling system with modifications, as opposed to segregating them in separate schools.

On World Disability Day and the few days following it, there was some coverage in the media of issues that concern the disabled population. But, considering that this represents peak coverage for the year it is hardly adequate, especially as the number of disabled persons in India is huge, writes Ammu Joseph.

Children with disabilities are routinely edged out of an education system that's hesitant to acknowledge diversity. Inclusion may be the key word in India's current education policy, but there is a world of difference between the law and its implementation. Deepa A reports.

Dolly Basu's production of The Merchant of Venice, with special children cast in nearly all roles, has taught her as much as it has helped the children themselves. Shoma Chatterji reports.

Dr Ruffles, an affectionate dog and resident ‘doctor’ at a hospital in Chennai, has helped several children with special needs to overcome their learning disabilities and resolve complex behavioural issues. Hema Vijay reports.

An inspiring account of Malini Chib, disability rights activist and author, who talks about how she got around to developing a strong disability identity that she wants to “celebrate” rather than reject.

The 'importation' of brides from poorer states keeps dowry rates in Haryana high, despite alarming levels of female infanticide. Ranjit Devraj reports.

As employers play hide and seek because they want to cut corners, thousands of women weavers in Haryana pay the price, says Alka Arya.

Three years of painstaking research has shattered many a myth around the most revered hydropower project in the country. A mere 20 per cent of all cultivable area in Punjab is under the dam's command area. Sudhirendar Sharma reviews the recently released Unravelling Bhakra : Assessing the Temple of Resurgent India.

Despite being feted as a huge success, the flagship programme of the government for the universalisation of primary education leaves much to be desired. Ironically, the easy availability of the funds for a supposedly successful scheme may be preventing it from being as productive as it could otherwise be. Kalpana Misra reports.

It has been happening for several years under the nose of the Haryana administration. The nation's top government auditor has issued multiple indictments. And yet they have polluted recklessly. Himanshu Upadhyaya tells the tale.

Narnaul illustrates above all the value of investing in women. Many have continued to be active and involved even though they have little practical support from the Municipal Council, writes Kalpana Sharma.

A first-of-its-kind women-only BPO started by 'Harva' in a Haryana village is all set to harness the rural talent while changing the rigid mindset of the people, transforming rural economy, writes Hemlata Aithani.

Venu Govindu reviews Siddharth Dube's Words Like Freedom : Memoirs of an Impoverished Indian Family 1947-1997

This May 1, taking a resolute stand, the Supreme Court directed the Union and state governments to take specific measures to address the desperate crisis of food for drought-affected communities.

Focussed monitoring of the implementation of the Supreme Court's May 2003 directives on the Right-to-food litigation is beginning to pay off, say the campaigners.

From Urban Poverty Alleviation Initiatives in India : A General Assessment and a Particular Perspective (2002), a publication of the Ramanathan Foundation.
Interact: What about bank red-tape and corruption?

From Urban Poverty Alleviation Initiatives in India : A General Assessment and a Particular Perspective (2002), a publication of the Ramanathan Foundation.

From Urban Poverty Alleviation Initiatives in India : A General Assessment and a Particular Perspective (2002), a publication of the Ramanathan Foundation.

From Urban Poverty Alleviation Initiatives in India : A General Assessment and a Particular Perspective (2002), a publication of the Ramanathan Foundation.

Concluding article of the series from Urban Poverty Alleviation Initiatives in India : A General Assessment and a Particular Perspective (2002), a publication of the Ramanathan Foundation.

Jean Drèze looks at food (in)security during the last decade, as well as prospects for nutrition efforts in the coming years.

Administrators must work with service organizations to tackle the problems leading up to the symptom. Varupi Jain reports on those seeking alms on Delhi's streets.

The Supreme Court and the overwhelming majority of academics and NGOs believe in it. A growing number of poor parents have emerged as a pressure group for this programme, report Kalpana Parikh & Summiya Yasmeen.

The shift in the Central Government’s policy regarding the pricing and allocation of foodgrains has severely impacted Kerala’s Public Distribution System, which had for long been hailed as a fine model in the country. M Suchitra reports.

The numbers of those seeking active employment is likely to reach 692 million by 2007. A towering tide looms ahead, reports Safia Sircar.

Migrant labourers of MP are stuck in debt in Maharashtra and also in a system that assures no health coverage for their hazardous occupation of stone crushing. Jaideep Hardikar recounts their travails.

Shouldn't “fixing the delivery system” itself be one of the central planks of second-generation reforms, asks Ramesh Ramanathan.

The National Advisory Council sent a draft National Rural Employment Guarantee Act to the UPA government this August. The Prime Minister has since committed to bring the Act into Parliament this winter session. Rasika Dhavse reviews the proposed law, its entitlements and promises. See also: Interview with Jean Dreze, NAC member.

In its Common Minimum Programme the UPA government promised to tackle unemployment. In September a draft Rural Employment Guarantee Act was put together by the National Advisory Council. Now, however, it appears that vital portions of that draft are likely to be diluted before the legislation is tabled in Parliament.

The senior citizens of Chingrajpara slum in Bilaspur are unable to benefit from the largesse of the many government departments in New Delhi. In this fifth article in our SLUM DIARIES series, Ashima Sood notes that they go begging in the alleys of the slum, depending instead on their more reliable humble neighbours.

The National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS) is to be implemented in 200 districts around the country in the first phase. One of the main challenges will be to ward off corruption. Surekha Sule was recently involved in conducting a training programme, and notes how some villages in Andhra Pradesh are gearing up.

The budget reflects our continued affliction for numbers and the GDP growth rate. It also follows the Prime Minister's insistence that planners shoot for higher growth rates, especially on the back of an economy that has surprised everyone. But, asks Sudhirendar Sharma, will the juggling of numbers do it?

The first step towards eradicating poverty is to understand just how many of us are poor, and what that means. Thus far the government's measurement of poverty has simply been a self-serving one, and it's time we adopted a more honest calculation, writes Dilip D'Souza.

The numbers are among the worst in the world. But instead of addressing the infinite nightmare of poverty, the Indian government appears to be doing away with the poor altogether by statistical jugglery and artificially lowering the poverty line, says Colin Gonsalves.

Residents of our slums often pay more than their better-off counterparts for the most essential services. Aditi Dimri and Amiya Sharma discovered the poverty premium through a survey of Sanjay Colony, a slum in Okhla phase II, Delhi, with a population of around 40,000.

The Prime Minister, citing no credible evidence, says small shopkeepers will not be hurt by the entry of large foreign retailiers into the country. His party president, on the other hand, is asking him to go slow on this front. Will this lead to a different course in the government's thinking, or is this simply a smoke-screen, asks Devinder Sharma.

By and large, poorer and badly-run states like Bihar and Orissa have seen higher inflation resulting from the NREGA windfall, while in the better-off states with less money flowing in through the scheme, inflation is much lower. Clearly, meddling in markets will show up in ways that are not necessarily all good, writes Sunil Jain.

Once, Andhra Pradesh's top leaders queued up at Bandi Lachmamma's home with promises. The debate on farm suicides hit the headlines when her husband took his life. Years later, she works as a coolie in Anantapur earning much less than the minimum assured by the NREGP - which turns away single women, writes P Sainath.

In 11 of the poorest districts in the country, a citizens' audit of development, modeled on an earlier study of education, helps residents themselves easily identify how their areas fare on key measures. Rukmini Banerjee and Shanti Jagannathan introduce PAHELI, the People's Audit of Health, Education and Livelihoods.

If our media can provide regular updates on the stock markets, foreign exchange and bullion rates, weather, pollution, etc., surely they can add a poverty watch? The International Day for the Eradication of Poverty passed on 17 October, and Ammu Joseph scanned the national press from Bangalore.

I could smell Buddham Bai before I could see her. She was covered with layers of clothes once white, laced with the acrid odour of incontinence, of old age. Arpan Tulsyan reports on one woman's poverty and homelessness in the capital.

A unique strength of the NREGS is that citizens have the right to oversee its implementation, by direct scrutiny of its records. Sandeep Pandey provides daily updates on the progress of the social audit of the scheme in UP's Unnao district.

The complaints are many and often justified. People are sometimes exasperated by the way the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme works. But there is unanimity on its worth and value, writes P Sainath.

Though the homeless exist in large numbers, society tries to render them invisible, says a recent study on homelessness in four Indian cities. Arpan Tulsyan reports on the findings.

Several cases of starvation deaths have been reported in Orissa, especially in areas with high tribal populations. Added to this, government inaction in response to the crisis deepens people's woes. Arpan Tulsyan reports.

Xavier's Foundation in Guwahati has come up with the idea of establishing a Clothes Bank for the poor. It estimates that up to 3 million people may have need for its clothes. Ratna Bharali Talukdar reports.

The first-ever Lok Adalat on the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act was held recently in Latehar, Jharkhand. Most petitioners came in the hope of receiving unemployment cheques, or at least having their job applications accepted, but left with neither. Pradeep Bhargava reports.

Most governments that stressed welfarist measures gained in last month's elections. Food prices and cheap rice are crucial, though not the sole issues, notes P Sainath.

BPL politics at the central level is skewed, and quotas are fixed for every state, regardless of the actual number of people who need to be protected. Pradeep Baisakh reports on one family's near-total loss.