It’s been over a month since the power centre in Tamil Nadu shifted from Poes Garden to Greenways Road in Chennai. The thirteenth chief minister of the state, Edappadi K Palanisami, is taking baby steps to bring about a change in the state w
When her husband died last year, 60-year-old Chakkamma was not sure whether she would be able to have some money of her own: she has a son who looks after her, but she wanted to maintain a degree of independence. Opportunity came knocking when the
The Railways was unable to meet its operational cost of passenger and other coaching services. During 2014-15, there was a loss of Rs 33,821.70 crore on passenger and other coaching services. The freight services earned a prof
India has slipped one spot in the Human Development Index 2016. India’s HDI value for 2015 is 0.624 — which put the country in the medium human development category - positioning it at 131 out of 188 countries and territo
What if there was a law for optimum use of water, conservation of rivers and underground water? It would have battled the water crisis in different regions of the country. Villagers from drought-hit regions of the country
A law which is supposed to make work on demand a basic right for citizens has been faltering ever since it came into effect a decade ago. And as it enters its 11th year, it faces more than ever the possibility of being turned into a cash
One in every three public toilets in Delhi do not have separate provision for women, according to an ActionAid India survey of public toilets in Delhi. The survey carried out in December last year under the Peoples’ Vision of the C
India is home to the world’s fourth highest number of billionaires, with Reliance Industries chief Mukesh Ambani leading the club of more than 100 billionaires, according to Forbes magazine. Bill Gates has topped the list for
The biggest ever universal basic income exercise is taking place in Kenya, and if it works, it may be replicated in other parts of the world. India too is looking closely at UBI, with pilot projects being run in some Madhya Pradesh villages.
A staggering 192 newly elected MLAs in Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Uttarakhand, Manipur and Goa have declared criminal cases against themselves. Also, 540 of the new MLAs are crorepatis. National Election Watch and
India ranked 122nd among list of155 countries, according to the World Happiness Report 2017. It is four points down than its previous ranking of 118 in 2016. The r
NDA has smartly appropriated a slew of UPA initiatives that it had opposed when in the opposition – from Aadhaar to DBT and financial inclusion. However, here is one initiative the government has decided to do away with: the women’s ba
The pale yellow room on the second floor of Vikas Bhawan near Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg, ITO, is bustling with people, mostly women. Everyone is at work; some are calling for people waiting outside, others are talking to those seeking help. In spite
Prime minister Narendra Modi`s popularity has been validated throughout the election, in which he made himself and his actions the main issue in many public speeches. The ability of Modi to deliver landslide victory results like in UP consolidates
The cabinet on Monday approved four Good and Services Tax (GST) related bills. The four GST related bills are: The Central Goods and Services Tax Bill 2017 (The CGST Bill)
India and Pakistan began discussions on the Indus Water Treaty on Monday, six months after New Delhi suspended talks following the Uri terror attack. The talks are being held in Islamabad. Read:
Arrears of Service Tax, which was Rs 22,014 crore in 2012-13, tripled to Rs 71,257 crore in 2014-15. However, recovery during the year as a percentage of unrestrained recoverable arrears registered a steep fall from 42 percent during 2013-14 to 10
The Yamuna is considered holy. But over several decades, it has become so polluted, it no longer evokes the pristine images the puranas painted of it. Thinking of the Yamuna, in fact, brings to mind images of black water, expanses of white foam, d
Internet use among Indians is less as compared to Chinese, according to findings of the Pew Research Center, a US-based think tank. “In our latest poll, 71% of Chinese say they use the internet at least occasionally or own a
The nutrition crisis continues to stare at us, despite the fact that India is the fastest growing large economy today. In running after GDP growth, the human development index has probably been given a short shrift. People lik
