The extent of India’s energy poverty

More than 80 million households in India lack access to electricity; about 75 million of these are in rural areas

Bihar’s earthquake toll due to poor condition of houses

Census data shows Bihar among the three states with lowest proportion of houses which can be categorised ‘good’

Non-binary genders need more visibility in India’s Census 2021

Separating sex and gender in the country’s biggest socioeconomic survey is imperative

Sarna Dharam Code: Of Adivasi identity and eco-nationalism

Down To Earth speaks to experts on Adivasi culture about the recent resolution passed by the Jharkhand Assembly, asking for a separate religion …

Control and delete: Lack of data updating has left millions of poor Indians hungry; here is how

The government’s reliance on decade-old data due to a delay in census has resulted in exclusion of millions from the safety net of the …

Simply put: The budget amid a pandemic

Down To Earth’s cartoonist Sorit Gupto analyses the budget for the next financial year through his cartoons

Haryana's sex ratio success a result of behavioural change or fudged data?

The state's achievement comes at a time the Census’ Sample Registration System survey paints a grim picture for the country

Economics of population

The 15th Finance Commission has recommended the use of Census 2011 instead of the norm of considering Census 1971, and this change has led to …

NFHS-5: No, women don’t outnumber men in India just yet. Here is why

NFHS counts only certain women, who belong to specific demographic categories. There is a bias in it, say experts

Dying for ration: Centre to give free foodgrains to 813 million from New Year, but what of those excluded

Coverage of the National Food Security Act is still done on the basis of the outdated 2011 Census  

Data indicates poor enforcement of law to check female foeticide

Only 143 persons have been convicted till date under PC&PNDT Act that bans sex determination test

Language Census: Many tribal tongues now have fewer takers

There is a huge decline in the number of Monpa and Sema speakers

India's missing toilets

Government unable to determine exactly how many households don't have toilets

Informal and unplanned urbanisation — welcome to the new Urban India

Policies and urban planning frequently disregard the needs of the urban poor, resulting in an unequal distribution of resources between residents …

Can poor urban planning be held responsible for emergence of congested and unplanned urbanisation?

Formal urban planning must not be reduced to a mere water utilities sectoral planning and forecasting approach