Two new worlds
'Aid fatigue' in the West is changing the perception of the development paradigm of the poorer countries
Junking reality
The cleaning force of every country has an indispensable worker, the rag picker. But the health and safety of this person is conveniently ignored
The minister and the menace
A recent workshop on people's management of the Rajaji National Park brought out in full fury the debate whether the local communities are wiser …
Unfriendly neighbourhoods
In their rush to meet the housing requirements of cities, planners are turning a blind eye to the quality of the built environment
Under siege
India, seen as a dumpyard by the developed countries for toxic wastes, is under pressure not to ratify the Basel Ban
A revolution redefined
Troubled by the degradation of soil and water, French farmers are now switching to a more sustainable practise of agriculture
Ground realities
The importance of groundwater as a source of irrigation and the role of traditional methods in conserving it should be given due credit
Nature's laboratory
The ice cover almost 4.8 km thick is perhaps the most valuable feature of Antarctica, with its record of past atmospheres in the trapped air bubbles
Gandhi revisited
Development policies based on Gandhian philosophy, rather than consumerism, are the best bet for tackling current environmental and development …
Time to wake up
The demand for water and energy is likely to increase at a geometrical rate in the coming years. What are the policy options for a better …
Silent sufferers
Indifferent primary health care in developing countries could lead to mental depression taking the form of a mass illness
Save the sea
...by encouraging local participation of fisherfolk to arrest overfishing and damage to the eco-system
The daily bread
Bangladesh's flood victims have little or no work, and little or no money to buy food. And even the foodstuffs that are provided to them under …
Fuel for thought
To reduce the level of carbon in the atmosphere, growing and using biomass as an energy substitute for fossil fuels is of greater advantage than …
Whale of a problem
The world has again failed to agree whether whaling should continue or a moratorium should be placed on hunting the sea mammal
Alluring corridors
Conservation of lengths of forests, harbouring native animal and plant species, is a powerful concept that can involve people and attract funds
Starting afresh
For the writer, the environs and celebrations will be very different when the new millenium dawns
Trim that FLAB
The bureaucrat is a generalist and gets to head departments that should be managed by specialists
Gifted writers
The life of a journalist on the motoring beat is replete with foreign trips, cash and expensive gifts, all in exchange of a slippery pen
Serving in god's name
This dedicated band have abandoned their egos and selfishness to go about performing social service without any fanfare
Mucking around the Taj
Is there any point in keeping an architectural beauty radiant while the rest of the city goes to pot?
When the hills turn blue
... it is the elusive kurinji flowering in the Western Ghats, blossoming faithfully every 12 years
A taste of dry death
As the Gujarat forest department persists in planting a weed that sucks dry all the water in its vicinity, the Little Rann of Kutch gets...
To feed the cattle of the West
Extensive soya bean cultivation in Madhya Pradesh to supply fodder to the West has cut a swathe of degradation
'Spare parts' for sale
Unless Indians realise the nobility of donating their organs after death, the illegal trade in organs from living people will continue to flourish.