‘The Indian green bond market is a driver for people’

Green bonds in India have grown from virtual non-existence in early 2015 to a US $7 billion market, with participation from public and private …

On the defensive at Cancun?

Recently Arun Jaitley identified agriculture and investment as the two main issues for next month's World Trade Organization ministerial …

Blow to anti-AIDS campaign as condom turns taboo subject

The paanwallah-doubling-up-as-a-condom-vendor ad has been taken off the air. Instead, Doordarshan will show a village council member warning …

Mountain biodiversity tops Montreal meet agenda

The entire gamut of activities that threaten ecosystems in the mountain regions dominated discussions at the meeting of the scientific advisory …

Where are the panchayats?

Of the three farm water conservation programmes currently under way in Karnataka, the Jal Samvardhene Yojana (jsy) has completed a year of …

Don't need subsidies, give us the right price

For most Indians, Mahendra Singh Tikait is the man who brought Delhi to its knees in 1988 with a rally that brought the national capital face to …

Energy transition is now a must

Marie-Hélène Aubert, adviser to the French president for international negotiations on climate and environment, was recently in New …

Profit from the poor

Fifty-four suicides in Andhra Pradesh have blown the lid off the social posturing by microfinance companies. Before the news of the deaths sank …

Elementary failure

Since the Right To Education Act came into force on April 1, 2010, India has been witnessing an experiment that involves parents in enforcing a …

Treasure in troubled land

International aid has supported the economy of Afghanistan for 12 years. With aid flow gradually declining, the war-torn country will now have to …

Long yarn

The cotton story is a tangled tale. In many parts of India, farmers are committing suicide. It's been a while Andhra Pradesh, Punjab and now …

Non-profit diseases

There is a logic to the idea of neglected diseases. Historically the diseases poor people get--largely in the poorer parts of the world--haven't …

Science under siege

Agricultural science has ossified in India. Despite a vast network of public research institutions and agriculture universities across the country,…

Universal health scare

The country’s planners are debating how to provide healthcare to all. In a drastic shift from the 65-year-old public health system, the …

On foot and pedal

The teeming millions on foot and pedal are powering mobility in Indian cities. Their numbers exceed those who use cars. Yet they are victims of …

Kind to cash

The government has a plan to reach welfare to the poor without wasting money. It wants to put hard cash in their hands instead of spending on …

Sunshine sector loses sheen

About 40 kilometres from Delhi, in the bustling real estate market of Noida-Greater Noida, lies the biggest irony that the renewable energy …

Future compromised

The Earth Summit was a historical opportunity to set the world on the correct development trajectory. Negotiators from 191 countries came …

Lives of others

Wildlife is more of an academic concern except when the charismatic tiger is wiped out from a protected forest or our favourite fish vanishes …

Kudankulam meltdown

The spectre of Fukushima continues to haunt the world, forcing governments in most parts of the globe to rethink their plans to tap this …

The panchayat outrage

It was a vote for self-governance, not self-determination. No panchayat election in the country ever created as much hype as that of Jammu and …

Secretive tribunals, hidden damages

Canadian academic Gus Van Harten is well known for his efforts to reform the global investment treaty regime through his research papers, …

India’s many investment treaties make it vulnerable

Senior international lawyer Nathalie Bernasconi-Osterwalder, who heads the investment programme of the International Institute on Sustainable …

Let solar shine

Census 2011 throws light on the darkness across India. Of the 246 million households, 67 per cent get electricity from the grid, while 31 per …

Polavaram fraud

The Polavaram dam on the Godavari could displace 400,000 people and submerge nearly 4,000 hectares of forestland. Most of the people threatened …