Is India ready?

Effective social schemes need more than cash transfer

Unique identity crisis

Biometric-based unique identity or Aadhaar is leading to huge problems for people working for the rural employment guarantee scheme and for …

Court Digest: Major environment hearings of the week (August 26-30)

Down To Earth brings you the top environmental cases heard in the Supreme Court, the high courts and the National Green Tribunal through the week

What India should look like in 2100

A new anthology touches upon most facets of Indian society, but leaves the reader feeling like the proverbial blind man who describes an elephant …

Green fund rules notified: Some hits, major misses

The rules of the Compensatory (Afforestation) Fund Act 2016 are better than the draft but not impactful

When climate comes unhinged, we need to re-think how to build our cities

While reducing carbon emissions is key to tackling extreme weather events, there are various ways to make cities more resilient

First white paper for holistic flood preparation in the works

Paper will be the outcome of a workshop organised recently to deliberate on India’s flood preparedness

'Inclusive urbanisation is the answer'

S Janakarajan, professor at Madras Institute of Development Studies (MIDS), conducts research on urban and peri-urban issues, disaster management …

Small towns do not degrade the rural environment

Auroville, or 'the city of dawn', is a unique township located in a predominantly rural district of Villupuram in Tamil Nadu. At the time of its …

In Short

Committee asks for professionalism in CAPART

Pill on net

Mumbai fixes space for hawkers

Vendors call policy anti-business  

A billion strong or weak?

Recently, India crossed the one-billion population mark. The question on everyone's lips is what does the future hold for babies born this …

Is social sector revenue or capital expenditure?

Unravelling the food mess

Reaching food to people who need it the most has remained one of the most stubborn problems in India. The public distribution system (PDS) is in …

Subansiri dam: green tribunal issues notices to NHPC, government

Petition seeks minimum flow in the river to protect Gangetic dolphins and other life forms

Socio Economic and Caste Census could leave rightful claimants out of BPL list

Activists point out several drawbacks in the inclusion and deprivation criteria

An environment engineer shows how sanitation safety planning helped Kochi Municipal Corp

Nearly 4.2 bln people do not have access to safe sanitation; sanitation safety planning is a risk-based technique that can help mitigate health …

Despite flagship schemes, financial inclusion and skill development 'failed'

108 districts out of 112 show disappointing negative growth between July 2018 and Feb 2019; youth from marginalised districts ignored

States violate community forest rights as Centre delays implementation of CAF Act

States exploit the delay in the drafting of rules for the Compensatory Afforestation Fund Act to assert rights over land claimed by communities …

Meet the Kerala farmer who preserves genetic diversity of rice

He received the National Plant Genome Saviour Award for his efforts towards conserving 45 varieties of rice seeds

International community resents the Compensatory Afforestation Fund Bill

International organisations say there are absolutely no provisions in the Bill to safeguard the rights of forest dwelling communities

The ideal gap

A two-and-a-half-year gap is ideal between births for the health of the babies

Grim reality of India's poverty dip