Even as AIDS spreads, cheaper generic medicines made in India are unavailable to sufferers within the country, as the Indian government is slow to tackle the crisis.

Newspaper and television reports leave us thinking that India is poised to become a superpower, but a more wholesome measure of where the country is will paint a different picture. The problems are still immense, and India lags far behind the world in many ways; it is important to note this and begin tackling them, says Abhijit Das.

Despite crores of rupees having been spent in name of tribal and other development programmes in one block of Palakkad district in Kerala, the region suffers from poor access to decent health care. 80 per cent of the adivasi population here are living in abject poverty. M Suchitra reports.

The WHO has warned that India would likely be hit if a bird-flu pandemic breaks out because India has large numbers of domestic ducks and the country is along major bird migratory routes originating in the East. Abhijit Das notes a few positive elements in India's readiness, but finds that much more is needed to avert disaster.

A new Indo-Canadian study has found a one-third decline in new HIV infections in the worst-hit regions of the country - Tamilnadu, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka and Maharashtra. Researchers say that prevention efforts seem to be paying off, but warn that the battle is far from over. Nitin Jugran Bahuguna reports.

The mounting cost of hospital care, increasing out-of-pocket expenditure, and its catastrophic impact on family finances demand an innovative and flexible risk-pooling mechanism to provide a security net for the poor. Merely transfering the costs to the public exchequer will land the nation in a no-win situation, writes Jayaprakash Narayan.

India's attitude to condoms and contraception is worrisome at a time when promiscuity has a stamp of approval. Condom manufacturers are pitching pleasure enhancement in their ads, instead of being direct about the protection against AIDS. Charumathi Supraja reports.

The Badaun district administration in UP is on a war-footing to convert all dry toilets and rehabilitate manual scavengers before the end of the year. Over the last few months 1600 scavengers have been rehabilitated. Sumita Thapar reports.

The better education and health outcome indicators in the southern states compared to the north, has been acknowledged for a long time. And yet to see it with one’s own eyes really drives home the poin,t say Reetika Khera.

As the world observes the International Day of People with Disability on 3 December, Malini Shankar draws attention through a three-part series to the pathetic lack of attention and consideration for the disabled in the Indian Railways, the only cost-effective means of long distance travel for the masses.

The conduct of election of members to the Medical Council of India in 2013 and its subsequent actions over the past year have underlined the brazen corruption in the regulatory body. Developments in the health ministry raise doubts over whether these issues will be tackled at all.  A round up

On World Mental Health Day, Pushpa Achanta shares the struggle of some mental illness survivors she met recently and hopes that our nation's Mental Health Program is implemented by the government earnestly.

Delhi, infamous for high air pollution, has been experimenting with odd-even formula by curbing the movement of private vehicles from Jan 1st. After one week of the execution of the programme, there is no visible change in the pollution level. Will road rationing help to reduce the pollution level or does Delhi need much more action to control the pollution, writes Akshatha M.

There are 70 million diabetics in India, 80 percent of them have vision problems about which they are either not aware or lack access to good eye care. Swapna Majumdar reports how NGOs are partnering to reach out to the marginalised and providing them better eye care and prevention.

Diarrhea is one of the leading causes of child mortality in our country. Reasonably priced vaccines backed by the government are now available to help stop this malady, says Swapna Majumdar.

Led by children themselves, and ably assisted by concerned adult guidance, a remarkable Children's Council gives true meaning to citizenship and informed choices.

With many of its regular programmes running smoothly, Bangalore's pioneering civil society organisation turns to newer ways of engaging citizens. Rasika Dhavse reports.

Illegal felling, mining, and conversion of forest land into non-forest uses, have all been unchecked here. Repeated hearings in the Supreme Court were ignored by forest officials. Kanchi Kohli reports that the case presents both new opportunities for holistic conservation as well as risk of the Court's orders being flouted brazenly.

Residents of seven villages in Kolar district depend on water from the Mudiyanur tank which is not in good shape and in need of de-silting. Still, the villagers' worship of goddess Chowdeswari has helped them preserve an age-old tradition of water allocation, finds Surekha Sule.

Three generations of a farming family in Bagalkot district in Karnataka campaigned to drought-proof the fields and to conserve the soil and water. Their inspiration was a 170-year old book that until recently remained only in manuscript form. Shree Padre reports on the enviable results.

Disregard for local sentiment is now the norm in most large projects. At Tadadi, which has faced a long line of threats of displacement, the latest struggle is against a proposed 4000 MW coal-fired plant. With Coastal Zone regulators not very attentive to the violations of law, the villagers can rely only on themselves. Sudhirendar Sharma reports.

For decades, Karnataka has been haunted by the devadasi tradition where girls were 'dedicated' to goddess Yellama and then turned into sex-workers. Today, determined groups of devadasis of Bagalkot district are bravely stopping the practice, stemming the growth of AIDS and gaining a new respect in society. Ramesh Menon reports.

27-year-old Ratnamma, a garment factory worker, was forced to deliver a baby on the streets of Bangalore. 20-year-old Gayathri was run over by the bus belonging to the Bangalore garment factory where she worked. Garment workers in Bangalore are caught in an exploitative web, reports Padmalatha Ravi.

No matter which way India's seed policies are heading, the underlying purpose of Malnad's home garden programme as a community conservation initiative for the preservation of genetic diversity, organic agriculture, health and ecologically sensitive livelihoods remains undiluted. Keya Acharya reports from northern Karnataka.

The Karnataka state legislature's amendment to the Panchayati Raj law has already attracted severe criticism from civil society. The governor had also expressed his objections. There is now an outpouring of wrath from women panchayat members around the state as protests intensify. Kathyayini Chamaraj reports.

Paradise Lost…almost! is a report on the Western Ghats written by Sudhirendar Sharma. The report follows the trail of destruction in the ghats and engages with those who have been engaged in the task of reversing the dominant trend. An IN-PICTURES feature.

It's a classic headline: "Government-funded rainwater harvesting for public schools goes wrong, money wasted". However in one district, the tale is altogether different. Shree Padre records the positives and the lessons.

Graduates are difficult to influence with money and liquor, says one BJP campaigner flatly about the race for Bengaluru’s MLC seat. The Lok Satta candidate meanwhile is targeting precisely the reform seekers amongst the elite. Navya P K reports.

In a desperate bid to outdo each other in television rating points, regional news channels are increasingly resorting to celebrity coverage bordering on tabloid journalism that infringes the right to individual privacy. B S Nagaraj comments on the trend.

Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah presented the maiden budget of the recently elected Congress government on July 12, but does his populist package promise anything beyond mere intent? Sridhar Pabbisetty elaborates.

The Karnataka Panchayat Raj Act Amendment Committee suggested reforms in the 1993 legislation to realise the ideal of decentralisation in letter and spirit. Nandana Reddy, a core member of the committee, holds the state accountable for the manner in which it has dealt with the report and proposed amendments.

As environmental clearance on the proposed Tadri port in Karnataka is awaited, Dina Rasquinha and Aarthi Sridhar discuss how assumed future benefits of the port have been projected in complete disregard of the natural, environmental gifts that the region enjoys.

An India Together interview with Nirmalatai Purandare, of the Vanasthali Rural Development Centre.

From being deprived of the most basic liberties, Anita Dhangda has travelled many miles, and the lessons of that passage make her determined to succeed in her new role.

Kalpana Sharma on accepting and welcoming differences.

Much debate over the massive dam projects on the Narmada has been on costs vs benefits as well as poor rehabilitation measures. But one of the original questions activists raised years ago was over the Right to Information. The 'RTI' factor may be finally hitting home, reports Jaideep Hardikar.

In the three days the National Commission on Farmers team toured Vidharbha, there were six suicides. In Panderkauda, the body of the latest farmer to take his life entered that town's hospital the same day the team arrived there for a meeting on farmer distress. P Sainath continues his series on Vidharbha's crisis.

With the decision to turn an important commercial road in the city into a walking plaza on weekends, Pune is reaping a healthier urban environment as well as a popular public space. Vinita Deshmukh reports that the early opposition from some quarters has given way, as more people take to the street.

At the core of the agriculture crisis in Vidarbha are the disparities between the western and eastern regions that the state's policies have fostered over five decades. Starved of the funds that western region has for long received, it now hardly matters whether Vidarbha gains the status of statehood, notes Jaideep Hardikar.

Prakash Kardaley's personal integrity and unflinching courage to uncover the wrongs in society were an inspiration to his colleagues. Equally, the RTI law for him was a weapon; he insisted that ordinary citizens were the warriors who had to wield it. Rasika Dhavse pays tribute to the senior journalist who passed away on 15 July.

Pune-based firm Neeti Solutions has designed a unique version of the popular game Snakes and Ladders, aimed at teaching children about fires and earthquakes and how to cope best in such situations. Rasika Dhavse has more.

A village in rural Chandrapur, Maharashtra, plays match-maker for love-lorn couples marrying out of their castes, at 40 marriages and counting. Jaideep Hardikar finds out that behind the positive force of the village are a group of committed people.

The Acorn Foundation India Trust aims to organise ragpickers and train them in scientific methods of waste handling, segregation and recycling, bringing a measure of respect to their work. Freny Manecksha reports.

Sachin Tendulkar’s letter to the Maharashtra CM Fadnavis, urging him to reduce toll posts in the state, may just encourage the state further to execute its plan of exempting private cars and SUVs from such charges. Darryl D’Monte argues why that is entirely unjustifiable.

For seven years women and children of the rural districts of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar have been deprived of essential health services so that the polio eradication campaign could go on. On World Health Day, Abhijit Das points out that this need not be.

Elections in Bihar move into the final phase today. Polling began on 18 October with the first of four phases. For a total of 243 seats in the State Assembly, 1607 candidates have been in the running. Of these, 446 candidates (nearly 2 competitors per seat) have criminal records. Varupi Jain reports.

The concrete road is a symbol of some development in this northern Bihar town, but it sits oddly with its surrounding landscape. The lack of jobs, the bane of many small towns, has affected Madhubani too, writes Kalpana Sharma.

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