Court decisions have lacked strong measures to penalise religious fundamentalism. On the contrary, as some decisions indicate, the judiciary seems to permit social ostracism, boycott of minorities and ghettoisation. But in a democracy the State has no religion, argues Colin Gonsalves.

Second a series of articles on civil society and governance, Jayaprakash Narayan describes the prevailing situation.

Beginning a series of articles on Civil society and governance, Jayaprakash Narayan connects the dots that brought activism into the Indian state in 1947, the results of which we are feeling even today.

Environmental clearances in India have always raised questions, as noted in many reports in India Together. For years now, NGOs have opposed the Ministry of Environment, sometimes bitterly. Last year, the Ministry proposed a 're-engineered' regulation, and found a new opposition - the state governments. Kanchi Kohli has more.

The Supreme Court issued six directives in 2006 on bringing about police reforms in the states to make the police free from political interference and accountable to the citizens. Kathyayini Chamaraj analyses the state governments' responses and finds much amiss.

Blanket surveillance of the kind envisaged by India's Centralized Monitoring System achieves little, but blatantly violates the citizen's right to privacy; Snehashish Ghosh explores why it may be dangerous and looks at potential safeguards against such intrusion.

The annual Constitutional Day lecture organized by non-profit organisation Daksh this year will be delivered by Usha Ramanathan on 26 November. Find the details here.

Invincible as he appears in his western stronghold, can Narendra Modi sweep forth from it and take New Delhi for an insurgent BJP? The good news for Modi's rivals in his party is that these results don't even begin to suggest he can.

With a focus on attaining self-sufficiency in the production of food grain, Tripura has embarked on an ambitious programme to bring large swathes of cultivable land in the state under the System of Rice Intensification. The results are promising, writes Ratna Bharali Talukdar.

The atomic energy programme is an economic failure as well as an environmental disaster. Moreover, by its very functioning, the AEC has undermined the democratic ideals of the nation, writes Ramachandra Guha.

In India, as in no other large country in the world, the nation still has the potential to reign in the hegemony of the nation-state. If this happens, some of the worst forms of violence will be curtailed, writes Rajesh Kasturirangan.

States are demanding a higher share of tax revenue from the Centre, citing the need for development funds as well as flexibility in spending money according to local priorities. Sunil Jain reports.

From misguided attempts at prohibition and moral policing to scams in higher education and declining development, things in Kerala have been taking a rather sordid turn and hitting headlines for all the wrong reasons. P N Venugopal recapitulates some of the most recent developments.

Although designated as the offical bird of Uttar Pradesh, the Sarus crane finds itself under threat. Despite a protective High Court order, the economic plans of the government threaten to disrupt the birds' habitat. Wildlife conservationists take their case to the Supreme Court. Kanchi Kohli reports.

Five States did manage a significant decline in the average number of farm suicides between 2003 and 2010. However, more States have reported increases over the same period, reports P Sainath.

The Post Office (Amendment) Bill 2006 proposes to give the Department of Posts an unaccountable monopoly role in the delivery of small letters and couriers, and introduces a registration system for private carriers. Kaushiki Sanyal presents a legislative brief of a Bill that harkens back to the license raj.

While a list of approved amendments to the proposed law on regulation of real estate is yet to be made public, it is now clear that the Bill will apply to commercial projects as well. Here is a round-up of the recent developments, from PRS Legislative Research.

The Centre may have rolled back its sudden unilateral decision to accord ‘disturbed area’ status to Arunachal Pradesh under the AFSPA 1958, but that does little to restore good faith between the northeastern states and the government. Anjuman Ara Begum analyses why.

With the government clearing Telangana as India's 29th state, long-standing demands for separate states in other parts of the country have gained fresh momentum. This could be a foretelling of many more states to come, but would that necessarily augur ill for the unity of India? Noted historian Ramachandra Guha shares his thoughts.

Monies allocated for rehabilitation of persons affected by the Narmada dams have traveled a different path than to the people. A recent audit report of the Comptroller and Auditor General has confirmed significant corruption in rehabilitation works in Madhya Pradesh and a culture of impunity amongst state officials, finds Himanshu Upadhyaya.

Sudarshan Chhotoray reports on displacement and lack of rehabilitation in water projects in Orissa.

There has been a massive erosion in public confidence in our criminal justice system. There have been numerous commissions set up to suggest improvements, but nothing much has come of these, writes C V Madhukar.

Widely labelled as the first of its kind, the Intensive Family Survey conducted in Telangana on 19 August gave rise to a range of speculations, and predictably drew its share of brickbats and bouquets. Venugopalrao Nellutla seeks to decipher the real motives and usefulness of the survey.

Amidst a culture of silence and media inattention, torture is easy to find in the security hot zones of India. A new film bares the ugly truth. Freny Manecksha reports.

Already struggling with low budgetary allocation for healthcare and shortage of trained staff, health services in Telangana and residual Andhra Pradesh have taken a more serious hit due to issues arising out of bifurcation. Tejaswini Pagadala reports.

True, Bangalore must be able to handle more flights, passengers and air freight to meet current demand and future growth. But London’s Heathrow airport sits on 1000 acres less land, and yet flies 14 times more passengers than Bangalore's new airport will. What's going on? Jacob John investigates.

North Karnataka's flood victims feel that it was relatively easier to run away from raging waters than dealing now with a corrupt bureaucracy and eking out a livelihood fraught with imponderables. Savita Hiremath investigates.

Integrated river management is a serious business, and without proper attention can lead to politically difficult situations even within a single state, as seen in Maharashtra this year. Parineeta Dandekar reports.

The common thread between our external and internal security predicaments is our approach to time. Most security issues are long-standing and seemingly interminable. If we understood why this is so, we can change it, writes Firdaus Ahmed.

Nearly 1000 returnees, including 140 students of Assam studying in different universities and institutions of Gujarat, arrived in Guwahati on Thursday, even as nearly three lakh people, who had earlier registered for coming to the state, have re-applied cancelling their requests for permits.

Four northeastern neighbouring states – Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya and Nagaland — are jointly working on simultaneous imposition of cess on liquour in their respective states.

Aam Aadmi Party’s decision to not contest any of the four upcoming assembly elections in Maharashtra, Jammu & Kashmir, Haryana and Jharkhand is the wisest choice the party has made in the last six months.

Consider home delivery of liquor to maintain social distancing norms: SC to states

Firemen spray disinfectant inside Odisha State Secretariat to prevent spread of Covid-19

Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas on Thursday accused Donald Trump's administration of undermining efforts towards a two-state solution, a day after the US president said he would unveil a new Middle East peace plan.

Bombay high court on Friday sought a reply from the state on a public interest litigation by a Pune woman on permission to take pet dogs for their daily walks, while observing that walking them within housing society compounds for now, as permitted, was adequate for the moment.

The decline in the number of admissions at government schools has often been a source of considerable chagrin among officials in the education department.

Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh set up the task force to find ways for the state to gradually get out of the unprecedented lockdown that is still in place to fight the coronavirus pandemic.

The state retailers' petrol and diesel sales in first half of April declined by 61% and 64%, respectively, as a nation-wide lockdown to curb the spread of the coronavirus brought economic activity to a standstill.

The brand, whose clothes have been worn by former first lady Michelle Obama, said online sales operations, which account for more than half its revenues, will continue as normal.

Analysts agree that Covid-19 pandemic will lead to an increase in bank's gross non-performing assets with some reports pegging the stock to double as well.

Official Twitter of State of Israel responded to Varun Dhawan's tweet on coronavirus antidote with his 'ABCD 2' dialogue.

House arrest tech includes battery-powered ankle bracelets or location-tracking apps.