An increasing number of farmers from across the country are flocking to the annual rice sharing festival in Tamil Nadu, where a whopping number of traditional rice seed varieties are exchanged and subsequently cultivated in different locales. Devinder Sharma reports from the 2014 event.

Nivedita Rao of PRS Legislative presents the current status of malnutrition and measures proposed by the recently released National Nutrition Strategy by NITI Aayog.

The proposed National ID should be a backbone upon which governance and economic development rest comfortably, rather than merely a tool for auditing schemes, writes Ashwin Mahesh.

A New Delhi based non-profit organization has filed a public interest litigation in the Supreme Court against commercialisation of GM crops until a sound regulatory and monitoring system is put in place.

How does one countenance a regulator that does not adhere to the law of the land and is also unable to protect the interest of one group against another? The Genetic Engineering Approval Committee, says Bhaskar Goswami, itself needs to be regulated to ensure it plays a balanced role.

Following Gene Campaign's challenge to the government's decision to withdraw all existing regulatory oversight over the import of GE foods, the Supreme Court has issued notices to the Centre, writes Suman Sahai.

S G Vombatkere begins a series on the proposed gigantic network of interlinked rivers and the alternatives

S G Vombatkere presents an alternative to the proposed gigantic network of interlinked rivers. This is the second in a series of three articles.

Lalitha Sridhar presents two largely divergent points of view.

Environmental activists and locals in Kerala's Ernakulam region allege with evidence that the Pollution Control Board is entirely ineffective in preventing contamination of the Periyar river. M Suchitra reports.

Following an 18-month long yatra of the nation's river basins, the Rashtriya Jal Biradari proposes policies and steps to address India's water problems. Anuj Grover reports.

Vetiver plants have long been known to provide economical protection against soil and water loss, and more recently they have also been found to be useful for water purification. But while other nations have rapidly embraced it, in India itself its adoption remains rare, finds Shree Padre.

A Pepsi bottling plant in Kerala is extracting excess groundwater and may be subjecting it to contamination risks, a state government study had reported several months ago. Despite meeting five times, a state assembly committee has not acted. M Suchitra digs deeper.

What do you for water when you are a paddy cultivator and a good portion of the hills around you are rocky outcrops, not ideal for catchment? Enter the kokkarni. Shree Padre reports on the revival of the practice in Palakkad, Kerala.

Keni, the miraculous mini well of adivasis of Wayanad in Kerala, is well on its way to becoming a part of history - a victim of rapid environmental decline of this once bountiful state. Shree Padre reports.

The uncertainty of the nature and extent of climate change impact on the water sector calls for adaptive and flexible measures. Shripad Dharmadhikary quotes from a recent report of a Working Group within the IPCC to explain why.

New regulations from the environment ministry require coal-based thermal power plants to stick to legally binding limits for water consumption. Shripad Dharmadhikary examines the implications of these rules.

Last month, the Bombay High Court passed an order to shift IPL matches scheduled for the month of May out of the state of Maharashtra citing an acute water shortage in some parts of the state for its decision. PRS Legislative Research, answers some basic questions about ground water and its depletion in our country.

A two-day dialogue on urban rivers held in Pune focused on the plight of urban rivers. Shripad Dharmadhikary reports and presents his views.

Third in the series of articles adapted from the book Holding the State to Account by Samuel Paul of the Public Affairs Center, Bangalore, the author looks at the Corruption factor.

In the second in a series of two articles, Jayaprakash Narayan discusses on the connection between the fiscal crisis and decentralization of political power.

Fourth in a series of articles on civil society and governance, Jayaprakash Narayan answers a few commonly discussed questions.

Members of parliament find many uses for their constituency development funds, but a number of these are simply photo-ops for the incumbents.

Sajan Venniyoor asseses the upcoming public consultations on the second phase of FM Licensing in India.

We need to think about how RTI could be used to ensure more "systemic" solutions, where the performance of our government institutions are discussed in a regular, predictable manner says Ramesh Ramanathan.

In our system of criminal justice, the state takes up the responsibility to prosecute offenders on behalf of victims. Although public prosecutors are theoretically independent, in practice they face a number of improper influences. Bikram Jeet Batra surveys the prosecution system in India, and finds it in need of much change.

Still dodging the constitutional requirement for devolution of powers to local bodies, the Centre is now demanding that cities fall in line with the 74th Amendment. The National Urban Renewal Mission is deeply flawed, and civic groups that have proposed steps to rectify it should be heeded, writes Kathyayini Chamaraj.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's proposal for a North East Water Resources Authority to steer development along the Brahmaputra river basin in an integrated manner is both grand and glamorous. But how will the proposed Authority succeed where the Brahmaputra Board failed? This is still unclear, says Videh Upadhyay.

Held in Geneva last month, the Rotterdam Convention was attended by 500 participants from 140 governments, UN organisations, and NGOs. India sided with Canada and few other nations to prevent the listing of chrysotile asbestos, a known carcinogen. R Sridhar has more.

Modi has raised a serious issue. But he has also let loose the argument that a well-off state does not now need the Centre or other states. This is the shape of conflicts that will haunt the Indian Republic in the years to come, writes Pratap B Mehta.

Systematic and chronic under-investment in public goods such as education, law enforcement and infrastructure has already impacted our cities. And yet, we have not asked and answered a number of questions as a nation. C V Madhukar begins a new series.

Policy issues in the mainstream media tend to be about the economy. It is time that we pay closer attention to education, health, environment and foreign affairs, writes Ramachandra Guha.

People are shunning civil litigation in the states where there is no hope of obtaining justice in a reasonable amount of time, where instead of relief from the court all they can expect is a new date for the next court hearing. Kannan Kasturi reports.

Four years on, positives seem to be weighed down by negatives -- thanks mainly to the aggressive land acquisition for mega real estate projects by the ruling LDF coalition. P N Venugopal wonders if the government’s confidence is at its low ebb.

Governments have taken to announcing monetary compensation for victims' kin in cases of criminal acts as well, but it hardly masks their failure to impose the rule of law or bring about systemic improvements, says Harish Narasappa.

The decision of the MoEF to allow only organisations accredited by the Quality Council of India to carry out environment impact assessment of interventions might sound promising, but is likely to achieve little. Kanchi Kohli discusses the inherent flaws in such notification.

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.

Basic education and subsequent employment opportunities are issues that India has continued to grapple with. Could highly educated parliamentarians necessarily drive these forward? Tanvi Bhatikar analyses findings of a recent voters’ survey in search of an answer.

A Consortium of 7 IITs is working on a plan that will form the basis for the long-term vision for the government’s much-talked about Ganga rejuvenation programme. Shripad Dharmadhikary reviews an initial summary released by the Consortium as the framework within which the final plan will be drawn up.

The recent amendment to the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) Notification relaxes building norms for CRZ areas. There are certain necessary measures that should have preceded it, says Meenakshi Kapoor as she brings out the implications of the amendment.

A recent report suggests merging the Central Water Commission (CWC) and the Central Ground Water Board (CGWB) into a new organisation to be called the National Water Commission. Shripad Dharmadhikary comments on the report.

While Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan has managed to push centre-stage the key concerns of 'universal literacy' and 'elementary education for all', a spirited pitch for its implementation is necessary to ensure that it does not remain floundering in India's most populous state. Puja Awasthi reports.

On Independence day, a District Magistrate in U.P. handed over three teachers of a primary school to the police, during a surprise school visit. School children are among the worst sufferers in the state; they continue to pay for a system they neither moulded nor understand. Puja Awasthi reports.

Lawmakers at New Delhi recently passed the Right to Information Bill. The legislation provides for an information commission with powers to enforce transparency. An officer who delays disclosure will be liable to pay a penalty of Rs 250 for every day's delay. Prakash Kardaley is optimistic about the bill about to become law.

Recent rulings by the Central Information Commission offer hope that decision-making in environmental regulation will be more transparent and participatory henceforth, and embrace suo moto disclosures. Kanchi Kohli reports.

Civil society candidates should be eligible for appointment to key RTI posts in the States and the Centre. We must apply for such jobs, and help improve the system, writes Krishnaraj Rao.

As India enters a new monsoon season, Jaideep Hardikar recounts the Chhatisgarh situation where women are increasingly becoming farm managers.

Women in the Sunderbans region of West Bengal are setting a trend in climate change mitigation through projects under the "Common Property Resource" initiative, and carving new frontiers in livelihood security in the process. Ajitha Menon reports.

Fashion designer Eileen Fisher on trend-free fashion and the limits of technology.

U.S. stock futures advanced, buoyed by gains in European markets, but caution prevailed given increasing worries about Spain's debt crisis. Paul Vigna has details on The News Hub. Photo: Bloomberg.