Could India’s inflexible and rather aggressive attitude in global climate negotiations jeopardise its domestic mitigation of the real threats from climate change? Darryl D’Monte summarises the key take-aways from a TISS conference that dwelled upon this and related issues.

The Paris Climate Accord is undergoing final round of negotiations and will be announced soon. Darryl D’Monte reports from the Climate Change Conference in Paris, on how there will be a huge gap between the promises made in the accord and what will end up happening on the ground.

Several women’s groups are now fighting the age-old gender bias perpetuated by Sharia law and finding ways to help Muslim women who have suffered due to its patriarchal dispensations. Pushpa Achanta reports on some of these, including one which proposes a codification of such law, reinterpreted.

Child Relief and You works with NEWS to set up a hostel for gypsy children, so their education does not become hostage to their parents' migrations.

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.

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.

Across Europe, as economies find themselves tottering in the face of deepening financial and social crises, various alternative initiatives are gaining ground, providing hope for a different future.  Ashish Kothari writes on some of these.

Pradeep Baisakh analyses a recently released report by human rights activists and civil society organizations to see how the present government has performed in the three years it has been in power.

In U.P., the Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalaya scheme - instituted under the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan in 2005 to ensure access and quality elementary education (Class 6-8) for disadvantaged girls - has opened new doors hitherto closed because of discrimination and poverty. Swapna Majumdar has more.

Muzaffarnagar and Shamli districts in western Uttar Pradesh had their long standing communal harmony destroyed by the riots that took place there in September 2013. Shoma Chatterji reviews the powerful documentary Muzaffarnagar Baaqi Hai which looks closely into the how, why and the aftermath of these riots.

If RTI applications continue to rise in number, it will not be too long before the system as we know collapses and will have to be overhauled. More suo motu disclosures are needed to avert this, writes Vivek Vaidyanathan.

Diane Tuft shows the front line of climate change, in her new book "The Arctic Melt: Images of a Disappearing Landscape." Diane joins Lunch Break's Tanya Rivero to discuss her disturbingly beautiful images. Photo: Diane Tuft

The Netflix documentary series "Tiger King" sheds light on the culture of tiger ownership in the U.S., but doesn’t reveal how prolific this culture really is. This video explains the patchwork of state laws that makes private ownership of tigers hard to regulate. Illustration: Carter McCall/WSJ

Ferrari employees who are going back to work pass through a series of steps designed to keep the coronavirus out, including blood tests for antibodies. WSJ’s Eric Sylvers reports from the car maker’s factory near the center of Italy’s outbreak. Photo: Francesca Volpi for The Wall Street Journal

They make an appearance before every election with a basket of promises and some patchwork to impress the electorate, only to disappear later. Chennai residents tell Lavanya Donthamshetty how tired they are of such politicians, wishing for a leader with vision and the commitment to turn it into reality.

Narendra Modi of 2002 couldn't change Hindustan into Modistan; it is Hindustan which has changed Modi of 2002 into Modi of 2012, notes Sajid Bhombal.

The Bharatiya Janata Party on Saturday said its top leaders will attend the oath-taking ceremony of Narendra Modi as Gujarat chief minister on December 26.

Interactions at the WSF, Tunisia with activists and thinkers from vastly diverse fields, united only by their dream for transformation and alternatives to well-being, inspire Ashish Kothari to hope for another world.

Dance has long been regarded as an aesthetic form of self-expression and entertainment. Therapy had very little to do with it. But in Kolkata, that is changing now, thanks to a few committed individuals. Shoma Chatterji reports.

The conflict between farmers and government in Rajasthan escalated recently. Farmers resorted to violence after demonstrations failed. There are simply too many stakeholders and too few resources to satisfy everybody. But there are ways to make life easier for citizens, writes Deepak Malik.

The West Bengal government remains under a cloud due to violence over its industrialisation plans, but in other areas, its procurement and off-farm processing support for farmers has helped them far more than Maharashtra's approach to its own farmers. Jaideep Hardikar visited Burdman district.

Our deities can't be bullied into becoming soulless robotic creatures that yield to every new wave of political fashion. Madhu Purnima Kishwar wants protection from the new missionaries of uniformity.

The agreement between the Kandla Port Trust in Gujarat and the Adani Port & Special Economic Zone Ltd appears set to be passed without the kind of environment impact assessment mandated for an eco-sensitive zone such as this. Kanchi Kohli reports.

The security establishment would like India to project its power more forcefully abroad. But to position this as an exercise in protecting the nation's internal unity stretches the imagination, writes Firdaus Ahmed.

The recent episode in which a mysterious boat was intercepted off the coast, and blew itself up, may or may not have anything to do with Pakistani terror, but has important implications for national security strategy, external relations and domestic political dynamics. Firdaus Ahmed explains.

The Supreme Court's order on the removal of tinted films from vehicles is being implemented across the country, amidst complaints from the public. Navya P K reports.

It is now over three years since the wiping out of tigers in the Sariska reserve. Sariska was India's second tiger crisis in less than two decades. Have the issues that arose as a result of the wakeup call been addressed? Malini Shankar finds out.

Two tigers have been relocated from Ranthambore to Sariska tiger reserve, but wildlife conservationists are not about to rejoice, given the extent of work pending at Sariska to reverse past wrongs. Malini Shankar digs deeper.

A proposed new charity for intellectual property will simply legitimize the biopiracy of developing nations' traditional knowledge, says Devinder Sharma.

Post-mortem registers at some centres in Vidarbha show poisoning cases outnumber all other cases put together. Meanwhile, farm suicides are up sharply after November and spreading to the paddy belt. In some districts, the suicide mortality rate for male farmers in 2004 was 10 times the national average for all males, writes P Sainath.

The many ways in which officials in a region gripped by crisis try to deal with it can be intriguing. Even entertaining. From advising farmers to plant crops in line with zodiac signs to suggesting they bear arms against moneylenders — it's all happening in Vidarbha, writes P Sainath.

The e-commerce space in India has been growing in leaps and bounds but inchoate rules and dated laws have created ‘grey areas’ that need to be cleared at the earliest. Akshatha M outlines the key issues in the debate.

Delhi's Right to Information Act (RTI) is increasingly being used by citizens to pressure offiicials into delivering on projects and services says Arvind Kejriwal.

This Delhi non-profit's initial success in effective enforcement of Delhi’s Right to Information Act has woken up the establishment just as much as it has informed citizens, reports Varupi Jain.

Varupi Jain reports on the steady progress in transparency in Delhi's public distribution system.

New Delhi's citizen crusaders for the state's Right to Information law are now taking their methods and inspiration to other localities, reports Varupi Jain.

Ration shopkeepers won't divulge their records, Food Department officials wont file complaints, and the police wont act on their own or accept complaints from the public. But the cycle of corruption can still be broken.

Many Delhi roads in July-August are dotted with thousands of water-carrying, orange-clad kanwarias, devotees of Shiva. Their long journey from Haridwar finds logistical support from the government and society alike. It is a reminder that the values of mutual support and service do exist but have not penetrated deeper, notes Varupi Jain.

Conventional wars are passé, but the military planning for conflict is still rooted in the past. Meanwhile, human security does not get the deserved attention. Firdaus Ahmed wonders how this can win or keep the peace.

Film-makers are finding new ways to get around the difficulties of their new environment - the loss of state patronage, subtle self-censorship in the media, and the taboos of mainstream society. They're putting the new IT world to work promoting their films, and setting up their own events to find their audience. Darryl D'Monte reports.

As the spectre of communal violence raises its ugly head yet again in the build-up towards elections, India Together talks to Ramachandra Guha to explore the threats to the secular imagination in India and the hopes for religious pluralism in the democracy.

The 'importation' of brides from poorer states keeps dowry rates in Haryana high, despite alarming levels of female infanticide. Ranjit Devraj reports.

From Urban Poverty Alleviation Initiatives in India : A General Assessment and a Particular Perspective (2002), a publication of the Ramanathan Foundation.

The National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS) is to be implemented in 200 districts around the country in the first phase. One of the main challenges will be to ward off corruption. Surekha Sule was recently involved in conducting a training programme, and notes how some villages in Andhra Pradesh are gearing up.

In conflict-stricken region of Kashmir where women are sheltered and house-bound, it's next to impossible for a woman to be an entrepreneur. Making it possible are women like Arifa, who overcame various challenges to start her own crafts store in Srinagar. Renu Agal meets Arifa to write her inspiring story.

Entrenched gender norms add new dimensions to a problem spiraling out of control, says Lalitha Sridhar.

Recently published by the Delhi-based Centre for Science and Environment, The Leapfrog Factor: Clearing the Air in Asian Cities is an excellent reference on a contentious subject. The book looks at pollution caused by transport in our cities and the range of environmental, economic, social and technical solutions available, says Darryl D'Monte.

Sunanda Bhat’s award-winning Have You Seen The Arana is deeply relevant in today’s world, as it explores the deep connectedness between man and nature, and the struggle of little-known people to preserve it in the face of many onslaughts. Shoma A Chatterji reviews the film.

Kris Herbst profiles how David Green has propelled Aurolab into a model corporation that manufactures 'expensive' medical products at rock-bottom prices.

In a number of villages in Sheopur district, Madhya Pradesh, children have been dying since 2006 because of chronic malnutrition, prompting Supreme Court commissioners to call the region one of the world's malnutrition hotspots. Running schools, nutritious food, and health camps are all a rarity here, reports Sachin Jain.