At the 101st Indian Science Congress in Jammu, the Prime Minister reaffirmed his faith in the potential of biotechnology for agricultural development. Devinder Sharma discusses findings that raise questions about the basis of his conviction.

Against the wishes of the local people, and even the State government, a salt factory is proposed to be established on land that has been used freely by 20,000 villagers for decades. In the face of shifting politics, the residents are determined that they will protect their livelihoods. Aparna Pallavi reports.

The government's new plans to boost manufacturing in the country look quite similar to its earlier promises made when SEZs were set up. But there are a few lessons to be learned from that experiment, writes Kannan Kasturi.

A recent conference organised by the AICCTU in Bangalore saw more than 5000 contract workers marching in protest against the prevailing work conditions, seeking regularisation of contracts as well as amendments in law. Here’s a list of the primary demands raised by the workers.

Was India's emergence on the world stage a project of the superpower? And what is the role of the strategic community in keeping Indian and US interests convergent, wonders Firdaus Ahmed.

PM Manmohan Singh’s plans to minimise nuclear risks, as articulated at a recent conference, revolves around formulation of a ‘global no-first-use’ norm. Firdaus Ahmed points to why a practical solution is less about global norms and rests more likely on issues closer home.

Whether foreign direct invesmtent in retail in India is good or bad should be judged by a reasoned debate based on facts, not hyperbole and exaggeration. Jacob John reports.

The India Shining advertisement campaign is a government-media joint venture, says P Sainath.

The Beautiful People whose next-door neighbours never vote are back, teaching the masses - who do vote - how to go about it in the civic elections in Mumbai. This is the upper middle class trying to preen itself in the one process where they matter less, writes P Sainath.

Years since the adoption of the environment impact assessment law, systemic weaknesses and a token approach to public hearings are defeating its purpose. Kanchi Kohli does a review.

When the CIC v. bourses case comes up for hearing in the Supreme Court, the Commision will have to present a much larger social-legal case that clarifies how the stock exchanges are 'public authorities' despite being run as limited liability corporations, writes Deepak Malghan.

A quick summary of the recently passed Constitution (121st Amendment) Bill 2014 from PRS Legislative Research outlines the broad changes that it will bring about in the judicial structure of the country.

Shabana Azmi's six year term in Parliament came to an end in August 2003. She spoke to Lalitha Sridhar.

K N Govindacharya, the pracharak-turned-politician who led the Bharatiya Janata Party into power in the 1999 elections, is today a staunch campaigner against the politics and economics of globalization. He now promotes swadeshi development and says he has renounced party politics. N P Chekkutty caught up with Govindacharya.

Arvind Kejriwal on how over one hundred and fifty citizens have filed applications seeking information about PDS ration records in Delhi's Food and Civil Supplies department.

Debates on a paradigm shift in Indian politics have primarily seen arguments around the feasibility of change, even as they took its desirability as given. Shankar Jaganathan celebrates the developments which promise a triumph for idealism and show its potential of being translated into reality.

While stonewalling their demand to broadcast news, the I&B Ministry has said CR stations can air AIR bulletins instead. Geeta Seshu reports.

The new law's provisions are infusing into the proceedings of the Gram Sabhas a democratic character that they have lacked so far. From a conservation standpoint too, the law is proving to be positive, writes Tushar Dash.

Environmentalist Ashish Kothari discusses the politics behind the approval of the POSCO project, and how the FRA is faring in Odisha, in conversation with Pradeep Baisakh.

There is wide-spread failure in safeguarding the rights of forest communities protected under the Forest Rights Act. State and Central Governments are complicit in diluting it. Tushar Dash reports.

For too many of us, the killings of terrorists have come to characterise an entire religion, and taint everybody who follows it. In the Muslim areas of Bombay, residents deal with the feeling that an entire city, an entire country, maybe the whole world, sees them as responsible for terrorism, writes Dilip D'Souza.

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.

Recently, the Central Empowered Committee once again heard the strange case of a hotel coming up on land sanctioned for a parking lot and bus stand in Himachal Pradesh. Kanchi Kohli reports on the many ways in which officials are trying to get this illegal use regularised.

The central government wants to ban the sale of non-iodised salt on grounds of rising iodine deficiency. However, states with notable rise in deficiency are those where a ban has already been in force for the past two decades – the north-eastern states and Uttar Pradesh. P Venu, an Assistant Salt Commissioner in Gujarat, connects the dots.

India has ratified the UN Convention of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, but done very little to protect the rights of the disabled in accordance with it. Freny Manecksha 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.

Tales of medical malpractice and its impact on patients are all too common in India. But what does the culture of corruption mean for one who wishes to remain true to the noble profession that he had chosen for himself? Pavan Kulkarni finds out.

Rasika Dhavse reports on a Pune-based organisation that conducts drama therapy sessions designed to help special populations grow to their potential.

"This building is dangerous. It may collapse at any time. Enter at your own risk." So goes a warning sign at the entrance to a building in Mumbai. Buildings that crumble are an old tradition in this city, with at least one cause being the Rent Control Act. Dilip D'Souza says the pernicious law must go.

At least sixteen committees and panels – from the National Farmers Commission led by Professor M S Swaminathan to the Planning Commission's fact-finding-mission led by bureaucrat Adarsh Misra – came this year to Vidarbha, apparently peeved by and concerned over the suicide crisis. Nothing has come of all this yet, notes Jaideep Hardikar.

Biogas plants are not new, but their size, relative unwieldyness and reliance on large quantities of cattle dung have held back their potential attractiveness for the domestic cooking sector. That may change soon, thanks to the ingenuity of Dr Anand Karve. Vinita Deshmukh reports about Karve's new award-winning compact plant.

There are more fronts in the fray across the State this time. And with multi-cornered contests in almost all seats, there could be some major upsets, writes P Sainath.

The Delhi High Court rules that a proposed thermal power plant cannot come up unless its likely impact on the growth on alphonso mangoes is studied first. Kanchi Kohli reports.

e-Governance initiatives are paying off in states considered as difficult as Bihar, bringing to commoners easier access to public services. Some have been empowered by it to stop their exploitation. Ramesh Menon reports.

लॉकडाउन के कारण सिर्फ आम जनता ही नहीं बॉलीवुड स्टार भी घरों में बंद हैं, लेकिन किसी भी स्टार ने वर्कआउट करना नहीं छोड़ा है. बॉलीवुड सेलेब्स घर पर ही योग, रनिंग और कई तरह की एक्सरसाइज कर रहे हैं.

आइए जानते हैं कि कोरोना वायरस को लेकर फैले मिथ की वास्तविकता आखिर क्या है...

कोरोना वायरस के कारण लॉकडाउन होने से जिम बंद हैं. जिम बंद होने कारण लोग एक्सरसाइज नहीं कर पा रहे हैं. जिम और वॉक न करने के कारण लोगों को अपनी हेल्थ की चिंता सताने लगी है. अगर आपको भी ऐसी कोई चिंता सता रही है तो आप घर पर ही योग कर सकते हैं. रोजाना सिर्फ 30-40 मिनट योग करके आप पूरी तरह से फिट और एक्टिव रह सकते हैं.

डिओ बीएस-6 (honda dio bs6) में अब फुल डिजिटल मीटर मिल रहा है, जो कि रियल-टाइम माइलेज, ऐवरेज माइलेज, डिस्टेंस टू एंप्टी (कितनी दूरी तक स्कूटर चलेगा), सर्विस कब होनी है जैसी कई जानकारियां देगा

Honda ने Activa 6G और Activa 125 के BSVI वर्जन के दाम बढ़ाने का ऐलान किया है. कंपनी ने इसकी वजह लागत में हुई बढ़ोतरी को बताया है.

TOI has come across a documentary evidence, which shows that the AIBA had started exploring the potential candidate to partner as new host city for the tournament in November 2019 itself, despite being in contract with the BFI for the prestigious event.

Former Australian opener Mathew Hayden who used a mongoose bat in the third edition of the IPL revealed that the then Indian skipper MS Dhoni had asked him to not use it. Hayden was the opening batsman for the Chennai Super Kings and had created a sensation when he first introduced a bat that had a longer handle, and smaller hitting surface to give leverage.

Impact of coronavirus pandemic on veteran players

हॉलीवुड के कामयाब फिल्म निर्माताओं में शुमार 66 वर्षीय हार्वे वीनस्टीन पर फिल्म अभिनेत्रियों के साथ रेप, यौन शोषण के आरोप लगे हैं. इन कहानियों के मद्देनज़र सवाल उठ रहा है कि क्या वीनस्टीन को सीरियल रेपिस्ट करार देकर ट्रायल चलना चाहिए?

On being asked whether he has any friends in the film industry, actor Johny Lever mourns that in this industry, there is dosti but no dosts. He feels people make all kinds of promises when they are at work, but none of these amount to much once a film is done and dusted. Lever may be speaking the truth of his own experience, but his life is not the mirror of every life in Bollywood.

The cancer of corruption eating into India’s medical sector is no secret. Reports of patients being prescribed unnecessary tests by unscrupulous doctors in league with labs abound.

Lockdown 3.0: Samsung resumes phone manufacturing in Noida

Banks yet to act on RBI's EMI relief order, spark confusion

Core industries' growth contracts 6.5% in March

Life in quarantine with actress Bhagyshree

3 ancient ayurvedic practices to protect yourself from COVID19