The first-ever Lok Adalat on the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act was held recently in Latehar, Jharkhand. Most petitioners came in the hope of receiving unemployment cheques, or at least having their job applications accepted, but left with neither. Pradeep Bhargava reports.

The rains may have failed Bundelkhand but more than this it is the governments that have forsaken the people over the years. Kannan Kasturi reports.

BPL politics at the central level is skewed, and quotas are fixed for every state, regardless of the actual number of people who need to be protected. Pradeep Baisakh reports on one family's near-total loss.

CIC Shailesh Gandhi orders that information about the public distribution system and its beneficiaries should be made public, offering hope that a corrupt system may finally see some reform. Shaweta Anand reports.

Even as the state government refuses to accept the cause behind the recent 50 starvation deaths reported by the media, hunger stalks the people of Balangir and other KBK districts in Orissa portending more such tragedies, writes Pradeep Baisakh.

A few innovative steps, taken urgently, can greatly bridge the gap in access to electricity for poor consumers. Structural reform will take years, and given its complexity and poor record so far, cannot be the only pre-occupation, write Sreekumar N and Shantanu Dixit.

Only when we think of providing the basic necessities to the millions of poor women around India will empowerment mean anything for them, writes R Balasubramaniam.

To improve food security and to bring extensive lands now left fallow into cultivation again, the government must support millets just as it supports rice and wheat. Karuna M reports.

The UIDAI has repeatedly emphasized its pro-poor mission, but it is unlikely to succeed without help from NGOs who work with the poor. For this, senior civil society leaders must endorse the project, writes Raju Rajagopal.

Based on a laboratory understanding of nutrition, the government's public food support programmes and agriculture policies have condemned the poor to a daily diet that is of limited nutrition value. Rupa Chinai reports.

This linkage between agriculture and nutrition, and its impact on development indices is very clear, and a number of recent reports point the finger of blame at agricultural policies. Rupa Chinai reports.

Thousands of Mishings find themselves in makeshift homes along the embankments of Majuli island. The river has destroyed more than their lands and homes. Now, their very lives are at risk. Ratna Bharali Talukdar reports.

The single-track hawkish focus on reforms-driven growth with utter disregard for the environment, equity and indigenous livelihoods is not only futile, but almost an assault by a few against the majority at the grassroots, writes Ashish Kothari.

Most studies on mid-day meal schemes tend to focus on the obvious nutritional benefits or lack thereof. Carly E Nichols argues that the impact of these programmes extend far beyond, justifying the need to fund and monitor them more stringently.

A number of families residing in the char areas of Assam have apparently staved off misfortune by taking up sugarcane cultivation, but it may require more than just that to stem the trend of migration and improve living conditions in the region. Ratna Bharali Talukdar reports.

A survey among beneficiaries of the National Social Assistance Programme shows that while it does provide succour for many, a lot remains to be done for it to become sufficient social security for the masses. Anindita Adhikari reports on the survey findings.

Across rural India, the phenomenon of migration creates an entire class of women left behind to fend for themselves in the face of increased vulnerability to neglect, discrimination and psychological as well as physical abuse. Puja Awasthi highlights their plight.

As the rhetoric among political parties over their commitment and promises to the people rises, Shankar Jaganathan articulates that one question that will test what they truly stand for.

With Narendra Modi at the helm, the push towards market-driven development looks likely to be continued, leading to an eventual defeat of real expectations from the voter, says Pradeep Baisakh as he analyses the causes behind the UPA debacle.

A renewable energy project covering three of Odisha’s most backward villages has gone beyond the immediate promise of providing electricity, bringing about perceptible and deeper changes in the quality of lives of the local people. Abhijit Mohanty reports on the project.

Total Sanitation Campaign, MGNREGS and other government schemes are unheard of among villagers at Dinesh Nagar, Assam who live with a perennial lack of food, pure water, and health amenities. Nilotpal Bhattacharjee wonders if they will ever find deliverance from despair.

Will the synergies between the politics of resistance and grassroots initiatives towards reconstruction of the damages wrought by ‘development’ be reaped effectively enough in the year ahead? That is what Ashish Kothari will track in his new blog.

Homeless, vulnerable and deprived of any form of social security, street dwellers often provide critical services, helping to sustain themselves and the city. Pushpa Achanta meets some of them in Bengaluru to know more about their existence.

Three million forest dwellers in Odisha are estimated to have been displaced since independence by various industrial and hydro-projects, among which the Upper Indiravati Hydro Project is one. Abhijit Mohanty brings us the story of three tribal settlements uprooted by it.

With the expiry of the MDGs which guided global development till 2015, the international community is now negotiating Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) for the period 2016-2030. Prahlad Shekhawat summarises the ensuing debates and explores a way forward.

An apparently well-intended plan to help very poor tribes in Madhya Pradesh find sustainable livelihoods bears no relation to the reality of how it is actually implemented. Money is simply distributed and disappears, but things remain unchanged. Susmita Guru reports.

In what appears to be a damning indictment of the Five Year Plans, launched in 1951, as well as the economic reforms process that began in 1991, the first ever socio-economic survey has painted a dismal picture of rural India, says Devinder Sharma.

Can we look at ending poverty without looking at the structural reasons and dimensions of poverty and inequality? Pradeep Baisakh looks at this and at other objectives within the UN SDG framework and analyses how realistic their achievement would be.

Looking into what’s happening in the State of Karnataka, Kathyayini Chamaraj discusses the
housing needs and rights of the urban poor.

The pristine and idyllic pictures of Ladakh do not tell the true story. In recent past Ladakh has been losing its rich cultural heritage and natural resources, and sadly there has been no sincere concentrated official effort to stop this deterioration. But hope is on its way, says Ashish Kothari who visited the region recently.

Two weeks into the ban, the question to ask is whether the situation has improved and whether protests in Kashmir have abated. Moazum Mohammad says the answer is no.

Children Affected by HIV/AIDS are facing sustained discrimination and exploitation, finds a new Human Rights Watch report.

Recent statistics about the growing number of women afflicted by HIV/AIDS around the world and in India are throwing light on a different dimension of this disease. The link between inequitable gender relations and the spread of HIV is setting it apart from other communicable diseases, says Kalpana Sharma.

Students must feel comfortable seeking counselling on sex-related issues. Each of their questions, no matter how private, needs to be answered. Experts argue that openness in conversation would decrease frustrations and aggressions linked to sexuality amongst youth, says Parul Sharma.

A six-month research study to understand violence against HIV affected women revealed key contours of pre-contractual and post-contractual threats and risks that women face. Shoma Chatterji reports on a workshop where the findings were discussed.

HIV-positive children are being thrown out of school in Uttar Pradesh by insensitive teachers and parents alike. Many parents are afraid to let schools know that their children are positive, and the state's machinery has failed to raise any awareness, as a major study has shown. Puja Awasthi sounds the warning bells.

In brothels of West Bengal, there is high awareness of the risk to HIV. Women are not taking any chances. Response to the newly introduced female condom is picking up. Sumita Thapar reports.

Severe shortages of power and water are predicted for the coming months in much of the North. Himanshu Thakkar looks beyond the 'natural phenomena' that are blamed.

The private sector Baspa II hydel power project went live over two and half years ago and has been selling power to the Himachal Pradesh State Electricity Board. Lack of regulatory approvals and determination of final wholesale tariff has not deterred the company from raising money in capital markets. Himanshu Upadhyaya finds out more.

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 Expert Appraisal Committee reviewing plans for a large hill toursim project in Himachal Pradesh has taken a critical view of it. Responding to petitions from locals and conservationists, the EAC called for further studies of the project's likely impacts. Kanchi Kohli reports.

An empowered committee of the Supreme Court calls for the blacklisting a construction firm in Himachal Pradesh, after noting that state officials probably connived with the developer in violating conservation and development laws. Kanchi Kohli reports.

Its demand for water is ever-growing, and its usage wasteful. Using its political and economic power, however, Delhi is quenching its thirst by extracting it from places near and far. Shripad Dharmadhikary reports on the proposed Renuka Dam.

The BioCarbon Fund promises to plant trees across a swathe of Himachal Pradesh, amidst questions about the environmental value and fairness of the program. Sudhirendar Sharma reports.

A recent report by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India reveals blatant procedural and legal non-compliance in respect of compensatory afforestation work in Himachal Pradesh. Himanshu Upadhyaya summarises the findings.

In Second Strike: Arguments about Nuclear War in South Asia, Rajesh Rajagopalan articulates that ‘the probability of nuclear weapons use is less in the India-Pakistan feud'. This is comforting, and perhaps on that account, dangerous, because of the false sense of security its conclusions give rise to, says Firdaus Ahmed.

Why do so few adoptions take place each year? Recognising some of the barriers to adoption from her own experience, Vinita Bhargava decided to research this question. Swapna Majumdar finds the answers informative and reassuring, and that they bring a complex conversation into much-needed public light.

Through his new book, Arvind Verma makes a positive contribution to police scholarship. Some of Verma's analysis is in sharp contrast to prevalent wisdom which ignores the negative role of police leadership in the current system. K S Subramanian reviews The Indian Police: A Critical Evaluation.

While agreeing with General S Padmanabhan who says in his recent book that "politicisation of the military is a self defeating exercise in a democracy," it is difficult to concede that "greed for fish and loaves of office" is how the politician would corrupt the military establishment and wrench it from its apolitical moorings, writes Firdaus Ahmed.

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.