Heart Lamp glows, story collection wins the Booker Prize for Banu and Deepa

It's a first win for Kannada, and the first time in the history of the prize that a collection of short stories has been honoured.

The award for an Indian writer comes three years after Geetanjali Shree won the prestigious literary prize for Tomb of Sand, translated from Hindi by Daisy Rockwell. 

194 OCI cards cancelled by MHA since 2014: RTI

The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) cancelled 57 Overseas Citizenship of India (OCI) registrations under Section 7D of the Citizenship Act, 1955, in 2024, which was nearly half the number of cancellations in the previous 10 years, according to data obtained by The Hindu under the Right to Information Act. 

Tamil Nadu moves SC for release of education funds

The State of Tamil Nadu has filed an original suit in the Supreme Court accusing the Centre of stopping its annual share of crucial education funds of over ₹2,000 crore under the Samagra Shiksha Scheme.

The suit, represented by senior advocate P. Wilson, said the "glaring and apparent reason" for the non-disbursement of funds was the State's vociferous opposition to the imposition of the National Education Policy (NEP), 2020 with its three-language formula and the NEP-exemplary PM Shri School Scheme. The scheme mandates the implementation of the NEP, 2020 in its entirety in the State.

Development without the savaging of urban biodiversity

Biodiversity, which refers to the variety and the variability of living organisms on this earth- and fundamental to human well-being, a healthy planet, and economic prosperity for all- is under peril. About 25% of species are facing the threat of extinction.

The theme for International Day for Biological Diversity this year (observed annually on May 22) is "Harmony with nature and sustainable development". The date 'commemorates the adoption of the text of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) on May 22, 1992'. The Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF) was also developed by the CBD with four goals as well as 23 targets to conserve global biodiversity (conserve and manage 30% of terrestrial and marine biodiversity) by 2030. Target 12 of the GBF lays emphasis on enhancing green and blue spaces in cities and urban planning for human well-being and biodiversity conservation. Goal 11 of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal also states the importance of making cities and human settlements safe, resilient and sustainable. But, still, urban biodiversity is under great threat with unplanned development and human greed. 

Overfishing - the threat to ocean wealth, livelihoods

The Indian marine fisheries sector has stabilised at around three to four million tonnes of capture a year, indicating that India has reached its maximum potential yield.

Yet, despite this huge output, there is inequity. Small-scale fishers represent 90% of the fishing population but catch only about 10% of the volume; the remaining is by larger mechanised fishing operations. Further, three-quarters of India's marine fisher families live below the poverty line. Attempts to catch 'just one more kilo' with newer nets and bigger engines either yield no more fish or marginally increase volumes but with much higher debt, fuel and other costs for already hard-pressed communities.

On a recent fishing trip aboard a commercial shrimp trawler in the Arabian Sea, the full dynamic playout was evident. For every kilogram of shrimp retained on board, the nets disgorged over 10 kilograms of discarded bycatch. These were juvenile fish and non-target species which were tossed back (more dead than alive) into the waves. 

Narrating the nation abroad

India's decision to send diplomatic envoys and delegates to various countries to explain its position on the recent combats with Pakistan and the terrorist attack that triggered them raises an important question: is this display of proactive diplomacy a mark of strength or a gesture of reassurance? 

India-Pak. tensions put strain on struggling western border districts

Except in Gujarat, exports from most western border districts of India were already minimal and stagnating, and reductions in poverty levels were significantly slower. Recent India-Pakistan tensions and cross-border shelling along the Line of Control (LoC) are further threatening to disrupt economic activity in the region. Twenty-two districts in the States of Gujarat, Rajasthan, Punjab, and J&K U.T. along India's western border are identified as border districts. 

Should water be used as a weapon?

All is fair in love and war is a phrase that has literary roots and rhetorical appeal, suggesting that in matters of passion and conflict, rules can be discarded, and morality suspended. But in the realpolitik of nation-states, especially when it comes to shared natural resources, such romantic notions may be specious. Water, unlike territory or ideology, is not merely a symbol of sovereignty - it is a lifeline. Now that India has held the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) with Pakistan in abeyance, in the aftermath of the Pahalgam terrorist attack, the question is not only about what is fair but also about what is legal and sustainable. Can water be wielded as a weapon without collateral damage to international credibility and long-term national interest? 

Analysing poverty levels in India by comparing various surveys

A recent paper has estimated that poverty reduction in India slowed down significantly after 2011-12. While poverty levels of 37% in 2004-05 fell to 22% by 2011-12, it has since fallen only by 18% in 2022-23, the paper finds based on its own calculations.

The paper, titled 'Poverty Decline in India after 2011-12: Bigger Picture Evidence', authored by Himanshu of Jawaharlal Nehru University, and Peter Lanjouw and Philipp Schirmer of the Vrije University in Amsterdam, noted that India hasn't had an official poverty estimate since 2011-12. In the absence of an official estimate, a number of unofficial and often contradictory estimates have been made, of which this one is the latest. –

Lion count grows by 32% in 5 years, expands beyond protected areas

India's lion population, exclusively concentrated in Gujarat, has risen by 32% between 2020 and 2025, with 891 lions reported, according to a report from the Gujarat Forest Department released on Wednesday. The number of adult females - a proxy for future growth rose by 27% to 330 individuals. – 

Navy recreates stitched ship based on 5th century Ajanta paintings

The Indian Navy on Wednesday formally inducted and named a stitched sail ship, INSV Kaundinya, at a ceremonial event held at the Naval Base in Karwar. INSV Kaundinya is a recreation of a fifth-century vessel depicted in the paintings at the Ajanta Caves.