Science
Down To Earth
Drought Aggravates Poverty
Study shows during drought years in Rajasthan, the vulnerability of rural households to poverty increases.
3 min |
March 01, 2019
Down To Earth
Rockstar Gourd
The humble gourd that sculpted the culture and traditions of rural India for ages is falling out of favour.
4 min |
March 01, 2019
Down To Earth
The Wise Debate
As the world debates the effectiveness of industrialised agriculture, the good-old small farmer emerges victorious.
2 min |
March 01, 2019
Down To Earth
Whose Space Is It?
Governments have been exploring space for a while, but the influx of private players has altered the rules of the game. What are the laws that govern space today?
5 min |
May 01, 2019
Down To Earth
The Fast Track To Disaster
India's decision to start a patent prosecution highway for Japanese firms could open the tollgates to hasty approvals
2 min |
February 01, 2019
Down To Earth
Trial After Error
AGROCHEMICAL AND biotech giant Monsanto’s genetically modified cotton seed business is out of trouble in India; but only for the time being.
4 min |
February 01, 2019
Down To Earth
Fat Is More About How The Body Feels Than How It Actually Looks
It's more about how the body feels, than how it looks
3 min |
February 01, 2019
Down To Earth
Unfair Trade Laws Can Put A Spanner In Our Quest For A Circular Economy
USED Recycle and reuse of products make great economic and environmental sense. But will circular economy benefit the world at a time when economic giants like the US are using trade sanctions to bully Rwanda, which has banned used clothing? India too is at the risk of becoming the rich world's dumpyard
8 min |
June 16, 2019
Down To Earth
Africa's Historic Pivot
IF RWANDA IS WILLING TO RISK PREFERENTIAL ACCESS TO THE US MARKET IN ORDER TO DEVELOP ITS DOMESTIC GARMENT INDUSTRY, THEN IT MUST BE CONFIDENT THAT IT WILL FIND ALTERNATIVE MARKETS FOR ITS EXPORTS
4 min |
June 16, 2019
Down To Earth
Goa's Summer Date
THE EXOTIC FLOWER OF THE ELEPHANT FOOT YAM IS EATEN WIDELY IN THE RURAL PARTS OF THE STATE FOR A FEW DAYS BEFORE THE ADVENT OF MONSOON
3 min |
June 16, 2019
Down To Earth
Renaming Renewables
Will a new categorisation of hydropower plants trigger revival of the sector?
5 min |
June 16, 2019
Down To Earth
Untapped Resource
CIRCULAR ECONOMY IN INDIA HAS GROWN IN THE PAST COUPLE OF YEARS, BUT THE POTENTIAL OF THE SECTOR REMAINS UNREALISED
6 min |
June 16, 2019
Down To Earth
Wrong Track
In the wake of IMD's warning over Titli, Odisha mobilised resources to protect coastal districts. But the cyclonic storm took an unusual turn
3 min |
November 01, 2018
Down To Earth
Aarey's Chipko Moment
The plan to clear Mumbai's last green cover is facing stiff resistance from citizens and non-profits
3 min |
November 01, 2018
Down To Earth
Egg Of The Matter
Entepreneurs are experimenting with hen feed to produce premium eggs that appeal to fitness freaks
4 min |
November 01, 2018
Down To Earth
Pride Goes Before A Fall
Could Gujarat's forest officials have inadvertently triggered the death of 23 lions in Gir National Park and Wildlife Sanctuary? ISHAN KUKRETI in Gujarat and RAJAT GHAI in Delhi investigate
10+ min |
November 01, 2018
Down To Earth
The Others Too
The MeToo campaign comes at a time when women are being courted for electoral gains. Is it good or bad?
2 min |
November 01, 2018
Down To Earth
Goa's Shadow Dancer
Dragonflies tell us about the health of our wetlands and ecology. Hence the discovery of a new species is heartening news
5 min |
November 01, 2018
Down To Earth
'Natural Disasters Are Shaped By Social And Economic Inequality'
In the early hours of October 31, 1876, a devastating cyclone emanating from the Bay of Bengal drowned at least 0.21 million people and another 0.1 million died in the cholera epidemic and famine that followed. Such events are often described as "natural disasters". But historian BEN KINGSBURY turns that interpretation on its head in his book, An Imperial Disaster: The Bengal Cyclone of 1876, showing it was not simply a "natural" event, but one shaped by all-too-human patterns of exploitation and inequality—by divisions within Bengali society, and the enormous disparities of political and economic power that characterised British rule on the subcontinent. RICHARD MAHAPATRA spoke to Kingsbury on the untold narratives of "natural disasters". Excerpts
3 min |
April 01, 2019
Down To Earth
A Mountain Lost
The Aravalli mountain range extends for more than 692 km from Champaner in Gujarat to Delhi and beyond. Its role in defining the shape of the Indian subcontinent and its climate, and the fact that it triggered the explosion of multicellular life, are under-appreciated. The rugged mountains guide the monsoon clouds and protect the fertile alluvial river valleys from the assault of cold westerly winds from Central Asia. However, over the past four decades, the world's oldest mountain range has been destroyed by mining, deforestation and over-exploitation of its fragile and ancient water channels
10+ min |
April 01, 2019
Down To Earth
'I Am A Farmer About To Commit Suicide. Can You Help Me? My Aadhaar Number Is...'
Ishan Kukreti reports on how psychologists are now intervening to help distressed farmers
6 min |
April 01, 2019
Down To Earth
Microbes: Breaking The Mould
Microbes will always triumph over antibiotics. We can only choose the battles that will make a difference
5 min |
September 1, 2017
Down To Earth
Capital Loss
The Land Pool Scheme of the Andhra Pradesh government to acquire land for the new state capital is turning out to be a nightmare for farmers JITENDRA | amaravati
4 min |
September 1, 2017
Down To Earth
Time To Define The New Normal
The monsoon of 2017 has challenged India's conventional and simplistic definition of the complex tropical circulation
3 min |
September 1, 2017
Down To Earth
Dialects Are The Avantgarde Teams Exploring New Semantic Possibilities
Linguist GANESH DEVY has just published a new volume of a unique language survey that is based on geography and people's vernacular claims. He speaks to RAJAT GHAI on the link between languages and ecology
4 min |
September 1, 2017
Down To Earth
Last Shots
The Nigeria-Cameroon Chimpanzee faces extinction as it fights a losing battle against innumerable threats ABHIJIT MOHANTY
4 min |
September 1, 2017
Down To Earth
Chambal Without Ravines
The ravines of Chambal used to provide multiple livelihood options for its poor and marginal farmers. Leveling of land is triggering conflicts and increasing social inequity
4 min |
September 1, 2017
Down To Earth
A Continued Disaster
Political instability and paucity of funds delay Nepal's attempts to spring back from the 2015 earthquakes.
4 min |
February 01, 2018
Down To Earth
Smouldering Threat
Nigeria is losing its tropical forests at an alarming rate to satiate the world's growing appetite for charcoal. Subhojit Goswami finds how the cheap fuel now threatens the country's biodiversity.
4 min |
February 01, 2018
Down To Earth
Trade In Extralegal Currency
Energy guzzling cryptocurrencies could make commodity markets volatile.
5 min |