The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) alleged in Parliament yesterday the distribution of food items under the World Food Programme is not being implemented in the districts of Kilinochchi and Mulaitivu causing starvation and suffering among displaced families. However the government refuted this allegation saying lorries carrying food items are allowed to proceed to the affected areas. The House debated the issue as an adjournment motion bought by TNA leader R. Sampathan who alleged the security forces do not allow even essential medicines to pass into uncleared areas in Mannar and Vavuniya despite the Commissioner General of Essential Services having given his approval. He said 76,148 displaced persons had been affected in Kilinochchi and Mullaitivu under the circumstances. Mr. Sampanthan proposed that vehicles carrying medical professionals, recognized international and national institutions, and ambulances should be permitted
Starvation deaths are headline grabbers. But when an entire community lives on the brink of starvation through out the year it rarely merits a mention. One such group, the Musahars in Uttar Pradesh light their chula once a day, in the evening, and live on one meal. Dec 2007
bithari village, Swarupnagar block, North 24-Paraganas: the men of Uttarpara hamlet in Bithari are hiding out in the fields every night despite the winter chill in the air. Better brave the cold
Kalavati Barai of Raipur Tea Estate in Jalpaiguri has been watching the consistent deterioration of her family of six over the past four years. In March this year, her husband succumbed to severe
in a repeat of last year's grim toll, over 20 children, including infants, died of malnutrition and other diseases in two gram panchayats in Orissa's Similipal Wildlife Sanctuary since January
The recently completed assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh witnessed an unprecedented public practise. In the drought-stricken Bundelkhand region, voters asked the candidates to take a written test on
Low-elevation coastal zones (leczs) are areas at an elevation of 10 metres or less above sea level. Although leczs account for just 2 per cent of the world's total land area, they contain
"THE tribals need to change their attitude and lifestyle," said R.K. Dixit, the Chief Medical Health Officer (CMHO) of Sheopur district in Madhya Pradesh, in response to a query about continuing reports of children starving to death in the region. The Sahariyas, one of the poorest tribal communities in Madhya Pradesh, live mostly in remote villages with little access to health care.
