
Human sleep, menstrual cycle are affected by phases of the moon, two new studies find
While this is not uncommon for other animals, the notion that human beings were also affected by the moon was a controversial theory.

Coronavirus crisis' impact on rural India exposes inequality and pitfalls in access to education
From 13 April, the education department of the Maharashtra State Government started rolling out e-learning content to students from both Government and aided schools for grades I to IX. It’s hosted on the DIKSHA app – an e-learning platform of the Ministry of Human Resource Development.

Digital India should be leveraged to transform rural areas: IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad
Digital India initiative should be leveraged to transform rural India and create avenues for those in smaller towns and cities, IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said on Monday

The last shepherd basket weavers: An octogenarian is among the few surviving 'Dhangars' to practice the craft
85-year-old Siddhu Gawade, a shepherd, has been weaving symmetrical baskets for the past 55 years.

In Chhattisgarh, a long road to clean energy as families in rural areas are still compelled to use firewood
Two years after the government launched its scheme to improve rural women’s health by providing clean cooking fuel, the attempt to switch from firewood to clean fuel in the primarily rural state of Chhattisgarh is slowly fizzling out.

In Maharashtra's Ambap village, a couple with polio defied odds to set up a model farm
Geetanjali and Shivaji were affected by polio, a disability that subjected them to terrible name-calling.

In Wade Bolhai, visually impaired calendar salesman Sambhaji Bhor fights for the rights of the disabled
For the past two decades, Sambhaji has been selling calendars. This started off in the late 1990s when one of his uncles suggested him to make a living out of it. The piece of advice changed Sambhaji’s life as he embarked on the journey of traversing villages.

In Kolhapur, octogenarian master sculptor Ananda Kalke struggles for relevance
85-year-old Ananda is the only sculptor left in the Sangrul village of Karvir taluka in Maharashtra’s Kolhapur district who doesn’t use machines to sculpt idols.

Babytai Awale's long battle against patriarchy, casteism in Maharashtra's Tilwani village
The first woman from the Tilwani village [Maharashtra’s Kolhapur district] to pick up the occupation of puncture repairing, and a proud feminist, today everyone in the village calls her Awale ma’am.

Khanderav Parit's battle against caste: How a former mill worker is fighting oppression through his writings
An award-winning rural author, mill worker, and now a farmer, Khanderav Parit’s writings reflect the everyday life of the oppressed.

Wealthy but not healthy: India's rich more likely to suffer hypertension, says National Family Health Survey
Nearly 13 percent women and 18 percent men aged 15-49 in the highest stratum of the wealth index have hypertension (high blood pressure), according to data from the National Family Health Survey (NFHS), 2015-16 (NFHS-4). This is the first time the NFHS has included the measurement of blood pressure.

As 8 states go to polls in 2018, a look at how rural debt, distress and death continue to grow nationwide
Behind rising NPAs is a story of growing crop failures – increasingly linked to climate change – and falling rural incomes.

Indoor air pollution deadlier than industrial, caused 1.24 lakh premature deaths in India in 2015, finds study
Indoor air pollution caused 1.24 lakh premature deaths in India in 2015, more than the emissions from coal power plants or other industrial sources.

ICICI Bank launches 'Mera iMobile', a multilingual mobile banking app for rural customers
Mera iMobile by ICICI Bank allows electronic transfer of funds through multiple payment mechanisms, has information for farmers and is available in twelve languages.

Job creation vital for India to escape middle-income trap
regardless of the validity of GDP figures, jobs are being created in the economy. The government's efforts to generate employment opportunities in rural areas seem to have been paying dividends.

UP Election 2017: Why even after 15 years, poll promises made by politicians have stayed the same
Uttar Pradesh has the highest number of colleges in any Indian state (6,026), according to AISHE 2014-15, but it has been unable to produce qualified workforce to drive development, as IndiaSpend reported on February 11, 2017.

Budget 2017 – How these 5 key points would shape up India’s competitiveness
The overall analysis of the Budget 2017 reflects a balanced approach towards enhancing the overall competitiveness of the country with a clear focus on eliminating the pain points of different sections of the society

Punjab Election 2017: Rahul Gandhi reaches out to rural voters on last day of campaigning
Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi on Thursday shared a meal of 'dal-subzi' with villagers and interacted with them in Sangrur district, on the last day of campaigning for the Punjab assembly polls.

Digital Village project to provide WiFi hotspots to more than 1,000 gram panchayats
The govemernment has announced a new project to provide connectivity in remote areas in the country. Called Digital Village, the pilot project will be first rolled out to about 1,050 gram panchayats.

Approximately 98.8 percent school children in urban areas have access to the internet
As many as 98.8 percent school-going children access internet in urban areas and 49.5 percent of them do it from home, according to a survey released on Monday.