SPRF
ABSTRACT Language has a deep and well-documented relationship with culture. Therefore, its loss has significant implications for communities’ cultural heritage. This study attempts to […]
Abstract The Delhi Metro-Rail [DMR] System is an essential mode of mass transit that facilitates an integrated urban public transport system. However, poor last-mile connectivity impacts the DMR system’s ridership and makes it less inclusive for socio-economically marginalised groups. It is important to understand the issues related to last-mile connectivity because it is essential to […]
Abstract The digital divide between marginalised and non-marginalised populations of the country has impacted the socio-economic growth of the Scheduled Tribes [STs] in India. The first part of this paper discussed the consequences of the divide for the ST populace. The second part of the paper discusses the role of policy instruments in bridging this […]
ABSTRACT Indian democracy shows a steady decline across various globally cited indicators of democracy, even while the practice remains strong and consistent. The Freedom House Index has changed India’s status from “free” to “partly free” in 2021. Peculiarly, India has performed well on indicators of political representation and indicators of free and fair elections at […]
Abstract Admission into professional courses via highly competitive entrance examinations is becoming the norm in universities. The Union government’s decision to make the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test [NEET] the sole criterion for admission to medical and dental colleges is a significant step in this direction. However, studies worldwide have criticised high-stakes examinations for propagating socio-economic inequalities […]
ABSTRACT Muslim women donning hijab, burqa, or the veil has been a contentious issue and a source of discrimination against them worldwide. In India, this issue resurfaced in December after the Udupi Women’s PU College, a pre-university college in Karnataka, denied entry to several girls since they were wearing hijabs and ‘disrupting’ the college uniform. […]
ABSTRACT In 2021 ‘Fenty Beauty’, a leading makeup brand owned by the pop-star Rihanna, was criticised for using mica from mines in Giridih and Koderma, Jharkhand (Sirur, 2021). The news brought into limelight the discourse around industries thriving on cheap raw materials, especially ones acquired from illegal mica mines through child labour. The issue of […]
ABSTRACT For more than six decades now, Nagaland has been under the Armed Forces Special Powers Act [AFSPA] 1958. Despite the violence and impunity, the act grants the security forces, it is still in force. To bring peace to the region the Framework Agreement was signed in 2015 between the Government of India and the […]
ABSTRACT Rohingya refugee camps in India witnessed the highest number of fires in 2021 than any other year prior. Most refugee-camp fires demonstrated a peculiar trend of beginning at midnight, often on a disputed property, preceded by threats of eviction or bigotry but said to be the result of bad urban planning. With refugee settlement […]
Authored by: Barkha Tripathi, Co-Founder, The Zero Period Edited by: Riya Singh Rathore and Avishi Gupta ABSTRACT India is the second-most populous country globally, with the largest youth population between ages 10 to 24. Despite a young and culturally diverse demography, India has consistently deprioritised knowledge, awareness, and acceptance of comprehensive sexuality education [CSE] […]
INTRODUCTION In June 2021, Bharatiya Janata Party [BJP] MP John Barla raised a controversial demand for the separation of select North Bengal districts into a Union Territory. He argued that North Bengal has remained significantly underdeveloped in comparison to the rest of the state (Express News Service 2021). Following Barla’s rationale, BJP MP Saumitra Khan […]
ABSTRACT In October 2020, India and South Africa submitted a proposal to the TRIPS Council at the WTO to waive the Trade Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights [TRIPS] Agreement for the prevention, containment, and treatment of COVID-19. This set of intellectual property laws, established by the WTO, have historically limited developing countries from accessing […]
CONTEXT India’s location at the crossroads of the Atlantic waters and the Indo-Pacific has historically provided it with a geographical advantage in maritime trade. Such a strategic position enabled India to create a stable zone of influence in the northern Indian Ocean Region [IOR]. IOR is the hub of international trade in the 21st century, […]
ABSTRACT Female Maoists constitute a substantial 60% of the total cadres and occupy almost all operational and tactical positions responsible for sustaining the rebellion. This paper details the gendered motivators that have driven women in India’s red corridor to join the Maoist ranks. It also sheds light on the state’s current discourse around women’s participation […]