How Akhila became Hadiya – and why her case has reached the Supreme Court?

A young woman adopted Islam, defying her Hindu family. The case has roiled Kerala.

It is called Devi Krupa – the blessings of the goddess. But inside the modest single-storeyed house in TV Puram village in Kerala’s Kottayam district, a young woman has been confined against her wishes, on the orders of Kerala High Court. Outside the house, six policemen stand guard round-the-clock.

Oppressive personal laws aren’t the only thing standing between Muslim women and happy lives

The nation cannot swoop in to save the Muslim woman while Muslim communities are simultaneously being brought to their knees.

I am glad it is over. I refer to talaq-e-bidat, the practice of Muslim men uttering talaq, talaq, talaq in a single setting to instantly divorce their wives, which rightfully belonged in a trash can, but also to the television nation’s delirious excitement at having “saved Muslim women”.

We Need A New ‘Quit India’ Movement For True Independence'

My father went to jail in the 1942 Quit India movement. He was interned for 2.5 years in Delhi and Lucknow jails and was released in 1946.

I often used to ask him whether he and thousands of Indians like him who sacrificed so much for India's independence ever thought that it would become such a chaotic and corrupt country.

The Centre's 'City Liveability Index' Is Set To Become A Major Tracker Of Urban Indian Life

News that no Indian city made it anywhere close to the top of the latest list of most liveable cities in the world gets routinely buried in the inside pages of most newspapers. On the Internet too, such news does not figure high on the home pages of search engines, a sure way for the report getting buried somewhere deep in the cyber abyss.

Speciasl Report: Inside The Surreal Battle For Mind Control Playing Out In Rajasthan's Classrooms

From history to politics to math, text books are throwing caution to the wind, as teachers grow divided.

For someone who is courageously speaking truth to power, 51-year-old Mahavir Sihag is exceedingly soft spoken. On occasion, you have to remind him to speak louder, so that you can hear.

Are Expiration Dates On Medicines Just A Myth?

If some drugs remain effective well beyond the date on their labels, why hasn’t there been a push to extend their expiration dates?

The box of prescription drugs had been forgotten in a back closet of a retail pharmacy for so long that some of the pills predated the 1969 moon landing. Most were 30 to 40 years past their expiration dates – possibly toxic, probably worthless.

An Indian IT Firm Hires High-School Graduates And Turns Them Into Software Programmers

Even as most other firms seek talent from top-ranked tech institutes, Zoho Corporation hires high-school graduates and trains them over 18 months.

Not inclined to pursue his studies beyond high school, 17-year old Abdul Alim dropped out of school in 2013. Unable to find a job in his hometown in North East India, Alim moved to Chennai in the South with nothing more than Rs 200 in his pockets.

'The Future Of Family Planning Now Goes Digital'

One of India’s most vocal advocates for youth rights to sexual health, Franklin Paul, has been introducing digital technologies to the rural youth.

Online shopping may have its pros and cons, but when it comes to buying products that have an invisible morality tag, it’s the safest possible option, believes Franklin Paul.

One of India’s most vocal advocates for youth rights to sexual health, education and products, Paul has spent over two years studying and introducing digital technologies to India’s rural youths.

For Schools in Rural India, the Appropriate Language of Instruction Remains a Conundrum

The challenges faced by English medium students in rural areas go way beyond the quality of teachers.

The difficulty of deciding which language should be the medium of instruction has caused problems in the delivery of quality education in India.

Empty Promises: These UP Villages Were ‘Adopted’ By BJP Leaders—Only To Be Neglected And Abandoned

‘If the MP appears, we’ll beat him up. And then we'll ask, “Who the hell are you?"’

The Sansad Adarsh Gram Yojna was launched by Narendra Modi amidst much fanfare a few months into his tenure as the Prime Minister. A "significant" date was selected – October 11 – famed social reformer Jayaprakash Narayan's birth anniversary. Under this plan, Members of Parliament from across political parties choose a village from their respective constituencies and ensure it becomes a "model village", by taking on the responsibility of developing its physical and institutional infrastructure. This process is romantically also termed as "village adoption" or sansad god liye gaon.

‘Maybe It Is Time To Change My Son’s Name’: The New Reality Of Being Muslim In India

Rumours, lies, violence and political support for bigotry embolden many Hindus to reveal hidden prejudices.

Saira does not call her son by his name when they are out of the house. “I prefer using J, it doesn’t have a Muslim ring to it,” said Saira, 40, a former colleague whose first name I have changed on her request and whose Muslim identity was never previously a point of discussion. “I cringe as I say this, but it is true.”

Whenever J asked his mother the difference between him and his friends, she always told him there was none. They were all Indian with different names, she said. That explanation, an evidently troubled Saira told me, is weakening at a time of uncommon anti-Muslim prejudice and violence.

Inside Chandrababu Naidu’s plan to make Andhra Pradesh a sunrise state

Nara Chandrababu Naidu’s ‘Sunrise Andhra Pradesh-Vision 2029’ aims to make the state India’s most developed, overcoming the legacy issues that came with the creation of Telangana.

In the calendar of the state administration of Andhra Pradesh, the second day of the week is not a Monday. Instead, it is designated Polavaram day—after the ambitious multi-purpose irrigation project that entails interlinking the unruly waters of the Godavari and the Krishna to bridge the water deficit in the latter’s river basin.

The Real Problem With India’s Jobs Data Is That They Hide More Than They Reveal

Employment data in India have rarely been robust or foolproof. Measures of employment are released sporadically and exclude a number of sectors, notably the informal economy that employs over 80% of Indians. While the Narendra Modi government has put in place a task force to address these gaps, there is still no clarity over how the new data will be computed or how often they will be published.

The Harsh Reasons These Housewives In Bangalore Chose To Become Sex Workers

Editor’s note: For decades, sex workers in India have been pushed to the margins, forced to deal with shame and stigma from society. ‘Unheard Stories’ is a series of stories by INNLIVE that aims to bring these narratives to the fore, to build a more inclusive and accepting society.

“I am illiterate and unskilled. I need money to run my household. Now, this (sex work) is my job and I am proud of it as I have sacrificed a lot for my family,” says Jaya Prabha (name changed) with a stoic face. For her, sex work is a lesser evil than watching her children starve.

Where Are India's Heat Hotspots?

Heat waves across the world have killed tens of thousands of people since the turn of the century. In the U.S., more people die from deaths related to heat than all other natural phenomena combined. Parts of West Asia are expected to become inhospitable to human life by the end of this century. 

And in recent years, India and neighboring regions have experienced several devastating heat waves, causing the country to increasingly focus on a growing global concern—rising temperatures as a public health threat.

By 2022 India’s population is projected to exceed China’s, making it home to one-fifth of the world’s population. As a developing country located in the tropics, India suffers from factors that make it vulnerable to heat waves: persistent poverty, poor sanitation, a precarious water and electricity supply and low rate of access to health care.

How H-1B Visa Changes Could Benefit Indian Professionals?

President Trump has issued an executive order directing some U.S. agencies to review the nonimmigrant, H-1B work visa policies, which at present allow companies to hire “skilled” foreign workers when employers say they cannot find qualified Americans. Trump has questioned the impact of the program, saying that it represses American wages by paying foreign workers less. 

The U.S. issues 85,000 H-1B visas annually, and extends or reissues another 100,000 visas, according to Forbes. Last year, nearly 127,000 visas went to Indian nationals, about 21,700 to Chinese workers and 2,540 to Mexicans to round out the top three.

China can’t get enough of Bollywood’s Uncle Aamir Khan

Uncle Aamir Khan has done it again.

Bollywood star Aamir Khan’s latest film, Dangal, has set a new box-office record in China, according to state-owned news portal China Internet Information Center. Four days after the movie’s release, Dangal amassed 124 million yuan ($18 million) in ticket sales to become the highest-grossing Indian movie in China. The film displaced the previous record holder, PK, which also starred Khan and had grossed 110 million yuan ($16 million).

Bras with metal hooks, dark pants banned? CBSE dress code for medical test aspirants is ambiguous

It bans metallic objects. But does that justify making an exam-taker take off her bra because it has a metal hook?

“Is it possible for me to hide an electronic device on the tiny metal hook of my underwear. Should women invigilators be aware of this?” This was the question raised by a girl who was forced to take off her bra before appearing for the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test – a highly competitive examination for admission to medical and dental colleges for the undergraduate MBBS and BDS courses – in Kerala’s Kannur district, recently.

Babasaheb Ambedkar's Private Habits Come Alive In This Intimate Portrait

"You have not cared to inquire into my past," BR Ambedkar wrote to his fiancée Sharda Kabir in 1948. "But it will be available to you at any time in the pages of many Marathi magazines." 

Thus, in a terse statement, the towering leader of the untouchables dismissed his private preoccupations, almost like an afterthought, and put a premium on the recorded instances of his biography in the public domain. What we read of him, in the papers and in other sources, Ambedkar seems to be saying, is who he is.

RECYCLING AGENTS: Waste pickers live, work with pride

A glimpse into the lives of women waste-pickers in Pune.

Suman More, 50, is no stranger to picking herself up and getting on. So, when she fell during a recent Marathon in her city and bruised her hand and ankle she waved away most help, except for cleaning the wound, and continued on,