by Priyanka Bhardwaj
-India-

Every afternoon 8-year-old Raj Kumar and his younger sibling trudge along the ten kilometer expanse of Golf Course Road to take free classes at a school ensconced in a posh pocket of Gurgaon in the Indian state of Haryana. The zeal of their car-washer parents to conquer their poor living conditions has led them to push their children to get an education despite the hardship forsaking the extra income two sets of helping hands would have earned.

by Priyanka Bhardwaj
- India -

Last year’s World Economic Forum study on gender parity gave India a dismal ranking: 114th out of 134 nations. Only 77% of women are literate and just 23% are employed. UNICEF’s 2009 State of the World’s Children report found that not only do 40% of the world’s child marriages occur in India, but of its total contraception, 75% is done through sterilization with India’s women bearing the brunt of the procedure in 95% of cases.

Of equally troubling concern, official statistics point to rape as the fastest growing crime in India, even when compared to murder, robbery and kidnapping. Despite assurances from law enforcement, the federal Home Ministry's National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) states that every 30 minutes an Indian woman is raped. Since 1971 when rape cases were first recorded officially, the NCRB has registered a 678% increase in the crime.

by Priyanka Bhardwaj
- India -

Education remains an emotional subject in a poor and developing country like India, where it is seen as the primary means for social and economic mobility. Indian families are known to sell land and spend their life’s savings to educate their children, especially males. Such desperation means that any change in the sector is a highly debated subject.

by Priyanka Bhardwaj
- India -

At the insistence of the United States, India has been granted global “nuclear exception” status despite being a non-signatory on nuclear non-proliferation treaties, such as the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty. The Indo-US civilian nuclear deal (signed in October of last year), consensus at the Nuclear Supplier’s Group and clearance by the global nuclear watchdog International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), means that India can now access dual-use nuclear technology to generate electricity.