Full Coverage: Asia and the Pacific

31.01.2008 A massive debt relief package for farmers is being finalised by India’s agriculture ministry. The scheme will provide debt relief to small and marginal farmers who own land up to two hectares and large farmers. The total outgoings over four years are expected to be around INR 700 billion.

31.01.2008 As India paid its homage to Mahatma Gandhi on January 30, the 60th anniversary of his assassination, his great-granddaughter poured his ashes into the Arabian Sea off Mumbai. Gandhi was shot dead on January 30, 1948 at a prayer meeting in New Delhi.

31.01.2008 A change of direction is needed in Afghanistan to avert a humanitarian disaster, a leading international charity warned world leaders today, as another report said six years of international engagement was under threat and the country was at a crossroads.

31.01.2008 Want to solve real-life water problems of today? Delhi based Centre for Science and Environment’s short course on the theory, practice and policies of urban rainwater harvesting for working professionals offers expert advice and hands-on lessons in planning and designing systems. Register now for the March 17-21 course.

31.01.2008 The next generation Nokia cell phone, loaded with software that turns text on photographed documents into speech, promises to make lives convenient for the visually impaired.

31.01.2008 Over 1.5 million young women have been widowed in Afghanistan owing to armed conflicts over the last two decades. Food, shelter and social protection are the most pressing needs for these women and their children with most of them lacking the economic means to earn a decent living.

30.01.2008 Landmine clearance in Sri Lanka since the Mines Advisory Group restarted operations there in September 2007 will allow more then 30,000 internally displaced persons to return to their communities, the organisation said.

30.01.2008

30.01.2008 The "U.N. Security Council (UNSC) is set to lose its credibility once again as it prepares to impose a third set of sanctions on Iran while failing to pass any strictures on Israel for its continued heavy-handed repression of Palestinians in Gaza," says a research organization focused on the Middle East.

30.01.2008 Nurhikma, 8 years old, and 3,000 other Filipino children from war torn areas in Mindanao, the Philippines recently participated in four days of fun activities for kids, a program coordinated by local and regional actors.

30.01.2008 UNITED NATIONS, Jan 29 (OneWorld) - Hundreds of international officials, business leaders, and civil society activists have gathered in Indonesia this week for a major UN conference on corruption. At the same time, a week-long period of mourning began in the country to honor a political leader deemed to be one of the most corrupt in world history.

29.01.2008 Two documentaries, A Pinch of Salt and Warriors of Chinnaganjam, poignantly capture the plight and struggles of salt workers in southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. These are tales of survival on the fringes; as one elderly worker in one of the films put it succinctly: “Our life is a constant confrontation with death.”

29.01.2008 Street names and buildings in India once linked people to their local culture, geography and livelihoods. To deal with this loss of identity and regain the richness of its architectural landscape, India needs to research and document traditional houses in villages and old towns, writes architectural consultant Kiran Keswani.

29.01.2008 Bangladesh’s poor are increasingly finding it difficult to buy food. The increase in wages across sectors over last year is disproportionate to the overall rise in food prices, which have increased by 27% in last four months alone. Recurring floods and cyclones destroying standing crops have only added to the woes.

29.01.2008 River dolphins of Bangladesh are facing a serious risk of extinction due to over-fishing, shortage of prey, pollution, etc. Efforts are now being made to protect them by monitoring salinity levels of rivers and preventing accidental killings of dolphins by fishermen.

29.01.2008 SAN FRANCISCO, Jan 28 (OneWorld) - An arms control group in Washington, DC has begun a petition drive urging Congress to stop President Bush from signing an agreement they say could bind his successor to continue the occupation of Iraq for another five years.

28.01.2008 About 30% of schools in India are without permanent structures, about 14% have no drinking water facility and about 60% have no separate toilets for girls, according to the latest official figures. It is obvious that lack of infrastructure has impact on quality of education.

28.01.2008 First of its kind in India, the Rajasthan State Cooperative Department has launched the ‘Kisan SIM card’. Farmers can now get free tips on various aspects of farming from weather updates to guidance on livestock rearing to crop infection through SMS and voice messages.

28.01.2008 An Asian rights group has criticised President Musharraf for telling a gathering of 800 Pakistanis in London to "put one, two or three punches" to Pakistani journalists who he said were destroying the country's image and for endangering a named journalist by accusing him of being an anti-state element.

28.01.2008 First of its kind in India, the Rajasthan State Cooperative Department has launched the ‘Kisan SIM card’. Farmers can now get free tips on various aspects of farming from weather updates to guidance on livestock rearing to crop infection through SMS and voice messages.