Asia

 Why seed storage is necessary Yearly production of grains, pulses, and vegetables depends on a reliable supply of quality seed. This is true for the farmer growing a crop to feed their family as well as for the agricultural worker…

The people of Myanmar (Burma) March 30, 2016, were witness to the swearing in of its first democratically-elected leader after more than 50 years of military rule. Htin Kyaw, 70, took the oath of office in the country’s parliament, and…

Guwahati: Celebrated Kannada writer Santeshivara Lingannaiah Bhyrappa, who is widely regarded as one of modern India’s foremost novelists, opines that children in schools across India should be taught in their mother tongue. Professor Bhyrappa, who was recently at Guwahati Press…

As long ago as 2006, the government of the Indian state of Bihar introduced an innovative programme that aimed to improve school access and reduce the gender gap in secondary school enrollment by providing girls who continued to secondary school with…

In Hong Kong the entire territory is sectioned into district councils but these have limited powers over local affairs, with residents only able to vote into office councillors with very limited briefs which results in local attitudes of uncaring as…

Calligraphy, the key to express Japanese culture; thoughts put into ink. Chikako Fukami-Thomsen swas born in Kyoto, Japan, and now lives in Zurich. She has been working with calligraphy and painting (Nihonga) since childhood, and has taught calligraphy in Japan,…

A coal-laden coaster capsized in the Shelah River in the thick of the Sundarban mangrove forests of Bangladesh. The forestry department has filed for compensation in a case claiming five-billion-taka as the coaster has polluted to a large extent the…

Russia’s decision to greatly reduce its military presence in Syria, coming as it did with little warning, has left the world struggling for explanations. Russia is to maintain a military presence at its naval base in Tartous and at the…

 Hong Kong: Rita Kwan Wing-yee delivered a tirade against Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying’s government during a special meeting on retirement protection held by the Panel on Welfare Services March 14 2016, identifying herself as “a citizen who loves Hong Kong”. The following is extracted from…

Worldwide, Microcredit is associated with the name of charismatic Muhammad Yunus, 2006 Nobel Peace laureate together with Bangladesh’s Grameen Bank: “for their efforts to create economic and social development from below… Lasting peace cannot be achieved if large populations cannot…