|
Dear Reader,
The decks have been cleared for the Supreme Court of India to hear a batch of petitions arguing for recognising same-sex marriages in the country starting today. A favourable verdict would make India the thirty-fifth country to legalise same-sex union and only the second in Asia to do so.
There are already many enabling precedents in India – prohibition of discrimination on grounds of sexual orientation and protection of gender identity, for instance – which argue in favour of the recognition. Supreme Court Observer examines arguments and judgments on the issue in foreign jurisprudence -- the US, Canada and South Africa -- to see where India’s apex court can go.
A man who was on death row for 25 years, even though a juvenile when he allegedly committed his crime, was finally released by the Apex Court last month. The case, Article 14 points out, illustrates the negligence and callousness that characterises India’s criminal justice system.
Even though India was declared “leprosy eliminated” in 2005, it still accounts for over half the world’s leprosy cases. The Citizen reports from Chengalpattu, near Chennai, on life in a colony of leprosy patients who not only have each other for support but can look forward to a better life for their children because of the healthcare and education facilities in place.
And, amidst the seeming lawlessness and disquiet, there is a spark of science animating Uttar Pradesh’s schools. With the help of Astroscape, a start-up that builds affordable astronomy laboratories, an array of labs have been built in village schools across the state.
The labs in the schools, ThePrint reports from Bijnore district, have not only found huge and overwhelming traction among the students and teachers but also increased enrolment and helped kindle a love for science and scientific temper.
For more such stories from the grantees this week, please read on.
Warmly,
Sunil Rajshekhar
IPSMF
|
