All Asia: South & Central
- First LookPlastic for a picnic? India says no, pushes for bamboo cutlery.
On Friday, India banned many single-use plastic products as part of a federal plan to phase out the ubiquitous material. Reducing the manufacture and consequent waste of plastic is crucial for the South Asian nation to meet its environmental goals.
- Seeking safety: Muslims move to Delhi ‘ghettos’ amid demolition drives
For Indian Muslims, what makes a space safe? Many are leaving Hindu-majority areas for Muslim enclaves, but ghettoization comes with risks.
- First LookIndia throws a lifeline to sinking Sri Lanka, edging out China
India and China have long vied for influence in Sri Lanka. Now, as Sri Lanka reaches the depths of debt-crisis, India sees an opportunity to get the upper hand over rival China by aiding the island nation.
- First LookToo many debts, too few tourists: Sri Lanka’s economy is sinking
Sri Lanka’s Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe told the Parliament on Wednesday that the country’s dire economic situation resulted in a “collapse” of trade and investment. Negotiations with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) are ongoing.
- It takes a protest village: ‘Gota Go Gama’ unites diverse Sri Lankans
Amid an ongoing economic crisis, Sri Lankans of all backgrounds have gathered at “Gota Go Gama” hoping to achieve more together than apart.
- First LookRussia turns east as Asian markets scramble for its oil
In an effort to limit cash flow to Moscow, Western nations cut energy imports from Russia. But some oil-hungry Asian countries are opening their spigots for Russian oil and Moscow is rewarding them with steep discounts.
- Indigenous ingenuity: India’s living bridges inspire architects
Can building help the environment, rather than hurt it? Some are finding answers in northeast India, where Indigenous communities create living bridges.
- First LookRace against time: Sri Lanka’s new PM tries to avert financial crisis
New Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe pleads for patience as Sri Lankans hope a combination of reforms and international aid will rescue the country from crises stemming from debt and critical shortages.
- First LookModi resurrects historical Muslim emperor as a modern foe
Hindu nationalists have made a villain of the 17th-century emperor Aurangzeb, using his legacy to fan tensions with Muslims. Historians say that Prime Minister Modi and his allies’ depictions of the Mughal ruler stretch historical truth for political gain.
- First LookTorn up fields and frightened farmers: Taliban enforce poppy ban
The Taliban have started plowing up Afghanistan’s poppy fields, striking at one of world’s top sources of opium and heroin. The crackdown worries poor farmers, who have come to depend on the crop for their livelihoods.
- First LookAfghan women defy burqa order as Taliban internal divide deepens
Afghan women were openly defying the Taliban’s new order to cover all but their eyes and hands in Kabul over the weekend. Analysts say the burqa order reflects the divide between the Taliban government’s hardliners and pragmatists.
- First LookNew bus line speeds Pakistani women to education, jobs
Harassment and crime have long kept Pakistani women out of buses – and out of universities and the labor market. Now, the public bus company in the city of Peshawar has invested heavily in making their buses clean, safe, and welcoming for women. And it’s working.
- More than a respite? A year of peace sparks hope along Kashmir border.
Peace has proved elusive and fragile along the northern border, but experts now say there’s credible reason to hope.
- Underground, but undeterred: Why Kashmir’s rappers sing in secret
Many young Kashmiris have turned to rap as a way to process – and protest – the violence they experience in one of the world’s most volatile regions.
- The ExplainerOn biometric IDs, India is a ‘laboratory for the rest of the world’
Many governments, including in nearby Malaysia and Sri Lanka, are looking to India for insight on how to build their own digital ID systems.
- From Kathmandu to California, South Asians are confronting caste
A growing number of U.S. schools have updated their nondiscrimination policies to include caste, often as a result of Dalit student organizing.
- First LookPakistan parliament elects new PM after ousting Imran Khan
Pakistan’s parliament elected opposition contender Shahbaz Sharif as the country’s new prime minister on Monday, after ousting Premier Imran Khan. Last week, Mr. Khan dissolved his parliament and expedited elections but the Supreme Court did not uphold his move.
- First LookPakistan’s Imran Khan blames US for his ouster, and vows to fight on
Imran Khan’s ouster comes amid cooling relations with Pakistan’s military, high inflation, and economic mismanagement. He has claimed the U.S. worked to bring him down amid displeasure over his foreign policy choices, which often favor China and Russia.
- Does rape within marriage count? To India’s courts, no.
India is one of the few countries that does not treat marital rape as a crime, but a high court is mulling over petitions to close that legal loophole.
- Roads broke up an endangered monkey's habitat. Can bridges fix it?
Jo Leen Yap’s upcycled canopy bridge has helped thousands of animals cross the road safely, including the dusky langur.