All Asia: South & Central
- Risky tunnel project promises security, prosperity in northern India
As Delhi fast-tracks infrastructure projects near the India-China border, a new tunnel is set to bring all-weather connectivity to the long-isolated region of Ladakh.
- Monitor reporter’s trial opens: Why India treats journalists as terrorists
Monitor contributor Fahad Shah’s long detention and ongoing trial raise questions about India’s approach to terrorism.
- First LookApple sets its sights on an untapped smartphone market: India
Apple Inc. has opened a flagship store in Mumbai, India, with a second store coming soon to New Delhi, as the company moves its manufacturing out of China. About 600 million of India’s 1.4 billion people have smartphones, and the tech market is growing.
- First LookIndia will soon have the biggest population. Can its women rise, too?
India will soon eclipse China to become the world’s most populous country, but the number of Indian women in the workforce has been shrinking. When women participate in the labor market, they contribute to the economy and their family’s income, experts say.
- First LookWildlife over people? Indigenous groups protest India’s Project Tiger.
As India’s Project Tiger turns 50 years old and the big cat population hits 3,000, Indigenous groups are protesting. They say they are being displaced by wildlife projects that push them out of their ancestral land and ask for a say in conservation efforts.
- First LookClimate change washes away freshwater for Indian villagers
Rising seas from climate change is bringing saltwater into freshwater supplies in India, where less than half the population can access clean drinking water. In Chellanam increased salinity in the aquifer has forced residents to retrieve freshwater by hand.
- As India’s Project Tiger turns 50, hope for the big cat
On the surface, India’s gains on tiger conservation over the past 50 years appear modest, but the momentum growing behind the big cat gives wildlife advocates hope.
- First LookMalaysia abolishes death penalty. Will other Asian nations follow?
Human rights groups have applauded Malaysia’s move to abolish the mandatory death penalty, bringing possible reprieves to more than 1,300 prisoners on death row. Previously, courts had no choice but to mandate hanging as punishment for a range of crimes.
- Gandhi’s expulsion: Bad for Indian democracy, good for opposition?
Critics have called the expulsion of opposition leader Rahul Gandhi an assault on the integrity of India’s democracy – but it’s also inspiring rare unity among different parties, which could sway upcoming elections.
- First LookCan public trust endure in India amid high surveillance?
In India, the increased digitization of services has led to greater government surveillance and false arrests, activists say. The authorities say the surveillance is needed to curb rising crime.
- Pakistan-Khan standoff: What would justice look like to each side?
A violent standoff between supporters of former Prime Minister Imran Khan and Pakistani authorities has put pressure on the country’s legal system.
- First LookWhy did Thailand disband its Parliament ahead of elections?
A government order has disestablished Thailand’s Parliament, allowing candidates to change parties closer to election day. An election with stronger candidates and more supportive parties could reduce the political influence of the country’s military.
- First LookPakistan unrest: Supporters clash with police trying to arrest Khan
Police attempts to arrest former Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan have triggered two days of street clashes with supporters. Since 1947, at least seven former prime ministers of Pakistan have been arrested in various cases and tried by courts.
- First LookIndonesia breaks ground on new ‘futuristic’ capital of Borneo
Indonesia is moving its capital from Jakarta to the newly unveiled Borneo. The goal is for the island to be a “sustainable forest city” that aims to be carbon neutral by 2045, but environmentalists warn there could be issues with deforestation.
- ‘Not worthy of a democracy’: Behind India’s slide on press freedom
Trends of anti-media violence, censorship, and legal intimidation could have disastrous consequences for the world’s largest democracy.
- Boom and bust: How Indian billionaire’s rise left the nation vulnerable
Billionaire Gautam Adani became a symbol of prosperity in modern India. As his fortune comes under scrutiny, so does India's economic model and the country’s relationship with its super-rich.
- Short on food and funds, working-class Pakistanis rely on resilience
Amid Pakistan’s escalating financial crisis, a visit to a working-class neighborhood in Lahore reveals daily struggles and deep wells of resilience.
- In Pictures: Acid attack survivors take the lead at this Indian cafe
Acid attacks aim to degrade and disfigure women. At Sheroes cafe, survivors take charge and achieve the confidence to move forward with their lives.
- First LookBBC offices in India searched: Is the government silencing critics?
Indian tax authorities have conducted searches at the BBC’s offices in New Delhi and Mumbai. The searches took place after the BBC aired a two-part documentary critical of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Britain.
- Difference MakerWith after-school center, trans activist Sumi Das seeks kinder future
In eastern India, an after-school center run by trans women is helping kids reconnect with learning. It is also forging compassion and solidarity.