Features

The Unmeasured Wound: Untouchability, Survey Instruments, and the Limits of the SEEEPC Exercise in Telangana

by rti_adminon May 5, 2026May 5, 2026Leave a Comment0

Santhosh Juvvaka Article 17 of the Indian Constitution abolished untouchability in 1950 and declared its practice in any form a punishable offence. Seventy-five years later, the Telangana Socio-Economic, Education, Employment, Political and Caste (SEEEPC) Survey 2024 — the most ambitious caste enumeration exercise undertaken by any Indian state in the post-independence period — surveyed nearly …

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Publisher’s Note on the book ‘Navayāna Philosophy: A Modern Interpretation of the Teachings of the Buddha’

by rti_adminon May 5, 2026May 5, 2026Leave a Comment0

Ratnesh Katulkar Navayāna constitutes a global and universal philosophy. Numerous authors have written on its diverse dimensions, and many books have presented its perspectives. Yet, regrettably, no single comprehensive volume has thus far been available on this entire philosophy. For this reason, as soon as the proposal for the present work was received, we immediately …

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Patriarchal “Protection”: Why the Argument Against Menstrual Leave Fails Working Women

by rti_adminon April 22, 2026April 22, 2026Leave a Comment60

Priti Kumari The Supreme Court of India recently rejected a plea seeking mandatory nationwide menstrual leave. The rationale provided by the Bench was that such a mandate could inadvertently hinder women’s employment, discourage corporate hiring, and ultimately damage career growth. At first glance, this reasoning might appear protective. However, in a society largely structured by …

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Challenging Caste-Based Inequalities Through Pedagogy in India’s Preschool Choices

by rti_adminon March 1, 2026March 1, 2026Leave a Comment3

Buddhapal Dumane, Bhavna Shahare In India, people prefer private preschools over government-run anganwadis. This reflects divides based on caste, gender, income, and culture. The shift to English-medium options, which are often unaffordable for low-income families, perpetuates inequalities. The ASER 2023 report indicates that private setups achieve better learning outcomes despite gaps in foundational skills. This …

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Book Review: “Decoding Ambedkar: Ideas of Nation and Nation Building” by Vivek Kumar

by rti_adminon February 21, 2026February 21, 2026Leave a Comment24

Dhruv Kumar The well-known adage, “You can kill a person, but you cannot kill his thoughts,” has transformed in contemporary times. Today, ideas can be rendered ineffective not only through suppression but also by distorting them or preventing their dissemination to the public. This phenomenon is particularly evident in the case of Dr. B. R. …

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Reading the Geo-political rift in West Asia Through Reza Negarestani’s `Cyclonopedia’

by rti_adminon February 16, 2026February 16, 2026Leave a Comment19

Umar Nizarudeen The cyclical temporality of Indo-Iranian notions of metempsychosis lends itself to speculative fiction. The work of the Iranian thinker Reza Negarestani is interesting for its melding of petro-fiction with carbon lifecycles. The convoluted movement of energy and life in `Cyclonopedia’ cursorily lingers on theory. This visceral yet short excursus allows us an insight …

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Food, Smell, and Discrimination: When a Microwave Becomes a Battleground

by rti_adminon January 25, 2026January 25, 2026Leave a Comment31

Prithiraj Borah In September 2023, Aditya Prakash, a fully funded PhD candidate in anthropology at the University of Colorado Boulder, was reheating palak paneer—a spinach and cheese curry—in a shared departmental microwave when a staff member approached him with a complaint about the ‘pungent smell’. The staff member instructed him to stop. Prakash’s calm response— …