Stories about South Asia from May, 2011
Pakistan: Huge Blasts at a Naval Air Base in Karachi
A heavily guarded facility of Pakistan Navy located in Karachi has been attacked by terrorists a few hours ago and blasts and gun-fires ensued. Pakistani Twitter users were quick to spread the news and voice their reactions.
India: A Day In The Life Of A Beggar
Vanillasense recreates a day in the life of a beggar in India.
Nepal: Dhaka Topi, The National Identity
XNepali at Nepal Blogs writes about Dhaka Topi, an unique cap worn by many Nepalis which is considered as a national identity.
Sri Lanka: Transparency Regarding ‘Boot Camp’ For Youth
Serendipity discusses about the issues surrounding the latest “Boot Camp” initiative for A level students in Sri Lanka, which is an in house 3 week course at an army camp. The actual program and plan has not been publicized leaving scope for speculations and rumors.
Bhutan: Another Royal Wedding
Bhutanese Member of Parliament Sangay Khandu informs in a blog post about the royal address of His Majesty King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck (31), in which he declared his wedding with Jetsun Pema.
India: Lessons Learnt In The Assembly Elections
Rajesh Jain at Emergic writes about the lessons learnt after the results of the assembly elections in five Indian states.
Bhutan: Why The High Tourist Fee?
Bridge To Bhutan explains the reason behind Bhutan’s unique and long-standing system of requiring tourists to spend at least $200 a day.
Sri Lanka: Buddhism And Its Impact On Governance
A Concerned Citizen at Groundviews criticizes the Sri Lankan leadership’s aggressively defensive behaviour on many issues, which do not represent what the Buddha taught.
Nepal: Social Media As A Civic Activism Tool
On Saturday May 7, 2011, hundreds gathered at a public square in Kathmandu demanding that the constitution be drafted by the May 28 deadline. This event was unique to Nepali activism and political scene because social networking site Facebook played vital role in organizing and encouraging the participants.
India: Kerala Election Results With A Subtle Warning
As the new seven member state cabinet of Kerala is to be sworn in on Wednesday the 18th of May 2011 there are no obvious signs of celebrations across the ranks. People are fed up of the usual gimmicks of money and muscle power; they are rejecting corruption and speaking up finally for their rights.
India: Taxi Cab For Women In Delhi
Shital Shah at Think Change India writes that an innovative start up in Delhi, which is training women to drive taxi cabs to provide abuse free transport for women.
Pakistan: If Your Mosque Had WiFi!
Pakistani blogger Farrukhunplugged posts some imaginary social media conversations possible if mosques had Wifi connection.
India: The IPL Cheerleader Who Blogged
Hanna Ingber Win reports that The Indian Premier League (IPL) had fired a South African cheerleader after it became known that she was blogging about cricket after-parties.
India: 34 Years of Communist Rule Ends in West Bengal
West Bengal today witnessed history in the making when the Indian state's 34 year long Communist rule was ousted from power by Mamata Banerje - leader of the All India Trinamool Congress. Netizens react to this landslide victory.
Italy: How technology can help manage emergencies
In a crisis, how can Web 2.0 be of use to social movements and what practical help can it offer to facilitate collective action? In reality, there is no shortage of platforms which, established on a voluntary basis, using free software, harness the internet and mobile phones to gather and share information, sourced...
India: Privacy for the Deceased?
The accidental death of a NIT (Calicut, Kerala) research scholar has once again sparked controversies about the privacy of women, privacy of a dead person and in general about the lingering male chauvinism in Keralan society.
India: Abuse Of Elders In Old Age Homes
Pratik Goyal at Youth Ki Awaaz reports that the elderly population residing in some old age homes in India face physical abuse or mental abuse.
Pakistan: Military Using Free Email Accounts
Osama Bin Javaid criticizes Pakistan Army's use of free email servers like Hotmail and Gmail for their official purpose and reminds that these communications can be intercepted by third parties fairly easily.
Bhutan: Footwear Care
Tshering Tobgay highlights an young Bhutanese entrepreneur who after spending some jobless years became successful setting up a business to launder and refurbish traditional Bhutanese footwear.
Sri Lanka: The pride Of Being A Sri Lankan father
Dhammika Dharmawardhane enjoys the pride of being a Sri Lankan father and writes in details why.
Bangladesh: Measures Against Extra Judicial Killings
Mahadi Hasan Talukder discusses a recent report of Human Rights Watch, which recommends that to stop the extra judicial killings, the Bangladesh government should take make major steps to ensure accountability and reform in the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB) forces or disband it.