India - Special Edition

A lot has been said about development aid for India. Can a country with an economic growth of 8 per cent, a booming IT industry, nuclear powers and a space programme not look after its own citizens? INSP news service editor Danielle Batist and photographer Simon Murphy (who also took the South Sudan photos) set of India to find an answer to this question. They talked to economists and industry leaders but spent most of their time listening to the stories of some of the country's half a billion people who still live in poverty.

India eradicates polio, not poverty

The world's largest democracy is reaching milestone after milestone, from record-breaking economic growth to the recent eradication of polio. Danielle Batist reports from IT capital Bangalore, where millions still struggle to share in the success.

The power of India's disabled work force

In a booming economy that is crying out for skilled workers, India's corporates take baby steps in including disadvantaged groups. With a potential work force of 30 million people with disabilities, the challenge is to match up talent and jobs - and fight stigma in the process.

Indian Dream is hell for some

Just a two hour drive from Bangalore, Yeluvahalli is a far cry from the glass panelled, steel framed offices and ice white mega malls that have come to dominate the city during the technology boom. Surrounded by acres of rice fields, coconut trees and rock formations, nothing gives away the village's proximity to one of the world's most famous icons of globalisation.

Microloans help Indian farmers escape loan sharks

For Shivanna (50) and his wife Padmamma (45) life as small scale farmers in the village of Yeluvahalli is a struggle. The harvest is barely enough to feed the family and the small amount of crops they sell do not carry them through the drought periods that haunt the area each March and April.

Photo Essay: The other side of India's IT capital (part 1) (part 2)

Call centres, futuristic IT campuses and explosive growth have come to dominate Bangalore's global image in recent years. For the two million people still living in poverty, this picture could not be further from reality. Photographer Simon Murphy travelled across the city to see the other side of India's 'Silicon Valley'.

Why 'booming' India still needs aid

If even Susan Boyle gives up chocolate for a month for India, it's got to be a serious matter. The Scottish Catholic International Aid Fund (SCIAF) has convinced the world-famous singer -alongside other Scottish celebrities- to join their annual 'Wee Box' Lent campaign.