MUMBAI: In a significant policy shift, the Maharashtra forest department has removed teak from the list of protected tree species under the Maharashtra Felling of Trees (Regulation) Act, 1964, a move that is expected to make it easier to cut teak trees on private lands and farms. The order was issu»»»

A mountain of rubbish sits behind a metal fence in the village of Bickershaw, where it has remained for more than 20 months. For many residents, it is a physical manifestation of the north-south divide as well as a rotting, rat-infested symbol of a broken system in which organised criminal gangs ma»»»