BANGLADESH: Child Smugglers Risk Life for a Few Dollars

Thirteen-year-old Jamal is a Bangladeshi bootlegger who carries goods from Haridaspur town in the Indian state of West Bengal to the border district of Jessore in southwest Bangladesh, playing cat-and-mouse with Indian frontier guards every day.

INDIA: With No IT Sector, Kashmir Lags Behind

At a time when information technology has revolutionised life across the globe, Kashmir in north India lags behind the rest of the country, and the world, because it has no IT industry to speak of.

PAKISTAN: Schools Rise From the Rubble

Violence in the tribal areas of northwest Pakistan has kept students away from school, in some areas for at least two years. Now, officials are trying to make up for lost time by holding classes even under tents or trees.

Real Estate Boom as Displaced Pakistanis Seek Housing

Real estate prices have shot up in areas adjacent to the tribal districts of northwest Pakistan where violence continues to displace local residents.

JAPAN: Workers Bear Brunt of Nuke Clean-up

Twenty-eight-year-old Yushi Sato washes cars for a living, but they are no ordinary cars. Every day, Sato hoses down vehicles contaminated with radiation from the Fukushima Nuclear Power plant that was damaged by the earthquake and tsunami that hit north-east Japan Mar 11.

INDIA: Human Barricade Stops India’s Big Ticket Steel Project

Fourteen-year-old Satikanta Sahu loves going to school, but these days, he would rather spend his time manning the barricade and facing down policemen in the sandy coastal village of Govindpur in India’s eastern state of Orissa.

Thai Campaign Tempers Use of Antibiotics

Every month, Buddhist monk Phra Patarapong visits this village of mostly wooden houses on stilts and draws crowds, but not just for his regular sermons on spiritualism. People come to see him also for his tips on health, in particular his warnings about the excessive use of antibiotics.

Chinese Dissident Artist Ai Weiwei Freed

Ai Weiwei, the renowned artist who is among the most prominent dissidents detained in China's sweeping recent crackdown on dissent, has been released on bail after confessing to tax evasion.

Uphill Battle to Save Australians From Execution

Any Australian government efforts to have two of its citizens spared from the death penalty in Indonesia have been made more difficult by past refusals to intervene on behalf of three Indonesian Islamists in the lead-up to their executions in 2008.

PAKISTAN: ‘Ethnic Cleansing’ Feared in Balochistan

The pain and anger in 25-year-old Rukhsana Langho’s voice could be heard over the telephone line from Quetta, the capital of Balochistan province, 700 kms north of the port city of Karachi. "We hate Pakistan and we want freedom," she says, bitter over the disappearance of her brother more than a year ago.

INDIA: Noose Not Mandatory for Drug Crimes, Rules Court

By striking down a law that makes the death penalty mandatory for drug-related offences, the Bombay High Court has raised hopes among rights activists that other countries in the region will follow suit.

JAPAN: Anti-Nuke Policy to Bring Severe Economic Fallout

Three months after the devastating Mar. 11 earthquake that caused an accident at the Fukushima power plant, energy experts warn of economic fallout if nuclear energy is snuffed out too quickly, much to the dismay of an increasingly angry and frustrated public.

Pollution Rising Fast in China’s Seas

Rapid economic growth in China’s coastal regions has resulted in serious levels of ocean pollution, damaging marine life and posing a threat to humans. As much as half of China’s offshore areas are considered polluted.

NEPAL: Govt Clears Last Minefield but Threats Remain

Nine years ago, Bhagwati Devi Gautam was a field labourer in Rukum, one of Nepal’s worst insurgency-hit districts. Hurrying to attend a programme on the occasion of International Women’s Day, she was forced to halt at a police checkpoint for the mandatory examination of her handbag.

Red Shirts Shift to Village-Based Politics in Thai Heartland

The shimmering green paddy fields across the vast terrain here remain a vivid marker of rural identity. But now, another colour – red – is steadily taking root in the villages dotting this plateau in north-east Thailand that are home to poor farmers.

SRI LANKA: Onset of Rains Tests Anti-Dengue Campaign

With the monsoon season upon it, Sri Lanka’s war against the deadly dengue- carrying mosquito faces its toughest test yet, but early signs show that the mosquitoes are not quite ready to give up.

PAKISTAN: Taliban Use Human Shields Against Army Offensive

Thousands of civilians are virtually being held hostage in the tribal areas of northwest Pakistan, where the outlawed Taliban have been refusing them passage to safer areas ahead of a government plan to intensify army offensives.

CHINA: Trains on a Dubious Fast Track

The novelty of the super-fast ride on China’s bullet train never seems to wear off. On board of the inter-city train connecting the capital with the port city of Tianjin 117 km east you can buy an arm-long model of China’s prestige train and more than two years since its launch there are still many enthusiastic takers.

JAPAN: HIV Cases Rise as Awareness Wanes

Slackening awareness and deep-rooted social discrimination are behind the latest figures that show Japan with a record number of HIV-positive and AIDS patients, officials and experts say.

BANGLADESH: Ship Breakers Defy Court Ruling on Toxic Vessels

The ship breaking companies of Bangladesh continue to import highly toxic foreign vessels despite a two-year-old ban, and are also defying a court order to ensure workers’ safety and implement environmentally sound practices, a group of lawyers says.

MALDIVES: Mining ‘Smoking Mountain’ of Rubbish for Energy

Most visitors to the Maldives – a string of islands southwest of Sri Lanka – won’t miss the so-called "smoking mountain" made from local residents’ trash as well as the garbage tourists leave behind in resorts nearby.