As the world prepares for COP30 in Belém , a new global report has raised serious alarms about the continued expansion of coal-based industries, particularly in India and China. The 2025 Global Coal Exit List (GCEL), released by Germany-based NGO Urgewald and 48 partners, reveals a worrying rise in coal-to-chemical projects and captive power plants despite mounting evidence of climate risks and tightening international finance restrictions.
By Rajiv Shah A few days ago, I attended a press conference for the release of a study examining the impact of automation on women workers in Ahmedabad’s construction sector. Conducted by Geeta Thatra and Saloni Mundra for Aajeevika Bureau and Work Fair and Free , the study immediately caught my attention—particularly a passing reference in the presentation to how Marxist theory tends to reduce women’s oppression to class relations and economic structures such as private property, production, and wage labour.