Pakistan issues its first passport recognizing a transgender designation
Instead of having “male” or “female” listed on their official documents, Pakistani transgender men and women can have a “X” under the sex category.
South Asia
South Asia spans countries including India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and their neighbors. This archive gathers progress stories from the region — covering public health, education, climate adaptation, economic inclusion, and more.
World’s biggest coal company closes 37 mines as solar prices plummet
Coal India, the world’s biggest coal mining company and producer of 82 percent of the country’s coal, announced the closure of 37 mines that are financially “unviable.”
Plans for 13.7 GW of coal power in India axed
“For the first time, solar is cheaper than coal in India and the implications this has for transforming global energy markets are profound.”
China, India on course to surpass Paris Agreement climate pledges
Slowing coal use in China and India has put the two most populous countries on a trajectory to beat their carbon emissions goals under the Paris Agreement, making up for rollbacks in U.S. climate action under the Trump administration
New law gives Indian mothers 26 weeks of paid maternity leave
India passed a law to more than double its paid maternity leave, adding 14 weeks to the 12 already guaranteed by the government, reports the BBC.
20,000 schools to install rooftop solar in Pakistan
The government of Pakistan’s second largest province, Punjab, has affirmed its commitment to the installation of rooftop solar power systems on around 20,000 schools.
7,000 railway stations in India to go solar
The Indian Finance Minister Arun Jaitley announced that the 7,000 railway stations across the country will be fed with solar power as per the Indian Railways mission to implement 1,000 megawatts of solar power capacity.
India’s capital Delhi just banned all disposable plastics
“The National Capital Territory of Delhi shall take appropriate steps against storage, sale, and use of such plastic material at the above-mentioned places and it shall stand prohibited with effect from January 1, 2017,”
Pakistan passes criminal law to prosecute honour killings
Pakistan’s honour killing law, passed in October 2016, closed a devastating loophole that had let families “forgive” relatives who killed their own — almost always women — and walk free. The mandatory 25-year sentence arrived months after the murder of social media star Qandeel Baloch galvanized public outrage. It marked a quiet but meaningful shift: the state, not the family, now decides.
India’s Cochin International becomes the world’s first solar-powered airport
Solar power took over a major airport in 2015, when Cochin International in Kerala, India became the first in the world to run entirely on the sun. More than 46,000 panels spread across 45 acres of former cargo land now meet all the airport’s needs, with surplus flowing back to the state grid — an early proof that big infrastructure could go fully renewable.