According to the 2011 census, Indian towns and cities constitute a larger population of women than has ever been recorded in Indian history.

The population of urban women grew at 34% in the decade 2001 to 2011. In the same period the rural population of women grew by just over 12%.

As a result, the gender ratio for urban areas rose from 900 women per 1000 men in 2001 to 926 in 2011. In rural areas, the gender ratio increased nominally from 946 to 947.

Experts are nonplussed by the growing proportion of women in urban areas, as India has been experiencing an alarming decline in the child sex ratio over the past several decades. The Centre for Women's Development Studies in Delhi said the answer to the mystery may be because of increased migration of women from rural to urban areas mainly due to marriage.

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More than 150 people were standing on a Darjeeling bridge in Bijonbari village to listen to speeches by leaders of the GJM party, while on the other side of the bridge a cultural programme was being held. The sheer weight of the people caused the bridge to collapse and the victims fell at least 70ft, into the fast flowing Rangeet Khola river.

The army, fire brigade and police helped in the rescue effort in which 60 people were rescued mostly from areas down-river.

The bridge was built in 1942 and is thought to have been weakened by a 6.9 magnitude earthquake that shook north-east India in September.

The death toll has reached 32, with 132 wounded. At least six children are among the casualties.

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Authorities have warned that imported chocolates that are pouring into the market particularly because of Diwali, may appear to be Swiss or Italian, but are actually unsafe smuggled products that are manufactured in China.

Health authorities say China made milk chocolates contain melamine that can cause kidney problems and cancer. The authorities are organising raids on various outlets and plan to seize the contaminated products.

The chocolates are mirror images of brands like Ferrero Rocher, Lindt and Toblerone and are sold as cheap at Re.1 a piece.

Authorities intend to hold the Indian importers responsible.

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Some 15,000 so-called 'holiday wives' in Doaba, Punjab have been deserted by their NRI husbands but just 159 cases have been filed against the grooms thus far.

According to the National Commission for Women and the Ministry of Women and Child Development, out of 30,000 wives deserted by NRI husbands, 15,000 are from the Doaba region of Punjab.

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Scientists in India are drawing on global technologies to create simple, robust, cost-effective diagnostic products that will make profits in the Indian market and will ultimately also find markets across the world.

Small companies like Bangalore's ReaMetrix that is rolling out a 'lab in a box' , hold out promises to bring diagnostic testing for diseases from HIV to malaria, diabetes to arthritis, cheaply and quickly, to the patient. The founders hope their product will one day also transform healthcare in the US.

Another such company is Perfint of Chennai that uses a robotic arm to help perform biopsies and diagnosis, then treat lung, liver and other soft tissue cancers.

US NRI Bala Manian a Silicon Valley entrepreneur who started ReaMetrix says if one frames the problem differently in a local context, it presents an innovation opportunity to transfer the paradigm in how healthcare is managed in developed countries particularly the US.

India's intense pressure on healthcare costs, its lack of insurance company support, and a pay from your own pocket system, drives the process in a different direction than in western countries.

Manian's mantra can be described as leveraging Indian market requirements implies that if something succeeds in India, it should succeed elsewhere.

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