大象传媒

About 10 million people are without water in the Indian capital Delhi, after protesters shut down the main supply to the city. The army has taken control of the Munak canal, which was sabotaged during three days of violent demonstrations by members of the Jat caste, who want the same guarantees on jobs and education that lower castes receive. Justin Rowlatt gives us the latest.

We also look at the theme of education. In India, it is estimated that the country needs another 14 million university places over the next decade. Competition is intense. Last year a huge bribery and fraud racket was uncovered in central India, where students paid middlemen to help them access and pass entrance exams for a number of institutions, including for medical exams. Two-thousand people have been arrested so far. We examine how India expands access to higher education with Steve Hill, from the Open University - an organisation that wants to help with distance learning.

In the past few years India has become a hub for start-ups, attracting billions of dollars of investment from around the world. But with the majority of the population living in rural areas, what difference would teaching entrepreneurial skills to village students make? The 大象传媒's Yogita Limaye reports from Bettiah in the eastern state of Bihar.

Over in the United States meanwhile, the conversation about higher education has for the last couple of months been focused on diversity - and the lack of it. Just 4% of full-time professors in this country are African-American, compared to about 15% of the students. Marketplace's education correspondent Amy Scott has been looking into what drives that disparity and how some colleges are trying to change it.

Our two guests today are professor Madan Pant, former pro-vice chancellor of Indira Gandhi Open University in Delhi, and Andy Uhler of Marketplace Radio in Los Angeles.

(Photo: Indian security forces secure the Munak canal, which supplies water to New Delhi. Credit: Getty Images)