Whenever the CPI (Maoist) engages the paramilitary and police forces resulting in some killings the media, particularly the electronic media, goes gaga about it for two or three days. TV channels conduct high-pitched debates scorning Indian Maoists as terrorists to be bumped off using even the army and air force. But when the operating security forces kill adivasis and Maoists among them, the n
India`s tiger conservation policy, under Project Tiger, has been the most successful programme towards conservation of the big cat, according to a new study. “Beginning in the early 1970s, conservation initiatives helped establish a large number of tiger reserves, particularly in India, Nepal, and, to a lesser extent, in Thailand, Indonesia, and Russia,” the study sai
My wager: The unthinkable may happen. That too in Bihar. Without much noise, new chief election commissioner (CEC) S Y Quraishi has armed himself with tools that give him a fighting chance against illicit polling expenses, arguably the core malaise afflicting our elections. It is common knowledge that the prescribed limit of Rs 10 lakh per assembly candidate is flouted openly.
The BJP’s state of affairs is akin to a rudderless ship drifting aimlessly in a turbulent sea. While party stalwart L K Advani advises caution on the prospective Ayodhya verdict by the Allahabad high court, a section of the BJP leaders backed by the RSS-VHP has been aggressively strident. Similarly, if a section of the moderate BJP leaders seems keen to keep the BJP-JD(U) a
R Bandyopadhyay, secretary, Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA), is focused on bringing in contemporary management practices into Indian industry. The 1974 IAS officer of West Bengal cadre served as secretary of the department of public enterprises, where the number of navratna companies grew from 12 to 18 during his tenure. At MCA, ever since he took over last September, Bandyo
India`s economic growth may or may not be a white elephant but the slum population in the country is reaching a mammoth size. The slum population has risen by as much as around 23 percent since 2001, says a new study prepared by the government of India. The government committee headed by Dr Pranob Sen, principal adviser, Planning Commission found that there has been a gro
Indian Constitution is all-encompassing, it has provisions for all. In fact the Indian Constitution is said to be one of the most sought after, when it comes to enactments, provisions and mandates. India ratified the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) in 1992; it is under this that the provisions for entitlement of child rights and their enactment started coming into pictu
e-Governance applications in the recent past have demonstrated the important role that information and communication technologies (ICT) play in the realm of development. ICT is being increasingly used by the government to deliver services of central agencies (like district administration, cooperative unions, and state and central government departments) to the citizens at their doorstep.
Contrary to what Prime Minister Manmohan Singh believes on the issue of distributing food to the poor, over 60 percent Indians want the government to help the hugry with free foodgrains, an opinion poll released on Tuesday has found. "More than six out of 10 feel that the government should distribute free food to prevent abject poverty,” said Whypoll, an opinion poll c
Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma attended 42nd India-ASEAN (Association of South East Asian Nations) Economic Ministers Meet at the beach resort city of Da Nang in Vietnam. The minister discussed the progress made in implementing the trade in goods agreement and proposed trade pact in services and investments. While talking to PTI, he also mentioned about his unscheduled meeting
If firmness is shorn of political posturing and bravado, it is taken rather seriously. Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar successfully proved in the hostage crisis that a mature, sagacious political conduct, not irrational flamboyance, is a rewarding recourse in statecraft. There is no doubt that as the hostage crisis unfolded the Nitish Kumar government was walking on a razor edge. But, de
Ten years after the signing of the Millennium Declaration, “India appears to be seriously off-track on a number of MDGs including those on hunger, infant mortality, maternal mortality, and women’s empowerement,” says a report. “Left with only five years to achieve the MDGs, poverty continues to make lives miserable,” Wada Na Todo Abhiyan (WNTA), a ci
In the last two decades (1989-90 to 2009-10) ‘arhtiyas’ – commission agents, a regular feature in Punjab agriculture system earned about Rs 6,427.27 crore on the marketing of all commodities, a study reports. On an average, the commission turned out to be Rs. 306 crores per annum on all commodities since 1989-90, according to the study report authored by Sukhpal
Do our members of parliament deserve the kind of pay hike they gave themselves recently? What about their performance? The questions beg some straightforward answers if we look at Parliamentary performance. The primary role of the Parliament is to legislate and it is precisely in the legislative activity that Parliament has devoted least amount of time. Between 2001- 2008 Parliament has devoted
The proposed second airport for Mumbai, at Navi Mumbai, will not only impact environment but also reach the saturation point in 25 years, a new study by the Observer Research Foundation (ORF) has pointed out, even as environment minister Jairam Ramesh met civil aviation minister Praful Patel to resolve their differences over the proposal. The existing Chattrapatti Shivaji Interna
Sport was delivered a knockout blow in the UK after the cricket scandal moved to a new high, now to be known as SpotGate. The allegations were not allegations waiting for proof. Moveover, folks, this was a bunch of cricketers caught bowled and run out at the same time. Stumped is another word that leaps to the mind. The evidence is so overwhelming you need no inquiry. Throw the book at them. Th
CP Joshi, minister for rural development and panchayati raj, oversees the implementation of the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA), the scheme that some consider partly responsible for giving UPA a second term. In this exclusive interview with Brajesh Kumar at his official residence in New Delhi, Joshi says he will be able to plug loopholes in the implementa
I write this from Raipur in Chhattisgarh after a chance interface with some 1,100 forest dwellers gathered here. The organisers have them singing bhajans and chaupais from the Ramcharitmanas, and interspersing messages on cultural renaissance and social integration, besides promises that they’ll soon have help in demanding corruption-free PDS and NREGA with the use of RTI.
The middle-class in India is quite unaware of the magnitude of child mortality rates as eight out of 10 people do not know that 1.83 million children under five die every year in India, a latest survey reveals. According to the survey, “Though nearly 60 percent of those surveyed felt the problem of child mortality was very serious in India, a shocking eight out of 10 did n
Ever since 9/11 the Americans have made it very clear that they are paranoid about security. They have also made it equally clear that they will profile people and their skies are unfriendly and a visa is no defence against arbitrary suspicion. They have also told you that what is not suspicious to you but is to them will be suspicion per se because it is their country, so there. What part of i
