-Economic and Political Weekly The government has notified a Draft Land Reforms Policy which, on paper, has all the requisites of an earnest programme. Yet, the near total failure of earlier efforts at land reforms in India leave little room for hope that something substantial will at last be done to combat landlessness. Harsh Mander (manderharsh@gmail.com) is with the Centre for Equity Studies, New Delhi, and works with survivors of mass violence,...

-The Economic Times NEW DELHI: The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs on Thursday cleared an amendment to National Food Security Ordinance, Food Minister K V Thomas said. The move would raise grain allocation to many states under the new food security law, increasing the subsidy burden by Rs 5,094 crore. "The cabinet has agreed to the demand of 18 states, including Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Assam Andhra Pradesh, for additional allocation of food...

-PTI NEW DELHI: Due to lack of adequate storage infrastructure, fruits, grains and vegetables worth Rs 44,000 crore go waste every year, Food Processing Industries Minister Sharad Pawar informed Rajya Sabha on Friday. Pawar said during Question Hour that the value of annual wastage of fruits and vegetables was estimated at Rs 13,309 crore. However, if the wastage value of rice, wheat, cereals and others are taken into account, it would go...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: Editors Guild of India described I&B minister Manish Tewari's suggestion of licensing journalists as an "undemocratic" practice and a tool of totalitarian states to control the media. "The reporting of facts and the expression of ideas is the right of every citizen and to require the passing of a test and the possession of a licence issued by the government would be a violation of the...

-PTI New Delhi: Citizens will be able to file Right to Information (RTI) applications online from tomorrow in all central government ministries and departments in the national capital. Minister of State for Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions V Narayanasamy will launch the portal - www.rtionline.gov.in - at a function in New Delhi on Wednesday. Moving further towards greater transparency in governance, the government has started as a pilot project the facility of filing...