-The Hindu In a sensational development that impacts the Internet, a group of mainly African nations moved and won a resolution accompanied by a set of binding treaty-based International Telecom Regulations (ITRs) at the UN’s World Conference on Internet and Telecommunications (WCIT) in Dubai. The move was supported by China, Russia and mostly Arab states. At the last count, 89 countries had endorsed the global treaty on telecom regulations by Friday, with nearly...

-The Nation The labor campaign confronting Walmart in the United States is planning an international escalation for tomorrow. In partnership with the global union federation UNI, the union-affiliated group Making Change at Walmart is supporting a “Global Day of Action,” with participation expected from Walmart workers in Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Chile, India, Nicaragua, South Africa, the United Kingdom and Zambia. The day’s main US protest will be a Miami demonstration featuring...

-Frontline Maharashtra’s sugarcane farmers are a worried lot as the State government backs out from the sugar pricing process.  Sangli & Kolhapur: KOLHAPUR and Sangli districts in Maharashtra form the heartland of Indian sugar industry. This time of year is generally the busiest, with itinerant labourers cutting sugarcane and loading it on to tractors that roar off to the more than 20 sugar factories in the two districts. In November and December,...

-The Times of India In a move to curb multi-drug resistant tuberculosis cases caused mostly because of irregular medication, the government has decided that relevant medicines will be available for free at all chemist shops and corporate hospitals. The scheme will be rolled out across the country by next March. A patient, confirmed positive for TB by a qualified doctor, simply needs to register with the Revised National Tuberculosis Control Program (RNTCP). The...

-Outlook The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) today approved a urea investment policy that is likely to incentivise fertiliser firms setting up new plants and expanding existing capacity. India imports over 30 per cent of urea requirement and the policy aims at reducing that. But, it is unlikely to have any impact on existing prices. "The new urea investment policy has been cleared," sources said after the CCEA meeting here. The policy, which...