Sonia-led council to discuss “procedures” and Food Security Bill The Sonia Gandhi-led National Advisory Council (NAC), in its second avatar, is looking to expand its mandate. On Thursday, when its members assemble for its first substantive meeting, the NAC will discuss “procedures,” alongside the crucial — and now controversial — Food Security Bill, while a sub-committee will tackle the Communal Violence Bill. The Communal Violence Bill will come up before the NAC...
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Rich countries' emissions at record low by John Vidal
Greenhouse gas emissions from rich countries fell a record 7 per cent in 2009 because of the recession, but the cut was entirely nullified by steep increases from fast-growing China and India, according to one of Europe's leading scientific Research groups. Overall, this meant annual global climate emissions remained steady for the first time since 1992, says the Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency which drew on energy-use data from the U.S. government,...
More »Some ‘poor Indians’ live it up with 2-wheelers, TVs, fridges by Shailesh Dobhal
A significant proportion of the country’s official below poverty line (BPL) population cannot be termed ‘poor’. Fathom this: around a fourth of the 14 million odd BPL households in urban India own a two-wheeler, a third of them a colour TV and almost two-third a pressure cooker. Almost one in five urban BPL households has at least one well-educated, graduate or above, member. The 56 million-strong rural BPL population too exhibits...
More »The multiple dimensions of poverty by Rajesh Shukla
In June 1991, the country embarked on a bold adventure by exposing to market vicissitudes its insulated manufactories, regulated (but pockmarked with soft spots) financial markets and inexperienced economic players. An economy, in those days, was about people, not giant factories and ships with riches. Though successive governments have secured the reformative underpinnings of the liberalisation process, it is to the credit of players in India that the sublime quest...
More »Three firms rank highest on access to poor by Donald G. Mcneil Jr
GlaxoSmithKline, Merck and Novartis have taken the top three spots again on the Access to Medicine Index, which ranks pharmaceutical companies on how readily they make their products available to the world's poor. It was the second time the rankings, which were created in 2008, have been issued. This time, 95 per cent of the brand-name companies approached by the Dutch foundation that started the index agreed to provide information;...
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