-The Times of India   CHENNAI: The Madras high court has held that assets details of IAS officers furnished to the government in a sealed cover can be made available under the Right to Information (RTI) Act. Inspection of asset details of the officer concerned can be allowed as well, it further held. An appeal by V Madhav said that on February 12, 2009, he applied to the Public Information Officer...

The National Advisory Council amends its draft Prevention of Communal and Targeted Violence Bill, but some activists are still dissatisfied. THE National Advisory Council's (NAC) draft Prevention of Communal and Targeted Violence (Access to Justice and Reparations) Bill has elicited great expectations and also disappointment within the political class and civil society ( Frontline, July 1, 2011). With its deadline seeking comments from civil society (June 4) having passed, it...

A host of steel-manufacturing units are keen to set up plants in Karnataka, and all want captive mines. SOUTH KOREA'S Posco is not the only steel-maker keen to do business in Karnataka. The State's estimated 9,000 million tonnes of good-quality iron ore reserves, which is the second largest in India, the State government's assurances on a smooth land acquisition process, the availability of water and the promise of speedy regulatory clearances...

-The Times of India   The Delhi high court on Tuesday stayed a Central Information Commission (CIC) order directing Rashtrapati Bhawan to disclose all the documents, including the communication of the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, on the declaration of the Emergency in 1975. Terming the documents as "classified and privileged", the Central Public Information Officer of Rashtrapati Bhawan challenged the CIC order, saying the President's Secretariat is not liable to disclose...

NCPRI proposes bringing PM under Lokpal, suggests basket of anti-corruption measures The National Campaign for People's Right to Information (NCPRI) has proposed bringing the Prime Minister under the Lokpal with the safeguard that the executive head can only be investigated on the recommendation of the full benches of the Lokpal and the Supreme Court. At a consultative meeting held here on Friday, the NCPRI, which has two National Advisory Council members, Aruna...