-The Hindu Building on the work by RTI activists, India needs to set up a mechanism that can make for accountability on the sources and utilisation of party funds Throughout the world, political parties collect funds to build and sustain the organisation, to train party cadres and fight elections. Recognising that they are the main link to the citizens (as voters) and, by implication, the mainstay of democracy, many countries, including India,...

-The Times of India The tragic incident in Bihar has raised questions about the midday meal (MDM) scheme, an otherwise popular and successful programme. Laggard states should use this as an opportunity to catch up with others and protect the scheme against emerging dangers. For those unfamiliar with it, the MDM scheme is a huge programme that today feeds more than 11 crore children every day. It is also a very popular...

-The Business Standard The Uttarakhand floods have put the spotlight on the competence of the national body which was created with a vision 'to build a safer and disaster-resilient India' When thousands got swept away by floods in Uttarakhand on the night of June 16, little help reached the mountains till at least a day had passed. Though the weather department had issued a warning, the magnitude of the disaster shows that...

-The Indian Express The Supreme Court on Friday sought reply from Uttarakhand and six other states for their alleged failure to implement the Disaster Management Act. A Bench led by Justice A K Patnaik sought responses from the Centre and the Union Territory of Andaman and Nicobar Islands on a PIL alleging the governments had failed to implement the 2005 disaster law in true spirit. The six other states asked to respond are...

-The Economic Times NEW DELHI: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has said Walmart's $100-million investment in Cedar Support Services, the holding company of Bharti Retail, in 2010, violated India's foreign exchange rules as well as Reserve Bank of India (RBI) guidelines but said as these violations did not fall within its purview, it cannot investigate the matter. "The case was analysed which reveals violations of RBI guidelines and Fema regulations," the...