-The Times of India   After debating the issue for over a decade, the government on Thursday threw open the multi-brand retail segment to foreign chains such as Wal-Mart, Carrefour and others in a move to attract overseas investment and dispel doubts about the coalition's ability to push through big-bang reforms.  After nearly two hours of discussion on Thursday evening, the Union Cabinet decided to allow foreign retailers to hold 51% stake in...

-The Indian Express   A group of women activists on Thursday asked Union Home Secretary G K Pillai to apologise for his “sexist comments” in asserting that alleged LeT operative Ishrat Jahan’s conduct in checking into different hotels with “another man” was definitely suspicious. In a statement issued by the Jamia Teachers’ Solidarity Association, the activists said Pillai made theses remarks since he was “hard-pressed to defend his affidavit to the Supreme Court...

-IANS   SITting and former MPs from various parties owe a staggering Rs.9 crore to state-run telecom provider MTNL, over and above the free calls they are allowed, a reply to a Right to Information (RTI) query revealed Tuesday. The reply lists 399 MPs who alone owe Rs.7.10 crore dues to MTNL, followed by Rs.1.97 crore owed by six SITting members. The list for former MPs defaulting upon their bills is led by Rajya...

-IBNS   A group of about 35 women economists from different countries of Europe, UK, US, Australia and India, have written an open letter to Prime Ministers and Presidents of South Asian nations, including India, which are facing acute sanitation crisis. From India, Jayati Ghosh, Professor, Centre for Economic Studies and Planning, Jawaharlal Nehru UniverSITy; Bina Agarwal, Director, Institute of Economic Growth, Delhi UniverSITy and Isher Judge Ahluwalia, Chairperson Board of Governors, Indian...

A Division Bench of the Gujarat High Court on Wednesday reserved order till December 1 on the appointment of an agency for a fresh probe into the Ishrat Jahan fake encounter case. Since the State government did not press for handing over the case to the State police, the probe was now open to being assigned to the Central Bureau of Investigation, the National Investigation Agency, a reconstituted Special Investigation Team...