-The Telegraph New delhi: Rural development minister Chaudhary Birender Singh today held a meeting with senior officials amid indications that the ministry is planning an ordinance to amend the year-old land acquisition law which industry has opposed. Among those who attended the two-hour meeting was Vandana Kumari Jena, secretary, department of land resources. Sources said the rural development ministry was under pressure from the finance and infrastructure ministries to amend the Right to...

-The Hindu Business Line ‘Pathetic'situation of the tea garden workers in West Bengal, Assam a major concern Labour reforms for the unorganised sector is a priority for the Narendra Modi government. And steps are being accordingly taken in this regard by the Centre, the Union Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Bandaru Dattatreya, said here. According to him, some of the steps taken include the setting up of the Shram Suvidha Portal...

-The Hindu Business Line   The CAG report details how these have neither helped industrial development nor boosted the economy Nearly a decade after the Special Economic Zones Act was brought into force, it is evident that the move has not helped industrial development. After examining SEZs in terms of background and objectives, fiscal incentives and facilities, approval process and administration, as well as life cycle, State-wise distribution and overall performance, parts of a...

-The Times of India NEW delhi: Who funds political parties? Corporates do. According to an analysis by Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR), 90% of political funds have been contributed by corporates or business houses. Roughly about half the amount donated to political parties came from delhi followed by Maharashtra and Gujarat. This is based on declaration of donations submitted by parties to the Election Commission. While BJP is yet to submit details...

-The Hindustan Times Jaipur (Rajasthan): The state government has decided to follow the Madhya Pradesh model of sustainable livelihood by convergence in Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS). This was decided at a review meeting of panchayati raj (PR) and rural development (RD) departments by the chief minister. "We saw their presentation in the meeting of Union minister Birendra Singh on December 16 in Jaipur in which RD heads...