-The Hindu State’s women’s policy draft includes Amendments in treatment of transgenders Pune: Women and children in Maharashtra will now have the freedom to use any surname of their choice, the government has said in the draft of the State’s women’s policy released here on Friday. In another first, the draft also includes policy changes for the treatment of transgenders. The government has sought suggestions and recommendations from the citizens for the next two...

Introduced in the Lok Sabha in December 2011, the UPA government’s Food Security Bill is finally going to be discussed in the current (Budget) Session of Parliament. The proposed legislation is now slated to see many additional Amendments from the government, following criticism from the States, NGOs and diverse stake-holders working on access to food and child health. Attempt here is to summarise in a Q & A format the...

-The Times of India The UPA government is likely to reintroduce the Land Acquisition Bill with a mammoth 157 Amendments in the budget session of Parliament. Out of the 26 'substantive' measure the government plans to push through includes a provision that in case of acquisition for urbanization purposes, 20% of the developed land would be reserved and offered to the original owners at a price equal to the cost of acquisition...

-The Business Standard FM allocates Rs 10,000 cr to implement the programme; this is apart from the usual food subsidy requirement of Rs 80,000 cr for the year The most ambitious social security programme of the government, the National Food Security Bill, got a leg-up in the 2013-14 Budget, with Finance Minister P Chidambaram allocating Rs 10,000 crore for implementing it. This allocation is over and above the usual food subsidy requirement of...

-The Hindu Four street-children told the committee they were witness to the incident The Home Ministry has finally taken cognisance of the gang rape by some Delhi policemen that has been mentioned in the Justice Verma Committee report. Sources in the government say the Ministry has asked the Delhi Police to enquire into the incident and take “necessary action.” Following the news report in The Hindu, “A gang rape Delhi policemen got away...