-The Hindu Union Minister of Rural Development Jairam Ramesh has written to the Madhya Pradesh government in support of tribal rights activist Madhuri Krishnaswamy, who was served an externment notice by the Barwani district administration a few days ago. In a letter written to Madhya Pradesh government, Mr. Ramesh has requested Chief Secretary R. Parsuram to look into the matter personally. “I don't know the lady or the organisation against whom the Barwani...

The dreaded El Niño weather phenomenon is set to appear during the second half of the southwest monsoon, which may cause less-than-expected rains in August and September. El Niño had earlier hit the Indian monsoon in 2009, when the country faced a severe drought. This time, its impact is not clear as of now, but if there are excessive breaks in the monsoon, crops of paddy, oilseeds and pulses could...

Books, cartoons and judgments are being discussed thoroughly from highest bodies of liberal democracy like Parliament to constituents of public sphere i.e. print to media artefacts. Primarily, there are two standpoints regarding inclusion/exclusion of cartoons in NCERT Books (political science). Inclusionary argument is based on idea of deliverance of great service to B.R.Ambedkar while emphasising his teachings, ideas and place in the book. Exclusionary argument is based on cartoon itself...

-The Times of India   Minutes after the Congress demanded relief from the steep hike in petrol price, state-run oil marketers on Thursday indicated they could reduce the price by the month-end if the rupee and international oil prices held steady.  "Current trend indicates that prices can come down," IndianOil chairman R S Butola said. He was speaking just after Congress publicly asked for a reduction in the hike.  "We are genuinely sensitive to...

A day after the steepest ever petrol price hike of Rs. 7.54 sparked protests by UPA allies and Opposition parties in several parts of the country on Thursday, there were strong indications that the government would cushion the blow for the common man. Petrol prices may come down by Rs. 3-4 a litre in the next few days as state governments readied plans to slash local taxes and oil companies...