-The Economic Times It is a shame, said the Prime Minister, releasing a new report that says 42% of India's children suffer from malnutrition. Dr Manmohan Singh went on to talk of the Integrated Child Development Scheme (ICDS), the government's preferred scheme for tackling the problem, and of the need to to focus on 100 extremely backward districts.  An ICDS-like scheme is entirely appropriate but it would be a big mistake to...

-The Hindustan Times   Reacting to complaints of schools flouting Right to Education (RTE) norms, the education department has served a showcause notice to four Delhi schools, which are run by the armed forces. Replying to a question raised in the assembly, Delhi education minister Arvinder Singh said the four schools — Army Public School, Delhi Cantonment and at Shankar Vihar, Air Force Gyanjyoti School, Palam and Naval Children Academy, Chanakyapuri —...

The Bharatiya Janata Party in Karnataka appears to be readying itself for a big fight, and this time it is over the Bhagavad Gita. A statement by Karnataka Chief Minister D V Sadananda Gowda, in which he said that the government was considering introducing the Gita in primary and secondary standards in school has drawn appreciation as well as flak in the state. Vicky Nanjappa reports. The issue had come up...

-The Hindu   It has unparalleled safety features, says technical team The Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant (KKNPP) has come up with unparalleled safety features and it has been constructed in such a way that it shall withstand any sort of natural calamity, be it earthquake or tsunami. Also, the fears of radiation and threat to marine life are only hypothetical since the nuclear power plant at Kalpakkam is good evidence to prove that the...

A study questions the efficacy of conditional cash transfer schemes in promoting the girl child. IN an attempt to address some of the serious imbalances in society, specifically the gender imbalance, the Central and State governments have embarked on several short-term conditional cash transfer (CCT) schemes in the past decade and a half. While the Central government is convinced about the efficacy of the schemes aimed at arresting the distorted sex...