-The Telegraph Guwahati/ Kokrajhar/ Dhubri: Chief minister Tarun Gogoi today announced a judicial inquiry into the riots that began in Kokrajhar on July 20, leaving 77 dead and over four lakh displaced. The judicial probe will be over and above the inquiry to be conducted by the CBI, which has taken over seven cases on their own, Gogoi added. He, however, did not announce details of who will conduct the probe or its...

-The Economic Times The government has made key changes to the proposed legislation for land acquisition, making it more attractive for industry by easing some of the stringent conditions, a person privy to the draft told ET. The rural development ministry has proposed to not implement the legislation with retrospective effect, besides relaxing the requirements of consent from landowners, and tightening the definition of market value. The amended Bill has been rechristened 'The...

-The Telegraph In the desert-like barrenness of brown around him, Suresh Mangsuli is growing grapes. As the rest of his drought-hit village thirsts for drinking water, he splashes his three acres of vines with over 10,000 litres a day. His huge farm pond is brimming, insured against seepage by a black polythene sheet stretched across its floor. Its water is pumped out to irrigate the vineyard through a network of drip pipes. Growing grapes...

-Live Mint The much-awaited land acquisition Bill seems to be in jeopardy with the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government rejecting a parliamentary standing committee’s suggestion the government should not acquire land for public-private-partnership (PPP) projects. But it has accepted that land procured for special economic zones (SEZs) and some defence projects cannot be exempted from the purview of a land acquisition Bill and promised to amend other laws pertaining to purchase...

-The Times of India A year after trying to provide a dignified life to sex workers, the Supreme Court on Thursday said its orders should not be construed as an encouragement to prostitution. The clarification came from a bench of Justices Altamas Kabir and Gyan Sudha Mishra after additional solicitor general P P Malhotra drew the court's attention to its July 19 order in which it had sought suggestions from the SC-constituted...