-The Hindu It was exactly a year ago that The Hindu wrote about the plight of abandoned and destitute women, particularly widows, who take shelter in Vrindavan, prompting the National Legal Services Authorities (NALSA) to take action. It filed a social justice litigation before the Supreme Court for ameliorating the pitiable condition of these women and directing the District Legal Services Authority of Mathura to conduct a survey of these destitute...

-DNA The high court, on Thursday, issued notices to the special officer and undersecretary to the education department over the income ceiling for free seats in schools for poor students under Right to Education Act (RTE). Petitioner K Nagesh and two others had challenged the RTE rule of fixing the maximum income ceiling at `30,000 per month for getting free seats for general category students ofeconomically weaker sections. In their petition, the three...

-The Times of India In what could turn out to be its calling card for the 2014 general elections, the government is finalizing a Rs 7,000 crore scheme to give one mobile phone to every family living below the poverty line. Sources in the PMO said the scheme—Har Hath Mein Phone—expected to be announced by PM Manmohan Singh on August 15, will not only aim to give away mobiles to around six...

-DNA It would be sad if the ghastly violence at Maruti Suzuki’s (MSIL) Manesar plant on July 18, 2012, in which a HR manager died, were to be understood simply as a ‘murderous workers’ vs ‘rational management’ kind of an incident. There is a history and a context to this violence, and how that is understood, and acknowledged, by India Inc. will indicate how serious we are about preventing such incidents...

-The Hindu Instruments that permit people to vote directly on policy and to initiate legislation can ensure that the citizen’s voice is heard   Independent India has been a large-scale experiment in democracy. Unlike many other nations that gained independence from colonial rule but descended into dictatorships and military rule, India has remained a democracy, despite its size and diversity. While we pride ourselves on this achievement, we also need to reflect more...