-Live Mint In an interview, India’s food minister says the Bill is about making the Right to Food a legal entitlement Prospects for the National Food Security (NFS) Bill—United Progressive Alliance (UPA) chairperson Sonia Gandhi’s dream legislation—haven’t looked better. Food minister K.V. Thomas, in charge of fine-tuning the contours of the Bill, is confident of steering it through Parliament during the budget session. In an interview, Thomas said the Bill isn’t merely...

-The Times of India MANGALORE: Mangalore tahsildar Ravichandra Naik will have to cough up Rs 5,000 as penalty for not providing information on time to an applicant under the RTI Act. Karnataka Information Commission penalized Ravichandra for failing to provide information under the Act to applicant B Prakash Bhat, who had sought information related to Bantwal taluk office, where at the time of the complaint Naik was the tahsildar. Prakash filed an...

-PTI The postal department plans to enter the Banking business with the Reserve Bank of India deciding to grant new Bank licences to entities with credible track-record. Consultant appointed Sources said the Department of Posts, which has a strong foot print in rural areas, has appointed Ernst and Young (E&Y) as the consultant for the proposed ‘Post Bank’ “Ernst and Young is expected to submit a detailed project report by April, after which all...

-The Times of India THENI: Villages near Bodi Hills in Tamil Nadu are seeing a quiet revolution in animal-rearing facilitated by technology. Many women in these villages, who are involved in goat farming, are harnessing the power of the cell phone, for managing their herds better. Every day, they receive about five voice messages on their mobile phones about scientific methods of goat rearing which they say, have helped them improve...

-PTI Madhya Pradesh Sanitation Vision 2025 aims to make urBan areas in the state free of open defecation by 2017 and achieve a near complete sanitation access through provision of individual household level toilets by 2025 Madhya Pradesh government has charted an ambitious plan to completely stop open defecation in urBan areas by 2017 and provide sanitation access through individual household toilets by 2025. "The 'Madhya Pradesh Sanitation Vision 2025' (MPSV) has been...