-Hindustan Times Several BJP-ruled states have brought rules and orders that could scuttle implementation of the forest rights act (FRA), reveal documents available with Hindustan Times.   The 2006 law upholds consent of villagers to divert forestland for industrial projects, considered a stumbling block to the Union government’s push for industries. The three forest-rich states of Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand and Maharashtra, which are home to a sizeable tribal population, have come up with rules...

-The Financial Express A forensic report prepared for the Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO) shows over a third of India's top 500 companies, including those in the top 100, are "managing" their accounts. It finds that companies where promoters hold more than 50% of total shareholding are more likely to take such steps to impress markets with their performance. Both domestic companies and subsidiaries of multinationals listed in India show similar trends...

-The Telegraph Regulators in several European countries are suspending marketing approval for 25 generic drugs because of concerns over the quality of data from human studies conducted by an Indian contract research company, a French medical safety agency said on Friday. Drug regulators in Belgium, France, Germany and Luxembourg have decided to suspend the marketing authorisation for the generic drugs after they discovered "irregularities" in documents relating to human studies conducted by...

-IPS News SUNDARBANS: November is the cruelest month for landless families in the Indian Sundarbans, the largest single block of tidal mangrove forest in the world lying primarily in the eastern Indian state of West Bengal. There is little agricultural wage-work to be found, and the village moneylender's loan remains unpaid, its interest mounting. The paddy harvest is a month away, pushing rice prices to an annual high. For those like Namita Bera,...

-The Indian Express India seems relieved, having convinced the United States to advocate on its behalf at the WTO regarding the issues arising from its food security programmes, while food-exporting nations are rejoicing at New Delhi signing on the dotted line without insisting on a reduction of farm support in developed countries. As we defend public procurement and stock holding, they will be looking at opportunities to export to India high-value...