-PTI Criticising the land acquisition bill cleared by the Cabinet, social activist Medha Patkar today said it has left many basic issues of conflict over forcible land acquisition unresolved. "It is also against the Parliamentary democracy that a unanimous report of the Standing Committee is not given due importance before finalising the draft and approving by the cabinet," she said in a release. "We would also like to point out that whole process...

-Outlook Fresh changes have been made in the draft Land Acquisition Bill under which the consent of landowners for acquiring land for private purpose has been made stiffer following a suggestion from UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi. The percentage of land owners, whose consent is a must for acquiring land for private purpose, has been raised from 67 per cent to 80 in the proposed bill. Disclosing the changes in the measure, Agriculture Minister...

-Pratirodh.com Social activist and National Alliance of People’s Movement (NAPM) leader Medha Patkar along with other activists demanded resignation of Union Agriculture minister Sharad Pawar for his involvement in Lavasa scam.   Here is the full statement:   Corruption of one politician after another in nexus with the builders and corporations are getting exposed. The scandals which were already investigated and prosecution initiated also are to be re-viewed in the renewed context and taken to...

-Outlook Chennai: Attempting to capitalise on 300 clear sunny days available in the state annually, Tamil Nadu government today unveiled a new solar energy policy, envisaging to produce over 3000 MW of power, exclusively from solar power, in the next three years. Christened as 'Tamil Nadu Solar Energy Policy 2012,' the new initiative of the Jayalalithaa government, with a slew of encouraging features, finds opportunity in the rapidly declining solar power costs...

-The Hindu The Commerce Ministry has cancelled the proposed 1,840-hectare multi-product special economic zone (SEZ) project being developed by the Adani group at Mundra in Gujarat for violation of norms. The Adani Port and SEZ (APSEZ) project was de-notified as the proposal did not conform to contiguity norms, and was in violation of the rule, which required the SEZ site to be vacant before approval was sought, officials in the Commerce Ministry...