-Live Mint   Voters who gave the Congress its worst drubbing did not reject its welfare agenda, but its performance There are many who interpret the emphatic rejection of the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) and the significant endorsement of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the elections of 2014 as a mandate to end the architecture of rights-based legislation for social and economic welfare constructed during the 10-year UPA regime. Commentators opposed...

-Outlook     Bhubaneswar: Advocating zero displacement and zero harm to environment while setting up projects, Union Tribal Affairs Minister Jual Oram today said he would present his views on the proposed iron ore mining at Khandadhar hill in Odisha's Sundargarh district to the Centre. "My stand on mining in Khandadhar remains unchanged... I am against any project that can harm natural environment or cause displacement of people," Oram told reporters here during a...

-IANS     Bhubaneswar: A two-member expert team appointed by the Supreme Court to probe alleged mining illegalities in Odisha arrived in the state on Monday, an official said. The Central Empowered Committee of the apex court on mining, led by member secretary of the panel M.K. Jiwrajka, will asses the status of operational mines during its two-day stay in the state, an official of the state mining department told IANS. The panel will also...

-The Pioneer   Bhubaneswar: Home is an integral part of life and determinant of standard of living and progress of society. Rural Odisha witnesses a very poor standard of habitation and lack of proper housing for lakhs of poor people who are dreaming of a house of their own to live with dignity. Socio-cultural barriers, landlessness and lack of credit for housing are some of the major reasons which deprive rural poor of...

-The Times of India There is finally an official count of the third gender in the country - 4.9 lakh. While transgender activists estimate the numbers to be six to seven times higher, they are thrilled that such a large number of people identified themselves as belonging to the third gender, despite the fact that the census counting happened well before the Supreme Court order gave legal recognition to the third...