This National Advisory Council might not be as powerful as its namesake and as freewheeling in its mandate, but it will oversee the implementation of the Right to Education, the single most important intervention in the field of education since independence. HRD minister Kapil Sibal, who will be the ex-officio chairperson of this 14-member nac, has cleared the names of eight members. They are Kiran Karnik, former president of NASSCOM;...

The Union Environment Ministry has formed a fresh panel to look into the alleged violation of forest rights of tribals in Niyamgiri hills, where it has held up clearance to the bauxite mining project of Vedanta Resources. The Ministry, in a notification on Tuesday, announced a four-member panel to be headed by NC Saxena from National Advisory Council (nac). S Parasuraman from Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Promode Kant and Amita...

Sonia-led council to discuss “procedures” and Food Security Bill The Sonia Gandhi-led National Advisory Council (nac), in its second avatar, is looking to expand its mandate. On Thursday, when its members assemble for its first substantive meeting, the nac will discuss “procedures,” alongside the crucial — and now controversial — Food Security Bill, while a sub-committee will tackle the Communal Violence Bill. The Communal Violence Bill will come up before the nac...

The question of whether it is possible to move — and how swiftly — towards universalising food entitlements under the proposed National Food Security Act, dominated the second meeting of the Sonia Gandhi-led National Advisory Council (nac) here on Thursday, nac sources told TheHindu. Universalising food entitlements will hinge on availability of food grains, and on whether the exchequer is in a position to bear additional cost of food subsidy...

The National Advisory Council (nac), headed by UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi, will consider ways to boost Indian agriculture as part of its drive to review the draft food security bill on July 1. “The nac will address the sorry state of Indian agriculture, which recorded negative (-2 per cent) growth in 2010, and try to find ways to boost it in the long term,” said an nac member. “The idea is...