-DNA Concerned about the increasing numbers of farmer suicides in Maharashtra's drought-hit areas, the Supreme Court on Thursday sought a response from the centre and state on a PIL seeking compensation of Rs 25,000 per hectare to the farmers whose crops have failed. The bench headed by chief justice of India H L Dattu sought their response on the PIL filed by Rakesh Uttamchandra Upadhyay, a lawyer, highlighting the plight of the...

-NDTV New Delhi: The Supreme Court today ordered the Centre to pay a compensation of Rs. 10 lakh to the mother of Thangjam Manorama, a woman shot brutally to death by soldiers of the 17 Assam Rifles in 2004. The NHRC has also recommended that Rs. 10 lakh be paid to the family of Manorama. The death of the 34-year-old woman was followed by vociferous protests in the state that...

-Economic and Political Weekly   The High-Level Committee set up by the Narendra Modi government to review the major laws relating to environment protection has, in its recommendations, worked towards two sets of objectives: one, to separate business from the messiness of governance, and, two, to redraw the line of demarcation between the judiciary and the executive. Manju Menon (manjumenon@namati.org) and Kanchi Kohli (kanchikohli@namati.org) are with the Centre for Policy Research - Namati...

-PTI Chandigarh: Haryana government today directed authorities to prepare a database of people engaged in farming activities in the state to help it in dispensing compensation and assistance to cultivators. Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, who presided over a review meeting of agriculture department here, said the benefit of any type of financial assistance should reach the cultivators rather than the land owners. Khattar also said that insurance cover for polyhouses...

-Down to Earth Health experts blame Centre's over-emphasis on women's sterilisation for the Chhattisgarh tragedy THERE WAS nothing right about the sterilisation camp held on November 8 in Chhattisgarh's Takhatpur block of Bilaspur district. An overambitious government doctor-with unsterilised equipment and virtually no manpower-set out to conduct laparoscopic tubectomy on 83 women in an abandoned private hospital. The mass sterilisation led to the death of 13 women and left others critically ill. They were...