Issues like nutrition and welfare of disadvantaged sections are likely to be in focus when the National Advisory Council discusses the food security bill in its next meeting July 1, a member of the council said Monday. 'The welfare of the deprived sections needs to be addressed in the bill,' nac member and social activist Harsh Mander said Monday. Headed by United Progressive Alliance (UPA) chairperson Sonia Gandhi, the recently...

While the landmark Right to Education Act takes the promise of primary education to more than eight million children, there are still many lacunae on the ground. But, as the Shiksha Adhikar Yatra, conducted by Dalit organisations in UP and Rajasthan showed, citizens now have the tools to demand and receive effective governance.  The landmark right to information act has made a huge impact at the local level on the...

The first meet of the newly constituted second National Advisory Council or nac, which is expected to set the social agenda for the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance or UPA government, on Thursday laid down its broad agenda for its functioning. The discussions, which lasted for over three hours, revolved around crucial legislations such as the Food Security Bill, the Communal Harmony Bill and the Forest Rights Bill. The 14-member council later...

Food security is likely to top the resurrected National Advisory Council's (nac) agenda when its members gather here on Thursday for their introductory meeting. They will also meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. However, sources in the nac told The Hindu that before food security became a reality, they expect a long hard battle ahead, similar to the one nac-I faced over the enactment of the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act,...

The reconstructed National Advisory Council (nac), headed by United Progressive Alliance (UPA) Chairperson Sonia Gandhi, will consider the food security Bill as its first priority when it meets again next month. At its first meeting held here today, Gandhi’s team decided to meet again on July 1 to discuss the Bill and finalise its recommendations. nac has also decided to revisit the Communal Violence (prevention) Bill, which has been lying with the...