Rudrapur, an industrial town in Uttarakhand, witnesses large-scale rioting and clashes of a communal nature. THE Garhwal and Kumaon regions, which constitute the tiny hill State of Uttarakhand, were totally free of communal disturbances even when the entire country was in the grip of tension following the demolition of the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya in 1992 and the Mumbai blasts in 1993. These regions had always maintained communal peace. But on...

Used to getting jobs done through contracts, government department assigned budgets under rural employment guarantee schemes have failed to use earmarked funds, while job card holders in the countryside are making the best of what is available. Government documents showed that of the Rs 880 crore funds available under MNREGA for Himachal in 2010-11, ten line government departments under the flagship programme had spent only Rs 15.57 crore till September. Besides a...

-The Hindu   Noted Jaipur-based economist V. S. Vyas has expressed concern over “progressive diminution” of cultivated holdings which he says has led to stagnation in the yield of major crops and rendered agricultural income insufficient for farmers to make ends meet. A sharp decline was also being witnessed in per capita food production, he said. Delivering the Tarlok Singh Memorial Lecture at the University of Hyderabad over the weekend, Professor Vyas said...

-The Telegraph   Forest officials at Manas National Park will send samples of body parts suspected to be that of a rhino to the Forensic Science Laboratory. The body parts were spotted yesterday near Rupahi camp of Bhuyanpara range of the national park when forest staff were on patrol duty. The highly decomposed carcass had been lying at the spot for more than two weeks. “Samples have been collected. These are suspected to be that...

-The Hindu   The anti-Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project (KKNPP) agitation has been suspended for a day on Monday “to enable people to exercise their franchise in the local body elections.” The decision was taken in the meeting at Kudankulam on Sunday. “However, our protest will continue from October 18 at Idinthakarai where the protestors will continue their indefinite relay fast,” said S.P. Udhayakumar, convener of the anti-KKNPP struggle committee after the meeting which...