-The Hindu Proposed NIB would be illegal, she says Minister of State for Environment and Forests Jayanthi Natarajan has expressed “very serious concern” at the setting up of a National Investment Board to fast-track clearances of major infrastructure projects, saying the “concept is unacceptable,” documents exclusively obtained by The Hindu reveal. In a five-page letter sent to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on October 9, Ms. Natarajan said the proposal would upturn established procedures...

-Live Mint He is at the head of a march to Delhi for a new policy that promises every poor family a small patch of land Morena (Madhya Pradesh): One hot Friday in October, a 64-year-old man named P.V. Rajagopal is marching at the head of a procession of around 50,000 people on the highway from Gwalior to Delhi.   Rajagopal is slight and heavily sunburnt, and has walked tens of thousands of kilometres...

-The Hindustan Times Gujarat's tribal voters, who traditionally favour the Congress, have received a pre-poll sweetener from chief minister Narendra Modi. Barely two weeks before the model code of conduct came into effect on October 3 with the announcement of two-phase polls in December, the Modi government decided to reconsider nearly 75,000 "rejected" claims from tribals on Forest Land. The ruling Bharatiya Janta Party's (BJP) decision  is being seen as a move to...

-Outlook The Group of Minister (GoM) on Land Acquisition Bill today remained divided over the issue of retrospective acquisitions and the consent required from land owners with Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar saying two-three meetings are required to finalise the bill. During the last meeting too, the same issues had divided the members of the GoM headed by Pawar. "No final view on retrospective clause could happen. We have not taken any final call...

-The Economic Times A new book by Bibek Debroy on Gujarat looks at how this much-talked about state has performed in economic terms. The author argues history, luck and administrative clarity have been the determining factors. There has been a discernible pickup in Gujarat's growth performance since the 10th Plan (2002-07), the five-year Plans being natural periods for breaking up the timeline. It's tempting to argue that there is nothing exceptional in...