-The Hindu To address the rights issue and the skewed sex ratio, girl child-friendly policies get an extra thrust in the 12 Plan document, to be approved formally by this month-end The 12 Plan document of the Planning Commission, to be formally approved this month-end, has recommended setting up of a high level inter-ministerial committee on ‘Care and Protection of the Girl Child’ which will constitute the institutional mechanism for mobilising and...

-The Hindu The World Conference on International Telecommunication showed that countries are not yet ready to arrive at a consensus on regulation and control of the Internet The World Conference on International Telecommunication (WCIT) that concluded on December 14 saw much heated debate. Some countries wanted to use the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) to gain intergovernmental control of the World Wide Web. Some saw it as an opportunity to democratise the Internet,...

-The Indian Express India ranks 78th among 97 countries in guaranteeing access to all civil justice, a latest report released today said, while its neighbouring country Sri Lanka leads the South Asian nations in most dimensions of the rule of law. The 'Rule of Law Index 2012' report by World Justice Project's provides country-by-country scores and rankings for eight areas of the rule of law. India, the report said, has a robust system...

-PTI World's largest retailer Wal-Mart today said it is investigating allegations of corrupt practices against it in foreign markets, including India. In March 2011, the US-based company had started a worldwide review of its policies, practices and internal controls for Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) compliance. "We have inquiries or investigations regarding allegations of potential FCPA violations in a number of foreign markets where we operate regarding FCPA allegations, including but not...

-The Hindu Violations of Coastal Regulation Zone and Environmental Impact Assessment notifications make official claims questionable The debate over nuclear energy will go on, but the issue with the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant (KKNPP) is one of the several illegalities on which it is founded. In 1988, India inked the Koodankulam Nuclear Power Plant deal with the former Soviet Union. Two key elements in it were: the highly dangerous and toxic “Spent Nuclear...