-The Hindu Could the Uttarakhand tragedy have been avoided, or at least minimised? There is no simple answer. Environmentalists describe the death and damage as a man-made disaster while geologists say the extent of destruction could have been far lesser if stricter regulations had been put in place and the authorities equipped to deal with the situation. Importantly, the events focus attention on the debate on the December 18, 2012 notification of the...

-The Times of India The Indian economy grew at its slowest pace in a decade in 2012-13, posing another fresh challenge for the UPA coalition to revive growth and boost sentiment ahead of the general elections next year. Data released by the Central Statistical Organization (CSO) on Friday showed that the economy grew 5% in 2012-13, compared to 6.2% expansion in the previous year. It was in line with the advanced...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: The second tenure of the UPA coalition has witnessed a sharp slowdown in growth, stubborn prices, high interest rates and faltering business confidence. While there are some tentative signs of a revival on the horizon, the Indian economy is still not out of the woods and experts say sustained policy and governance reforms are needed to lift Asia's third-largest economy back to its potential growth rate...

-The Indian Express Alarmed by ministerial turf wars thwarting his GoM's bid to "expedite" environment clearances and coal supply to eight power projects identified by the Prime Minister's Office, Sharad Pawar is learnt to have sought Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's "intervention" to ensure the GoM's decisions are "implemented in a time-bound manner". Pawar was made chairman of the GoM on environmental and developmental issues relating to coal mining and other development...

-The Times of India PANAJI: The Union mines ministry hasn't ruled out pollution hazards while handling mining dumps in Goa. Union mines minister Dinsha Patel told parliament on Tuesday, "Such possibilities (pollution hazards while moving dumps) cannot be ruled out, and the same has been brought to the notice of the state government by the Indian bureau of mines, a sub-ordinate office under the ministry of mines, for proper Environmental Clearances as...