Societies formed to give jobs in sandmining hitherto handled by non-tribals and contractors A small intervention from kind-hearted Bureaucrats made a life-changing impact on scores of tribal families who eke out a primitive mode of life in these agency tracts of Warangal district. Vast stretches of dry beds of the Godavari are worth more than a gold mine and these had been exploited by non-tribals and wealthy contractors quarrying the sand. The...

Besieged as it is by a spate of scams, the Centre has revived the 40-year-old proposal of setting up a national ombudsman called the Lokpal to probe political corruption. But, far from overcoming the existing deficiencies, the latest draft Bill – which could be promulgated any time soon as an ordinance - provides a legal veneer to them so that crooked politicians will continue to enjoy almost as much impunity...

Everyone agrees that there is a food crisis. As ordinary members of the public we know there’s one every time we go out shopping for vegetables. My mother knows there’s a crisis because, after recently sacking her cook, she discovered the lady had left with all the onions in the house. The media agrees there’s one, and sends more TV crews to talk to onion farmers, even though the TV reporters...

The Group of Ministers tasked to suggest ways to curb corruption in public life is weighing a constitutional amendment to fast-track the trials of officials indicted for graft. Sources said changes could be incorporated in Article 311 of the Constitution (dealing with dismissal, removal or demotion of government officials) to provide for summary proceedings in cases of grave misdemeanour or blatant corruption. Also under consideration are amendments to the Prevention of Corruption...

Even though the Central Government agreed to link the wages paid under MG-NREGA to the Consumer Price Index for Agricultural Labourers (CPIAL), it shied away from paying statutory minimum wages in various states of India. Their logic for this: Lack of clarity on who will bear the extra financial burden—the Centre or the states? A letter from the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to UPA and NAC Chairperson Sonia Gandhi dated 31...