-The Times of India Congress leadership has vetoed the dilution of land acquisition bill, saying that 80% landowners have to agree to let the government acquire their land for private projects. The bottomline has been laid down by UPA chief Sonia Gandhi barely two days after a ministerial panel headed by Sharad Pawar finalized the draft bill, which says that consent of 67% landowners would suffice for government to acquire land. The leadership...

-Live Mint Bill will be put before cabinet in next few weeks; legislation is expected to address rehabilitation, resettlement  New Delhi: The government moved a step closer to put in place a new land acquisition policy, after a ministerial panel overcame differences and struck a compromise. The Bill will now be put before the Union cabinet for its approval in the next few weeks. If indeed the government sticks to the proposed...

-Live Mint Step is another sign of government intent to move towards direct transfer for all programmes The Union cabinet on Thursday approved a proposal that will eventually lead to the direct transfer of cash subsidies to farmers for fertilizer, two weeks after it put in place the architecture to enable such a transition. The step is another sign of the government’s intent to move towards a regime of direct transfer of cash...

-The HIndustan Times There is concern again about missing persons and bodies found in canals in Haryana. Surfacing of such bodies in Punjab’s canals has figured in media reports for years. But neither Punjab nor Haryana police take interest in retrieving the bodies, as the recovery involves reporting it, then attempting to identify it and locating the kin, cremation and maintenance of a record. Pushing bodies downstream eliminates all this bother. But...

-IANS BANGALORE: Karnataka is facing a drought and water levels in reservoirs across the Cauvery river basin have dropped due to deficit rains, a Central Water Commission (CWC) official said on Saturday. "I have realised that there is drought in Karnataka due to deficit rainfall and water levels in the reservoirs of Cauvery are lower than last year due to a weak monsoon," CWC member KC Jacob told reporters here. Assuring the state...