-The Hindu The prohibition imposed on bicycle riding and use of non-motorised transport in 174 designated roads of Kolkata during most hours of the workday or round-the-clock is undemocratic, environmentally retrograde and out of sync with modern urban transport Planning. At a time when global cities are thinking beyond the car and popularising shared bicycle systems, the law enforcement machinery in West Bengal's capital has chosen to go the opposite...

-The Hindu ‘Report goes against the provisions of Constitution' THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Chief Minister Oommen Chandy will convey to the Centre Kerala's objections to the Raghuram Rajan Committee report on evolving a composite development index of States, during his visit to New Delhi on Friday. The Chief Minister, who left for New Delhi via Bangalore on Thursday, will call on ailing Defence Minister A.K. Antony, hold political discussions with the Congress high command, and meet...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: Fed up with the service of your cooking gas dealer? Well, from Saturday you can switch to another nearby dealer - even if it belongs to another company - in 30 cities. Along with this scheme, which is similar to number portability for mobiles, oil minister M Veerappa Moily would on that day also launch sale of 5kg cooking gas cylinders in select company-owned petrol...

-The Economic Times NEW DELHI: Four months after the proposal was first mooted, the Planning Commission has finalised the draft of a bill that seeks to set up a tribunal to resolve disputes arising in public-private partnership (PPP) projects. The commission presented the draft of the dispute resolution bill to the Prime Minister's Office last week, a senior official at the commission told ET. "We have sent the final draft to the PM...

-The Hindu Direct Benefits Transfer is potentially a game-changer, but with certain pre-requisites: Mihir Shah Planning Commission member, Mihir Shah, speaks to The Hindu about a wide range of issues, including the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) and his contribution to the 12 Five-Year Plan. Excerpts: * The MGNREGA has come under criticism from many quarters, including the CAG. Do you feel this criticism is warranted? How do you...