-PTI Medha Patkar made a strong pitch for retaining the 'Social Impact Assessment' and 'Consent' clauses of Land Acquisition Act The government was on Monday under attack from non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and farmer organisations over the contentious land acquisition Bill, with activist Medha Patkar leading the protest against changes brought in the 2013 land law of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA). Several organisations, including National Alliance for Farmers Movement (NAFM), All India Coordination...

-Economic and Political Weekly A categorical distinction is facing rough weather--that between urban and rural. If we take just agriculture, there is so much of the outside world that comes in not just as external markets but as external inputs. Further, many of our villages barely qualify as rural if we were to take occupation alone. So the earlier line that separated the farmer from the worker in towns is slowly...

-PTI NEW DELHI: Various rights groups have urged the government to hold a public consultation on the proposed amendments to the Child Labour Bill, which they warned will end up legitimizing economic exploitation of children and rob them of their childhood. They have written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking a public consultation on the amendments and called for the removal of the provision seeking to legitimise use of children under 14...

-The Hindu Business Line Don’t let Modi’s gloss undermine the efforts and achievements of the UPA government, says the former Prime Minister This is the text of a speech delivered at the Congress chief ministers’ conclave in New Delhi on June 9 There is somewhat of a euphoria that our GDP growth since 2014-15 has started accelerating once again. But doubts have been expressed both within and outside government about the validity of...

-Business Standard Promulgating land ordinance for a third time is an unwise move Over the weekend, the Union Cabinet decided to promulgate, for the third time, the ordinance amending the 2013 Land Acquisition Act. The amendments to the Act have run into heavy weather politically, with most opposition parties presenting a united front against it. Passage in the Rajya Sabha is, therefore, difficult to manage. However, the proposed amendments have been sent...