-The Hindu The ongoing peaceful protest against the Kudankulam nuclear power plant (KKNPP), which began in the early 1980s intensified after the March 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster. The protests revolve around fears over public safety and health arising from the existence and operation of the nuclear facility. The protesters, the men, women and children of Idinthakarai and surrounding villages, have consistently demanded transparency and honest public consultation. They do not need high...

-The Hindu Stereotypical government policies and global approaches persist in family planning programmes. Urmila is a 40-year-old domestic worker in western Uttar Pradesh. The mother of six children, all girls, she is now pregnant again and is keen on carrying on with the pregnancy. Her husband is unemployed and is an alcoholic. His relatives have assured her that they will help her to bring up the child and have also hinted...

-Law et al News The Supreme Court on Friday issued notice to the central government on a petition seeking to disclose in public all ACRs (Annual Confidential Reports) or performance appraisal reports of all government officials under RTI. A bench of Justice GS Singhvi and Justice SJ Mukhopadhaya today sought response from the government on the petition which raises a vital public issue as to whether performance appraisal reports of a public...

Two sets of government data on UPA government's most famous flagship programme Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MNREGA), for which Rs. 33000 crore was earmarked in 2012-13 budget, provide widely different figures for several states, a feature which experts say is indicative of the corruption in the scheme and weakness of social audit or accountability. The government has increasingly relied on Management Information System (MIS) for monitoring NREGA at...

-Deccan Herald The High Court ordered the State government on Thursday to furnish the list of educational institutes which have refused to comply with the directions of Supreme Court and implement the Right to Education (RTE) Act. Hearing a petition by a City-based advocate and party in person S Vasudeva, a Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Vikramajit Sen and Justice A S Bopanna directed the government to furnish the details within two...