-PTI NEW DELHI: Government departments should not insist on seeking address of an RTI applicant if a post box number is being provided to them for communication, the Centre has said. The ministry of personnel has written to all central government ministries or departments, who act as public authorities mandated with providing information on RTI applications made to them, citing a judgement by Calcutta high court in this regard. "When the legislature thought...

-The Hindustan Times Strengthened by Rajiv Gandhi in 1988, the Prevention of Corruption Act (PC Act) is set to be rendered toothless by the Manmohan Singh government. The Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT), headed by the PM, introduced an amended version of the Act in Parliament late last year. If the amendments are passed, it may be impossible to investigate and prosecute cases similar to the 2G, Bofors and coal allocation...

-Survival International Anthropologist Dr. Felix Padel works with the tribes of Odisha in eastern India, including the Dongria Kondh, for whom Survival International has campaigned for 10 years. Felix is the great great grandson of Charles Darwin and lives in a remote village in Odisha. In this interview, he talks to Survival about the Dongria Kondh's relationship to their mountains, their heroic struggle against Vedanta, Darwin's evolution theory and the experience...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: Recruitment of minorities in central government services fell from 11.56% of total hires in 2010-11 to just 6.89% in 2012-13, according to data collected from nearly 70 Union ministries and departments. The government, which released the data in reply to a Parliament question on Thursday, has blamed the falling recruitment levels of minority candidates, which depends on the number of applications received and percentage of qualifying...

-The Times of India MUMBAI: Several persons with disabilities (PWDs) who crack one of the toughest exams in the country and get selected for the civil services are routinely rejected with the government claiming there is no suitable service for them. They are good enough to overcome their disability and get selected for the civil services after clearing two levels of exams and the interview, but the Department of Personnel and...