Thirty years ago, a department of environment was set up in the Central government; 25 years ago, this was upgraded into a full-fledged ministry of environment and forests. As we mark these anniversaries, it must be said that the ministers in charge of this ministry have generally been incompetent, or malign, or both. Some might make an exception for Maneka Gandhi, who was minister of state for the environment between...
More »SEARCH RESULT
Total Matching Records found : 1625
PESA: Government's sheathed weapon
In the least remarked upon move by the government to take on the development challenge in left-wing extremist (LWE) areas, Sudha Pillai was elevated to member-secretary of the Planning Commission on the eve of her retirement from the IAS. A topper in her batch, Sudha was initially posted to her home state of Punjab and then moved to Kerala after her marriage to her batchmate, present home secretary Gopal Pillai....
More »Policy Buzz: UPA-II leadership seen struggling
UPA-II leadership is seen struggling with both food act and the achievement of its ministers. Numbers don’t add up Political leadership of the Congress party will take a final call on the number of people eligible to receive subsidised food-grain under the proposed national food security law. While a preliminary report of the Suresh Tendulkar Committee puts the number at 372 million, the government’s official estimates say it is only...
More »PM orders fresh look at KBK aid by Pranab Dhal Samanta
Unimpressed by the progress made under the well-known KBK assistance plan, where over Rs 1,600 crore has been spent over the last decade, a concerned Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has asked the Planning Commission to immediately carry out a fresh time-bound re-evaluation of the programme with special focus on the state of poverty and hunger. The Kalahandi, Bolangir and Koraput region of Orissa, which has over the years been divided...
More »Prabhash Joshi and the RTI Movement by Aruna Roy, Nikhil Dey, Shankar Singh
TRIBUTE On May 5 it will be six months since Prabhat Joshi left us. Remembering that towering figure in the field of journalism on this occasion, we are carrying the following tribute which brings out yet another facet of his personality. It was written quite sometime ago but could not be published earlier due to unavoidable reasons. Prabhash Joshi was one of the most important journalists and thinkers of our times. He...
More »
