-Outlook Onion prices, which have again gone up to Rs 70 per kg in retail markets, are expected to soften by early next month with supplies from Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka improving, Food Minister K V Thomas said today. He also said the Centre has asked producing states like Maharashtra to crack down on hoarders of onion, a politically sensitive commodity. Normally, onion prices rise during the lean period of June-August. But prices...

-The Hindu     The Land Act leaves plenty of room for States and the Centre to bypass it and acquire land under other laws that do not provide adequate compensation and rehabilitation The amended version of the Land Acquisition Act has been passed, but it does not entirely settle the issues of dubious takeover of land and failure to pay fair compensation. Although renamed the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land...

-The Indian Express Manual scavenging laws will need to be supported by better sanitation policies. The recent passage of the Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Bill by Parliament is a welcome, long-overdue step in the right direction. The bill replaces the outdated and rarely implemented 1993 law, which purported to abolish manual scavenging. It has been passed primarily due to a sustained campaign by thousands of former women...

-PTI     Will be sold to passengers using State Express Transport Corporation buses Kicking off its latest populist initiative, the government on Sunday began selling packaged drinking water to long-distance bus commuters at a price of Rs. 10 for a litre. Branded as ‘Amma' drinking water after Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, the product will be sold to passengers using State Express Transport Corporation buses, and also retailed at bus terminuses across the state. Facility inaugurated Ms. Jayalalithaa...

-The Pioneer Forget about doling out mandatory unemployment allowance under the Mahatama Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), majority of the Congress-ruled States in the country are yet to notify unemployment allowance rules under the UPA's flagship rural job scheme launched in 2007. The rules mandate the States to pay the daily allowance to a registered worker if he is not provided a job within 15 days of the receipt...