-The Indian Express The Right to Information (RTI) has never been without its sceptics. In the past few years, attempts to check it have become so persistent that they seem part of a larger design. One sees in them shades of jittery response by the great organs of the state and their moribund bureaucracies, forced out of their comfort zone defined by that perennial bane of good governance, "axiomatic institutional secrecy". The...

-The Hindu Every effort needs to be made to reform MGNREGA, as it has been both a major success and a huge failure. The best way for this is to study carefully the conditions that made it a success and also to undertake a diagnostics of its failures An impression has gained ground in recent weeks that the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government at the Centre is inimical to the Mahatma Gandhi...

-India Climate Dialogue A small village in Rajasthan sets an example by its model of environment governance which combines traditional and religious practices with scientific concepts to tackle problems brought on by climate change Lapodiya, a village of 200 households in Rajasthan, is a shining example of how environment governance at the grassroots level can save a village from natural disasters. Here, people have adopted innovative water conservation practices and a culture...

-The Hindu NALGONDA - THOTAPALLI (KARIMNAGAR DT) (Telengana): Nearly 330 ryots end lives since September 20. Already in debts, the delayed monsoon forced the 28-year-old Janganaboina Paramesh to sow cotton seed twice but they did not sprout due to extended dry spell. As the tragedy of farmers committing suicide due to crop failure stares the five-month-old Telangana government, the gruesome tales continue to haunt villages across the State. Nearly 330 farmers were...

-The Indian Express Recent announcements on possible changes to the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) and restrictions on its coverage are baffling and worrisome. The passing of the MGNREGA and the Right to Information Act heralded a new vision of citizenship and state responsibility. The former created a safety net for the rural poor. The latter gave taxpayers and voters an opportunity to bridge the gap between state...