-The Economic Times   NEW DELHI: Signalling clearly that the rural develpment ministry, virtually somnolent under minister Vilasrao Deshmukh, was set to go ballistic politically, minister Jairam Ramesh who took charge here on Wednesday spelt out deadlines for the three most important issues including the land acquisition bill, poverty count and stringent monitoring of UPA II's flagship programme the MGNREGA. Jairam, who earned a lot of attention in his earlier charge,...

-MSN   New Delhi, Jul 13 (PTI) Taking cognizance of complaints on farmer suicides and corruption in giving aid to families in Bundelkhand, the NHRC today issued notice to the Uttar Pradesh Government asking it to submit a report within four weeks.   The National Human Rights Commission said the action came following a media report and a complaint alleging that corrupt officials in Bundelkhand region were feeding off aid for the dead...

  THERE is money on offer, but the farmers of Halligudi, a hamlet of 5,500 people in Karnataka's Gadag district, are hardly happy at the prospect of 3,382 acres (one acre is 0.4 hectare) of farmland being acquired for a Rs.32,336-crore steel plant south of National Highway 63, which runs between Karwar and Bellary. The plant is to be set up by the Indian subsidiary of the South Korean steel major Posco...

A host of steel-manufacturing units are keen to set up plants in Karnataka, and all want captive mines. SOUTH KOREA'S Posco is not the only steel-maker keen to do business in Karnataka. The State's estimated 9,000 million tonnes of good-quality iron ore reserves, which is the second largest in India, the State government's assurances on a smooth land acquisition process, the availability of water and the promise of speedy regulatory clearances...

Nearly half of the people served notice have filed their submissions before the Special Land Acquisition Officer (SLAO) of KIADB at Dharwad. Of the 232 notices served, 144 persons have replied and nearly 97 land owners had outrightly opposed the land acquisition and categorically declared before the land acquisition officer that they would not give their lands. Forty-seven land owners have given ‘conditional consent’ for giving their lands. According to the Assistant...