-The Hindu There is no organised conspiracy against NGOs. It is in the nature of power to exercise greater control, and exempt itself from accountability. The recent changes in the rules governing foreign funding of NGOs under the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) have been widely discussed. The last word on it will perhaps never be written. The UPA government initiated this and we see some concrete changes now. Sifting through the...

-The Telegraph New Delhi: The National Commission for Women has decided to form an expert panel to help institutions deal with complaints of sexual harassment at workplace after many organisations said it was difficult finding a "credible outsider" who could be part of their internal committees. At least one employer, who had approached the NCW for advice, said it was tough to decide who was credible enough and claimed that the solution...

-The Indian Express Government should devise a crop-neutral incentive structure to attract farmers to pulses over paddy.  Policymakers and consumers can rejoice in the light of the latest price data. Food inflation in particular has witnessed significant moderation. In May 2015, food prices were up by only 2.3 per cent at wholesale and 5 per cent at retail levels over May last year. The increases in minimum support prices for the...

-Business Standard The ILO has invited various central trade unions to come to its office on Thursday to make a position paper incorporating their views The International Labour Organization (ILO) has flayed some of the recent labour reforms proposed by the Narendra Modi government, saying these would take away a chunk of workers from the protection of basic laws. As the trade unions' confrontation with the government is set to escalate, the ILO...

-Economic and Political Weekly A categorical distinction is facing rough weather--that between urban and rural. If we take just agriculture, there is so much of the outside world that comes in not just as external markets but as external inputs. Further, many of our villages barely qualify as rural if we were to take occupation alone. So the earlier line that separated the farmer from the worker in towns is slowly...