Union Rural Development Minister C.P. Joshi on Friday maintained that the Centre was set to increase the wage rate paid under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MNREGS), but it was for Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to address the issues raised by UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi. Dr. Joshi said it was not for him to react to the recommendation made to Dr. Singh by Ms. Gandhi — in her...

An India Today report based on the Right to Information Act by Associate Editor Shyamlal Yadav is among the winning entries for the 2010 Lorenzo Natali Prize (LNP)-2010, an annual competition open to journalists worldwide. The report was among the 17 best entries (three from each continent and two special prizes) from over 1,100 nominations worldwide. Awarded by the European Commission, the LNP is supported by Reporters Without Borders and WAN IFRA...

Denmark (Rank 1) Denmark along with two other countries have been ranked as the world's least corrupt countries. With a score of 9.3, Denmark has consistently topped the Transparency International's Corruption Perceptions Index. The country has a strong tradition of openness to global trade and investment, and transparent and efficient regulations are applied evenly in most cases. Denmark also boasts an efficient, independent judiciary that protects property rights, and the level of corruption is...

Asserting there were “sensitive” environmental issues in the way of the Navi Mumbai airport project, Union Environment and Forests Minister Jairam Ramesh on Tuesday met Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel and the two reached a compromise, signalling that the new international airport may finally clear all hurdles by next month. “We have made good progress on a number of issues. The Expert Appraisal Committee (EAC) of the Environment and Forests Ministry...

Vedanta, Posco and Sindhudurg. The issue is the same — the need for a well-thought-out policy relating to extractive and resource-based industry. The government’s withdrawal of mining permission to Vedanta on the Niyamgiri hills in Orissa’s backward Kalahandi district; the divided verdict by the Gupta Committee on the Posco iron ore project; and the environment ministry’s concern on 49 mining licences issued by the Maharashtra government for bauxite and iron...