-The Times of India   The death toll in the powerful Sunday earthquake has increased to 40 with 19 people being killed in Sikkim, five in West Bengal, two in Bihar, seven each in Nepal and Tibet even as rescue and Relief operations were stepped up in the affected areas. Over a hundred people have been injured in the 6.8 magnitude tremblor which has caused extensive damage to buildings and roads in Sikkim...

The Orissa government finds itself in the midst of an embarrassing controversy following allegations of official Relief being distributed in bags emblazoned with conch, the election symbol of the ruling Biju Janata Dal (BJD). Miffed at the ruling party’s bid to make political capital out of the Relief operation, flood-affected people in Nadiabarei village of Kendrapara district refused to accept dry food packets containing flattened rice (chudda) as they bore the...

-The Hindu   Nothing is more reflective of the confusion and mix-up of priorities of the United Progressive Alliance government than the mismanagement of fuel pricing. While struggling to control inflation through monetary policy, the government sees no problem in allowing oil marketing companies to continually raise the price of petrol. The latest hike, by more than Rs.3 a litre, comes on top of the two substantial increases earlier this year. Although...

-BBC   More than a million people have been displaced and at least 16 killed as floods in India's Orissa state submerged entire villages, officials say. Heavy monsoon rains submerged about 2,600 villages across 19 districts. Several rivers, including the Mahanadi, are overflowing and flood waters have severed a number of key road links. In Pakistan, the UN has begun Relief operations after weeks of rain affected millions in the south. At least 199 people have...

-DNA   The Centre's debt Relief scheme for the farmers has given anything but Relief to the poor farmers. Despite the Rs 65,318.33-crore Agricultural Debt Waiver and Debt Relief Scheme (ADWDRS) launched by the UPA with much fanfare in 2008, nearly 43.42 million (48.6 per cent) of the 89.35 million farmer households are still in debt. This is the finding of National Sample Survey Organisation (NSSO) report on 'Indebtedness of Farmers Household'. The scheme benefited...