Recent actions of some senior BJP leaders hint at an understanding between the Congress and the main opposition at the leadership level. THE Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) credentials and commitment as the principal opposition party of the country have been repeatedly questioned in the past seven years, the period in which the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) has held the reins of power at the Centre. Recent developments in Parliament...

Stating that about 70% of the farming community in the country is still out of the reach of Banks, MP Pralhad Joshi said co-operative Banks should try to bring more farmers under the banking network, thereby giving a boost to the agricultural sector. Speaking at the 75th anniversary celebrations of Hubli Primary Co-Operative Agriculture and Rural Development Bank here on Sunday, he said whatever financial facility the government is extending towards...

The budget is more concerned about the consumer than the grower A LOOMING food crisis in the world and high food inflation rates at home made Pranab Mukherjee’s proposals to boost agriculture in his 2011 budget more keenly watched than usual. These are factors that clearly weighed with the finance minister who repeatedly said that his principal concern this year has been the continuing high food prices. The squeeze on the...

This article explores the issue of dalits’ inclusion in the media industry. It argues that under-representation of dalits in Indian media leads to an exclusion of news on dalits. [This was presented in the “National Conference on Ethical Issues and Indian Media” held on 26 and 27 November 2010 and in Periyar University, Salem, Tamil Nadu.] [J Balasubramaniam (balumids@gmail.com) is with the Department of Journalism and Science Communication, Madurai Kamaraj University.] The basis...

Nearly 50 women job card holders are working at the Bist Doaba canal near Pinjora under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Guarantee Scheme without any safety measures. The work involves de-silting the canal, but officials have not provided for adequate safety measures at the site. Amarjit Kaur, one of the workers, said: “Officers should take care of our safety as the canal Banks are usually quite slippery.” After the intervention by...