Why are the erstwhile RTI campaigners so alarmed five years after it became law? Why so many dharnas, rallies, conventions and hunger-strikes all over again? Part of the reason is that the silent revolution that the RTI has spawned needs to be defended from surreptitious alterations and manipulations, and partly because the RTI activists are being threatened, harassed and assaulted by the corrupt and the powerful, often with the connivance...

Expressing concern over rampant corruption in the rank and file of the Centre's United Progressive Alliance Government, Janata Dal (United) President Sharad Yadav today pointed out that one scam after another is coming to light and this does not augur well for the country's future. "Since the regime came to power, it was embroiled in scams such as 2G spectrum, Commonwealth Games and Adarsh Housing Society. A sincere effort should be...

Plans to set up 150 farmer-producer organisations in 11 states. The government is planning to provide market linkages for farmers growing pulses as part of a programme announced in the Budget to improve their production, as scarcity of this essential item was one of the major contributors to food inflation a few years back. “The share of pulses growers in the consumer price is very low on account of a lack of...

India's impressive economic growth has not led to a reduction in under-nutrition among its children, according to a Harvard study that said the government should use its growing revenues for direct investments in aid like food stamps to address the problem. The Harvard School of Public Health study analysed malnutrition across various regions in India. It said under-nutrition was worst in poor and populous states like Bihar, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar...

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...