-The Hindu The trials and tribulations of Ashok Khemka and Sanjiv Chaturvedi expose Haryana’s intolerance of upright bureaucrats When Haryana’s top land registration official, Ashok Khemka, decided to probe Robert Vadra’s land deals in the State, he perhaps never anticipated the kind of animosity that his actions against Congress president Sonia Gandhi’s son-in-law would generate within the government. Or, maybe he did, but went ahead nevertheless, hoping that a proactive media would...

-The Economic Times The labour ministry has moved a Cabinet note saying the government should raise the monthly pension for organised-sector workers to Rs 1,000 and fund the differential, despite the proposal cutting no ice with finance ministry. The Cabinet note, moved by Labour Minister Mallikarjun Kharge, has put out three options, but his ministry is keen that the burden of providing the extra pension does not fall on employees. "We have proposed...

-Live Mint Flexible labour laws in India cannot solve the problem of weak job growth and the poor quality of employment  The theme of the World Bank’s World Development Report this year is, appropriately enough, jobs. The report recognizes that creating jobs is the surest way of reducing inequality and poverty, particularly in the developing world. But the cliché it offers as a solution is disappointing: relax labour laws. The bank has...

-The Hindustan Times The government and the parliamentary panel examining the anti-graft Lokpal bill have locked horns on whether public servants facing corruption charges should be given a chance to explain their position before any probe is initiated against them. The bill passed by the Lok Sabha in December last year provides for such an opportunity to be given, but the Rajya Sabha committee has warned that it will allow the corrupt...

-NDTV The Union Cabinet is expected to meet this evening to consider a 7 per cent hike in the Dearness Allowance (DA) of Central Government Employees. Once approved, it will benefit over 52 lakh government employees. The Cabinet will also take a decision on computerisation of the Public Distribution System (PDS). A Food Ministry proposal seeks to digitise ration cards and fully computerise the PDS network especially at the back-end. Also, a bailout package...