The right step would be for Manmohan Singh to visit Jantar Mantar without further loss of time to persuade the Gandhian to call off his fast, and also explore a compromise. Jantar Mantar in New Delhi is a hot favourite of the average tourist in the summer season. As the temperatures soar this year, the monument is drawing even greater crowds, mainly to savour the electric atmosphere generated by a 72-year-old...
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Growth as tool to alleviate poverty
The Prime Minister's focus on double-digit growth is not due to any ‘growth mania'. It is for the benefit of the poor. At a recent function for police officers, the Prime Minister observed: “If we don't control Naxalism, we have to say goodbye to our country's ambition to sustain a growth rate of 10 to 11 per cent per annum.” Some commentators (like Prof Prabhat Patnaik of JNU) interpret this (in a...
More »The Mirage of Food Security by Tejinder Narang
It is time for the National Advisory Council (NAC) to introspect whether its pious thoughts on food security square up to an economic reality check. There are three likely scenarios: (1) universal coverage at 35 kg/per month per family; (2) universal coverage with 25 kg per family per month; and (3) partial coverage (say, to 11 crore families) with 35 kg per family per month. In each case, the implications...
More »Cabinet clears child protection Bill by Aarti Dhar
The Union Cabinet on Thursday cleared a Bill seeking to prevent sexual abuse of children, with provisions for stringent punishment for such offences. The proposed legislation aims at protecting children against offences of sexual assault, sexual harassment, pornography and provides for establishment of special courts for trial of such offences. Section 7 of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Bill, 2011, does not provide for any punishment if the consent for...
More »‘One crore girls vanish every year'
About one crore girls vanish every year through foeticide or other forms of killing, Governor of Uttarakhand Margaret Alva said here on Wednesday. She was addressing a seminar on women's rights here organised by Congress leader Janet D Souza's non-governemental organisation ‘Parivartan.' “We call it the disappearing sex. One crore girls die every year or are not allowed [to be born],” Ms. Alva said. On the issue of ‘honour killings,' she...
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