Anyone who came in contact with Professor R.S. Sharma — students, teachers, ordinary men and women from different walks of life as this reporter did — could not have remained untouched by him. Gentle and with a sparkle in his eyes, he came out as strong, determined and always principled. Moreover, as a historian he was never locked up in the ivory tower of academia and did not shy away from...

-The Business Standard   Much depends on a strong implementation framework but the imposition of a cap by the Planning Commission could lead to arbitrary exclusions. Himanshu Assistant Professor of Economics, School of Social Sciences, Jawaharlal Nehru University The methodology, which is based on the framework suggested by the Saxena Committee, uses indicators that have been refined using a large-scale PILot survey There are over 400 million poor (the number varies depending on which estimate you...

Seeks explanation on why Lokayukta has not been appointed in the State The Gujarat High Court on Thursday issued a notice to the Narendra Modi government asking it to explain why no Lokayukta had been appointed in the State so far. A Division Bench comprising justices Akil Kureshi and Sonia Gokani, issued the notice to the Chief Secretary, asking him to file an affidavit detailing the latest status. The court notice comes a...

-The Times of India   The Lucknow bench of Allahabad High Court on Thursday asked the state government that if 'all was well' in the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) scheme, why there has been so much of hue and cry. The state, earlier, had denied any NRHM scam and then concededCBI probe in case, the CAG was able to establish, prima facie, swindling of funds. The bench of Justice Pradeep Kant...

The best thing about Indian politicians is that they make you feel you are a better person. Not surprisingly, Indians often derive their moral confidence not through the discomfort of examining their own actions, but from regarding themselves as decent folks looted by corrupt, villainous politicians. This is at the heart of a self-righteous middle-class uprising against political corruption, a television news drama that reached its inevitable climax in Delhi on...