It is clearly the absence of political will rather than a paucity of ideas that is responsible for the country's agrarian crisis. EXACTLY seven years ago this month, the Commission on Farmers' Welfare, appointed by the government of Andhra Pradesh, submitted its report to the then Chief Minister, Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy. His Congress government assumed office earlier that year replacing the Telegu Desam Party regime led by N. Chandrababu Naidu, which...

The city is estimated to have upwards of 88,000 people living on the streets Each evening this winter, as MPs have debated India's political future, more than 100 people have been gathering at a municipal park behind the Bangla Sahib gurdwara. The area has dozens of groups of protesters who arrive in the city each time Parliament is in session, to make their voices heard. The people in the park, though, aren't...

-The Hindu   Not a single person should die this winter from the freezing cold: Supreme Court Expressing concern over the lot of homeless persons during the winter, the Supreme Court on Monday directed Delhi and other States to ensure that adequate shelters were provided for night stay. The Bench observed that not a single person must be allowed to die from having to sleep on the pavement in the freezing cold. A Bench...

-The Hindu   Calcutta University has decided to make available answer scripts to students under the Right to Information Act, university officials said on Monday. “We have decided to give photo copies of answer scripts to students under the Act. Each student will have to pay Rs. 500 for getting his duplicate copy of answer scripts…,” Controller of Examinations Onkar Sadhan Adhikari said. The decision of the university, which had earlier declined requests...

Protestors AND supporters of a range of issues find a chance to voice their opinions at Jantar Mantar, reports Priyanka Jantar Mantar is busy readying itself for Sunday, when activist Anna Hazare will go on a token one-day fast to protest against the government's version of the Lokpal Bill. The day before, the venue is already packed with a few hundred people, with not one but four protests going on simultaneously over...