-The Economic Times NEW DELHI: The UPA government claims it to be one of its signature achievements, but noted academic and Planning Commission member Abhijit Sen has all but questioned its relevance and, therefore, its existence. Sen, a former economics professor at the Jawaharlal Nehru University, said the Ministry of Minority Affairs, a showpiece in the Congress-led UPA's list of minority friendly moves, had achieved very little. "I am not in favour...

-The Hindu     RTE proponent's condition deteriorated last week; he died at a Delhi hospital on Thursday Educationist Vinod Raina, who died of cancer here on Thursday, was one of the key architects of the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009. He was member of the expert group on ‘Monitoring of Child Rights in Education' set up by the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights and a sitting...

-The Times of India LONDON: The exodus from Bangladeshis into India has for the first time been termed by the United Nations as "the single largest bilateral stock of international migrants" in the eastern hemisphere and also in the developing world. Data revealed on Thursday by the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN-DESA) shows that in 2013, India was home to 3.2 million Bangladeshi residents who had migrated into the...

-The United Nations More people than ever are living abroad the United Nations today reported, with Asia seeing the largest increase of international migrants over the past decade, and the United States remaining the most popular destination. New figures from the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN-DESA) show that 232 million people, or 3.2 per cent of the world's population, live abroad worldwide, compared with 175 million in 2000 and...

-The Indian Express   The street vending bill goes a long way in securing the livelihood of the urban poor. The Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Bill, passed by Lok Sabha on September 6, 2013, is a landmark piece of legislation for the urban poor. It is the culmination of the efforts of organisations like the National Association of Street Vendors of India (NASVI) and the Self...