Home minister P Chidambaram has written to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, requesting him to call a Cabinet meeting to sort out differences between North Block and Planning Commission that threaten to scupper the ambitious programme. "I request that you may kindly instruct the Planning Commission to immediately bring a note to the Cabinet that the cabinet secretariat to list the note before the Cabinet so that a final decision can be...

-Express News Service   The proposed tiger reserve in the Kawal Wildlife Sanctuary in Adilabad district is facing stiff opposition from tribals who are reluctant to vacate their homes. Though the government offered them a compensation of `10 lakh for each family, tribal leaders are firm on their demand for allocation of a house site and agricultural land as compensation before vacating the villages. Opposing the government's pressure tactics, several organisations along with...

-The Deccan Chronicle   Tribal organisations and Adivasi leaders, fighting against a proposal to develop Kawal wildlife sanctuary as a tiger reserve by evicting adivasis dwelling there for a long time, are willing to discuss the issue only if the state government is ready to hold gram sabhas, a prerequisite for setting up any project under the PESA (Panchayat Raj Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996. District officials concerned have declared the...

-IANS The deadlock in Parliament over the government's decision to allow foreign direct investment (FDI) in retail ended on Wednesday after an all-party meeting passed a resolution to suspend the move till a consensus was reached. Both houses of Parliament functioned normally and took the crucial Question Hour for the first time since the winter session began on November 22. Finance minister Pranab Mukherjee who chaired the meeting made a brief statement in...

Dalits lay siege to tahsildar's office and forced Salem district administration to take firm action Dalits of Sanyasipatti near Sankagiri in Salem district fought Bitterly for five days before forcing the district administration to take firm action to demolish a four-foot-high and 20-foot-long wall erected right across a tar-topped road with the intention of preventing them from using it. The ‘wall of untouchability' erected on November 29 in the middle of the...