-The Hindu The Supreme Court on Monday said there is no basis to the fear that the radioactive effects of the Kudankulam nuclear power plant, when commissioned, will be far reaching. A Bench of Justices K.S. Radhakrishnan and Dipak Misra said: "We are convinced that the KKNPP design incorporates advanced safety features complying with the current standards of redundancy, reliability, independence and prevention of common cause failures in its safety systems....

KEY TRENDS   • According to National Sample Survey report no. 583: Persons with Disabilities in India, the percentage of persons with disability who received aid/help from Government was 21.8 percent, 1.8 percent received aid/help from organisation other than Government and another 76.4 percent did not receive aid/ help *8   • As per National Family Health Survey-4 (NFHS-4), the Under-five Mortality Rate (U5MR) was 57.2 per 1,000 live births (for the non-STs it was 38.5)...

-The New Indian Express Bhubaneswar: The Assembly on Tuesday passed the Odisha Consolidation of Holdings and Prevention of Fragmentation of Land (Amendment) Bill, 2012, with members of both Treasury and Opposition benches making a strong plea to the Government to ensure that agricultural land is not used for non-agricultural purposes. “The amendment of the Odisha Consolidation of Holdings and Prevention of Fragmentation of Land Act, 1972, will pave the way for fragmentation...

-The Times of India The Centre on Thursday asserted that the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant was safe enough to withstand a Fukushima-type disaster but the Supreme Court said it would not hesitate to stop the project irrespective of the amount of money spent on it if the installation was found wanting in safety aspects. During the hearing on a petition filed by G Sundarrajan alleging that 17 safety recommendations by the Centre's...

-FAO Sustainable fisheries and aquaculture play a crucial role in food and nutrition security and in providing for the livelihoods of millions of people. FAO's latest flagship publication on the state of fisheries and aquaculture, launched at the opening of the 30th session of the FAO Committee on Fisheries, highlights the sector's vital contribution to the world's well-being and prosperity, a point reflected in the recent Rio+20 Outcome Document. The State of...