-Business Standard NC Saxena, former member of the Planning Commission and National Advisory Council has been critical of the land acquisition, rehabilitation and resettlement Act. He tells Kanika Datta why things are unlikely to improve with the amendments recently passed by the Lok Sabha. Edited excerpts: * You were critical of the LARR Act but less so of the ordinance. Why? Let me clarify. The 2013 Act was anti-farmer and anti-industry. The ordinance...

-Free Press Journal Seasonal agriculture is the mainstay of food as well as livelihood around here, so the local communities, predominantly Dalits and Tribals rely heavily on their entitlements under the Public Distribution System (PDS), a government-sponsored food security net for the poor and marginalised populations, writes Dilnaz Boga. Pandarigota is a quaint village with a population of 305, tucked away in the dense forests of Korchi block in eastern Maharashtra's Gadchiroli...

-The Hindu Nine amendments have been adopted. The Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (Amendment) Bill, 2015, popularly known as the land bill, was adopted by the Lok Sabha after debating it for two days. Congress and Biju Janata Dal walked out ahead of the voting, to protest the removal of a clause that makes it mandatory to get farmers' consent prior to the acquisition of land...

-The Hindu The Bill to amend the 2013 land acquisition Act is neither pro-farmer nor pro-poor Next week the economic agenda of the Narendra Modi government will face its biggest test in Parliament. The controversial Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (Amendment) Bill, 2015 (LARR) that has been introduced in Lok Sabha is due for consideration of the house on March 9. While the government seems...

-The Times of India The Narendra Modi government appears to have continued where the Congress regime left off as far as welfare of Dalits and adivasis is concerned. Plan allocation for schemes under various ministries and departments that serve dalits and adivasis remains much below the targeted levels in the Union Budget for 2015-16. Total Plan allocation in the recently presented Union Budget is Rs 4.65 lakh crore. To ensure that Plan funds...