Union minister for rural development Jairam Ramesh today frowned upon the state government and demanded greater reliability on the question of funds use after enduring a bumpy ride to a Dumka village, which to his surprise lacked road connectivity. Ramesh, who arrived in Dumka from Calcutta this morning, met self-help groups (SHGs) engaged in tussar silk production at Dhaka village, 30km from the district headquarters, in rebel-hit Shikaripara block. The minister appreciated...

If the Bill seeking to protect children from sexual offences is passed by Parliament in the form in which it was cleared last week by the Cabinet, then there will be a direct but unstated conflict between the general and special laws on rape. Under the special law proposed in the freshly revised "Protection of Children From Sexual Offences Bill" , no person below 18 years will have the legal capability...

The metropolis could have had five new police stations had the government accepted the recommendation of a committee on VIP security cover. A high-ranking IPS officer told TOI on Friday that the committee had recommended the reduction or withdrawal of the security cover of leading politicians. "But shockingly , chief minister Prithviraj Chavan and home minister R R Patil have rejected the recommendation for obvious political reasons," he said. Ironically, the...

To many Indians, the word “politician” invariably invokes familiar scenes of din and disruption in Parliament, if not the taint of corruption. Yet from time to time, a little-noticed — and perhaps rather quaint — parliamentary tradition tends to suggest that at least some of India’s MPs may have a place in their heart for issues concerning the ordinary citizen. Of the 79 private members’ bills listed today in the Lok Sabha’s...

At a time when the Supreme Court has indicated its intent to lay down “guidelines” for the media, Congress Lok Sabha member and a close aide of AICC general secretary Rahul Gandhi, Meenakshi Natarajan, wants a law to regulate the media, both print and broadcast. And set up an authority that can even “suo motu” probe “complaints” against the media. Natarajan gave notice in the Lok Sabha to introduce a Private...