The Centre is all set to launch a scheme of granting domestic LPG connections free of cost to the below poverty line (BPL) families. The scheme, covering around 35 lakh families every year, is likely to be launched on October 2 (Gandhi Jayanti). The initiative was taken by Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas Jitin Prasada. Now, a consumer has to pay Rs. 1,250 as security deposit for getting an...

No clarity on which authorities will be competent or which laws will be relevant: Ramesh He agrees with the compromise of Department of S&T as the nodal Ministry The Biotechnology Regulatory Authority of India (BRAI) will only deal with the safety and efficacy aspects of biotech products, leaving the controversial commercialisation aspect hanging in the air, according to the latest version of the BRAI Bill, 2010. The Bill, which was supposed to be...

“Supreme Court should not go into realm of policy formulation” The government will do all it can to provide affordable food to those below the poverty line but cannot implement the Supreme Court's order to give free foodgrains to the poor, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said on Monday. In an interaction with a small group of editors at his residence — his first in several years — Dr. Singh handled questions on...

Union Human Resources Minister Kapil Sibal on Monday said the Centre will not budge on provisions of the Right to Education Act (RTE) including the neighbourhood school concept. “There is no question of relaxing any provision. Poor students need an opportunity to study in schools in their neighbourhood,” Sibal told reporters here. The Union Minister was in the City to deliver the Vithal N Chandavarkar Memorial Lecture on ‘Empowerment through Education’...

Pushing the envelope regarding disclosure of confidential information, the Central Information Commission (CIC) has ruled that documents are open to public before being submitted to the CABinet Secretariat for the Union CABinet's consideration. This is a departure from the usual practice in the government where most public authorities took a wide view and denied all information related to CABinet notes on the plea that the issue was under consideration and...