-The Telegraph New Delhi: The government today denied any move to introduce reservations in the private sector, saying there was "no such proposal", a year after the National Commission for Backward Classes had suggested enacting a law to make private firms set aside jobs for marginalised sections. "There is no such proposal (for reservation for Scheduled Castes, scheduled tribes and Other Backward Classes) in the private sector," social justice and empowerment minister...

-The Hindu A recent Anthropological Survey of India (AnSI) publication has brought to the fore startling revelations about the Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs) in the country inc- luding the fact that no base line surveys have been conducted among more than half of such groups. “Our findings revealed shocking facts, of the 75 PVTGs, base line surveys exists for about 40 groups, even after declaring them as PVTGs,” states the publication:...

-Hindustan Times The recent crackdown on meat shops in Uttar Pradesh offers a peek into the ethical divide that exists between vegetarians and non-vegetarians in India. The increase in meat consumption, intensive animal farming and growing cruelty against animals has given rise to compassion movements across the world. It should be a matter of pride therefore that India is among the most-vegetarian countries in the world. But how does meat become a...

-The Telegraph Bihar: The rise of Narendra Modi as Prime Minister has a strong implication on political inclusion of subaltern or deprived castes, as he is vocal about his backward lineage, often highlighting it at public meetings. Highlighting the phenomenon of Narendra Modi in Indian politics, Kanchan Chandra, professor of politics at New York University, said: "An inclusive democracy is desirable in itself since it sends out a signal of empowerment and...

-The Hindu Erode: While non-government and welfare organisations are understandably keen to enable tribal communities on the hills to derive utility of abundance of bamboo on the hilly parts, there are indications of ambiguity over the status of implementation of Forest Rights Act 2006 under which bamboo is considered a minor forest produce. The Union Ministry of Environment and Forests had, during 2011, asked states to treat bamboo as a minor forest...