-The Business StaNDArd Since cities have little money to cover operational costs of running buses, they do not invest in new buses or modern infra Liquor baron Ponty Chadha and his brother &NDAsh; both died recently in a fratricide &NDAsh; had another business that is not widely known. They had acquired the concession to run public transport buses in Delhi — three clusters with a combined fleet of 600-odd vehicles. Even before...

-The Hindu The Delhi bus rape has galvanised the country on the neglected issue of women’s safety. A look at several cities shows the need for large scale reform &NDAsh; of the police, the law, the legal process, and security in public places. One thought, one hoped, it would not happen in this case but most unfortunately, it did. In all the outrage, the outpouring of horror, grief and anger, that devastating...

-The Hindustan Times Jaipur: Indian women are speaking out against violence, enraged by the gangrape of a 23-year-old inside a moving bus in Delhi. But past records show that women &NDAsh; especially in the hinterlands &NDAsh; who dare to speak up usually fight a lone battle against the system. Hindustan Times profiles a few courageous rape victims in Rajasthan, who are still awaiting justice. Bhanwari Devi (Bhateri, Jaipur district) Bhanwari Devi was gangraped in...

-PTI The retail sector, where the government permitted foreign direct investment in multi-brand, courted controversies during the year with several opposition parties making it a political issue in Parliament. Even before its entry into multi-brand retail, the global chain Wal-Mart was grappling with various issues, including spending money in the US on lobbying for entry into India. Adding action to the drama was Swedish furniture chain IKEA's hectic bargaining with the government over...

-The United Nations The credibility of the Internet depends on how much civil society &NDAsh; the broad label given to worldwide activism outside government &NDAsh; is able to take part in its evolution, a United Nations independent expert said today. “Civil society participation is essential to ensure legitimacy of global discussions on the future of (the) Internet,” the Special Rapporteur on the right to freedom of opinion and expression, Frank La Rue,...