India's landmark Right to Information Legislation is called the biggest single step since independence to build transparency in governance. However, its remarkable success is owed only to just 0.3 per cent of Indians who file RTI applications. It's anybody's guess as to what would be the impact if even one or two per cent of Indians began to ask tough questions to hold their rulers accountable. It is noteworthy that...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: The Congress trumpeted the constitution of seventh pay commission as another of its welfare measures in line with land and food bills, in what appeared a thinly-veiled attempt to milk the olive branch to government employees at the upcoming state and Lok Sabha polls. The surprise decision on the pay commission targetting middle-classes comes on the back of legislations to win over the poor and the...

-The Business Standard Can Bhagwati-Sen debate bring the same change as Hayek-Keynes duel in the US in 1932 At a time of economic crisis, a distinguished group of economists wrote a letter to a major newspaper, making a case for increased government involvement in the economy. A few days later, an equally distinguished group of economists wrote a letter to the same newspaper, arguing against the first lot. No, this...

-Firstpost.com After the UPA-II released its self-congratulatory 79-page ‘Report card to the People', National Advisory Council (NAC) member and leading social activist Aruna Roy has come down heavily on the government for its poor performance in the social sector. Roy, an instrumental force behind the Right to Information Act, criticised the government for stalling on essential legislations such as the Food Security Bill, the Land Acquisition Bill and the Lokpal Bill. Roy spoke...

-The Times of India A significant part of the Manmohan Singh government's political agenda for the 2014 election looks set to sail through Parliament with an all-party meeting on Thursday putting its seal of approval on a contentious bill on land acquisition that enhances compensation for farmers. The government countered criticism that the bill's provisions make land acquisition more time consuming while pushing up costs, but all major political parties seemed...