-The Hindu   The death toll in the recent violence at Gopalgarh in Bharatpur district went up to 10 with one of the injured persons breathing his last at the Sawai Man Singh Government Hospital here early on Monday morning. The deceased, 40-year-old Shabbir, was hospitalised in a serious condition after the September 14 clash. A resident of Pathrali village near Gopalgarh town, Shabbir had sustained injuries caused by pellets and also had...

-Live Mint   In almost all instances, what is feared is the disclosure of “damaging” information—information that shows official lapses. Looked from another vantage, if officials have not done any wrong, they should have no fear at the release of such facts Six years after it was passed, the Right to Information (RTI) Act evokes contrasting feelings. Among politicians and in officialdom, suspicion and hostility are dominant moods. Among citizens, hope and despair—in...

-The Times of India   Chairman of the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) Nandan Nilekani has said that the unique identity programme or 'Aadhaar' should not be viewed as "a technologically complicated and purposeless activity". "The programme has much wider and scalable applications for ensuring effective and efficient delivery of public distribution system (PDS) and welfare services," he said while delivering the inaugural speech at the launch of the Pune International Centre...

A combination of political commitment, awareness and better transparency has ensured that the PDS in Tamil Nadu works as intended, ensuring food security for all. Believe it or not, the Public Distribution System (PDS) is working quite successfully in Tamil Nadu — this is one of the main lessons we have learnt from a recent survey of the PDS in Dindigul and Dharmapuri districts. Be it political commitment that lies behind...

Mulling It Over     100% FDI allowed in pharma sector through automatic route     Seven top Indian firms have been acquired by MNCs in the past six years     Fear of price rise in generic medicines if MNCs control market     Health, commerce ministries want FDI to go through approvals     PMO meeting key ministries next month to take a decision *** Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has always been firm in reminding domestic industry that their fear...