-The Telegraph   Tata Motors has said the Singur land-return bill does not state the reasons for the transfer of the Nano plant, breaking its silence to portray a vivid description of the agitation that preceded its pullout without mentioning either Mamata Banerjee or her party. The Tatas added that “appropriate steps” would be taken after studying the bill that mentions Tata Motors “abandoned” the project. The bill was passed in the...

-The New York Times   India has 1.2 billion people, among them bankers, gurus, rag pickers, billionaires, snake charmers, software engineers, lentil farmers, rickshaw drivers, Maoist rebels, Bollywood movie stars and Vedic scholars, to name a few. Humanity runneth over. Except in one profession: India is searching for a hangman. Usually, India would not need one, given the rarity of executions. The last was in 2004. But in May, India's president unexpectedly rejected...

Civil society” has dominated popular discussion for the last few months. It may be hard to recall how rare the use of the term was only some years back. In 2002, when I published a book analysing the role of civil society in preventing, Dampening or inciting communal riots, I was asked in a television interview whether I was overstating the power of civil society vis-à-vis the state. And in...

Fresh trouble is brewing for India’s largest high profile Lavasa Lake City project near Pune, undertaken by Mumbai-based Hindustan Construction (HCC), as Maharashtra government is going to file a stringent environmental violation case against it in Pune court this week. “After consulting the legal department on Monday, we will file a case against Lavasa Corporation for violating the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, and other breaches,” Valsa Nair-Singh, secretary, department of environment,...

Minister for Municipal Administration and Rural Development K.P. Munusamy on Saturday distributed Rs. 22.36 lakh as compensation to 834 farmers whose crops were Damaged by wild elephants. The farmers who got the compensation cheques are from Krishnagiri, Hosur, Royakottai, Jawalagiri and Denkanikottai ranges. Four hundred and ninety nine farmers in Denkanikottai forest range, who were the worst affected, got Rs. 11,12,300. In Jawalagiri forest range 239 farmers received Rs. 7,65,950 as...