-Outlook Nearly 50 illegal constructions have mushroomed in surrounding areas of Taj Mahal in past three years, threatening the beauty of the monument considered as a 'symbol of love' worldwide. According to information released by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) in response to an RTI query, a total of 533 illegal constructions have taken place in the entire Agra circle, out of which 46 have come up in Tajganj area. Many of...

-Frontline Farmers protest against the Central clearance for coal bed methane exploration in Mannargudi, Tamil Nadu, as they fear it will devastate agriculture in Tiruvarur and Thanjavur districts.  THE woes of the delta farmers of Tamil Nadu are far from over. While the Cauvery tangle continues unresolved, they fear the proposed multi-crore project for commercial exploration and exploitation of coal bed methane (CBM) in the Mannargudi block of Tiruvarur district will prove...

-The Times of India Crest The biggest hurdle for the DCT programme is the identification of the poor. The "gamechanger" announcement of the UPA 2 government on Direct Cash Transfers (DCT) for 45 schemes has generated much debate through the week with opinions flying around faster than money can get electronically transferred. At the heart of it, the idea of this proposed DCT is unexceptionable. Existing programmes where government transfers money to...

-The Times of India Government on Wednesday said that around seven crore people in the country were either unemployed or under-employed. "As per results of the latest Survey conducted by the National Sample Survey Organization (NSSO) during 2009-10, the number of unemployed or under-employed persons on usual status basis in the country was 95 lakh and about six crore, respectively," the Union labour and employment minister Mallikarjun Kharge said in the Rajya...

-The Financial Express A Central employees' union will go on a token strike tomorrow to protest against the Pension Bill and the Centre's decision to allow FDI in pension. The Confederation of Central Employees and Workers said employees throughout the country were agitated over the government's fresh move to introduce the PFRDA Bill in this ongoing Parliament session. "It is surprising that even after findings of the Committee set up by the government...