-Outlook Alleging a Rs four lakh crore scam in iron ore mining as the state government kept renewal of licenses in abeyance, Union Minister Srikant Jena today demanded exclusive rights to Odisha Mining Corporation (OMC) over minerals. "The scam relates to renewal of licenses. Official documents show of the 107 iron ore mines in Odisha, 83 are operating by using 'deemed to' clause of the mining law," the senior Congress leader told...

-The Times of India MUMBAI: Contrary to MNS chief Raj Thackeray's ongoing tirade, migrants to cities like Mumbai are not 'outsiders' from other states. Nearly 70% of them come from rural or urban areas within Maharashtra itself, reveals an analysis of data from the National Sample Survey Organization's (NSSO) 64th round. For every migrant coming to a city in Maharashtra from the urban areas of other states such as Bihar, Uttar Pradesh...

-The Hindustan Times The Yamuna Expressway may well turn out to be yet another worry for the Taj Mahal, already battling pollution and signs of decay. The expressway — opened on August 9 — has almost doubled the weekend visitors to the Taj, pushing the Archaeological Survey of India into asking the National Environment Engineering Research Institute (Neeri) to conduct an environment-impact study pending since 2006. Earlier, around 15,000 to 20,000 people...

-The Telegraph The Planning Commission has proposed a slash in fuel and fertiliser subsidies, and subsidy delivery through cash transfer to the beneficiaries’ bank accounts rather than by providing cheaper goods. Commission’s deputy chairperson Montek Singh Ahluwalia said providing food, fuel and fertiliser subsidies through cash transfer would help check leaks — that is, illegal sale of the subsidised goods in the market. Sources suggested that cash transfer was being considered mainly for...

-The Telegraph An NCERT Survey has found children from the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes lagging behind in education at the primary school level amid a national debate on reservation in promotions for them. The National Achievement Survey, conducted to evaluate the learning achievement of Class V students, found SC/ST students underperforming compared to general students (see chart). Over a lakh students from 6,602 schools in 27 states and four Union Territories were...