-The Economic Times Grain stocks with state agencies are likely to cross 75 million tonnes some time in June 2012, while covered capacity to store is less than 50 million tonnes. The rest would be under CAP (with pucca or even kachcha plinths) exposed to potential large-scale damage. An early and rational policy decision is required to reduce the stocks by at least 7-10 million tonnes to avoid high costs of...

-The Telegraph The Centre will next week send nine Maoist-affected states a list of dos and don’ts in a hostage situation as part of consultations for a uniform hostage policy. “I have asked officials to raise the matter with state governments,” P. Chidambaram told the Rajya Sabha today. The home minister was replying to a question by BJP’s Prakash Javadekar on Maoist abductions and how the government planned to negotiate with them. A...

With the Supreme Court giving its nod reopening the probe into non-filing of proper accounts of election expenditure, vis-à-vis “paid news” against the former Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan, the Election Commission has fixed a fresh hearing for May 17. Most probably the EC will decide to have a daily hearing as Chief Election Commissioner S.Y. Quraishi is demitting office on June 10, informed sources said. The issue was first exposed by The Hindu. Campaign advertisements in support...

-The Hindu Adivasi Kshema Samiti to intensify stir for land A group of tribesmen under the aegis of the Adivasi Kshema Samiti (AKS), a feeder organisation of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), encroached on vested forest land at two places in the district on Monday and claimed their rights on the land by erecting huts. As part of an ongoing agitation, 115 tribal families from different parts of the district occupied a...

“No response from CM to abetment complaints against BJP leader, minister” The controversy over the involvement of Madhya Pradesh Bharatiya Janata Party president Prabhat Jha and Tribal Affairs Minister Harishankar Khatik in the marriage of a minor girl from Bundelkhand in Uttar Pradesh does not seem to be dying down. After writing to BJP national president Nitin Gadkari and Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly Ajay...