-PTI PATNA: Taking into account deficient rainfall this year, Bihar government on Wednesday declared 33 out of the 38 districts of state as drought-hit. The decision was taken at a cabinet meeting presided over by chief minister Nitish Kumar. Principal secretary (Cabinet Coordination and Secretariat) Brajesh Mehrotra and the principal secretary ( Disaster Management Department) Vyasji said the decision was taken because of deficient rainfall in these districts at 20 per cent below...

-The Hindu     The Land Act leaves plenty of room for States and the Centre to bypass it and acquire Land under other laws that do not provide adequate compensation and rehabilitation The amended version of the Land Acquisition Act has been passed, but it does not entirely settle the issues of dubious takeover of Land and failure to pay fair compensation. Although renamed the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land...

-PTI     Will be sold to passengers using State Express Transport Corporation buses Kicking off its latest populist initiative, the government on Sunday began selling packaged drinking water to long-distance bus commuters at a price of Rs. 10 for a litre. Branded as ‘Amma' drinking water after Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, the product will be sold to passengers using State Express Transport Corporation buses, and also retailed at bus terminuses across the state. Facility inaugurated Ms. Jayalalithaa...

-Outlook Transparency promotes democracy, more the reason for political parties to come under RTI Act's purview There was great public outrage when legislators in Mumbai beat up an assistant police inspector because he stopped an MLA's car for speeding on the Bandra-Worli sealink. The sentiment was: What arrogance! How can lawmakers have so little respect for the laws they themselves made? How­ever, the amendment in Parliament aimed at removing political parties...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Friday ushered in a fresh dose of electoral reforms by ruling that no one can contest elections without making a full and honest disclosure about his/her assets and educational and criminal antecedents. Curbing the practice among candidates to leave columns demanding information blank in the affidavits filed along with nomination papers, the court authorized returning officers to demand relevant details and reject...