Delivering the Setalvad Memorial Lecture, on April 16, Chief Justice of India S.H. Kapadia cautioned the judiciary against exceeding their judicial functions. His remarks are particularly relevant to the increasing tendency of judges of superior courts to issue directions to government, to correct and monitor government’s functions, and to even make policy decisions which are in the domain of government — as if there was no separation of functions between...

The empowered group of ministers (eGoM) recently decided on two important steps seen crucial for management of foodgrains. The first was the finalization of the National Food Security Act (NFSA) and, secondly, extending the term of the Nandan Nilekani committee to explore the possibility of introducing cash transfers for delivering food subsidy directly to the poor. Another linked decision was to allow exports of wheat and rice to international markets. The...

Kolkata : Tata Motors LIMited today told the Calcutta High Court that after the relocation of the Nano plant, the company had been interested in using the land for alternative investment and, therefore, could not be accused of abandoning the area. The automobile manufacturer — which has challenged the Singur Land Development and Rehabilitation Act, 2011 — also discussed the issue with the then Left Front government, Tata Motors counsel Samaraditya...

The Centre will spend around Rs.30,000 crore on providing more than 2.5 lakh villages with broadband connectivity through optical fibre, Sam Pitroda, Adviser to the Prime Minister on Infrastructure, Innovation and Information, said on Monday. He was speaking to journalists after launching Bharat Sanchar Nigam LIMited's voice and video telephony over Internet protocol (VVoIP) here. “We need 30,000-40,000 km more of optical fibre…we probably need Rs.25,000-Rs.30,000 crore for all this. We are...

“Freedom from fear” and “Punishment-free zone” read the slogans on the school walls. These signify the end of corporal punishment. They take on a different meaning, though, when schools are occupied by the police, as they are around Dhinkia and Govindpur, the villages resisting the State's takeover of their farmland for Posco's mega power and steel project ( The Hindu , July 13-14). Children here grabbed national attention when they joined...