-The Telegraph The Centre today sought to allay fears that the proposed land acquiSITion law would discourage industrialisation and delay projects, saying it had "humane" provisions based on lessons from the Singur agitation. "The fears are largely exaggerated and overblown. Any bill that closes the door on forcible acquiSITion is also in the interests of the nation," rural development minister Jairam Ramesh said, alluding to concerns expressed by industry bodies over the...

-Frontline Riding roughshod over farmers' concerns, the Gujarat government notifies a project to develop the Mandal-Becharaji Special Investment Region, an industrial hub spread over 50,884 hectares, affecting 44 villages. But the villagers see it as a real estate scam and are determined to resist it. GUJARAT may soon have several new townships. The Narendra Modi-led government has proposed to set up 13 special investment regions (SIRs), which are essentially industrial hubs...

-The Hindu The currencies of India, Indonesia, Brazil, South Africa and Turkey have fallen quite dramatically against the dollar in the past few months. Whatever their domestic weaknesses, the reasons for this unprecedented decline - ranging between 13 to 21 per cent - are primarily global. In the past 48 hours, as tension mounts in West Asia, an already unprecedented SITuation has become even more difficult. On Wednesday, the rupee, as...

-Economic and Political Weekly The government has notified a Draft Land Reforms Policy which, on paper, has all the requiSITes of an earnest programme. Yet, the near total failure of earlier efforts at land reforms in India leave little room for hope that something substantial will at last be done to combat landlessness. Harsh Mander (manderharsh@gmail.com) is with the Centre for Equity Studies, New Delhi, and works with survivors of mass violence,...

-The Hindu Some hydel projects that claim exemption from environmental clearance on the basis of size provide a misleading picture of their impact Why would more than four gram panchayats, environmental activists from three States, the presiding swami of the Subramanya Temple, botanists, fisheries scientists, and institutions like the Indian Institute of Science oppose a small hydel project in a remote corner of the Western Ghats in Karnataka? Aren't small hydel projects...