-The Hindu “The violence at the Maruti plant at Manesar was a result of a well planned conspiracy by the management which we could not understand at that time. The management had introduced bouncers in the factory in order to intimidate the negotiating union leaders on July 18,” said Pradeep Kumar (name changed), a sacked labour of the plant, while speaking at a convention on “Intensified assault on the working class:...

-The Hindu Even as UPA-II and the Opposition are bracing themselves for confrontation in and outside Parliament over coal blocks allocations during 2004-09, the Prime Minister’s Office and the Coal Ministry are ready with their defence: the policy imperative was to augment production by supplementing Coal India’s efforts with private participation within the parameters of law. According to documents available with The Hindu , the arguments, which the government hopes to present...

-The Economic Times The power failure in India on July 30-31 was big news in US media. When the radio and TV stations began calling with the question whether this spelt the end to India's claims to global-power status, my first reaction was to remind them that a similar failure of the grid in 2003 had drowned the entire Northeast and Midwest in the US and Ontario in Canada into darkness. But,...

-The Hindu The listing of the Protection of Women Against Sexual Harassment at Workplace Bill for discussion and adoption in the current session of Parliament is a welcome step. It is also welcome that the government has reversed its earlier unjustifiable position of keeping domestic workers outside the purview of the proposed legislation. Amendments moved on August 7 now include these sections of working women in a sector which has seen...

-The Economic Times A change in the national accounts, slated to take place sometime in the next two years, will show that a resurgent farm sector is now the second biggest contributor to the economy, displacing manufacturing and financial services. The unexpected reversal is not just a statistical artefact. Instead it is an outcome of a change in the terms of trade, the price of agricultural produce compared to industrial output since...