-PTI The government has asked the heads of all departments and autonomous bodies to visit the onlne RTI portal on daily basis, preferably as the first task of the day, to avoid any delay in replying to applications and appeals filed by citizens. The Delhi government has warned officials of strict action for “inappropriate handling” of online RTI applications, after it received several complaints about departments not responding to pleas seeking information....

-The Telegraph New Delhi: Bihar is among the states with the poorest progress towards open-defecation-free (ODF) targets with some districts requiring 500 toilets every day to meet 2019 goals, according to a report from the non-government Centre for Science and Environment (CSE) released today. The report said Bihar, Odisha, Uttar Pradesh, and Jharkhand, accounting for 60 per cent of open defecation, would need to accelerate efforts for India to reach its ODF...

-The Hindu Suburban train services on all three lines suspended, to be resumed in phases Mumbai: Heavy and incessant rain in Mumbai, which began in the early hours of Tuesday and continued unabated throughout the day, brought the city to a virtual standstill, with lakhs of people stranded across the city as transport systems collapsed. According to the India Meteorological Department, the city had recorded 297 mm of rain. The BMC, the Mumbai...

-Hindustan Times The high court called the PM Narendra Modi-led government’s reaction to the violence “only a knee-jerk” one, dismissing the argument that the havoc occurred in different states ruled by different parties. Chandigarh: The Prime Minister is of the nation and not the BJP, the Punjab and Haryana high court remarked on Saturday as riots engulfed two states after controversial “godman” Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh was convicted of rape. The court...

-The Indian Express The decision on compulsory counting of paper trail slips, which was approved by the full Commission before Nasim Zaidi retired as the Chief Election Commissioner on Wednesday, is a response to the demand made by political parties at a meeting held by the EC on May 12. In a bid to further reinforce the credibility of electronic voting machines, the Election Commission (EC) has decided to mandatorily tally...