-Live Mint     Gujarat has grown faster than the national average—a point worth noting. But there’s no need for drumbeats  Gujarat's economic performance has been facing great scrutiny ever since chief minister Narendra Modi emerged as one of the top prime ministerial candidates of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). I have been asked to compare Gujarat's economic performance during the past decade with that in the past and separate fact from fiction...

-The Hindu Plan to organise national-level meet in July last or early August Madurai: Democratic forces, Dalit parties, prominent writers and social activists in the State have planned to organise a national-level conference in the last week of July or early August to demand a ‘comprehensive law to curb honour killings and hate speeches against inter caste marriages.' A discussion meeting was held to this effect in Chennai on Tuesday. Puthiya Tamilagam founder...

-The Times of India HYDERABAD: The Andhra Pradesh government has embarked on an ambitious programme of sending 100 tribal students every year to reputed universities around the globe for higher studies. The government will bear the entire expenditure which includes fees and living expenses up to Rs 10 lakh and facilitate a loan for the student from banks if more funds are needed. The programme is available for tribal students who secure admission...

-Live Mint Why do the central and state govts deliberately undermine the constitutionally created panchayats? The collector of any district in India would be heading 100 to 150 committees related to various development initiatives in the area. Collectors often don't get time to prepare for or preside over the meetings of these committees-imagine what happens to implementation then. On the other hand, the heads of district panchayats and municipalities in the...

-Down to Earth For RTI activists of Bihar the cost of exposing corruption is life Twenty-year-old Rahul Kumar, a right to information (RTI) activist, knew the land mafia was behind his parents' murder. His mother and father were involved in a land dispute in Muzaffarpur's Sirisia Jagdish village. Barely a week after filing an RTI application to seek information about the murderers, Kumar was kidnapped. A day later, on March 10, 2012,...