-The Hindu For a scheme that the Central government has declared an essential arm of its educational and nutritional objectives in the last three days, both the Central and the State governments have shown a remarkable lack of concern for the 27 lakh workers, most of them women, who administer it. The tragedy that killed 23 children in Bihar's Chapra village last Tuesday has shone a rare spotlight on India's mid-day meal...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: The preliminary data from the second State of Democracy in South Asia (SDSA) report shows democracy in India is thriving though the level of belief in it has dipped sharply since 2005. Findings of the three-nation survey - conducted in Sri Lanka, Nepal and India - was unveiled here on Friday. The survey in Pakistan would take place over next few months. Indian survey, conducted by...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: Wednesday was a historic day for women in courts, with the Supreme Court finally framing regulations to protect women lawyers from sexual harassment at the hand of male counterparts within the court complex, including inside chambers within the apex court's precincts. The regulations - spelling the triumph of a 16-year-long campaign by women advocates - have taken a broader definition of "sexual definition" to include sending...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Wednesday said it would ensure smooth panchayat polls in West Bengal after the State Election Commission rushed with a petition accusing the Mamata Banerjee government of playing truant in providing adequate security forces for a free and fair voting process. "We will ensure smooth conduct of panchayat elections in West Bengal," the Supreme Court said on Wednesday, displaying steely resolve to defuse...

-The Indian Express Why the proposed national minimum wage is the wrong answer to questions of unemployment and poverty The recent national labour conference - a trade union love fest with little real employer participation - demanded a national minimum wage. The trade union demand is a predictable positioning of narrow self-interest as national interest but the government's acceptance of their demand is unfair, delusional and economically stupid. Unfair, because it pampers a...