-Hindustan Times New delhi: A first of its kind study on the state of India’s small towns – those with a population of less than one lakh – has come up with a grim picture of these mushrooming urban settlements. Though the numbers of such towns have grown by 157 % -- from 2223 in 1961 to 5705 in 2011, they have “enormous backlogs” when it comes to basic infrastructure and socio-economic...

-The Times of India NEW delhi: The comptroller and auditor general has initiated an audit of entities claiming tax exemption on agricultural income amid suggestions from some political parties and income tax authorities that a blanket exemption be done away with and tax be levied after a threshold. The auditor has written to the finance ministry seeking details of entities which have declared agricultural income and the amount of tax exemption...

-The Times of India NEW delhi: India formally joined the Paris Climate Change Agreement by submitting its instrument of ratification at UN headquarters in New York on Sunday - the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi. The instrument of ratification was deposited by India's permanent representative to the UN, Syed Akbaruddin. By putting Gandhi seal on the climate deal, the country will now urge the global community to adopt 'Gandhian way of life' (shun...

-The Times of India NEW delhi: An NGO has approached the delhi high court, seeking its intervention to immediately fill nearly 26,000 vacancies of teachers in schools run by the state government and municipal corporations. In its petition, Social Jurist has pointed out that despite a 15-year-old HC decision to recruit more teachers, these schools still have vacancies, depriving lakhs of students of their fundamental right to receive quality education. Filed through...

-The Hindu Industry had opposed the move as it may hurt small factories financially New delhi: The centre is reconsidering a plan to widen the social security net for workers by bringing more factories under the provident fund coverage. The Cabinet Secretariat has pointed out a few contradictions in the Labour Ministry’s proposal to amend the Employees’ Provident Fund and Miscellaneous Provisions Act of 1952, senior labour ministry officials said. The Labour Ministry had...