Dropping her hardline stance on appointment of dalits as cooks in primary schools may soften her image for the ‘janta' ahead of the panchayat polls this year, but Mayawati's sudden move could invite the ire of the state high court. Action, however, will depend on whether a government functionary or a dalit will now come forward to challenge the chief minister's latest diktat. Notably, earlier this year, the UP government approached...

Criticising the government’s Mining Bill, FICCI has said that the proposed legislation would adversely impact investments in the sector. It also termed the government’s scheme to provide shareholdings to tribals in mining projects as flawed. In a recent letter to Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, FICCI Secretary General Amit Mitra said that the proposed act will “adversely affect the industry”. “...the latest draft of the Mines and Minerals Development and Regulation Act 2010 proposes...

Three years after lighting up the electricity-deprived remote villages in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh with power harnessed through rice husk, the team behind the venture is now undertaking a similar task in West Bengal and Tamil Nadu. Beginning with Tamkuha in Bihar, the ‘Husk Power System' designed by NRI entrepreneur Gyanesh Pandey has gone on to dispel darkness in over 125 villages since 2007. “The conventional technologies and grids had...

A day after the Prime Minister urged a quick start to a national food security network, it has emerged that his government may let foodgrain —enough to feed 140 million poor people for a month—decay, instead of spending money and effort distributing it to the poor. Warning of an “emergency situation”, a person familiar with the situation told the Hindustan Times that 17.8 million tonnes of wheat and rice are being...

Three months after introducing reservation for SC/STs through a roster system in appointment of cooks for the mid-day meal scheme, the state government has withdrawn the order, following several incidents of boycott of these cooks by students, withdrawal of wards by parents, and even violent protests against their appointment. The official reason given by the Education Department is that the roster system was only applicable to regular government jobs, while cooks...