Even as the Centre prepares to implement its proposed national Food Security Act, States have expressed their unhappiness about the contours of the Bill, particularly the cap on the number of beneficiaries which will automatically reduce their allocation of subsidised foodgrains. Requirement of funds, more foodgrains for distribution under the Targeted Public Distribution System (TPDS), and paucity of storage capacity was a common refrain during the two-day conference of State Food...

Nearly 80 years after an earthquake snapped a critical link between Mithilanchal and Seemanchal regions of Bihar, these two areas, separated by the Kosi river, will be reconnected with the inauguration of a 1.8km bridge on Wednesday. People had depended either on boats or circuitous road route till now.  Union Road Transport minister C P Joshi will on Wednesday inaugurate the four-lane Kosi Mahasetu, connecting Bhaptiahi and Saraigarh in Supaul district....

-DNA   The outgoing chief information commissioner (CIC), of Maharashtra Vijay Kuvalekar, opined that the judicious usage of the Right to Information (RTI), Act 2005, has proved potent in solving many problems of the common man. Kuvalekar, was speaking to the media persons, on the eve of his retirement on Monday in Pune. “In my five-year tenure, I have come across many cases, where RTI has been successful in solving the problems of...

-IANS A day-long shutdown began in Andhra Pradesh Monday on a call given by Dalit groups to protest the recent desecration of statues of B.R. Ambedkar. Schools, colleges, shops and business establishments remained closed in many districts while protestors blocked roads to stop buses of state-owned Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation (APSRTC). Student organistaions, especially Osmania University student Joint Action Committee has also called for a shutdown to protest the desecration of...

Poverty is concentrated in the informal sectors of the Indian economy, with people in these occupations amongst the worst affected from the pernicious Licence Quota Raid Raj. This is illustrated by the sarkari controls that trap the livelihoods of some of our nano entrepreneurs - cycle-rickshaw owners and pullers - in a web of illegality. Cycle-rickshaws are an inexpensive mode of commute in many cities, and do not cause any...