-The Hindu   75% of estimated cost to be released as first instalment Hitherto, only half the project cost was released as first instalment As part of an effort to ensure timely and effective implementation of works proposed under the Member of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme [MPLADS], the Centre has decided to substantially raise the amount to be released in the first instalment. The MPLADS allows MPs to suggest works to the...

For the tribal women of Orissa, plucking leaves off the tendu shrub is a way of life. Laborious and long hours spent on the job barely give the impoverished community enough to survive. Nuapada: There is a local song that poignantly captures the reality of the tendu leaf gatherers of Orissa’s Nuapada district: Chho chhoko, bhunji loka, patar tudle laagsi bhoka (we are Bhunj tribals/while plucking tendu leaves, we feel hunger). I...

Orissa government is finding it difficult to acquired land for Posco's Rs 52,000 crore steel project as anti-displacement brigade gained strength from political parties and social activists with Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA) leader Medha Patker on Monday visiting Dhinkia, the entry point to the proposed plant site on Monday and lending her support to protester. Last week social activists Swami Agnibesh visited Dhinkia and warned the government of any violence...

The murder of Mid-Day's J. Dey is only the tip of the iceberg. If violence against journalists continues unchecked, can a beleaguered press continue to report the way it should? If they are becoming fair game for everybody, it makes you wonder if the media as a sector really has clout. The lawlessness that is currently manifest in public life is turning out to have another dimension to it. The power...

Karnataka has among the worst track records in the country in meeting the rights of tribal communities, the latest figures with the Union Ministry of Tribal Affairs reveal. Recently, the State Government opposed Unesco's nomination of the Western Ghats as a heritage site on the grounds that tribal rights could be violated, and that forest dwelling communities could even face eviction. However, Karnataka features at the bottom of the ranking of States...