‘Trade secret of third party' can't be disclosed: Drugs-Controller Application seeks information on the basis of approval for import and marketing of vaccines It seeks to know protocols for permission to an NGO and ICMR to conduct ‘demonstration project' Information on the demonstration project and licensing of two vaccines to prevent cervical cancer has been exempted from public disclosure under Section 8 of the Right to Information Act, 2005. This is the reply received...

A higher order of political leadership, a transparent and accountable bureaucracy and Activist citizen forums are imperative for effectively addressing hunger and poverty in India, N.R. Narayana Murthy, chairman and chief mentor of Infosys Technologies, said on Sunday. Addressing a policy forum at the international conference on “Eliminating hunger and poverty” hosted by the M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation (MSSRF), Mr. Murthy said the dark side of India's growth story had been...

Residents of India's worst Naxal-affected states want development and if forced 10 times the number of people will prefer Government over Naxalites. These are the stunning findings of the first-ever opinion poll of people living in India's Naxal-infested areas. The extensive opinion poll conducted in seven of India's worst Naxal affected states has thrown up some myth-shattering findings. Commissioned by CNN-IBN and The Week the findings establish that people living in...

Despite repeated orders from the state and the central information commissions, public authorities continue to be adamant in rejecting applications filed under the Right To Information (RTI) Act by office-bearers of any organisation. They violate the transparency law saying applicants would be given information only if they apply in their individual capacity and not as representatives of an organisation. And the state health department has gone one step ahead. It...

The Centre admitted on Thursday that people trying to expose corruption with the help of the Right to Information (RTI) Act were facing harassment. In response to a query whether the government knew about increasing threats to people using RTI against corruption, minister of state in the prime minister’s office (PMO), Prithviraj Chavan, told parliament, “Yes, reports have appeared in the media about the threats. The Central Information Commission (CIC) has...