-Frontline The tussle within some Central government Ministries over proposed cuts in the budget for rural development schemes has affected a promise made to senior citizens. THEIR wizened faces said it all. Though there was disappointment, there was also a glimmer of hope that their trek to the national capital would not go in vain. For almost a month, senior citizens, most of them poor, had been pouring into New Delhi from...

-The Hindustan Times Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi on Friday met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and made a strong case for increasing the quota of subsidised LPG cylinders for households besides sought the passage of key anti-corruption bills in the forthcoming session of Parliament. Congress sources said Gandhi is expected to meet the Prime Minister once again in the coming days exclusively on the issue of raising the quota of subsidised LPG cylinders. Soon...

-The Hindu The UPA government hopes to pass a slew of anti-graft laws, Congress sources said, next month along with the mandatory Vote-on-Account when the 15th Lok Sabha meets for the last time for a fortnight, ahead of general elections slated for April/ May. The Congress's confidence, party sources said, hinges on the fact that the Bharatiya Janata Party - shaken by the success of the Aam Aadmi Party that has...

-The Times of India   NEW DELHI: In a first for the criminal justice administration, the Supreme Court has ordered fastening Accountability on investigating officers and public prosecutors, saying they must face punishment if it was found that their deliberate lapses resulted in acquittal of the accused in cases involving serious offences. "On the culmination of a criminal case in acquittal, the investigating or prosecuting officials responsible for such acquittal must necessarily be...

-The Indian Express     Policy design should worry less about public versus private, and more about choice and Accountability. The most noteworthy aspect of the Aam Aadmi Party's manifesto is the explicit focus on service delivery. This is what its government will be evaluated on, and attention has shifted from the AAP's political success to how it will deliver on these promises. The ideas below reflect learnings from over a decade of research...