Reforms in urban governance are long overdue, and the cities are croaking under the weight of their neglect. But the National Urban Reforms Mission may be too much medicine, bypassing citizen input and consultation in a hasty drive for change. Vinay Baindur reports.

The Police Act Drafting Committee's term came to an end on 31 January. Any significant attempt to reform the Indian police must begin with the men at the bottom, the constabulary, not at the top. However, such changes would call for a struggle against the nature of Indian society itself, says former IPS officer K S Subramanian.

Two years after being appointed to the National Advisory Council, Aruna Roy has decided to decline a new term. While expressing happiness over some of the work the NAC has been able to do in the past, she now believes that the space for the advisory body to function as a forum for public consultation has diminished.

Certainly, there are flaws in the National Urban Renewal Mission, and mistakes will be made as it is rolled out. But this imperfect solution still represents the collective and well-intentioned efforts of many stakeholders, and we must engage with it. Ramesh Ramanathan responds to Kathyayini Chamaraj's criticism of the Mission.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's proposal for a North East Water Resources Authority to steer development along the Brahmaputra river basin in an integrated manner is both grand and glamorous. But how will the proposed Authority succeed where the Brahmaputra Board failed? This is still unclear, says Videh Upadhyay.

The state is by far the biggest litigant, and contributes a large part to the staggering backlog clogging the courts. The Centre, States and public sector companies determinedly appeal every adverse verdict, despite winning only a small minority of them eventually. Kannan Kasturi reports.

Systematic and chronic under-investment in public goods such as education, law enforcement and infrastructure has already impacted our cities. And yet, we have not asked and answered a number of questions as a nation. C V Madhukar begins a new series.

These are unusual times - when even the most capitalist and free market proponents of the world see an important role for governments. But it is not a time to to look at government challenges through ideological prisms alone, writes C V Madhukar.

The loss of faith in government can be extremely detrimental to the very foundation of our democracy. Improved performance by government is a national imperative, writes C V Madhukar.

A performance audit of NREGS implementation in Karnataka reveals several anomalies, delays and variance with what had been envisaged; yet, 60 per cent of surveyed beneficiaries report a positive impact on their lives. Himanshu Upadhyaya presents a summary of key findings from the audit.

Basic education and subsequent employment opportunities are issues that India has continued to grapple with. Could highly educated parliamentarians necessarily drive these forward? Tanvi Bhatikar analyses findings of a recent voters’ survey in search of an answer.

A Consortium of 7 IITs is working on a plan that will form the basis for the long-term vision for the government’s much-talked about Ganga rejuvenation programme. Shripad Dharmadhikary reviews an initial summary released by the Consortium as the framework within which the final plan will be drawn up.

India’s decision and actions in appointing the first president of the BRICS New Development Bank will signal its thrust on social and environmental sustainability, not only within the new financial order but also domestically, writes Sunita Dubey.

In the aftermath of the recent developments within the Aam Aadmi Party, Himanshu Upadhyaya’s straight-from-the-heart essay describes the loss of hope and feeling of dejection among many idealists, who had fondly seeded and nurtured dreams of a politics of alternatives.

The Draft National Water Framework Bill, put out for public comments recently, represents an important and progressive step forward despite some shortcomings and challenges involved in its implementation, writes Shripad Dharmadhikary.

Pradeep Baisakh analyses a recently released report by human rights activists and civil society organizations to see how the present government has performed in the three years it has been in power.

Radha. Zahira. Neha. Names and tales that serve to remind us that despite the reams written, laws passed and discourses held on sexual violence in the country, the road to justice for rape survivors remains as arduous as ever. Manjari Singh reports.

If RTI applications continue to rise in number, it will not be too long before the system as we know collapses and will have to be overhauled. More suo motu disclosures are needed to avert this, writes Vivek Vaidyanathan.

Given the present method of appointment, our chances of getting independent and unbiased Information Commissioners are close to zero, writes Krishnaraj Rao.

Civil society candidates should be eligible for appointment to key RTI posts in the States and the Centre. We must apply for such jobs, and help improve the system, writes Krishnaraj Rao.

Abysmal pay, low dignity and zero benefits and security unite government-appointed social health activists from Punjab and UP at a protest meet in the capital. Amrita Nandy reveals some of their shocking tales of exploitation and deprivation.

In the wake of record-breaking times from runners wearing Nike’s Vaporfly shoes, and new regulations from the sport’s governing body, brands are racing to roll out new shoes ahead of the Tokyo Olympics. Photo: Craig Ruttle/AP Photo

Turo lets individuals rent their personal vehicles. Some “hosts” are building businesses at airports that major car rental companies slam as unfair competition. WSJ’s Jason Bellini reports. Photo: Jake Nicol/The Wall Street Journal

Viktor & Rolf may be the only designers to have sold items from their haute couture collection this season before even showing it on the runway this week.

London fashion designer Mary Katrantzou is among four designers who created costumes for the new York City Ballet. Others include Carolina Herrera, Alexander McQueen’s Sarah Burton and Thom Browne.

The global spread of coronavirus has led to officials postponing the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games. For athletes, the delay evokes mixed emotions. WSJ spoke to five athletes from around the globe to understand what the postponement means to them. Photo composite by George Downs

The Netflix documentary series "Tiger King" sheds light on the culture of tiger ownership in the U.S., but doesn’t reveal how prolific this culture really is. This video explains the patchwork of state laws that makes private ownership of tigers hard to regulate. Illustration: Carter McCall/WSJ

Banking boot camps have been around longer than the automated teller machine and the credit card. But the financial crisis has created big challenges for the everyday bankers. Colin Barr has details on The News Hub. Photo: Andy McMillan for The Wall Street Journal.

The hottest graduate program is one you may have never heard of: Stanford's d.school, which teaches the murky concept of "design thinking." Melissa Korn has details on Lunch Break. Photo: Alison Yin for The Wall Street Journal.

Buy a target-date fund and take the guesswork out of investing.

These companies have a record of prospering in good times and bad, says Rob McIver, co-manager of the top-rated Jensen Quality Growth fund.

Jenny Van Leeuwen Harrington of Gilman Hill Asset Management says dividend stocks do just fine when the Federal Reserve hikes rates, contrary to popular belief. B&G Foods (BGS) is one of her favorites now.

Sharon French, head of Beta Solutions at Oppenheimer funds, explains factor investing, and what's working now.

Sources state that the proposal, which is likely to be voiced by President Pratibha Patil in her address to the joint Houses of Parliament on June 4 as one of the priorities of the government, is said to be the brainchild of Rahul Gandhi.

Congress President Sonia Gandhi looked and sounded pleased as punch at having outmanoeuvred her rivals and enacted a coup of sorts by bringing in the first woman Speaker of the Lok Sabha, and that too a Dalit.

'Best Ramasamy', president of Tamil Nadu's newest party, says it is time that the state had a change in its leaders.

'A majority in Parliament is not necessary to run the government,' says Constitutional expert Subhash Kashyap, explaining the legal options before the President once the election results are declared.

'The Congress is the only party that can counter US imperialism and the Left Front has always attempted to put up a fight against imperialism. Logically, therefore, the Congress and Left must work together to battle against it,' says outspoken Bengal Minister Subhas Chakraborty.

BJP spokeperson Ravi Shankar Prasad says, 'It is the time for the real Manmohan Singh, the economist Manmohan Singh, to show his mettle in stemming the rot of the manufacturing sector, the industrial sector, the agricultural sector.'

'People of this state have suffered for long. Hence, their patience level is very low at the moment. We have to act double quick to improve the state of life in Bengal,' says senior Congress leader Krishnendu Narayan Choudhury.

'She did not push him nor did she push the party in his direction. If she had declared him a leader, that would have been her biggest mistake. She did not do that,' says political thinker Sanjay Kumar.

In July the Chief of the Central Election Commission wrote to the Prime Minister outlining several proposals for further reforms in the electoral arena. Rasika Dhavse reports.

He designed the general elections, India’s greatest gift to itself. It is time the Bengali mathematician-turned-civil servant got his due, writes Ramachandra Guha.

The entire episode of BJP leader Lalkrishna Advani's resignation from the party and its subsequent meek withdrawal not only breaks the myth of his capacity for brinkmanship, but may also prove to be a spoiler for the party in the run up to the Lok Sabha, says B.S. Nagaraj.

With the manifestos of all major national parties finally released, Himanshu Thakkar presents a comparative reading with a lens on environment and natural resource management.

Atum Welly, a former Congress minister in Arunachal Pradesh who switched to the BJP, alleges that a fraudulent move threw him out of the election process, as the Election Commission of India accepted a forged letter of withdrawal. What’s more, he is not alone! Ramesh Menon reports.

The results of the 2014 Lok Sabha elections apparently point to an abysmal failure of new politics as championed by the Aam Aadmi Party, but a deeper look by Himanshu Upadhyaya suggests all may not be over just as yet.

In the 2014 elections, the BJP won 66 out of 131 seats reserved for SC/ST candidates, which is the highest for any single party since 1991. Prabhu Mallikarjunan looks at the statistics and tries to decipher what this says for voting behaviour in these constituencies.

The Election Commission of India is introducing The National Electoral Roll Purification and Authentication Programme (NERPA) with a view to eliminating duplication and erroneous deletions in electoral rolls across the country. Chinmayi Shalya reports.

If he shall not do so today, can Dr Manmohan Singh ever push reforms and infrastructure initiatives?