From hectic lobbying with the Prime Minister to rising usage of Right to Information laws in three major states, 2004 has perhaps seen wider citizen enthusiasm and organizing than any other year recently. But will Parliament and the Central and State governments respond proportionally? Varupi Jain reports.

The Right to Information Bill tabled in Parliament raises expectations to new levels by proposing a dedicated Information Commission for enforcement. Except, the commission is crippled at conception, with no direct penalizing powers. Prakash Kardaley comments.

The Bill on pension reform, which is before Parliament, takes away the obligation to pay pensions from the government and shifts the responsibility of saving for old-age to the individual. How might this affect you? And how can you make your voice heard? M R Madhavan and Ruchita Manghnani present a legislative brief.

M R Madhavan presents a brief summary of the proceedings in the national legislative bodies during the Winter 2005 session, which was conducted during Nov-Dec 2005.

The Central government proposes to shuffle the composition of the IMC and bring in more of its own appointees, reducing elected members to a minority. The government claims this will increase the IMC's accountability, but will it also turn it into an arm of the government? M R Madhavan and Ruchita Manghnani present a legislative brief.

The UPA Government is attempting to achieve consensus and amend the Office of Profit law to allow select legislators to hold additional public offices. This is merely the climax of a larger trend, says Madabhushi Sridhar, of an already thin separation of power between executive and legislature, and of earlier efforts to dilute the Constitution.

New provisions in law would make sexual exploitation of trafficked persons punishable. While well-intended, the draft bill is vague; the term 'sexual exploitation' is not clearly defined. Without this, the bill's provisions could lead to greater harassment of prostitutes and their clients. Kaushiki Sanyal presents a legislative brief.

With the Central government lobbing the ball into the states' court, the right to education bill has practically lost its very essence. Without a central legislation to support it, a constitutional guarantee will have little meaning, say most experts. Deepa A concludes the 'Lens on Education' series.

A draft bill in Parliament attempts to mandate the care of elderly citizens in law, and envisions the establishment of tribunals to ensure its functioning. But its definitions and methods leave many questions unanswered. Priya Narayan Parker presents a legislative brief.

When the CIC v. bourses case comes up for hearing in the Supreme Court, the Commision will have to present a much larger social-legal case that clarifies how the stock exchanges are 'public authorities' despite being run as limited liability corporations, writes Deepak Malghan.

Compared to the death penalty, life imprisonment is considered less harsh. The courts have preferred to leave undefined exactly how long such punishment should be, and commutation pleas are considered on a case-by-case basis. Ipshita Sengupta reports.

Opposition to reservations for women in Parliament have centred on at least four points. Step by step Vaijayanti Gupta rebuts the arguments and re-iterates the case for reservations.

Although dropped for now, a Bill that seeks to disqualify the permanent resident status of J&K women who marry outside the state is pitting their equal rights and dignity against ‘Kashmiri identity’, argues Rekha Chowdhary.

There are wide differences between the various parties on various provisions of the Lokpal Bill. And India Against Corruption wants its own amendments too.

In late January, the Justice J S Verma Committee recommended amendments to the India's criminal law so as to provide for quicker and more effective redress of sexual assault against women. PRS Legislative Research provides highlights.

Going beyond value judgments, T R Raghunandan presents an objective explanation of why the Supreme Court judgment upholding the constitutionality of Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code lacks sound reasoning and could have been much better crafted.

The fierce political campaigns around the 2014 general elections have seen rampant communal rhetoric and instances of hate speech by followers of all camps. Tanvi Bhatikar digs deeper into hate speech law and judicial proceedings in India with a comparison to UK and Europe.

While India satisfies all conditions for emerging as an attractive surrogacy hub, confusion over legal requirements and conditions reigns supreme as the Assisted Reproductive Technologies (Regulation) Bill hangs in limbo. Vinita A Shetty has more on why formal legislation is critical to the growth of the practice.

The abhorrent remarks by actor-turned-Trinamool MP Tapas Pal, stating that he would get the women among his opponents raped, have left many outraged but drawn mild reactions from his party and no legal action at all. Shoma Chatterji exposes the milieu where leaders like Pal enjoy complete impunity.

The Prime Minister has received at least two letters in the past week from eminent economists, activists and citizen groups, raising their voices against dilution of the Rural Employment Guarantee Act, which seems imminent from recent announcements by the government.

The recent SC order directing the Centre to protect people, who come forward to help accident victims, from legal and other hassles, is a significant step towards reducing road accident fatalities. Shoma A Chatterji examines the broader social psyche and issues to be addressed to make the world more humane.

“We need a change in mind set, where the wilful or non-cooperative defaulter is not lionized as a captain of industry, but justly chastised as a freeloader on the hardworking people of this country,” said the RBI governor in his recent lecture at IRMA, Anand. An unedited transcript of his speech

The Modi government has moved fast and furious on charting a new policy regarding intellectual property rights but Shalini Bhutani’s recap of recent developments shows that much of it has been with an overt focus on industry.

A series of recent executive orders, amendments to law and ministerial directives either seek to curtail avenues of public participation and consent over projects of critical impact, or do away with them altogether. Kanchi Kohli tracks the trend.

Around 40 RTI activists in the country have been killed in recent years, several of them after the Whistleblowers Protection Act was passed. Satarupa Sen Bhattacharya explores why the said law has been unable to achieve its stated end.

A meticulous initiative by an NGO in remote tribal districts of Odisha has brought women from the local communities together, enabling them to wrest their rights and entitlements under laws such as the FRA and MGNREGA. Abhijit Mohanty writes on the project.

In the shrill discourse over freedom of speech, the selective publication, and even overt suppression, of actionable development data is often overlooked. Amid calls for a next-gen data revolution, Biraj Swain highlights this and other challenges that lie in its path.

There is a lot that happens in the background to make sure that every Indian election - like the just concluded Bihar assembly election - is conducted fairly, freely and peacefully. Smarak Swain, who was on election duty in Bihar reports on the challenges faced by the Election Commission of India and how it is overcoming them effectively.

Frederick Noronha caught up with Tarun Tejpal to learn more about the launch of the Tehelka weekly paper.

Sir Mark Tully spoke recently in Bangalore on How certain should we be? The problem of religious pluralism. Revathi Siva Kumar caught up with him for this exclusive interview.

In a candid conversation with India Together, eminent scholar, author and historian Ramachandra Guha shares his thoughts on leaders of the past and present and their legacies for the future of India.

In December 2012, retired Justice K S Puttaswamy filed a PIL that recently culminated in the Supreme Court passing an interim order, forbidding authorities to make Aadhaar mandatory for provision of essential services. Bosky Khanna finds out what his key objections to this ambitious project are.

The distinction between making government work, and making government change, is an important one, and groups following the two approaches need not be at odds, says Subramaniam Vincent

If you want to beat up Hazare for his stubbornness, go right ahead. But before that, start with the Union Cabinet, notes Subramaniam Vincent.

Shruti Gupta on a project in Madhya Pradesh and Jharkand that uses technology to enhance income generation opportunities through productive use of natural resources.

Campaigners for justice in Bhopal end the year on an optimistic note, reports Tarun Jain.

2004 saw many victories for the survivors of the Bhopal gas tragedy, giving them and their supporters more hope. Both courts in India and the US ruled to bring justice closer and campaigners pressured a reluctant Central government to finally act on their behalf. Kavitha Kuruganti reports.

Thousands of women in Madhya Pradesh were elected in the last panchayat elections; since then, the story has taken a dismal turn. More than 1,300 women sarpanchs face false charges of corruption. About 50 have been removed from office through forced no-confidence motions. They have been threatened and humiliated. Shuriah Niazi reports.

Despite the tall claims made by the state government and an increase in attendance in the schools, children at many places are simply not getting mid-day meals at all, or are getting it in insufficient quantities. Shuriah Niazi did a reality check.

The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) carried out a comprehensive performance audit on the diversion of forestland for non-forest purposes in Madhya Pradesh. The result: exposure of significant cases of violations and the virtual non-execution of compensatory afforestation measures. Himanshu Upadhyaya has more.

The Madhya Pradesh High Court has ruled that excluding canal oustees from the R&R policy applicable to its dam projects is discriminatory and unconstitutional. Shripad Dharmadhikary reports.

The stilled waters of the river that always sustained them have now become polluted. Yet, this muddy river is their only source of drinking water, bringing with it illness and disease. Neeta Deshpande's concluding article in this series on uprootment and survival in the Narmada valley.

Arvind Kejriwal on how over one hundred and fifty citizens have filed applications seeking information about PDS ration records in Delhi's Food and Civil Supplies department.

Sex sells, but prevention of rape does not. Planners who take deterrence seriously could contribute in creating women-friendly urban environments, says Pratiksha Baxi.

Varupi Jain investigates the lives of these hard labourers at New Delhi Railway Station, and finds a constant struggle for livelihood.

Attitudes among consumers long used to pilferage and non-payment of bills, has made early attempts at privatisation only of limited use. Ranjit Devraj.

Delhi's High Capacity Bus System promises enormous gains, but has been a long time coming. Dr. Geetam Tiwari of the IIT-Delhi sheds some light on the project and the difficulties in the making it happen.

Unmindful of clear urban development guidelines, the Delhi municipality is replacing greenery lined pavements with tiles, followed by a yearly ritual of retiling with newer designs. Kanchi Kohli writes about the unchecked concretization.

Part of the Aravalli range, the Delhi ridge is an icon of greenery and part of the capital's heritage. But over the years, much of the ridge has disappeared, with the most recent threat coming from swanky hotels and malls. A multi-stakeholder board is supposed to protect the ridge, but is fraught with conflicts of interest. Deepa A reports.

The Municipal Corporation of Delhi and the Timarpur Waste Management Company Pvt. Ltd., have proposed a waste incineration plant to treat the city's solid waste and generate 6 MW of electricity. TWMPCL has applied to a United Nations body for tradable carbon credits. Gopal Krishna finds much wrong in the proposal.