Nearly 4,500 calls were received on Thursday by the helpline introduced by the Aam Aadmi Party government to take complaints of corruption against officials in various departments and agencies on the first day of its operation.
Pandian joined the Chief Minister's Office (CMO) in 2011, and since then, he has been Patnaik's private secretary.
In a jolt to the ruling Congress in Himachal Pradesh, state party chief and Mandi MP Pratibha Singh on Wednesday announced that she has decided not to contest the Lok Sabha elections as the ground situation was "not favourable" and workers were disheartened.
The Election Commission on Tuesday appointed special observers for administrative, security and expenditure monitoring purposes in several states to ensure a level playing field during the upcoming elections.
Highlighting the low representation of women in the Central Armed Police Forces, a parliamentary committee has asked the Union home ministry to take steps to encourage them to join the services, besides recommending a reservation for transgenders.
Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar on Thursday said "dangers are emanating from outfits", including some foreign universities, doubling up as centres of subversive anti-India activities out to demolish the country's civilisation ethos and sully and muddy its growth.
The hapless voters fervently hope that they get to make a more equal choice in the next election and political discourse in the country becomes positive and more enlightened. One wonders if the masses would become more politically aware to discern good intent and performance from gimmickry, notes Biswajit Dasgupta.
Mihir Tanna, Associate Director, S K Patodia & Associates, answers your tax queries.
The Centre has taken a major step towards increasing efficiency in decision-making by empowering joint secretaries to report to secretaries directly, officials said on Wednesday.
'One Sandeshkhali won't turn around women's perception of Mamata Banerjee in this state'
'My mother feels it will be tough and emotional for her to enter an assembly which has essentially been reduced to a municipality now.' 'My opinion is that even if it is a municipality one cannot cede that space to the BJP.'
Corruption cases in public sector banks have reduced by half in the past one year, chairman of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Personnel, Public Grievances, Law and Justice, E M Sudarsana Natchiappan, said on Wednesday.
As many as 31 corruption cases were registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation against IAS and IPS officers since 2011, the government said Wednesday.
The Central Vigilance Commission is awaiting sanction from different departments for over four months to prosecute 34 government officials for their alleged involvement in corruption.
The report on the Lokpal Bill was tabled in the Rajya Sabha by Abhishek Manu Singhvi, Chairman of the Standing Committee on Law and Justice, Public Grievances and Personnel.
Armed with sticks, they set ablaze thatched structures near a fishing yard in Belmajur area of Sandeshkhali, venting their fury against the elusive TMC leader Shahjahan Sheikh and his brother Siraj. The torched structure, it was revealed, belonged to Siraj.
A Parliamentary Committee has expressed serious concern over 855 vacant posts in the country's premier investigation agency Central Bureau of Investigation and recommended strategic steps on a war-footing to fill them.
Arun Jaitley has advised banks to take decisions without fear.
As many as 129 officers above the rank of joint secretary and above have been booked by the Central Bureau of Investigation, which has registered 97 corruption cases against such officers during the last three years, Rajya Sabha was informed on Thursday.
Over 2,500 officials working in various government offices were booked by the Central Bureau of Investigation for their alleged involvement in corruption during the last three years.
A former Delhi chief secretary and currently Delhi's public grievance commission chairman has warned the prime minister not to strangle the 'doers' in the bureaucracy and paralyse the government while the 'non-doers' go scot free in the euphoria over ushering in a strong anti-corruption ombudsman.
Governments need to proactively plan for attracting and retaining the next generation of talent for its civil services, an official report has said.
Singhvi, who had last month resigned as party spokesperson and chairman of Parliament's Standing Committee on Personnel, Public Grievances and Law and Justice after a sleaze video allegedly involving the high-profile lawyer went viral on social media sites, had kept away from media interactions till Wednesday.
Rediff.com takes a look at the revamped Cabinet of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh:
Union Minister of State for Personnel, Public Grievance and Pension, V Narayanasami on Thursday said the Centre would bring a comprehensive electoral reform bill in keeping with the recommendations of the second administrative reform commission.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Saturday said it found considerable merit in three contentious issues raised by Team Anna, including covering the entire bureaucracy and Citizens'Charter for public grievances under Lokpal and favoured Lokayuktas in the states.
The Lokpal Bill has been referred to the Standing Committee of Parliament on personnel, public grievances, law and justice. In this FAQ, we explain the process of these committees.
The Lok Pal Bill has been referred to the standing committee of Parliament on personnel, public grievances, law and hustice. In this FAQ, MR Madhavan explains the process of these committees.
The privileges enjoyed by MPs and MLAs are "tethered intrinsically" to the functioning of the legislature collectively, the Supreme Court said on Monday while holding that lawmakers taking bribe to vote or make a speech in the house are not immune from prosecution.
The government on Monday said that it has "narrowed down" major differences over the proposed anti-corruption bill Lokpal and it was committed to get the legislation passed in the Parliament.
Activist Anna Hazare on Saturday blamed Rahul Gandhi for encouraging Congress leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi, chairman of the Standing Committee of Law and Justice, Public Grievances and Personnel, for overlooking the letter written by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
Rebel Himachal Pradesh Congress MLA Rajinder Rana on Saturday claimed that nine more party legislators 'feeling suffocated' due to Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu's style of functioning are in touch with him as he called the chief minister 'liar number one'.
Consensus eluded the Parliamentary panel on Lokpal on the issue of including the prime minister within the ambit of the ombudsman with a majority opposing the suggestion, saying it could lead to complications while some others favoured it with riders.
Amid allegations by opposition parties that the government was misusing probe agencies to target its leaders, the Election Commission on Tuesday asserted that while it remains committed to protecting level playing field and campaign entitlement of parties and candidates, it has not found it correct to take any step that could overlap or overrun the legal judicial process.
The Union finance ministry will meet CEOs of public sector banks to discuss issues related to cybersecurity in the wake of the Rs 820 crore (Rs 8.2 billion) fraud that hit Kolkata-based UCO Bank last month.
The Lokpal Bill is set to be put on the fast-track with the Parliamentary panel on Law taking it for examination from Friday by hearing views of Aruna Roy and Jaiprakash Narayan who have presented their own drafts.
Observing that the petitioner was "making a mockery of the system", the court said, "Rs 50,000 costs on you. We will pass the order."
'Like any other person who may not occupy public office has a right to not disclose his health problems to the public'
Lt Governor Najeeb Jung, who is now administering Delhi after President's rule was imposed, on Tuesday made it clear that none of the decisions and initiatives taken by the Aam Aadmi Party government will be scrapped, including the 50 per cent subsidy on power tariff.
While people voted in a fifth round that will set the tone as this election rounds into the straight, and while Modi on the stump chews the cud of personal grievances and hackneyed promises that have long since passed their use-by date, there is a rogue wave rising -- what damage it will do, we will know 16 days from today, observes Prem Panicker.
