Must reads on dna: Hindi not being forced on anyone, says M Venkaiah Naidu; BMC officials unable to carry out Campa Cola demolition, and more

#1 Nobody is forcing Hindi on anybody: M Venkaiah Naidu
As the Union Home Ministry's two circulars seeking to promote Hindi in the social media stirred up a big controversy, Union Urban Development Minister M Venkaiah Naidu today said Hindi was not being forced on anyone and a "wrong propaganda" was on about Hindi imposition. "This is again a wrong propaganda going on; nobody is forcing Hindi on anybody...," Naidu, also the Parliamentary Affairs Minister, told reporters here. "I'm for popularising more and more regional languages, giving them importance- that is the policy of this government. Read more

#2 Face Off at Campa Cola: Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan rules out legislation to save Campa Cola
Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan on Monday said the state government will not intervene in the Campa Cola building issue as the Supreme Court has not given any relief to residents of the society against demolition of their illegal flats. "The government is unable to provide relief to the Campa Cola residents as the Supreme Court has refused to grant any relief to the residents who had moved the court against their eviction," Chavan told reporters here. Read more

#3 LATEST on Iraq crisis:Mayawati urges Centre to take serious steps to ensure safety of stranded Indians; Barack Obama rules out sending US combat troops
Mayawati described the civil war like situation in Iraq as very grim, and said that it was unfortunate that Indian citizens who had gone there for jobs, were victims of it. She said: "There are thousands of Indian workers working in Iraq and people here in India are also concerned for them. In this hour of need our party stands with the central government."On the other hand, US President Barack Obama has made it clear that American combat troops will not return to Iraq to fight the Islamic militants, who have seized a section of the country, but assured Baghdad of launching "targeted and precise military action" if required. Read more 

#4 How Mumbai’s natural systems are an important resource for the city’s future
Sea levels are rising due to climate change. The World Bank has ranked Mumbai as one of the most vulnerable cities to sea level rise in the world – fifth in terms of overall cost of damage and seventh in terms of damage measured as percentage of GDP. In response, the municipal government expands its budget to install larger storm water pipes and constructs new sewage treatment plants. However, there are no attempts made to address the root cause behind these issues – ineffective top-down government regulations with general public apathy as a by-product. To better address these causes, one must first analyse the city’s morphology. Read more 

#5 India nuclear enrichment plant expansion operational in 2015: IHS
India is expanding a covert uranium enrichment plant that could potentially support the development of thermonuclear weapons, a defence research group said on Friday, raising the stakes in an arms race with China and Pakistan. The revelation highlights a lack of nuclear safeguards on India under new Prime Minister Narendra Modi, while sanctions-bound Iran faces minute scrutiny in talks with world powers over its own nuclear programme. Read more