Plan & Policy
Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Monday accused the Modi government of trampling on institutions like Supreme Court
to return to power, drawing a sharp retort from BJP chief Amit Shah who charged the opposition party of demonising and weakening each institution.
With cane arrears to farmers mounting, an informal ministerial panel on Monday explored options such as production-linked subsidy, imposition of sugar cess and reducing GST on ethanol to help sugar mills in clearing dues worth Rs 19,000 crore to sugarcane farmers.
The government has finalised the new industrial policy, which is set to be announced soon, commerce and industry minister Suresh Prabhu said on Monday.
The new policy will replace the industrial policy of 1991, which was prepared in the backdrop of balance of payment crisis.
Fearing a Rs 13,000 crore loss to the exchequer, the finance ministry on Monday ruled out any cut in excise duty to extend relief to the consumers even as petrol price have hit Rs 74.40 a litre – the highest in the last four years – while diesel touched Rs 65.65 a litre.
With the Reserve Bank of India giving no relaxation to its February 12 framework on resolution of stressed assets, banks are likely to become more cautious and risk-averse to long-term funding, especially to the infrastructure sector, say lenders.
After wheat price crashed soon after the harvest season started, chana price has also fallen below the government’s minimum support price (MSP), forcing farmers to hold the stock even as it means more misery for them. Local traders in parts of Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra are quoting about Rs 1,000 less than the MSP of Rs 4,400 a quintal announced by the Central government. Price pressure on chana has come mainly due to bumper yield and higher acreage under pulses.
Former RBI governor Raghuram Rajan (in pic) may be among some of the world’s leading economists in the running for the post of Bank of England (BoE) governor as the UK government hunts for a candidate to take charge from next year, according to a media report.
It is said finally, voting is viewed as an expression of whom people think they are. Voting is also a habit in a country like India where every voter votes for assembly, parliament, local bodies, upper houses apart from scores of his individual associations like co-operative societies, universities, etc. We love this habit. Because as a social animal man votes because he wants to blend into his social group, community and does not want to be left out of the social dialogue and the connects that brings in.
Karnataka is sizzling with election fever now at its peak. There is more to it than Sidda Vs Yeddy. In the poll hustle bustle, what has gone almost unnoticed is the son rise in Karnataka politics. As many as eight sons of former and current chief ministers are in the fray this thme—probably an unenviable record for Karnataka. Priyank Kharge, the son of Mallikanjun Kharge, Krishna Byre Gowda, the son of a former minister, C Byre Gowda, are few to name.
About 97 per cent Indian tourists are looking forward to travel ‘sustainably’ during their holidays to have an enriching experience and for this they will not mind doling out extra money, says a report. A sustainable tourism implies that neither the natural environment nor the socio-cultural fabric of tourist destinations is impacted by the arrival of tourists.
