-Outlook Defending the recent slew of reforms, Union Law Minister Salman Khurshid today said these steps were necessary to maintain a robust growth rate so that there was no dearth of funds for the social sector. "The UPA government had assumed power in the country with the promise of enabling the people to realise their full potential. To fulfil this promise, it was essential to banish what we call the Inspector Raj...

-The Economic Times The recent decision of the government to allow FDI in multi-brand retail trade has attracted heated debate and emotive reactions. Though the main consideration for allowing FDI in retail is not its benefit for farm sector, the debate has predominantly focused on threats and benefits to the country's farmers and the farm sector. Interestingly, the main stakeholders, i.e., farmers, have not reacted much to the policy decision and...

-The United Nations A top United Nations official today strongly encouraged governments to adopt special temporary measures, such as quotas, to boost the number of women in parliament and decision-making positions, pointing to the progress achieved by women in India as a result of affirmative action. “Here in India, quotas have spurred one of the world’s greatest successes in women’s empowerment and grassroots democracy,” Michelle Bachelet said in her keynote address to...

-The Hindu While the Internet growth story in India seems promising, individual users are yet to play their rightful role. Individual consumption is placed at 29 per cent — much lower than the international figure of 45 per cent, which means the Internet economy in India continues to be driven by large companies. By 2015, the Internet sector is projected to become bigger than the education sector, and equal to the...

-The Telegraph The enormity of the real challenge before Manmohan Singh is far higher than that posed by Mamata Banerjee. A “perfect storm” is gathering around the economy, according to a Centre-commissioned report packed with suggestions for a series of tough measures that will affect daily life and test the government’s resolve to wade further into unpalatable waters. The report presented by the Vijay Kelkar panel, which was asked to suggest a road...