-The Times of India The inflation rate slowed to a more than three-year low of 5.96% in March on the back of softening vegetable, fruits and milk prices, brightening the prospect of an interest rate cut by RBI while bringing relief for the politically beleaguered government. Lower interest rates would provide relief to thousands of borrowers reeling under the burden of high equated monthly installments ( EMIs) on their home loans. Data released...

-Outlook As the India and the EU negotiate a free trade agreement, a Parliamentary panel today cautioned against its early signing and asked Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to wait for the committee's report before finalising it. Chairman of the Department Related Parliamentary Committee on Commerce Shanta Kumar has written to Prime Minister today asking him not to rush through the EU-India Broad based Trade and Investment Agreement (BTIA) before the panel gives...

-The Hindu     Protesters see attempt by EU to undermine Indian judiciary in the EU-FTA pact People living with HIV, cancer patient groups and public health activists came out on the streets on Wednesday demanding that India reject the European Union's demands in the European Union-India Free Trade Agreement (EU-India FTA) negotiations. The protests coincide with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's visit to Germany to meet Chancellor Angela Merkel with the FTA on top of...

-The Economic Times The recent patent rulings in India may get frequently challenged in international courts if the government yields to the European Union's demand of including matters related to intellectual property in the investors-state dispute mechanism in their proposed trade pact, health activist groups have warned. An investor-state dispute resolution mechanism typically allows foreign investors to sue countries for compensation if national laws, policies, court rulings of the country infringe upon...

-Civil Society Online Accreditation is the act of granting credit or recognition. It is to be preceded with a process where facts, figures and professional ethics are scrutinized so that the desired certification of competency, authority or credibility is presented. Only the best suited with the requisite track record are to find themselves in the approved list. In India, the much talked about and well critiqued initiative wherein consultants undertaking the responsibility...