Mohali is slated to become one of the first districts in the country where preparations for issuing Unique Identification Numbers (UID) are scheduled to commence from February 15. District administration officials said that once the process of compiling data is commenced from the middle of this month, it would take at least four months for the disbursal of the 12-digit UID to residents of the district to start and would be...

The environment minister promised much, but his flip-flops of late raise concern Mr Compromised     * Vedanta In ’09, Jairam said no to mining. Now says yes to refinery expansion though water is scarce.     * Polavaram dam Gives forest clearance, then seeks explanation     * Posco Under litigation as the ministry says yes to forest clearance for iron ore/steel plant     * Lavasa township Ministry report says ecologically sensitive Ghats will be affected....

Illegality in India today touches almost every economic activity. It is both systemic and systematic. The Indian ruling class faced its severest crisis of credibility in 2010. Its past caught up with it and skeletons and scams were spilling out of its closets. The scams have a symbiotic relationship with the black economy. The number of scams is growing and so is the size of the black economy, which has reached...

The International Monetary Fund has warned that India faces a range of “money laundering and terrorist financing risks” and remains a “significant” target of militant groups. In a report, the IMF appreciated New Delhi’s efforts to tackle the twin problems but raised concerns over the absence of convictions for money laundering. The report drawn on July 2010 was released on Monday. “As a leader among the emerging economies in Asia with a strongly...

The Supreme Court on Monday issued a notice to the Central government on a PIL seeking disclosure of contents of all tapes of corporate lobbyist Niira Radia which were tapped by government agencies, except pure private conversations. A bench of justices G S Singhvi and S S Nijjar issued notice to the Centre and adjourned the matter for further hearing on February 2. The court passed the order on a petition filed...