The Comptroller and Auditor-General has slammed the Narendra Modi government for financial irregularities, particularly for mismanagement of public sector undertakings, resulting in losses of over Rs. 16,000 crore. It has come down heavily on the state-owned Gujarat State Petroleum Corporation (GSPC) for extending “undue benefits” to the Chief Minister's “favoured few,” mainly Adani Energy and Essar Steel companies, which coupled with its poor management and faulty agreements on exploration of oil...

-The Economic Times With its draft report alleging a coal scam, duly leaked to the media, the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) is making a habit of choosing sensation over sense. Its allegation of loss to the exchequer in allocation of 2G spectrum colours the public discourse on the subject, but was discarded by the CBI court in the telecom case as the basis for a formal charge.  Its assumption that the...

The UPA-II has used the Budget to again play politics with hunger. But it has paid no heed to the ticking time bomb of growing social tensions as 58 million Indians living off agriculture slide deeper into poverty. The Economic Survey says more than half the population is dependent on a sector whose share in the economy is shrinking. The urban-rural income divide is therefore steadily widening, a tinder box that...

-The Economic Times   Could the Centre freeze the job guarantee scheme during peak agriculture season?  The controversial demand from the agriculture ministry found an echo in the Economic Survey released on Thursday, but was quickly dismissed by rural development minister Jairam Ramesh. While lauding the flagship scheme, the survey listed a few other measures as the way forward. "While the overall performance of MGNREGS has been good, there is scope for improvements...

The Economic Survey has warned that more than half the population is dependent on a sector whose share in the economy is shrinking, leading to a bigger urban-rural divide and threatening national food security.  "Achieving minimum agricultural growth is a prerequisite for inclusive growth, reduction of poverty levels, development of the rural economy and enhancing of farm incomes," the Survey has said.  But it offers no path-breaking solutions on how to meet...