It is tragic that the same government that gives huge corporate concessions and loses money in corruption is fighting over minimum wages. As India's — and by some reckoning the world's — largest rights-based rural safety net programme completes five years, here is a reality check. The National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS) has become the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS). But in a monumental affront to the...

Taking a "serious view" of Shunglu Committee's findings on alleged irregularities in awarding broadcast rights of Commonwealth Games, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Tuesday warned of "stern action" against the guilty. "The Prime Minister has taken a serious view of the findings in the first report of the Shunglu Committee on Host Broadcasting," media advisor to the Prime Minister, Harish Khare, said in a statement. The report has been sent to Cabinet...

Four-pronged approach to understand compliance issues from taxpayers' perspective Challenge is to develop focussed programmes to reduce compliance costs Seeking to tackle the issue of black money in a proactive manner, the Finance Ministry has set up a “study group” to improve voluntary compliance and address the issue of revenue leakage by suggesting appropriate measures to motivate tax evaders to disclose their unaccounted income. The decision comes in the backdrop of Finance Minister...

The Delhi Government will soon initiate the process to make laws for protecting the livelihood and social security rights of more than three lakh street vendors and will instruct the concerned civic bodies, Enforcement department and the police to put a halt on all eviction drives, Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit has assured a delegation of National Association of Street Vendors of India. The Chief Minister assured that the Government...

Coastal Zone Management Authorities alerted National authority to review the actions taken The Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) violations in all States and Union Territories should be identified by June, according to the Union Ministry of Environment and Forest. The Ministry alerted all the State governments and the State Coastal Zone Management Authorities regarding the decision on Thursday. Incidentally, the draft CRZ notification issued by the Ministry on September 15 last year had included the...