-The Telegraph   Tamil Nadu chief minister Jayalalithaa today joined the chorus against the entry of foreign capital in multi-brand retail, saying the Centre’s decision that smacked of “overweening arrogance” would affect the livelihood of millions of small-time traders. In Delhi, the under-fire UPA brought out a full-page ad in newspapers that said the move would “generate 10 million new jobs” contrary to the “mistaken belief” that it would result in widespread unemployment. The...

-Reuters   India's growth story is still "credible" and the move to open up the economy to global supermarket chains will help growth and control inflation, RBI governor Duvvuri Subbarao said on Friday. "It's commendable that government has taken the initiative. Let's hope that it will improve the logistics chain and supply chain management in agriculture," Subbarao said in a speech in Chandigarh. Late Thursday, the government approved 51 percent foreign direct investment in...

-The Hindu   ‘It has become imperative in view of climate change' Bio-fortified varieties of staple food grains, such as Vitamin-A-enriched ‘Golden Rice', or iron-enriched wheat, could improve the nutritional status of the world's poor, P. Pushpangadan, Director General, Amity Institute for Herbal and Biotech Products Development, said here on Thursday. Presenting a paper on the “Recent advances of agricultural biotechnology in the light of climate change” at the 81st annual session of the...

India has approved long-awaited proposals to open up the retail market to global supermarket chains. Food Minister KV Thomas said the cabinet has agreed to 51% foreign ownership of multi-brand retail stores, allowing groups like Wal-Mart and Tesco to open stores. Such operators currently can only sell wholesale in India and not directly to customers. A decision on the issue has been pending for two years. Mr Thomas told reporters that the cabinet decided...

-The Telegraph The BJP has slammed the Centre’s move to allow FDI in multi-brand retail, alleging this would destroy self-employment, create monopolies, facilitate foreign takeover of farming units and impair local manufacturing. Sources in the BJP, which has a following among small and medium traders who own the most of the mom-and-pop “kirana” shops, warned that this section would start an agitation as the Centre’s decision amounted to the “Wal-Martisation” of India. The...