-Outlook Andhra Pradesh today asked the Centre to increase the number of wage days under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Gurantee Scheme (MGNREGS) from the present 150 to 200 to benefit non-farm labour and marginalised sections of the society. In his speech at the National Development Council meeting which was read out by Finance Minister Anam Ramanarayana Reddy, Chief Minister Kiran Kumar Reddy emphasised the need for synchronising MGNREGS with agriculture...

-PTI The Retail sector, where the government permitted foreign direct investment in multi-brand, courted controversies during the year with several opposition parties making it a political issue in Parliament. Even before its entry into multi-brand Retail, the global chain Wal-Mart was grappling with various issues, including spending money in the US on lobbying for entry into India. Adding action to the drama was Swedish furniture chain IKEA's hectic bargaining with the government over...

-The Times of India The government's probe against Walmart over its lobbying-related disclosure is expected to include identification of alleged beneficiaries of the payments, a move that is aimed at blunting any opposition to foreign direct investment in multi-brand Retail. Sources familiar with the development told TOI that the basic mandate given to the retired judge, who will investigate the issue is to ascertain if any portion of the lobbying expenses have...

-The Hindu After having managed to push through the major reforms legislations such as the Banking and Companies Bills and also getting through with the 51 per cent foreign direct investment (FDI) in multi-brand Retail, the UPA II dispensation will have to wait till the budget session of Parliament to get the Insurance Bill passed which seeks to raise the FDI cap in the insurance sector to 45 per cent. With the...

-The Hindu ‘Governments must protect interest of producer, consumer’ The controversy regarding India’s permission to allow foreign direct investment in multi-brand Retail and growing “land grab” in Africa by multinational corporations are being closely watched globally by agriculture experts, researchers and donors. At a workshop here on ‘Supporting Policy Research to Inform Agricultural Policy in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia’ — which a few journalists from both regions were invited to attend —...