-The Hindu   "If we are going to be serious about supporting women's SHGs, then we need a development finance institution" Finance Minister P. Chidambaram's proposal to establish a bank exclusively for women - which he described as the highlight of this year's budget - may have garnered applause from across party lines in Parliament and could be set up as early as October; but that hasn't stopped his Cabinet colleague and Rural...

-The Times of India MUMBAI: Tax authorities will intensify their efforts to crack down on unaccounted-for money stashed overseas by seeking information from their counterparts in other countries. A recent letter issued by the Chairperson, Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) bears testimony to this intention. To ensure that Indian tax authorities have access to information from other countries and can thus tackle the menace of black money and tax avoidance, several...

-The Economic Times Extreme poverty afflicts more than one in five people, according to the World Bank. The institution's new president, Jim Yong Kim, speaks of the need to "bend the arc of history in order to eliminate extreme poverty and achieve shared prosperity". At a time when his bank's resources as well as the budgetary resources of governments are limited, Brazil offers important lessons on how to eliminate extreme poverty and...

-The Times of India Undeterred by stiff opposition from private developers and builders, the housing ministry is pushing hard to bring the real estate regulator bill, aiming to protect home buyers, in the current session of Parliament. Housing minister Ajay Maken on Sunday said the bill was expected to be brought up for consideration of the Cabinet soon before being introduced in Parliament. The government is looking to set up a tough regulator...

-Frontline How far will the proposed women's bank help marginalised sections when women's SHGs get little support and find it hard even to open accounts in public sector banks? WHILE the recent announcement of a women's bank in the Union Budget has been touted as a progressive measure for the financial inclusion of women, no concrete measures have been forthcoming to make all existing public sector banks sensitive to the needs...