-The Indian Express Return of food inflation may not allow RBI to further slash interest rates but opens up room for delayed reform Retail food inflation crossing 10 per cent, the first time in nearly six years, isn’t good news for an economy already mired in a deep slowdown. The suddenness of the increase (from under 3 per cent in August to 10 per cent-plus in November) and the fact that the...

-Livemint.com India’s manufacturing sector is moving out of costly and congested cities to rural areas in order to stay competitive. But poor infrastructure is hampering its growth The global economic downturn has raised concerns about the effectiveness of conventional economic policies, which were designed for stabilization, and not for reviving growth in developing countries. Rural distress, spatial disparities, the gender divide and climate change, all combined with the threat of low and...

-The Telegraph Hands-off RBI cuts forecast The Reserve Bank of India’s policymakers shocked economists, industry and the Street by deciding to hit the pause button on interest rate cuts after five downward revisions this year. The six-member monetary policy committee (MPC) of the central bank also slashed its growth forecast for this financial year to 5 per cent from 6.1 per cent at the October meeting. The decision to retain the policy rate —...

-Business Today RCEP trade deal: The group said that the Indian govt should not agree to the RCEP even in future as it will be a 'bad deal for democracy, for farmers, workers, will subvert our sovereign laws and compromise India's industrialisation potential'. Forum for Trade Justice, a pan-civil society network has welcomed the failure of the 16 negotiating countries to reach a consensus over the conclusion of the world's largest free...

-The Hindu Business Line The seeds regime should protect farmers’ interests, says Alliance for Sustainable and Holistic Agriculture Hyderabad: The Alliance for Sustainable and Holistic Agriculture (ASHA) has called for a seed regime that would protect the farmer’s right to breed, select, save, use, exchange, distribute and sell seeds. The regime should also encourage agro-diversity to ensure sustainable agriculture and resilience to climate change stresses. Referring to reports on the proposed amendments to...