-The Telegraph Kolkata: Mamata Banerjee today waved at a rally photographs and newspaper advertisements that she claimed established "links" between CPM leaders and the Saradha Group and other deposit-mobilising companies, but steered clear of commenting on Trinamul's alleged connections with such entities. Addressing her first public meeting since the Saradha crisis unfolded, the chief minister did not mention if she was planning action against Trinamul leaders whose names have cropped up in...

-Live Mint Lack of decentralization means municipalities lack power, resources to meet rising aspirations of ‘middle' India Othakadai, Madurai (Tamil Nadu)/Hubli (Karnataka): S. Paramasivam , president of the Othakadai panchayat, has big plans for his area. "Rainwater harvesting, removal of encroachments on roads, waste recycling, covered drainage, bigger primary health care centres and community parks," lists the 58-year-old, who has spent 30 years in the stainless steel business that dominates industry...

-The Times of India The collapse of Saradha Group, promoted by Sudipta Sen, is the greatest threat yet to Mamata Banerjee's Trinamool Congress regime in Bengal. It could also imperil the finances of millions of people in Bengal, Assam, Jharkhand, Bihar, Orissa and eastern Uttar Pradesh. Trinamool's blatant association with the bigwigs of Saradha, which raised vast amounts of money from poor people before collapsing, is a potentially fatal political body blow....

-The Indian Express Kolkata: When the Saradha Group's Bengali daily Sakalbela began publication, Mamata Banerjee sent her best wishes. It was more than a customary greeting. It was an impassioned message that seemed to have come from the chief minister's heart. "We will have to pass the dark night to begin our journey in the light of dawn," she said. "An alert conscience, right direction, truth and fearless news is what people...

-PTI Mamata Banerjee stages reversal of former apathy towards fate of those affected by Saradha Group demise Kolkata: West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee staged a reversal of her former apathy towards the fate of those whose savings had disappeared amid the collapse of the deposit-taking Saradha Group. Having said on Monday that "what has gone, has gone", Banerjee on Wednesday announced a 10 percentage point hike in value-added tax (VAT) on tobacco...