-The Business Standard The right to food is finally becoming a lively political issue in India. Aware of the forthcoming general elections, parties are competing to demonstrate - or at least proclaim - their commitment to food security. In a country where endemic undernutrition has been accepted for too long as natural, this is a breakthrough of sorts. The food security Bill is a modest initiative. It consolidates various food-related programmes and...

-Down to Earth The decision to reinstate Rs. 162 minimum daily wage follows protests and litigation The Bihar government has rolled back its decision to curtail minimum wages for Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) beneficiary labourers, even as Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh have approached the court on the same issue. The decision to reinstate a minimum daily wage of Rs 162 was taken at a cabinet meeting, officials said. The...

-The Times of India BANGALORE: Holders of fixed deposits have been earning a negative return in real terms for most of the preceding five years, thanks to Inflation outstripping interest rates. To make matters worse, depositors continue to be taxed on this nominal income. Although bank fixed deposits have never been tax friendly, the level of compliance has been sketchy. But compliance is slowly getting stricter. In the past, RBI norms required banks...

-The Business Standard Food security should not be treated as a political ploy The government's rush to push through food security legislation as an ordinance, instead of waiting the few weeks till the next Parliament session, is disturbing. There continue to be several major problems with the food security scheme that deserve to be more thoroughly discussed at the highest level of law making than they have been so far. Nobody can...

-The Economic Times MUMBAI: The Union Cabinet this week passed an ordinance to implement the National Food Security Bill (NFSB). The bill guarantees legal entitlement of food grains at a subsidised price to ~67 per cent of India's population. The ordinance will come into effect immediately once it is signed by the President. But it also needs to be approved by both the houses of Parliament in the monsoon session within six...