-The Hindu Business Line To be finalised by the end of this month New Delhi: The NITI-Aayog has initiated discussions on putting in place a system to fix minimum support price (MSP) for different crops. A consultation meeting to discuss various options was held on Friday chaired by the NITI-Aayog Vice-Chairman Rajiv Kumar. The move comes following an announcement in the Budget by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley that the Aayog will work with States...

-TheCitizen.in Banking needs reforms not privatisation NEW DELHI: The scale of the recent bank scams and the potential losses faced by banks holding non-performing loans given to some large companies and individuals, has shocked all of us. However, we are concerned to note that this has become an excuse to demand the privatisation of publicly held banks. While it is true that the current scam involves Punjab National Bank, the second largest public sector...

-Down to Earth Corporate India gets indirect subsidy equivalent to 60 per cent of government expenditure on rural areas A recent analysis has revealed a shocking injustice being done consistently to rural India by the government with corporates getting subsidies at its expense. The Inclusive Media for Change, a New Delhi-based non-profit has analysed the last seven Union Budgets. It has found that indirect subsidy, termed as “tax expenditure” that was given...

-PTI The Punjab government had earlier faced the wrath of the tribunal for not taking effective steps to provide financial assistance and infrastructure facility to the farmers to encourage them not to burn agricultural residue. The National Green Tribunal (NGT) on Tuesday directed Delhi and four northern states to formulate a comprehensive policy for providing Incentives and infrastructural assistance to farmers to stop them from burning crop residue to prevent air pollution. The...

-Hindustan Times With the rising costs of campaigns, parties have increasing Incentives to field richer candidates with criminal cases against them — precisely those who do a worse job of representing and working for the welfare of their constituents. Are Members of Parliament (MPs) genuinely interested in giving back to the voters who elected them? Since 1993, MPs have been allotted money under the Members of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme (MPLADS)...