-The Hindu Unperturbed by protests against its proposed nuclear power plant in Jaitapur, Maharashtra, the French civil nuclear energy major Areva is now in the closing stages of striking an “early works agreement” with Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited. This agreement, which is actually a series of studies to ensure that the reactor is in conformity with local conditions, is likely to take nine months. “Areva’s discussions with NPCIL are on....

-Outlook Hyderabad: Union government is all set to provide loans to women self help groups (SHGs) at the rate of seven per cent from April 1 next year and at four per cent to the target group in 150 selected districts, Union Minister for Rural Development Jairam Ramesh announced here today. "Loans will be extended to Self Help Groups at 7 per cent from April 1 while in another 150 districts, selected...

-The Business Standard A consortium of some farmers organisation from Andhra Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu have urged the government to remove all hindrances in the path of technological advancement of Indian farming and let the farmers make their own choice of choosing high-yielding seeds like genetically modified (GM) ones. The farmers leaders who have been camping in Delhi for the last few days met Parliamentarians and government officials to...

-The Times of India Crest Cash transfers have been described as the world's favourite new anti-poverty device. As India gets set to implement it, TOI-Crest finds out if the politics will ever be divorced from the cash The UPA government's ambitious plan to introduce direct cash transfers (DCT) by January 1, 2013 reflects both the political desperation of a beleaguered government and the urgent need to reform India's inefficient and corrupt public...

-Outlook The poverty ratio in Jharkhand declined to 39.1 per cent in 2009-10 from 45.3 per cent five years ago because of economic growth and poverty alleviation programmes, the government said today. "The percentage of people living below poverty line in Jharkhand has declined from 45.3 per cent in 2004-05 to 39.1 per cent in 2009-10. "In terms of number of poor, it has declined from 1.32 crore in 2004-05 to 1.26 crore...