-The Business Standard Interview with Union minister in charge of food and public distribution Ever since the new government took office in May, food prices and related issues have been one of the most discussed subjects. Ram Vilas Paswan, the minister in charge of food and public distribution, says hoarders are to blame. And, speaks of the various other priorities under his charge. Edited exceprts of a talk with Sanjeeb Mukherjee: * The...
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CCEA okays sale of 10 mn tonne of wheat in open market
-PTI Move expected to boost domestic supply, check prices The government today approved sale of 10 million tonne of wheat from FCI stock in the open market in order to boost domestic supply and check prices. A decision in this regard was taken at a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. "The CCEA has cleared sale of about 10 million tonne of wheat via the...
More »National Food Grid on cards to help ease prices, cut wastage -Shishir Sinha and Aditi Nigam
-The Hindu Business Line Govt preparing food map to identify ‘critical' products and districts To bring down wastage and stem the rise in food inflation, the Government is planning to create a National Food Grid on the lines of the power grid. The proposed grid will ensure that all types of food are available in every part of the country all through the year. "As the first step, we are preparing a National...
More »Size of PDS set to rise, but fewer people want to buy subsidised grain -Sandip Das
-The Financial Express While the Centre has asked states to roll out the National Food Security Act, 2013, by October, when the coverage of Targeted Public Distribution System (TPDS) will increase to an estimated 84 crore people from 55 crore now, the capacity of states to handle more foodgrain is doubtful given their poor offtake record in the last few years. Official data since 2012-13 indicate that state governments have failed to...
More »Mean and petty labour reforms -Colin Gonsalves
-The Hindu Even decades after independence, the introduction of a ‘secret ballot' for labourers to recognise trade unions remains elusive The National Democratic Alliance government, on June 5 and June 17, notified the proposed amendments to the Factories Act, 1948 and the Minimum Wages Act, 1948. Given that the process of amendments began in 2008 and went through a number of expert committees, one would have expected the amendments to be carefully...
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