-The Hindu Business Line Lingering distress in the sector may force the govt to think innovatively New Delhi: Agriculture sector, which suffered badly despite higher production in the last two years, may be a key focus area for the NDA government, when it presents its last full-fledged Union Budget before the 2019 general elections. Attending a function recently in the Capital, Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley unequivocally said that that the farm sector...

-The Telegraph New Delhi: The Centre's plan to install nearly a million solar-powered water pumps for irrigation in the next three years through a 30 per cent government subsidy appears fiscally unrealistic, energy researchers cautioned on Thursday and called for alternative financing strategies. The researchers with the New Delhi-based Council on Energy Environment and Water (CEEW) have estimated that the 30 per cent subsidy on solar irrigation pumps would cost the government...

-Livemint.com The committee’s suggestions on major reforms include an overhaul of the Union agriculture ministry New Delhi: In a detailed action plan for doubling farmers’ incomes, a top government panel has proposed major reforms to the existing administrative structure. This includes an overhaul of the Union agriculture ministry, setting up a three-tier planning and review mechanism through district, state and national level committees and an annual ease of doing agribusiness survey. The committee on...

-PTI New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Tuesday termed as ”absolutely illegal” any attack by khap panchayats or associations against an adult man and woman opting for inter- caste marriage. The apex court said if an adult man and woman marry, no khap, panchayat, individual or society can question them. A bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices A.M. Khanwilkar and D.Y. Chandrachud asked the Centre to give its reponse on suggestions...

-Factly.in About 2000 RTI applications filed through the ‘RTI Online’ portal are waiting for response by the Election Commission of India (ECI). The Central Information Commission (CIC) has now directed the ECI to launch a special drive to dispose these pending applications. Factly was the first one to report about the ongoing tussle between the Department of Personnel & Training (DoPT) & the ECI about accepting RTI applications online. The CIC in...