-The Hindu They will be able to secure a premium price for their produce, says Chief Minister Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy on Wednesday said foreign direct investment (FDI) in the retail sector would help farmers secure a premium price notwithstanding the controversy surrounding the Central policy matter. Addressing a meeting after inaugurating a godown at the Agriculture Market Yard here, Mr. Kiran Kumar Reddy said an investment of Rs. 500 crore...

-Outlook Partha S. Bhattacharya, who was the chairman and managing director of Coal India Ltd (CIL) between 2006 and 2011, is Credited with turning around the PSU. He spoke to Arindam Mukherjee on the heat and dust generated by the CAG report on allocation of coal blocks to private players. Excerpts: * Should the government allow the private sector into coal mining? There is plenty of coal for everyone. We are, at the...

-PTI In the wake of controversies shrouding coal mines allocation, an inter-ministerial panel will decide next week the fate of 58 blocks which the private companies and PSUs failed to develop within allowed time. The government has already issued de-allocation notices to 35 government firms and 23 private companies which failed to develop the same allotted for captive use in the given time-frame. "An Inter-Ministerial Group, headed by Additional Secretary, Coal, Zohra Chatterji...

-The Hindu The ongoing peaceful protest against the Kudankulam nuclear power plant (KKNPP), which began in the early 1980s intensified after the March 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster. The protests revolve around fears over public safety and health arising from the existence and operation of the nuclear facility. The protesters, the men, women and children of Idinthakarai and surrounding villages, have consistently demanded transparency and honest public consultation. They do not need high...

-Live Mint Mahindra and Mahindra Ltd, the world’s biggest tractor maker by volume, cut its forecast for sales growth of the farm equipment in India as the worst rainfall in three years delays crop sowing. Mahindra estimates industry sales to expand as little as 2% in the year ending 31 March, Pawan Goenka, president of the automotive and farm equipment division at the Mumbai-based company, said in an email response on Thursday. Goenka...