-Press Information Bureau Preliminary Transcript of the Q&A portion of the Prime Minister's Press Conference at the National Media Centre, New Delhi Q: After the Assembly elections, much churning is going on in the UPA. Do you think the Congress should now announce its PM candidate? PM: The Congress President has already answered that question. We will announce our candidate for the Prime Ministership at the appropriate time. Q: On corruption issues which have...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: Union Cabinet on Thursday referred the MB Shah commission of inquiry report on illegal mining in Odisha to the committee of secretaries (CoS) to suggest further action which may include recovery of nearly Rs 60,000 crore from the miners and a CBI probe into roles of public servants in allocating mines to private companies. The commission has severely indicted both the Centre and the Odisha government...

-The Business Standard The Agricultural Produce Marketing Committee law allows mandis to remain in the grip of a middlemen cartel, with clear links to politicians who run the governments Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi has, in effect, told chief ministers of party-ruled states that if food inflation is to be controlled, as many items as possible must be got out of the purview of the Agricultural Produce Marketing Committee (APMC) Act. For the time...

-The Indian Express Pune: Angry farmers in Pimpalgaon Baswant, the biggest onion trading market in Nashik after Lasalgaon, brought business to a complete halt on Monday after average wholesale prices fell to R950 per quintal. Last week, farmers had threatened to disrupt markets if prices fell below the R1,000-per quintal mark. Farmers blocked the Mumbai-Agra highway in the morning, halting traffic for the entire day. Their demands are removal of the minimum export...

-The Business Standard Policymaking in India is more often than not credited for its high nuisance value, rather than for positively aiding growth. Whether oil & gas, power, mining or any other core sector of the economy, government policy has frequently hampered rather than assisted the positive development of these industries. There is however one segment of the renewable energy space - solar power, that's vastly benefitted from concerted government action...