-Down to Earth Grand old party of India renews some old promises and makes some new ones, but will Congress live up to its promises if it wins a third term? The Indian National Congress (INC) presented its manifesto for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections on Wedneday. The manifesto committee claimed the 48-page document was prepared after wide consultations by engaging millions of people, grassroots congress workers and every section of the...

-Down to Earth Delisting fruits and vegetables from APMC Act in Congress-ruled states will not benefit farmers Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi last December said fruits and vegetables will become affordable if states allowed farmers to directly sell their produce to consumers. He also directed the chief ministers in Congress-ruled states to delist fruits and vegetables from the Agriculture Produce Marketing Committee (APMC) Act. The Act makes it mandatory for farmers to sell...

-The Hindu     Concern over procurement and distribution of subsidised foodgrains Asserting that India would soon be breaching its Aggregate Measurement of Support (AMS) commitments to WTO (World Trade Organization) due to its new food security programme, the newly-elected Director-General, Roberto Azevedo, on Monday, sought a positive solution to the issue before the Bali Ministerial to be held in December as some countries had expressed concern over the procurement and distribution of highly...

-The Telegraph The Indian economy grew at just 4.4 per cent in the first quarter ended June 30 - its slowest pace in four years. The grim figure deepened worries for the UPA government, which has been battling criticism over its failure to halt the slide in the rupee, cap deficits, ignite growth and slam the lid on inflation. The tepid growth had been anticipated with finance minister P. Chidambaram acknowledging a few...

-Live Mint Government reaches near consensus as BJP agrees to support Bill in Parliament; industry not enthused by plan The government may be close to pulling off one of India's most significant policy changes with a near consensus among political parties on a new land acquisition law, taking the country to the verge of removing what's perceived as the biggest impediment to the next wave of industrialization. At the conclusion of an all-party...