-The Hindu The Land Acquisition Bill, which strengthens landowners’ rights during acquisition for development, has finally received the nod of the Union Cabinet, and is likely to be introduced in Parliament during the final week of the winter session. The final version of the bill was approved by the Cabinet on Thursday, more than a year after Parliament sent the earlier avatar to a Standing Committee. In the months since, the bill...

-The Times of India Crest Cash transfers have been described as the world's favourite new anti-poverty device. As India gets set to implement it, TOI-Crest finds out if the politics will ever be divorced from the cash The UPA government's ambitious plan to introduce direct cash transfers (DCT) by January 1, 2013 reflects both the political desperation of a beleaguered government and the urgent need to reform India's inefficient and corrupt public...

-The Business Standard Why the hue and cry over Walmart? Many of India Inc's big ones are no strangers to lobbying in the US  There is a very fine line that separates lobbying from bribery, and there are diverse opinions on what kind of influential pressure on lawmakers qualifies as acceptable, and what doesn't. Quite clearly, bribery is illegal and unacceptable, there is nothing wrong in lobbying per se -- at least...

-Outlook The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) today approved a urea Investment policy that is likely to incentivise fertiliser firms setting up new plants and expanding existing capacity. India imports over 30 per cent of urea requirement and the policy aims at reducing that. But, it is unlikely to have any impact on existing prices. "The new urea Investment policy has been cleared," sources said after the CCEA meeting here. The policy, which...

-Outlook The Union Cabinet today cleared the proposal to set up Cabinet Committee on Investment under the Chairmanship of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to accord expeditious approval to projects of over Rs 1,000 crore. "The proposal to set up the Committee to fast-track mega projects of over Rs 1,000 crore was cleared", sources said. The high-powered body for giving speedy clearance to infrastructure projects was initially mooted by Finance Minister P Chidamabram. He...