-NDTV Bihar: It's been a week since people of Katihar's Labha, a village about 300 kilometers from Patna, has boycotted 45-year-old Mohd Akhtar and his family. Mr Akhtar runs a Fair Price Shop which is responsible for distributing essential grains at subsidised rates under the government's Public Distribution System.   A meeting of village elders last week charged Mr Akhtar with fraud. "He never gives us our full quota. Sometimes he gives us...

-The Times of India PATNA: With election round the corner, politicians are making promises. One such promise has been made by CM Nitish Kumar: If voted to power, he would ensure piped water reaches every household in Bihar. Sceptics ask how come as basic a human need as safe drinking water was not made available to the people of Bihar by their successive government in 68 years since independence. Piped water connection...

-The Hindu Business Line New Delhi: The prices of pulses can shoot up by 10-15 per cent in the run up to the festival season, according to an Associated Chambers of Commerce of India (Assocham) study released here on Friday. The trade body estimates that India will import over 10 million tonnes (mt) of pulses since domestic production is likely to be limited to around 17 mt on the back of a...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: Despite liberalization of the insurance sector, only around 21.6 crore people - less than one-fifth of India's population - are covered under health insurance. Even among those who have some form of coverage, 67% are covered by public insurance companies, according to National Health Profile 2015, compiled by the Central Bureau of Health Intelligence. The report, which has a separate chapter on health financing, shows despite...

-Deccan Herald MoF wants more transparency and public involvement For the first time, the government has decided to go for crowdsourcing in the Budget-making exercise and invited suggestions from the public for India’s Budget to be presented in February-March next year. The step has been taken to infuse more transparency into the Budget-making and increase people‘s participation in the mammoth exercise. “In order to infuse more transparency into the Budget-making exercise and to have...