-Down to Earth Ministers write protest letters to prime minister and finance minister, saying it would greatly impact ongoing schemes The Congress-led UPA government has been harping on its pro-poor schemes in the run up to the elections early next year. But it has effected a drastic cut in Budgetary allocations for social welfare schemes. The move is reportedly prompted by the urgent need to contain current account deficit (CAD) to below...

-The Hindustan Times Prices of almost all everyday products and services - from food to footwear and movie tickets to medicines - saw a sharp rise in October, pushing retail inflation to 10.09%, the highest in seven months. Costlier onions and tomatoes saw retail inflation - a measure of prices that are asked of you at a shop - cross the double-digit mark for the first time in seven months, indicating Indians...

-The Indian Express All emergency cardiology procedures at AIIMS will now be performed free of cost for patients in general wards. Emergency surgeries such as angioplasty (surgical widening of clogged vessels in the heart using tubes called stents), balloon angioplasty (insertion of a surgical balloon to open obstructed vessels), opening of blocked heart valves and insertion of pacemakers (battery operated devices to improve heart rates) will now all become free, the hospital...

-The Hindustan Times The UPA government will be giving a final push for minority appeasement before the 2014 general elections with the Cabinet on Thursday approving a proposal to spend additional Rs. 100 crore for scholarships to minority children. This would be complimented with a new campaign to reach out to the minority community and tell them about the difference the UPA government policies have made in their lives. Minority, especially Muslims,...

-Live Mint In the past year, ration cards are being replaced with smartcards that can track food doled out through the PDS system New Delhi: Mohanlal Kapoor, a street vendor in north India, holds a card entitling him to subsidized food for his wife and four children. To get supplies, the Kapoors must battle an estimated 15 million families in their state toting similar pieces of paper that they're not entitled...