-Outlook The government today expanded the ambit of Competition Commission of India (CCI), with an amendment to the Competition Act, following which all sectors would fall under the purview of the fair trade regulator. Approving a proposal by the Ministry of Corporate Affairs in this regard, the Union Cabinet this evening decided to amend the Competition Act, 2002 with a view to fine tune the regulations to bring it at par with...

-First Post It is impossible to talk about Indian publishing without discussing Samir Jain, whose invisible hand  guided The Times of India group to become  India’s – and probably the world’s – most profitable media company. Despite its relatively small size in the global league (Rupert Murdoch’s NewsCorp is 20 times bigger in terms of revenues), Jain’s Bennett, Coleman & Co Ltd (BCCL) packs a huge punch and is Indian publishing’s...

-PTI In another round of big-ticket reforms, the Union Cabinet will consider on Thursday raising the FDI cap in insurance sector to 49% and opening the pension sector to foreign investment besides creation of a National Investment Board. The Cabinet will also consider a number of other crucial measures like giving more powers to commodity market regulator FMC, Competition Bill to bring all sectors under Companies Act, and model tripartite agreement for operationalising...

-The United Nations A top United Nations official today strongly encouraged governments to adopt special temporary measures, such as quotas, to boost the number of women in parliament and decision-making positions, pointing to the progress achieved by women in India as a result of affirmative action. “Here in India, quotas have spurred one of the world’s greatest successes in women’s empowerment and grassroots democracy,” Michelle Bachelet said in her keynote address to...

-The Economic Times The recent decision of the government to allow FDI in multi-brand retail trade has attracted heated debate and emotive reactions. Though the main consideration for allowing FDI in retail is not its benefit for farm sector, the debate has predominantly focused on threats and benefits to the country's farmers and the farm sector. Interestingly, the main stakeholders, i.e., farmers, have not reacted much to the policy decision and...