-The Economic Times It has never happened since Independence. May be not even in the last 1,000 years what happened during October 2011-September 2012. India exported 10 million tonnes of rice, valued at around $6 billion, becoming the largest exporter of rice, replacing Thailand and Vietnam, generally the two largest exporters of rice. This is now known to many in rice circles. But what is little known is that in 2011-12, India also emerged...

-The Times of India Congress faces an array of opponents keen to corner it over its decision to allow foreign direct investment in multi-brand retail raising the possibility of raucous disruptions as the winter session of Parliament gets underway on Thursday. The bone of contention is the Opposition's demand that the FDI policy be discussed under a rule that entails a floor test and the government's determination not to accept such a...

-The Business Standard Cash transfer is targeted at the poor, but Aadhaar has no role in identifying the poor The disbursement of subsidies through direct cash transfers is round the corner. It will begin in 51 districts in the new year, just over a month away, and in half the country in four months’ time. So it is important to ask: do we have the capability to take on this job,...

-The Business Standard IT laws have clauses that can be too easily misused The arrest of two women in Palghar (near Mumbai) for an innocuous Facebook status update is the latest indicator of an increasing intolerance of free speech, especially online. The state has also increased its surveillance. The focus on surveillance and censorship is evident not only in specific instances but also in the statistics. In February, the government said...

-The Times of India The government may not agree to a resolution on FDI in multi-brand retail under the voting clause, reasoning that there was no precedent to put on vote an executive decision that did not involve any legislation. The UPA allies got together on Friday at a dinner hosted by the PM to discuss the strategy for the Parliament session in which the opposition has threatened to seek a division...