Lack of adequate credit - the lifeblood for any company is threatening to derail fledgling attempts by hundreds of dalit entrepreneurs to overcome deep socio-economic barriers and break into mainstream business.  Without credit, such entrepreneurs would also struggle to cash-in on the Rs 7,000-crore business opportunity opened up by the central government's new dalit-friendly sourcing plan, unveiled last month.  Credit disbursements to dalit entrepreneurs through 20-odd schemes run by the Ministry of...

With the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance raising a red flag against the National Identification Authority of India (NIAI) Bill to grant the UID (or Aadhar) project legal status, the project looks set for a slowdown . That could have broad implications for the tech sector that had laid substantial hope on it, especially when global markets are slowing down.  The UID project is estimated to offer IT companies a Rs...

The Centre has decided to include the Scheduled Tribes as a category that will, by law, be provided subsidised food grains through the public Distribution system under the proposed National Food Security Bill. The final draft also provides for supply of “ready cooked hot breakfast” to eligible school children in addition to the mid-day meals under the Integrated Child Development Scheme. Highly placed sources told The Hindu that that the Union...

-The United Nations   Global food prices in November were virtually unchanged from October, and 10 per cent below their peak in February, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) reported today. FAO’s Food Price Index level was 215 points last month – just two points, or one per cent, above its level in November 2010, according to a news release issued by the Rome-based agency. Cereal prices dropped by 3 points, or...

Over two and a half years after President Pratibha Patil announced the government’s plan to enact a food security law, the Union Cabinet on Tuesday is slated to consider three separate versions of the National Food Security Bill (NFSB) for introduction in the current session of Parliament. These three versions arise out of differences between the Food Ministry and the Law Ministry over the issue of grievance redressal mechanism. The Legislative...