-The Telegraph   The Union government today pledged Rs 100 crore to kickstart a fund that would seek to mobilise innovation focused on solving problems for sections of the population at the bottom of India’s socio-economic pyramid. The National Innovation Council (NIC), a government think tank, which has proposed the India Inclusive Innovation Fund has said it is designed to address concerns that existing innovation has often focused more on the wants of...

At BANCON (annual bankers' conference) 2011 in Chennai, financial institutions explored avenues for greater participation in agriculture and rural development. There are a few areas in need of additional attention and investment. Green Revolution technologies are scale-neutral but not resource-neutral. Inputs are needed for output; therefore market-purchased inputs become important in providing soil and plant healthcare for higher yields. Social scientists point out that small and marginal farmers will be excluded...

The National Mission to improve the delivery of justice is at work. In October 2009, on the basis of a Vision Document adopted at a judicial conference in New Delhi, the Government of India approved in principle a National Mission to reduce pendency and delays in the judicial system and enhance accountability through structural changes, higher performance standards and capacity-building. Many past attempts to achieve the goals did not yield results...

Although India is a labour-surplus economy – with an unlimited number of workers willing to work at a subsistence wage – a paradoxical feature of the labour market is the rising incidence of scarcity or shortages amid a situation of potential plenty. No doubt, this pertains to skilled labour. But when 15 per cent of Indian trucks are idle owing to a shortage of drivers or India Inc is worried...

The Comptroller & Auditor General (CAG) of India, Vinod Rai, on Sunday said that the audit mandate should be expanded to bring all public expenditure within its purview.   “There is a need for amending the audit mandate of the CAG to bring all public expenditure, including projects under Public-Private Partnership (PPP) mode, within the purview of public audit,” Rai said. The statement comes days after Rai said that the credibility of the...