In planning, pursuit of profit was not seen as being in the social interest in the post-Independence years, but now profit is the sole motive. FOR two decades now the Government of India has pursued a policy of accelerated liberalisation, dismantling controls, diluting regulations and making the state a facilitator of private investment. It is not that the presence of the state has diminished during this period, but that its role...

-The Economic Times   The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) will soon have a dedicated cell to monitor election-related expenditure by political parties and donations made to them. "A special cell is being created under CBDT to look at election funding," said a finance ministry official. The new cell will be headed by a commissioner rank officer of the I-T department and will monitor election-related expenditure and political funding and enforce...

Farmers will not have to cough up any tax upfront on the compensation money they receive for their land acquired by the government. The rural development ministry has clarified after complaints that in absence of clear rules the harshest provisions were being imposed. "We have issued orders that all compensation money for agricultural land acquisitions in both urban and rural areas should be made without any deductions," said an official in...

30 per cent of cars sold last year were with diesel engines The growing gap between the prices of petrol and diesel has given a boost to the sale of diesel cars even as environmentalists cry foul over the public health impact due to the increasing use of diesel, which is also referred to as “dirty fuel” in Indian cities. While petrol consumers are paying market-linked prices of Rs. 66.84 per litre...

-Xinhua   Heart disease, cancer, diabetes, chronic respiratory conditions, and other chronic diseases increasingly threaten the health and economic security of many lower and middle-income countries, the World Bank warned on Thursday in a report. The World Bank cautioned that the rise of chronic diseases, especially among young working adults in these countries, was a danger that warranted immediate global attention. According to the report entitled “The Growing Danger of Non- Communicable Diseases (NCDs):...