Continued poor performance of some key infrastructure sectors cause for concern As India is on the path of achieving 8.5 per cent economic growth, aiming to exceed the 9 per cent growth mark next fiscal, the biggest worrying factor that could derail this horse power of growth and play spoilsport in the “growth story” of the UPA II government is the poor state of infrastructure and its tardy pace of development...

Bihar will roll out unique identification numbers for "aam aadmi" -- beneficiaries of social sector schemes -- within 35-36 months. The move will help in curbing pilferage and corruption. The decision was taken at a meeting of Planning Commission deputy chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia with Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar. The Commission has finalised Rs 24,000 crore plan size for the state for next fiscal. Kumar cited that the plan size was...

While the recent sporadic performance of the Indian manufacturing sector has justifiably evoked both concern and comment, another well-documented facet has not received commensurate attention. Organised sector manufacturing in India turned capital intensive in the 1990s and the trend continues inexorably. Research by Business Standard indicates that India Inc added over Rs 13 trillion in fixed assets over the past decade, with over 80 per cent of this accretion since...

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh addressed a conference on ‘Leveraging agriculture for improving nutrition and health’ in New Delhi, organised by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), as part of International Policy Consultation. “Nutrition and health are issues are particularly topical today as the world faces rising food prices in many countries and there is growing recognition that climate change may endanger food security in many developing countries. Leveraging agriculture for...

The chamber said concrete steps need to be taken to promote investment, given that recent data shows the investment growth rate slowed from 38.1% in 2007-08 to 36.5% in 2009-10 The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) on Tuesday called for the government to provide tax incentives on agricultural activities in the forthcoming Budget to encourage private participation and adoption of new technologies in the sector. “CII has recommended encouraging private sector participation...