-PTI Faced with subdued revenue mop-up and rising fiscal deficit, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee today said he is "losing sleep" over mounting subsidy bill, which may cross Budget estimate by Rs 1 lakh crore in 2011-12. "As Finance Minister when I think of enormity of the subsidies to be provided, I lose my sleep. There is no doubt," said Mukherjee, who is engaged in the process of firming the Budget for 2012-13...

The state education board is set to usher in a more transparent evaluation system: starting this year, students sitting for the Class X state board exam and the Higher Secondary Certificate (HSC) will be able to get a copy of their corrected answer booklets under the Right To Information (RTI) Act. In the past, the state board did not entertain RTI applications from students who wished to see their evaluated...

Chhotanagpur Tenancy (CNT) Act-1908 came into existence to safeguard rights of the tribals, especially on their traditional landholdings. It is not very clear how much the Act has been successful in assuring the rights to the traditional dwellers, though it is an open secret that it has denied them access to bank credits, thus hampering them financially. Latest figures suggest that bank loans to Scheduled Tribe and Scheduled Caste have moved...

In the expansive corridors of the ministry of external affairs, there's an interesting 'section' that few citizens are aware of. It's the gift chest of the Indian government or the 'toshakhana', where ministers, bureaucrats and dignitaries are supposed to deposit all the gifts they receive on their trips abroad.  The toshakhana stores some amazing presents, from jewellery, silverware and paintings to wine and even couture (Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was, strangely...

There will be no additional cost to the EPR 1650 MWe Pressurised Water Reactor (PWR), a Generation III+ nuclear reactor developed by Areva of France, in complying with the additional safety requirements recommended by the French Nuclear Safety Authority (ASN) in its Complementary Safety Assessment (CSA) report submitted in January. This was stated by Dr. Bernard Bigot, Chairman of the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA), at a...