-Hindustan Times The Modi government is looking to address a worrying agrarian crisis with a set of schemes and Budget provisions aimed at ramping up the larger rural economy, rather than just the farm sector, people familiar with the development told HT. Budget 2015-2016 is likely to provide for a more effective Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayin Yojana, a flagship scheme announced last year to create irrigation infrastructure, with substantially higher allocations. The...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: The three private power distribution companies (discoms) in the capital enjoyed funding of more than Rs 5,000 crore from the Delhi government since their inception on July 1, 2002, the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) has said while justifying its stand on auditing their accounts. "Considering that the discoms enjoyed funding of more than Rs 5,000 crore from the state by way of equity, debt, transferred...

-The Hindu When the going gets tough, public investment must be stepped up to pump-prime a slow-moving economy facing uncertain headwinds of low commodity prices and faltering international trade. When the going is good, the private sector would also have a role to play, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has said, vowing to ramp up infrastructure investments in 2016-17. Ten months ago, in his first Budget for a full financial year, Mr....

-The Indian Express It doesn’t have sufficient power and independence, and seems unworkable. The absence of an adequately independent and empowered body to investigate and prosecute allegations of corruption, especially relating to the rich and the powerful, has been a longstanding concern in India. The Central Vigilance Commission’s (CVC) relative independence has proved ineffective as it has few resources at its disposal while the CBI, which is relatively empowered, lacks independence —...

-The Indian Express Extended dry spell hits rabi plantings on top of failed kharif crop Bhopal: Madhya Pradesh, an agricultural success story of the past decade, is bracing itself for a rough time this year, with deficient rains resulting in the failure of the kharif crop and also putting a question market over sowing in the ongoing rabi season. The state, in recent times, had emerged as the country’s second largest contributor of...