State to seek the higher MSP from the Union Government The State Government will begin procuring paddy in four districts from Saturday at a minimum support price (MSP) higher than that fixed by the Centre. The Union Government has fixed the support price for grade one paddy grown in Karnataka at Rs. 1,030 a quintal and for grade two variety at Rs. 1,000 a quintal. The State Government will add Rs....

-The Indian Express   Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s direction to his ministers to update details of their business interests, assets and liabilities has yielded an interesting profile of his cabinet. The financial status of the powerful — how much wealth they have and how they invest it — always draws curiosity. Dr Singh sticks to fixed deposits, keeping his investment beyond controversy. A.K. Antony’s loan funds a second-hand car. And Kamal...

-The Indian Express   In a letter to Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, former law minister Shanti Bhushan, one of the “civil society” members of the drafting committee for the Lokpal bill, has tried to explain why examining the Prime Minister’s actions should be part of any eventual Lokpal’s powers. “The Prime Minister is privy to the entire security-related information of this country,” Bhushan argues. “What if Mr Madhu Koda or A....

Swami Ramdev is a yoga instructor in saffron robes; he walks on wooden sandals and has an elastic body, an involuntary wink, flowing black hair and a full beard. He claims to have renounced worldly pleasures, but that excludes flying in private jets. He is at the helm of a thriving business in traditional treatments, herbal products, media and textiles that is worth at least hundreds of millions of dollars. Nebulous...

-Express News Service   On Tuesday, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh directed his cabinet colleagues to update details of their business interests, assets and liabilities. In the first such exercise last year, only two cabinet ministers had explicitly declared their interests in private companies — Urban Development Minister Kamal Nath and Corporate Affairs Minister Murli Deora. Kamal Nath mentioned 23 companies in which either he or his family have a “business interest”. Deora...