Sanjeeb Mukherjee, Archis Mohan &Amp; Karan Choudhury

Stories by Sanjeeb Mukherjee, Archis Mohan &Amp; Karan Choudhury

Many MPs not keen to donate funds to PM CARES

Many MPs not keen to donate funds to PM CARES

Rediff.com   2 Apr 2020

Many feel that the money from their MPLADS should go directly to a district hospital in their respective constituencies rather than a central fund like PM CARES. Archis Mohan reports.

Will a warmer summer help slow down coronavirus spread?

Will a warmer summer help slow down coronavirus spread?

Rediff.com   2 Apr 2020

IMD has said the temperature in April-June across most parts in India is expected to be 0.5-1 degrees Celsius warmer than normal. However, doctors and scientists say they haven't found any direct correlation between the speed of COVID-19 spread and warm weather.

The coronavirus flight: How Indians helped Indians

The coronavirus flight: How Indians helped Indians

Rediff.com   29 Mar 2020

Bureaucratic insensitivity gave way to compassion with the state administration, police and passersby joining forces to help the stream of Indians fleeing Delhi.

Sitharaman takes stock of coronavirus impact on economy

Sitharaman takes stock of coronavirus impact on economy

Rediff.com   21 Mar 2020

While the meetings on Friday were preliminary discussions, it is learnt that sectors like tourism; hospitality; aviation; micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs); and livestock have sought deferring loan repayments and temporary tax holidays in specific cases to help them tide over the steep fall in economic activity.

Brace yourself, this summer's going to be hotter than usual

Brace yourself, this summer's going to be hotter than usual

Rediff.com   28 Feb 2020

The India meteorological department has stated that day temperatures are likely to be above normal by 0.5 degree Celsius, reports Sanjeeb Mukherjee.

Record wheat output expected, arranging storage for harvest a worry

Record wheat output expected, arranging storage for harvest a worry

Rediff.com   19 Feb 2020

India is expected to harvest 291.95 mt of foodgrain in 2019-20

FCI to get Rs 2.15 trillion as food subsidy in 2020-21

FCI to get Rs 2.15 trillion as food subsidy in 2020-21

Rediff.com   3 Feb 2020

This is the highest in the past five years and almost 24 per cent more than last year.

Budget hikes food subsidy, but cuts it for fertilisers

Budget hikes food subsidy, but cuts it for fertilisers

Rediff.com   2 Feb 2020

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has brought down the budgetary allocation for the fertiliser subsidy for FY21 to Rs 71,309 crore, from the RE of Rs 79,998 crore for FY20, while increasing food subsidy to FCI through "ways and means advance" to Rs 50,000 crore for FY21, from Rs 36,000 crore in RE for FY20, and under the National Food Security Act (NFSA) to Rs 77,982 crore, from Rs 75,000 crore.

Bengal becomes 4th state to pass anti-CAA resolution

Bengal becomes 4th state to pass anti-CAA resolution

Rediff.com   28 Jan 2020

Kerala, Punjab and Rajasthan are the other three states to pass a resolution opposing the contentious legislation, reports Archis Mohan.

What BJP wants in Budget: Not tax cut, but solutions to 'real problems'

What BJP wants in Budget: Not tax cut, but solutions to 'real problems'

Rediff.com   24 Jan 2020

Sources said much has been done to ease the tax burden of the middle classes in the last five years, and that such a measure affects only a limited segment of people when the focus should be to put money in rural areas. Archis Mohan reports.

Why high food inflation is good news for the farmer

Why high food inflation is good news for the farmer

Rediff.com   14 Jan 2020

While rising food inflation is a matter of grave concern for a significant chunk of the population and for policy makers as well, it marks a turnaround in the fortunes of the farmer, reports Sanjeeb Mukherjee.

Farm growth likely to remain subdued at 2.8% in FY20

Farm growth likely to remain subdued at 2.8% in FY20

Rediff.com   8 Jan 2020

A pick-up in farmer income could have a cascading impact on the rural economy, though agriculture is becoming a smaller part of India's overall rural incomes.

Modi to review ministries' work in quest for turnaround

Modi to review ministries' work in quest for turnaround

Rediff.com   3 Jan 2020

Starting today, Modi and top officials in the Prime Minister's Office will be briefed by various central ministries and departments on their plans as well as agenda for the next five years. They will also apprise the PMO of the work they have done so far in realising the agenda of government's second term in office.

Govt for UPA-style bailout of NBFCs

Govt for UPA-style bailout of NBFCs

Rediff.com   26 Dec 2019

In 2009, the UPA government, had announced a slew of measures to boost liquidity in NBFCs. These included a scheme for providing liquidity support to NBFCs having assets size of over Rs 100 crore through a SPV.

New Data Bill may hit tech businesses hard

New Data Bill may hit tech businesses hard

Rediff.com   19 Dec 2019

'If Indians are to be truly protected, Parliament must review and address these dangerous provisions before they become law.'

New data law: Alexa, Google Home may stop speaking

New data law: Alexa, Google Home may stop speaking

Rediff.com   18 Dec 2019

In the worst-case scenario, it will be next to impossible for tech companies like Amazon and Google to run any service that requires user biometrics.

Social media firms deploy 15K people to check content

Social media firms deploy 15K people to check content

Rediff.com   17 Dec 2019

In platforms, such as Twitter, Facebook, TikTok, Helo, and ShareChat, mediators have been asked to put in more hours to ensure that no communal or fake news spread.

Modi, team to start pre-Budget consultations next week

Modi, team to start pre-Budget consultations next week

Rediff.com   14 Dec 2019

In the 2020-21 Budget, the prime minister and the finance minister are keen to stamp their narrative, after various rollbacks following the previous Budget, said top government sources. Besides the scheduled meetings, the sources said, the Prime Minister's Office is expected to hold several meetings with top secretaries and officials on various ongoing schemes, their performance and also how some of them could be tweaked for better results.

Data Bill: Industry experts fear massive implementation hurdles

Data Bill: Industry experts fear massive implementation hurdles

Rediff.com   12 Dec 2019

If the Personal Data Protection Bill gets passed in its present form, a new class of companies and entities could emerge. The sole job of these new entities would be to manage the consent for data usage of a user.Banks, healthcare firms and fintech companies, among others, fear that sharing non-personal data with the government may hurt business interests. Banks also fear the threat of data misuse.

GST compensation: States plan political battle over delayed allocation

GST compensation: States plan political battle over delayed allocation

Rediff.com   9 Dec 2019

States are planning to pass resolutions in their legislative assemblies; however, such tactics will be used as the last resort if the Centre continues to stall allocations.