For India, the ideal inflation rate would be 4-5 per cent although it may be difficult to attain, the minister said while inaugurating the Economic Editors' Conference in New Delhi.
The industry ministry and the finance ministry are holding consultations on whether to bring the banking sector under the purview of new FDI (foreign direct investment) rules, which will categorise some Indian banks -- like ICICI Bank -- as foreign banks.
According to a background note prepared for the Economic Editors conference, the Telecom Ministry has made a provision of adding 1,200 million new telephone connections by 2017.
The government had, on June 25, freed petrol price from its control resulting in a hike of Rs 3.50 per litre.
The government also informed that it has been decided to entrust IBPS the responsibility to conduct the common recruitment examination for PSBs.
Very often, 'sentiment' drives prices well beyond what is warranted and it is hard to forecast market sentiment, explains Debashis Basu.
The government on Tuesday said inflation is not an immediate concern and will continue with the fiscal stimulus measures till the economy recovers fully.
The expectations of our people and that of our global collaborators and the foreign investors from us are high and rising. In the best of times these expectations would rest heavily on our shoulders.
Optimistic of 7-7.5 per cent economic growth in 2005-06, Finance Minister P Chidambaram on Wednesday said the government will not hesitate to take fiscal measures to check inflation while keeping deficit on a leash.
The police in Kanpur have lodged an FIR against The Week magazine amid a row over "objectionable pictures" of Lord Shiva and Goddess Kali that has led Hindu activists to burn copies of the magazine and economist Bibek Debroy end his association with it.
After bumbling for years since 2014, the Modi government seems to believe that massive government expenditure will lead us to prosperity supported by 'seat-of-the-pants' decision-making, observes Debashis Basu.
Reliance Industries' eastern offshore KG D-6 field's gas production will double to around 90 million standard cubic meters per day by next fiscal, government's background material for the Economic Editor's Conference said.
India's Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar says the government is taking a series of measures to liberalise futures trading in commodities.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said that India's economic growth is a 'natural by-product' of his nine-year-old government's political stability, as he expressed optimism that it will be a developed nation by 2047 with 'corruption, casteism and communalism' having no place in our national life.
'Rhetoric and chest-thumping are running high on India's recent growth record.'
'But will the giant waves developing elsewhere allow us to sail smoothly into fair winds?' asks Debashis Basu.
I suggest we build a Vigyan Mandir (Temple of Science) with the ambience of a place of worship, so that it becomes a destination for pilgrims. We should embed on its walls bronze plaques describing each scientist mentioned here along with about a dozen of our ancient mathematicians, recommends Professor Kalyan Singhal, historian of science and technology.
The government is looking at steps to cut subsidy on fertiliser and oil sale with an aim to cutting non-plan expenditure and contain fiscal deficit.
Sheeroy Desai, CEO of PAC, was in India recently. In an interview to rediff.com, he made some interesting observations on the recent recession and its impending recovery.
Hoping that the worst is over on inflation, Finance Minister P Chidambaram on Monday said India must banish the thought of recession even though the overall outlook for the economy continues to be of "cautious optimism" in the face of global turbulence.
The Reserve Bank has given an in-principle nod to invest $5 billion of foreign exchange reserves annually in infrastructure projects through two subsidiaries of India Infrastructure Finance Company.India's forex reserves stood at $266.52 billion as on November 2 and experts believe that they should be utilised at least for financing infrastructure projects.
Petroleum Secretary R S Pandey said a revision in fuel prices was under consideration and a decision will be taken in due course. "Revision does not necessarily mean a cut in prices. We will have to wait and see on which products a reduction will be effected, by how much and when. The government will have to take a comprehensive view... What government will decide we cannot anticipate today."
Jaipal Reddy made it clear that there were no efforts in this direction at present
'We have identified profit-making non-Navratna companies for divestment of minority stakes. We will begin discussions (with Left parties) soon,' said Finance Minister P Chidambaram.
Pawar said the decision to float a fresh wheat import tender on government account this week was also correct.
The Employees Provident Fund Board may examine the option of investing five per cent EPF corpus money in stock markets, Union Labour Minister Oscar Fernandes said on Tuesday. Ahead of the meeting of EPF Central Board of Trustees to finalise the interest rate for 2007-08, Fernandes said that the option to make investment in the capital market was "still open".
The government has no plans to raise fuel prices in the immediate future and will take a decision in this regard at an "appropriate time", Petroleum Minister Murli Deora said on Tuesday. "An appropriate decision on fuel price will be taken at an appropriate time," Deora said at the Economic Editors' Conference in New Delhi.
'But unlike Bond who killed an individual, Israel is killing a nation.'
'To the believers of crypto regulations, I have only one question to ask, how will you regulate it?'
The Department of Telecom has sought information from private telecom operators about the employees who joined them from the PSUs - BSNL and MTNL - on whether they took permission from the concerned authorities.
India is expected to sign Double Taxation Avoidance Treaties with more countries as part of measures to ensure smoother international trade, a senior finance ministry official said on Wednesday.
Ahead of the next year's budget, finance minister P Chidambaram on Wednesday hinted at "bold reforms" and said government was "cautiously optimistic" in meeting the financial targets for 2004-05.
Finance Minister P Chidambaram on Monday refused to sing the requiem for industrial growth, which was poor in September, and said that industry and services sectors would actually grow close to 10 per cent this fiscal.Chidambaram said during April-September there was only a slight deceleration in IIP growth. The index grew by 9.2 per cent in the six month period compared to 11.1 per cent in the corresponding period last year.
'But he was very quick and did a very stylish adab.' 'Of course, I didn't expect him to hug.'
An eminent economist told me he reviewed as many as 40 papers on international flights, before meals!s
The Information and Broadcasting Ministry has no plans to close down any of the media units associated with it despite a recommendation by the Expenditure Reforms Commission.
The government on Thursday said it would formalise a new downlinking policy within the next few weeks, which is expected to look into issues like allowing foreign institutional investors in news channels and making registration mandatory for foreign
The centre on Wednesday sounded optimistic in achieving the divestment target of Rs 4,000 crore (Rs 40 billion) this year and said three entities, including Power Grid and Power Finance Corporation, were expected to tap markets.
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