Today, the finance minister received another oblique suggestion for the budget, though it is uncertain how he can accommodate it in his budget speech, which is already under printing in the basement of North Block. This was from Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi, who met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh with some young Members of Parliament from his party for a 'stock-taking exercise' on the National Rural Employment Guarantee Programme.
The chief ministers and the governors of the north eastern state have expressed dissatisfaction over the 'continuous reduction' of budget allocations of the North Eastern Council in the successive five-year plan.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has directed Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar to bring out a report on the state of Indian agriculture, to be presented to Parliament every year before the Union Budget.
As the government prepares to face the opposition in Parliament, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday exuded confidence that the United Progressive Alliance has "all the numbers" that are needed to tackle issues.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is ready to catch the bull by the horn
Sparks flew on the first day of the debate on the no-trust motion moved by the Congress with the Opposition on Tuesday asserting that it was forced to do so to break Prime Minister Narendra Modi's 'maun vrat' (vow of silence) on Manipur and the treasury benches hitting back saying it was a no-trust vote against a 'poor person's son' who has worked for the welfare of the people.
Tharoor's social media post condoling Musharraf's demise evoked a sharp response from the Bharatiya Janata Party which accused the Congress of "Pakistan parasti (worshipping)".
Finance minister Pranab Mukherjee had a brief meeting with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on salient features of the Budget.
'The hanging has made Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah's position very vulnerable. The government has created an issue in Kashmir when there was none.'
Rahul Gandhi stressed the importance of an electoral understanding in UP if the BJP is to be defeated in the Lok Sabha polls.
Those who have been following developments in the past few years know that Wal-Mart alone must have spent millions of dollars in India for lobbying with our government to open up retail sector for FDI.
Dr Singh may apprise the President of his intention to expand his ministry ahead of the Budget session, which is likely to start in the third week of February.
The long meeting between President Pranab and the PM comes amid a heightened threat perception that the UPA government may not be able to complete its term, says Renu Mittal
The Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance on Saturday demanded to know how the Joint Parliamentary Committee's draft report on 2G spectrum allocation issue had exonerated Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Finance Minister P Chidambaram without examining them and appealed to all members of the committee to reject the document.
As major ally Trinamool Congress tabled an embarrassing amendment to President's address, Congress on Tuesday night warned allies that such steps could threaten the stability of the government.
Appealing to the opposition to allow smooth functioning of Parliament during the Budget session, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday said all issues agitating them can be debated on the floor of the house.
Congress MPs approach PM to protest against Chidambaram's public remarks on blaming Mukherjee for economic crisis.
Expressing hope for a responsible dialogue and debate in the Budget session, Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh on Thursday appealed to all political parties to help conduct smoothly the Parliament.
Ahead of the budget session, Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh on Wednesday expressed readiness to explore "all possible approaches" to end the deadlock in Parliament on the issue of a Joint Parliamentary Committee probe into 2G spectrum scam.
The dividends for the economy from such a rapid rise in capital expenditure would be huge, observes A K Bhattacharya.
With Jaitley preferring continuity over change, good days might take a little longer to arrive, says Shankar Acharya.
The Budget session of Parliament was abruptly adjourned sine die on Wednesday , with the second phase turning out to be a total washout amid opposition demands for the resignation of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and ministers Ashwani Kumar and P K Bansal.
In a bid to evolve a consensus over the controversial Lokpal Bill, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Friday met leaders of various political parties with an assertion that his government was committed to an effective Lokpal legislation. In his initial remarks at the meeting, Dr Singh said, "Our government stands committed to an effective Lokpal legislation". Union ministers Pranab Mukherjee, P Chidambaram, A K Antony and Salman Khurshid were among those present at the meeting.
Against the backdrop of stiff opposition by UPA constituent Trinamool Congress to FDI in retail and rail fare hike, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Friday said the government will consult allies and take them on board whenever "tough" decisions are taken.
However, he made it clear that he would resign the moment Prime Minister Manmohan Singh or Mamata Banerjee ask him to do.
Top parliamentary leaders of major ally Trinamool Congress on Tuesday kept away from the dinner hosted by the prime minister to keep the flock together after which the government expressed confidence of sailing through crucial financial business during the Budget session.
Top parliamentary leaders of major ally Trinamool Congress on Tuesday kept away from the dinner hosted by the prime minister to keep the flock together after which the government expressed confidence of sailing through crucial financial business during the Budget session.
Dr Singh made the statement in the Lok Sabha soon after the introduction of new ministers in his Cabinet.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Saturday met President Pratibha Patil and discussed various issues of national and international importance, including the forthcoming SAARC summit.
Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee has no qualms in mixing economics with politics, which is evident from her reaction to the railway budget, says Renu Mittal.
Angry over the hike in passenger fares in the Railway Budget, Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday asked Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to remove her party nominee Dinesh Trivedi from the post of railway minister.
The government may take a crucial decision on Saturday to withdraw from a score of small centrally-sponsored schemes and programmes whose annual budget is less than Rs 300 crore (Rs 3 billion).
The party is likely to table a privilege motion against Manmohan Singh.
The blueprint submitted to the prime minister identified agriculture, infrastructure, manufacturing, education and sustainability as five key areas of focus. The government should 'encourage infrastructure funding by mandating five or six institutions to create an infra bond market", IMC president Gul Kripalani said in the Action Plan submitted to the prime minister.
The government should 'encourage infrastructure funding by mandating five or six institutions to create an infra bond market,' IMC President Gul Kripalani said in the action plan submitted to the prime minister. It wanted deregulation of the labour market to stimulate investment and employment. 'Encourage contract labour employment to enhance labour flexibility. Amend labour laws to provide flexibility in respect of entry and exit,' IMC said.
The reassessed Plan size for the railways in 2012-13 has already shrunk to Rs 56,950 crore (Rs 569.5 billion) from Rs 60,100 crore (Rs 601 billion) after the first quarter.
Under Pressure for quite some time from his mother and Congress president Sonia Gandhi, as well as the rank and file and leaders of the party, Rahul has apparently given the go ahead and agreed to join the Manmohan Singh government as a minister. It is expected that he would become a cabinet minister and may even take oath before the monsoon session of Parliament.
Reserve Bank Governor D Subbarao on Friday met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and is believed to have discussed the state of the economy and initiatives taken by the central bank to arrest the impact of the global financial meltdown on the Indian economy.
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