80% of beneficiaries in 300 districts to be linked with direct benefits transfer
When KV Thomas took over as minister of state for food and consumer affairs (independent charge) on January 19, 2011, he was tasked with taking forward one single, important objective: expedite the implementation of the National Food Security Bill.
For that to happen, Moitra's much followed speeches should be heard outside Parliament so that the PR spins of the ruling dispensation are countered with informed debate, argues Shyam G Menon.
'The global situation is not very good.'
RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das on Friday said that inflation is on a declining trajectory, as it has fallen by 170 basis points from its January 2020 peak. Retail inflation fell to four-month low of 5.91 per cent in March over the previous month, mainly due to easing food prices.
The key gain from using Aadhaar will be a drastic cut in impersonation and fictitious identities, thereby plugging a major loophole through which a lot of leakage in subsidy payment takes place.
'What should surprise BJP supporters is Modi's call for 'stability' at the manifesto launch, a theme that he and his team members had not touched ahead of the Lok Sabha polls in 2014 and 2019.' 'The last time the party called for 'stability at the Centre' was in 1998 and 1999,' recalls N Sathiya Moorthy.
'UBI is a tricky subject.' 'Our worry is the government could get rid of UPA's social welfare schemes targeted at the poor.'
Analysts seem to be generally pessimistic about Bharat Heavy Electricals (BHEL). Out of 15 brokerages with recommendations since May this year, two have 'buy' while five have 'sell' and eight have 'underweight'/'reduce'/'underperform'/'hold' recommendations. The average target price of the public sector undertaking (PSU) is Rs 61. However, the stock has been consistently hitting new highs, which indicates that there is some kind of valuation mismatch.
'They (the ransomware attackers) are not after any VVIP data.' 'Had that been the case, they would have quietly installed a different malware.'
Privatisation is still regarded as beyond the pale but public-private partnerships have gained in popularity.
The initiative would provide double the relief announced by the states of UP and Maharashtra, the Punjab CM said.
The challenge is to enhance opportunities for people to generate livelihoods through entrepreneurship, both big and small, argues R Jagannathan.
There is no foodgrain shortage in the country as our total storage capacity is more than 81 million tonnes, while the public distribution system requirement is 61 million tonnes, says Ram Vilas Paswan.
The CM said he was proud that he was born in a country which had the "best communication system" and "best culture" in the whole world.
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) on Wednesday approved a five-year-long reform-based result-linked power distribution scheme worth Rs 3.03 lakh crore, for strengthening system of utilities to improve efficiency. Briefing after the CCEA meet here, Power and New & Renewable Energy Minister R K Singh said, "We have done a lot for power distribution reforms. It needs to be strengthened. Today, the Cabinet has approved the new scheme worth Rs 3.03 lakh crore, including Rs 97,000 crore central outlay." He said the funds would be given to power distribution companies (discoms) to strengthen their system.
'Most of the measures the finance minister announced will take effect after the lockdown.' 'By that time, millions of people will be starving.'
Agriculture and processed food exports dropped to a five-year low of $24 billion in 2015-16.
The Bharatiya Janata Party regime will have to make good on this election slogan to restore state-owned banks to health, says Rajiv Lall.
The stock and foreign exchange markets have had a negative reaction to the government's biggest social security programme, the National Food Security Bill. Food minister K V Thomas questions the rationale behind such a response
Nowhere on the planet, nowhere in mankind's history has such an idea taken the concrete shape in form of a law. The National Food Security Bill, which will come via ordinance and not after the debate in Parliament, is an incredible economic tool to tackle the hunger of poor Indians. Also, it has already been condemned widely as a political gimmick.
'You will not have a vaccine for everyone initially.'
The area-based income compensation scheme says that farmers should be paid the difference between the actual price they get and the state-mandated MSP. The compensation will be determined on a per acre basis by using district-level estimates of marketable surplus and prices in the harvest season.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharama on Thursday stated the government is planning to provide a relief package of Rs 1.7 lakh crore to the underprivileged, poor and migrant workers affected by the lockdown amid the coronavirus outbreak. The scheme has been named the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Scheme.
The insurance regulator wants the removal of the minimum entry capital requirement of Rs 100 crore for setting up an insurance business in a bid to facilitate the entry of multiple players such as standalone micro insurers and niche players. Debasish Panda, chairman, Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai), said it should be left to the regulator instead to decide what should be the entry fee for interested players, depending on the size of the business and operations. According to the current norms, insurers are required to have a minimum paid-up capital of Rs 100 crore.
The world's largest cash transfer programme has eliminated around 40 million ghost connections
Ahead of the Monsoon session of Parliament, former Congress ally Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam on Monday indicated its support to the UPA's 'game-changer' Food Security Bill even though it has wanted a few changes in it.
RBI Governor Shaktikanta Das kept the red flag on cryptocurrencies flying, warning that the next financial crisis can be triggered by private cryptocurrencies if such speculative instruments are allowed to grow.
The country saw two straight years of deficient monsoons.
Aadhaar now has legal backing but it still faces challenges of privacy and data sharing
It is a sea of men clad in veshtis with distinctive party colour border design seeking votes with a smile and folded hands for their party candidates. The town is abuzz, with electioneering at its peak, and teeming trendy cars criss-cross the busy roads and bylanes bringing in more and more leaders from elsewhere for campaign.
PSB chiefs tried to argue that liquidity is in surplus in the system and the problem was related to lack of demand in the economy, instead of banks' reluctance to lend, but 'the FM said it is a perception issue that loan is not available, which we need to dispel,', reports Somesh Jha.
This will cost the government Rs 3.1 trillion, about 10 per cent of its annual expenditure, and higher than any other spending item in its Budget.
This will, of course, go a long way in meeting the promised fiscal deficit target of 3.6 per cent of GDP in 2015-16.
It raises three major questions - the incentive compatibility issue, the fairness issue and fiscal challenge, said Panagariya.
Former Telecom Minister A Raja on Sunday said he was ready to serve life imprisonment if a single rupee or dollar was found in any offshore account in his name.
Stressing on the need to protect both lives and livelihoods, he said public health action in India and across the world must be continually guided by evidence from four key questions -- how transmissible is the variant, severity of the disease it causes, how well vaccines and prior SARS-CoV-2 infection protect and how common people perceive risk and follow control measures.
The bench said it has to balance the equity and it was not against any policy of the government or the scheme.
In other welfare schemes, such as those for cooking gas, pension and scholarships, which are linked to DBT, cash is transferred directly into the bank accounts of beneficiaries.
The government chose moral persuasion to make people give up subsidies, notes Rahul Khullar.
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