The drug pricing regulator on Tuesday said it will fix the ceiling prices of over 300 medicines by the end of this month, a move that will come as a major relief to patients.
Three key agriculture Bills, approved by the Lok Sabha, are facing staunch opposition from within the ruling coalition with senior minister Harsmirat Kaur Badal resigning in protest and farmers hitting the street.
A look at the key decisions taken by the Narendra Modi government in its six months.
The government is looking at tweaking provisions of the Indian Contracts Act of 1872 to bring agreements between farmers and companies under its ambit, aiming to prevent exploitation of farm people.
.jpg)
The Drug (Prices Control) Order implemented in May last year brought into its purview 652 packs of 348 formulations.
"The Union cabinet is likely to take up on Wednesday, November 24 the withdrawal of the three farm laws for approval. The bills for withdrawal of the laws shall then be introduced in the forthcoming Parliament session," sources in the government told ANI.
Petrol pumps in many cities witnessed long queues on Tuesday as people came to fill up their vehicle tanks fearing shortage of fuel amid the protest by truck drivers against a provision in the new penal law on hit-and-run accident cases involving motorists.
On Thursday, the prime minister appreciated Tomar for 'attempting to have a polite dialogue' with the farmers through an open letter, requesting them to read it.
'Have you seen a situation like this anywhere before, globally or in India, where a government says, okay, we are withdrawing a law because you don't want it?'
A large number of women from various states reached the sites of protest against the Centre's three farm laws that has been going on for over 50 days now.
Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday exuded confidence that inflation would further decline and the government is on track to meet its budgetary target for deficit and said that there is no fear of stagflation in India. Replying to the debate on first batch of Supplementary Demands for Grants 2022-23 in Lok Sabha, the finance minister said inflation has come down and it is now in the tolerable band of the RBI. Inflation has been declining since April 2022 and it is declining further, she said.
Chief Economic Advisor Krishnamurthy Subramanian said China imports a lot of components, parts, assembles and integrates and then exports them.
In his letter dated December 28, issued from his native village Ralegan Siddhi of Maharashtra's Ahmednagar district, he said, that he has decided to again sit protest in Delhi from next month.
Tomar and Parkash, along with their ministerial colleague Piyush Goyal, had led the government's negotiations with the protesting farmers.
Strict lockdown-like restrictions are already in place in the southern stateand the Pinarayi Vijayan government decided to clamp the complete shutdown in the wake of severe spike in the positive cases.
'It is only under the BJP that laws are made and unmade without prior Cabinet approval'
Farmers protesting the contentious farm laws will hold demonstrations outside the residences of Bharatiya Janata Party lawmakers across the country on Saturday, a Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) office-bearer said.
The farmers' union had been camping at the Dalit Prerna Sthal since December 2, demanding withdrawal of the three new farm laws, legalisation of minimum support price (MSP) for crops and implementation of the recommendation of Swaminathan Committee's report.
"Rahul Gandhi along with opposition leaders met President and submitted the memorandum to resolve farmers' issue. But there was no action from the President and the government. Rahul Gandhi will lead demonstration tomorrow at 10:45 am from Vijay Chowk to Rashtrapati Bhavan with Congress MPs," Suresh said.
On Thursday, five state governments -- Gujarat, Delhi, Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh -- notified the Essential Services Maintenance Act to ensure smooth supply of essential commodities. Though the truck operations in most of the key industrial and manufacturing states continued normally, truck operators in some parts of the nation resorted to violence to enforce the strike.
The Supreme Court-appointed panel on the new agri laws on Thursday started its consultation process and interacted with 10 farmer organisations from eight states, including Uttar Pradesh.
"Strict action will be taken as per the law," Haryana Home Minister Anil Vij said in Ambala, responding to a question about the incident.
Meghalaya Chief Minister Conrad Sangma on Thursday said Union Home Minister Amit Shah has given firm assurances at a meeting held in Delhi of acting on his request for a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the 'firing by Assam Police' along the states' border.
The government's main rate setting panel suggested that this be done in two tranches of Rs 2,500 each in the kharif and rabi seasons.
Recommends delisting of chana futures, open to lowering sugar import duty
Three officials from the US Consulate General at Chennai on Monday visited the central prison at Palayamkottai where 35 crew members of a US firm owned ship, arrested for allegedly carrying arms in Indian waters, have been lodged.
Transporters on Thursday said they will surrender about 700 truck permits in the National Capital with the government toughening its stand and refusing to meet their demands as the strike entered the fourth day.
Truckers stayed off the road for the second today, demanding lower diesel prices and permit fee, squeezing supplies of essential commodities that gave way to panic buying across markets.
.jpg)
Thirty-three crew members of an American firm owned ship were on Friday arrested by Tamil Nadu police on charges of illegally carrying arms and ammunition and straying into Indian territorial waters without proper authorisation.
Long queues outside grocery stores, inflated prices, difficulty in getting important items -- these were some of the problems encountered by people in the National Capital Region (NCR).
Union agriculture minister Narendra Singh Tomar on Sunday clarified that the government has no plans to bring back the recently repealed farm laws, and urged farmers to be wary of 'confusion' being created by the Congress on this issue.
"We would conduct the rally on some different day," Bhartiya Kisan Union Rakesh Tikait said.
Tikait said the farmers are ready to talk with the government on the farm laws but made it clear that the discussions should be held without conditions.
The President's assent to these bills comes amid the Opposition criticising the manner in which they were passed in Parliament.
The prime minister appealed to people not to panic, saying thronging shops will pose the risk of spread of COVID-19. 'There is absolutely no need to panic; the Centre and states will work together to ensure availability of essential commodities, medicines, etc,' he said.
In a relief to pharma majors, the Delhi high court today held as "illegal and unsustainable" the Centre's decision to put a ceiling on the price of condoms, including the luxury variety.
'A perception has been built in our country that whatever Modi says you cannot challenge that.'
While reforms may translate into new opportunities for firms like ITC, Adani Wilmar and Reliance Retail, farmers are unlikely to use it for fear of upsetting commission agents.
Opposition parties have alleged that the two agriculture Bills will undermine the safety net provided to the farmers by the MSP system and will lead to their exploitation by big companies.
Union minister Narendra Singh Tomar on Sunday reiterated that the Centre was ready to talk to the farmers protesting against the new agriculture laws, and said that mere gathering of crowd does not lead to revocation of legislations.
