India for the first time has said that the Maoists are getting arms from China, which is a "big supplier" of small weapons.
India has lifted the ban on importing Chinese toys imposed in January, but retained the safety standards for consignments from China. Pillai said he has assured the Chinese vice-minister that India is in the process broadbasing the safety norms for imports from all countries.
The BoA, headed by Commerce Secretary G K Pillai, will consider granting formal clearances to Mukesh Ambani-promoted Navi Mumbai Special Economic Zone and Hindalco aluminium SEZ in Orissa.
The finance ministry is considering a suggestion by the Commerce Ministry to enhance duty neutralisation rates to make up for revenue lost by exporters due to sharp appreciation in the rupee.
However, the board of approval in the commerce ministry asked the DLF to return all the tax sops it had taken from the Centre before its SEZs in Gujarat, West Bengal, Orissa and Haryana could be denotified. The BoA, headed by commerce secretary G K Pillai, also allowed more time to the K Raheja group to build its tax-free zones in Goa, Hyderabad and Navi Mumbai, an official said.
The government on Friday cleared seven co-developers in Mukesh Ambani-promoted Navi Mumbai SEZs, thus endorsing fresh investment through private equity players by a key partner of the Reliance Industries chairman, Mukesh Ambani.
The Board of Approval on Tuesday cleared 10 special economic zone proposals, including three Mukesh Ambani-promoted IT zones in Navi Mumbai.
Taking a hard knock in the recession-hit US and other major markets, India's exports nose-dived by 22 per cent in January, dashing all hopes of a recovery riding on the December figures.
Russia had imposed a complete ban on import of these commodities originating from India citing poor quality with affect from May 1, 2007.
The talks are being held in Brussels between high-level delegations from India and EU, led by Commerce Secretary G K Pillai and Director General of European Commission Davis O'Sullivan.
India's trade with China will touch the 100-billion dollar mark in the next five years, coming close to bilateral trade target with the European Union by 2013.
An appreciation in the rupee has severely affected exports. India's exports are not likely to meet the FY08 target.
Within a fortnight of Commerce Secretary G K Pillai talking about a possible relaxation of cap on land size for SEZs, Commerce and Industry Minister Kamal Nath said on Tuesday there was no proposal to change the 5,000 hectare ceiling prescribed by a group of ministers. However, the Centre would look at specific proposals from states once the Resettlment and Rehabilitation Policy is implemented, he said.
The government may look at relaxing 5,000 hectare-ceiling on land for Special Economic Zones once the the Land Acquisition Act is in place, commerce secretary G K Pillai said on Monday. "Now that the new Relief & Rehabilitation policy has come into being, the government may think of relaxing the upper limit of 5,000 hectares for SEZs (once the land acquisition law is enacted), he said on the sidelines of the India Economic Summit.
"We have always said if the WTO Director General feels there is a chance for (another) opening, then we will be prepared to come again to Geneva," Commerce Secretary G K Pillai told reporters on the sidelines of a Ficci-CUTS conference in New Delhi. A marathon meeting of 30 trade ministers failed to reach a common ground when they met in Geneva between July 21-29 on an issue of the level of protection for developing countries in case of import surge.
Not the one to give up hope, WTO Director General Pascal Lamy is visiting India next week to find ways for picking up the threads from last month's failed trade talks in Geneva.
BoA has given formal approval to 15 special economic zones, including those of TCS and Cognizant, and in-principle nod to five, Commerce Secretary and BoA Chairman G K Pillai told reporters after the meeting in New Delhi.
India and Japan will next month sign an agreement for a dedicated rail freight corridor connecting Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata, which will significantly reduce the time taken for transporting goods from one metro to another.
Faced by criticism on its special economic zone policy, the government is preparing guidelines for acquisition of land from farmers for setting up SEZs.
The government on Monday approved the proposals of Reliance Industries, Wipro, Hewlett Packard and Biocon to set up Special Economic Zones -- a move that is expected to generate at least 67,000 jobs by March 2006.
India and Russia will set up a joint task force to boost bilateral trade to a level of $10 billion by 2010 from the present $2billion, a senior official of the Indian government has said.
The country's industrial growth in first 7 months of FY'09 stands at 4.1 per cent as against 9.9 per cent. Manufacturing output in October also declines by 1.2 per cent. Only earlier this month, the government sought to rescue manufacturers by announcing an across-the-board (barring petroleum goods) four per cent cut in excise duty.
Reflecting the enthusiasm among private companies for setting up special economic zones, the board of approval for SEZs will consider over 100 proposals on March 17 - its first meeting since the implementation of SEZ Act and Rules last month.
The government has approved a Rs 675 crore (Rs 6.75 Special Economic Zone by Finnish telecom major Nokia near Chennai.
Former Union Home Secretary RK Singh is expected to join the Bharatiya Janata Party on Friday afternoon.
Singh said the nation and the society as a whole are gradually getting conditioned to look at things in the eye instead of getting confused by duplicities.
The panel's claim assumes significance as it was Pillai, few months ago, who alleged that Chidambaram as home minister 'bypassed him' and had rewritten the affidavit.
With the Lodha Committee seeking direction from the Supreme Court on appointment of former Union Home Secretary GK Pillai as observer to "guide" BCCI, the top brass of the board are unaware as to how the process of awarding nearly 100 pending tenders will be carried out.
Former Home Secretary G K Pillai's remarks on affidavit regarding LeT links of Ishrat Jahan on Friday triggered a political war of words with Congress questioning the timing of his claims and alleging that he was only parroting the ruling BJP's words.
"The inquiry committee was set up not to implicate anyone but to find the missing files," he said amidst allegations that the National Democratic Alliance government set up the panel to find faults in the previous United Progressive Alliance government.
Singh, now a Bharatiya Janata Party member of Parliament from Bihar, said what was the reason for the change of the affidavit when the Intelligence Bureau had said that Ishrat had links with Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists.
Without naming P Chidambaram, he charged the then home minister with giving "colour" to terrorism by coining the term 'saffron terror'.
Rahul Khullar's guiding credo was that a civil servant must never lose sight of his client: The little guy. The evil men are those who are decision-makers but abdicate their responsibility of taking decisions, leading people to lose confidence in public institutions.
In a rare instance, the home ministry has asked a right of information applicant to prove he is an Indian before disclosing details about the one-member panel looking into the missing files related to the alleged fake encounter case of Ishrat Jahan.
The Supreme Court on Friday adjourned the hearing regarding the Justice (Retd.) R.M Lodha-led committee's recommendations and the Board of Control for Cricket in India's (BCCI) constant reluctance to accept all recommendations till December 14.
Najeeb Jung on Friday called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a day after springing a surprise by tendering resignation as Delhi's Lt Governor even as he said that he had wanted to quit earlier but was asked by the PM to continue.
Young Shubman Gill was back in form with an unbeaten 66 after India 'A' bowlers set the platform, dismissing South Africa 'A' for 164 on the first day of the Unofficial Test.
Former captain Anil Kumble said that many of the recommendations of the Lodha Committee report would be good for Indian cricket if they are implemented. "Many of the aspects of Justice Lodha recommendations are really good, especially the proposal to form Steering Committee of Players' Association. "If implemented, it will be good for Indian cricket," Kumble told reporters. The Supreme Court-appointed Lodha Panel had recommended the formation of players' association by a four-member steering committee comprising former union home secretary G K Pillai (chairperson) and former India cricketers Mohinder Amarnath, Kumble and Diana Edulji (ex-Indian women's team captain), to raise their concerns.
Conflicting views are emerging over the proposal to ban Sanatan Sanstha, a right wing group allegedly linked to the killing of Govind Pansare.
Former Union Home Secretary G K Pillai on Thursday said that the affidavit submitted to the Gujarat high court in 2009 about Lashkar-e-Taiyba links of Ishrat Jahan and her accomplices, who were killed in an alleged fake encounter in 2004, was changed at the "political level".
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