An emergency meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs (CCPA) convened by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Tuesday night took no decision on the vexed Telengana.
Amid fresh controversy over the Indian Premier League, the Nationalist Congress Party on Mobday dismissed demands for the resignation of Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar, dubbing as "absurd" reports that he was holding shares in the Royal Challengers Bangalore.
"Our efforts will be to maintain four per cent agriculture growth this year and beyond that if monsoon cooperates," Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar said in New Delhi.
Raising questions over "conflict of interest" if a minister is a member of a cricket body, the Bombay High Court on Wednesday directed impleading the Union Government in a PIL seeking levy of entertainment tax on Indian Premier League matches and allowed making Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar a party to the case.
In a veiled attack on Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Arun Jaitley, Bharatiya Janata Party Member of Parliament Maneka Gandhi on Tuesday asked the party why it was shying away from demanding the resignations of Union ministers Sharad Pawar and Praful Patel, for their alleged involvement in the IPL scam. Maneka said Patel and his daughter had flouted so many rules, but still the party had not demanded the minister's resignation.
In the eye of the raging IPL storm, Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar on Saturday rubbished the charge that his party or ministerial colleague Praful Patel was involved in any alleged wrongdoing relating to the T20 league.
With the opposition set to rake up the telephone tapping issue in Parliament, Government on Saturday said the issue was being 'examined.'
Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar said the government finds it difficult to balance the responsibility of giving better price to farmers and at the same time providing food grains at cheaper rates to poor people.
Food and Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar on Thursday said the country's sugar output in the current season could exceed 16 million tonnes (MT) on the back of improved yields in key growing states.
An relenting opposition on Wednesday kept the pressure on the government in the Rajya Sabha on the spiraling prices alleging scam in sugar imports, a charge rejected by Food and Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar.
The Supreme Court made it clear on Tuesday that it had ordered free distribution of foodgrains to the poor instead of allowing it to rot and rejected Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar's contention that it was a suggestion which cannot be implemented.
A bench of Justices Dalveer Bhandari and Dipak Verma referring to newspaper reports that the Union Minister had claimed there was no such order, clarified that it did pass such an order.
The Congress has also asked the prime minister's office to co-ordinate better with various ministries over the issue of inflation.
Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh will meet the chief secretaries of all states in New Delhi on Saturday to discuss the drought-like situation in the country.The meeting will be attended by Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar and Cabinet Secretary K M Chandrasekhar. Issues like the status of monsoon, the sowing operation in the ongoing kharif season and the availability of vital farm inputs like seeds, fertilisers, water and electricity will be reviewed.
When the industrial crisis engulfed developed countries and the financial meltdown became a major financial crisis all over the world, it had its worst impact, the minister said adding that credit is required for investment, for carrying business and using it for productive purposes.
Union Minister Sharad Pawar, whose recent meeting with Shiv Sena supremo Bal Thackeray left ally Congress fuming, firmly told the Shiv Sena not to impose its authority, as he hailed Mumbaikars for defying the Sena's protests against My Name is Khan .
A day after Union Minister Sharad Pawar met Bal Thackeray requesting him to withdraw its threat against Australian cricketers' participation in Indian Premier League, Shiv Sena on Monday said it would take a final call on the issue in two-three days
NCP president and Union Agriculture minister Sharad Pawar met Shiv Sena supremo Bal Thackeray on Sunday to discuss the Sena's opposition to inclusion of Pakistan and Australia players in the third edition of the IPL.
Virtually cocking a snook at the Congress Working Committee which had criticised Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar failing to control the price rise, Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh praised the Pawar for doing a splendid job. The praise came just a day after the CWC meeting, when the prime minister addressed the chief ministers during a conclave on price rise.
Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar on Thursday brushed off all allegations and reiterated his support for the introduction of Bt brinjal. He asserted that the introduction of the genetically modified brinjal can take place as it has been recommended by Genetic Engineering Approval Committee (GEAC), a scientific body, after carrying out a series of trials and tests on its impact on nature.
Of the foodgrains damaged, 9,141 tonnes was rice while 2,486 tonnes was wheat.
Replying to supplementaries during Question Hour, Food and Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar said the government would follow an inclusive policy wherein both APL and below poverty line families will get foodgrains at cheaper rates. He added that the annual subsidy burden on the government would come around to Rs 50,000 crore.
Blaming Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar for the unprecedented rise in price of food and other essential commodities, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati on Wednesday demanded his immediate removal from the post.
The Bandra-Worli Sea Link, which was inaugurated by United Progressive Alliance chairperson Sonia Gandhi in Mumbai on Tuesday, will be named as Rajiv Gandhi Setu.
Coming down heavily on the Centre for rise in prices of essential commodities, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on Thursday said Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's announcement to convene a meeting on the issue was like "starting digging a well to extinguish the fire".
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Monday termed Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar's recent statement that sugar prices will be high for the next three years, as 'irresponsible.'
Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar on Friday said that the decline in prices of most agricultural commodities in coming weeks will bring down the food inflation, which is 12.63 per cent now.
The meeting was earlier planned to discuss price rise and formulate an action plan to combat it. But as Union agriculture, food and civil supplies minister Sharad Pawar is in Maharashtra and Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee is camping in Kolkata, the meeting has been rescheduled for October 19.
Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar's daughter Supriya Sule sprang to her family's defence, saying none of her relatives has anything to do with any of the Indian Premier League franchises.
The 10-member GoM headed by external affairs minister and finance minister Pranab Mukherjee will include defence minister A K Antony, Home Minister P Chidambaram, agriculture minister Sharad Pawar, communications minister A Raja, railway minister Lalu Prasad, chemical and fertilisers minister Ram Vilas Paswan, law and justice minister H R Bhardwaj, minister of state for external affairs Anand Sharma and planning commission deputy chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia.
Former Maharashtra CM accepts that advocate Ram Jethmalani had come with an offer of Dawood's surrender.
With the Left parties' withdrawal of support from the Manmohan Singh led United Progressive Alliance creating a political uncertainty at the Centre, some leaders have started efforts to woo Telangana Rashtra Samiti president K Chandrasekhara Rao, to secure his support for the beleaguered coalition."I told him clearly that we will extend support to the UPA only if the government announces the formation of Telangana state," Rao told reporters in Hyderabad.
Shiv Sena working president Uddhav Thackeray had a hush-hush meeting with Nationalist Congress Party president and Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar on Tuesday night at the Pawars's official residence in New Delhi.
The issue of austerity measures came up at the meeting of the Union Cabinet on Thursday with ministers seeking clarification on the economy drive launched by the government.The issue came up for an impromptu discussion when the Cabinet gave its approval to hike the Dearness Allowance for central government employees from 22 per cent to 27 per cent.
In an exclusive interview with rediff.com's Onkar Singh on Wednesday, Chaturvedi spoke at length about the allegations. Excerpts:
Acknowledging that the situation regarding prices of food items is serious, the government said on Friday it was taking long and short term measures and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will soon convene a meeting of chief ministers to address the problem.
"It is not all right to arrive at the conclusion that the entire Pune city has been targetted," Pawar said, adding that the place where the blast took place was an isolated area.
Charging the Centre of not doing anything to check the prices of essential commodities, the Bharatiya Janata Party said the increase was not just due to bad management but also a result of corruption.
The next time you wonder about how the Congress party can get away with arrogance, just look at the BJP.
Under attack for his recent observations on price rise, Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar wondered as to how his ministry could be linked with the issue.
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