Consumers will thank the Modi government for this simple yet revolutionary move, which is long overdue, says Debashis Basu.
There are justifiable concerns that, if all financial allocation powers are now shifted to the finance ministry, then the end of the Commission might be counter-productive -- states' needs could, in fact, be addressed less.
If India has more billionaires than before, it is because the Indian economy began to look more attractive to FIIs, notes T N Ninan.
A combative Rahul Gandhi asked how the govt allowed liquor baron Vijay Mallya, who owes over Rs 9,000 crore to banks, to leave the country.
If oil prices stay at their new level of $72 or drop further, India will be in the happy position next year of enjoying a surplus on the trade account.
The BJP threw a counter punch, claiming that the Gandhi family tried to help Mallya's floundering Kingfisher Airlines in 2011-12.
Former India captain Bishan Singh Bedi is well aware that it is a near-impossible task for him to beat Sneh Bansal in the Delhi & Districts Cricket Association's presidential elections on December 30, but he is not ready to go down without a fight against the "shameful activities" of the current regime.
A Ganesh Nadar/Rediff.com speaks to common folk in Tamil Nadu about whether they will invest in Arun Jaitley's gold monetisation scheme. Their reactions will not make the Union finance minister happy.
The forthcoming budget is an excellent opportunity for the Government to fulfill its promise of high economic growth.
The Delhi and District Cricket Association again strongly refuted the AAP's allegations of financial bungling by its former chief, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, saying the charges are completely baseless and without substance.
Mihir S Sharma outlines why this year's Union Budget does not respond to the needs of India's economy, or attempt to frame the economy's future.
Businessmen love low import duties on their inputs and high duties on their outputs. And the Bharatiya Janata Party has a keen ear for business sentiment.
The need to allow government shareholding in public sector banks to come down below 51 per cent
Downplaying the allegations made by the Congress and former French President Francois Hollande's statement that the Indian government played a role in finalising Reliance Defence as Dassault Aviation's offset partner, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Sunday said that some statements are made to create controversy and these do not have credibility. In an exclusive interview to ANI, Jaitley added that circumstances and fact prove these statements wrong.
There was a leadership crisis in the Board of Control for Cricket in India following the passing away of former chief Jagmohan Dalmiya, forcing the wise men in control of the all-powerful sports body to get into a huddle and recall Shashank Manohar to helm the Board yet again, four years after he had finished off his first term.
'Till the time the MSM and Modi don't trust one another, expect more Nirmala Sitharamans springing out from nowhere,' says Sudhir Bisht.
The Amritsar Lok Sabha battle is getting more and more personal. Congress candidate and former Chief Minister Amarinder Singh says merely being a Punjabi does not give his Bharatiya Janata Party rival Arun Jaitley the right to contest from Amritsar and he does not know anything about the place.
'In the final analysis, all Budgets everywhere are like the schemes hatched by A A Milne's lovable Winnie-the-Pooh.' 'They may be well-intended, but often go awry.' 'Although Pooh and his friends agree that he 'has very little brain', he is occasionally acknowledged to have a clever idea, usually driven by common sense.' 'This Budget at a first glance does not appear to belong to that latter category,' says economist Shreekant Sambrani.
The Budget decides to take the lead in revving up infrastructure.
With wages rapidly rising in China, all is still not lost. Wage costs in India are significantly lower and this fact could still help us turn the tide in our favour.
This was a very strong position and was criticised by many, both from the developed and developing world.
This Budget plans for an increase to 10.3% of GDP from 9.9%.
Shifting to a PPP model could repeat the errors of the past
The Budget sets out a comprehensive vision.
Mr Rahul Gandhi himself has given seven different prices in different speeches with regard to the Rafale, that is the 2007 offer.
'Soft power is the power really to win friends and influence people with the strength of your ideas.' 'India's greatest soft power is being India itself. A nation of varied beliefs, states, creeds, castes, languages and yet embodying that spirit of unity in diversity.'
The fiscal deficit of the Centre remains a worry, running at over 6.5 per cent of GDP in April-September 2014, mainly because of revenue shortfalls from exaggerated projections in the government's July Budget and despite the relief on subsidies from lower oil prices.
'The chair is a referee in a match, whether this side is playing better or that side is playing worse is no concern of the chair.'
'Let us also not expect that there will be a clean break with the past, much though the new government might like to think about it. In a functional democracy that is neither feasible nor desirable. But basic change it must be,' says Shreekant Sambrani.
Eminent business journalist and author Tamal Bandyopadhyay discussed Budget with rediff.com readers on Tuesday.
The industry's reactions to the Budget have been mixed.
'Give time to the 2013 Act to work. I not only think that the 2013 law is workable, I believe that the 2013 law is a compromise, a balanced middle path and protects the interests of land owners and livelihood losers.'
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