New Delhi: Senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader LK Advani has called for the rejection of the JPC draft report on 2G spectrum allocation scam. He also said the BJP will bring up the issue in the second phase of the Budget Session, which is beginning on Monday. The Opposition alliance - NDA - which is miffed at the contents of the leaked JPC report, also questioned how the panel...
01:09 PM, Apr 21, 2013
Washington: Finance Minister P Chidambaram on Saturday refused to comment on the JPC draft report which gives him a clean chit in the 2G scam, saying that he has "never been concerned" about the allegations. "I have never been concerned about these allegations. In fact my concern has been the fraction of the media's concern," he told a select group of journalists here. The Joint Parliamentary Committee has given a...
01:41 PM, Apr 20, 2013
Washington: Increasing Foreign Direct Investment in the insurance sector is top priority for the ruling UPA, Finance Minister P Chidambaram said on Saturday, hoping that a bill to address the issue will be passed in the upcoming Parliament session. Responding to questions at the Peterson Institute, Chidambaram appreciated the efforts of the insurance industry in reaching out to the opposition parties and hoped that this would help the political parties...
01:31 PM, Apr 20, 2013
Washington: Finance Minister P Chidambaram on Friday said the three stimulus packages India had provided to the economy in the wake of the global financial crisis post 2008-09 lead to a higher fiscal deficit, inflation and slowdown in growth. He said the government is going to take more steps on the supply side to bring down the inflation and ensure 7 per cent growth rate in 2014. The three stimulus...
03:10 AM, Apr 20, 2013
The JPC on the 2G spectrum scam on Thursday gave a clean chit to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Finance Minister P Chidambaram, saying that the duo was not informed of the change in policy by the then telecom minister A Raja. Do newspaper accounts of the JPC draft report suggest it is both controversial and unlikely to be formally adopted by the committee? ...
10:39 PM, Apr 19, 2013
Bangalore: Questioning the clean chit given by the Joint Parliamentary Committee to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on 2G spectrum allocation, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Arun Jaitley on Friday accused Congress of using the JPC to "subvert" the truth. Jaitley said former Telecom Minister A Raja's correspondence with the Prime Minister made it clear that Singh and the then Finance Minister (P Chidambaram) were fully in the loop of...
04:50 PM, Apr 19, 2013
New Delhi: Former telecom minister A Raja accused in the 2G scam has said that he took all decisions in the spectrum allocation in consultation with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Responding to the Joint Parliamentary Committee clean chit to Manmohan Singh and then finance minister P Chidambaram, Raja said he will send a detailed report to the JPC. "I did everything in consultation with the Prime Minister. I have full...
01:46 PM, Apr 19, 2013
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11:22 PM, Apr 18, 2013
The Joint Parliamentary Committee on the 2G spectrum scam on Thursday gave a clean chit to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Finance Minister P Chidambaram, saying that the duo was not informed of the change in policy by the then telecom minister A Raja. ...
11:18 PM, Apr 18, 2013
The Joint Parliamentary Committee on the 2G spectrum scam on Thursday gave a clean chit to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Finance Minister P Chidambaram, saying that the duo was not informed of the change in policy by the then telecom minister A Raja. ...
09:11 PM, Apr 18, 2013
New Delhi: The Joint Parliamentary Committee on the 2G spectrum scam on Thursday gave a clean chit to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Finance Minister P Chidambaram, saying that the duo was not informed of the change in policy by the then telecom minister A Raja. The JPC report said that the 2G spectrum was allocated on 'first come, first serve' policy and that norms were tweaked to favour a...
08:06 PM, Apr 18, 2013
New York: Asserting that India can absorb $50 billion foreign investment annually, Finance Minister P Chidambaram has said the downturn in Indian economy was temporary and growth will return to 8 per cent in two years. Acknowledging the largeness of the current account deficit (CAD) at around 5 per cent of GDP in 2012-13, he said the government had no timelines or targets in mind for bringing it down. He...
11:51 AM, Apr 18, 2013
Boston: Vowing to deliver on the fiscal roadmap, Finance Minister P Chidambaram has expressed confidence that elections are not a hitch in carrying out reforms including fuel price adjustments. Addressing an investor meet hosted by Citi Group in Boston, he said while fiscal deficit will be reduced by 60 basis points each year, the current account deficit (CAD) will be narrowed by raising exports. Citi said in a note after...
06:16 PM, Apr 17, 2013
Toronto: Finance Minister P Chidambaram arrived in Toronto on Monday on a two-day visit aimed at attracting Canadian investment in the infrastructure sector. He is being accompanied by top finance ministry and central bank officials, official sources said on Sunday. Finance Minister will kicks off the India investment roadshows in Toronto on Tuesday. He has conducted similar roadshows in major global financial hubs that included Japan, Hong Kong, Germany and...
10:15 AM, Apr 15, 2013
New Delhi: Finance Minister P Chidambaram will seek to drum up foreign investment from the United States and Canada this week to fund a record high current account deficit, even as policymakers debate the risks of over-reliance on foreign investors to finance the gap. As Chidambaram kicks off a week-long North America trip, his officials are working on a series of steps to attract at least $20 billion in new...
04:59 PM, Apr 14, 2013
New Delhi: Finance Minister P Chidambaram is embarking on a week long visit to Canada and the US on Sunday to sell India's growth story to foreign investors and participate in the World Bank/IMF spring meetings in Washington. During his tour, he is expected to talk about the recent steps taken by the government to speed up large projects and measures to bring down fiscal deficit. With India facing high...
06:24 PM, Apr 13, 2013
New Delhi: India's industrial output rose at a meagre 0.6 per cent in February against an expansion of 4.3 per cent in the corresponding month of 2011-12, government data showed on Friday. Barring consumer goods, all other sectors of the industrial output basket declined. The performances of the mining, electricity and consumer non-durables sectors were disappointing, indicating the continuing slowdown in Asia's third largest economy. The industrial output, as measured...
09:58 PM, Apr 12, 2013
New Delhi: Finance Minister P Chidambaram on Friday asked banks to gear up for the rollout of direct cash subsidy scheme to cooking gas (LPG) consumers throughout the country. "I have asked them (bankers) to get ready for the rollout of LPG for the whole country," Chidambaram told reporters after a meeting with senior PSU bankers in New Delhi. As a pilot project, the government has decided to give cash...
07:43 PM, Apr 12, 2013
New Delhi: The Finance Ministry on Friday made a strong case for rating upgrade of Indian economy by global agency Fitch on the back of increasing investments, declining import of gold and government's commitment to fiscal prudence. The issue of rating upgrade was raised by Finance Ministry officials at a meeting with the representatives of Fitch here. The meeting was attended by Department of Economic Affairs Secretary Arvind Mayaram, among...
04:53 PM, Apr 12, 2013
New Delhi: Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia on Wednesday said the benchmark price for spectrum auction is "unrealistic" and favoured lowering of reserve price as the previous two attempts to sell airwaves were "unsuccessful". "Spectrum is a national resource. We had two unsuccessful attempts to auction it. It's quite clear that reserve price is too high. "What actually I suggested is that we have a choice, we can...
01:07 AM, Apr 11, 2013
