New Delhi: Prime Minister's Economic Advisory Council Chairman C Rangarajan said that the government should consider decontrolling diesel prices to keep petroleum subsides at the budgetary level. "I think some action will be required on diesel deregulation in order to keep petroleum subsides at the budgetary level," said PMEAC chairman Rangarajan. "Some policy decisions will be required, I think finance minister Pranab Mukherjee must be referring to that (diesel deregulation)...,"...
09:01 AM, Mar 28, 2012
New Delhi: The Prime Minister's economic advisory panel on Wednesday projected 7.5 - 8 per cent growth rate for the next fiscal and said the country can achieve a higher economic expansion if the global environment turns favourable. "We might be able to achieve 8 per cent growth on our esteem... if the world environment is favourable, we will be able to achieve high growth rate," the Chairman of the...
12:16 PM, Feb 22, 2012
Mumbai: Taj Hotels Resorts and Palaces on Monday said several hotels from its portfolio have been rated as best in Asia and the world in the TripAdvisor Traveler's Choice Awards 2012. Not only does Taj Lake Palace, Udaipur steal the show as being the best hotel in Asia and ranking 16th in the world, it also ranks second for the best service in the country, Taj Hotels Resorts and Palaces...
10:53 PM, Jan 30, 2012
New Delhi: The fresh round of India-China Special Representative talks, which were postponed in November after the Chinese protested the Dalai Lama's scheduled participation in a programme in New Delhi, will now be held on January 16-17 in the capital. In a statement issued on Saturday, the Ministry of External Affairs said the Indian delegation to the talks will be led by National Security Advisor Shivshankar Menon while the Chinese...
12:16 PM, Jan 14, 2012
Kolkata: The recent deflation in food prices is expected to continue for the next few weeks, following which a scenario of low inflation in food prices will be witnessed from February, Chief Economic Advisor Kaushik Basu said on Saturday. "The deflation in food prices could continue for a couple of weeks and in February, we will see low inflation," Basu said on the sidelines of the Amlan Dutta Memorial Lecture...
09:59 PM, Jan 07, 2012
Washington: Indian American lawyer Preeta Bansal, who was an adviser to Barack Obama's presidential campaign before serving in the administration, has been appointed to a key administration post. Preeta Bansal has been appointed Member of the Advisory Council of the Administrative Conference of the United States, the White House said in a statement, which also announced the appointment of Boris Bershteyn to the same position. "I am proud to appoint...
10:16 AM, Dec 08, 2011
Yet again, in 2011, Sonia Gandhi features in the top 20 of the Forbes Power list. How did a girl, born in a small town in northern Italy, rise to the position of being one of the most influential people in the world - and stay there, year after year? Having established an unassailable position in the Indian National Congress Party, she is now empowering her son Rahul with more...
02:38 PM, Nov 29, 2011
London: A leading organisation espousing the cause of Indian and non-EU professionals has strongly opposed the recommendation of a key committee that the salary threshold for professionals seeking to permanently settle in the UK be raised considerably. Raising the threshold as recommended by the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) will make thousands of Indian and non-EU professionals working here ineligible for permanent settlement, which is called the Indefinite Leave to Remain...
05:36 PM, Nov 07, 2011
New Delhi: National Advisory Council (NAC) Member NC Saxena has defended the petrol price hike by saying it will not have any major impact on inflation. However, some experts are of the opinion that it was unwarranted. "The impact of hike in petrol prices on inflation will be marginal. Our transport system entirely depends on diesel. Petrol is consumed by 5 per cent of India's population. They are the people...
03:11 PM, Nov 06, 2011
New York: Leonardo DiCaprio is the latest Hollywood star to move into social media after signing up as an advisor for a start-up company. The 36-year-old actor's new role will see him advise bosses at Mobli, a visual media firm which was introduced to him by a friend while the technology was still being tested several months ago, reported Huffington Post. "Leo is not a tech guy and we're not...
02:58 PM, Oct 27, 2011
New Delhi: After five countries, including Australia had asked its citizens to avoid travelling to India, the Central Government has stepped in, after the Tourism Ministry asked the Ministry of External Affairs (MoEA) to take up the issue. Raising the travel advisory issue with Australia, Minister of External Affairs SM Krishna has asked his Australian counterpart Kevin Rudd to withdraw the advisory and noted that the language could cause panic...
11:34 AM, Oct 26, 2011
New Delhi: The Government has decided to protest after five countries - The US, UK, Canada, Australia and New Zealand - have issued advisories against travel to India during the festive season for security reasons. The Government has protested saying such advisories are done to defame India. Minister of State for Tourism Subodh Kant Sahay said the matter will be taken up with appropriate authorities. The ostensible reason for the...
09:13 AM, Oct 25, 2011
New Delhi: The National Advisory Council, led by UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi, is set to meet on Friday to discuss the pre-legislative process for making law on a proposed program for urban poor. The meet is also likely to discuss some issues concerning child labour and the denotification of tribals. This will be the first meeting of the NAC since Sonia's recovery from ill-health. ...
07:27 AM, Oct 21, 2011
Chennai: In an apparent criticism of social activist Anna Hazare and his protest for passage of Jan Lokpal bill, National Advisory Committee member Aruna Roy on Thursday said "people cannot make a law" and it had to be done by a drafting committee. "Law has to be looked at in detail. If you change one comma or one fullstop a right becomes no right. People can demand a law, people...
05:54 PM, Sep 08, 2011
New York: With investors falling in and out love with Wall Street at a rapid pace, some financial advisers are finding themselves playing a new role -- that of marriage counselor. In general, people don't appear to agree about one of the most critical investment decisions of their married life: How they plan to retire. Advisers say they often find themselves in the middle of financial misunderstandings. A key reason:...
07:00 PM, Sep 06, 2011
Washington: US President Barack Obama on Monday nominated Alan Krueger, the Princeton University economist, as his top adviser to boost the country's economy ahead of the 2012 presidential election. 50-year-old Krueger was designated the chairman of the Council of Economic Advisers (CEA), which is a three-member body to advise the president on economic matters. "Alan understands the difficult challenges our country faces, and I have confidence that he will help...
08:55 PM, Aug 29, 2011
New Delhi: Chief Economic Advisor Kaushik Basu on Tuesday said the sharp rise in interest rates by RBI was unexpected, but the difficult decision was needed to rein in inflation which is nearing double digit. He said both the Government as well as RBI are working together to check inflation. "We (Ministry of Finance and RBI) are trying to make synchronised move," Basu said, when asked whether the government was...
10:27 PM, Jul 26, 2011
New Delhi: Amid a raging controversy over land acquisition norms, Government has firmed up the draft of a new bill which makes consent of 80 per cent of land owners mandatory before purchase of land. The new draft Acquisition Bill, which is expected to be unveiled in the next few days, includes recommendations of Sonia Gandhi-led National Advisory Council (NAC) and goes even a step further. "In many ways it...
06:13 PM, Jul 24, 2011
Washington: Osama bin Laden "had some sort of support mechanism" while operating out of Pakistan for six years, a top White House official has said, even as he reiterated that there is no evidence so far which indicates that the top leadership in the country knew about it. "The fact is that Osama Bin Laden operated out of Abbottabad, Pakistan for six years or so, in an operational role, leading...
09:50 AM, Jul 04, 2011
New Delhi: Rejecting the recommendations of the Forest Advisory Committee, Environment Ministry on Thursday gave its approval to open up Tara, Parsa East and Kante Basan coal-blocks in the Hasdeo-Arand forest region of Chhattisgarh. In an order, Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh said he "disagrees with the final recommendations" of the FAC, which advised him to reject the proposals made by the Chhattisgarh government to open up the coal-blocks, and "decided...
05:01 PM, Jun 23, 2011
