Agriculture
Sign of the times?
WHETHER it is a reflection of the values of the times or a transient impulse arising out of a sense of solidarity, of all persons, Dr M. S. Swaminathan, regarded as a role-model in setting standards, has been quick to take up cudgels again st the Government for removing Dr R. S. Paroda from the posts of Director-General of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) and Secretary, Department of Agricultural Research and Extension (DARE). It is surprising because Dr S waminathan is known for being extremely circumspect and keeping his cool, even in the most provocative situations.

American Periscope
Problems with corn tarnishes biotech dreams
FRIENDS of the Earth is one of those NGOs who you would mentally associate with protesting outside WTO, World Bank, and bodies like that. Yet, in September, they launched a protest that has been snowballing in the US market. They complained that taco she lls (a stiff, folded tortilla or chapathi made from corn and used in Mexican dishes) made by Kraft Foods and sold by Taco Bell contained a genetically modified form of corn that had not been approved for human consumption.

Editorial
FDI impediments
PREDICTABLY, THE WORLD Economic Forum (WEF) director, Ms Colette Mathur, has reiterated the same old reasons for the impediments to the smooth flow of foreign direct investments (FDI) into India.

Insurance
Competition in insurance sector -- Will LIC still be market leader?
Change is not the same as transition. Change is the destination. Transition is the journey. -- William Bridges

Power
SEBs' unviability -- Privatisation, the remedy
THE OBJECTIVE behind the enactment of the Electricity (Supply) Act, 1948, to facilitate the coordinated development of electricity on a regional basis and transgressing geographical boundaries by investing significant powers in State Electricity Boards (SEBs), has not been translated into reality.

Textiles
New Textile Policy -- Blow to the employment objective
ON NOVEMBER 2, the Government announced the New Textile Policy (NTP), outlining measures to make India a global player in textiles and readymade garments by raising exports from $11 billion to $50 billion by 2010. Of this, the share of readymade garments will be half. The Government has decided to dereserve the garment industry from the SSI category to make the former internationally more competitive. Till now, the garment sector was under SSI reservation, with an investment ceiling of Rs 3 crore, and t he maximum foreign direct investment limit of 24 per cent.

Page One | Index | Home