The inflation rate touched a 13-year high of 11.05 per cent for the week ended June 7, 2008. The big question now is: will the projected above-normal monsoon this year result in a bumper kharif harvest and a softening of food prices? Says B.P. Yadav, Director, Indian Meteorological Department: "We are anticipating a regular monsoon season this year with surplus rains in some parts of the country.'

Call it a quirk of fate. When B.S. Yeddyurappa took oath as the Chief Minister of Karnataka's first BJP government on May 30, 2008, he did so in the name of the farmer. He knew he owed his present position to him. The first decision of his Cabinet was also seen as pro-farmer: the government announced that it would not charge them for the electricity sold to power irrigation pumpsets. However, a few days later, when his police opened fire to control a mob of violent protestors, the first victim, Siddalingappa Choori (35), was a farmer. Several others were wounded.

Environmental performance in Indian corporate is typically an ad-hoc and restricted to compliance aspects, however NMDC Limited follows a proactive approach instead of compliance approach. The likely environmental impacts of the mining activities and other allied activities are assessed prior to the commissioning of the production in the mines.

There's a myth amongst urbanites that solar energy is more suited for rural applications. While acknowledging the fact that solar energy has contributed significantly to build rural infrastructure, it can in the same vein impact the urban populace and corporates. The impact would be evident in the coming years as the relevance of energy security gains in importance.

Last year, India imported 121.67 million tonnes (MT) of crude

In the last few months there have been more than a few instances of sparring between the different state governments and the central government. So, if the Jaipur blasts became a bone of political contention about crucial intelligence reports, West Bengal becomes an election battleground where the allies at the Centre took pot shots at each other over the bungling of land acquisition for industrial purposes.

India has emerged as the second-largest seller of carbon credits in the world, with a 6 per cent market share in 2007. China tops the list with a huge 73 per cent share, according to a recent World Bank report.

It's almost a replay of the 1973 oil shock. Even though the circumstances behind the current price rise, and even the rise itself, are less dramatic than in 1973, the impact is no less debilitating, particularly for India. Crude prices are now ruling at $135 (Rs 5,805) per barrel levels, as a result of supply worries, burgeoning global demand and the weakening of the dollar. Investment bank Goldman Sachs has predicted that oil prices will soon hit $200 (Rs 8,600) per barrel.

For a beleaguered UPA government, increasingly under fire from the Left and the Opposition over galloping inflation, the sharp rise in global crude oil prices couldn't have come at a more inopportune time.

The tribals est the sleepy village of Kalyandi in Jharkhand depend on fish farming for living. However, till last year, the hectic activity would come to a grinding halt in May. The reason: non-availability of water in the ponds. This May, fish farming is on in full swing and the ponds are swarming with fish