THE National Advisory Council (NAC), led by Sonia Gandhi, will get down to business this week itself with the Congress leadership finalising a list of 10 members. While four members of the previous NAC

priyadarshi siddhanta

To ensure the widest possible coverage under the proposed Food Security Act, the government has formally begun the process of identifying the number of people living below the poverty line (BPL) in the urban areas also. The Planning Commission has set up a high-level committee to devise a mechanism.

NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Wednesday asked industry leaders, including Ratan Tata and Mukesh Ambani, to reach out to the rural economy and help the government on food security and affirmative action.

Gargi Parsai

NEW DELHI: Thanks to predictions of a good monsoon, Planning Commission member Abhijit Sen has projected a robust growth rate of five per cent from 0.2 per cent in agriculture and allied sectors in 2010-11.

From the earlier estimate of -0.2 per cent last year, the growth rate has been revised to 0.2 per cent.

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Kerala Food and Civil Supplies Minister C. Divakaran has come out strongly against the suggestion of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) that the Union government withdraw from grain procurement, storage and distribution under the Public Distribution System (PDS) and outsource these to private operators.

AMIT AGNIHOTR
NEW DELH

The draft food May 23: The draft food security bill has come in for sharp criticism from experts who have cautioned the government against rushing in with the law guaranteeing food grains to the poor.

After Manipur, it is now the turn of Arunachal Pradesh to complain about scarcity of food items, with the State Government complaining about irregular Public Distribution System (PDS) in the State.