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After seven years in office, the Congress-led UPA Government at the Centre is still seen groping for solutions to basic problems - food, land, affordable prices for the vast mass of the people and raising the social stature of India. This Government has, often citing “coalition compulsions”, failed to deliver governance in quite many areas, with corruption having lately subsumed all other ills in the economy and polity.

NEW DELHI: The UPA-2 government headed by Dr. Manmohan Singh will be facing a confrontationist BJP in the monsoon session of Parliament beginning August 1. The Government had planned a lot of reforms bills for discussions in the session for giving a push to the second phase of reforms in the economy, but the BJP leadership is dead set to stall any move by the Congress to continue normal proceedings of the session.

The four meetings between the prime minister and the Congress president over the cabinet reshuffle coupled with the delay in announcing the names showed that the diarchy wasn’t working smoothly. The relatively uneventful ties between Manmohan Singh and Sonia Gandhi during UPA-I, except for the minor tremors over the nuclear deal, have evidently given way to a more fraught relationship at present.

Haryana’s politico-social scenario is undergoing a change. The regional parties which have been playing an important role in making or breaking state governments have been disappearing from the state’s political scene. The state’s social scenario is witnessing disturbing changes.

NEW DELHI: The Planning Commission has set up a committee to consider bringing down the cap on Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in existing pharmaceutical companies from 100 per cent to 49 per cent under its member Arun Maira. Mr Maira, in its earlier incarnation, was the India head of Boston Consulting Group. The Planning Commission panel will examine the pros and cons of the downward revision of FDI which has already been recommended by an Inter-Ministerial Group (IMG) of the Union Government.

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Oommen Chandy-led United Democratic Front Government seems to have developed an uncanny knack for lurching from controversy to controversy.

KOLKATA: Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has initiated in her own way the process of reconciliation with the Maoists in Junglemahal which is spread over five districts in West Bengal with substantial tribal population. She has given a call to the Maoists to surrender their arms and return to the mainstream of political activities and in return, she will ensure withdrawal of the security forces from the area, once peace is restored.

BHOPAL: The issue of admission of Kashmiri students to the colleges and Universities in Madhya Pradesh has kicked up a fierce controversy. The State government has virtually stopped admitting Kashmiri students to educational institutions in the State. This step has been taken at the insistence of Akhil Bharatiya Vidhyarthi Parishad (ABVP) - the students wing of Bharatiya Janata Party.

It may sound odd but a cup of coffee at a Barista shop or TGIF or Café Coffee Day or Starbucks in India is almost the same, if not more expensive, if compared with that at similar New York or Chicago coffee bars. The only difference is coffee in US coffee bars are testier. Coffee beans are of much higher quality. And, a ‘Regular’ cup in US coffee bars contains larger quantity of beverage as well. Why coffee alone, take any western or popular global brand of any consumer product – from Coke, Pepsi, Big Mac, Don Giovanni pasta, Nike sportswear and Marks & Spencer swim suits to Suzuki, Honda Accord, Ford Fiesta cars, Hitachi air-conditioner and Samsung side-by-side fridge – which are made, assembled and sold in India at global prices.

Andhra Pradesh seems to be heading towards President’s rule. Under the circumstances this could be a way out of the present political crisis. The Central rule for the next six months may cool down the passions of the people who are agitated about a separate Telangana and this period will also give the Centre to think of a stand on the vexed issue. The present chief minister Kiran Reddy has proved to be a disaster and is looking to the Centre for every move.