View Articles

The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has considered the medium-term outlook of Oman as favorable, but noted that the key challenge faced by the authorities over the next few decades was the expected depletion in oil reserves, which necessitated higher public savings and the development of alternative sources of value added.

New York: Smallholders and rural producers have a vital role to play in overcoming global hunger and poverty, and new and varied partnerships are needed, with particular emphasis on the interests of women, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has said.

New Delhi: India and Denmark signed bilateral Social Security Agreement (SSA) here today. The agreement was signed by Dr. A. Didar Singh, Secretary, Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs and Ms Inger Stojberg, Minister for Employment of Denmark. Before the signing, a bilateral meeting was held between the Indian and the Danish delegations to discuss the way forward for implementation of the agreement. On the occasion, Dr. A. Didar Singh said that it is a significant agreement with Denmark and it will further strengthen the bilateral relations between the two countries.

The Desert National Park is situated in Rajasthan near Jaisalmer stretching in the Thar desert. The park is considered not only the largest in the state of Rajasthan but among the largest in India. The catchments area of the Park is 3162 sq. km. The substantial part of the park is on a landscape, which comprises of lakebed of extinct salt lakes and thorny scrubs and a considerable area consists of sand dunes. Sand dunes form around 20% of the Park. The major landform consists of craggy rocks and compact salt lake bottoms, inters medial areas and fixed dunes.

As February 26, the date for presenting the budget in Parliament, draws closer the challenges before the finance minister are many.

The prospects for the U.A.E. economy, given its underlying strengths, remain favorable. It will be important, however, to embark on a more balanced and sustainable growth path over the medium term, says the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in a public information notice.

New York: A senior United Nations official today appealed for support for a nearly $900 million plan to assist Afghanistan's most vulnerable communities who have been affected by natural disasters and conflict, as well as to support longer-term development and reconstruction.

New Delhi: The Minister of Agriculture, Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution Shri Sharad Pawar has urged agricultural scientists to double their efforts to remove all misgivings regarding GM crops from the minds of policy makers and public. Inaugurating the two-day conference of Vice Chancellors of Agricultural Universities and meeting of Directors of ICAR here today, Shri Pawar said, 'the recent decision on Bt. brinjal should not be seen as a setback to our efforts, but a challenge which we need to surmount.'

New Delhi: Speaking at the inaugural session of the India-Austria Joint Economic Forum (JEC), here today, Shri Anand Sharma, Union Minister of Commerce and Industry, has invited Austria to participate in the creation and management of world class infrastructure in India.

The Department of Drinking Water Supply under the Ministry of Rural Development has directed State Governments/UT administrations to prepare a preliminary District Perspective Plan to ensure Drinking Water security in the rural areas of the Country. Accordingly, recognizing that village level planning including water is the key factor in ensuring optimum utilization of water, especially for drinking purposes, a format has been prepared and sent by the Department to all the States/UTs for their suggestions.