Summary: 5 to 12 June 2010

National Summary:
BJP and Left parties linked the Bhopal gas verdict to the civil nuclear liability Bill and said the government should reconsider the nuclear legislation. The contentious nuclear liability Bill which allows for Rs 500 crore compensation in case of nuclear accidents is under discussion and CPM and BJP criticised it in a present form.
BJP dispel reports of differences in the party on the inclusion of caste in census, saying there is no confusion in the party. During the debate on inclusion of caste in census in the Lok Sabha, party deputy leader Gopinath Munde had backed inclusion of caste in census. But there were reports that senior leaders like Murli Manohar Joshi was opposed to the suggestion. Joshi, who was of the view that inclusion of caste in census would "disintegrate" the society.
Job opportunities for minority communities have gone up over three per cent in the last three years. According to the latest figures released by the minority affairs ministry, the number of minority community candidates selected for government jobs has risen from 6.9 per cent in 2006-07 to 9.24 per cent in 2008-09.
Members of Parliament from Naxal-affected states said that the right time for involving the Army in anti-Naxal operations has not yet come. The sentiment was expressed at the second meeting between the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and MPs representing the worst Naxal-affected regions.
Gold prices jumped Rs 430 to an all-time high of Rs 19,070 per ten grams in the bullion market as investors rushed for the metal, considered as a safe bet, after global equity markets crashed on concerns over worsening euro zone debt crisis. Trading sentiment turned extremely bullish after gold in overseas markets rebounded from a one-week low as investors opted to buy less riskier assets against melting stocks and forex markets. The pure gold (99.9) surged by Rs 430 to set a new peak of Rs 19,070 per ten gram. The gold with 99.5 purity shot up by Rs 420 to Rs 18,970 per ten gram. Sovereign followed suit and traded higher by Rs 50 to Rs 14,650 per piece of eight gram.
There is likely to be a flight of capital from equity markets in emerging economies, including India, as a result of the Greece debt crisis, claims a survey conducted by Ficci. Consequently, capital flows to India could be on the lower side in the next six months or so. With capital flows into India expected to slow down if not completely reverse in the coming six months, the liquidity situation will also be a little tight in the days and months ahead.
The Indian IT sector is grappling with high attrition rate even as firms are doling out financial and other benefits to employees, says industry body Nasscom. “As a result of the slowdown, the IT industry was rather thin on the bench, but now everyone is hiring laterally. As a result, attrition has already become a problem. The problem will intensify over the next four-five months,” Nasscom chairman Mr Som Mittal said.
After last fiscal's double-digit expansion, industrial production picked up more steam to grow by 17.6 per cent in April, boosting the prospects of achieving 8.5 per cent economic growth in 2010-11. The April figure is almost equal to the 20-year-high output of 17.7 per cent achieved in December 2009.
India has been given access to David Coleman Headley, who has confessed to his role in the Mumbai attacks.
India on Tuesday said the continued blockade of Gaza and denial of food and medicine supplies created an immense humanitarian crisis. Condemning the Israeli attack on a ship carrying humanitarian aid to Gaza, India deplored the loss of life and injuries to people on the flotilla.
The Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) on Friday opened the doors for India’s entry into the regional grouping, as it lifted the moratorium on new membership. The SCO, which comprises of China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan, changed the rules 10 years after its inception. This happened at the SCO summit in the Uzbekistan Capital.
Fifteen persons were injured in clashes between the police and stone-throwing youths who were protesting against an alleged blasphemous depiction of the holy city of Madina on some products, which disrupted life in parts of this city and Baramulla in north Kashmir on Saturday.
Twenty-six years after the world's worst industrial disaster that had left more than 15,000 people dead, a local court convicted all eight accused persons and sentenced them each to two years' imprisonment. The court also imposed a fine of Rs 100,000 on the eight, including former Union Carbide India Ltd (UCIL) chairman Mr Keshub Mahindra. A Rs 500,000 fine has been slapped on UCIL.
India ranked a low 128th on this year’s Global Peace Index (GPI) after it slipped six positions. Internal conflicts, terrorism and human rights abuses were the factors assessed by the Institute for Economics and Peace (IEP) to quantify global peacefulness in the only study of its kind in 149 countries. India was ranked 122nd last year while it was in the 109th position in 2007 when the first GPI was compiled.
Regional Summary:
BJP's two-day national executive meeting held from June 12. Gujarat Chief Minister Modi attended the meeting. On his arrival in Bihar all newspapers highlighted the Muslims comparatively better status in Gujarat under his administration, while Bihar Congress criticised Modi government for ill-treatment of Muslim community in Gujarat.
Most parts of north India on Tuesday received moderate to heavy rainfall, causing the mercury to dip sharply as flash floods triggered by Cyclone Phet inundated low-level areas of Rajasthan.
The Polit Bureau of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) on Saturday began a two-day meeting. The Polit Bureau, being held in the backdrop of the recent municipal elections in West Bengal in which the Left Front suffered reverses, also heard a preliminary report on the debacle.
As many as 35 lakh families in Kerala are likely to figure in the below poverty line (BPL) list. The Centre is likely to approve the list.
State energy minister Saurabh Patel has strongly objected to Planning Commission member Sayeeda Hameed’s remarks about the plight of minorities in Gujarat, saying Muslims here were in a better position than anywhere else in the country.