The authorities in the United States have said that they do not wish to comment on an internal matter of India, but only said that the allowing Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in the retail sector in the country would benefit farmers as well other citizens.

Robert D Hormats, the Under Secretary for Economic Growth, Energy, and the Environment said that, "I think they have to work through their domestic political process and I don't want to comment on their internal affairs at this point."

The cabinet committee on economic affairs (CCEA) will soon discuss a Rs 8,750-crore bailout package meant to assists the financially troubled state of West Bengal led by Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee.

The funds will come in the form of the backward regions grant fund (BRGF) for the state, which has been under the communist rule since decades. The central government had recently increased the borrowing limit for the state by another Rs 2,000 crore.

Mamata Banerjee, the chief minister of West Bengal and the leader of Trinamool Congress has asked its partner Congress party to decide if it wants to stay in alliance or not, after Youth Congress protested against alleged attacks by activists linked to Trinamool.

She said that the Congress party should reconsider if it wants to continue the alliance in the centre and state level. She also affirmed that her government in the sate is not dependent on the support from the Sonia Gandhi led Congress Party.

The central government has said that it is not planning to rollback the latest hike in the prices of petrol in the country, despite intense political pressure, including that from coalition partner, Mamata Banerjee.

The hike in petrol prices of Rs 1.8 per litre is unlikely to be rolled back. Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee has demanded that the petrol hike may be rolled back. The Centre has asked the West Bengal Chief Minister to reduce the 26% VAT levied on petrol in her State.

According to some sources, the diesel and LPG prices are not going to be increased by the government.

Sources indicate that the Central government is not likely to deregulate diesel prices as it will increase if the prices are freed. However, the hike in petrol prices of Rs 1.8 per litre is unlikely to be rolled back.

Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee has demanded that the petrol hike may be rolled back. The Centre has asked the West Bengal Chief Minister to reduce the
26% VAT levied on petrol in her State.

Kolkata, Sep 28 : Hailing the Singur verdict, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee Wednesday called it "a victory of the people" that would pave the way for return of land to farmers.

"It is a historic event not only for Singur or the country but for the whole world. The Singur movement will forever be an example of struggle and victory for the world," Banerjee said.

Earlier, the Calcutta High Court ruled the Singur Land Rehabilitation and Development Act passed by the government was valid and constitutional.

Kolkata, Aug 26: The state could soon get a new name, teachers receive salaries on the first of every month, Darjeeling is quiet after a tripartite pact and the Singur Act has been passed -- the Mamata Banerjee government in West Bengal has set a hectic pace as it completes 100 days in office Saturday.

Kolkata, Aug 25 : West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee Thursday announced a compensation of Rs. 2 lakh for the families of civilians killed in Maoist violence in the state. The central government will give another Rs. 3 lakh.

"The families of the civilians who are killed by Maoists will be given Rs. 2 lakh by the state government. They will get another Rs. 3 lakh from the central government as compensation," Banerjee said at the state secretariat Writers' Buildings.

According to reports, the 48 bandh called by the Bangla Bachao Committee, has disrupted the jubilant atmosphere around the signing of the tripartite agreement.

Also, the West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee referred to the bodies as “paper organizations” that were out to disrupt the peace outside “political compulsions”, as she arrived at Sukna, close to Siliguri on Sunday evening ahead of the event.

Mamata Banerjee has presented the Rail Budget today. This is her fifth Rail Budget in the parliament and third with the ruling UPA government. The railway minister has tried her best to make it a people friendly budget but the she had received severe criticism from Left, the AIADMK and other opposition. The Rail Budget 2011 surprises every one as there was no surprise this time.

Though the Railways is severely cash-strapped, but the railway minister had tried to announce as many new projects as she can. Apart from that, there have been no hikes in fares as well.

New Delhi, Feb 25 : Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee began presenting the rail budget for 2011-12 in the Lok Sabha Friday with the promise of not only moving ahead faster to build a strong railroad infrastructure but also to address the needs of the average person.

"We have taken a two-pronged approach. On the one hand, building sustainable, efficient, rapidly-growing railways. On the other, having an acute sense of social responsibility towards the common people," Baneerjee told the Lok Sabha.

On Sikkim’s finest rates for Pack up tour & Hotel www. hotelanolagangtok. com on M. G. Marg, Gangtok, Trinamool Congress head and Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee banged the governing Communalist Party of India (Marxist) for what she termed the permitting slack anarchy in West Bengal.

They might not be eager to confront each other on the communal stage; however Mamata Banerjee and his bete noire chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee have in no way failed to spot a chance for a vocal dispute. Friday manifested a fresh event in the conflict of lexis flanked by the CM and the state's main opponent leader. The Trinamool Congress chief presented a new duo of specs as a souvenir to the chief minister who set off on record expressing that the railway mission were only on documents.

Railway Minister, Mamata Banerjee has flagged of a special exhibition train named, 'Commonwealth Express' that will promote the sporting event to he hosted in the national capital Delhi in October this year.

The exhibition train will showcase information about sports and Information Technology for the people and specially youngsters. The train will make its first stop at Amritsar where the Queen's Baton will arrive on the same day.

"It will go to all states to make the people aware about the Games and also development in Information Technology," she said.

Senior Congress leader and Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee felicitated Trinamool Congress chief and Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee for her giant victory in the West Bengal civic polls.

Mukherjee, who is also the chief of the Congress in the state, accepted his party's failure in the elections held to 81 municipal bodies, comprising the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC), ahead of 2011's crucial assembly polls.

The Union Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee has anticipated receiving some private investments for her ministry. She has invited private companies to invest in the largest rail network of the country. Since its establishment, rail has been the unique and single Govt. entity. Indian Railways has the monopoly in the rail network in India. It carries around 1.8 million passengers every day.

Mukherjee is open to discussing the fuel price hike with UPA allies — Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress and M. Karunanidhi’s DMK — who have appealed to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi for its reversal.

“These (objections to the fuel price hike) are not individual views,” he told HT in an interview on Sunday. “There is some divergence of opinion among some of our coalition partners. We will talk and then see.”

Railway minister Mamata Banerjee in her new budget offered 100% concession to the cancer patients, who go for treatment along with an escort in AC-3 and sleeper class. Earlier the concession was 75%.

"The treatment cost is as it is so high and each month, I have to make two trips for chemotherapy to Chandigarh. The travel concession would certainly help me save some money", said Ram Gosian, a patient of stomach cancer undergoing treatment at the PGI in Chandigarh.

After a choppy trade on Wednesday, the Bombay Stock Exchange benchmark index Sensex closed at 16,255.97, down by 30.35 points ahead of expiry as stocks of pharmaceutical companies and banks decline.

Railway Minister Mamta Banarjee's populist budget also could not provide a boost to the Indian market as 19 of the 30 Sensex constituents ended in red.

Among the 30 Sensex companies, Sun Pharma remained the biggest loser after declining to Rs. 1, 532.55 per share, down by 2.51 per cent, followed by Mahindra & Mahindra, which dropped 2.43 per cent to Rs. 956.65 per share during the day's trade.

The administration has decided to make an investment of Rs 41,426 crore with the intention to update the rail network and perk up consumer services.

Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee made this declaration while presenting her ministry's budget in parliament today.

Out of this, around Rs 4,411 crore will be used up to lay 1,000 km of new lines and Rs 1,302 crore for bettering passenger services.

The expenditure would be funded via a gross budgetary support of Rs 15,875 crore, diesel cess of Rs 877 crore, internal reserves of Rs 14,523 crore and additional-budgetary resources of Rs 10,151 crore.

An added Rs 9,120 crore will be taken up from the market via Indian Railway Finance Corporation Ltd.