Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has constituted a new panel under the leadership of the former RBI governor C Rangarajan to recommend the ways to reform the sugar industry in India.

C Rangarajan, who has also worked as the chairman of Prime Minister's Economic Advisory Council, will prepare recommendations on policy changes for deregulation of the industry sector that is still under tight government control.

The Japanese government has entered into a currency swap deal with India to address the shortage of the US dollar in between the growing concerns linked to the sovereign debt crisis in the Eurozone.

Japanese Finance Minister Jun Azumi said in Tokyo that his government is negotiating an agreement with the Indian government. The new deal was announced during the trip to India by Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda renewed the bilateral swap agreement with Indian Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh in New Delhi.

The National Highways Authority of India has announced that it is planning to award construction orders worth up to 15,000 crore in the next financial year.

The new plans moves away from its strategy of awarding projects through the public-private partnership model. JN Singh, member-finance, NHAI said that the authority is planning to award engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) orders for 2,000-3,000 km of roads in the next fiscal year, 2012-13.

Government policy and regulatory changes were the focus point for the pharmaceutical industry in India in the year 2011.

The government actively intervened in business and sought more control in various activities from acquisition to pricing controls. While some changes were opposed others were implemented as the companies in the sector continued their business.

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh ha said that the country needs to increase its energy consumption in order toe achieve the target of 9 per cent economic growth in the 12th Five-Year Plan, which begins from 2012 to 2017.

“We have set for ourselves an ambitious target of 9 per cent annual growth in GDP in the 12th Five-Year Plan. This high rate of economic growth would require our energy consumption also to increase rapidly,” he said. He was speaking at the National Energy Conservation Day event in Delhi.

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has said that his government will focus on creating favorable policy framework for the growth of the telecom sector in the country, which has seen an enormous scandal involving senior politicians and private individuals.

"I am aware of some concerns of the telecom industry regarding government policies in the telecom sector, I wish to reassure industry of the government's full commitment to sustaining growth, creativity and enterprise in this vitally important sector of our economy," Dr. Singh said.

India's central bank, The Reserve Bank of India has introduced trading in credit- default swaps in India to attract investors to the country's corporate bond market, a move that would increase inflows into the country and help control the fall in the rupee.

The central bank has also created rules limiting the scope of the market. The RBI now allows domestic lenders and units of foreign banks to purchase credit- default swaps contracts to "hedge" assets and trading positions, according to a notification from the central bank.

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is expected to meet al the heads of the domestic airline companies on Saturday.

Even as the agenda of the proposed meeting is not known, it is expected that Dr. Singh will discuss ways to assist the cash-strapped airline companies in the country and address other concerns in the aviation industry.

Bali (Indonesia), Nov. 18 : Indian Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh, who met Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao on the sidelines of the 19th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit here on Friday, said New Delhi seeks a harmonious and cooperative relationship with Beijing and the two countries must cooperate on regional, bilateral and global issues.

Bali (Indonesia), Nov. 18 : Indian Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh on Friday said that New Delhi has gone some way in responding to US firms concerns on the country''s nuclear liability law and rules.

Bali, Nov. 18 : Indian Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh met United States President Barack Obama on the sidelines of the 19th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit at Bali, Indonesia, on Friday, where both pitched for strengthening bilateral strategic ties and for enhanced cooperation at multilateral forums.

Addu City (Maldives), Nov. 10 : Indian Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh and his Pakistan counterpart Yusuf Raza Gilani have began a meeting here this morning to give a push to normalising bilateral relations marked by a shrinking trust deficit.

Dr Singh and Gilani are meeting for the third time in the last 18 months.

Thursday''s meeting on the sidelines of the 17th SAARC Summit comes a week after Pakistan announced a path-breaking decision to confer Most Fovoured Nation (MFN) status on India.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has said in his speech before leaving for France to attend the G-20 Summit in Cannes that the summit is taking place amid global economic concerns.

"The Cannes Summit takes place against the backdrop of the sovereign debt crisis in the Eurozone. This crisis has emerged as the principal source of concern for the global economy," he said.

The Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has said that the economic slowdown seen in the country should be seen as a short-term phenomenon that comes as a result of the crisis in the global economy.

He stressed that the long tem prospects for the country appear strong. "The current slowdown is a matter of concern but it should be seen as a short-term phenomenon, reflecting highly unsettled conditions in the global economy," Singh said while speaking at an event of policy makers.

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has told civil society activist, Anna Hazare that his government is working towards creating a strong Lokpal, which he explained will be part of broader administration reforms in the country.

The Prime Minister wrote to the activist that the government is committed to a strong Lokpal bill. However, a "right to reject" an election candidate would require political consensus to be implemented.

New Delhi, Oct 4 : After meeting with Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh over the unresolved Telangana issue, the President of Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) K. Chandrasekhar Rao has requested him to expedite the Telangana statehood issue as early as possible.

Rao said that a memorandum has been given to Prime Minister and he has been requested to intervene in the matter as problems in Hyderabad are mounting day by day.

Gangtok, Sep 29 : Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Thursday arrived in Sikkim on a daylong visit to assess and review the damage caused by the Sep 18 earthquake.

Singh made an aerial survey of the worst-affected north Sikkim areas.

"On arrival in Gangtok after making the aerial survey, the prime minister visited the injured at the Sikkim Manipal Hospital," a government spokesperson said.

New Delhi, Sep 28 : The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Wednesday slammed Prime Minister Manmohan Singh over the rising food prices, saying he was seeking to link it with growth rate.

"Prices have gone up for one section and growth for another. The prime minister needs to look towards the section whose spending power has not risen and which is reeling under high prices," BJP leader Sushma Swaraj told reporters here.

Food inflation had eased to a seven week low mid-September but continued to be above eight percent.(IANS)

New York, Sep 24 : With an aim to boost India''s image on the international stage, Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh met leaders from various countries on the sidelines of the United National General Assembly session here on Friday.

Holding out the promise of enhanced bilateral ties, Dr. Singh met his Japanese counterpart, Yoshihiko Noda.

Noda recently took over as Japan''s sixth premier in five years. He has already made his diplomatic debut at the UN, stressing on global economics and global security.

New Delhi, Sep. 21 : The Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh, while leaving for New York to attend 66th session of United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) today placed emphasis on the global challenges staring at the world community like the economic slowdown and high inflationary pressures.

In a departure statement released ahead of his visit to New York, Dr. Singh called on the United Nations to resume its global leadership role.