Newsclick discusses with Deepak Nayyar, eminent Economist, India's External Credit Balance Crisis. Nayyar says the situation is serious and we have the seeds of a macro-economic crisis in the external sector. The Current Account Deficit is at a level which is unsustainable. Financing it in the short term is no solution. He says unless there is a beginning to address the fundamentals in the external sector, the situation cannot be remedied. Talking about the export sector, Nayyar says, “ We have killed auto parts exports by entering into Free Trade Agreement with ASEAN and there are serious concerns on the FTA with the European Union.”

Sudipto Sen, the chairman of the Saradha group of companies, was arrested in Kashmir on April 23, 2013, for allegedly defrauding lakhs of depositors who had invested in various schemes floated by his companies.

Newsclick discusses the 2G Scam and the JPC Report, rather Chacko's Report with Paranjoy Guha Thakurta, eminent journalist and Prabir Purkayastha from Delhi Science Forum. One wonders how the Report gave a clean chit to the Prime Minister by saying that he was mis-led, when it is very clear from what is available in the public domain that Mr. Raja had, at every step, told the PM what he was going to do. A scarce and finite resource like spectrum, which belongs to the people of this country has been bartered away favouring a priviledged few and causing immense loss to the people at large, by subverting the rules and regulations. The UPA Government has failed to perform its duty as a fair and transparent custodian of these resources which are the property of the nation.

Newsclick discusses with Biswajit Dhar, Director General of Research and Information System for Developing Countries, the India – EU Free Trade Agreement and its fall-outs.

Dhar says the agriculture sector is going to be particularly affected by the dumping of highly subsidised agricultural products from the EU. Several sections like the automobile industry and the milk co-operative, Amul, have expressed concerns over the FTA. The entire negotiating process has been non-transparent. Even the Parliament of our country has not been taken into confidence. Addressing concerns like the Current Account Deficit actually get defeated by agreements like these FTAs. Dhar feels such policies will make India more import-dependent.

Newsclick discusses with economist Surajit Mazumdar the Union Budget 2013-14 and other related aspects.

The workers of the country are all set for the two days’ General Strike on February 20–21, 2013 called by the 11 Central Trade Unions for the first time after independence.

Big Lenders Face Few Hard Consequences for Violating Anti-Money Laundering Laws 

The recent auction of the 2G spectrum has drawn bids of only Rs. 9,407 crore. Various spokespersons of the Congress and Union ministers have been propagating that this somehow justifies Raja’s illegal first-come-first-served policy of giving away spectrum.