LS lauds cricket team’s performance

The government in the Lok Sabha on Friday promised action against those allegedly involved in a scam relating to the issue of initial public offer shares by the YES Bank and the IDFC in the next few days. ‘‘Some set of persons had opened multiple accounts in May 2003 using the same address. They were emboldened by the fact that no action was taken against them at that time…Now, we have identified them and take action in the next few days,’’ Finance Minister P Chidambaram said during Question Hour.

Govt to list large, profitable CPSUs

Making sure its disinvestment programme conforms to the National Common Minimum Programme, the UPA government proposes to list large profitable Central Public Sector Undertakings (CPSUs) on domestic stock exchanges and go for minor equity selling in listed profitable and non-Navratna PSUs. ‘‘The government has decided, in principle, to list large, profitable Central PSUs on domestic stock exchanges and to selectively sell small portions of the equity in listed, profitable CPSUs other than Navratnas,’’ Minister of State for Finance S S Palanimanickam told Lok Sabha on Friday.

NRHM to be implemented: Ramadoss

The National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) would be implemented in a comprehensive manner in 18 states, including the North-East region, to ensure rural medicare, Lok Sabha was informed on Friday. ‘‘We have begun NRHM with a corpus of Rs 7,000 crore. It has taken 10 months to finalise broad contours of the mission. I hope results will become visible in the next five years,’’ Health and Family Welfare Minister Anbumani Ramdadoss said.

Elders voice concern over farmers’ suicide

Serious concern was voiced in the Rajya Sabha by members of political parties over farmers’ suicide, with the TDP claiming that more than 3,000 farmers had taken the extreme step in Andhra Pradesh alone during the last 22 months of the Congress rule. Opposition members took exception to the Prime Minister leaving the House just before the question relating to farmers’ suicide was taken up.

Ads often border on obscene: Elders

Charging that advertisements on television were bordering on obscene, members in the Rajya Sabha on Friday said that the government should lay down norms and standards for advertisements and make all broadcasters to adhere to these. Declaring that an advertisement code, set up earlier had failed to check the trend, members, cutting across party lines, demanded that violators should be given punishment, including imprisonment, and should not be let off merely by paying fines.