India against changes in IMF quotas
New Delhi: Finance Minister P Chidambaram says he is strongly opposed to the issue of making changes in the shareholding (or quotas) of developing countries in the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which is expected to figure prominently in the IMF board of governors' meeting in Singapore next month, which the finance minister is scheduled to attend.

A report in financial daily Financial Times, quoting IMF managing director Rodrigo Rato said China, South Korea, Turkey, and Mexico are likely to get their IMF quotas increased. The act is said to be an early step towards giving large developing countries more say in the institution.

However, a senior finance ministry official said that no final decision has been taken by the IMF as yet to provide these four countries a modest increase in their quotas. The finance minister has made it clear and is vehemently opposed to anything that hurts India's interests. In fact, India is the main opponent to the changes.

The official added that it was not possible yet to quantify the impact of the proposed changes on India.

He added that whatever be the changes, the impact on India will be very small. There is no question of India losing its permanent chair.
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Government to introduce bill soon for quotas in unaided institutions
New Delhi: The government now proposes to bring a Bill to reserve seats for backward caste students in unaided elite educational institutions according to HRD minister Arjun Singh.

On the last day of the Monsoon session, the government had tabled the Central Educational Institutions (Reservation in Admission) Bill, 2006, providing for 27 per cent seats.
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