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Home, auto loans set to get cheaper
* RBI reduces benchmark rates by marginal 0.25%
* Move to pump in additional liquidity of Rs 18,000 cr
New Delhi, January 29
Home and auto loans will become marginally cheaper as the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) today cut benchmark rates by 25 basis points (100 basis points equals 1 per cent) and released additional liquidity to the tune of Rs 18,000 crore in the banking system. The rate cut, which came after 9 months, will reduce equated monthly instalments (EMI) and loan costs, besides boosting spending and investments.

Editorial: RBI turns pro-growth

Haryana increases penalty for offences under apartment Act
Chandigarh, January 29
Owning your dream home is set to get expensive in Haryana. The Hooda government has substantially hiked penalty for compounding offences under the Haryana Apartment Ownership Act — a development which will jack up rates of group housing society flats and apartments put up for sale by builders.

Punjab’s economic slide: Report blames power subsidy, farm mess
Chandigarh, January 29
Political rhetoric about the upswing in Punjab’s economy aside, the state has slipped from sixth spot to twelfth in six years as per the latest edition of the Economic Freedom Index (EFI). The Economic Freedom of the States of India, 2012, which ranks 20 states on three parameters -- size of the government, legal structure and security of property rights, and regulation of business and labour -- debunks reasons given by politicians to explain the sorry state of affairs in Punjab.

Punjab page: State’s financial health unsteady

Army, Air Force and Navy bands perform during Beating the Retreat ceremony in New Delhi on Tuesday. The ceremony is a culmination of Republic Day celebrations and dates back to the days when troops disengaged themselves from battle at sunset. Tribune photo: Mukesh Aggarwal

Delhi’s shame
SC rejects plea for shifting trial to Mathura
New Delhi, January 29
The Supreme Court today dismissed a plea for shifting to Mathura the trial in the case relating to the barbaric gang rape and murder of a 23-year-old physiotherapy student in Delhi last month. The rejection, however, came on technical grounds as Mukesh, one of the six accused in the case, maintained that he had not authorised advocate ML Sharma to file the petition seeking transfer and argue in the apex court.

Cong summons Telangana MPs to Delhi
New Delhi, January 29
Congress central leadership today summoned seven MPs from the Telangana region of Andhra Pradesh who threatened to resign from Parliament protesting delay in announcing a decision on the formation of a separate State. The MPs, Manda Jagannath, Madhu Yashki Goud, Ponnam Prabhakar, K Rajagopal Reddy, S. Rajaiah, G. Vivekanand and Gutha Sukender had served a notice yesterday they will send in their resignations, addressed to the Lok Sabha Speaker, to Congress president Sonia Gandhi.

Soon, Rs 7.5 lakh education loan for poor students Third party guarantee won’t be required as government finalises credit fund New Delhi, January 29 Lakhs of students who fail to access higher education for want of money will soon have an insurer to fall back on. The government has finalised the first-ever credit guarantee fund to pool the risk of banks, currently hesitant to extend educational loans to students fearing non-recovery of the loan amount.