Bloomberg Prime Minister Narendra Modi began his second term by expanding an income support program for India’s small farmers, increasing the initiative’s annual cost to $12.5 billion for the new government that’s facing an economic slowdown. The newly-appointed cabinet approved extending the cash distribution plan to 20 million more farmers, taking the total beneficiaries to 145 million people who would ...

Bloomberg Beleaguered Indian businessman Anil Ambani is on an asset sale spree to raise funds to meet mounting debt obligations. New fundraising via such sales will help Reliance Capital Ltd, the last stronghold of the former billionaire’s wider conglomerate, to pay 11 billion rupees ($158 million) that comes due over the next month. The company is in talks to sell ...

Bloomberg Vedanta Resources Ltd, owned by Indian billionaire Anil Agarwal, said it’s seeking international arbitration to resolve a dispute with the Zambian government about its copper assets in the country. Zambia’s government this month began liquidation proceedings against Vedanta’s Konkola Copper Mines, after accusing Vedanta of lying about expansion plans and paying too little tax. The company says it is ...