-The Indian Express India should learn from China and start with liberalisation of rural land, labour and capital markets before attempting bigger things. Independence Day has come and gone with its usual mix of celebrations, pride and ruminations on how things could be better. Interestingly, several media commentaries tagged the event with the 25th anniversary of economic reforms, launched in 1991 around the same time of the year. They largely dwelt on the theme...

Rising prices of dal: How to deal with it? The 68th session of the United Nations General Assembly declared 2016 as the International Year of Pulses. In India, however, ordinary citizens are under enormous duress due to the skyrocketing prices of dal/ lentils since the last one year. The website of Price Monitoring Cell of the Department of Consumer Affairs shows that dal prices varied across places. For example, the...

-The Hindu Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) deal could hit supply of cheap Indian drugs New Delhi: As the next round of Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) trade talks begin in Vietnam on Monday, humanitarian aid organisation Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) has called for the removal of intellectual property provisions — known as the TRIPS-plus provisions — from the agreement. The talks are scheduled for August 15-19. According to the MSF, the TRIPS-plus...

-The Hindu The Mental Health Care Bill, 2016, passed by the Rajya Sabha is a watershed legislation that lays down clear responsibilities for the state and has provisions that empower individuals and families. Crucially, it can expand access to treatment, which is dismally poor today. According to a recent review in The Lancet, of gaps in mental health treatment, although both India and China have renewed their commitment to address the...

-The Hindu Business Line Govt’s production and distribution processes are out of sync with consumption patterns Of late, with growing income and awareness about nutritious food, there has been a noticeable decrease in the consumption of rice (a high-carb food) in Indian households. This change in consumption pattern, however, is not reflected in India’s agriculture policy which continues to revolve around rice and wheat. Moreover, current policies related to production, procurement, storage...