-PTI NEW DELHI: With onion prices soaring to Rs 80 per kg in major cities, the government today took steps to boost supplies of the commodity by importing them and curbing their exports. Fearing that prices of the politically sensitive commodity could get out of hand, the government asked cooperative major NAFED to import onions from Pakistan and Iran, according to an official statement. The government also imposed a minimum export price (MEP)...

-The Indian Express Despite the scare scenario painted for production trends for key vegetables, it turns out that there is no dip in availability. This includes onion, whose prices have flared in the past few weeks. Data from the past two years compared with that for the current year indicates that the problem for the four vegetables that have a pan-India presence - onion, tomato, brinjal, potato - is because of logistics...

-The Times of India JAIPUR: The past decade of rapid economic growth has brought many benefits to India, but on the flip side the environment has suffered the most, exposing the population to serious air and water pollution. India's remarkable growth record, however, has been clouded by a degrading environment and growing scarcity of natural resources. Mirroring the size and diversity of Indian economy, environmental risks are wide ranging and...

-The Indian Express The proposed bill makes false promises. The need is to directly address problems of drinking water availability, sanitation, maternal health and childcare The Food Security Bill (2013, FSB) promulgated recently by an ordinance is expected to be debated in Parliament soon. The intention behind the FSB is noble, to eradicate hunger from the country, but the means adopted need serious reconsideration. FSB, under the targeted public distribution system (TPDS),...

-The United Nations Violence against children often goes unseen, unheard and unreported the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) said today, launching a new initiative urging the international community to speak out more forcefully against the scourge, which leaves millions of girls and boys physically and emotionally scarred every year. "In every country, in every culture, there is violence against children," said UNICEF Executive Director Anthony Lake. "Whenever and wherever children are harmed,...