-The Economic Times 5:20 am. Twelve-year-old Sandeep rubs his eyes. Prodded by his mother Savitri, he reluctantly steps out of his two-room mud house. Together, they head out in the darkness. Savitri walks purposefully, Sandeep trudges along. They are going to the opencast coal mine that is a 10-minute walk from their village Ghansaddi. On the way, they are joined by scores of people. In a curving file, they descend the...
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Govt hints at lower hikes in support prices for farmers -Zia Haq
-Hindustan Times The government could move away from large hikes in support prices for farmers, agriculture minister Radha Mohan Singh hinted on Wednesday, signalling a key farm policy shift aimed at rationalising subsidies and taming inflation. The minister said some people thought the “only way to shore up farmer income is through minimum support prices”. “Wrong. This alone won’t do unless farmers diversify their activities into livestock, kitchen gardens, fishery etc. That’s our...
More »RTI, RTE and rising aspirations -Anuradha Raman & Mehboob Jeelani
-The Hindu In a sign of change, mothers wage a relentless battle to get their children admission to the seats reserved for the poor in private schools. New Delhi: In her tiny room with a grey refrigerator and a wall-mounted television set, Babita opens up about her dreams. “My children should learn to speak in English,” she says. Two of her children study in private schools, and another in a government school. Private...
More »Does good monsoon mean big consumption boost? -Mayank Mishra
-Business Standard FY10 was a drought year with a monsoon rainfall deficiency of 22 per cent of the 50-year average, resulting in a seven per cent dip in the total foodgrains production. But, that did not dampen the consumer sentiment as the auto sector grew by 26 per cent, fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) 25 per cent and the consumer durables sector by 21 per cent. The momentum continued the following year,...
More »Javadekar does a U-turn after questioning pollution study -Jacob Koshy
-The Hindu In an unusual sequence of events around a research paper that claimed air pollution was responsible for reducing life expectancy in Delhi by six years, Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar not only condemned the study but said in an e-mailed public statement that “the timing of the release of the study seems to be motivated as it has been done at a time when Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi is...
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