-The Telegraph Kolkata: Two books by celebrated economists have set the stage for an absorbing growth battle. Columbia University professor Jagdish Bhagwati and Nobel laureate Amartya Sen want the same end - a better India - but the means they prescribe sound different. If Bhagwati prescribes economic growth led by the markets and overseen and encouraged by liberal state policies, Sen believes growth cannot be an end in itself without government effort to...

-PTI KOLKATA: Black carbon generated from forest fires could be leading to faster melting of Himalayan glaciers and affect flow of snow-fed rivers, warns a new study. "The mass balance of numerous glaciers located in the lower ranges of the Himalayas, such as Pir Panjal and Greater Himalayas, could be significantly affected due to deposition of black carbon on the accumulation area in addition to changes in temperature and precipitation," says a...

-The Business Standard The right to food is finally becoming a lively political issue in India. Aware of the forthcoming general elections, parties are competing to demonstrate - or at least proclaim - their commitment to food security. In a country where endemic undernutrition has been accepted for too long as natural, this is a breakthrough of sorts. The food security Bill is a modest initiative. It consolidates various food-related programmes and...

-The Times of India CHANDIGARH: Shedding their image of being indifferent to the idea of women empowerment, a cluster of 20 villages under the Thuakhap of Jind district has banned sex selection and female feticide and announced a fine of Rs 11,000 on violators. The violators would be socially boycotted in case the offence is repeated. According to the khap spokesperson, Jitender Singh Chhattar, the community leaders, in a meeting held on Sunday...

-The Business Standard Food insecurity and hunger are rooted in bad policies, faulty design, poor governance and a lack of political will According to the latest Global Hunger Report, India continues to be in the category of those nations where hunger is "alarming". What is worse, despite high growth, the hunger index in India between 1996 and 2011 has gone up from 22.9 to 23.7. National Sample Survey Organisation data show that...