-The Telegraph The Central Statistics Office reported today that economic growth sank to a three-year low at 5.7 per cent, striking at the core of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's promise of achchhe din. The sharp slowdown is a result of the two biggest disruptive measures taken by the Modi government: demonetisation and the goods and services tax. The double whammy has badly crimped factory output and squeezed the services sector. The GDP growth...

-The Financial Express As per the fresh proposal, citizens were also required to pay a service charge on all cash transactions above Rs 2 lakh. In a bid to curb black money as well as to limit the number and amount of cash transactions, the government has come out with some new rules and prohibited some types of cash payments. It may be recalled that the government had in March this year...

-Hindustan Times India’s public expenditure on health is rising, but not as fast as its burgeoning population of 1.3 billion, which grow by 26 million each year It’s not the lack of oxygen that kills hundreds of children in hospitals of Uttar Pradesh each year, it’s India’s abysmal public health delivery system. “Gorakhpur is the symbol of the collapse of the primary health care system. Why should people be forced to travel 200km...

-Hindustan Times After Tamil Nadu’s pioneering Amma canteens, many states have started community kitchens, such as Karnataka’s Indira Canteens. This is a welcome development. The first coverage of the recently inaugurated “Indira canteens” in Karnataka that I noticed were two reports on television channels. Both were poking fun (justifiably) at Rahul Gandhi’s goofy speech at the launch. Sadly though, neither commented on the rationale or importance of the Karnataka government’s initiative. This...

-The Hindu Business Line A recent book shows how a cocktail of indebtedness, masculinity and consumerism acts as a trigger. For those who have wondered whether indebtedness can be the sole factor driving farmers to take their lives, here is a book that introduces much needed nuance and complexity to the debate. Nilotpal Kumar’s book, based on a study of 22 suicide cases in Ananthapur district (accompanied by a fascinating ethnographic study...