-The Times of India NEW DELHI: Census 2021 will for the first time seek information from households on smartphones, DTH/Cable TV connection, internet access, number of members of households having bank accounts, ownership of house other than the rented accommodation of a household, bottled water availability and mobile number as part of the houselisting procedure. Importantly, the latest census, as per the existing plan, will not collect caste data. While the socio-economic...

-Scroll.in/ The Third Pole Flash-flood warnings routed through NGOs are giving border villages precious lead-time to escape the wrath of suddenly rising rivers. In the last few weeks of June, a series of WhatsApp messages were sent from Bhutan to India to warn cross-border friends downstream of the Aai, Saralbhanga and Manas rivers about cloud-bursts, swollen rivers and possible flash floods affecting people in the Indian state of Assam. Although originating from officials,...

-The Hindu Lok Sabha clears Aadhaar amendment Bill amid stiff opposition. The Lok Sabha cleared the Aadhaar and Other Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2019 by a voice vote on Thursday. The Bill replaces an Ordinance promulgated on March 2 and provides for a stiff ?1 crore penalty and a jail term to private entities for storing Aadhaar data. It also makes the use of Aadhaar voluntary for opening a bank account, securing a Mobile Phone...

-Down to Earth Devansh Mehta believes that people can be sensitised through incentives, be it as small as mobile top-ups In 2016, when Devansh Mehta was asked to sensitise tribal people about the Forest Rights Act, 2006 (FRA), he came up with a simple solution: “Give them an incentive. They will come on their own.” Raipur-based non-profit CGnet Swara, where Mehta heads sustainability initiatives, implemented his proposal on an experimental basis and...

-Livemint.com The BJP enjoyed greater support among upper caste-dominated affluent districts in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections than in other districts of the country One of the notable features of the Bharatiya Janata Party’s historic victory in 2014 was its ability to attract support across social groups, cutting across traditional divides of caste and class. Yet, support for the party was much greater among certain demographic groups than among others, a Mint...