-The Indian Express The central message of Angus Deaton’s work: Becoming richer is not necessarily the same thing as becoming better-off. In the preface to his magisterial 2013 book The Great Escape, Angus Deaton thanks his teachers. “Richard Stone was perhaps my most profound influence,” Deaton writes, “from him I learned about measurement — how little we can say without it and how important it is to get it right.” Important, indeed....

-Business Standard Thirty-two farmers have committed suicide in the past three weeks in the Anantapur district of Andhra Pradesh. Since its birth as a new state, Telangana has recorded 1,269 suicides. Hyderabad: The Hyderabad-based Centre for Sustainable Agriculture (CSA), estimates farmer suicides in Andhra Pradesh in the past 20 years (1995-2014) at 38,000. Experts and policymakers are convinced the two states are facing prolonged farm distress. Suicide by farmers unable to handle crop...

-PTI NEW DELHI: The Centre is expected to virtually eliminate the role of NGOs in preparing mid-day meal for children especially in rural areas, as per the new guidelines under the Food Security Act 2013. The government is expected to communicate to the states soon about the rules framed and ensure that NGOs have little presence in the scheme because the schools in rural areas are adequately supported for kitchens and other...

Inclusive Media for Change invites applications from media persons in English and Hindi for Inclusive Media - UNDP Fellowships 2015. The Fellowships are given to increase and sharpen media coverage of rural distress/ development and the issues of the marginalized people. The fellowships are aimed at promoting democratic social change, particularly through empowerment, participation, good governance and better understanding about media and the marginalised. The ideal candidates would be willing to...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: Over 60% of houses in mid-size cities such as Moradabad, Gorakhpur, Kolhapur, Bilaspur and Kharagpur with less than one million population discharge waste water to the open drains, indicating how the government has a mammoth task in achieving complete sanitation even in urban areas. Nearly one-fourth of 416 such non-metropolitan cities have less than 20% households that have waste water outlets connected to the closed drainage...