-The Hindu Business Line The development economist, now part of Tamil Nadu’s Economic Advisory Council, says that public expenditure on health is just 0.6 per cent of the state domestic product, one of the lowest ratios among Indian states * Universal quality education, health care and social security are still distant goals * A well-designed system of emergency cash transfers would be quite useful in this situation of recurrent crises, which may last...

The rise in COVID-19 daily new cases and daily new deaths compelled many state governments to impose local level lockdowns during April-May 2021. As of 20th April, 2021, partial lockdowns were noticed in 10 states across the country and complete lockdown was imposed in Delhi. As of 8th May, 2021, nearly the entire country was under complete lockdown as a result of either partial lockdowns and night curfews or complete...

-The Hindu Bihar government’s reluctance to publish number of deaths is uncalled for, says Division Bench. The Patna High Court has pulled up the Bihar government again for not maintaining its records of births and deaths during the COVID-19 pandemic and said that State’s reluctance to publish the number of deaths was “uncalled for” and was “not protected by any law”. The Division Bench of the court, comprising chief justice Sanjay Karol and...

-Scroll.in A report by the collective Hunger Watch reveals the extent of continuing hunger caused by state policy, and recommends ways to end the distress. A spectacularly uncaring, unaccountable state has abandoned Indians to their fate. Bodies are piling up, pyres burn late into the night, and corpses are buried in anonymous mass graves. Loved ones are choking to death because their governments failed to secure them oxygen. Vaccines have fallen short...

-The Hindu The decisions regarding journalist Siddique Kappan, the second COVID-19 wave and sedition law show a rejuvenation is happening within the court. A series of decisions within a week since Justice N.V. Ramana took over as the 48th Chief Justice of India shows a rejuvenation happening within the Supreme Court in its role as the guardian of rights of ordinary people. The court has not flinched while ordering a reluctant Uttar Pradesh...