-TheThirdPole.net Over two-thirds of traditional water sources in the Himalayan state of Himachal Pradesh are dead; experts blame climate change and human activities The population of Mundaghat village in the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh has come down to half of what it was a decade ago. There were nearly 500 people living in the village in 2010, now the number is reduced to 250, claimed Sita Ram, a retired water board...

The increase in the total number of suicides committed in India during 2020 in comparison to the previous years has hit the headlines recently. While some media commentators have stated that the economic distress (caused by job loss, income loss, failure of business, and growing hunger, among other things) in 2020 could have led to more suicides being committed, others have said that home isolation and deteriorating mental health (associated...

-Down to Earth Promoted by the government, short-duration varieties now dominate Punjab’s paddy landscape and allow farmers enough time to clear the field without setting them on fire. Why then are straw burning incidents still on the rise? Gursimran is somewhat dejected as he oversees a combined harvesting machine working his paddy fields. “Though the yield is better than what it has been in the past two years, it is still not...

-The Hindu Business Line It is an important tool for agrarian families to manage and mitigate their risks Agriculture plays a pivotal role in the Indian economy, especially in rural areas. According to the recently-released Situational Assessment and Land Holdings of Agricultural Households in Rural India Report (SAS, 2019) by the National Statistics Office, 54 per cent of rural households are agricultural, earning 37 per cent of their household income from farming.  This sector, however, is also subject to a...

One is almost certain to hear this from an economist that if something is available at free of cost or at a subsidised rate thanks to government intervention, then people tend to overuse or overconsume such goods/ commodities. So, the best solution is to create a market for such 'almost freely available' or 'highly subsidised' goods or commodities. Once people start paying to use or consume such goods/ commodities, they...