-The Times of India NEW DELHI: Days after the Centre announced an ambitious healthcare scheme to provide up to Rs 5 lakh per family per year for secondary and tertiary care hospitalisation, the Supreme Court on Monday reminded the government that such programme would not be effective till pollution crisis is effectively tackled first. A bench of Justices Madan B Lokur and Deepak Gupta said that 13 out of 20 most polluted...

-The Indian Express Since January, beneficiaries have been asked to authenticate their identity using fingerprints to avail foodgrain they are entitled to under the Food Security Act. New Delhi: “Agar machine hata di jaaye, toh bohot acha hai.” As 60-year-old Shanno Devi said these words, 200 people gathered at a hall in central Delhi broke into applause. “Public pareshaan hai,” she added. Devi was talking at a public hearing on Monday about the...

-The Hindu New Delhi: Various farmers organisations including Swaraj India on Tuesday released the Green Paper on Farmers, Farming and Rural Economy, alleging that the present government was unable to fulfil promises made to the farmers. “The present government is the most anti-farmer government in the history of India. It has failed to deliver its the promises. This includes ensuring cost plus 50% profit as the Minimum Support Price” said Yogendra Yadav,...

-Business Today Social sector spending and investments in infrastructure development could be the highlights of the forthcoming Union Budget 2018-19, credit rating agency ICRA forecasts. It expects increase in budgetary allocations for social infrastructure and social security spending, such as NREGA (rural job security), food subsidy (food security), insurance schemes and welfare pensions. Larger allocations for infrastructure related to cold chains, etc., considered to boost the agricultural sector and the rural...

-The Telegraph New Delhi: Sangh parivar affiliates Swadeshi Jagran Manch and Bharatiya Kisan Sangh have urged the government to address joblessness and agrarian distress in the budget, sounding an alert before the 2019 general election campaign. The Manch, the Sangh's economic wing, has suggested the government shift focus and provide incentives to indigenous small-scale industries to generate more jobs. Farmer arm Bharatiya Kisan Sangh has advocated measures to make agricultural remunerative and demanded...