-The Hindu Censorship by hardline Hindu groups has grown, says Amnesty Criticising the government for using archaic laws to suppress dissent, Amnesty International, in its report for 2015-16, has included India among countries that have failed to match up to the “international standard” of freedom of expression and civil liberties. The report especially noted that over the past year, crackdown on freedom of expression by majoritarian groups linked to the government had intensified,...

-Hindustan Times New Delhi: She greets you with a ‘Good morning’, then puts on her gloves, apron and a mask, and immediately gets down to mixing chemicals and cleansers in exact proportions. She is no paramedic. Meet the new-age Indian bai, who now accepts all sorts of assignments, right from cleaning and cooking to babysitting and eldercare, via an app on her smartphone. This professionalisation of your regular bai is a result of...

-Livemint.com The claims that Right to Education is forcing the closure of thousands of schools is false or ludicrously exaggerated Most of us who work with school education have been completely mystified by media reports and related opinion pieces which claim that thousands of private schools are being shut down because of the Right to Education Act (RTE). We (Azim Premji Foundation) conducted a field study to investigate this matter. Getting valid and...

-The Hindu Business Line The scheme has made life easier for the people of this Andhra Pradesh village, one of the first in the state to have 100 per cent financial inclusion. But the local experience also throws up a few questions relevant nationally, reports Gunturi Naga Sridhar Fourty-year-old M Ravamma, from Polavaram, a village in the Krishna district of Andhra Pradesh, had a nightmarish experience two months ago. Her husband complained...

-PTI He said this platform will enable the farmers, using a Mobile phone, to sell their produce anywhere in the country. SEHORE (MP): A digital platform for enabling farmers to sell their produce at a better rate anywhere in the country will be launched on April 14, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced in Sehore on Thursday as he resolved to ensure doubling of the farmers’ income by 2022. Mr. Modi, who unveiled guidelines...