-The Indian Express The Modi government's efforts to fight inflation by releasing additional amounts of grain to states under the targeted public distribution system (TPDS) is threatening to unravel, as states are ill-equipped to handle extra allocations. While there are few takers among the states for the extra rice allocated under TPDS, the offloading of wheat stocks with the Food Corporation of India (FCI) to bulk buyers has taken off. Analysts say...

-The Hindu   Research finds drastic consequences India's attempt at a China-type population control policy appears to have had drastic but unintended consequences. Laws enacted by State governments in the late 1990s and 2000s restricting political eligibility to candidates with two or less children did reduce family sizes in those States, but severely affected the sex ratio, a new research has found. Over the period, 11 Indian States passed laws disqualifying persons with more...

-The Business Standard States drag feet on even extended deadline for implementation; with Centre also worried on fiscal deficit, extension likely The National Food Security Act (NFSA) is still getting a lukewarm response from a majority of states. An extended deadline for implementing the law will expire in about a month and the Centre would have to give more time. Barring the nine states and two Union Territories (UTs) which introduced a food...

-The Indian Express Rajasthan government's decision to ‘target' free medicines and diagnostics is contrary to the recommended role of government in healthcare. In 2002-03, Abhijit Banerjee, Angus Deaton and Esther Duflo studied health facilities in rural Udaipur, Rajasthan. They found that facilities were poor and absenteeism was rampant. In 2013, we decided to revisit the same public health facilities. The motivation was to study two bold initiatives of the then Ashok Gehlot...

-The Indian Express The distribution of fake cards could have meant that Bihar govt could have incurred Rs 3.23 cr monthly loss. Bihar: The Food and Consumer Protection department of Bihar government has detected 7.77 lakh fake ration cards, distribution of which could have incurred Rs 3.23 cr monthly loss to state government. The Food and Consumer Protection department suspected these cards being fake after there had been no takers for these cards...