-The Telegraph Poverty research pioneer cites US, UK and EU experience; Niti Aayog vice-chairman disagrees, says there’s no guarantee ‘helicopter money’ will lead to spending Nobel laureate Abhijit Banerjee has stepped up to the firing line by arguing the government should make bigger direct cash payments under the MGNREGA scheme to help people who have slid into poverty due to the pandemic. The government has already indicated it’s not keen on larger direct...

-The Hindu Gujarat loses ground in Education Ministry’s grading index Punjab, Tamil Nadu and Kerala have all scored higher than 90% in the Education Ministry’s Performance Grading Index for 2019-20 which was released on Sunday. Gujarat dropped from second to eighth rank in the index, while Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh are the only States which have seen actual regression in scores over this period. The index monitors the progress that States and Union...

-The Hindu Manoj’s work is consistent with his belief that man connects with Mother Earth for survival Kochi: Manoj Kumar I.B. always walks barefoot in the forest. He has literally grown one, spread over one-and-a-half acres on which his modest house stands at Edavanakkad, not far from the city. He says it connects him with Mother Earth, which he firmly believes has a therapeutic effect in building immunity and keeping one healthy. That...

-TheWire.in From employment and wages to vaccinations, Indian women are disproportionately bearing the brunt of the pandemic. The coronavirus pandemic is not only making it harder to achieve gender equality in India, but also reversing gains made so far. Men everywhere are more likely to be employed and earn higher wages compared to women. In developed countries, the division between employed (working for wages) and out of the labour force (not working...

-ThePrint.in Krea University researchers surveyed 2,083 non-agricultural enterprises in Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, and Odisha to examine the impact of Covid-19 on women-led MSMEs. Survey of women-based MSME entrepreneurs In an effort to examine the impact of Covid-19 on women-led micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs), we surveyed 2,083 non-agricultural enterprises across four states: Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, and Odisha. Specifically, the survey reached rural women entrepreneurs in the intervening period when the...