-Hindustan Times/ Howindialives.com According to the Water and Sanitation Support Organisation, government of Maharashtra, the number of water tankers ordered from May till the third week of June has kept rising and stood at 42,680, against 10,801 during the corresponding period of 2018—an increase of about four times. As the monsoons finally covered more parts of Maharashtra last week, Government data from a related metric shows just how grim the water...

-The Indian Express Yet again, DNA Regulation Bill cleared for introduction in Parliament. Whose DNA will be stored, when is it supposed to be used for reference? What are the concerns, how is government addressing these? On Monday, the Cabinet cleared the DNA Technology (Use and Application) Regulation Bill once again, paving the way for its reintroduction in Parliament. The Bill had been passed by Lok Sabha in January this year,...

-The Indian Express Should data be allowed to flow freely or localised at source? As IT Ministry prepares to present data protection Bill in Parliament and countries argue at global forums, a look at both sides of the debate. The IT Ministry’s Bill on data protection is scheduled to be introduced in Parliament during the current session. Worldwide, the data flow debate is playing out at the World Trade Organisation (WTO)...

-Down to Earth Government cites increasing pollution and heatwave in the state as reason for the ban The Government of Bihar recently banned felling of trees, citing increasing pollution as well as a fatal heatwave. Trees on private land, however, can be felled in the absence of a tree-protection Act in Bihar. The current order was passed under the Forest Conservation Act, DK Shukla, principal chief conservator of forests, told Down To Earth (DTE)....

-Livemint.com Arvind Subramanian’s conclusions about GDP growth figures are in the right direction. There’s no point being in denial Arvind Subramanian was the chief economic advisor (CEA) to the Government of India from October 2014 to June 2018. Among other things, he became well known and was praised deservingly for his Economic Surveys. He made that document interesting, useful and accessible. He also took it to the country by hosting online lectures...