-Hindustan Times While open political contestation faces hurdles, the government needs to be held accountable Five weeks ago, the nationwide lockdown announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi placed the Indian economy in cold storage. It also seems to have put politics on ice. As the government prepares to gradually dial down the economic freeze on May 3, politics, too, must emerge from its hibernation. Politics — at its core — is about...

These days a lot many articles, reports, documents, etc. are appearing in the public domain on Coronavirus infection and related issues. An attempt has been made in the present news alert to put together in one place some of the best articles, reports, blogs, webinars, podcasts, etc., which can be useful for our readers. We have divided the resources under various themes for the convenience of our readers and social media...

-Scroll.in The finance ministry has directed the CBDT chairperson to seek an explanation from these officers for writing such ‘ill-conceived views’ in public. The Centre on Sunday rejected a proposal made by officials of the Indian Revenue Service suggesting the government should increase taxes to cushion the economic fallout of the coronavirus pandemic. The Centre called it “an act of indiscipline”, NDTV reported. In a 44-page report titled FORCE, or Fiscal Options and...

-TheWire.in The pandemic and the response to it threaten to exacerbate entrenched economic and social disparities. Like most healthcare workers, my profession puts me at a higher risk of contracting COVID-19. Statistically, however, my risk of acquiring a serious infection is reasonably modest and the probability of dying from it quite low. After all, I practice medicine at a premier hospital in the wealthiest nation on this planet and have access to...

-Newsclick.in ‘It is upon the Department of Food & Public Distribution to give the green signal to the FCI for releasing approximately two million tons of rice which has been earmarked for producing ethanol…’ a senior official from the petroleum ministry told NewsClick. New Delhi: Not only has the Central Government’s decision to use surplus rice stocks in the country for producing ethanol, been criticised for being done at a time when...