-Frontline.thehindu.com Though not the only solution to rural unemployment, it is an important social security measure. Soon after becoming Prime Minister, Narendra Modi mocked the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) in Parliament and called it a monumental failure of the United Progressive Alliance government. Interestingly, he added that he would not end the scheme but would keep it alive as a symbol of the Congress’ inability to address poverty. Five...

-The Hindu Amidst the scattered experimentation now, the Centre must offer strategic policy guidance for inter-State coordination Only two years ago, in the wake of a nationwide lockdown, India was left shocked by the plight of migrant workers walking hundreds of kilometres, facing hunger, exhaustion and violence, to get to the safety of their home villages. The dire circumstances of the migrants tugged at our collective heartstrings. They became the focus of...

-Scroll.in India saw an unprecendented economic upheaval in the last two years. With it came a mental health crisis – and a wave of suicides. Trigger warning: This article contains references to suicide and some people might find it disturbing. In December 2020, in response to the devastating impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Tata Institute of Social Sciences in Mumbai decided to set up a dedicated mental-health helpline for slum residents of...

-TheWire.in Puja Changoiwala’s new novel begins with the announcement of the COVID-19 lockdown. It then makes real a 900-km journey by a migrant family from Mumbai to Balhaar, Rajasthan. The idea of home is a fundamental human concept. We’re not taught about it at school, nor is there a pedagogy of ‘being at home,’ nevertheless, all of us have a sense of belonging that we associate with the word. Even those hunter-gatherers and...

-PTI/ News18.com The activists, in the fresh plea, have sought directions to the Centre to file a status report with respect to compliance of the directions given in the judgment delivered in June last year. The Supreme Court Wednesday said it would consider listing for hearing the fresh plea of activists seeking implementation of an earlier order on ensuring food security and other welfare measures for migrant workers who are again in...