-The Hindu Business Line Rainfall deficit in North Gujarat, Kutch at 68% Uncertainty looms over kharif crops prospects in Gujarat, where erratic monsoon has left the State with 58 per cent deficient rainfall as on August 25. Please click here to read more.  ...

-The Hindu They also highlight the need to follow COVID-appropriate behaviour and keep complacency at bay. The complacency in people’s behaviour early this year was one of the major reasons for the severe second COVID-19 wave, says experts. Also, with only 15 per cent of the eligible population fully vaccinated so far, “if the infection spreads uncontrollably, it will give the virus an opportunity to mutate more. These mutations can change its...

-Hindustan Times The Forest Survey of India defines forest cover thus: “All lands, more than 1 ha in area with a tree canopy density of 10% irrespective of ownership and legal status. The National Mission on Edible Oils- Oil Palm (NMEO-OP), approved by the Union Cabinet last week, will increase the area under oil palm cultivation by an additional area of 6.5 lakh hectare (ha) by 2025-26, bringing a total area of...

-The Hindu As questions arise over the Ujjwala scheme’s success, it would be prudent to introduce alternative clean sources of energy In India, many women in poor households who use firewood or dung cakes for cooking spend long hours collecting firewood and making dung cakes. This is drudgery. It affects their health and puts the safety of women and girls in jeopardy. Using firewood and dung cakes also leads to indoor pollution,...

-The Hindu The urban employment scheme will be on the lines of MGNREGS, to improve livelihood of urban poor. CHENNAI: The Tamil Nadu government will implement an urban employment scheme on the lines of Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) at a cost of ₹100 crore to improve the livelihood of urban poor, Minister for Municipal Administration, Urban and Water Supply K.N. Nehru said in the Assembly on Tuesday. “In the...