-Business Standard Poor rainfall has also depleted water reservoirs levels, which is likely to impact the winter crops All signs point to the growing distress in rural areas. The rainfall deficit currently stands at 15 per cent of its long-term average. If the situation persists, this year's monsoon could end up being the worst in nearly three decades, say experts. Poor rainfall has also depleted water reservoirs levels, which is likely to...

-The Hindu While the Rapid Survey on Children points to substantial progress in fields that have become a focus of serious action, such as safe delivery, it also highlights the penalties of inaction in other fields The recent release of summary findings from the Rapid Survey on Children (RSOC) has generated remarkably little interest in the mainstream media. The main focus of attention so far has been the indifferent performance of Gujarat...

-The Hindu Overall, industry bodies are positive about the ongoing contraction in inflation, but there is some wariness regarding deflation. Wholesale price inflation contracted for the tenth consecutive month, coming in at -4.95 per cent in August compared to -4.05 per cent in July. This follows Chief Economic Adviser Arvind Subramanian’s comments cautioning that India’s economy could be nearing deflationary territory. The data also comes two weeks before the Reserve Bank of...

-The Hindu District Mineral Foundations were set up to protect the interests of Adivasi communities who have borne the costs of mining. But they are flawed in their current form Through 2011-13, dogged investigators from the Justice M. B. Shah Commission on illegal mining toured the rust-red villages, forests and rivers of northern Odisha, and trawled through reams of official records including from the environment, minerals, railways, and revenue departments. They met...

-PTI NEW DELHI: Monsoon rains have revived in the worst-hit central India and southern peninsula regions that would help boost kharif crops and water level in reservoirs, a top official of Met department said on Wednesday. Monsoon deficit has been at 12 per cent so far this season (June 1 to September 2). However, the rain deficit in the southern peninsula and central India was 22 per cent and 16 per cent, respectively,...