-PTI/ The Telegraph Family members claim it was an inflated one while the state-run power company says victim had never been billed since he had taken a borewell connection in 2010 Patna: A Bihar farmer who received an electricity bill for around Rs 50,000 in December and paid Rs 25,000 after taking loans hanged himself on Thursday after power officials insisted on full payment, his family said. Family members of 48-year-old Dinesh Singh...

-Hindustan Times Most forecasters, institutional and private, have revised their GDP estimates for both 2020-21 and 2021-22. India imposed one of the world’s most stringent lockdowns -- it went on for 68 days -- starting on March 25 to curb the spread of Covid-19 infections. It was this lockdown which triggered a record contraction of 24% in India’s gross domestic product (GDP) in the first quarter of fiscal 2020-21. The economic shock...

-The Telegraph The committee said, “The absence of reliable and authentic data/information on the numbers of migrant workforce and their movement back to their home States following the outbreak of the Pandemic has apparently impacted the relief and rehabilitation measures.” Commending the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme, a parliamentary standing committee has said that there is no “better scheme” to provide “sustainable livelihood” to unskilled workers. The Standing Committee on Labour, headed by...

-Down to Earth While total allocations to Union budget 2021-22 saw an increase of 14.5%, the share for children declined by 10.8% compared to 2020 The novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has dealt a serious blow to the Indian economy. The economic slowdown has aggravated poverty, disrupted public provisioning for children’s welfare, exacerbated existing gaps in availability, access and utilisation of services. It has multiplied challenges for children from marginalised communities. Healthcare, nutrition,...

-Press note by People’s Action for Employment Guarantee (PAEG) dated 10th February, 2021 In its press note dated 10th February, 2021, People’s Action for Employment Guarantee has noted that the Union Budget 2021-22 largely failed to address the challenge of increasing inequality and declining welfare during the pandemic. For the FY 2021-22, Rs. 73,000 crore has been allocated, which although greater than the original allocation of Rs.61,500 crore for 2020-21, is 34.5...