-Business Standard Exemptions granted on agri income and subsidies provided by the Centre and states are being cornered by big farmers and corporates The Comptroller and auditor general’s proposed audit of exemptions granted to big corporates, companies and even farmers under the head of agriculture incomes has once again rekindled the debate as to whether farm incomes derived from big companies and large farmers should be taxed. According to an analysis done by...

-The Times of India Chennai: Voicing concern about closures of government primary schools in Tamil Nadu, members of the Samakalvi Iyakkam, a child rights movement, urged the state government not to close or merge schools citing poor strength. They also demanded for the reopening the schools that were closed or merged in the last 10 years. Quoting RTI replies, members of the NGO, in a press meet here on Tuesday, said as...

-The Indian Express Decentralised industrialisation, entrepreneurship from below have been absent in states that have seen recent unrest among agrarian communities. “The soil here is very saline with electrical conductivity value of 9. We can grow only chloride-loving crops like coconut and the MR-2 variety of mulberry.” That was Tamil Selvi, recently telling this correspondent about the 5.75-acre land farmed by her father Natarajan Gounder at Velayuthagoundanpudur, a small village around 25...

-The Hindu Business Line Although literacy levels are improving, there’s not enough learning happening. This calls for urgent attention This year, marks the 50th year of International Literacy Day. In 1966, UNESCO declared September 8 as International Literacy Day to “mobilize the international community and to promote literacy as an instrument to empower individuals, communities and societies”. At Independence in 1947, India had a literacy rate of 12 per cent, which stands today...

-Livemint.com At least 150 villages in Karnataka have already qualified as drought affected, with more being added as rainfall continues to be deficient, according to a Cabinet minister Bengaluru: The Karnataka government could well be on its way to declare the state as drought-affected after nearly two months of dry spell, according to two people familiar with the move. At least 150 villages in the state have already qualified as drought affected,...