-Down to Earth Novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic pushes government to act on reforms of food systems with urgency Food systems must be inclusive, local and diverse to address food security and malnutrition and build economic and climate resilience, according to the latest 2020 Global Nutrition Report. The report — released by the Stakeholder group — placed equity as the cornerstone of all efforts to overcome global malnutrition and insisted on policy...

-Press release by Gurgaon Nagrik Ekta Manch dated 26th April, 2020 A large number of civil society organisations came forward to respond quickly to the lockdown-induced hunger crisis among the informal sector workers in Gurgaon. Gurgaon Nagrik Ekta Manch (GNEM), an organisation working among the unorganised workers, started distributing an average of 350 ration kits per day since 27th March, 2020, the third day of the lockdown, and about 25,000 cooked...

-TheWire.in Social policies almost always have multiple, often unintended, consequences. This feature came out sharply, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi declared a nationwide lockdown to arrest the spread of the novel coronavirus without announcing an immediate or near-simultaneous relief package for India’s poorest. As the fight against COVID-19 unavoidably puts the livelihoods of millions at risk, an ugly truth of Indian society has come out in the open – namely, a large...

-The Hindu Ensure safety of health workers, it says Chennai: The Centre has expressed serious concern over the “polarising public opinion on religious lines” against the backdrop of a particular community being Targeted as being responsible for the spread of COVID-19 in the country. In a note issued to all States on Tuesday, the Union Government said a sizeable number of non-Muslims was getting a perception that a particular community was not taking...

-The Hindu RBI told banks that they could shift the repayment schedule for loans and the residual tenor across the board by three months after the moratorium period. Banks which give borrowers a three-month moratorium on repayment of loans will continue to charge interest on the outstanding portion of the loans during this window period, the Reserve Bank of India clarified on Friday evening. The 3-month moratorium on repayment of loans - including...