-The Business Standard Rs 4,900 crore has been provided in the Budget Estimates 2013-2014 for food subsidy Chennai: The National Food Security Bill has been generating much excitement across the country but not in Tamil Nadu, since the state has a more comprehensive model in the form of a Universal Public Distribution System (PDS). Irrespective of any government, coverage of the PDS has been universal. A state government official said at a time...

-The United Nations The world experienced "unprecedented high-impact climate extremes" between 2001 and 2010 and more national temperature records were broken during that period than in any other decade, according to a United Nations report launched today. The report, The Global Climate 2001-2010, A Decade of Extremes, says the first decade of the 21st century was the warmest for both hemispheres and for both land and ocean temperatures since measurements began in...

-The Telegraph North India is among a small number of regions scattered across the globe vulnerable to severe and multiple impacts of climate change, a study by an international team of researchers has predicted. The study, based on computer simulations of future climate scenarios, suggests that northern India may experience sharp drops in yields of key crops and severe ecosystem changes that may show up as altered landscapes. While earlier studies have explored...

-The Indian Express As the government begins the second phase of rollout of Direct Benefits Transfer in 78 districts from July 1, it would do well to look back at the rather shaky experience of the scheme's implementation in the past six months, and whether it is in fact prepared to bring in more areas under the scheme's ambit. The ambitious plan, that aims at eliminating middlemen and ensuring money reaches beneficiaries...

-Frontline     Attempts by the Congress-led UPA government to adopt the ordinance route to pass the Food Security Bill fail as the opposition parties are more or less united in seeking a Bill that provides universal PDS coverage. THE National Food Security Bill (NFSB), 2013, touted as the biggest game changer for the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government in the 2014 parliamentary elections, will go through yet another round of discussions...