-The Hindu In the newly proposed draft notification seeking to amend the Environment Impact Assessment, the Central government offers a way out to those who have violated environmental norms The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF) has issued a draft notification seeking to amend the Environment Impact Assessment (EIA) of 2006, allowing those who violate this law to continue work with an Environment Supplement Plan (ESP). This is the first...

At the Labour Line office of Aajeevika Bureau situated at Syphon Chouraha on Bedla Road in Udaipur, Santosh Poonia said that 12,926 calls were received by his office between August 2011 and March 2016, out of which almost 37 percent were payment-related grievance calls. During the same time-span, 2,008 payment-related cases (as received by the Labour Line office) could be settled. Poonia, who is Programme Manager (Legal Education and Aid...

Situation alarming: More than one-third population hit by drought   The country is facing severe drought for the second consecutive year. Conservative estimates from official sources show that over a quarter of rural habitations are facing drinking water scarcity. Although both India Meteorological Department and Skymet have predicted a more than normal rainfall during June-September, 2016, the water storage available in 91 major reservoirs of the country has declined from 22 percent...

-Livemint.com A look at the past three budgets shows that the government took note of the crisis only in 2016 On 24 April 2014, about a month before Narendra Modi-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) formed a new government at the centre, the India Meteorological Department made an ominous forecast. The four-month-long southwest monsoon which irrigates more than half of India’s farmlands was likely to be deficient. Over the next few months the...

-Livemint.com No household in a drought affected area shall be denied grains even if they do not possess a ration card, says Supreme Court New Delhi: Coming down heavily on the centre and states for a delayed implementation of the National Food Security Act despite a protracted drought, the Supreme Court on Friday ordered that all households in drought-hit areas be supplied with highly subsidised foodgrains. No household in a drought affected...