-Economic and Political Weekly Agricultural market reforms recently enacted by the National Democratic Alliance government reflect the Bharatiya Janata Party’s determination to introduce agrobusinesses into agriculture and push further its agenda of centralisation of economic power and decision-making. The opposition to the reforms by farmers, many state governments, and regional political formations poses the most formidable challenge, so far, to this government. The contesting claims have missed the dimension of the...

-Down to Earth India recorded 0.34 million stillbirths in 2019; COVID-19 has disrupted health systems and added to the existing burden Some 0.34 million of the 1.9 million stillbirths globally in 2019 were in India, making it the country with the largest such burden, according to the first joint estimates released by a number of United Nations agencies October 8, 2020. India, along with five other countries — Pakistan, Nigeria, the Democratic Republic...

-TheWire.in Gram sabhas have this federal power under the Punjab Panchayati Raj Act, 1994. Mohali: There are over 13,000 gram sabhas or village councils in Punjab. Following large-scale protests against the Centre’s newly enacted farm Bills, in what is being called one of the largest Democratic and federal processes in the country, almost all councils in Punjab are mobilising to pass resolutions against the Centre’s agri-marketing Acts and register their opposition. As of...

-TheWire.in In the last few years, there have been considerable delays in the tabling of audit reports for states – a problem whose blame is to be shared by both the elected state government and the national auditor. The global pandemic has impacted Democratic life and institutions, with assembly sessions getting shortened or delayed in many states in India. In the first nine months of the year, we have witnessed 47 audit reports...

-The Hindu Securing largely upper caste-OBC alliances has propelled the BJP to great heights and has also impacted Dalit politics Political alignments in Bihar for the forthcoming elections offer a peek into the various ways the ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) constructs its electoral building blocks. Taking into consideration the specificities of each State, the NDA has been able to secure the votes of the upper castes as well as large sections...