-Down to Earth Union Ministry of Tribal Affairs should create a COVID-19 response cell to monitor issues and provide support, it said The novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) crisis has hit the forest dwellers in India hard: The pandemic has led to a loss of livelihood and employment, caused food insecurity and socio-economic distress for the marginalised forest-dwelling communities, according to a new report. Atrocities and injustices faced by these communities due to forest,...

-The Indian Express In a presentation made to Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray and senior ministers in a meeting on Monday, the state finance department claimed that the unemployment rate had climbed from 3.9 per cent in July to 6.2 per cent in August. Mumbai: A spike in Maharashtra’s unemployment rate in August is threatening the revival of the COVID-hit economy, a government report has said. In a presentation made to Chief Minister Uddhav...

-The Telegraph The Nobel laureate economist described 'India as a poster child of what not to do' Nobel laureate economist Joseph Stiglitz made a strong case for spending money to combat the long-term economic damage of the pandemic, saying that India would be well advised to focus on containing the contagion as the economic aftermath cannot be tackled without tackling the pandemic. Bracketing India with Brazil and the United States for its “utter...

-The Hindu Several workers returning to Gurugram and Delhi from their home towns after the lockdown discover their employers have already filled their positions Vijay Mishra, a chhole-poori vendor on Jharsa Road in Gurugram, is the odd man out among a row of fruit sellers. The 38-year-old makes ₹200-₹300 daily, not even half of what he used to earn at his job in Maruti Suzuki India Limited before the lockdown. Like thousands of...

-Livemint.com * Nobody is going to be denied the compensation which has arisen out of implementation of GST and COVID impact. A discussion with states is on,' says Sitharaman * Sitharaman adds that compensation cess collected this year amounting to about ₹20,000 crore will get disbursed to all states by tonight Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman during the 42nd Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council meeting today decided to extend compensation cess beyond...