-The Hindu India’s record in collecting taxes has been pathetic, and it is getting worse. The declining rates of direct taxation are an indication of the political choices of the government We now have a peculiar combination in the economic policy of India: a declared attempt at fiscal consolidation, combined with a reluctance to do what it takes to raise tax revenues. This unfortunate juxtaposition has meant a squeeze on Central government...

-The Guardian / Agence France-Presse Government says 330 million people are suffering from water shortages after monsoons fail As young boys plunge into a murky dam to escape the blistering afternoon sun, armed guards stand vigil at one of the few remaining water bodies in a state hit hard by India’s crippling drought. Desperate farmers from a neighbouring state regularly attempt to steal water from the Barighat dam, forcing authorities in central Madhya...

-Hindustan Times Parbhani: It took Pandurang Shinde three trips to the weekly Khandoba cattle bazaar in Parbhani, one of the eight drought-hit districts of Marathwada, to find a buyer for his pair of bullocks. After much heckling, he managed to sell his coveted pair at Rs 50,000, half the price at what the animals had cost him. The weekly cattle bazaar, held on Thursdays, at Parbhani taluka is packed these days, full...

-Nezine.com Cultivation of the Early Ahu varieties of rice is helping many farmers in Assam to make better earnings Assam: In these times of drought and scarcity in many parts of the country, improved rice varieties are bringing hope to farmers in the Nalbari district of Assam. What makes it so special is the short duration that it takes to harvest. In the villages of Sungarbari, Galdighla, Adabari in Nalbari district, farmers are...

-HuffingtonPost.in NEW DELHI: Over the weekend, Chief Justice of India Tirath Singh Thakur implored Prime Minister Narendra Modi to double the number of judges serving in Indian courts. Speaking at a conference of chief justices and chief ministers on Sunday, Thakur made an emotional appeal to the central government to provide some respite to the serving 21,000 judges, who are handling a preposterous number of cases, while tens of thousands of people...