-TheWire.in A market economy is not an automobile that can stop and restart at the touch of a button. When Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a total lockdown of the country to fight COVID-19, he did it perhaps with one idea in his mind. The spread of the virus had to be stopped first, no matter what it cost the economy. A trade-off between saving lives and saving incomes was unavoidable and...
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How will India emerge out of the lockdown? -G Ananthakrishnan
-The Hindu An opening up has to be accompanied by an increase in relief budget for the most vulnerable After a 39-day lockdown, what will be the shape of things to come? How should one strike a balance between ensuring livelihoods, minimising strife, and maintaining social distancing? In a discussion moderated by G. Ananthakrishnan, Reetika Khera, and Giridhar R. Babu examine the options. Edited excerpts: * With less than a fortnight left for...
More »COVID-19: Distress calls from migrants reveal India’s digital divide -Kundan Pandey
-Down to Earth Communication between migrant workers, their family members has come to a standstill April 14 usually marks the traditional new year for many communities in India. This year, amid muted celebrations, the Union government launched a system to connect thousands of schools online. This when thousands of migrant workers didn’t have enough money to talk on their phones. Welcome to India’s digital divide — the new, improved post-COVID-19 lockdown version. Amid talks...
More »The great lockdown gums up animal farms -Sayantan Bera
-Livemint.com * India’s cattle are on an enforced diet, milk’s value is on the slide and chicken farmers are in deep despair * The livestock sector contributes 30% to India’s agricultural GDP and is valued at over ₹9 trillion. Yet, during the lockdown, policy and remedial interventions have largely focused on crops NEW DELHI: Shravan Kumar Yadav often wakes up in the middle of the night these days. The incessant mooing and grunting...
More »Mission Journal: Journalists in India’s Uttar Pradesh say threat of attack or prosecution looms large -Kunal Majumder
-Committee to Protect Journalists On March 26, two days after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced a national lockdown to control the spreading of COVID-19, Hindi-language daily Jansandesh Times reported that a tribe in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh state, didn’t have enough to eat due to the sudden announcement and that children were eating grass. The same day, the magistrate of Varanasi district, Kaushal Raj Sharma, sent a legal notice to the...
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