-The Indian Express In a nation where access to education remains a fundamental issue and where an individual’s success largely depends on access to resources, shaped by socio-economic and caste advantages, 'merit' is just another form of discrimination. While a public health crisis grips the nation, the recent incident at IIT Kharagpur where a professor named Seema Singh at the Department of Humanities and Social Sciences allegedly made casteist slurs during a...

-The Hindu Ministry concedes Q1 growth to be hit, bats for expanding vaccination pace. The second COVID-19 wave which is spreading fast beyond the worst-affected districts in the country, could dent economic activity till June this year, and expanding vaccination pace in the country is the “need of the hour”, the Finance Ministry said on Friday. The Ministry also indicated it is not in favour of a national lockdown to curb the pandemic,...

-GoIMonitor.com Study shows that hold of caste and social standing persists despite affirmative actions like reservations. Cities offer better occupational mobility than villages ARE YOU likely to be poor and socially backward if your grandfather was too?  A latest paper finds that educational levels have increased in India over three generations but people are still holding same occupations. So, there is clear evidence of “grandfather effect”. This multigenerational mobility differs in social groups....

-The Indian Express The spectre of lockdowns is looming large once more, and while there are bright spots, there are also risks and uncertainties to watch out for. As India’s economy embarks on a new financial year, a dark cloud is on the horizon: The second wave. Every day brings further reconfirmation that the second wave is no longer a Maharashtra-centric phenomenon. With the daily run-rate of cases surpassing the first-wave peak,...

-The Indian Express At the inaugural Indian Express Thinc Migration series presented by Omidyar Network India, moderated by Udit Misra, deputy associate editor, panelists discussed the crisis in India’s internal migration. On migration patterns S Irudaya Rajan: In the 2011 census, India had 450 million migrants. We have policies in the country to increase migration, and policymakers and economists, who believe urbanisation will lead to economic growth. This is reflected in the Smart...