-TheWire.in The Indian farmer is not just a poor, helpless victim who deserves a waiver because he cannot pay. The root cause of the debt trap is that his income has not increased with rising expenditure due to state policies. As Punjab joins the list of states to declare farm loan waivers, the political scales are now heavily tilted in favour of this idea. The government of Telangana, followed by Andhra Pradesh,...

-Scroll.in The Public Health Foundation of India had been working on government programmes since 2010. The Ministry of Home Affairs has barred the Public Health Foundation of India from receiving foreign funding by revoking its registration under the Foreign Contributions (Regulation) Act. The ministry cited the organisation’s lobbying against tobacco use as one of the reasons for the move. However, as the foundation’s officials have pointed out, it has been working...

-The Telegraph New Delhi: One in five television programmes in India display tobacco, but only 5 per cent of programmes with tobacco scenes show the mandatory anti-tobacco health spots at the start and middle, a survey conducted for the government has suggested. The survey found tobacco depicted in 22 per cent of programmes in a sample based on nine hours of programming each of 45 of India's 446 TV channels. But it...

-PTI Chandigarh: The Haryana State Pollution Control Board has decided to honour and reward a girl from Jind district for reporting the case of stubble burning by her father to the authorities. Sonali Sheokhand, from Dhakhal village of Narwana, will be given a cash award of Rs. 11,000 for her exemplary contribution to the cause of prevention of crop residue/ stubble burning in the state, an official release said today. Her complaint recently...

-PTI Chandigarh: Ignoring warnings by state authorities on burning paddy stubble, many farmers in Haryana and Punjab are still continuing the banned practice, leading to health risks and adversely affecting soil health. Both the Haryana and Punjab governments have imposed a ban on burning of paddy residue and the erring farmers can also be prosecuted by authorities. However, reports from various areas, including Karnal district in Haryana and Patiala district in Punjab, suggest...