-The Hindu Industrial Output growth halves from 28.6% in May to 13.6% in June Retail inflation cooled slightly to 5.6% in July, slipping below the central bank’s upper tolerance threshold of 6% for the first time in three months, even as Industrial Output growth halved from 28.6% in May to 13.6% in June, as base effects from the national lockdown of 2020 begin to fade. Food prices at the consumer level played a...

-Down to Earth Aggressive sugarcane farming contaminates land, water The Union government intends to increase the amount of ethanol in the energy mix to lower the country’s dependence on imported oil and carbon footprint, as well as stabilise petrol prices.  India currently blends about 8.5 per cent ethanol in petrol. The government is targeting a 10 per cent ethanol blend by 2022 and a 20 per cent blend (E20) by 2025. E20 can save...

Scientific knowledge has immensely helped in combating the dreadful coronavirus and its spread. Within a record short period of time, scientists (including virologists, epidemiologists, biostatisticians, etc.) and their research outputs helped the commoners to learn more about the SARS-CoV-2 and how it spreads from one individual to the next one. Common people have now come to know how simple techniques and behavioural change like the wearing of N95 masks, maintaining...

-The Hindu  Growth impulses remained fragile, manufacturing output tanked 9.5% After touching a six-month high in May, India’s retail inflation was virtually unchanged in June at about 6.3%, remaining out of the central bank’s comfort zone for a second month in a row. Economists expect the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) to revisit its inflation estimate of 5.1% for 2021-22 and stressed that lack of fiscal policy action to cool prices could precipitate...

-The Tribune Govt must prepare for worst-case scenario as things won’t be resolved on their own In February this year, a restaurateur friend turned optimistic. Business was back to 70 per cent of pre-Covid days and things could only get better. There could be no stronger signal that India’s economy had turned the corner. Experts had predicted that restaurants would be the last places to see a full recovery. They are closed...