-The Hindu Shankar Lingala of Rythu Mitra has been spearheading a silent movement to run sustainable farms applying the science of the soil Ongole bulls, native cows, the intermittent fights of country chickens, sunshine yellow butterflies and the peaty smell of fresh dung... that’s Shankar and Padma Lingala’s farm for you. Shankar, despite being a city boy is an integral part of the Rythu Mitra group, where a team of farmers is bringing...

-The Hindu At least 150 days of work for each household of beneficiaries sought Visakhapatnam: The Human Rights Forum (HRF) and ‘Samalochana’ on Saturday urged the State government to clear pending wages of the beneficiaries of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) immediately. Describing the scheme as the lifeline for millions of rural households amid the economic downturn triggered by the coronavirus pandemic, they said a substantial portion of the...

-IndianSpend.com Recent changes to environment clearance rules allow polluting industries to expand their operations and change their product mix without full central scrutiny. This may weaken the already poor compliance with environmental regulations and could even lead to industrial accidents like the 2020 Visakhapatnam gas leak, experts say. New Delhi: Recent changes in the environment clearance process for India's most polluting industries will allow them to expand their capacity and change their...

-The Hindu ‘Not paying minimum wages amounts to forced labour’ Visakhapatnam: The Human Rights Forum (HRF) and Samalochana Association expressed their disappointment over the quantum of increase in the wage rate of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. “The increase in wages by a meagre ₹8, from the existing ₹237 to ₹245 a day, is measly and amounts to mere eyewash. We are concerned about...

-Livemint.com * The spike in auto-debit failures suggest that the pain may have only just begun for India’s small borrowers * With mandatory EMI repayments kicking in since September, many feel the available recast options and a waiver of compound interest are not sufficient. India may be staring at a loan crisis MUMBAI: For someone who had never defaulted on any loans before March this year, Monica Keerthi Karri gets quite harried at...