-Scroll.in Emotion and grand political statements may normally distract and attract voters. In a crisis, they are poor substitutes for governance. It is now 41 days since the government told the Supreme Court that there were no migrant workers on the road any more. “They have been taken to the nearest available shelter”, and 2.3 million were being fed, India’s Solicitor General told the judges, who – in a now familiar routine...

-The Hindu Business Line The vague legal definition of ‘worker’ sabotages inclusive and eligible delivery of welfare to all workers during the pandemic The Covid-19 health emergency has disrupted trade, mobility and livelihood in unimaginable ways. The magnitude of the crisis grows manifold when social and economic shutdowns accompany it, and the uncertainties of livelihood, wage loss and lay-offs might last longer than expected as Covid-19 has hit almost all sectors. To...

-The Indian Express As we grapple with a health, economic and humanitarian crisis of epic proportions, the immediate need is to provide emergency relief to cushion the effects of the dual shocks of the virus and lockdown on informal workers. COVID-19 is causing havoc across the world, destroying both lives and livelihoods. Developing countries such as India are particularly vulnerable as their vast informal workforce, which has no labour, social or health...

-The Hindu Policy responses to the migrant crisis reinforce the idea of two Indias Jamalo Makdam, 12, died on April 18 walking back from the chilli fields of Telangana to her home in Chhattisgarh. She and a group of other workers decided to return home on foot, as many migrant workers did, after losing their jobs, incomes and even accommodation following the announcement of a nationwide lockdown. Her journey ended in death,...

-TheWire.in Unlike other sectors, a large majority of the farming community do not have any savings to fall back upon. The COVID-19 pandemic has not only hit manufacturing, services and business but also pushed back the Narendra Modi government’s ambitious programme to double farmers’ income by 2022. From feeding a population displaced, dislocated and frozen in its tracks, to ensuring farmers stay afloat in the coming months, the government has a tough...