-Down to Earth No funds released under Jal Shakti Abhiyan, MGNREGS works incomplete: District officials Over 400 kilometres from Uttar Pradesh’s Mahoba district — where construction of bunds under Jal Shakti Abhiyan helped revive groundwater — is another that paints an opposite picture. Madhya Pradesh’s Rajgarh district ranked 205 among the 255 water-Stressed districts in terms of successful water intervention schemes under Jal Shakti Abhiyan (JSA) and community participation. Rajgarh district collector Mrinal Meena...

-Down to Earth Rising temperatures due to climate change may be compounding the Stress on crops in multiple ways, it says Insect attacks are becoming stronger with rising temperatures and plants are not able to cope with the double whammy from pests and rising heat. These are the findings of a recent study published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The study reinforces previous findings that persistent warm and...

-IndiaToday.in IndiaToday.in's analysis found that Union Budget 2020 had at least 14 data discrepancies regarding allocations for the Department of Health and Family Welfare. When we sought a clarification, the Finance Ministry secretly corrected them without replying to our mail. * There were 14 data discrepancies in Expenditure Budget for Dept of Health & Family Welfare * These were between the PDF and Excel files uploaded by Finance Ministry on budget's official website *...

-Business Standard/ NIPFP Strap: It recognises that the medium-term fiscal arithmetic does not afford space for expansionary fiscal policy   In my column on the FY20 Budget (A silent fiscal crisis, July 5, 2019), I had warned that the government faced a structural fiscal constraint that was concealed by using incorrectly optimistic numbers for revenue receipts. This year’s Budget is transparent. But the government continues to be heavily fiscally constrained due to inadequate...

-Hindustan Times It has been unable to cope with new challenges to public order. Autonomy is the only way out The year 2019 ended on a Stressful note for the Indian Police, battling a number of agitations over the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019 (CAA), and the National Register of Citizens (NRC) across the country. The police also had to answer an array of questions about that methods of handling the protests. Violent...