-The Telegraph The chief minister announced a new scheme — Matir Shristi — for six backward districts in the western part of the state Mamata Banerjee on Wednesday announced a series of schemes for income generation to ensure livelihood for rural populace in the post-lockdown period as the state government realised the need of securing flow of funds at the grassroots level. “Life and livelihood have come to a halt (because of the...

-Livemint.com The line, connecting Hubballi and Ankola, poses a risk to 2,500 endemic species. On March 20, the controversial Hubballi-Ankola railway line project was cleared at the Karnataka State Wildlife Board meeting in Bengaluru amid protests from members. The proposed 164.44-km line will pass through the Western Ghats, a United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organisation World Heritage Site, and see felling of 2.2 lakh trees, a move that has been opposed...

-The Indian Express Locusts normally arrive during July-October, but have already been spotted in Rajasthan. At a time India is battling Covid, they present a new worry with their potential for exponential growth and crop destruction. On April 11-12, scientists at the Locust Warning Organisation (LWO) observed groups of grasshoppers at Sri Ganganagar and Jaisalmer districts of Rajasthan. But far from ordinary hoppers, these were desert locusts — the same destructive migratory...

-Outlook India While nationwide lockdown is unavoidable and is a wise decision to contain the spread of the virus, there is a need to address the possibility of an unintended baby boom among poor and vulnerable groups. With most countries following nationwide lockdown or stay at home orders due to the novel coronavirus outbreak, there has been a debate on a possible unintended baby boom across the world. Although many demographers from...

-The Hindu North east coast also to have below normal rainfall; good rains in western States While the India Meteorological Department has predicted a normal monsoon, spatial forecast models show wide variations in rainfall across the country which can have dire implications for farmers, especially on the north eastern coast and the dryland areas of the Deccan. For instance, there are likely to be long dry spells and low rainfall in June and...