-IndiaSpend.com The new farm laws that aim to double farmers’ income in two years by deregulating agricultural markets may further widen the inequalities in the sector, shows our analysis of similar legislations from the past. By weakening the government’s price guarantee system, the laws may end up hurting small and poor farmers, who form 80% of the sector and 23% of those who live below the poverty line, say critics. The privatisation...

-SabrangIndia.in The group of leading womens’ organisations write open letter to PM Modi; will soon hold nationwide protests against the “ruthlessness exhibited by the Union government” National women’s organisations have written an open letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi demanding that the government stop repressing the farmers’ legitimate and peaceful protests immediately. They have asked that all cases imposed on the struggling farmers and leaders of the farmers’ organisations be withdrawn and...

-Press release by Network of Rural and Agrarian Studies (NRAS), dated 30th November, 2020 The “State of Rural and Agrarian India Report 2020” was released by Dr. V Ramgopal Rao, Director, IIT Delhi today in an online webinar organised by the Network of Rural and Agrarian Studies (NRAS). This report is being brought out by the NRAS, which is a pan-India network of scholars, researchers, practitioners, farmers, students, and activists engaged...

-The Telegraph ‘Farmers at mercy of corporates, food security threatened’ Eminent economist, professor emeritus at Jawaharlal Nehru University and activist Prabhat Patnaik traces the downward and dangerous slide of the Indian economy, from the demonetisation to the new farm bills. * The first onslaught was in the form of the demonetisation. While Amartya Sen termed this step “despotic”, Narendra Modi gushed that there would be no black money after the demonetisation. In the...

-The Hindu With reforms promoting innovation and lowering the cost of doing business, India is poised to attract the best investments Vietnam and Bangladesh are on a roll. While Bangladesh has become the second largest apparel exporter after China, Vietnam’s exports have grown by about 240% in the past eight years. What has helped them? And what can India learn from them? Two nations and their success stories An open trade policy, a less...