-The Indian Express A report on air quality, released during the conference, said Varanasi and Allahabad have not seen a single ‘good’ air quality day in the past one year. Varanasi: Burning agricultural residue doesn’t just bring down air quality, but also leads to longer spells of dense fog, scientists at the Indian Institute of Technology, Kanpur have concluded. While the concentration of oxidised organic carbon that is produced after burning biomass —...

-The Hindu Biodiversity integration into developmental plans is crucial for sustainable development In a ‘Mann Ki Baat’ broadcast recently, Prime Minister Narendra Modi made his environmental concerns clear when he asked people to use Ganesha and Durga idols made of clay instead of plaster of Paris. His appeal is bound to stimulate our environmental consciousness and encourage the preservation of precious natural resources. We need to build on this appeal and follow...

-Hindustan Times Gurgaon: The demonetisation move by the Centre is turning out to be a nightmare for over 1 lakh construction workers in the city. Labour department sources said that 10,000-12,000 daily wage workers have already left Gurgaon. In the absence of work and cash, a majority of the seasonal workers are struggling to make ends meet. To get a clearer picture, the labour department has also ordered a survey. Gurgaon is a...

-Livemint.com Latest data released by ministry of agriculture shows that sowing of rabi crops, expected to be higher than last year, is still lower than normal area sown That demonetisation will cause Indian economic growth to slow is no longer a matter of speculation. While clear estimates of the extent of deceleration will only emerge after some time, preliminary estimates of automobile sales and the purchasing managers’ index (PMI) for manufacturing...

-Frontline.in Interview with Utsa Patnaik, professor emerita of economics, Jawaharlal Nehru University. By T.K. RAJALAKSHMI THE FALLOUT of the decision of the National Democratic Alliance government to demonetise currency of higher denominations has been felt across all sections of people. There are concerns that it will lead to an overall economic slowdown given the acute shortage of currency for industrial and agricultural operations. The impact on agriculture and those dependent on agriculture...