-The Times of India NEW DELHI: Given the poll season, every political party's heart is beating for the farmer. While AAP's Arvind Kejriwal has brought out figures of farmer suicides in Gujarat, Narendra Modi has repeatedly lamented about such deaths under UPA regime. However, a look at government data on farmer suicides since 1995 (to 2012) shows that no party or politician has done anything for the farmer. In fact, BJP...
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Gujarat field report: crops failing, farmers dying -Sandeep Pai
-The Hindustan Times Narendra Modi has in his poll speeches blamed the UPA government on more than one occasion for farmer suicides while admitting to just one such death due to agrarian reasons in 10 years in Gujarat. But an HT investigation has established his claim to be false. Copies of FIRs, last declarations by farmers and internal records of the state police accessed by HT reveal at least 54 farmers in...
More »Many realities, multiple platforms-Amit Baruah
-The Hindu The digital divide has gone out of favour, but millions of Indians not only remain illiterate, but are unable to access welfare schemes Is there a clash between social media and social movements? Or, can social media be used to promote social movements? As political parties intensify their use of social media and election fever heightens in a country where millions are illiterate and have little access to technology, these questions...
More »Is corruption really a big issue? Stats say otherwise -Deeptiman Tiwary
-The Times of India NEW DELHI: Is corruption really an issue in elections? Some surveys claim that people worry more about the economy than corruption. Poll data for 2004 and 2009 general elections show that not only do political parties continue to repeatedly field candidates facing corruption charges, people even vote for them. Analysis of affidavits filed by Lok Sabha candidates shows that in 2004 general elections, a total of 12 candidates...
More »Bihar, Gujarat low on spending inequality: study -Chetan Chauhan
-The Hindustan Times As parties gear up for polls, India's two most talked about non-Congress ruled states - Gujarat and Bihar - have been rated as having lesser spending inequality as compared to most other states of the country. A new government study ranks Gujarat as the state having least inequality in urban areas except four north-eastern states of Manipur, Meghalaya, Nagaland and Mizoram. For rural areas, Bihar earns the top slot...
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