-PTI The leaders claimed thousands of people had lost their jobs because of demonetisation Trade Unions want the government to allocate more funds in the Union Budget for employment generation and claimed that opening up the retail market to foreign players would lead to further loss of jobs. Though Finance Minister Arun Jaitley had said suggestions made by TU leaders during a pre-budget consultation meet last month would be considered, the leaders felt...

-The Hindu Business Line The government must universalise social security pensions for the elderly, single women and persons with disabilities and also operationalise the maternity entitlement scheme at the earliest, says Reetika Khera, Associate Professor of Economics at IIT-Delhi. In an interview to BusinessLine, Khera argued against the use of Aadhaar for authentication of beneficiaries and said it has “no role in plugging leakages or in the identification of correct beneficiaries”....

-Down to Earth That explains why agrarian riots have increased by over 600 per cent in the last three years Whenever agriculture makes headlines, ironically, they hide more stories of distress. For sixth consecutive year, horticulture (fruits and vegetables) production has outstripped food grain production. Apparently, it is encouraging news given that farmers earn more from vegetables and fruits than food grains. But around the same time, reports of farmers dumping...

-Livemint.com Immediate challenges to economy top talks between Prime Minister Narendra Modi, senior ministers and economists, sector experts from across India New Delhi: The government on Wednesday signalled that the Union budget for 2018-19 would include solutions for vexed problems such as rural distress, weak employment and revival of private investments. These immediate challenges to the economy topped the extensive discussion that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and senior cabinet colleagues had on Wednesday...

-Down to Earth Government reports say 2004-14 had the highest agriculture growth that has fast slipped back to near-zero growth despite normal monsoons and bumper yields The National Democratic Alliance government is scrambling to rescue the agriculture sector from a crisis never seen before. On January 10, Prime Minister Narendra Modi met over 100 economists in a first ever such interaction. Agriculture, rural economy and unemployment dominated the discussions. Modi’s promise of...