-The Telegraph Ranchi: Jharkhand resolved to eradicate child labour within the next four years with chief minister Arjun Munda unveiling a comprehensive plan today to eliminate the scourge that has victimised over 4.07 lakh youngsters slogging as ragpickers or errand boys at homes, dhabas or roadside garages. The ambitious goal will be pursued by various departments of the state government in conjunction with International Labour Organisation (ILO) by assigning specific roles at...

-Live Mint Charges that NREGA has pushed up agricultural wages fails to account for changing productivity In the debate over the costs and benefits of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), one of the most controversial and unsettled issues is its effect on agricultural labour market. Last year, Union agriculture minister Sharad Pawar even went to the extent of recommending a 50% subsidy to farmers in wage costs due...

-The Indian Express 207 HRS and Counting Met warns of dense smog starting Nov 12, says not seen since 1989 After 207 hours of smog cover, the city saw clear sky when the afternoon sun returned on Thursday. But the worst of the fog spell, which leads to smog formation, is yet to come, the weatherman claims. The maximum total fog hours in November was in 2008, when there were three spells of...

-The Economist MID-AFTERNOON in Delhi, and a red blob looms in the haze. The sun barely illuminates the city. A yellow-green smog hangs low. Even indoors, fuzzy halos of dust and smoke surround lamps. Those foolish enough to be out jogging, or compelled to stand at junctions directing traffic, complain of shortness of breath, migraines, clogged lungs. Newspapers are crammed with articles about asthma, wheezing children at clinics, an epidemic of...

On November 23, the Supreme Court is slated to hear a damning report submitted by the court-appointed Commissioners on how politically connected contractors—legally barred from the ICDS program—might be subverting the social welfare measure in the state of Maharashtra.  The ICDS is an Rs 8000 crore government-funded program aimed at ending India’s abysmal rates of child malnutrition by supplying hot cooked meals and take home rations to children through decentralised women-run,...