-Down to Earth Jean Dreze on why he prefers a solidarity society, rather than a welfare state * Are you actually an advocate of the welfare state? Ideally, I would prefer to think in terms of a solidarity society rather than welfare state, for two reasons. First, private non-profit institutions can play a very useful role in the social sector. In many countries, some of the best schools and health centres are run...

-The Hindu Business Line Mumbai: The flow of agricultural credit may have increased from ?96,000 crore in 2004 to ?10 lakh crore now; about 18,000 new rural branches have been set up and yet there is an agrarian crisis because of definitional dilusions as well as diversion of funds from the needy small farmers, Professor Ramakumaar, Agro Economist, Tata Insitute of Social Sciences (TISS), said on Monday. He was speaking at...

-The Indian Express Union government must address structural issues in agricultural policy, allow states greater autonomy. Farmers from across the country are out on Delhi’s streets agitating just as the deliberations for the 2018 budget are beginning and it’s time to seek solutions to the structural issues that plague the system. The “one-size-fits-all” policy created for the farm sector is self-destructive in design and programmes meant to double farmer incomes are collapsing. The...

-Livemint.com The regulatory system for the seed and biotech industry should be transparent, science-based, predictable and fair For many decades, the Indian policy framework facilitated the interaction of science and innovation with entrepreneurship, which led to competition and the subsequent development of an industry structure that delivered sustainable economic benefits. The government was a major contributor to investments in seed research in India for close to three decades after independence. Policy reforms like...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: Prime Minister Narendra Modi has directed officials to ensure efficient and stringent monitoring of construction of rural roads and also for quick resolution of complaints received through the 'Meri Sadak' application. Modi took a review meeting on the progress in infrastructure sectors including rural housing, rural roads, coal, mining and rural electrification on Thursday evening, which lasted for more than two and a half hours....