-The Hindu Vantangiyas, who derive their name from a Burmese tradition of hill cultivation, have lived in tin shacks without toilets for decades Gorakhpur (Uttar Pradesh): There is no proper road to Jungle Tinkonia-3. As its name suggests, one must pass a woodland of sal and teak trees to reach it. The situation gets even more precarious during monsoons and medical emergencies, as the village does not have any health centre. Its infrastructure is...

-Down to Earth For every million rupees spent on agricultural research, 328 people are pulled out of poverty. In contrast, the same amount spent on power subsidies brings only 23 people come out of poverty. The message is clear. With the Union elections only a few months away, the Centre should prioritise capital investments over populist subsidies to deliver on its promise of strengthening the farm sector. This is important, especially when the...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: There are around 2,000 dark spots in the capital. Last year, poles for streetlights were erected here but the illumination hasn’t happened so far. A prime reason for this is that various civic agencies haven’t been able to sort out jurisdiction issues. In 2016, 7,428 potentially dangerous dark spots had been identified through a pan Delhi survey by NGO Safety Pin. Since the municipal corporations...

-The Hindu The deluge in Kerala was made worse by inefficient management of 34 dams The people of Kerala have braved the worst calamity since the great flood of 1924. The floodwaters have receded from most of the affected areas barring Kuttanad. Most people have gone back to their homes from relief camps, only to find them battered beyond redemption. As the State is coming back to a “new normal” after the...

-Scroll.in Questions arise again over Delhi’s welfare delivery system – close on the heels of the starvation deaths of three girls in July. In May, Ram Baran, a resident of Savitri Nagar in Delhi, received a letter from the ration circle office stating that his ration card would be cancelled because he had not collected foodgrains between January and March. The letter added that unless he submitted his Aadhaar number, electricity...