-New York Times News Service SHEOHAR (Bihar): He wore thick black eyeliner to ward off the evil eye, but Vivek, a tiny 1-year-old living in a village of mud huts and diminutive people, had nonetheless fallen victim to India's great scourge of malnutrition. His parents seemed to be doing all the right things. His mother still breast-fed him. His family had six goats, access to fresh buffalo milk and a hut filled...

-IANS Last year, the Bihar government declared 33 of the 38 districts drought-hit due to a rainfall deficit of nearly 25% Patna: The fear of another drought is giving sleepless nights to farmers in Bihar as an official said that if the state receives 19 percent less than normal rainfall till the end of this week, there could be a possibility of a drought-like situation. Satender Singh and his co-villager Mahesh Mahto are...

-The Times of India CHENNAI: They attracted the attention of officials from across the world and now the corporation's vigilance department is turning a hawk eye on Amma canteens. A year after the subsidized canteens were launched, the vigilance department has found discrepancies in their functioning and the complaints range from poor accounting and stock-keeping to vegetables being sold in the open market. The corporation's vigilance officers conducted surprise checks last week...

-The Guardian India's PM points to Gujarat as an emblem of economic success. But despite impressive growth, the state lags behind on welfare Narendra Modi has just unveiled his first budget after winning a massive electoral victory on a development platform. The budget presented last week has disappointed those who were expecting stronger signals about a pro-market shift in economic policy, as well as in the stock market. However, the budget has...

-PTI Says there are serious deficiencies in the action plan presented by state govt for lifting foodgrains of about 700,000 tonnes meant for PDS Criticising the Bihar government for not lifting foodgrains allotted to the state for public distribution, the Centre has given it an ultimatum to complete the exercise by August 31. In a letter to Bihar Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi, Union Food Minister Ram Vilas Paswan said there are "serious...