-The Times of India NEW DELHI: Income tax exemptions worth hundreds of crores have been given to hospitals claiming to be charitable institutes, but they may be doing little or no charity, according to a recent report of the Comptroller and Auditor General. CAG has asked for measurable parameters to assess the extent of charitable activities by hospital trusts availing tax exemptions as the public exchequer could be losing crores without...

-The Indian Express Only a couple of weeks ago, gaurakshaks impounded a consignment of eight indigenous Gir breed cows that Jadhav had sourced from a farmer in Gujarat’s Amreli district. These animals, whose milk fetches a premium, are currently being housed at a gaushala (cow shelter) near Amreli. Pune: On August 14, Sandeep Jadhav joined protestors outside the Ahmednagar district collector’s office raising voices against the apparently growing attacks on gaurakshaks...

-The Hindu In contrast to its pronouncements, the government’s own data suggest the economy is in a deep hole Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in his Independence Day address, spoke triumphantly about how demonetisation drove ?3 lakh crore of unaccounted money into the banking system. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is still counting old notes, and unaccounted money cases are ongoing. Thus, this number is at best a guesstimate, and cannot be...

-TheCitizen.in NEW DELHI: Volume II of the Economic Survey which was brought out by the Ministry of Finance a few days ago paints an extremely grim picture of the Indian economy. The growth rate of real Gross Value Added (GVA which is the appropriate thing to look at, since the GDP measure includes net indirect taxes and hence does not truly reflect output trends), was 6.6 percent for 2016-17 as a whole,...

-The Hindu Business Line A recent book shows how a cocktail of indebtedness, masculinity and consumerism acts as a trigger. For those who have wondered whether indebtedness can be the sole factor driving farmers to take their lives, here is a book that introduces much needed nuance and complexity to the debate. Nilotpal Kumar’s book, based on a study of 22 suicide cases in Ananthapur district (accompanied by a fascinating ethnographic study...