-The Hindu The need of the hour is to invest in long-term crisis response mechanisms and resilience solutions Days after a glacier burst in the Chamoli district of Uttarakhand caused flash floods, the scientific community is still struggling to understand what triggered the disaster. At the time of writing this article, the death toll was 34 with more than 170 people missing. The floods have also caused heavy damage to public and...

-GaonConnection.com Latest data by the Union Jal Shakti Ministry shows that only 39.8% anganwadis are covered with tap water connections. Despite poor Infrastructure and lack of basic facilities, such as tap water, the Budget for anganwadis is reduced. To provide tap water supply to rural households, including anganwadis and rural schools, the Narendra Modi government launched its flagship scheme of Jal Jeevan Mission in 2019. The aim is to cover all rural...

-The Indian Express Somanathan said the government is trying to reach the target group of unskilled and semi-skilled workers through increased government expenditure in the construction sector. Working with a “constrained resource envelope” in the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic ahead of Budget 2021-22, the government essentially had to make a choice between two policy options: handouts and capital expenditure. “We chose capex,” TV Somanathan, Expenditure Secretary, Ministry of Finance, told The...

-MongabayIndia.com * The main focus of the Union Budget for 2021-22 is on Infrastructure development-led growth. * This is expected to create a demand in the economy and thereby help it recover after the pandemic crisis. * This commentary explores whether the thrust on Infrastructure development will lead to adverse environmental consequences. * The views expressed in this commentary are that of the author. Investment in Infrastructure is the most important focus area in the...

-IdeasforIndia.in Commenting on the strong Infrastructure push in the 2021-22 Budget, Sarmistha Pal argues that an emphasis on investment in Infrastructure may not necessarily bring India out of the current economic recession – with the Budget’s negligence of the education sector and insufficient health expenditure, making matters worse. The 2021-22 Union Budget, announced on 1 February 2021, made a definitive turn to the right as it turned its back on providing any...