-The Times of India MUMBAI: Indian villages are powering their own economy, but contrary to conventional belief , it's not government largesses which are the drivers, but their own self-sustaining models. Growth at the bottom of the pyramid is at unprecedented level, and the transformation is stark. The factors driving this transformation are dramatic improvements in rural roads, electrification, cell phones and water supply which are raising wages and increasing job opportunities...

-The Telegraph Many Indians stand in solidarity with the protest launched by the academic community in the University of Pennsylvania against the decision to invite Narendra Modi, writes Prasenjit Bose S L. Rao's criticisms of the academics of the University of Pennsylvania, who had initiated a campaign against Wharton Business School's invitation to Narendra Modi, in his article, "The trip that never was" (March 18), are not only unwarranted but they also...

-The Economic Times Extreme poverty afflicts more than one in five people, according to the World Bank. The institution's new president, Jim Yong Kim, speaks of the need to "bend the arc of history in order to eliminate extreme poverty and achieve shared prosperity". At a time when his bank's resources as well as the budgetary resources of governments are limited, Brazil offers important lessons on how to eliminate extreme poverty and...

-The Hindu   To be dug in eight delta districts at a cost of Rs. 181 crore Chennai: At a time when the State, particularly Cauvery delta region, is in the midst of a drought, the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) has come in handy for the government to order the creation of 15,000 farm ponds in eight delta districts. The ponds are to be dug on lands of agriculturists who...

-The Hindustan Times A UN report has described India’s water pollution situation as a “time-bomb” while praising social activist Anna Hazare’s village Ralegan Siddhi for using the scarce commodity in a rationale manner. In a stinging remark on water administration in India, the report says India is able to treat just 10 % of its city sewage and industrial waste discharge, the most polluting source for rivers and water bodies. “Presently, only...