-Hindustan Times A gradual shift towards cash crops at the expense of food crops and deficit rainfall over the years are the primary reasons behind the agrarian crisis in Maharashtra’s drought-hit Marathwada region, according to a study conducted by the Indian Institute of Technology-Bombay (IIT-B). Published in the Environmental Research Letters in May, the study analyses the role of rainfall deficits and cropping choices in loss of agricultural yield in Marathwada. The...

-The Hindu QuaranTeen Warmline, a peer-to-peer support helpline, is a safe space for teenagers to discuss their problems amid the pandemic Tara Dave spends every evening on phone calls. Not surprising for a 17-year-old, but what is unusual is that every day, she speaks to children across the country, as part of QuaranTeen Warmline, a peer-to-peer support helpline, exclusively for teenagers aged 15 to 18, that she helms. “Many hotlines have come up...

-The Hindu Owing to COVID-19 lockdown and limited access to courts, their families have very limited recourse to seek justice, says CHRI The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has asked for action taken reports from the authorities of eight States, where 15 people died following police action in the first month or so of the lockdown, according to the proceedings in the cases. The NHRC acted on a May 16 complaint by the...

-The Hindu BJP government has given a free hand to corporate houses to exploit us, they say Chandigarh: Several farmers under the banner of the Kisan Mazdoor Sangarsh Samiti on Monday held protests in several districts of Punjab against the Centre’s recent ordinance on the agriculture sector, besides the proposed amendment to the Electricity Act, 2003. Farmers staged the protests in Amritsar, Tarn Taran, Ferozpur, Moga, Jalandhar, Hoshiarpur and Fazilka districts and submitted...

-The Hindu Central government facilities are open to all. As complaints mounted on social media of poor treatment at Delhi’s hospitals, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal announced on Sunday that all government and private hospitals in the city would only treat Delhi residents till the rising COVID-19 cases are contained. While informing people of this first-of-its-kind decision in the country to “reserve” hospitals even as cases mushroomed in the national capital, Mr. Kejriwal, said...