-The Hindu There is good reason why opposition to the agriculture Bills may be a reflection of the genuine concerns of farmers In a virtual rally, the PRIme Minister blamed the Opposition parties for misleading farmers about the three Bills on agriculture, in Parliament. While the Opposition may have taken up the cudgels recently, the fact is that farmers have been protesting against the Bills ever since it was promulgated as ordinances...

-IndiaSpend.com Mumbai: He delayed it as long as he could but when he realised that he had no other option, Pandurang Shinde, 33, swallowed his PRIde and asked his relatives for a loan in June. “It is not the best feeling,” he said. “But I was running out of time. I borrowed Rs 50,000--I needed that money for the cropping season starting in June.” Crop loans are critical for the agrarian cycle...

-Press release by Working Peoples' Charter dated 21st September, 2020 Amidst the micro and macro-economic crisis of the last 5 years, the union government has aggressively pushed the agenda of labour law reforms -- purportedly to simplify India’s ‘complex’ labour legislations, improve the business environment, and augment growth and employment. These changes, driven PRImarily by the business fraternity, have been aimed at improving India’s ranking in the ‘Ease of Doing Business’...

-TheWire.in The ban on onion exports has proven that farmers, mostly small and marginal, will continue to hold the burden of reining food inflation. On June 5, 2020, just after the COVID-19-induced all-India lockdown was being eased, the government promulgated The Essential Commodities (Amendment Ordinance, 2020). This move was lauded by India Inc as the move apparently signalled that the Indian government had finally decided to ease the draconian provisions of the EC...

-The Indian Express Officials Secrets Act has its roots in the British colonial era. This was brought in with the main objective of muzzling the voice of a large number of newspapers that had come up in several languages, and were opposing the Raj’s policies The Delhi police has arrested a strategic affairs analyst and two others – a 30- year-old Chinese woman and her “Nepalese accomplice” – under the Official Secrets...