-TheWire.in/ The Reporters' Collective * Excess deaths in Rajasthan, Jharkhand and Andhra Pradesh were over 12-times the corresponding official COVID-19 death toll until early January 2022. * Data from across the country suggests governments are undercounting COVID-19 deaths by the lakhs, possibly to avoid the charge of epidemic mismanagement. * As a result, facilitated by disparate protocols, poor record-keeping and red-tape, thousands of families haven’t received the compensation they are due. Last year, just as...

-Down to Earth Unfavourable, unreliable weather hurt agriculture, in turn pushing food prices our of reach across the world At 14.23 per cent, India’s wholesale inflation rate in November 2021 was the highest in three decades. It did reduce marginally to 13.56 per cent the next month, according to government data released January 14, 2022. But even that is bad news for the Centre ahead of Assembly elections in five states, including...

-Hindustan Times The protests over problems with recruitment for railway jobs in the states of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, may well be India’s first large-scale unemployment riots The protests over problems with recruitment for railway jobs in the states of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, may well be India’s first large-scale unemployment riots. The protests have taken place across a large number of places in these two states. News reports suggest that at...

-Down to Earth Higher MSP, dearer imports expected to keep rates firm for local oilseeds     India looks set for a bumper mustard harvest this rabi season, which raises the question: Will those growing the oilseed reap enough compensation for their effort? Increased supply generally suppresses prices, but experts are optimistic that mustard farmers will duck that trend this time. The country has already achieved its mustard acreage for 2025-26 this rabi...

-The Tribune Plan to end waterlogging on 1 lakh acres in current year Rohtak: The state authorities have pulled up their socks to tackle the problem of waterlogging in agricultural fields, which has been causing heavy losses to farmers for several years. The Haryana Government has prepared schemes involving a total expenditure of Rs 221 crore to siphon the water accumulated in the fields and reuse it. During a meeting with Additional Chief Secretary...