-The Hindu Business Line Falling farm prices, drying up of industrial jobs and lesser MGNREGA work have sharpened rural discontent. The Budget cannot ignore these factors in a year of 8 State polls The year 2017 was roiled by rural discontent. After two consecutive drought years (2014-15 and 2015-16), when agriculture growth plummeted (see table), the countryside was awash with hope after a good monsoon in 2016-17. However, record foodgrain output (272 million...

-Livemint.com Distress in rural economy is not limited only to the agrarian sector but has also spilled over to the larger economy with unemployment becoming a major challenge 2017 has been a bad year for the economy. The fact that the economy is in crisis, particularly the rural economy, is no longer a matter of statistics. The recent elections in Gujarat have laid bare the fissures in the rural economy that have...

-TheCitizen.in Govt admits no stakeholders consulted; Opposition parties demand Bill deferred to a Standing Committee NEW DELHI: The debate in the Lok Sabha over the Triple Talaq Bill that criminalises the practice with a three year, non bailable prison term, for the erring Muslim husband belonged to Congress MP Sushmita Dev from Assam. After her senior leader Maillkarjun Kharge, had assured the BJP that the Congress was supportive of the Bill, but...

-Scroll.in It takes an average of eight years to investigate complaints of corruption against central government officials. When the Bharatiya Janata Party ascended to power at the Centre in 2014, it was helped enormously by a wave of anti-corruption sentiment that has swept India. In the run-up to the election, prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi promised to prosecute all corrupt officials and politicians – including those from his own party. During...

-Livemint.com Rising input costs and lack of remunerative prices have turned the terms of trade against the Indian farmer While the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) managed to retain its stronghold of Gujarat in the recent state assembly elections, it conceded significant ground to the Congress in rural and semi-rural constituencies. The results bring to the fore the problem of rural discontent, as farmers intensify their protests against non-remunerative prices for their produce...