This has been a longstanding demand of the people in coastal districts Cabinet discusses the harmful effects of endosulfan Kerala was the first State to ban the insecticide The Karnataka government on Thursday banned the use of endosulfan, an insecticide, with immediate effect. This has been a longstanding demand of the people of Dakshina Kannada, Uttara Kannada and Udupi districts, and reports have it that lobby of manufacturers prevented the introduction of such a...

In a significant expansion of its health insurance scheme for the poor, the government has decided to bring workers under its flagship job guarantee programme as well as a host of workers from the unorganised sector, including rickshaw pullers and domestic workers. The labour ministry has decided to include workers who have worked under the National Rural Employment Guarantee programme for a minimum of 15 days under the ambit of the...

Tribal communities are vulnerable not only because they are poor, assetless and illiterate compared to the general population, their distinct vulnerability arises from their inability to negotiate and cope with the consequences of their forced integration with the mainstream economy, society, and cultural and political system. The repercussions for the already fragile socio-economic livelihood base of the tribals have been devastating—ranging from loss of livelihoods, land alienation on a vast...

The world's second largest national headcount operation, the Census of India, is significant for several reasons. The largest peace-time administrative activity of the Indian state is also the third since economic liberalisation was initiated. Three decades is enough time for a nation to assess the economic impact and implications of a change in macroeconomic policies, and hence Census 2011 should provide statistical insights into what the move away from state-led...

The two-day state-level research and extension specialists workshop for kharif crops organized by Punjab Agricultural University (PAU) was inaugurated on Monday. PAU vice-chancellor Dr MS Kang visited the exhibition of latest farm technologies that was put up on the occasion and released the publications 'Use of mat type nursery and transplanting machinery for paddy', 'Improved design and cost estimates of net houses', and 'Rainwater harvesting from rooftop for groundwater recharge'...