-Livemint.com Nobel to Deaton calls for a celebration of not just his own work but also the contributions of a number of Indian economists who have engaged with similar issues The announcement of Angus Deaton winning the Nobel Prize in economics was unexpected but not surprising. His body of work over the years has influenced many of us who have worked on issues of poverty, nutrition and food security. It is...

-The Indian Express Punjab is a case study in agricultural and economic mismanagement in India From the breadbasket of India, Punjab has become a basket-case economy. Endowed with ample water and good soil, Punjab’s happy, progressive people had a dream that is now a distant memory. Punjab’s decline started with its trifurcation. In its bid to establish a separate identity, the poli-tical establishment obsessed over a religious-political agenda and steered the state...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: At a time when Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg is on a visit to India, the government's contract with his company is under intense legal scrutiny. For the first time, following court instructions, the Centre has filed in the Delhi high court a copy of the contract with Facebook that allows the latter to operate in the country. In an affidavit, the Centre has annexed the contract...

-The Hindu The Central Information Commission has admitted fewer and fewer cases every month this year, under the Right to Information Act, data show, and RTI activists have asked for greater transparency in the process of turning down requests. Cases come before the CIC in two ways: if an applicant is not satisfied with the response to his or her request for information from a Central Government authority, and with the verdict...

-Livemint.com State seeks Rs300 crore more for drinking water supply and Rs750 crore for waiving off interest payments on loans New Delhi: Madhya Pradesh has declared 35 out of 51 districts in the state as drought affected and sought an initial central assistance of Rs.2,400 crore, indicating deepening rural distress. Karnataka, Maharashtra and Odisha have already declared parts of their state as drought affected. Madhya Pradesh finance minister Jayant Malaiya and agriculture minister...