-The Hindu The goal of comprehensive social security coverage remains a mere slogan in many parts of the world A recent global report on social security could serve as a useful starting point to understand the appeal of populism across the world. The World Social Protection Report 2017-19 of the International Labour Organisation could also be viewed as a blueprint for action by political parties of the mainstream. A vast majority of people...

-PTI So far, the benefits of the scheme have reached 10,000 women approximately, says govt The Centre is trying to make the maternity benefit programme, which has been marred by delay, 'fully functional' by February-end, a senior official said on Monday. The top economists of the country wrote to Finance Minister Arun Jaitley last month flagging the delay in the rollout of the Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana (PMMVY), which promises pregnant and...

-Frontline.in The farce being played out in the name of Aadhaar has led to several deaths because it denies the poor their right to food and therefore life. THERE is no doubt that human life is cheap in India, perhaps more so now than ever before. The attacks, atrocities and killings of people from the minority communities and marginalised groups, which have now become so common, are particularly appalling because they reflect...

-PTI The Bill permits felling and transit of bamboo grown in non-forest areas. However, bamboo grown on forest lands would continue to be classified as a tree. The Parliament on Wednesday passed a Bill to exclude bamboo from the definition of tree under the Indian Forest Act, claiming it would improve the earnings of tribals and dwellers living around forests. The Indian Forest (Amendment) Bill, which was adopted by the Lok Sabha on...

-Scroll.in India has attracted negative attention in recent years as the second most unequal country in the world, after Russia. Spectacular economic growth over the past three decades has made India a global economic powerhouse. Between 1990 and 2016, India’s economy grew at a compound rate of around 7% in current dollars. The Indian economy is now the third largest in the world by purchasing power parity after China and the...