-CaravanMagazine.in India is often hailed for its democracy, for empowering its poor and ordinary citizens to participate in the electoral process and play a role in shaping the country. This narrative has increasingly come under strain since the Supreme Court, through its March 2003 judgment in Union of India vs Association for Democratic Reforms, made it mandatory for candidates contesting elections to disclose their wealth, educational qualification, and criminal cases pending...

-The Indian Express For all their talk on farm distress, on agriculture, BJP, Congress show they have not learnt from past failures. We often feel proud of our democratic system. But it also has a shortcoming, which has been magnified in the current election season. The conversation today is not about what the BJP/NDA promised in its manifesto of 2014, and how far they have been able to deliver on their...

-Hindustan Times Better health and education facilities, and expansion of old age pension and insurance must follow to improve the socio-economic status of the people . A battle cry of the Congress in the current election is the Nyuntam Aay Yojana (Nyay), which promises Rs 6,000 per month to the poorest 20% of the households. Some have questioned its rationale. Others have questioned its feasibility. Still others have been laudatory about it....

-The Hindu Several interventions are needed on the demand and supply side to alleviate farm distress Loan waivers remain the preferred solution for governments to tackle farm distress. S. Mahendra Dev and M. Govinda Rao talk about the inability of governments to think of long-term solutions to tackle farm distress, in a discussion moderated by Vikas Dhoot. Edited excerpts: * Despite farm productivity rising, severe distress in the sector is a concern. How...

-The Indian Express Amid the ongoing controversy that erupted with PepsiCo India’s lawsuits against 11 farmers for growing its patented potato variety, The Indian Express meets the affected farmers to find the genesis of the problem . Among the 11 farmers of Gujarat who have been slapped lawsuits by PepsiCo India for “illegally” growing its patented potato variety FL 2027, are Fulchand Kachchhawa and his brother Suresh of Malgadh village in...