-Livemint.com Uttar Pradesh recorded 14.5% of the total cases of crimes against women, it accounted for 12.4% of the total number of rape cases, shows NCRB data New Delhi: Led by Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh, the incidence of rape registered a sharp increase in India in 2016—part of a general spike in crimes against women, according to annual figures released by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) on Thursday. Rape cases shot...

-The Indian Express DMRC and Union minister for urban development Hardeep Singh Puri are right that the daily ridership of Delhi metro hasn’t declined by 3 lakhs due to fare hike. It has declined by 4.8 lakhs. Economists are frequent targets of ridicule by politicians for failing to predict crises or having vastly differing opinions of major economic events (e.g. demonetisation). But all economists agree on one fundamental tenet — demand reduces...

-The Financial Express By setting the target of doubling farmers’ income by 2022, the prime minister has clearly signalled a transition in agri-food policy from an excessive emphasis on foodgrain production towards improving welfare of the farming community. Given the continued excessive employment pressure, proliferation of small landholdings and growing agrarian crisis, this move is indeed an important change in the policy landscape. Doubling farmers’ income, however, requires identification of high-income...

-The Hindu Business Line The recent deaths in Maharashtra once again affirm that highly toxic agrochemicals are freely sold across the counter Last month about 40 farmers died and more than 700 were hospitalised in Maharashtra due pesticide poisoning. Initial reports suggest that the deaths are due to monochrotophos. This is a highly toxic chemical that has been banned in more than 60 countries but is still allowed to be sold in...

-Hindustan Times As per the latest National Nutrition Monitoring Bureau, which has been collecting data on diet and nutritional status of rural, tribal and Urban Populations for almost four decades, the calorie intake of children (1-3 years) in rural areas was only about 70% of their requirement due to shortage. In India, more than 4.8 crore children suffer from stunting, which means they are below the normal height range for their...