-The Indian Express This is the first time India has taken a position in an international forum on the origin of the virus and the need for an independent evaluation of WHO’s response to the crisis. So far, New Delhi had maintained that it is engaged in the fight against Covid-19, and will revisit the issue after the crisis is over. India is among 62 countries that have moved a proposal at...

-The Hindu By suspending labour laws, states are exploiting the unique opportunity provided by the national lockdown As India slowly attempts to lift its nationwide lockdown, under compulsion of reviving the economy, labour rights are disappearing at an astonishing pace. Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat, which are States ruled by the Bharatiya Janata PARTy, took the lead in suspending crucial labour laws for varying lengths of time. Undemocratic introduction This strategy visualises effecting...

-The Hindu Police brutality, a colonial legacy, has tenaciously clung on to the mantle of law enforcement personnel On April 16, Mohammed Rizwan, 19, a resident of Chhajjapur village, Uttar Pradesh, ventured out of his home to buy biscuits. He was beaten with rifle butts and lathis by the police, while other residents purchased their groceries from the shop. In a battered condition, he managed to reach home. After some home remedies...

-The Hindu Business Line Private oligopolies may end up forcing small and marginal farmers to accept poorer terms for their produce A big-bang reform claimed to usher in the farm sector as Finance Minister announced ₹1-lakh crore funding support for strengthening of farm-gate infrastructure such as cold chains and post-harvest management infrastructure. Additional measures include a ‘facilitative legal framework’ to enable farmers for engaging with modern food chains in a fair and...

-The Indian Express Women are bearing a disproportionate amount of the burden that the imposition of lockdowns, shrinking of economic opportunity has created. While much of COVID-19’s epidemiology remains shrouded in mystery, we know that it claims the lives of men more than women — at double the rate in some countries. Other coronavirus outbreaks, such as the 2003 SARS and 2012 MERS epidemics, were also more deadly for men than women. But...