The state of Jharkhand has been in the news recently but for the wrong reasons. The NREGS workers who worked for constructing dobhas (small farm ponds) across the state during April to June 2016 have been treated unfairly by the officials in the sense that they were not paid their due wages, alleges a group of local activists. Despite complaints being made by the aggrieved workers, no action has been...

-The Indian Express Farm incomes may not revive despite good monsoon. There are new challenges for policymakers. India’s per capita calorie demand has been falling for at least the last 30 years. Most people do a double-take when they hear that. One can’t debate the fact much: National Sample Surveys every five to seven years have documented this. What we can debate are the reasons behind this: In their 2009 paper Angus...

-The Hindu Mihir Shah on the importance of an integrated policy for groundwater and surface water Mihir Shah, water policy expert, member of the erstwhile Planning Commission and in recent months head of several committees tasked with reforming India’s water laws, says existing institutions are inadequate to address our water needs. Which is why, he says in an e-mail interview, India needs an overarching water commission. Excerpts: * The proposed National Water Commission...

-The Hindu Business Line State faces 73% deficit in rainfall;next 10 days most crucial, says farm minister Ahmedabad: Even though overall monsoon rainfall has been a tad above the Long Period Average (LPA) for the country, Gujarat remains the driest place and faces a severe rainfall deficit of 73 per cent of the LPA. As the key sowing period of July nears its end, the State government is betting big on the optimistic...

-The Times of India Lucknow: A tribal woman in Uttar Pradesh's parched Bundelkhand has dug a well almost single-handedly for 40 families after her upper caste neighbours denied them access to a hand-pump. "We are tribals and lived in Duddhi village. But we were not allowed to use the hand-pump by the upper caste residents. Arranging for a pot of drinking water was an everyday battle we had to face for the...