-Press release by the Right to Food Campaign, dated 21st June, 2018 Over the past ten months, at least 12 persons have succumbed to hunger in Jharkhand. Instead of taking action against functionaries whose lapses have led to these deaths and measures to improve the situation of food security in the state, Jharkhand government has denied hunger as the cause of any of these deaths and absolved itself of any blame....

-Livemint.com Crop insurance has failed to provide much-needed relief to farmers from Destitution With one farmer committing suicide every half-an-hour, the number of farmers who have ended their lives as per official records in India is estimated at over 300,000 over the past two decades. These numbers do not include suicides by agricultural labourers, though they too are victims of the agrarian crisis. As each death affects at least the immediate family...

-The Indian Express Share of Muslims in official 3.7 lakh ‘beggar’ population is disproportionately larger than the community’s share in country’s population, show Census data. Mumbai: Muslims make up 14.23% of India’s population. They are, however, nearly 25% of the 3.7 lakh individuals who have been listed as beggars by the Government of India. Activists claim that the data — released last month — on the religious orientation of those deemed ‘non workers’...

-Hindustan Times New Delhi: Almost a quarter of India’s 370,000 beggars are Muslims, newly released data from the 2011 Census show, reinforcing that the community still lags behind on most counts despite the country’s rapid economic growth. Muslims, the largest minority who make up 14.2% of India’s 1.25-billion population, come out pretty much at the bottom of most socio-economic indices, even a decade after a high-level government probe into their historical disadvantages...

-Press Note from Swaraj Abhiyan A latest survey of the drought stricken Bundelkhand region lying across Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh shows a crisis bordering on famine. While rains are at least 6-8 weeks away, drinking water crisis has hit its peak and has crossed the danger mark in the MP part of the region. Those living on the margins of society face hunger like situation and are being pushed...