-The Hindu In a much-needed measure to keep the consumption of chewing tobacco under check, the Delhi government has extended by a year the ban on the sale, purchase and storage of all forms of chewable tobacco — scented, flavoured and mixed — sold in forms such as gutka, pan masala, khaini and zarda. The extension of the ban has come after the previous notification expired recently. In 2012, a few...

-The Hindu Business Line A national platform for agri-produce can be a game-changer. But persuading States is key Most political regimes in India brand themselves as pro-farmer, and so it is ironic that the country’s market for agricultural produce is among its least liberalised. Given the perishable nature of agri-produce, the farmer is already up against structural constraints such as lack of scale economies and the rudimentary state of storage and logistics...

-The Hindu Central Water Commission data on live storage show that only 23 per cent of capacity is available, and this is well below last year. Water levels in major reservoirs of the country are alarmingly low, weekly data released by Central Water Commission (CWC) shows. CWC, a technical organisation under the aegis of Ministry of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation, monitors live storage status of 91 major reservoirs in the...

-The Hindu Business Line Timely interventions through medical innovations can transform the lives of mothers and children, not simply save them A couple of years ago, I was in a primary health centre delivery room in Shivgarh and saw a beaming mother with her three-hour-old baby girl happily feeding at the breast. Three hours earlier, this contented baby was born without a cry, still, and blue in colour. Fortunately, the midwife present,...

-Down to Earth Are people more important or IPL, Court asks associations of drought-hit Maharashtra and Mumbai The Bombay High Court has rapped the Mumbai and Maharashtra cricket associations for scheduling 19 of the 60 matches to be held during the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2016 in Mumbai, Pune and Nagpur even as the state reels under severe water scarcity. The court stated that Maharashtra ought to prioritise its water usage according...