-The Indian Express Only a couple of weeks ago, gaurakshaks impounded a consignment of eight indigenous Gir breed cows that Jadhav had sourced from a farmer in GujaRAT’s Amreli district. These animals, whose milk fetches a premium, are currently being housed at a gaushala (cow shelter) near Amreli. Pune: On August 14, Sandeep Jadhav joined protestors outside the Ahmednagar district collector’s office raising voices against the apparently growing attacks on gaurakshaks...

-TheCitizen.in NEW DELHI: Volume II of the Economic Survey which was brought out by the Ministry of Finance a few days ago paints an extremely grim picture of the Indian economy. The growth RATe of real Gross Value Added (GVA which is the appropriate thing to look at, since the GDP measure includes net indirect taxes and hence does not truly reflect output trends), was 6.6 percent for 2016-17 as a whole,...

-Livemint.com The caste networks will disappear when the market economy starts to function efficiently The caste system is arguably the most distinctive feature of Indian society. The Indian population is divided into four hierarchical classes, or varnas, with a large sub-population of untouchables excluded entirely from the system. Within each of these classes, and among the untouchables, are thousands of castes, or jatis. The central rule in Hindu society is that individuals...

-TheWire.in Despite government press releases, as of August 2017, there doesn’t appear to have been a substantial increase in the number of new tax payers or direct tax collection as a result of demonetisation. On the morning of August 8, most of our newspapers – both national as well as regional ones – ran headlines about the giant leap in the income tax returns received as well as the increase in advance...

-The Hindu Business Line A recent book shows how a cocktail of indebtedness, masculinity and consumerism acts as a trigger. For those who have wondered whether indebtedness can be the sole factor driving farmers to take their lives, here is a book that introduces much needed nuance and complexity to the debate. Nilotpal Kumar’s book, based on a study of 22 suicide cases in Ananthapur district (accompanied by a fascinating ethnographic study...