-The Financial Express The prime minister, in his Independence Day speech, flagged “population explosion” as a problem and talked of the need to counter it. It is surprising that the government has missed the message on the declining trend in fertility in the country and is gearing up to fight yesterday’s problem. The proponents of population regulation raise the bogey of the absolute population level already being too high and the...

-The Telegraph Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his Independence Day speech linked the decision to have small families to patriotism New Delhi: Narendra Modi's mention of "reckless population explosion" in his Independence Day address has led to speculation that the government may now want to bring a law on population regulation. “Population explosion has been occurring at an unrestrained pace. This population explosion is creating innumerable challenges for us and the coming...

-Livemint.com Consumption declined over the period 2014-18, confirming fears that people ended up worse off Various data from the financial to the corporate sector over the last two months are confirming the worst fears of a sharp decline in demand in the economy. With stagnant investment and exports, there are clear signs of a sustained slowdown. Most of this was well known to anybody following the Indian economy, barring the government, which...

-Down to Earth The IPCC’s Special Report on Climate Change and Land says land-based carbon sinks are not limitless The carbon cycle is classically described in terms of ‘sources’ and ‘sinks’ of emissions. The electricity sector, which converts fossil fuels into light and heat, is a source (as are most human activities since the dawn of the industrial age). Identifying sinks is trickier. We know that, as a general principle, more forest cover...

-Scroll.in/ qz.com There are parallels between India’s economic situation today and the US experience of 2008. The Indian economy is facing one of its most challenging times in years, and policymakers are responding to the crisis through monetary measures, such as tweaking key interest rates. But how far can this go in reviving growth? On August 7, the Reserve Bank of India, in its bi-monthly monetary policy meeting, lowered its growth projection for...