-The Indian Express India’s response has been comprehensive and robust. Right from the onset, the government has taken things very seriously, as reflected in the high-level of political commitment, INCluding by the Prime Minister himself, says Dr Henk Bekedam. While India is yet to adopt the World Health Organisation’s prescription of “test test test” against the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19), Dr Henk Bekedam, WHO’s representative in India, tells The Indian Express that...

After the outbreak of COVID-19 in China during early January this year and its dissemination globally within a few days, health experts have suggested ways to check its spread exponentially among the rest of the population. In the age of internet connectivity, work-from-home and self-isolation have been advised as solutions to ensure social distancing and avoid large-scale social gatherings. Experts have asked governments and private enterprises to keep people at...

-The Telegraph Poultry business dithering, seed supply may hit kharif season A week is a long period in the time of pandemics. Around Holi, India was besotted with other issues, INCluding New Delhi’s insinuated communal riots and the Madhya Pradesh political crisis. Late last week, finally, Covid-19 drew full attention of the authorities as it rightfully deserves. While these are still early days in India and the number of Covid-19-infected people is a...

-The Hindu Business Line Suppressing data that point to low growth, rising joblessness and poverty impedes effective policymaking in a crisis Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, in her Budget speech, said “data is the new oil” and stressed on the credibility of data to combat the difficulties in real-time monitoring of the Indian economy. She even proposed building data centre parks throughout the country so that skilful INCorporation of data in every step...

-The Indian Express Montek Singh Ahluwalia’s book helps frame the problem: Tilt in favour of consumer in food policy reduces INCentives for farmers, makes it difficult to unlock resources for growth. Last month, Montek Singh Ahluwalia’s book, Backstage: The Story Behind India’s High Growth Years, was released. It is an account of India’s economic reform journey— a process in which Montek was an insider for about 30 years. Besides some very interesting...