-TheWire.in The Narendra Modi government's push to have research institutions depend less on public funds has been turned into a bad idea by the government's own priorities. “Innovate, patent, produce, prosper.” Prime Minister Narendra Modi delivered these words in his inaugural address at the 107th Indian Science Congress, now underway in Bengaluru. Modi’s prescription (first advanced in early 2018) describes a straightforward path to success but it also quietly assumes an environment and...

-Press release by National Alliance of Peoples' Movements  dated 28 November, 2019 In yet another of its egregious legislative misadventures, the BJP Government with support from some other parties, passed the regressive 'Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights)' Bill, in the Rajya Sabha yesterday, despite wide-spread opposition by members of the transgender, intersex and gender non-confirming communities, seeking referral of the Bill to a Select Committee. We have all been witness to...

-The Indian Express Government data always come with limitations. Now, they have a political dimension A new data-related controversy has erupted after the government aborted the publication of the report of the household consumer expenditure survey (CES) conducted by the National Sample Survey Organisation (NSSO) during 2017-18. This survey is one of the oldest series of surveys — undertaken by NSSO since the 1950s — and is the precursor to the...

-TheWire.in PCI said that journalists should not explicitly report on the method of suicide which a person may have used, nor use any photographs or videos. New Delhi: The Press Council of India has asked Indian media houses to be careful while reporting on suicide. Journalists, editors and media houses are being encouraged to not sensationalise or normalise stories about suicides in reports or in headlines, and to not report on suicide...

-Down to Earth To reduce the consumption of water and maximise agricultural productivity in the country, the government is trying to introduce different innovations The gap between irrigation potential created, through major and minor projects, and the actual usage is increasing and affecting the country’s agricultural productivity, according to the Indian Council of Agriculture Research (ICAR), the premier agricultural education and research body under the Union Ministry of Agriculture. "The key challenge facing...