-PTI GORAKHPUR, UP: With the death of nine children on Thursday, a total of 15 kids have succumbed to encephalitis during the past three days here. With this, the toll in the region this year due to the disease has risen to 271, health officials said. While six children died on Tuesday, nine others succumbed today, they said, adding that the victims belonged to Gorakhpur and its adjoining districts of Kushinagar, Siddharthanagar and...

-The Telegraph Patna: Bihar's honeymoon with double digit growth appears to be headed for a rocky phase with the government today declaring 33 of the state's 38 districts as drought-hit. The agriculture and allied sectors, which contribute around one-fifth (18.91 per cent) of Bihar's gross state domestic product (GSDP), are staring at a lower growth rate for the second consecutive year. The overall growth rate of the state was a little...

-Kafila.org This fact-finding exercise was coordinated by the CENTRE FOR POLICY ANALYSIS. Team members were the human rights activist and former civil servant Harsh Mander; former Director-General of the Border Security Force, E N Rammohan; Professor Kamal Mitra Chenoy of Jawaharlal Nehru University; National Integration Council member John Dayal; senior journalist Sukumar Muralidharan and CPA Director and senior editor Seema Mustafa. Introduction and Overview The first impression of the Muzaffarnagar countryside, now green...

-The Hindustan Times Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), whose findings have been controversial, will make its biggest admission this month - it was wrong on the extent of global warming by end of this century in 2007. The IPCC fifth assessment report to be released by end of this month would claim that the global temperature will rise by 1 to 2.5 degree Celsius not by 1 to 3 degree Celsius...

-PTI PATNA: Taking into account deficient rainfall this year, Bihar government on Wednesday declared 33 out of the 38 districts of state as drought-hit. The decision was taken at a cabinet meeting presided over by chief minister Nitish Kumar. Principal secretary (Cabinet Coordination and Secretariat) Brajesh Mehrotra and the principal secretary ( Disaster Management Department) Vyasji said the decision was taken because of deficient rainfall in these districts at 20 per cent below...