-The Hindu/ PTI The Congress along with many other opposition parties has claimed that the bills will harm the interest of farmers and benefit corporates. Hitting out at the Opposition at its attack on his government over the farm bills issue, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Friday that those who always “lied” to farmers are now “shooting from their shoulders” and misleading them for their own political benefit. Addressing BJP leaders and...

-Press release by Working Peoples' Charter dated 21st September, 2020 Amidst the micro and macro-economic crisis of the last 5 years, the union government has aggressively pushed the agenda of labour law reforms -- purportedly to simplify India’s ‘complex’ labour legislations, improve the business environment, and augment growth and employment. These changes, driven primarily by the business fraternity, have been aimed at improving India’s ranking in the ‘Ease of Doing Business’...

-PTI/ The Hindu Business Line Retail inflation for farm workers and rural labourers cooled down to 6.32 per cent and 6.28 per cent, respectively, in August compared to the year ago period mainly due to the softening of prices of some food items. Point-to-point rate of inflation based on the CPI-AL (Consumer Price Index-Agricultural Labourers) and CPI-RL (Consumer Price Index-Rural Labourers) was 6.39 per cent and 6.23 per cent respectively in August...

-Press Note by People's Action for Employment Guarantee dated September 10th, 2020 MGNREGA during the pandemic and beyond: Implementation highlights, concerns and questions and demands for parliamentarians We are confronting an unprecedented crisis in the history of modern India. On the one hand, the increasing number of COVID cases point to a dubious distinction for India on the world stage. On the other hand, the unplanned lockdown has resulted in a massive...

-Down to Earth These communities have suffered on most social indicators due to a mix of poor logistics as well as prejudice and ostracisation   Dalit, Muslim and Adivasi households and neighbourhoods have suffered terribly in the aftermath of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic in the months following the declaration of the countrywide lockdown, data collected by a group of civil society organisations has showed. These communities were not able to avail...