-ThePrint.in Chanduali produces the ‘healthier’ black rice. The produce is in high demand and is being exported to Australia and New Zealand. New Delhi: Chandauli in Uttar Pradesh is one of India’s four most progressed districts since the beginning of the Narendra Modi government’s Aspirational Districts Programme, according to the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)’s latest appraisal report. Among the best practices that pushed Chandauli’s progress was the black rice experiment in the...

-Newslaundry.com The state’s River Training Policy appears designed to allow near unfettered mining of sand and boulders by private contractors, bypassing green clearance and scientific assessment. In November 2020, a few months before floods ravaged Uttarakhand, the deputy collector of Purnagiri in Tanakpur district announced an open auction of tenders to desilt the riverbed in Champawat’s villages. Tenders for government work usually seek the lowest bidder, the contractor willing to do the job...

-The Hindu Remigration of young, trained workers Bihar, Jharkhand workers at minimal levels A survey of young, semi-skilled migrants from rural Bihar and Jharkhand in April 2021 has found that last year’s lockdown led to an informalisation of labour among men, while most of the women simply dropped out of the work force altogether. It also found that the number of out-of-State migrants halved between March 2020 and 2021, with no net effect...

-The Hindu Gross domestic expenditure on research has stayed at 0.7% of the GDP for years While India has made ‘solid progress’ towards the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) targets concerning industry, infrastructure and innovation, the country’s investment in research remains unsatisfactory, the UNESCO Science Report has observed. The gross domestic expenditure on research (GERD) has been stagnant at 0.7% of the GDP for years, although, in absolute terms, research expenditure has increased, the...

-ThePrint.in RBI data shows a sharp increase in households borrowing against gold. Other indicators also show higher borrowing. More credit is fine, but vaccination needs priority. The second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic and the ensuing lockdown has hit household incomes sharply. Households have survived to a large extent by borrowing. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) data shows a sharp increase in households borrowing against gold. In addition to borrowing from the...