-Hindustan Times Barmer district collector Himanshu Gupta said traditional water bodies will be revived under MGNREGA (Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act). Barmer: The Rajasthan government plans to revive traditional water bodies to fight drinking water crisis in drought-affected areas, officials said. In the absence of adequate monsoon rain, people have been depending on traditional water bodies in remote desert areas of western Rajasthan. Barmer district collector Himanshu Gupta said traditional water...

-The Hindu Jaipur: As part of an ambitious plan to revamp Ujala Clinics for adolescents, the Rajasthan government will appoint peer educators and “shadow educators” for counselling of youngsters and ensure better coordination with other medical and health schemes. Ujala Clinics are functioning at the government health facilities in 10 districts of the State. A workshop of adolescent health counsellors was organised here earlier this week under the Rashtriya Kishor Swasthya Karyakram...

-Hindustan Times The authorities seem to wake up to the health hazard only during the winter The air pollution crisis in Delhi and in the National Capital Region (NCR) is now a year-round public health emergency. According to data provided by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), Delhi’s air quality on Monday was “very poor” (322); Ghaziabad was also “very poor” (384), and Gurugram was “poor” (277). The air quality of...

-The Indian Express The past couple of months have seen prices of a host of farm commodities surge, mainly on the back of drought in large parts of western and southern India, coupled with an early and harsher-than-usual summer. New Delhi, Pune: THE BJP-LED NDA government’s tenure has been marked by benign food prices. Consumer food inflation has ruled below general retail inflation for 31 months running, from September 2016 to...

-The Hindu Several interventions are needed on the demand and supply side to alleviate farm distress Loan waivers remain the preferred solution for governments to tackle farm distress. S. Mahendra Dev and M. Govinda Rao talk about the inability of governments to think of long-term solutions to tackle farm distress, in a discussion moderated by Vikas Dhoot. Edited excerpts: * Despite farm productivity rising, severe distress in the sector is a concern. How...