-PTI The “war on drought” announced by Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu has failed to yield the desired results, with groundnut crop output plummeting despite crores of rupees spent on providing water for irrigation. Scanty rain during July-August prompted the state government to declare a ‘war’ on drought by deploying thousands of rain guns to wet standing groundnut crops in 15 lakh acres in Anantapuramu district, 4.5 lakh acres in...

-The Hindu Maximum government, minimum governance: Pranab Bardhan Two prominent American economists have widely different views on India’s demonetisation drive. Harvard economist Kenneth Rogoff is of the opinion that the move will help tackle corruption and tax evasion, while Pranab Bardhan, Professor of Economics at the University of California, Berkeley, believes it cannot make “much of a dent in the long-term problem of corruption or black money.” Both of them shared their...

-TheWire.in As the unorganised sector continues suffering, civil society members, bankers and politicians remain sceptical of demonetisation’s impact on black money. It is no secret that India’s informal sector, a largely cash-based economy, has taken a big hit because of demonetisation. While the government insists that the suffering is only temporary and worth it for cracking down on black money, several representatives from the unorganised sector are presenting a starkly different account...

-The Hindu The only way out for public policy for environmental damage is to place strong emphasis on individual and social cost of inaction Residents in the already polluted Capital experienced something of a turning point on Diwali. The belaboured, particulate-loaded air was further bombed with firecrackers. Some described the scene as a war zone with active shelling. People were angry not only because they could not physically breathe, but also because...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: All government servants may get a 'shield' from prosecution as the Centre has okayed changes in the Prevention of Corruption Act to make it mandatory for investigating agencies like CBI to take its prior approval before initiating an investigation against them. Union minister of state for personnel Jitendra Singh on Thursday said the purpose behind mandating prosecution sanction for government officers under the anti-graft law was...