-The Hindu   The brutal rape and lynching of two girls in Badaun should shock the collective conscience of all Indians, regardless of their class, caste, religious or ethnic background. But does it? A spate of legal reforms following the protests over the December 16, 2012 gang rape and murder of a young woman rejected some of the main recommendations of the Justice Verma Committee that were central to combatting sexual violence. These...

-The Hindu   The Union Health Minister, Dr. Harsh Vardhan, recently said he "supports" higher taxes on cigarettes and other tobacco products. But even if he were to substantially increase the tax rates, will it make cigarettes and other tobacco products very expensive and hence reduce consumption? In the case of India, as per the current taxation practices, increasing the tax component is quite unlikely to reduce consumption drastically. This is unlike the...

-The Times of India   KOCHI: A mini tiller was presented to the farmers in Edavanakkad to help them prepare the field for the pokkali crop as the monsoon sets in this week. The tiller machine was handed over on Tuesday by Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK), Ernakulam, which functions under the Centre for Marine Fisheries Research Institute (CMFRI), Ernakulam. Last month, the machine was given a trial run at different pokkali fields. "The tiller...

-The Hindu   Palakkad (Kerala): The Jharkhand State Child Rights Protection Commission (JSCRPC) will urge its State government to recommend a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the two incidents of alleged child trafficking in which 589 children from Bihar, Jharkhand, and West Bengal were brought to Palakkad in Kerala. Talking to The Hindu here, commission member Sanjay Kumar Mishra said a CBI investigation was necessary as the case involved four States...

-The Hindu   MGNREGS workers to be roped in for planting mangroves Malappuram (Kerala): The district administration and the civic authorities here seem to have woken up to the realization of conserving mangroves. Beginning this Thursday, which will mark the World Environment Day celebrations, mangroves in some coastal panchayats of Tirur block will be protected and conserved with the help of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) workers. MGNREGS workers will celebrate...