India's forest cover has declined by 367 sq km between 2007 and 2009. While the figure may not seem alarming, it runs counter to the impression that afforestation and conservation programmes are yielding results. The largest dip in forest cover was in the northeast which lost 550 sq km. This loss was very partially made up elsewhere, even as there was an overall negative Growth in green cover. There was better...
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Quota in Lokpal will not solve unemployment in disadvantaged sections
-The Economic Times The enacting of the Lokpal Bill has been deferred in the Rajya Sabha but that need not end the discussion on how focused the proposals are when it comes to tackling corruption. For instance, what exactly are the quotas in the Lokpal meant to do? If out of an eight-or-nine-member Lokpal, four or five should be from SCs, STs, OBCs, minorities and women, what is the message going...
More »Fungus hits wheat crop, northern states on alert by Madhvi Sally
State governments in north India have put their agriculture officials on alert with the yellow rust disease affecting the winter wheat crop in parts of Punjab and Himachal Pradesh. The fungal disease forms yellow stripes on leaves, hindering photosynthesis and leading to stunted Growth and shrivelled grain. India needs a bumper wheat crop this year to meet growing demand in ration shops as well as in the open market. The Haryana agriculture...
More »R&D spending can't stagnate at low levels, says Manmohan by P Sunderarajan
Research should find ‘frugal' solutions to food, energy problems Expressing concern that the expenditure on research and development in India has been “too low and stagnant,” Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Tuesday called upon industry to increase its contribution and stressed the need for enhanced public-private partnership (PPP) in science and technology. “It is in some way ironic that GE [General Electric] and Motorola have created world-class technology hubs in India, while...
More »PM focus on governance, not elections by Sankarshan Thakur
The discordant black-flag picket at the Golden Temple on New Year morning belied Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s clean-slate aspiration for 2012 but he is engaging in earnest with the challenges of what, in his own reckoning, will be another tough year. The Lokpal tangle controversially unresolved, attention is likely to remain riveted on politics, especially with high-stakes battles for Uttar Pradesh, Punjab and three other states under way. The Prime Minister,...
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