Budget 2021: The mantra of privatisation – Nation News

Budget 2021: The mantra of privatisation – Nation News

WHEN THE NARENDRA MODI GOVERNMENT came to power in 2014, one of its more memorable slogans was ‘minimum government, maximum governance’, a pledge to reduce the size and business footprint of government. In one area in particular, it has little to show on this count: the divestment of PSUs (public sector undertakings). Though it has…

Tamil Nadu polls: Chief Minister EPS’s string of poll sops announcements – Nation News

Tamil Nadu polls: Chief Minister EPS’s string of poll sops announcements – Nation News

On February 26, barely hours before the Election Commission declared the schedule for the assembly election, Tamil Nadu chief minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami (EPS) made the last of a string of ‘poll sop’ announcements. In a landmark waiver to retain the support of women, the mainstay of the AIADMK since the days of the late…

India’s urban water crisis: Cities at risk of running out of water – Nation News

India’s urban water crisis: Cities at risk of running out of water – Nation News

By 2050, at least 30 Indian cities will face a grave water risk, according to the WWF. The problems range from poor management of water sources, contaminated supplies, leaky distribution networks and vast volumes of untreated wastewater being poured into India’s rivers. NOT FLOWING, Delhi residents fill water containers from a municipal tanke In the…

The PPP that saved industry – Nation News

The PPP that saved industry – Nation News

Located close the commercial city of Indore, Dewas saw rapid industrialisation in the 1970s and ’80s. Thanks to its favourable location, with a railhead and good access to raw materials, the town attracted several textile units, soybean processing plants and pharmaceutical plants. However, this boon turned sour in the following decades, from the 1990s onward,…

Less is more: A micro-irrigation initiative in Gujarat saves water, boosts productivity – Nation News

Less is more: A micro-irrigation initiative in Gujarat saves water, boosts productivity – Nation News

A micro-irrigation initiative partnered by the state is a win-win for farmers in all aspects Good earth, Bhikabhai More at his farm in Khoraj village, Gandhinagar Clusters of tiny plastic pipes snake around the neat rows of guava trees interspersed with musk melon plants at the five-hectare farm of Ramesh Bhai Bhikabhai More in Khoraj…

How pani panchayats have ensured water supply in Odisha – Nation News

How pani panchayats have ensured water supply in Odisha – Nation News

Usuma village in Cuttack district had for long witnessed frequent fights and even serious law and order issues over rights on the canal water coming from the Mahanadi river 15 km away. But not anymore. A successful ‘pani pan­chayat’ formed in 2000, comprising Usuma and nine other villa­ges and their 420 hectares of cultivable land,…

Dripping with promise – Nation News

Dripping with promise – Nation News

A third standard dropout, M. Shivashankar Reddy recalls sleeping on gunny bags in his childhood. Today, the 49-year-old grows pomegranate, musk melon, grapes and vegetables on the three parcels of land he owns in Parasannayapalli vill­age in Andhra Pradesh’s Ananthapuram district, earning Rs 3-4 lakh per acre. “We created 10 ponds across three parcels of…