Articles by Abhishek Jha
An hour-by-hour account of how Delhi’s air quality tanked on Diwali
Delhi air was cleaner on Diwali eve in 2021 than it was in 2019 and 2020. Things went downhill rapidly.

Updated on Nov 06, 2021 04:09 AM IST
, New Delhi
Abhishek JhaPM Modi unveils door-to-door drive to cover those yet to get the jab
Prime minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday launched the month-long Har Ghar Dastak (knock on every door) campaign aimed to conduct a special house-to-house Covid-19 vaccination drive, with special focus on those whose second dose is overdue, to accelerate complete vaccination

Updated on Nov 04, 2021 05:36 AM IST
Happy Diwali, but do not lower your guard against Covid-19
Covid-19 cases in India have been falling, more than a billion doses of vaccines have been administered, most studies show the high prevalence of Covid antibodies among people, and high frequency indices on the economy and mobility are looking up

Updated on Nov 04, 2021 04:58 AM IST
Mapping a clean October, and what could lie ahead...
In terms of concentration of PM 2.5, October 2021 was a better air-quality month than October 2020 in most Indian states. This is especially the case for northern India.

Updated on Nov 03, 2021 05:03 AM IST
, Hindustan Times, New Delhi
Abhishek JhaMapping a clean-air October in Delhi, and what could lie ahead...
Indians, especially in the northern plains, have so far been spared the toxic air they usually breathe with the end of the monsoon

Updated on Nov 03, 2021 12:46 AM IST
The invisible churn in India’s labour markets
A country’s unemployment rate can increase or decrease over time, and people can move from one form of employment to another. But headline numbers on unemployment rate and kind of employment do not tell us about the degree of churn in the labour market.

Updated on Nov 01, 2021 07:11 AM IST
, Hindustan Times, New Delhi
Abhishek JhaAn epic exercise in 4 months
52 parties contested the country’s first general election and the second-highest number of seats, after the Congress party’s 364, was secured by independent candidates: 38

Published on Oct 30, 2021 03:07 AM IST
Suicides increase 10% to highest since 1967, accidental deaths down 11%: Data
Among those who died by suicide, students and small entrepreneurs saw the biggest jump, supporting anecdotal accounts of stress

Updated on Oct 29, 2021 04:37 AM IST
, New Delhi
Abhishek Jha22 in 1951 to 78 in 2019: How has India fared in electing women?
11 of 26 states sent women to the first Lok Sabha. Uttar Pradesh, the state with the largest share of seats , elected the most: six

Updated on Oct 27, 2021 10:20 PM IST
Delhi’s air quality has been surprisingly good in Oct, but smog may be on way
The air quality this October in Delhi is not only better than last year, but also the best in at least the past four years

Updated on Oct 26, 2021 10:07 PM IST
, Hindustan Times, New Delhi
Abhishek JhaComparing the 2021 festival season with the one in 2020
The festival of Diwali is just a couple of weeks away

Updated on Oct 26, 2021 04:19 AM IST
, Hindustan Times, New Delhi
Roshan Kishore and Abhishek JhaThe numbers behind India’s billion dose landmark
India's billion dose vaccination statistics mean that the country will likely not see a third wave of infections according to experts. But India’s high population (1.3 billion) mean that the country’s vaccine drive still has some distance to cover.

Updated on Oct 22, 2021 03:03 PM IST
October is the new June: India’s chaotic rain calendar
Here are three charts which summarise the chaotic rainfall this year (headline numbers suggesting a technically normal monsoon).

Updated on Oct 20, 2021 12:57 PM IST
Is it time to reduce the waiting time for second dose of Covid-19 vaccines?
India on May 13 increased the waiting period between two doses of the Covishield vaccine from four-eight weeks to 12-16 weeks

Updated on Oct 13, 2021 06:18 AM IST
, Hindustan Times, New Delhi
Abhishek JhaWhat does SAS tell us about India’s animal farms?
HT has analysed unit-level data from the latest Situation Assessment of Agricultural Households and Land and Livestock Holdings of Households in Rural India (SAS) to answer some of these questions.

Published on Oct 11, 2021 04:50 AM IST
Roshan Kishore, Hindustan Times, New Delhi
Abhishek JhaWhat does SAS tell us about India’s animal farms?
Have tractors finally replaced bullock carts and private dairies the milk-animal in the Indian farmer’s house? Vigilante groups (“gau rakshaks”) claiming to be protecting cows have been making news (for the wrong reasons) in the past few years in India

Published on Oct 10, 2021 08:08 PM IST
8th highest rainfall in Sept, and yet a normal monsoon in 2021
This year’s monsoon season ended officially on September 30

Updated on Oct 04, 2021 01:39 AM IST
Number Theory: The class divide among Other Backward Classes in India
The demand for a caste census is not without context. It is linked with a demand for doing away with the Supreme Court imposed 50% limit on reservations.

Updated on Sep 30, 2021 09:49 PM IST
59 of 121 rainy days saw deficit, September wettest month: Data
Fifty nine of 121 days of monsoon so far have seen a deficit compared to the LPA and 62 a surplus.

Updated on Sep 30, 2021 02:07 AM IST
, New Delhi
Abhishek JhaNumber Theory: Understanding the business of farming in India’s ‘input markets’
The challenges facing Indian farmers in input markets are quite different from what they face in output markets.

Updated on Sep 29, 2021 03:51 PM IST
Abhishek Jha
Number Theory: Understanding the business of farming in India
Supporters of the three farm laws have been arguing that the new regime will help farmers receive better prices by selling products in the open market rather than the APMCs. SAS data does not support such a claim

Updated on Sep 29, 2021 03:53 PM IST
, Hindustan Times, New Delhi
Abhishek Jha and Roshan KishoreWhy do farm concerns not get as much political attention as they should?
A large majority of the population at the bottom of the social hierarchy in India does not have significant stakes in agriculture.

Published on Sep 23, 2021 01:32 AM IST
Roshan Kishore Abhishek Jha, Hindustan Times, New Delhi
What do the new targets mean for Delhi?
The annual average of PM2.5 levels in Delhi was 109.7µg/m³ in 2019, 95.3µg/m³ in 2020, and is 85.1µg/m³ till September 21 this year.

Published on Sep 23, 2021 01:24 AM IST
, Hindustan Times, New Delhi
Abhishek JhaWhy do farm concerns not get as much political attention as they should?
The social groups, who are still invested in farming, are also the ones who are more successful in getting out of villages.

Updated on Sep 22, 2021 10:04 PM IST
A Dalit chief minister in Punjab: Political masterstroke by the Congress?
Charanjit Singh Channi, who has replaced Amarinder Singh as the chief minister in Punjab, is the first Dalit to hold this office in the state

Updated on Sep 20, 2021 11:09 PM IST
, Hindustan Times
Abhishek Jha and Roshan KishoreMonsoon normal despite heavy rainfall in September
Only about two weeks remain in the 122-day-long June-September monsoon season.

Updated on Sep 20, 2021 05:52 AM IST
, Hindustan Times, New Delhi
Abhishek JhaCovid violations led to rise in total cases filed in 2020
The 2020 crime statistics have to be read in the context of the pandemic and any comparison with past or future reports should be done with adequate caution.

Updated on Sep 15, 2021 04:26 AM IST
, Hindustan Times, New Delhi
Abhishek Jha Vineet SachdevFarmers earned ₹27 a day from cultivation in 2018-19
Agriculture is considered to be the employment of last resort in India. This became apparent during the lockdown last year, when share of agricultural employment increased for the first time in India.

Updated on Sep 14, 2021 04:54 AM IST
Roshan Kishore Abhishek Jha, Hindustan Times, New Delhi
Average daily income from cultivation was ₹27 per day in 2018-19
An Indian farmer earned ₹27 per day on average from cultivation in 2018-19. This is less than what he would have earned doing MGNREGS work through the year.

Updated on Sep 13, 2021 10:49 PM IST
25 yrs after reservation Bill, equitable women’s representation remains elusive
Only 7.7% members in the Lok Sabha and 4% members of state assemblies were women in 1996, when the first women’s reservation Bill was introduced. Women’s share is now 14.4% in Lok Sabha and around 8% in state assemblies

Updated on Sep 14, 2021 09:23 AM IST