The empowered group of ministers (eGoM) recently decided on two important steps seen crucial for management of foodgrains. The first was the finalization of the National Food Security Act (NFSA) and, secondly, extending the term of the Nandan Nilekani committee to explore the possibility of introducing cash transfers for delivering food subsidy directly to the poor. Another linked decision was to allow exports of wheat and rice to international markets. The...

The government’s latest estimates show that foodgrain production in the crop year 2010-11 rose sharply by 10.75% to a record 241.56 million tonnes (mt), a move that could potentially have a dampening effect on inflationary expectations. The impressive increase LED by wheat, maize and pulses is reveaLED in the final estimates for 2010-11, and is partially explained by the fact that 2009-10 was a drought year. The crop year extends from July...

What are these books about? They were prepared as part of a common syllabus system by the previous government. Under the Tamil Nadu Uniform System of School Education Act, 2010, “Samacheer Kalvi” was an effort towards a uniform syllabus for the four streams of school education in the state: State Board, Matriculation Schools, Oriental Schools and Anglo-Indian Schools, which follow separate syllabi, textbooks and examination patterns, and are under different boards. How...

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday gave Union Minister for Rural Development Jairam Ramesh the green signal for his proposal to integrate in one bill the provisions for land acquisition and rehabilitation and resettlement. After calling on Dr. Singh for the first time since he assumed office, Mr. Ramesh told The Hindu that he had sought the Prime Minister's approval for a single Bill to cover the two issues, whereas his...

To promote self-employment among people living below poverty line (BPL), particularly women, the rural development ministry proposes to set up a dedicated national bank for women self-help groups (SHGs) and also lower the interest rate on the credit they receive from any nationalized bank. Rural development minister Jairam Ramesh on Monday said he will soon take up both these proposals with the finance ministry. “We have proposed a detaiLED paper for a...