A revolution in small farm management is essential to revitalise the country’s agriculture sector, according to noted agriculture scientist M.S. Swaminathan. Corporate farming would be detrimental to India. Farming was the largest private sector enterprise in the country, and any bid to take away land from the farmer would be counter-productive. But a symbiotic relationship between farmers and industry, resulting in a win-win situation for both, would be good, he...
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Wiping flaws by swiping a ‘smarter’ NREGS card by Tarannum Manjul
Fake entries and wrong entries have been the bane of the government’s flagship welfare plan — the National Rural employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS). However, Uttar Pradesh has found a way out. Starting July 2009, the state Department of Rural Development introduced the biometric smart card attendance system in 10 villages of two blocks, and in 2010, it plans to extend the same to at least one block in each of...
More »Farmers worried about labour shortage as NREGS wage goes up by Karthik Madhavan
The District Rural Development Agency has hiked the wage from January 1 ERODE: Hike in National Rural employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS) wage has got Erode farmers worried about labour shortage. Following State Government’s instruction, the District Rural Development Agency, which oversees NREGS implementation, hiked the wage January 1 onwards by Rs. 20 to Rs. 100 a day. Under NREGS below poverty line families get work for 100 days a year, which is...
More »Jobs for families that hand over land to railways
Those willing to hand over their land for the laying of new railway tracks will be adequately compensated and a member of the families concerned provided employment, Mamata Banerjee, Railway Minister announced on Monday. “The railways will not acquire land forcibly and will negotiate with those willing to hand over their land. We will provide them adequate compensation as well as a job to one member of their family. This is...
More »New miracle economies: Bihar, poor states by SA Aiyar
India achieved record annual GDP growth, averaging 8.45%, in the five years, 2004-05 to 2008-09. But was this inclusive, and did it benefit the poor masses? We have no data on poverty beyond 2004-05. But the CSO has current data on the economic growth of the states. Historically, the chronically poor states were Orissa plus the BIMARU quartet (Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh), of which three have been sub-divided....
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