Most of the respondents in Uttar Pradesh, Himachal Pradesh and Kerala prefer an effective PDS to cash transfer. THE survey of the public distribution system (PDS) in nine States, of which I was a part in Himachal Pradesh (Sirmaur district), Uttar Pradesh (Jaunpur district) and Kerala (Wayanad district), came as an eye-opener to me on many counts. If Himachal Pradesh stood out for the innocence of its people, Uttar Pradesh...
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Home ministry wants agencies to be kept out of privacy law by Sahil Makkar
Indian citizens won’t be shielded from prying by government agencies if the Union home ministry gets its way with the proposed privacy law. The ministry is insisting that intelligence and law enforcement agencies be kept out of the purview of the proposed Act, and allowed to continue monitoring the activities and carry out electronic surveillance of citizens, officials familiar with the situation said. The department of personnel and training (DoPT), which is...
More »PDS Leakage drops to 10-15%: govt
-The Indian Express The government today claimed there has been an "impressive improvement" in the performance of the targeted public distribution system (TPDS), with Leakage reduced to about 10-15 per cent on average now from 40 per cent earlier. "The Leakage, on an average, is nearly 10-15 per cent," said Minister of State for Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution KV Thomas said in a reply during Question Hour in the Rajya Sabha. The...
More »Government website on Bhopal gas tragedy shows old figures
-IANS For over a year now a section of a Madhya Pradesh government website has not updated information on the Bhopal gas tragedy. And the facts and figures it gives out are two-three years old. The section of Bhopal Gas Tragedy Relief and Rehabilitation Department, a part of www.mpinfo.org, was last updated Dec 9, 2010, while the facts and figures mentioned on it are of 2008 and 2009. The site, which has 10...
More »NREGA's new avatar: Work later, take home cash now by Devika Banerji
The government is likely to allow advance part payment of wages in a bid to restore faith of beneficiaries in its flagship rural jobs scheme. The proposal is part of a slew of measures to address mounting criticism of the centrally-funded Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) which is beset by administrative logjam and charges of Leakages. The rural development ministry has asked states to initiate a monthlong pilot...
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