The Bengal government had introduced a remote-area incentive system that rewarded doctors working in Calcutta for all practical purposes but not in some places that could be reached only by crossing rivers. Calcutta High Court today stayed the order, which was issued by the Mamata Banerjee government last year but did not draw much attention beyond medical circles. The government order denied several doctors who had served in villages the advantages due...

As you read this, the Unique Identity (UID) programme is likely to have enrolled 200 million Indians. The UID, if it is allowed to, will eventually become the world's largest database of human biometric markers - fingerprints, photo and iris scans. It could go on to 400 million by the end of the year and 600 million by next year. What good is this? If you talk to opponents concerned with civil...

-PTI Economies of Indian states can grow 1.08% faster with every 10% increase in Internet and broadband connections, says a study released today by Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations (ICRIER). Consequently, for every 10% increase in Internet and broadband penetration, India could potentially add $17 billion to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), the report said. "Our first major finding is the existence of a positive and significant coefficient on Internet....

Third report in three months to highlight lack of quality education in India; poses risk to knowledge hub hopes Nearly two years after the Right to Education (RTE) Act was introduced with the promise of providing free and compulsory education to all primary school children, the learning outcome in the country has actually deteriorated in terms of quality. In yet another wake-up call for policymakers, the 2011 Annual Status of Education Report...

-The Telegraph   The quality of elementary education is falling in rural schools almost two years after education was made a fundamental right in April 2010. The Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) 2011, a survey of government and private schools in rural areas conducted by the NGO Pratham, shows a decline in schoolchildren’s “learning outcome levels” compared with the previous year, whether in reading or arithmetic skills.  However, students of private schools have...