-The Hindustan Times The direct cash transfer in 42 schemes to start from next year is old wine in new bottle with beneficiaries under these schemes already receiving money directly into their bank accounts. Finance minister P Chidambaram and rural development minister Jairam Ramesh on Tuesday announced that money under these 42 schemes of the central government would be transferred directly into bank accounts of beneficiaries in 51 districts from next January. The list...

-Outlook Jaipur: The Rajasthan government today accepted the state OBC commission report, paving way for five per cent reservation in government jobs and educational institutes to five communities, including Gujjars, under Specially Backward Category. The commission, led by justice (retd) I S Israni, had handed over the report to the Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on November 22. The decision was taken at a cabinet meeting today. The reservation in the state is set to...

-Outlook Don’t blame globalization for inequality – but rather policies hijacked by a few Economic globalization in the sense of expansion of foreign trade and investment is, of course, somewhat anaemic, reflecting the impact of global recession, although still vigorous in the sense of continuous international transmission of technology, information, ideas and social media. But in the world of politics and policymaking a cold wind is blowing, dimming earlier enthusiasm for global...

-The Hindu Any political benefit the Congress hopes to reap in 2014 will come at the cost of reducing the effectiveness of social welfare schemes In getting its ministers to endorse the shift to cash transfers from the AICC office in New Delhi, the Congress has highlighted the political nature of the move. The party clearly expects cash transfers to play the same role for it in 2014 that the National Rural...

-The Times of India LUCKNOW: A cash-strapped Uttar Pradesh government wrote off loans worth Rs 1,650 crore to farmers on Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav's 74th birthday on Thursday, fulfilling an election promise that is bound to further deplete the state's already dwindling coffers. Chief minister Akhilesh Yadav said 7.2 lakh farmers, who've taken loans of up to Rs 50,000 from rural cooperative banks, will benefit from the waiver. "Farmers who've...