Tamil Nadu's success in implementing the NREGA shows its commitment to social welfare, and the way ahead for other states. The share of women in the NREGA workforce has remained high from the beginning and is the highest in the country The National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA), enacted in 2005, has had a varied record so far. In many states, implementation has been lame (e.g. Bihar and Gujarat) or...
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Directionless in Agriculture by Bharat Jhunjhunwala
The growth rate of agriculture was three per cent and that of manufacturing was 4.5 per cent during the first three decades after independence. The growth rate for agriculture has slipped to 2.8 per cent while that for manufacturing has increased to 6.4 per cent during the last 15 years. Farmers continue to commit suicides across the country. The groundwater level is declining. The country has to import wheat, edible...
More »Bianca Jagger, people’s rights advocate, interviewed by Shoma Chaudhury
How did your trip to Niyamgiri and Vedanta’s mining project there come about? I’ve been a human rights, social justice and environment protection advocate for the last 30 years. I am the founder and chair of the Bianca Jagger Human Rights Foundation. I also love India and have a long relationship with this country. Many people know this. This is why Action Aid approached me to meet Sitaram Kulisika, a tribal...
More »IPL? Let’s get real by Samar Halarnkar
So, Shashi Tharoor has gone. Lalit Modi may follow. Or not. Cricket’s great jamboree may be cleaned up. Or not. Does it matter so much? The Indian Premier League (IPL) brouhaha could not have come at a worse time. India was, finally, if reluctantly, starting to focus on long-festering-but-urgent issues that prevent this country from being a just, equitable democracy. As Tharoor and Modi self-destructed, the circus around them diverted all...
More »Leaving light footprints by Indu Balachandran
As we celebrate World Earth Day on April 22, meet some inspiring eco-warriors who give back to earth through friendly tourism practices. Responsible tourism is the desire to respect the very wonders that make us leave our moorings to see new, faraway places. “You can't leave this place till you plant a sapling in our organic garden.” “This is the solar panel that heated your bath water this morning.” “We don't have...
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