-The Times of India NEW DELHI: The country has added 9.7 crore voters since the 2009 Lok Sabha polls, which translates into a 13.5% rise, but the state-wise rolls for 2014 finalized on January 31 show that Tamil Nadu, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh and West Bengal registered the highest growth of voters in percentage terms. Beating the national average by a huge margin, the electorate in Tamil Nadu has swelled by 29.3%, in...
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Last ditch attempt -Jitendra
-Down to Earth UPA gives sops under MGNREGS to attract rural voters ahead of elections WITH most of its recent schemes struggling, a desperate UPA government is pinning its hopes on Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) to win votes in 2014 elections. The government is overhauling the employment scheme that helped it return to power in 2009 for a reason. It touches the lives of over 55 per cent...
More »Cabinet to consider expanding UIDAI’s mandate in four states -Mahendra Singh
-The Times of India NEW DELHI: Unfazed by the controversies surrounding issuing of Aadhaar numbers, the Union Cabinet is expected to consider on Thursday a proposal to expand the Nandan Nilekani-led Unique Identification Authority of India's (UIDAI) mandate in four states that were covered under home ministry's National Population Register (NPR). The move seems to be aimed at accelerating UPA's ambitious scheme so that the Congress-led government's direct benefit transfer can be...
More »Can benefits be tied to the vote? -Mark Schneider
-The Hindu Business Line Clientelism - tying benefits to political choices - cannot work because voting preferences cannot be ascertained. Do parties and their local agents link access to government services and benefits from government welfare schemes to how voters vote, or are expected to vote? This political strategy, which social scientists refer to as clientelism, depends on a massive investment in local leaders who collect information on voters' party preferences, vote choices...
More »Rs 978-crore plan to boost ‘hunar’ of Muslim girls -Moushumi Das Gupta
-The Hindustan Times Ahead of the 2014 polls, the UPA government is planning to launch a Rs. 978-crore skill enhancement programme for girls, 14 years or older, from the Muslim community. The proposal is likely to come up for cabinet approval soon. Called "Hunar", which means "skill", the scheme aims at imparting skills training to nearly 9.2 lakh Muslim girls across India. The government has proposed to run the programme in...
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