-The Telegraph A parliamentary panel has recommended that the Union government dissolve the ministry of development of north eastern region (DoNER) and put it under the Prime Minister's Office. The reason for the ministry's dissolution has been attributed to the plummeting efficiency levels and achievement rate in its planned schemes. "The committee, therefore, strongly recommends that the government should consider the handicaps of the DoNER ministry in a very serious manner. It should...
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Mani Shankar Aiyar, India’s first panchyati raj minister talks to Elizabeth Roche & Anuja
-Live Mint Mani Shankar Aiyar, India's first panchyati raj minister, talks about the challenges the institutions face On Wednesday, India marked 20 years of panchayati raj, an exercise in devolving power to people at the grassroots. Rajya Sabha memberMani Shankar Aiyar was India's first panchyati raj minister, appointed to the newly created ministry in 2004. He headed a committee that examined the reasons why attempts at sharing power with self-governance units haven't...
More »Mani push for panchayats-Basant Kumar Mohanty
-The Telegraph A jump in the Centre's annual social welfare spending from Rs 7,500 crore in 1991 to Rs 3 lakh crore now has failed to make much difference on the ground because panchayati raj institutions are being kept away from implementation of the schemes, a committee has found. The committee headed by senior Congress leader Mani Shankar Aiyar, in its report released on the eve of National Panchayat Day, pitched for...
More »“The Supreme Court's Vedanta verdict is an irony”-Rajesh Tandon
-Down to Earth Two developments in the last week essay the progress of panchayatiraj in the past 20 years. The Union Ministry of Panchayati Raj issued public notifications asking village panchayats to hold the next village council meeting in April/May. It is an irony that the highest unit of government i.e. the union government decides the dates of meetings for the lowest tier of governance. The notification violates the letter and...
More »Tripura, Kerala open the door for women in panchayats -Anuja and Liz Mathew
-Live Mint The experience of Kerala and Tripura shows how panchayati raj can help in the empowerment of women Chulubari (Tripura)/Kanjikuzhy (Kerala): Her relatives warned Hena Das, a resident of Chulubari in Tripura, against taking up political office because it wasn't "meant for women". Das disregarded the warnings. Two years on, she has no regrets. She also has no male colleagues; her fellow representatives on the board of an 12-member panchayat are all...
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