Mamata Banerjee today said private investors “are staying away from Bengal because land is not available for them”. However, she laid stress on the importance of public sector projects — the state has attracted some — saying “public sector investment is also investment”. The chief minister, whose government’s hands-off policy on land acquisition has so far acted as a deterrent for private industry, said at a railway programme in Hooghly’s Dankuni: “The...

-The Hindustan Times A day after a parliamentary panel sought to end state intervention in land acquisition for industry — both private and PPP, two cabinet ministers expressed their disagreement with its main recommendation. “State governments must have a role in land acquisition process — more so at a time when industrialisation and urbanisation have become inevitable and desirable,” minister for rural development Jairam Ramesh said. “Country has not yet reached...

A universal pension scheme for social protection must be part of a broader strategy of economic expansion different from the present neoliberal order. INDIA must be one of the worst countries in the world in terms of not providing even minimal social security for most of its people. This is not just a major failure of the development project in the country – it is also a significant cause of...

Pawar’s Report Card The Negatives     Per capita availability of cereals and pulses has fallen in last eight years     No improvement in irrigation, 60% of agriculture still dependent on monsoons     Farmers growing cereals, sugarcane, oilseeds and pulses assured higher MSP, but majority don't benefit     Production up, but not productivity. Farmer suicides are on the rise.     Poor market advisory on exports being misused to buy cheaply from farmers and make profits overseas     Pawar...

The Government of India has formally launched the news Guidelines of the MGNAREGA based on the Mihir Shah Committee report. The news guidelines include many new works under conservation activities and it strengthens the hands of the village panchayats and gram sabhas. However, the list of works does not include the activities under the system of rice intensification (SRI) which encourages scientific method of paddy cultivation with better yield in...