-PTI Concerned over the shortage of manpower in Central Vigilance Commission, the government has expedited efforts to fill all such vacancies. Officials said the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions has "in-principle" agreed to fill all vacant posts in the anti-corruption watchdog and a meeting in this regard is likely to be scheduled soon. According to the Commission's annual report, as many as 33 posts were lying vacant. "The quantum of work in...

-The Indian Express Jairam Ramesh’s criticism of NREGA highlights that a rights-based approach to poverty reduction cannot work without improving implementation The clamour for the right to social Pensions is another attempt to deal with the Indian state’s inability to provide adequate social protection to its poorest citizens through targeted programmes. India’s vulnerable continue to be excluded from social safety nets. The multi-layered problems with social welfare schemes can be summarised in...

A day after partymen raised a stink over the UPA’s alleged policy paralysis at the Congress working committee meeting, the government moved to make amendments to the Pension bill — one of the reforms measures that had been hit by coalition politics — at Thursday’s cabinet meeting. A cabinet note mentioned that the government had decided to address the concerns of all stakeholders and to build a broad consensus on...

-The Times of India Anticipating what farmers support could mean to Samajwadi Party in the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, the Akhilesh government doled out sops worth Rs 5,432.37 crore for agriculture and allied activities to benefit the group. Chief minister Akhilesh Yadav also reiterated his government's commitment to scrap the old land acquisition policy and come up with a farmer friendly version soon. Stating that loans were a stress that haunted a...

-The Economic Times The finance ministry on Thursday announced a 10% cut in non-plan expenditure in the current fiscal as part of austerity measures aimed at containing its ballooning fiscal deficit. The Centre is aiming to bring down its fiscal deficit to 5.1% of GDP in 2012-13, from 5.76% in the previous fiscal. It also hopes to cut its subsidy bill to below 2% of GDP this year. The ministry has argued that...