Sanjay Dixit is a member of the Central Employment Guarantee Council, a statutory body set up under the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA). He was initially chosen by Congress General Secretary Rahul Gandhi to head an NREGA cell in Uttar Pradesh where he has become an official whistleblower of sorts, unearthing several instances of fund diversion in many districts. He talks about the malaise in the five-year-old law that...
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Labour ministry likely to get more funds this Budget by Prashant K Nanda
The labour ministry may get about 36% more money under planned allocation in the Budget for the year starting 1 April to expand welfare programmes such as health insurance for the poor. “We are getting Rs. 1,300 crore under planned allocation in the coming Budget,” labour secretary Prabhat Chaturvedi said. The ministry was allocated Rs. 956 crore under the same Plan in the current year’s budget allocation. The labour ministry will also...
More »Rural jobs scheme a unifying factor too by K Balchand
It has served as a tool to ease tension in Kandhamal and ethnic conflict among Manipur's tribal groups Officials rewarded for ingenuity at function celebrating completion of five years of MGNREGS Eight District Magistrates from across India rewarded for efforts in their respective districts Pepping up the rural economy, the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) is also a magic wand for reducing tensions and forging social unity and bonding family...
More »Microlenders, Honored With Nobel, Are Struggling by Vikas Bajaj
Microcredit is losing its halo in many developing countries. Microcredit was once extolled by world leaders like Bill Clinton and Tony Blair as a powerful tool that could help eliminate poverty, through loans as small as $50 to cowherds, basket weavers and other poor people for starting or expanding businesses. But now microloans have prompted political hostility in Bangladesh, India, Nicaragua and other developing countries. In December, the prime minister of...
More »NREGA ties Bhadohi in knots by Geetanjali Krishna
The other day, I met a few carpet manufacturers from Mirzapur who were fuming about the state of affairs there. “In spite of the best weaving wages that we’re able to pay, far too many weavers have now turned to other jobs,” one complained. The recession in the West led to a massive slowdown in carpet exports, reducing the number of orders for weavers. Many found alternative jobs under the...
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