-Livemint.com MGNREGS work days increased to 150 from 100; Rs.5,142 cr rurban project to create 300 smart village clusters New Delhi: The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government on Wednesday unveiled a package of measures to combat rural distress in the backdrop of a below-average monsoon rainfall. The Union cabinet decided to increase the number of days of employment under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) from the existing 100...

-The Indian Express Under the plan, the state governments will identify the clusters in accordance with the framework for implementation prepared by the Ministry of Rural Development. In a bid to transform rural areas to economically, socially and physically sustainable spaces, the Cabinet Wednesday approved the Shyama Prasad Mukherji Rurban Mission (SPMRM) with an outlay of Rs 5,142.08 crore to set up 300 rural clusters across the country by 2019-20. “The mission...

-The Hindu The Union Cabinet gave ex post facto approval on Wednesday to provide an additional 50 days of work to Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme beneficiaries during the current financial year wherever drought or natural calamities have been notified. The scheme guarantees 100 days of work. The decision will enable the States to provide additional wage employment to the rural poor in drought-affected areas, the release said. “The poorest...

-The Indian Express It needs to restructure its agriculture, develop sustainable cropping patterns. Laxman Singh Rathore and his entire team in the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) need to be complimented for giving us sufficient warning, well in advance, about the likelihood of yet another year of deficit rainfall. Although it was not good news, the messenger kept its honesty and boldness in speaking the bitter truth. On April 22, in its...

-PTI India has made “impressive” progress in providing primary education to its children but it is still struggling to achieve similar results in lower secondary education and has the largest number of out-of-school adolescents, a UN study said today. According to the study by the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO) and the Education for All Global Monitoring Report (EFR GMR), 124 million children and adolescents are now out of school...