Various recent studies point to a puzzle. Despite rising incomes, there has been a sustained decline in per capita calorie intake. In an important contribution , A Deaton and J Dreze (‘ Food and Nutrition in India: Facts and Interpretations’ , Economic and Political Weekly, XLIV (7), 2009) offer a detailed analysis of the decline in calorie intake in 1983-2004 . Average calorie consumption was about 10% lower in rural...
More »SEARCH RESULT
Govt mulls demarcating mining areas to avoid another Niyamgiri
The government is planning to put in place a more transparent mining policy by designating parts of mineral-rich regions as out of bounds for industry because of environmental concerns, a move that can avoid episodes such as the recent ban on mining at Niyamgiri in Orissa but could hurt expansion plans of companies located in such areas. The plan is to divide the country’s mineral-rich regions into so-called ‘go’ and...
More »Pawar rules out free foodgrains by Vinaya Deshpande
Union Minister for Agriculture Sharad Pawar on Saturday dismissed the possibility of free foodgrains distribution. “The government already spends Rs. 66,000 crore on foodgrains subsidy. We buy wheat from farmers at Rs. 15 a kg, but sell it to the Antyodaya population at Rs. 2 a kg. How can we sell any cheaper than that?” He was speaking at a meeting of the Maharashtra Pradesh Nationalist Congress Party (NCP). Free distribution of foodgrains...
More »NAC to firm up food security bill by Nitin Sethi
The Sonia Gandhi-led National Advisory Council (NAC) will meet on August 30 to finalise the contours of the National Food Security Bill. The meeting is expected to decide on the beneficiaries for UPA's big-ticket social scheme and their selection procedures. At its last meeting, NAC had drawn part conclusions, including National Food Security Act would be rolled out in a staggered way. For instance, 150 most poor districts are being...
More »Only 33 pc urban Indians know about RTI: Chavan
New Delhi : Stating that only 33 per cent of the urban population knew about the Right to Information Act, the government on Wednesday informed the Lok Sabha that steps were afoot to increase awareness about the law. “Government instituted a study in 2009 which found that awareness level about the RTI Act is low. Only 33 per cent of people in urban areas were aware of the Act till 2008-09,”Minister...
More »