-EPW The system of environmental clearances for developmental and industrial projects needs to be reworked. India seems to have perfected the art of creating laws and rules that are destined to fail. Nowhere is this more evident than in the area of environmental regulations. You have pollution control boards that can do nothing to control pollution. And you have a system of environmental impact assessment (EIA) before a developmental or industrial project...
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Rural job scheme spending declines by Sreelatha Menon
Central allocation for the Mahatama Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MNREGS) has been falling in recent years, with this year recording the steepest decline. Money released for the scheme fell from Rs 35,242 crore last year to Rs 21,441 crore this year, while expenditure has gone down from Rs 39,000 crore last year to Rs 20,000 crore as of January-end. The average workdays under the scheme, which provides a legal entitlement...
More »Ghost beneficiaries galore under NREGA in Amreli village by Vijaysinh Parmar
Madhubhai Koli of Khambha village in Amreli district worked for 10 days under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) in 2009. He was paid Rs 1,000 that were deposited in his account. What is shocking is that Koli died way back in 2006. The much-publicized employment programme of the UPA government reeks of severe corruption in this village of Saurashtra. And, a Right to Information (RTI) application by...
More »UPA makes its case for cash transfers by Remya Nair & Surabhi Agarwal
India moved a step closer to implementing cash transfers of direct subsidies and social welfare payments after a high-level panel presented the blueprint for effecting it through an Aadhaar-based payment gateway. Accepting the report, which details how all payments and cash transfers can be made electronically, finance minister Pranab Mukherjee indicated that it will be the key to plug leakages and ensure more targeted spending under the government’s social welfare programmes. The...
More »Jairam makes NREGA more agriculture-focused by Nirendra Dev
In a landmark decision, the Union rural development minister, Mr Jairam Ramesh, today announced that the flagship scheme MG-NREGA would be made more agriculture focused. “At least 28 new work lists out of 30 suggested by the Planning Commission member Mihir Shah committee is agriculture based. We will have the major recommendations for NREGA-2 implemented from April 1, 2012,” Mr Ramesh told reporters after receiving the report from Mr Shah. He,...
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