-TheWire.in While the dam breach in Madhya Pradesh's Karam river is a recent example of poor construction quality, the politician-contractor-engineer nexus in these projects has long been known. In his eighth Independence Day speech from the ramparts of the Red Fort on August 15, 2022, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi underlined the need to fight against corruption and nepotism. Highlighting the steps his government has taken to check corruption, Modi said: “In the...
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TB nutrition aid falls short -Taran Deol
-Down to Earth Hurdles in availing financial support under Nikshay Poshan Yojana will exacerbate India’s tuberculosis crisis Only two-thirds of people living with tuberculosis benefitted from the Union government’s sole nutrition support scheme last year, highlighting bottlenecks in the fight against a major public health concern. The Nikshay Poshan Yojana entitles every tuberculosis (TB) patient, seeking treatment in either the public or private sector, to a Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) of Rs 500...
More »Meet A Ramakrishnan from Theni -- warrior with RTI armour -Jeyalakshmi Ramanujam
-The New Indian Express In another incident, he got information that 13 engineers of Madurai Corporation were being promoted without proper documents. THENI: It’s 5 am on Saturday and A Ramakrishnan is busy packing his bags. He has to travel for long hours to educate a new batch of enthusiasts about the Right To Information (RTI) Act. This routine on Saturdays, over the past 14 years, has taken him across the State. The...
More »Furnish details of unorganised workers to Centre, SC tells States
-The Hindu Plea seeks food security, cash transfers for migrant workers who went back to their villages during lockdown The Supreme Court on Friday asked the States and Union Territories to furnish particulars of unorganised and migrant workers to the Centre. The court said a further order could be passed based on these details to protect the interests of workers in a case filed by activists Anjali Bharadwaj, Harsh Mander and Jagdeep...
More »A Tale of Trade-offs: The Anatomy of the Direct Benefit Transfers System -Aarushi Gupta and Siraj Hussain
-TheWire.in While the system was rightly designed to eliminate ghost beneficiaries, the impact of exclusion errors needs to be professionally and independently evaluated in detail. The Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) system has come to dominate the discourse on public service delivery in India. The existing rhetoric around its efficacy being one of anti-corruption, cost efficiency, and elimination of middlemen. Payments under DBT are made to low-income households using an elaborate, digitised system...
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