-Tehelka To avail the scheme's benefits, a 60-year-old woman in Bahraich was shown to have delivered a baby five times in 10 months, while another who never conceived in 12 years was paid Rs 1,400 as honorarium by the health department. An audit of Janani Suraksha Yojna beneficiaries in Uttar Pradesh has come up with some startling facts. To avail the scheme’s benefits, a 60-year-old woman in Bahraich was shown to have...

-Deccan Herald Many of India's agricultural practices have barely changed in decades. Reform is long overdue. Nearly a quarter of a century after India launched its first big liberalising reforms in 1991, setting off a new spurt of growth, one area of the country’s economy remains hardly touched: farming. Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched a 24-hour, state-run television channel for farmers in May, but has fostered no public debate about how to improve...

-PTI New Delhi: Auditor CAG has pointed out discrepancies in the implementation of social welfare schemes including mid-day meal (MDM) and pulled up the Delhi government for its failure to obtain fund utilisation certificates from various institutions.   The auditor also criticised the performance of the Delhi tourism and transport development corporation, saying that it has failed to formulate a perspective plan for tourism promotion in the city despite 39 years of its...

-Asian Age Children born in India are, on average, shorter than those born in sub-Saharan Africa. Even worse, 255 million Indians remain food insecure, eating less than 2,100 calories daily. Jharkhand reports the lowest per capita calorie intake (1,900 Kcal) in rural areas, while West Bengal hovers similarly (1,851 Kcal) in urban areas. We have attempted to meet this challenge through legislation. Aside from the Right to Food Bill, the landmark...

Is the Government stepping back from its responsibility under the National Food Security Act (NFSA) by giving technical reasons? Civil society organizations, which struggled to enact the Right to Food legislation, doubt that this may be the case. It has been alleged recently by several civil society activists that the Government is rolling back the Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY), which is meant for food security of the extremely poor households,...