A high-level working group of the Government of India has approved the idea of outbound foreign direct investment by Indians in the production of pulses and oilseeds aimed at meeting domestic demand. This is not a new idea. Since arable land in India is fast shrinking and efforts to lift the output of pulses and oilseeds, besides some other essential commodities, are not bearing fruit, investing in land elsewhere for...

91 per cent did not report for fear of being victimised In nearly 72 per cent of the incidents the perpetrator was a superior Just as the Cabinet approved a bill that seeks to protect women from sexual harassment at workplaces, a survey by a non-governmental organisation has claimed that nearly 88 per cent of the female workforce in Indian Information Technology and business process Outsourcing and knowledge process Outsourcing (BPO/KPO) companies...

Just as the Union Cabinet approved a Bill seeking to protect women from sexual harassment at workplaces, a survey by a non-government organisation has claimed that nearly 88 per cent of the female workforce in Indian Information Technology and business process Outsourcing and knowledge process Outsourcing (BPO/KPO) companies reported having suffered some form of workplace sexual harassment during the course of their work. Close to 50 per cent women had been...

KEY TRENDS   • Maternal Mortality Ratio for India was 370 in 2000, 286 in 2005, 210 in 2010, 158 in 2015 and 145 in 2017. Therefore, the MMRatio for the country decreased by almost 61 percent between 2000 and 2017 *14    • As per the NSS 71st round, among rural females aged 5-29 years, the main reasons for dropping out/ discontinuance were: engagement in domestic activities, not interested in education, financial constraints and marriage. Among rural males aged...

Thousands of poor village youths can now hope to become BPO workers with Ignou training. The Indira Gandhi National Open University will train an estimated 45,000 rural youths from below-poverty-line (BPL) families in the areas of telecommunications, business process Outsourcing (BPO) and security. It will also teach them soft skills — such as basic spoken English and etiquette — to make easy their shift from agrarian backgrounds to an industry environment. At the...