Union Minister for Labour and Employment Mallikarjun Kharge said the major challenge facing India today was that of the unorganised sector. He was speaking at the second World Social Security Summit organised by the International Social Security Association in Capetown, South Africa, on Friday. Mr. Kharge is heading a six-member high-level delegation from India, which held discussions with several Labour Ministers of the nearly 120 countries participating in the meet. Mr. Kharge...

It costs the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) Rs.100 to generate each 'aadhaar' number, which will help address the challenges of inclusion, the authority's chief Nandan Nilekani, said here Thursday. It costs the authority Rs.50 to enrol each individual for the Unique ID (UID) and another Rs.50 on back-end costs, he said. In his address at the annual Rajinder Mathur Memorial Lecture here, Nilekani said that the aadhaar number will help...

Though persons with disabilities are entitled to at least 3 per cent jobs in the government sector, they account for barely 3,650 of the estimated 5.25 lakh State government employees. Nearly 15 years after Parliament passed the Persons with Disabilities Act (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) providing 3 per cent reservation in jobs, persons with disabilities continue to struggle for their rights and livelihood. Posts not identified “A majority of...

Mahitosh Sarkar came here from his distant village in West Bengal 12 years ago looking for a better life, and he found it. He abandoned the penniless existence of a subsistence fisherman to become a big-city vegetable seller. His wife found work as a maid. Their four children went to school. Their tiny household, a grim but weather-tight room in a dilapidated tenement, had a color TV and a satellite...

The country’s economic growth is expected to remain strong despite sluggishness in the manufacturing sector as a rebound in agricultural output is expected to support overall growth. Growth in the key farm sector, which accounts for nearly 17% of the nation’s GDP, has been a concern for policymakers for the past few quarters. But, healthy monsoon has raised expectations of strong farm output during July-September 2010. In addition, the arrival of...