-The Economic Times   Chhattisgarh will set up seven Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) in Maoist-hit districts in a bid to stop youths from joining the rebels, officials said Saturday. "The central government has approved a proposal of the state government for setting up seven ITIs in districts worst hit by Maoist militancy. Each ITI will cost Rs.3.72 crore, which includes the cost of constructing the building and a 100-student capacity hostel," a...

The government is scurrying for an alternative to its plan on engaging private sector in providing urban amenities in rural areas. After a good initial response that saw more than 90 companies showing interest in the scheme - Provision of Urban Amenities in Rural Areas, or PURA, - the Rural Development Ministry has received only eight pilot proposals from six companies. Of the 45 shortlisted, most, including big players like Reliance...

Construction related projects in the state are facing a huge problem of labour shortage. Labourers are not available even at higher wages and as a result, ongoing projects, including many realty projects, are progressing at a snail's pace. The labour intensive real estate and infrastructure industry is worth nearly Rs 50,000 crore and depends heavily upon migrant labourers from Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Bihar besides Panchmahal and Dahod districts of Gujarat. "Infrastructure...

-The Business Standard   Only anecdotal evidence has been available so far to back the assertion that there has been a sharp rise in agricultural wages. Now, field data bear out the trend. Collected by the Shimla-based Labour Bureau, these numbers show a roughly 50 per cent cumulative rise in rural labour wages in the past two years. The increase in Andhra Pradesh has been assessed at over 40 per cent...

Compared to many parts of the world, access to the Internet content has been relatively free in India. Unlike people in countries like China, Singapore, Saudi Arabia, etc, Indians do not face any government-controlled restrictions on accessing sites dealing with politics, religion or even mature content. But that might all change. In April 2011, the Indian government's Department of Information Technology issued new regulations, Information Technology Rules, 2011, under which any content deemed...