-The Indian Express For several decades now, the Indian government and a variety of donor agencies have promoted and implemented "livelihoods projects". These projects depend upon women's self-help groups, or SHGs, to raise living standards - particularly of the 25 crore rural poor. In 2011, the Indian government launched the Rs 38,000 crore National Rural Livelihoods Mission (NRLM), also known as Ajeevika (reportedly now being merged with the Mahatma Gandhi National...

-Outlook Aizwal: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today said that the UPA government's policies and programmes for rapid and inclusive growth are showing good results and the country has seen a record average economic growth in the last nine years. "The UPA government's policies and programmes for rapid and inclusive growth are showing good results. We have seen a record average rate of economic growth in the last nine years, which is higher...

-The Indian Express The Rural Health cadre will not create two classes of doctors, it will help fill two different needs. The cabinet is pondering the idea of a cadre of mid-level health practitioners, a plan that has been fiercely resisted by medical associations because they worry it will dilute the worth of MBBS graduates. It has also been recently rejected by the parliamentary standing committee on health, for allegedly creating two...

-The Indian Express After tasting success with its free bicycle scheme for school-going girls, the Bihar government is planning a freebie in tune with the times - a tablet PC - ahead of the 2014 elections. While other state governments have so far targeted the student community with free laptops and tablets, the Nitish Kumar government is working on an ambitious Rs 8,000 crore scheme to provide tablets to digitally illiterate...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: The Union Cabinet on Wednesday cleared the health ministry's proposal to institute a three-year degree programme for public health professionals. The bachelor in community health programme will act as a bridge between auxiliary nurse midwife and a doctor and overrides the objections raised by a parliamentary panel and the Medical Council of India. The decision will help raise a cadre of public health professionals for rural...