DharWAD: Rural Development and Panchayat Raj (RDPR) Minister Jagadish Shettar said that the Union Government has allocated Rs. 4,600 crore to the State to implement the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, and called on the officials to work towards effective implementation of the scheme. Sincerity stressed Inaugurating the Gram Panchayat Project Development Officers' Meet here on Monday, Mr. Shettar said every gram panchayat official and staff should discharge his or...

At least two persons were injured when the police resorted to lathi charge villagers opposing the establishment of a mega steel plant by Posco India Private Limited in Orissa's Jagatsinghpur district on Wednesday. The police also arrested two persons on the charges of obstructing government officials from discharging their duties. Wait till talks end The incident took place when hundreds of residents of Nuagaon village staged a Dharna on the main road to...

Clause 4.e.(1) of The Provisions of the Panchayats (Extension to the Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996, [PESA] says: “Every Gram Sabha shall approve the plans, programmes and projects for social and economic development before such plans, programmes and projects are taken up for implementation.” Tribal villages are forcibly entered and village people are humiliated : The sad fact is the CRPF forces have barged into several villages in the Districts of Latehar,...

A new study published in medical journal Lancet on accelerating decline in the deaths of children under five years between 2000 and 2010 as compared to 1990-2000 has got its figures wrong on India, says Save the Children, a non-governmental organisation. According to the Lancet report, across 21 regions of the world, rates of neonatal, post-neonatal, and childhood mortality are declining. The study also claims that worldwide, deaths of children under five...

Various ways and means of checking irregularities in the implementation of rural employment guarantee scheme have been discussed. One suggestion is that workers employed under this scheme ought to be organised. The first step in this direction was the formation of National Rural Employment Guarantee Workers' Union - Gujarat (NREGWUG), which was followed by other similar efforts in Rajasthan, parts of Uttar Pradesh and elsewhere. Paulomee Mistry , general secretary...