-The Economic Times NEW DELHI: Poverty level in the country may have declined significantly between 2009-10 and 2011-12, the latest government survey on household consumer expenditure indicates, giving something to the beleaguered UPA government to hard sell ahead of elections next year. Back of the envelope calculations by ET suggest that poverty levels have fallen to less than 25% of population because of a sharp rise in rural incomes and decent performance...
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Cost of food for schoolchildren goes up in Karnataka-Shankar Bennur
-The Hindu Department of Public Instruction seeks higher allocations from Centre Mysore: The soaring prices of food commodities, particularly rice and vegetables, have escalated the cost of cooking food for schoolchildren under the midday meal scheme, Akshara Dasoha, in the State. As rice is the staple diet under the popular scheme which has addressed the issue of school dropout, the sharp rise in the prices of rice and vegetables have only increased the...
More »Policy paralysis could numb 12th five year plan growth: Planning Commission study -Vikas Dhoot
-The Economic Times NEW DELHI: A study commissioned by the Planning Commission to validate the growth estimates of the Twelfth Five-Year Plan has thrown up a rather depressing outlook for the economy, sending alarm bells ringing in the government. An independent think tank, the National Council for Applied Economic Research (NCAER), has pegged average annual growth for the Twelfth Plan at a mere 4.8%, if the present logjam in policymaking continues. The NCAER...
More »Poor in villages live on Rs 17 a day, in towns on Rs 23 a day: Survey -Mahendra Singh
-The Times of India NEW DELHI: The poor in rural areas spend only Rs 17 per day while those living in cities and towns spend Rs 23 a day, a government survey has revealed. The bottom 5% of the population had an average monthly per capita expenditure of Rs 521.44 in rural areas and Rs 700.50 in urban areas, according to National Sample Survey (NSS) data for 2011-12 (July-June). The top 5% of...
More »Bitter pill
-The Business Standard Drugs are unaffordable, but price control is the wrong answer There is little doubt that medicines in India are too expensive for most of the population. For the poorest 20 per cent of Indians, the expenditure on medicines alone is 85 per cent of what they spend on their health, according to the National Sample Survey. A World Bank study on the subject found that just out-of-pocket medical costs...
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