The UPA government has betrayed its promise of inclusive growth over the years as a result of which poverty ratios have remained extremely high despite rapid economic growth, says Praful Bidwai. The new National Advisory Council must act urgently on nutritional security and public healthcare, he adds. The reconstitution of the National Advisory Council under Sonia Gandhi, announced by India’s United Progressive Alliance government, is good news. The original NAC died...
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Food subsidy bill to rise by Rs 6,000 crore: Montek
Montek Singh Ahluwalia on Monday told NDTV that the food subsidy bill is set to rise by Rs 6,000 crore due to an upward revision in the number of families living below poverty line. Montek said that the plan panel would revise BPL count up from 6.5 crore to 7.4 crore families. The fresh estimate could be based on Suresh Tendulkar's poverty formula, he added. Earlier, the government said that it needs...
More »Blinkered vision by Vandana Prasad
If recent indicators are anything to go by – the failure to keep food prices down, the proposed national food security Act, the failure to ensure even minimum wages to construction workers at projects for the upcoming Commonwealth Games in New Delhi, to recount a few – it seems the country has given up even the pretence of caring about its children or their crippling, unbudging state of malnutrition. Leaders,...
More »UN-led campaign to provide affordable health care for Indian women
Tens of thousands of Indian women and their families will have access to quality maternal and child health-care services thanks to a partnership announced today by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and a chain of small hospitals in India for low-income clients. LifeSpring Hospitals has signed up to the Business Call to Action (BCtA), a UNDP supported global initiative challenging companies to apply their business expertise, technology and innovative...
More »A right denied by Jayati Ghosh
How serious is the United Progressive Alliance government about enacting food security legislation that gives every citizen in the country the right to adequate food? On the face of it, the government appears to be extremely serious. After all, ensuring the right to food was a major election promise of the Congress party that leads the UPA; it has been frequently mentioned in various official pronouncements of this government; and...
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