If someone is a rural male, what occupation would he prefer? A rational person might say that depending on the highest prevailing daily wage rate in a particular occupation (which is subject to seasonal variation) vis-à-vis the rest, he will make his choice.   An exercise undertaken by the Inclusive Media for Change team based on the latest available month-wise wage data of rural men shows that there is a seasonal variation...

-VillageSquare.in The country’s particularly vulnerable tribal groups, who live mostly in dwindling forests, have not been well served by the government’s administrative machinery, but have slowly been reduced to virtual serfdom Max Weber, the 19thcentury German sociologist, had extolled the virtues of bureaucracy. India used to celebrate its steel frame governing the country for decades, and which continues to rule us till date, though it is unfashionable to sing its virtues any...

  One of the salient features of the Mahatma Gandhi Rural Employment Guarantee Act (2005) is that there are provisions in it to ensure transparency and accountability. Section 17(2) of the MGNREGA says that the gram sabha shall conduct regular social audits of all the projects under the scheme taken up within the gram panchayat (GP). In addition to that, Section 17(3) of the MGNREGA states that the GP shall make...

-The New Indian Express At Rs. 80 per crate of 15kg, tomato is threatening to bring tears in the eyes in this poll season for the farmers in this drought prone district. KOLAR: Waiting for his truck load of tomatoes unloaded at the Kolar Agricutlure Produce Market Committee(APMC) yard, one of the largest in Asia, is worried despite harvesting a bumper crop. As the price for the day is announced disappointment is...

-Civil Society News New Delhi: People’s movements represent multiple hopes and efforts. As they stretch over time, who did what and when or how something happened or didn’t gets forgotten. ChroNIClers are needed, but hard to find. If they come from within it is most likely they won’t be objective and if they are on the outside chances are that empathy and understanding will be missing. The right to information movement...