Kanak Dixit: We have with us Aruna Roy, from Devdungri village in Rajasthan, who has, among other things, been able to take the Right to Information (RTI) from janasunuwais, or public hearings at the village level, all the way to national legislation that encompasses all of India. It is a movement that is truly global in scale. Aruna, a question that has been troubling me quite a bit in the context...
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Rural job scheme spending declines by Sreelatha Menon
Central allocation for the Mahatama Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MNREGS) has been falling in recent years, with this year recording the steepest decline. Money released for the scheme fell from Rs 35,242 crore last year to Rs 21,441 crore this year, while expenditure has gone down from Rs 39,000 crore last year to Rs 20,000 crore as of January-end. The average workdays under the scheme, which provides a legal entitlement...
More »NAC, govt review social security plan for unorganized sector by Remya Nair & Anuja
In an indication that the ruling Congress may be looking to evolve a comprehensive social security package ahead of the next general election, the Sonia Gandhi-led National Advisory Council (NAC) has started a consultative process with four central government ministries aimed at linking existing and new schemes for the huge unorganized sector. The plan, according to an NAC member, is to issue one entitlement card to every worker in the unorganized...
More »Whistle blower ends up in ICU by Sunny Sebastian
His crime: he complained of corruption in rural job guarantee scheme Dhuraram Kuldiya, former Sarpanch of Somalsar Panchayat in Nohkha teshil of Bikaner district, did not sign an SOS he sent to Rajasthan Chief Secretary on Monday in the form of a letter. Instead, his son Bhanwarlal inked it. Not that Dhuraram is illiterate. Admitted to a private hospital here in the State capital now, he cannot use his hands for both...
More »Protest against lack of work under MNREGS by Shiv Sahay Singh
Sixth anniversary of the implementation of the scheme On the sixth anniversary of the implementation of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Guarantee Employment Scheme (MNREGS) there were protests outside the office of State Minister for Panchayat and Rural Development Subrata Mukherjee here on Thursday against the absence of work and delay in payment of wages under the scheme. Stating that so far an average of 15 person-days of work per household had...
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