-Down to Earth   People of West Bengal's Sunderbans region are setting up grain banks to safeguard against food crisis Subedan Bibi's mud hut is a few metres from the banks of the Bakchara river, a distributary of the Hugli in Sunderbans region of South 24 Parganas. When the river is in spate she and most others of Goyadham village move to the main market in the nearby block. "Floods and storms destroy...

-The Economic Times   NEW DELHI: The rural development ministry wants states to raise a cadre of so-called barefoot engineers to boost the effectiveness of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) by helping to speed up wage payments that are getting delayed by as much as three months because there aren't enough employees to monitor the work being done under the jobs programme. The ministry wants to rope in those...

-PTI   "The names of these celebrities were registered during the training process for the officials connected with the implementation of this scheme." Panaji: The Goa government on Sunday denied allegations of fraud in the implementation of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural employment Guarantee Act scheme in the State. Information obtained by local NGO Goa Parivartan Manch under the Right to Information Act had revealed that names of Bollywood celebrities such as Amitabh Bachchan,...

-The Times of India   VISAKHAPATNAM: The deadly duo of scorching heat and poll fever is taking its toll on the beneficiaries of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) in the three north coastal districts of Srikakulam, Vizianagaram and Visakhapatnam. According to the reports, while nearly 400 NREGS workers have fallen sick in the last two weeks due to their punishing double duty under extreme weather conditions -- NREGS works...

-The Hindu   Whatever be the crop, farmers need guidance at the right time for harvesting a good yield. Right from availability of good seedlings, pest management strategies, regular visits to the plantation sites by experts and sourcing a good market for the produce are not only a farmer's tasks but also involve the experts dealing in the particular area. "The job becomes more challenging when one has to work among tribals and...