The ongoing debate over the incidence of poverty in India, often assuming surreal proportions, shows that there is indeed a ‘philosophy of poverty’ guiding current economic reforms. The loot of our country’s resources that is taking place both through these reforms, which continue to widen gross inequalities, and through the open plunder of our resources for private gain — as reflected in the series of mega scams — require the legitimacy...
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In whose welfare?-Gaurav Choudhury
One man’s fiscal problem is another man’s lifeline. Trigger happy bureaucrats and economists may love shooting down subsidies because it bloats the fiscal deficit and burdens the government but the simple fact is that in a one billion strong nation, in which nearly one in every three live below the poverty line, one needs an effective and efficient method through which privileged tax payers can support the poor. Last week, finance...
More »Plan panel to set up expert group to revisit criteria for poverty
-The Pioneer The Planning Commission will constitute an expert group in three months to revisit the methodology for estimating poverty amid demand for removal of its Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia for pegging the poverty line at Rs 28.65 daily per capita consumption for cities and Rs 22.42 in rural areas. “The Government had taken a decision to set up a technical group to revisit the methodology for estimating poverty in a...
More »Govt acted against over 160 NGOs in last three years-Vishwa Mohan
-The Times of India Diversion of foreign contribution by NGOs is not limited to the 12 organizations whose cases were referred for probe recently. The muck, in fact, runs much deeper with official figures showing that the government has taken action against at least 160 voluntary bodies, including referring 24 cases to CBI and seven to different state police for investigation in the past three years. Besides, 70 NGOs have been prohibited...
More »3 years of RTI in J&K-Dr Raja Muzaffar Bhat
Today is 20th March and it was this day in 2009 when the new form of Right to Information Act (RTI Act) was enacted in J&K by Omar Abdullah led Government soon after coming to power. Prior to 2009 we had an RTI law passed by PDP Congress coalition Government headed by Mufti Mohammad Syeed in 2004 (J&K RTI Act 2004). The 2004 version of RTI Act was much weaker...
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