Conservatives appeared to trump the “radicals” as the Sonia Gandhi-headed National Advisory Council met today to consider revolutionary suggestions to widen the content and targets of a proposed “right to food” law. The food rights campaigners in the council wanted a targeted public distribution system (PDS) to cover all except the affluent, providing not just cheap cereals but also other requirements of nursing mothers, children, the aged and the physically challenged. The...

Internationally renowned fashion designer and former supermodel Bibi Russell has joined hands with the ethnic Bodo women of the northeastern Indian state of Assam in creating a new line of lifestyle products that will blend traditional Bodo culture and high fashion. Bibi Russell, who was associated with leading international brands and fashion shows in the 1970s and 80s, will train Bodo women working for Weaving Destination in modern design techniques and...

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) Thursday approved the restructuring of a centrally-sponsored rural self-emeployment scheme as a National Rural Livelihood Mission (NRLM) given past experiences, shortcomings pointed out by research studies and recommendations by various committees. Home Minister P. Chidmabaram said that NRLM will function in a mission mode for target-based delivery of outcomes. It will follow a demand driven approach which would allow the states to formulate...

The US Senate is expected to pass the Global Food Security Act, new legislation that would significantly expand the government's commitment to combating hunger worldwide with a broad range of measures and more money, and a special coordinator, or "food czar", to oversee implementation of these provisions across agencies. A proposed new fund would allocate several billion dollars over five years to research and development, to enhance "food security, agriculture productivity,...

Counting the “invisible” children of Mother India.  While the current focus of political debate is on ‘caste and census,' there is another important aspect that deserves attention. This concerns disability. For decades after our independence, there was no effort to actually count how many of us have any disability. There were estimates- informed or otherwise- but no factual figures. All our government's plans and budgets, rules and regulations, proclamations and posturing...