-Reuters Sitting at the edge of fields in the heart of India's grain bowl, Gurdayal Singh Malik shakes his head in resignation about the lack of workers needed for his 60-acre farm, blaming the government's flagship welfare program, the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MNREGS), for the shortage. Ever since the start of the program, which guarantees 100 days of work a year for rural households, the flow of...
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Cash cure for leaky PDS by Anirban Bhaumik
The Government proposal to make cash transfer in place of food grain to poor families has drawn mixed reactions. Raghuvir Nagar on the western outskirts of Delhi has of late turned into a turf for a war between two schools of thought. The war has not been limited to campaigns and debates and purportedly escalated to the level of allegations, even intimidation, so much so that the Government of the national...
More »Land Acquisition: Government as a Facilitator is the Best Option by Diptendra Raychaudhuri
When it was almost certain that the governments of the country were to take their hands off from total acquisition of land for a private project, the Sonia Gandhi-led National Advisory Council has started thinking otherwise. The thought went out for hundred per cent acquisition by the government. Had this come at the germinal stage of discussion about changes in the colonial Act, it could have resulted in Mamata Banerjee’s face...
More »MSP for paddy raised by Rs. 80
-The Hindu The Union government on Thursday allowed an increase in the Minimum Support Price (MSP) of Rs. 80 per quintal for paddy during the current kharif season, but it is said to be way below the hike recommended by both the Union Ministry of Agriculture and the Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP). The government said the objective was to boost production during the current kharif season and meet...
More »No respite from price rise, food inflation up 9.01%
-The Times of India Notwithstanding the government's projections of a moderation in the rate of price rise of food items, food inflation jumped to a two-month high of 9.01 per cent for the week ended May 28 on the back of costlier fruits, onions and protein-based items. Food inflation, as measured by the Wholesale Price Index (WPI), was 8.06 per cent in the previous week, while it was as high as...
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