-The Times of India AHMEDABAD (Gujarat): The CAG's report on Tuesday revealed that the prohibited practice of carrying night soil is still prevalent in the 'developed state of Gujarat'. The auditor has cited cases listed in the 2011 census report. Manual scavenging was prohibited 21 years ago with Employment of Manual Scavengers and Construction of Dry Latrines (Prohibition) Act, 1993 coming into force. But in Gujarat, this evil practice goes on even...
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In the greater scheme of things -Rohini Somanathan
-The Indian Express Recent announcements on possible changes to the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) and restrictions on its coverage are baffling and worrisome. The passing of the MGNREGA and the Right to Information Act heralded a new vision of citizenship and state responsibility. The former created a safety net for the rural poor. The latter gave taxpayers and voters an opportunity to bridge the gap between state...
More »A little irony: Don’t hype to hit headlines, Jaitley advises CAG
-The Indian Express Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Wednesday said the government has learnt a valuable lesson on allotment of natural resources like coal and spectrum, but cautioned the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India against "sensationalising" its reports and creating an environment of "finger pointing". Addressing an annual conference of the CAG, Jaitley said the auditor "doesn't have to sensationalise... he doesn't have to get into the headlines." Noting that the...
More »When all the boards did shrink -Himanshu Upadhya
-Hard News Floods in Kashmir could have been managed better if there was a reliable early warning system The first fortnight of September saw Jammu and Kashmir being ravaged by severe flash floods. But, according to the snatches of news we got, the monsoon was below average in the state until the last week of August. Thereafter, four days of incessant rain in the Valley and in Jammu made almost all the...
More »Govt to bring in ordinance for auction of coal blocks to private firms
-The Hindustan Times The government plans to put up coal mines for bidding by private steel, power and cement companies and introduce changes in the law to enable commercial mining in the future, signalling its intent to fully open the sector to private players. The new auction-based system will replace the earlier controversial policy of allotting coal blocks based on recommendations of a panel of bureaucrats, which the Supreme Court had struck...
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