-IANS   Calling for effective measures to improve the efficiency of social sector programmes, the Economic Survey for 2011-12 has suggested extending the government's ambitious rural jobs scheme to urban areas, strengthening panchayati raj institutions (PRIs) and skill improvement for enhanced employability. The survey, which was presented by Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee in parliament Thursday, said that programmes like Mahatama Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) have been instrumental in creating employment...

Budget 2012 has further validated the existence of the Unique Identification Authority of India, whose identity was under question barely six months ago, by giving it more money and responsibilities to shape the government's technological interventions. The government has allocated the UIDAI Rs 1,758 crore from the Budget in 2012-13, a year-on-year increase of 47%, primarily to increase enrolments of Indians for unique IDs to 600 million, from 200 million.  A...

-PTI The UIDAI's Aadhaar project for providing unique identity numbers to residents, has huge potential to improve the delivery of social sector schemes like rural employment guarantee, the Economic Survey 2011-12 said. "Aadhaar has huge potential for improving operations and delivery of services," the survey said. The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), attached to the Planning Commission, is engaged in providing residents in the country a Unique Identification number (called Aadhaar) linked...

-PTI With agriculture share in GDP halving to 15 per cent in the last two decades, a government report card today called for major reforms, from marketing to investment, and new technologies for accelerating farm growth.  The report on 'State of Indian Agriculture 2011-12', tabled in the Lok Sabha said, "Achieving an 8-9 per cent rate of growth in overall gross domestic produce (GDP) may not deliver much in terms of poverty...

-The Business Standard The first agriculture survey, tabled in Parliament on Monday, called for more private participation to boost farm sector investments, rather than heavy doses of subsidies. “There is always a trade-off between allocating money through subsidies or by increasing investments. The investment option is much better than subsidies for sustaining long-term growth in agricultural production and also to reduce poverty faster,” said the survey, State of Indian Agriculture 2011-2012. It...