The fracas over R32 per day was amusing and sad. Obviously, none of the journalists and politicians had known that the level used to be even lower in previous years. In 2004-05, the level was R552 per person per month for an urban person and R363 for rural. So, that is about R17.5 (R12) per day. The stylised anger only revealed that India’s elite may protest about poverty but they...
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Dantewada's dilemma by Smita Gupta
The tribal people of Chhattisgarh are in an extremely dangerous situation, caught as they are between the state forces and the Maoists. THIRTY-SIX-YEAR-OLD Soni Sori, an Adivasi schoolteacher from Chhattisgarh, was arrested in Delhi on October 4 on charges of acting as a conduit between the Essar group and the Maoists, the former accused of giving “protection money” to the latter. On October 7, she moved the Delhi High Court to...
More »There is absolutely no politics in my letter, says Jairam Ramesh by K Balchand
Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh on Friday dubbed as completely bogus Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati's charge that his letter seeking her concurrence for a CBI probe into alleged embezzlement of Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) funds was politically motivated. Reacting to Ms. Mayawati's letter to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Mr. Ramesh denied her charge of taking up with her the fraud committed in seven districts — siphoning...
More »Jairam: CAG will audit rural development expenditure by Sushanta Talukdar
The report will be made available to all States Union Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh on Thursday said his Ministry would make available to States the details of audit by the Comptroller and Auditor-General into rural development expenditure. “There was some ambiguity on this. I do not want any ambiguity whatsoever. All rural development expenditures of the Central government will be subjected to CAG audit in all States. I have had three...
More »With labourers turning to MGNREGS, farm sector may turn to machines by Gargi Parsai
Pawar announces mega plans for mechanisation in 12th Plan Faced with farm labour shortage following the introduction of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar on Wednesday announced mega plans for mechanisation in the 12th Five-Year Plan. “With the successful implementation of the MGNREGS and other anti-poverty programmes, there is now pressure on the availability of farm labour,” Mr. Pawar told senior journalists at the Economic...
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