-The Hindu Though outlawed in 1976, bonded labour lives and thrives in the State, as highlighted by the Sivaji Ganesan committee. However, the State continues to maintain an Ostrich-like attitude, failing to conduct periodic surveys and implement rehabilitation programmes The State of Karnataka in 2000 woke up to news about a certain medieval-era brutality being committed on bonded labourers, when the Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha unearthed the case of five labourers being...

-The Hindu While the Rapid Survey on Children points to substantial progress in fields that have become a focus of serious action, such as safe delivery, it also highlights the penalties of inaction in other fields The recent release of summary findings from the Rapid Survey on Children (RSOC) has generated remarkably little interest in the mainstream media. The main focus of attention so far has been the indifferent performance of Gujarat...

-Business Standard After outsourcing primary health care and diagnostic services to private entities, the state plans universal health insurance scheme for treatment at private hospitals The Rajasthan government has decided to provide health insurance to the 70 million residents in the state. The move comes after the government's decision to outsource primary health centres and specialised diagnostic services to private players on Public-Private Partnership (PPP) mode. The Swasthya Bima Yojana scheme is provided...

-The Indian Express Villagers in Chikalthana say not more than one in every 20 wells in the vicinity has any water left. Not a single farmer in the village will earn anything from the field this kharif season. Parbhani/ Beed (Maharashtra): This summer, Meera Jadhav, 18, secured a first division in her Class XII board exams. Weeks later, her younger sister Suvarna, 16, got her Class X final results — over...

-The Hindu Across the country, unless adequate jobs are created for the large labour force, the frustration of the youth is not likely to be contained. In Gujarat, the Patels or Patidars, who constitute about 15 per cent of the State’s population, are an economically and politically dominant upper caste. As successful farmers, as small and big industrialists, as traders as well as non-resident Gujaratis, spread practically all over the world, they...