On Thursday in the presence of chief minister Nitish Kumar, worker Shyam Narayan Chauhan from Patna district put his finger print on a handset which matched with the biometric mark stored in his E-Shakti Smart Card that he possessed and flaunted as his new pride. Since the card is linked with financial inclusion of the card holder, he also drew Rs 300 from the total sum of Rs 397 in...

Once noted for exemplary implementation of Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), skeletons are fast tumbling out of Rajasthan’s cupboard with regard to the flagship programme of the UPA government. In the past few years, four districts — Tonk, Dungarpur, Dausa and Hanumangarh — purchased desktops and laptops worth Rs 3.83 crore using the NREGA fund. It is another question whether the villagers who were supposed to get...

It’s a silent epidemic that we’ve never been able to put a finger on. In debates on food security, the issues of hunger and malnutrition have always been add-ons. But for millions, getting the next meal is the difference between life and death. Four-year-old Akash Sahariya can barely stand up. His bleached hair, distended belly and matchstick arms are harbingers of certain death that awaits him. He is the fourth...

Rural folk living on the outskirts of Kolkata have welcomed the various employment opportunities generated through financial aid by the Government social schemes like the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) and the Swarnajayanti Gram Sarojgar Yojana (SGSY). The villages here are witnessing a slow, but steady impact of various poverty alleviation schemes being implemented by Panchayats (village councils) and West Bengal's Rural Development Department. The formation of self-help groups (SHG) along...

Small and marginal farmers have reason to cheer, as the Central government has decided to construct small tanks, wells and even horticulture plantations in their fields under the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA). Sources in the divisional commissionerate said the government has amended the act to include even small and marginal farmers belonging to backward community, including SC/ST, especially those holding farms smaller than two acres. These farmers will...