-The Indian Express ‘Expect 215 crore person-days of employment in 2016-17’ The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGA), the flagship welfare programme of the previous UPA dispensation, seems to have received a fresh lease of life. This, barely a year after PM Narendra Modi had called it a “living monument of your (the Congress’s) failure to tackle poverty in 60 years”. Arun Jaitley’s Union budget for 2016-17 has provided a...
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Highlights of Union Budget 2016-17
-The Hindu In case you missed the Budget, here's a round-up. Affirming that the economy is right on track, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley presented the Union Budget for 2016-17. Citing that the CPI inflation has come down to 5.4% from 9 plus, he said it is huge relief for the public. Tax Infrastructure and agriculture cess to be levied. Excise duty raised from 10 to 15 per cent on tobacco products other than beedis 1 per...
More »A more effective antidote to poverty? -Harish Damodaran
-The Indian Express The average annual MGNREGA spend in TN, for instance, is two-and-a-half times more than that for Bihar. Is the PMGSY more pro-poor compared to MGNREGA? Going by where monies under the two programmes get spent, the answer could well be yes. In a recent analysis, NC Saxena, Distinguished Fellow of the policy think-tank Skoch Development Foundation and former Secretary, Planning Commission, has noted how the expenditure on MGNREGA is...
More »‘Made in India’ policies like MGNREGA inspire the world: ILO
-The Hindu Business Line Calls for more formalisation of work, greater female participation New Delhi: Creative ‘Made in India’ anti-poverty policies, such as MGNREGA (rural job guarantee scheme) and PMGSY (rural road scheme), that helped stabilise and raise household incomes, continue to inspire the world, said a senior ILO official, adding that economic growth by itself is not enough to tackle growing income inequalities and create quality jobs. “The rising tide (of growth)...
More »Govt to spend Rs 19,000 cr more on social sector over Budget estimates -Sanjeeb Mukherjee & Indivjal Dhasmana
-Business Standard The government has sought parliamentary approval for an extra Rs 18,995 crore social sectors during 2015-16, almost half of the total extra spending asked for over the Budget Estimates (BE). In a supplementary demand for grants, tabled in Parliament last week, the government placed additional expenditure for the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), National Food Security Act (NFSA), Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, drinking water scheme, Pradhan Mantri Gram...
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