-Down to Earth The focus of MGNREGA has, over time, shifted from employment creation to asset creation  The funds allocated in the Union budget 2021-22 for implementing schemes under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) were exhausted within the first half of this financial year. The budgetary provision for 2021-22 was Rs 73,000 crore, of which Rs 79,810 crore has been spent. Many workers didn’t get paid; it may take...

-The Telegraph These labourers have been working under the scheme between April and September this year but the Centre sent wages in September, and not within 15 days  Ashok Munduri from Chhotalagia village in Jharkhand borrowed Rs 5,000 in July to rent a tractor to plough his land. He had to sell a pig to repay the amount a month later, for he hadn’t received his rural job scheme wages. A study’s findings,...

-Hindustan Times Additional railway rakes, or train wagons, were being made available to ship fertilisers on a priority basis and at short notice, an official said. The Union government has formed a “crack team” to ensure priority movement of fertilisers to key food-bowl states as fears of shortage have triggered panic buying of crop nutrients, people familiar with the matter said. For the first time, a hub-and-spoke model is being implemented to take...

-The Hindu Business Line Seeks CCI intervention to procure the natural fibre; traders point to global trend The Indian textile industry has begun expressing concern over soaring cotton prices in global and domestic markets, with some even raising fears that the natural fibre is being hoarded. In a memorandum to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Southern India Mills Association (SIMA) Chairman Ravi Sam called for steps to stabilise cotton prices, particularly when the country...

-NDTV.com Farmers Protest: Thousands of farmers have been protesting at the three border points since November 26 last year claiming that the three laws are against their interest.  New Delhi: Farmer leader Rakesh Tikait today warned the government that there would be an escalation of protest at the Delhi border if the government does not revoke the controversial farm laws by November 26. The Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) chief's new warning came...