-Business Standard The plan will ensure effective distribution of resources from various schemes Bhubaneswar (Odisha): The agricultural directorate will prepare a resource allocation plan by end of March 2015, after consulting Odisha University of Agriculture and Technology (OUAT) and district planning committees. The aim of the plan will be to identify needs to develop farm products yield in each district such as planning to invest in soil preparation, crop diversification or irrigation...

-The Hindu Business Line The rural job guarantee scheme is threatened by the undermining of its driving force, demand-driven work Is the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) suffering a midlife crisis or are we staring at its death? From a budget of ₹401 billion in 2010-11, it has plummeted to ₹330 billion in 2013-14. Given the much higher wages currently offered to workers, it has taken a serious hit. The...

-The Hindu The programme needs to retain the momentum of a movement than that of a litter-cleaning project "Slum districts... consisted of poorly built houses, a deficiency of ventilation and toilets, unpaved narrow streets, mud, and stomach-turning stenches due to the presence of decaying refuse and sewerage. In such conditions, ill health was observably endemic." This is not a description of Indian cities today (though it may well be), but of Britain around...

-PTI A post card campaign will be launched from tommorrow by some city-based activists against the Centre's proposal to make changes in the MNREGA scheme which will affect the poor people. As per the plan, around 1,000 letters will be sent to the PMO everyday till May 1, asking the government not to bring any changes in the scheme. "The NDA government proposed a 15 per cent reduction in the budget allocation...

-The Hindu Only un-electrified households will be entitled to subsidised fuel New Delhi: Attacking the subsidy regime, Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has scrapped the supply of subsidised kerosene through the Public Distribution System (PDS). The Centre plans to write to States asking them to provide subsidised kerosene only to un-electrified households. States which have achieved near 100 per cent electrification will be incentivised to become kerosene-free, a Finance Ministry source told...