-The Economist   A huge identity scheme promises to help India’s poor—and to serve as a model for other countries INDIA’S economy might be thriving, but many of its people are not. This week Manmohan Singh, the prime minister, said his compatriots should be ashamed that over two-fifths of their children are underfed. They should be outraged, too, at the infant mortality, illiteracy, lack of clean drinking water and countless other curses that...

Muslims, SCs, STs reflect better social indices, closer to national averages Early in the morning, Mohammad Nadeem, a 25-year-old ‘pakka adati’, big wholesaler, at one of Muzaffarnagar’s fruit and vegetable mandis, briskly sets about selling carrots and oranges. As he expertly sifts through sacks of fresh produce, it’s difficult to picture him hawking peanuts by the roadside. But for five years in this bustling western Uttar Pradesh mandi, Nadeem’s store...

-The Hindu   ‘Neo-liberal policies fine-tuned to global capitalist accumulation to blame' Neo-liberal policies fine-tuned to global capitalist accumulation are increasing poverty, mass deprivation and unemployment besides undermining food security in India, economist Utsa Patnaik said on Friday. Delivering the inaugural ‘T.G. Narayanan Memorial Lecture on Social Deprivation' under the auspices of the Media Development Foundation and the Asian College of Journalism here, Prof. Patnaik said contrary to the claims by the Centre about...

Pointing out that nearly one out of seven Americans face food insecurity, Nobel Laureate Joseph Stiglitz said here on Thursday that by recognising the right to food as a basic human right, India is leading the way for the rest of the world. “India has recognised the right to food as a basic human right, leading the way for the rest of the world, and is on the verge of a...

-The Hindu   The Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana to provide health insurance cover is likely to be extended to more people among the vulnerable sections. This was decided at a Union Cabinet meeting, which reviewed the scheme on Thursday. The scheme has already been extended to MGNREGS beneficiaries, street vendors, domestic workers, beedi workers and those working at building and construction sites. “The scheme has been extended to a few segments of unorganised workers....