New rural development minister Jairam Ramesh is working to overhaul the United Progressive Alliance's six-year old flagship rural jobs programme to rid it of all 'manmade' flaws and make the job entitlement more demand driven. The Mahatma GandhiNational Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNERGA), which costs the government Rs 40,000 crore a year - the largest spend on any social welfare scheme - played a key role in catapulting theUPA government...
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New NAC Bill combines Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation & Resettlement by K Balchand
The United Progressive Alliance government on Friday unveiled its second draft Bill addressing the burning issues of land acquisition as well as rehabilitation and resettlement (R&R). The National Land Acquisition and Rehabilitation and Resettlement Bill, 2011, as recommended by the National Advisory Council, will make it mandatory that gram sabhas are consulted and the R&R package is executed before the acquired land is transferred. Union Minister of Rural Development Jairam Ramesh...
More »Tea firms see losses ahead as workers strike by Manish Basu
Two of India’s biggest tea companies, Goodricke Group Ltd and Duncans Industries Ltd, said they may plunge into losses as workers, backed by key political parties, agitate for more pay. The labour unions reject this contention. The two companies are the main plantation owners in West Bengal’s Dooars region and do not have too many gardens elsewhere. Between them they produce about 34 million kg of tea a year; Goodricke is...
More »Munger massacre underscores changing face of Bihar's Naxal movement by Shoumojit Banerjee
At half past four on the morning of July 2, a gang of Naxals donning Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) uniforms swooped down on the jagged Raunakabad hills and surrounded the tribal village of Kareili in Bihar's Munger district. The band, numbering 60-odd, massed in front of the village mukhiya's house and began rounding up a score of indigent Koda tribals at gun-point. The captives were beaten with INSAS rifle-butts...
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-The Indian Express Aimed at reducing maternal and child mortality, the Janani Suraksha Yojana is a scheme unflinching in its ambition and creativeness. Launched more than five years ago, it supplements incentives like free transport with conditional cash transfer to encourage “institutional delivery”. In the years since, the data has been encouraging, but regional variations are evident — as are, unfortunately, indications that the poorest women may not necessarily be...
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