-Scroll.in By March 2017, Aadhaar will be mandatory for food benefits even as fingerprint authentication problems persist, and rules on grievance redress are missing The National Democratic Alliance government has asked the states and Central ministries to link the details of all beneficiaries of its social welfare schemes with Aadhaar, a biometric-based unique identity number, by March 2017. On September 14, the Unique Identity Authority of India – the agency that manages the...

-The Hindu The imposition of Aadhaar-based biometric authentication in the Public Distribution System threatens to disrupt recent progress with PDS reforms. It also deprives millions of people of essential food entitlements. India’s Public Distribution System (PDS) has improved steadily during the last 10 years. The system used to be most ineffective and corruption-ridden, with leakages of around 50 per cent at the national level, going up to 80 or 90 per cent...

Two back-to-back reports that shed light on the status of MGNREGA implementation in the country, have been released recently from the Ministry of Rural Development (MoRD). A review of MGNREGA implementation in 8 different states of India by a team of experts during the month of May this year reveals that in many of the drought affected districts, the Gram Panchayats have no work to offer under the programme. (Please click...

-Livemint.com Delays in payment and indifferent implementation, among other reasons, have blunted the programme’s effectiveness Procedural lapses have marred the implementation of the state-funded job guarantee programme aimed at alleviating rural distress in India, according to a review of the scheme in eight states by the rural development ministry. While delays in disbursal of funds for the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) have held up wage payments in Madhya...

-The Hindu Dreze made the statement in an interview with The Hindu following a survey in six States, including West Bengal. Under a month of its emphatic victory in Bengal election a very definitive reason of Trinamool Congress’ [TMC] success was indicated by economist Jean Dreze. The Public Distribution System [PDS] has performed “enormously well” in Bengal, since the passage of the National Food Security Act [NFSA] in 2013, said Mr Dreze. Mr...