-Business Standard The government has sought parliamentary approval for an extra Rs 18,995 crore social sectors during 2015-16, almost half of the total extra spending asked for over the Budget Estimates (BE). In a supplementary demand for grants, tabled in Parliament last week, the government placed additional expenditure for the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), National Food Security Act (NFSA), Swachh Bharat Abhiyan, drinking water scheme, Pradhan Mantri Gram...

-The Hindu Employment in villages is largely in agriculture sector, while industrial employment is less than four per cent. The Standing Conference of Public Enterprises (SCOPE) has advocated transformation and development of “smart villages” across the country to improve standard of living in the rural areas and boost the rural economy. Development of rural India holds the key to the nation’s sustainable economic growth, it said. SCOPE Director-General U.D. Choubey told The Hindu...

-Hindustan Times While searching for updates on the United Nations Third International Conference on Financing for Development, which took place in Addis Ababa recently, I came across an interesting piece of news: Music maestro AR Rahman and Bollywood superstar Hrithik Roshan would join a seven-day global campaign to popularise the sustainable development goals (SDGs), which are a new set of universal goals, targets and indicators that 193 UN member states will...

-IPS News NIYAMGIRI: As the rhythmic thumping of dancing feet reaches a crescendo, the women offer a song to their forest god for a bountiful harvest. Then, with earthen pots on their heads and their spiritual creatures – a pigeon and a hen – in tow, they proceed in single file on a long march away from their village of Kadaraguma, located on the Niyamgiri mountain range in the Rayagada District of...

-The Telegraph New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi began work with unions and employers today to build support for the biggest shake-up of labour laws in decades, in an attempt to revive a reform agenda that has suffered setbacks ahead of the Parliament session. It is a change of tack for Modi, who is smarting from widespread opposition to land purchase rules he has so far failed, to push through Parliament following...