-TheWeekendLeader.com Despite a drought-like situation across Rajasthan this year, farmers of a small village on the edge of the Thar Desert reaped good harvest from their fruit orchards. They are growing vegetables this winter. Just five years ago, residents of Khidrat struggled to arrange drinking water, let alone water for irrigation. Due to scanty rainfall (see table), groundwater was not only dipping, it had turned brackish. Even deep borewells would yield saline...

-Press Information Bureau (Ministry of Women and Child Development) The Anganwadi Centres (AWCs) in the country are part of the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) Scheme which is a centrally sponsored Scheme. At the AWCs, six services namely (i) Supplementary nutrition (ii) Pre-school non-formal education (iii) Nutrition and health Education (iv) Immunization (v) Health check-up and (vi) Referral services are provided for holistic development of 0-6 years of children. Pregnant &...

-The Times of India CHENNAI: The UPA government is likely to introduce the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Bill in the Parliament during the second leg of the winter session which began on Wednesday. The bill has driven a wedge between disabled rights activists who have widely divergent opinions on the bill, which many see as a watered down version of the document made available by the government on the website of...

-The Hindustan Times Chandigarh: Rashtriya Krishi Vigyan Yojana (RKVY) is funding afforestation project in Punjab, which is part of the crop diversification project to help farmers shift from the wheat-paddy cycle to other crops. The project has been designed for the green revolution states, including Punjab, Haryana and western Uttar Pradesh. RKVY has been funding different crop diversification projects; it is for the first time that it is funding an afforestation project....

-The Indian Express AAP's 700 litres will create challenges in sewage treatment and groundwater replenishment New Delhi: Twenty four hours after he came to power, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal was to resolve the issue of giving the citizens of Delhi free water up to 700 litres per day. Water holds pride of place on the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) manifesto, which says that the party is "committed to ensuring that...