Persistent inequalities, ineffective delivery of public services, weak accountability systems and gaps in implementing pro-poor policies are major bottlenecks to India’s progress in achieving the Millennium Development Goals, says a report released by the Government of India. Despite some movement in primary education, assured rural employment and access to potable water, India continues to lag behind in realising the Millennium Development Goals set for 2015 by the United Nations, says a...

Internet might have changed the world in a big way, but about 84 per cent of people in rural India remain unaware of the phenomenon, as poor infrastructure has kept it from reaching the masses, says a report. Further, it found that 38 per cent people in rural areas do not feel the need for the Internet. Lack of infrastructure that has prevented Internet penetration in rural India, has been citied...

Michel D. Kazatchkine, executive director of the Global Fund (GF) to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, arrived in India on Tuesday to get greater Indian support and funding for global health spending ahead of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDG) summit in New York. While he signed agreements with some new partners and promoted community-ownership of projects, Professor Kazatchkine's primary task is to meet top government officials and the Union...

Despite some movement in primary education, assured rural employment and access to potable water, India continues to lag behind in realising the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) set for 2015 by the United Nations, a new report says. Persistent inequalities, ineffective delivery of public services, weak accountability systems and gaps in implementing pro-poor policies are major bottlenecks to progress, said the country report on India pertaining to the Millennium Development Goals. It...

The number of internet users in rural India is forecast to rise 30 percent to 5.4 mn in 2010, according to a joint study conducted by the Internet & Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) and market research firm IMRB. E-mail is the dominant purpose of internet access in rural India, the organisations said, adding that about 85 percent of the total rural users in 2009 accessed the internet for e-mails....