The government will hand over the running of the rural job scheme to a nation-wide network of NGOs, sidelining the panchayats and gram sabhas that managed the programme till now. The official explanation is the “failure of the local-level political system” (sarpanches) in running the UPA’s flagship social programme that is mired in allegations of corruption and inefficiency. Many NGOs had been monitoring the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme but now they...

In a shocking revelation about Bihar’s crumbling law and order situation, 116 villagers in Darbhanga are found to have purchased guns with the money they were given to build houses under the Indira Awas Yojna (IAY). The poor villagers felt they needed guns more than homes to confront continuous attacks by dacoits. In two other incidents reflecting rising public anger against frequent robberies in Bihar, three robbers were lynched in...

The UPA is in damage control mode over allegations that Indian officials took millions of dollars as bribes to help American companies secure government contracts. Five ministries are investigating specific charges of bribery against their officials, after the Indian ambassador to the US wrote a letter to the Centre. The Agriculture Ministry has asked the CBI to investigate allegations that US-based Dow Chemicals paid $ 200,000 to register 3 of...

The recession is a promising moment to expand NREGA with greater emphasis on building social capital in a big way.  Soon after assuming office, the first UPA government took an impressive step for the alleviation of rural poverty by launching the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme. It was, indeed, a wise move to insulate the programme from the vicissitudes of electoral politics by enacting the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act...

A series of social audits in NREGS works in Rajasthan’s Bhilwara district led to unearthing of humungous irregularities and filing of FIRs against several government and panchayat officials and release of delayed payments worth crores of rupees to the ordinary NREGS workers (See details/ links below). The irregularities included the use of sub-standard material, non-issuance of job cards or post office passbooks and fudging of account books. The audits were organized...