-The Hindu Union Rural Development Ministry asks State government to return Rs.151.9 crore spent on construction of platforms for drying fish and grain, in the name of foodgrain storage yards The Union Rural Development Ministry has served a notice on the Telangana government asking it to return ₹151.9 crore spent under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) on construction of fish/grain drying platforms, which is not permitted under the...

-The Hindu Poorer States like Uttar Pradesh, Bihar haven’t been able to use the scheme optimally to alleviate poverty, while economically better-off States like Kerala use it as an asset creation tool, say officials The Central government has constituted a committee to review the implementation of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) scheme, especially to assess the programme’s efficacy as a poverty alleviation tool. The committee, headed by former...

-Hindustan Times Data also suggests that at least some of the improvement could be because of an increase in poor-quality jobs, a trend seen regularly since the Covid-19 pandemic India’s headline urban unemployment rate reached its lowest-ever level in the quarter ending September 2022, according to the quarterly bulletin of the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) released by the National Statistical Office (NSO) on November 24. However, the bulletin’s data also suggests...

-PTI/ Newsclick.in The state, which celebrated the 22nd anniversary of its foundation on November 9, continues to grapple with the complex problem of migration from its villages, especially those in the hills due to a bleak livelihood scenario, and poor education and health infrastructure. Dehradun: During the lockdowns, tens of thousands of people returned to their villages in Uttarakhand in droves from faraway lands, as the hope of a better life was...

-The Hindu Allow more flexibility at the ground level, says internal study commissioned by the Ministry of Rural Development An internal study commissioned by the Ministry of Rural Development has argued for decentralisation of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), allowing for more “flexibility” at the ground level.  The Ministry recently made public the report of the sixth Common Review Mission which surveyed seven States — Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh,...