-Newsclick.in The threat to right to information is not only from the government but from within the Central Information Commission (CIC) as well. Several activists and scholars, including former information commissioners, have recently expressed concern over the government’s dilution of the Right to Information Act (RTI). However, the threat to right to information is not only from the government but from within the Central Information Commission (CIC) as well. Under the Right to...
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Time to act on MGNREGA -Ankita Aggarwal and Anmol Somanchi
-The Indian Express Covid-related crisis offers NDA Government opportunity to increase work days, entitlements under the employment guarantee scheme. In a recent article (‘Credit where it isn’t due’, IE, June 10), Union Minister for Rural Development Narendra Singh Tomar described the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) as a “failing scheme” before 2014. MGNREGA under the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government was by no means perfect, but when the National...
More »How India’s disabled community fought to halt a legislative change amid the lockdown – and won -Nipun Malhotra
-Scroll.in A government plan to dilute the Disabilities Act to enable ease of doing business was blocked even though the usual tools of protest were unavailable. It was last Thursday, July 2, that my phone started buzzing with notifications from friends and fellow members of the disabled community. The day earlier, the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment had quietly released a notification under the ‘What’s new’ section of their website titled...
More »How Have the Centre’s Food Distribution Schemes Performed So Far? -Kabir Agarwal
-TheWire.in Food distribution under the PMGKY and Atmanirbhar Bharat package has been marked by delays. New Delhi: On Tuesday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the extension of the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Ann Yojana (PMGKAY) till the end of November. Under the scheme, 800 million ration card holders who are beneficiaries under the National Food Security Act (NSFA) are entitled to five kg additional grain (wheat or rice) per month per person....
More »In Jharkhand, social audit finds nearly half the people didn’t get full lockdown ration -Abhishek Angad
-The Indian Express These are some of the findings mentioned in a report prepared by Jharkhand’s Social Audit Unit, under the Rural Development Department, created to “promote transparency and accountability in implementation of the programs”. Ranchi: FORTY-EIGHT per cent people did not receive full two months’ ration, as promised by the Jharkhand government during the lockdown period. Out of 1,255 families inspected, which had pregnant/lactating women or children below five years of...
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