-The Hindu Proposing a new "empowerment line" that aims to measure the minimum economic cost for a household to fulfil eight most basic needs, a global research organisation has estimated that 680 million Indians, or 56 per cent of the population, lacks the means to meet their essential needs. Health care, drinking water and sanitation between them account for nearly 40 per cent of the gap between their current status and the...

-Outlook Jammu: Jammu and Kashmir government said 329 new habitations have been provided road connectivity in the state under Prime Minister Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY). "134 schemes, constructing 695 kms road length, covering 329 habitations have been completed under PMGSY till date," Minister for Roads and Buildings and Mechanical Engineering Abdul Majid Wani said while replying to the discussion on the demand of grants for his department in Legislative Assembly last evening. He...

-The Times of India NEW DELHI: A Global consultancy firm pegged a new level for poverty or empowerment line - at Rs 1,336 per month per person as against the poverty line prescribed by the government at around Rs 870 per month per person. McKinsey, in a report, said the empowerment line determines the level of consumption required for an individual to fulfill his/her basic need for food, energy, housing, drinking water,...

-The Business Standard The economic logic - and political reasons - behind the giant shift of spending power to the states Interim Budgets are not supposed to do this. This is precisely what they are not supposed to do. They are not supposed to lay out a policy change so vast it disempowers the next central government. But that's what P Chidambaram has done - and it appears to have been...

-International Food Policy Research Institute   Secure land rights are a critical, but often overlooked, factor in achieving household food security and improved nutritional status in rural areas of developing countries. This study evaluates the impact of India’s land-allocation and registration program in West Bengal, a program that targets poor populations and promotes the inclusion of women’s names on land titles. We use mixed methods data collected between 2010 and 2012 to...