The food ministry has prepared a new food security bill, reworking an earlier version and reconciling what had been “promised to the people” by the ruling Congress and the government’s fiscal constraints, MoS for agriculture KV Thomas has told HT. In August last year, the UPA government had pulled the plug on a previous draft, after it was found wanting by the Congress leadership. The Sonia Gandhi-led National Advisory Council, which oversees...
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Govt to provide 5 million tonnes of foodgrain to APL families
-PTI The government plans to provide an additional 5 million tonnes of wheat and rice to above poverty line (APL) families at subsidised rates through ration shops, food minister KV Thomas said on Wednesday. The additional allocation, which would be over-and-above the normal quota under the Public Distribution System (PDS), would provide relief to the common man and also help the government in clearing godowns for storage of new crops. The government...
More »How much will cash transfer cost? by Himanshu
Last week, a group of 40 economists wrote an open letter to United Progressive Alliance (UPA) chairperson Sonia Gandhi arguing for cash transfer as a mode of delivery for the proposed National Food Security Act (NFSA). The letter was carried in detail in several newspapers including Mint. The good thing is that there is now almost a consensus, at least among economists, that whatever be the mode of delivery of subsidy,...
More »Independent financial body to beset up to fund self-help groups: Sonia by K Balchand
The Union government will set up an independent financial institution to give funds for effective functioning of the self-help groups (SHGs) and better empowerment of the rural poor. UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi announced this while launching the National Rural Livelihood Mission (NRLM), which will be funded through financial institutions. As of now, banks will be mobilised to extend loans to the tune of Rs. 6,800 crore this year at subsidised rates...
More »Sonia to launch flagship projects today
-The Times of India A day before UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi's visit to the tribal belt of the state, chief minister Ashok Gehlot and Union minister C P Joshi reviewed the preparations at Banswara and Dungarpur. Sonia would be on a day's visit to Banswara to launch the Centre's flagship rural self-employment programme and lay the foundation stone of the long-awaited ambitious Dungarpur-Banswara-Ratlam rail line project in Dungarpur district. UPA...
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