-Livemint.com Arguments against the initiative, such as violation of net neutrality, splintering the Internet and compromising security and privacy, remain unchanged Mumbai: Is it better for the poor to access a bit of the Internet for free with a few strings attached rather than have no access to it at all? On the face of it, most of us will find it hard to disagree with this proposition. After all, no one...
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In Jharkhand, a marginalised tribe lives in hamlets of misery and despair -Jean Drèze
-Scroll.in The Sabar of East Singhbhum district, huddled in tiny huts, are haunted by hunger and illness. One may never get to know how the Sabar live unless one looks for them. Even that requires guidance from someone who knows where they stay. We reached their hamlets, or rather their scattered huts, at the end of narrow country paths in a remote corner of Potka Block in East Singhbhum district, Jharkhand. On...
More »Rethinking conditional maternal entitlements -Vanita Leah Falcao and Jasmeet Khanuja
-Livemint.com There is a need to evaluate whether implementing a cash transfer programme has become the end On 4 September, the ministry of women and child development (MWCD) was issued a notice by the Supreme Court questioning its failure to implement the maternal cash entitlement guaranteed in the National Food Security Act, 2013 (NFSA). Section 4 of the NFSA entitles all pregnant and lactating women to Rs. 6,000, if they are...
More »Bauxite mining could spur a Maoist revival in tribal areas -G Narasimha Rao and K Srinivasa Rao
-The Hindu Ignoring the groundswell of public opinion against a resumption of bauxite mining, the Andhra Pradesh government has been taking concrete steps to start mineral exploration in the Eastern Ghats. The Maoists have used this opportunity to try winning support of the tribals. Ever since the Communist Party of India (Maoist) [CPI (Maoist)] made a tactical retreat from the undivided Andhra Pradesh in 2004, engagements between the naxalites and the State...
More »Centre puts the brakes on JNNURM research projects, capacity-building -Mehboob Jeelani
-The Hindu 36 States asked to end research and capacity-building. The Urban Development Ministry has asked 36 States to terminate their research and capacity-building measures under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM), a move that will roll back the achievements of the scheme launched by the UPA government and render it defunct. Under the JNNURM, the State governments established Reform and Performance Management Cells (RPMCs), a body of experts to guide...
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