Revised MGNREGS guidelines to be finalised end of this week The revised guidelines for the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) is likely shift the social welfare programme's thrust from being labour-intensive to material intensive. This was indicated by the Union minister for rural development, Jairam Ramesh, on November 14 at a day-long seminar on the UPA government's flagship programme. At the consultations titled, Empowering Lives through MGREGA: Strengthening...

We see malnutrition as a burden on our conscience, and on our exchequer. We also know it is a daunting task to get rid of child malnutrition. But do we know about the economic benefits on the other side? A new FAO report tells us that India can increase its national income by a massive US$ 28 billion by eliminating child malnutrition. Now that is serious economic gain so read...

To gain a foothold in forest areas first Maoist rebels, who resurfaced in Telangana, are now planning to start a new students' organisation called Adivasi Vidyarthi Sangam (AVS) to mobilise tribal students to fight for their rights and welfare activities. The formation of AVS is being seen as a part of the overall Maoist strategy to revive the defunct mass organisations, which helped spread revolutionary activity. Information culled from different sources indicates...

At BANCON (annual bankers' conference) 2011 in Chennai, financial institutions explored avenues for greater participation in agriculture and rural development. There are a few areas in need of additional attention and investment. Green Revolution technologies are scale-neutral but not resource-neutral. Inputs are needed for output; therefore market-purchased inputs become important in providing soil and plant healthcare for higher yields. Social scientists point out that small and marginal farmers will be excluded...

Communal violence had erupted in the area over a piece of disputed land Despite the initiation of an artificial “peace process” in the aftermath of September's horrific violence, the people in this nondescript town, which grabbed the headlines for the wrong reasons, seem to have lost confidence in the neutrality of the administration. Victims are yet to come to terms with the mishandling of the situation and, what they claim, the...