-Counter Currents The Aadhaar scheme of the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) is to provide India's billion-plus people with a unique identification number. Enrolling into the scheme was and still is not mandatory, though it was mentioned that it would be difficult for people to access public services in the absence of enrolment. The scheme requires individuals to provide their photograph, fingerprints and iris scan together with documentary personal information,...

-Pratirodh.com Speaking to an enthralled audience of 1,500 students and faculty at IIT (Delhi) , Nobel laureate Amartya Sen said that the idea of the National Food Security Bill was “a matter of appreciation and support”, and that the tabling of the Bill in Parliament was in itself a big achievement.  However, he also drew attention to various shortcomings of the Bill and argued for it to be strengthened, particularly in...

-Medianama.com Note: Following this report, other publications and civil society organizations are providing more context on this development. We’ve curating read-worthy updates here as a followup to this post. Important: CERT-IN’s Gulshan Rai has said that blocks have been implemented on the basis of an order issued by a Court in Gwalior, according to a report from Livemint. Hence, DoT is only implementing the Court’s instructions. Earlier today: India’s Department of Telecommunications yesterday...

-The Hindu Business Line Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen on Friday said that the tabling of the Food Security Bill in Parliament was “a big achievement”, but also drew attention to its shortcomings and called for it to be strengthened, especially with regard to child entitlements. He was participating in a panel discussion on ‘Hunger and Nutrition: Time to Act’ held at IIT- Delhi, with Montek Singh Ahluwalia, Deputy Chairman, Planning Commission, Shantha...

-The Economic Times Cash transfer in various forms has been used in many countries to target support to the poor and achieve social objectives. In India, its introduction has generated more passion than rational debate. The scheme is not a magic bullet, but if properly implemented and targeted, cash transfer is a very sensible instrument of social assistance. In India, the rationale for introducing the scheme seems to be to check...