Monthly Archives: January 2011
Five Years After SEZs: Chronicle Of Revenues Foregone
SEZs, touted as the silver bullet for India’s economic ambitions, appear to have lost their sheen as the Direct Tax Code threatens to withdraw the exemptions offered them. We have only just begun to realise how many thousands of crores … Continue reading
MGNREGA Performs Poorly In Poverty-Stricken Orissa
The MGNREGS is particularly relevant in states such as Orissa, where different estimates put the number of poor at 48% to 84%. But while Rajasthan provided 74% of eligible families with work in 2009-10 and Andhra Pradesh 52.6%, Orissa provided … Continue reading
How Government Agencies Fast-Tracked Lavasa
Lavasa, the picturesque planned hill station being developed by Hindustan Construction Company (HCC) near Pune, is facing charges of illegal land acquisition and environmental violations and construction has been stayed pending an inquiry. This article says that the focus should … Continue reading
Painful Facts
Over 7 million people in India suffer avoidable pain simply because they have no access to morphine, says a Human Rights Watch report on India’s obligation to ensure palliative care.
National Health Policy – 2002
The complete text of the National Health Policy
47% Of Children In India Are Underweight: UNICEF
Over half the world’s underweight children live in India, Bangladesh and Pakistan, says a new Unicef report on the global progress on children’s issues. About 5.6 million children worldwide die every year for lack of adequate nutrients. Approximately 47% of India’s … Continue reading
Environmental and social management framework of National Ganga River Basin Authority: a consultation draft
This document in two volumes deals with the Environmental and Social Management Framework of National Ganga River Basin Authority established by the government for comprehensive management of the river.
Killing Democracy Slowly
While there has been a furore over the Women’s Reservation Bill, the government has been attempting to push through the Nuclear Liability Bill, Communal Violence Bill and Biotechnology Regulation Bill without the discussion and consultation that are mandatory in a … Continue reading
Environment And Development : Background & Perspective
Fifty-five years of ‘development’ have spurred on unplanned urbanisation, extensive industrialisation, and the building of a series of big dams. In the process, India has landed bang in the middle of an ecological crisis. We have lost half our forests, … Continue reading
Give Rural Poor Control Over Ecosystems To Fight Poverty: WRI Report
With proper management and the incentives that come with control and accountability, ecosystems could generate enough income to lift the rural poor out of abject poverty, says a new report by the World Resources Institute