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E-pov News: |
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E-pov is a monthly news bulletin of the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE)'s Natural Resource Management and Livelihood unit. This provocative bulletin brings you the latest developments on environment, poverty and governance in India and South Asia. It also features community initiatives on livelihood security.
The newsletter regularly updates you on the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) and its development effectiveness. It intends to be a platform for serious dialogue. We invite you to actively participate in this initiative by alerting us to new developments and research on the poverty-environment interface and on NREGA. |
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Inside : |
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Leader: 11th Plan - A bad approach
Policy Watch: New scheme for backward regions
In Focus: Behind agrarian crisis
Special: What people think about MDGs?
NREGA Updates: Half-yearly assessment |
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Leader: |
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A bad approach
The approach paper for the 11th Five-Year Plan admits that growth orientated policies have not worked for a large section of the people – namely poor farmers, but hasn’t charted ways out of the agrarian crisis. Read more>> |
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Policy Watch: |
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New scheme for backward region
Union government announces new 5000 Crore plan for backward regions, implemented through Panchayat Raj institutions. Read more>>
Food component in SGRY curtailed
Government cuts food grain component in payments to rural laborers under SGRY due to grain shortage. Read more>>
MP high court challenges government BPL list
The Madhya Pradesh High Court challenges the government’s cancellation of 21 lakh ration cards of families below the poverty line. The government claims that these families don't qualify to be poor.
Read more>>
How do you measure decentralisation?
National Centre for Applied Economic Research (NCAER) develops index to measure decentralisation. Read more>>
Haryana rural development authority created
Haryana will set up a rural development authority to help villages with population over 10,000 to urbanise. Read more>> |
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In Focus: |
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Behind the agrarian crisis
The conventional notion of agrarian distress being part of the broader landscape of underdeveloped agriculture and backwardness no longer fits the emerging evidences from rural India.
[Download PDF 139 KB]
Exclusive : People’s assessment of the Millenium Development Goals.
ActionAid International conducted an extensive survey over 19 countries to hear from people how they benefit from policies or programmes from the millennium development goals (MDGs) commitments of 2000. The astonishing findings are that people feel that they have either not benefitted or even worse off in terms of access to basic services. Get the complete survey “Whose Freedom: MDG's as if people matter" exclusively from E-Pov.
[Download PDF 1.6MB] |
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NREGA Update: |
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NREGA's starting problems
It’s been six months that the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) has been implemented. And now, the government and civil society organisations (CSOs) are at loggerheads over the “success” of the act. Government claims that NREGA has achieved a success rate of over 90 per cent, but civil Society organizations (CSO’s) are not ready to buy that story. According to them, it is an estimate that contradicts the ground reality. The claim the fundemantal principles of the act have not been implemented homogenously in states.
[Download half yearly assessment PDF 107KB]
Environment ministry demands 25% outlay for forestry
The Union minister for environment and forests, A.Raja has demanded that at least 25 percent of the NREGA plan outlay be set aside for plantations. During a recent meeting of the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests & Chief Wildlife Wardens from all over the country in New Delhi, he informed that his ministry is already negotiating the ministry to do so. His minister of state Namo Narain Meena also asked the forest officials to take proactive roles in getting money from the NREGA.
NREGA to be service delivery agency?
The second Administrative Reforms Commission (ARC) has suggested that all service delivery schemes like the National Rural Health Mission, Universalisation of Education and rural water and sanitation schemes should be converged into the NREGA. The commission argues that only 100 days of employment guarantee may not ensure livelihood security and it should be supplemented by making the scope of the Act widespread. “The impact of the NREGA will be fully realised if all other service delivery mechanisms meet the expectations of the people,” said M. Veerappa Moily, chairman of ARC. It has recommended that all funds available with Panchayats be brought under the NREGA management for creating durable assets. It has suggested that earthwork component could be executed under the NREGA and the rest of development works be taken up under regular departmental schemes. The earthwork components of assets creation under Bharat Nirman can also be converged with the NREGA.
Bengal seeks change in NREGA preferred works
The West Bengal government has asked the Union government to allow NREGA to allow work outside it's list of permissible work. Suryakanta Mishra, state minister for panchayats and rural development, has said that it is difficult for the state to provide jobs in accordance with the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, 2005. Under the scheme, work can be distributed in nine broad categories that include water conservation and water harvesting, drought proofing, irrigation canals, including micro and minor irrigation works, renovation of traditional water bodies, including desilting of tanks, development of land and flood control. “In the state, this is a lean season. The nature of work defined under the Act cannot be provided in this season. It will be better if alternative categories of work can be included in the scheme,” said Mishra. If work is not allotted to the applicants, the state will have to pay an unemployment allowance. The government has shown hesitation in giving cash unemployment allowances deciding instead to distribute food grain. |
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CENTER FOR SCIENCE AND ENVIRONMENT
41, Tughlakabad Institutional Area,
New Delhi, India - 110062 |
Tel: +91-11 29955124;29956110
Fax: +91-11 29955879
E-mail: cse@cseindia.org |
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