Almost 63 per cent of the increased allocation of around Rs 1.01 trillion has been spent in the first five months of 2020-21.
This will cost the government Rs 3.1 trillion, about 10 per cent of its annual expenditure, and higher than any other spending item in its Budget.
"The PMJDY has been the foundation stone for the Modi government's people-centric economic initiatives. "Whether it is direct benefit transfers, Covid-19 financial assistance, PM-KISAN, increased wages under MGNREGA, life and health insurance cover, the first step was to provide every adult with a bank account, which PMJDY has nearly completed," Nirmala Sitharaman said on the sixth anniversary of the scheme.
Strict lockdown-like restrictions are already in place in the southern stateand the Pinarayi Vijayan government decided to clamp the complete shutdown in the wake of severe spike in the positive cases.
'Jobs will exist at very high levels or low levels of skill sets.' 'People, who are in middle level jobs, are the ones who are facing the problem as such jobs are fast disappearing because of technological advancement.'
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday assured that the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) will not be implemented in Assam if the party is voted to power in the state in the coming assembly poll.
To make possible discretionary spending including capex and that on welfare, the government decided to borrow more than planned in FY21 -- Rs 12.7 trillion.
About 78 per cent respondents said they were also satisfied with the steps taken by their own state government, according to the findings of the survey.
Excise duty hike for cigarettes could be lower.
The Supreme Court on Monday came down heavily on certain states for not implementing welfare legislation National Food Security Act, saying that why a state like Gujarat was not implementing the law passed by Parliament.
'We are patriots who love India and the secular ideals it has always upheld.'
There will be uncertainty about outcomes,but one must hope for the best, observes T N Ninan.
Although demonetisation and improper implementation of GST along with falling prices are being blamed for much of the distress in rural India for some time, experts believe those may not be the only reason.
The situation could become more acute as millions of migrants who had returned to their villages during the lockdown come back to the towns for higher wages and better livelihoods.
Though the BJP is running too close for comfort, populist schemes and support among Muslims may help Mamata Banerjee overcome the challenge, observes Aditi Phadnis.
The focus is likely to be on consolidation and improvement of existing rural-centric programmes to ensure their completion ahead of the next general elections in 2019, rather than announcement of new schemes. Sanjeeb Mukherjee and Arup Roychoudhury report.
In a video issued by the Health Ministry, Dr Randeep Guleria, Director of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) answered commonly asked questions regarding the dosage of the vaccine saying that two doses of the vaccine will have to be taken 28 days apart and protective levels of antibodies generally would develop two weeks after the second dose.
'MGNREGA Sameeksha' is an anthology of all major research studies on performance of the programme that were published in academic journals or the stand-alone reports, but excluding the newspaper and magazine articles and opinion pieces, says Rural Development Minister Jairam Ramesh in his forward to the volume.
India's 100 top billionaires have seen their fortunes increase by Rs 12,97,822 crore since March last year when the Covid-19 pandemic hit the country and this amount is enough to give 13.8 crore poorest Indians a cheque for Rs 94,045 each.
The ministry further stated that it was advisable to receive a complete schedule of the anti-coronavirus vaccine irrespective of past history of infection with COVID-19 as this will help in developing a strong immune response against the disease.
Free provision of food, cash transfers, and jobs in villages see enhanced flow of funds despite a precipitous fall in revenue. Till May, defence spend was nearly 30 per cent less than the previous year.
'The future looks quite bleak unless we ramp up testing and start vaccinating on a war footing.'
The unemployment rate among women came down to 12.4 per cent in urban areas
Apart from outlining its future plans for the development of Bihar, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar led party also referred to poll promises made by the rival Grand Alliance, including approving 10 lakh jobs, and sought to know from where would they manage Rs 5 lakh crore additional money that will be required for fulfilling their 'lofty' announcements.
A day ahead of former Congress chief Rahul Gandhi's visit to Rajasthan to raise the voice of the farmers against the farm laws, he said that the Centre should withdraw the laws and after thorough consultation with farmers and states, come up with a new set of legislations which the tillers would themselves want and is not something that is forced upon them.
FM has taken up basic issues that concerns the population in India's heartland.
An Empowered Group of Ministers on drought headed by Sharad Pawar on Friday sanctioned Rs 480 crore as immediate relief to Gujarat for rural drinking water and also announced increase of man days under MGNREGA from 100 to 150 per person.
The senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader also said that the troubles of the hapless workers grew manifold, in the midst of the COVID-19 crisis, as their employers did not implement the provisions of the existing Inter State Migrant Labour Act, 1979.
The National Level Monitors have pointed out grave irregularities in the NREGA scheme in Uttar Pradesh.
India has been put in lockdown to halt the spread of the coronavirus outbreak. People have been told to stay indoors, but for many daily-wage earners this is not an option.
Migrants are no longer sure if they would be able to live by Modi's mantra of "Jaan Bhi Jahaan Bhi".
Loss of confirmed orders, increase in wages and labour shortage were blamed on the scheme in a survey of 100 companies from diverse sectors.
Universal basic income or social security? Economist Nitin Desai feels we need a blueprint for universal health care and pensions to help the vulnerable section.
With more than 21 lakh migrant workers returning to the state as per official data, the Nitish Kumar government faces an enormous challenge in providing jobs for them.
The lockdown has taught companies a lesson or two on running business with fewer human resources. These lessons are unlikely to be forgotten, observes Mahesh Vyas.
The Union Budget stepped up plan allocation for the health sector by 20 per cent with a focus on health insurance, which Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee announced would be extended now to unorganised sector workers in hazardous mining and associated industries.
China has sought information on India's poverty reduction programmes, including the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme, to beef up its own strategy.
The employers, many of whom had virtually abandoned the migrant labourers, are sending them train and even flight tickets to fetch them back as factories whir back to life, construction activities pick up and the sowing season sets in.
It raises three major questions - the incentive compatibility issue, the fairness issue and fiscal challenge, said Panagariya.
Nearing the four crore (40 million) mark in providing jobs under MGNREGA, re-launching the Provision of Urban Amenities in Rural Areas scheme and reinforcing social audit in programmes on complaints of irregularities were the foremost tasks of the rural development ministry in 2010.
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