Archive

MNREGA: 80 labourers, 20 days of work, no payment

 
/ November 7, 2014

Our VV-PACS Community Correspondent, Navita Devi, reports from Ahimachak village, in Bagicha Tola of Katihar district in Bihar, on how the village’s labourers are still awaiting compensation under M.N.R.E.G.A eight months after completion of the work allotted to them. Spokespersons for the affected community say that such irregularities are just...

Tribals not allowed in ancestral forest

 
/ November 3, 2014

The Tharo tribe is indigenous to Betia area of West Champaran district in Bihar. The nearby forest, which has been the source of firewood and other natural resources for the tribe, has recently been converted into a Tiger Reserve under the Wildlife Protection Act. VV-PACS Community Correspondent Tanju Devi reports...

Dilapidated school roof threatens safety of 100 students

 
/ October 22, 2014

The roof of the government school in Patti Block of Pratapgarh district leaks incessantly and is in the danger of falling down. VV-PACS Community Correspondent Chanda Bharti reports how this has endangered more than 100 students who study there. Government primary education centres go a long way in ensuring that...

Sanctioned but not served: Widows without pension

 
/ October 21, 2014

“He ruined his life by drinking, I tried to stop him but he didn’t listen,” says Foto Devi of her late husband. Like many other widows of Abholi village, VV-PACS Community Correspondent Anjana Yadav reveals the benefits of widow-pension scheme remain inaccessible to Foto Devi.   CALL FOR ACTION: You...

A stream running dry: Locals denied compensation for land acquisition

 
/ October 15, 2014

326 families in rural Madhya Pradesh haven’t been compensated for their lands acquired by the government  about three decades ago. The land was used for a dam project, which is not in a functioning state either. The project that was supposed to empower them, has robbed them of everything they...

Policy Pipe-dreams: Smart Card is just a piece of plastic in Jharkhand

 
/ October 13, 2014

“They told me that the smart card is not working,” says Bahamuni Hembrom, who had to pay more than INR 10000 to the nursing home where she delivered her child. “When we were coming back, they took the receipt back,” her husband told Community Correspondent Chunnu Hansda.   CALL FOR ACTION:...

Houses of Dalit families burnt by upper caste men

 
/ October 9, 2014

12 powerful men from the ‘upper caste’ burnt down the houses of 4 Dalit families, our Community Correspondent Reena Devi reports from Maha Dalit Tola area of Chitauria Village in Katihar, Bihar.   The conflict arose because the attackers had been trying to forcefully evict the residents. A meeting date...

Pestering the people’s republic

 
/ October 1, 2014

Adani Enterprise Ltd, which is Adani Group’s flagship company, was set to be the Mine Developer and Operator (MDO) for Machakatta and Chhendipada coal blocks in Angul District of Odisha. But the Supreme Court ruled in September 2014 that process related to land acquisition in the region are to be...