Rural development ministry to set up bank for women’s self-help groups with loans at low interest   New Delhi: soon after shifting to the rural development department, Jairam Ramesh has taken a bold measure. According to reports, the rural development ministry proposes to set up a dedicated national bank for women self-help groups (SHGs) and also lower the interest rate on the credit they receive from any nationalized bank. Ramesh said ‘We have proposed a detailed paper for a national bank and we will take up the matter with the finance minister,’ adding that the interest rate... 

Solidarity march in Patna against the brutal murder of Niyamat Ansari, NREGA activist Editor’s note: This is a follow up on our earlier post on the brutal killing of Niyamat Ansari in Latehar, Jharkhand [http://wp.me/p14ArU-2wF] An Appeal: ‘A solidarity march is being organised by NAPM against the brutal murder of Niyamat Ansari, an NREGA activist who some of us have worked with and been inspired by. Niyamat has been fighting for worker’s rights in Latehar district of Jharkhand  since 2006, and more specifically to secure entitlements under the NREGA. The details of the... 

Another NREGA whistleblower killed in Latehar, Jharkhand Latehar: Niyamat Ansari, an activist working for the National Rural Employment Guarantee scheme was killed by a group of 12 Maoists at Jerua village in Latehar district. Ansari, who was a close aide of the noted economist Jean Dreze, one of the architects of MNREG, was dragged him out of his residence at 7 PM and beaten up mercilessly. It all started after Ansari and his friends, on February 20, exposed a case of brazen embezzlement of NREGS funds. They lodged an FIR against the former Block Development Officer (BDO) of Manika, Kailash... 

It’s pouring medals for Jharkhand in the National Games Jamshedpur: just as questions were being asked about the heavy presence of outsiders in the Jharkhand team for the National Games, Jharkhand made a coup of sorts by winning 10 golds in a single day  — seven in boxing and three in weightlifting taking its medals tally to 83. The state’s women boxers Aruna Mishra, Lakshmi Padia, Nitu Kumari, N. Swapnapriya and Sushma Kumari made five golds while Taruna Mishra and M. Mandakini Chann got themselves silvers. Jharkhand men were not far behind with Michael Lakra and Parveen Kumar... 

34th National games opening on Saturday evening in Ranchi, Jharkhand Ranchi: The 34th National Games will start on Saturday evening with performances by Vivek Oberoi, Amisha Patel and Sameera Reddy for a large audience   of above 30,000 people. Deepika Kumari, the Commonwealth games gold medal winning archer from Jharkhand will light the Games’ flame, followed by a march past by the participants. The torchbearers will do the honours inside Birsa Munda main athletics stadium, the venue for the opening ceremony. About 2,700 LPG cylinders will get used up for the Games flame from February... 

Naxals &  Criminals clash leaves 12 dead in Munger Naxal- criminal clash leaves 12 dead Munger: In a fierce battle between criminals and naxals, 12 people , including two villagers and 10 naxals were killed. The battle took place near the confluence of river Ganga-Gandak in Hiranman diara area late on Monday night following a dispute. Munger’s Superintendent of Police (SO) M Sunil Naik, while confirming the reports said, criminals later cut the body of naxals in parts and threw it in the river. So far four bodies have been recovered. Naik said, “ Villagers were fed up with... 

 COAL INDIA ASKED TO PAY UP Ranchi:The Jharkhand government has asked three subsidiaries of state-run Coal India Limited (CIL) to pay taxes for unauthorised mining on state land. Jharkhand Land and Revenue Minister Mahtura Mahto met officials of Central Coalfield Limited (CCL), Bharat Coking Coal Limited (BCCL) and Eastern Coalfields Limited (ECL) Saturday in Ranchi. ‘The minister asked these companies to pay taxes for mining on gair mazurawa (government land). The state has suffered losses of hundreds of crores due to non-payment of taxes,’ an official of the land and revenue told... 

  DOCTOR ARRESTED FOR INCEST-RAPE  Hazaribagh (Jharkhand): A government doctor B P Singh was on Tuesday arrested on the charge of raping his daughter and was sent to judicial custody.   “The FIR was filed by Singh’s daughter. He was arrested and produced before the chief judicial magistrate who sent him to judicial custody,” district superintendent of police Pankaj Kamboj said.   Singh was picked up from his residence here after the girl, a student of Inter Science Class, went to the SP’s residence and told him about the incident, Kamboj said.   The victim alleged that... 

Maoist menace unabated In Jharkhand, Maoists blew up a railway station in Palamau in Jharkhand and took away the station master.  They also razed two government buildings to the ground in the same district. Police said, about 12 Maoists last night attacked the Sadbahani railway station, which is a ‘halt’ for passenger trains, blew it up with dynamite and took away the station master Sumit Kumar. Train services were disrupted due to the incident. Around the same time, another group of Maoists blew up the building of Bishrampur block office and a panchayat bhavan at Basna village... 

  First time Panchayat Polls in Jharkhand     Ranchi : For the first time in 30 years, villages in the state of Jharkhand will experience Panchayat Polls, kicking off on November 27.  Jharkhand is holding its very first Panchayat polls after it was carved out from Bihar in November 2000.   A total of 59,585 candidates have filed nomination papers for the first phase of Panchayat polls in Jharkhand, an official statement said. In the first phase, a total 1,348 panchayats of 77 blocks of the state will go to polls Nov 27.   The Jharkhand Election Commission said 59,585 candidates...