A land record computerisation project titled Apna Khata (our account) launched in Rajasthan has bagged an international award in recognition of its significant contribution to rural development. The project was developed by the State office of the National Informatics Centre.

NIC-Rajasthan team members received the “public choice award” at the E-World Forum-2012 organised in New Delhi over the weekend. United Nations Development Programme country director Caitlin Wiesen and Former Delhi Chief Secretary S. Raghunathan were present at the function.

Four suspected cases of female infanticide in Jaisalmer this month

In a severe blow to the Rajasthan government’s campaign to save the girl child, four suspected cases of female infanticide have come up in Jaisalmer district since early this month. The shocking cases involve newborn girls either being starved to death or left to die without medical treatment during sickness. According to police sources, the suspicious cases have been recorded in different areas after the parents of baby girls allegedly left them to die of hunger and thirst.

JAIPUR: Chief minister Ashok Gehlot has recommended that the state's Mukhya Mantri Gramin BPL Awas Yojana be extended across the country to grant the citizens a "right to shelter".

Gehlot made the suggestion to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, considering the scheme's popularity among Rajasthan's weaker sections. Gehlot earlier put forward the idea at a meeting of the western states' chief ministers with the planning commission in Mumbai. The scheme aims to fulfill the dream of people living below the poverty line (BPL) to own a house.

JAIPUR: With the monsoon approaching and farmers gearing up to sow their next crop, the Jaipur Development Authority (JDA) on Tuesday directed all officials concerned to keep a strict vigil during a review meeting of the ring road project.

A senior official present in the meeting said as the clouds of uncertainty continue to hover over the project, the JDA fears that even those farmers who had surrendered their lands have started tilling them and are preparing to sow seeds this monsoon.

Nearly five lakh farmers in Rajasthan stand to benefit from cooperative loan facility this year following the State Government’s decision to revise the target for disbursement of loans from Rs.5,80

JAIPUR: Climate change is expected to adversely impact human health in the state by increasing the risk of exposure to vector, water- and food-borne diseases. It can also aggravate malnutrition and increase mortality and morbidity associated with changes in intensity and frequency of extreme events.

Potential impacts of climate change can thus be expected to become an additional stressor for Rajasthan's health sector. While the state in the last few years has shown progress in terms of health status and outcomes, much still remains to be done.

Health practitioners, policy-makers and activists here on Monday expressed concern over high prevalence of anaemia among adolescents and women in Rajasthan and called for evolving multi-sectoral strategies through convergence with various agencies for effective control of the syndrome caused by iron deficiency and malnutrition.

Addressing a workshop on “Anaemia: A major public health issue”, experts said the State Government’s Adolescent Anaemia Control Programme (AACP) could be supported by effective action in the spheres of education,

JAIPUR: Climate change, the greatest global challenge, is already a reality for the farmers of Rajasthan. It is increasing the pressure on already scarce resources and if proper measures are not taken, migration towards the cities will soon reach new heights.

According to the Rajasthan State Action Plan on Climate Change (RAPCC) report by the Rajasthan State Pollution Control Board prepared with the help of a multi-disciplinary team of experts from TERI with support from GIZ says, 'enough is already known to start action'. And more than the factual situation the action plan that the report suggests is a writing on the wall for farmers.

JAIPUR: The two under-construction power generating units and the proposed Nuclear Fuel Complex (NFC) at the Rajasthan Atomic Power Station (RAPS) in Rawatbhata have raked up a major controversy wi

JAIPUR: In a bid to facilitate hassle-free movement for pedestrians, the Jaipur Development Authority is planning to develop footpaths on major city roads.

In this regard, the Jaipur Development Authority's engineering wing has been directed to prepare a status report on city roads on the basis of which the design for the footpaths will be drafted. JDA chief engineer Lalit Sharma said, "The footpaths will be designed according to the road width and the vehicular movement. The plan for footpath on every city road will be different."