Intense heat wave swept across Madhya Pradesh with the state facing an impending potable water and power supply crises.

Mercury is on the rise in most Madhya Pradesh districts with the day temperature reaching 40 degrees celsius.

The districts of Satna, Rewa and Gwalior recorded temperature of 40 degrees which was seven to eight degrees above normal during the past 24 hours. Similar rise in temperature was recorded in Jabalpur, Sagar Unjjain and Chambal divisions.

The Asian Legal Resource Centre (ALRC), a human rights organization with a General Consultative status with the United Nations

The state government has sanctioned Rs 63 crore to Panchayat and Rural Development Department to undertake employment-oriented works in 38 districts, which have been affected by drought in the wake of scanty rainfall during 2009-10. Out of these funds, Rs 40 crore has been allocated by the office of Relief Commissioner to Panchayat and Rural Development Department as first instalment.

The ongoing year is inching closer to an end but the passing year would be not be a memorable one for the major big cat conservation projects in the State. This year, the State Forest Department had to face the ignominy and all round criticism for wipeout of tigers from Panna.

Light to heavy rain is the order of the day at several places in Madhya Pradesh and the entire state is likely to record downpours in the coming days.

''A low-pressure area has formed over the Bay of Bengal off the Orissa coast and will cause thundershowers across the state over the next 24 hours,'' a Regional Meteorological Centre official said.

In order to preserve and enhance greenery in Madhya Pradesh, a local Non Government Organisation (NGO) has been campaigning in this direction by distributing plants/seeds to common people since five years.

Agriculture is the mainstay of the Madhya Pradesh economy. As much as 49 per cent of its landmass is cultivable and 74.73 per cent of its people depend directly or indirectly on agriculture for their livelihood. The sector

A serialised initiative has been undertaken by District Poverty Initiative Programme (DPIP) for making employment available to rural youths. Under this scheme, serialised Job Fairs are being organised in the districts covered under DPIP. Large number of rural youths have secured employment through these Job Fairs. The Job Fairs organised in DPIP jurisdiction districts Rewa, Chhatarpur and Raisen were attended by lakhs of jobless rural youths. In the same series, Job Fairs are also going to be organised in Shajapur, Sidhi, Sagar and Tikamgarh districts.

Chandrawati Devi Adwasi