NREGA named after Mahatma Gandhi

• COMMEMORATING Mahatma Gandhi’s 140th birth anniversary, the government on Friday announced its decision to rename its flagship rural employment programme as Mahatma Gandhi Rural Employment Guarantee Act. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh made the announcement at a programme marking the 50th anniversary of the launching of Panchayati Raj. Even as the government stressed on the importance of the panchayati raj institutions, there was a keen realisation that there was a need for reform.