<p>An activist working for the implementation of the National Rural Employment Guarantee scheme was killed after being mercilessly beaten by a group of 12 Maoists at Jerua village in Latehar district.<br /><br />The activist, Niyamat Ansari, who was stated to be a close aide of noted economist Jean Dreze, died last night after the Maoists beat him up with lathis, police sources said.<br />The rebels dragged him out of his residence at 7 PM and started beating him up mercilessly. He was admitted to a local hospital where he died at 10 PM, the sources said.<br /><br />The Maoists also searched for another activist, Bhukhan Singh, in the village but could not find him.<br /><br />Ansari was active in Gram Swaraj Abhiyan in Latehar's Maneka block and was convenor of Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee ACT (MG-NREGA), the sources said.<br />The Maoists had on July 7, 2010 pasted posters warning Ansari and Singh not to 'exploit forest land or face consequences', the sources said.</p>.<p>Three years ago, another MG-NREGA activist, who worked with Dreze, had been killed by unidentified persons in neighbouring Palamau district which triggered widespread protests by several people, including Dreze.<br /><br />NREGS is the flagship scheme of the government for the poor and aims at enhancing livelihood security of people in rural belts by guaranteeing 100 days of wage-employment in a financial year to a rural household.</p>
<p>An activist working for the implementation of the National Rural Employment Guarantee scheme was killed after being mercilessly beaten by a group of 12 Maoists at Jerua village in Latehar district.<br /><br />The activist, Niyamat Ansari, who was stated to be a close aide of noted economist Jean Dreze, died last night after the Maoists beat him up with lathis, police sources said.<br />The rebels dragged him out of his residence at 7 PM and started beating him up mercilessly. He was admitted to a local hospital where he died at 10 PM, the sources said.<br /><br />The Maoists also searched for another activist, Bhukhan Singh, in the village but could not find him.<br /><br />Ansari was active in Gram Swaraj Abhiyan in Latehar's Maneka block and was convenor of Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee ACT (MG-NREGA), the sources said.<br />The Maoists had on July 7, 2010 pasted posters warning Ansari and Singh not to 'exploit forest land or face consequences', the sources said.</p>.<p>Three years ago, another MG-NREGA activist, who worked with Dreze, had been killed by unidentified persons in neighbouring Palamau district which triggered widespread protests by several people, including Dreze.<br /><br />NREGS is the flagship scheme of the government for the poor and aims at enhancing livelihood security of people in rural belts by guaranteeing 100 days of wage-employment in a financial year to a rural household.</p>