1. Government approves Central Sector Broadcasting Infrastructure & Network Development Scheme
Tags: Government Schemes
The Central Government has approved Central Sector Broadcasting Infrastructure and Network Development (BIND) Scheme with an outlay of over two 2,539 crore rupees up to 2025-26 on 4 January.
About the Scheme
The scheme will financially assist Prasar Bharati in expansion and upgradation of its broadcasting infrastructure, content development and civic works.
The scheme will broaden the reach in Left Wing Extremism, border and strategic areas.
The scheme is a means of providing financial assistance to Prasar Bharati for expenses related to expansion and upgradation of its broadcasting infrastructure, content development and civic work related to the organisation.
The scheme will enable the public broadcaster to upgrade facilities with better infrastructure.
This will enhance the reach of the scheme including Left Wing Extremism, Border and Strategic Sectors and provide high quality content to the viewers.
About Prasar Bharati
It is the largest statutory autonomous public broadcasting agency in India which was established in 1997.
It was established under an Act of Parliament and consists of Doordarshan Television Network and All India Radio.
In September 1990, the Parliament passed the Prasar Bharati (Broadcasting Corporation of India) Act.
This Act made provision for the establishment of a Broadcasting Corporation of India named Prasar Bharati.
Head quarters - New Delhi
CEO - Gaurav Dwivedi
2. Odisha government to provide free rice for one year under the State Food Security Scheme
Tags: Government Schemes State News
The Naveen Patnaik government in Odisha will provide free 5 Kg rice per month to the beneficiaries under the State Food Security Scheme for one year. This was announced by the chief minister Naveen Patnaik on 3 January 2023.
According to the Chief Minister’s Office the total expenditure for the scheme will be Rs 185 crore which will be borne by the state government
Earlier the Government of India made the foodgrains provided under the National Food Security Act 2013 to the beneficiaries free for one year from 1 January 2023.
The Odisha government launched its own State Food Security Scheme on 2 October 2018 for those poor people who were not covered under the National Food Security Act 2013. These beneficiaries were provided 5Kg of rice at Re1 per kg.
Under the National Food Security Act the Antodaya Anna Yojana beneficiaries get 35 kg of food grains (rice or wheat or coarse cereals) per month and the Priority Household gets 5kg per person per month.
Odisha
The State of Orissa was founded on 1 April 1936 after it was separated from the Bengal presidency.
1 April is celebrated as Utkal Dibas or Odisha divas in Odisha.
Odisha was earlier called as Orissa. Its name was changed to Odisha in 2011.
Governor of Odisha: Ganeshi Lal
Capital: Its capital was at Cuttack but it was shifted to Bhubaneswar on 19 August 1949.
3. 50 Electric Buses launched in Delhi with support under FAME India Phase II scheme
Tags: Government Schemes National News
On 3 January 2022, 50 electric buses were launched in Delhi with support from the government under the FAME India Phase II scheme of the Ministry of Heavy Industry.
Important facts
In 2019, the government approved Rs 10,000 crore for a period of three years.
Out of the total budgetary support, about 86 per cent of the funds have been allocated for incentives to generate demand for electric vehicles.
Union Heavy Industries Minister Mahendra Nath Pandey said that the government has placed an order for 3,538 electric buses. Of these, a total of 1,716 buses have been deployed so far.
The Union Territory of Delhi had sanctioned 400 electric buses – 300 to the Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC) for intra-city operations and 100 to the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) for last-mile connectivity – in August 2019.
A total of 250 buses have already been deployed by DTC and now the remaining 50 buses have been launched fulfilling MHI's commitment of providing 300 electric buses to DTC.
FAME India Scheme
To improve the infrastructure required for the large-scale use of electric vehicles, the Government formulated a Scheme namely FAME India (Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Hybrid and Electric Vehicles) in 2015.
Under this scheme, by the year 2022, 60-70 lakh hybrid and electric vehicles are targeted to be put on the roads across the country.
This will reduce the consumption of about 950 crore litres of petrol and diesel, which will also save Rs 62 thousand crores spent on this.
The main objective of this scheme is to reduce pollution and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Phase-II of FAME India Scheme is being implemented for a period of 3 years from April 1, 2019.
The Phase-I of this Scheme was launched for a period of 2 years from 1st April 2015, which was extended from time to time and the last extension was allowed up to 31st March 2019.
What are Electric Vehicles?
Electric Vehicles are vehicles that are partially or fully powered on electric power.
They have low running costs and are also very environmentally friendly as they use little or no fossil fuels (petrol or diesel).
These vehicles can solve the problems of increasing pollution, global warming, depleting natural resources etc.
4. Second Phase of Sari Festival “VIRAASAT”- Celebrating 75 handwoven Saris of India begins in New Delhi
Tags: place in news National Government Schemes
The second phase of the Sari Festival “VIRAASAT”- Celebrating 75 handwoven Saris of India will begin from 3- 17 January 2023 in New Delhi . The Union Ministry of Textile is organising the festival.
Over 90 participants from different parts of India the will display a wide variety of sarees like handloom Saris of Jamdani, Ikat, Pochampally, Banaras Brocade, Tussar Silk (Champa), Baluchari, Bhagalpuri Silk, Tangail, Chanderi, Lalitpuri, Patola, Paithani etc
The first phase of “VIRAASAT”- Celebrating 75 handwoven Saris of India started on 16th December 2022 and concluded on 30th December 2022. The event was inaugurated by Hon’ble Finance Minister Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman on 16th December 2022, along with Hon’ble Minister of State Smt. Darshana Jardosh and other women parliamentarians.
The event is likely to bring renewed focus on the age-old tradition of Sari weaving and thereby improve earnings of the handloom community.
Union Textile minister: Piyush Goel
5. Himachal Pradesh government launches CM’s Sukhashray Sahayata Kosh
Tags: Government Schemes Person in news State News
Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu launched CM’s Sukhashray Sahayata Kosh with an outlay of Rs 101 crore on 1 January 2023.
All the Ministers and Congress MLA will contribute their first salary to the fund. The Congress party has 40 MLA in the 68 member Himachal Legislative Assembly. Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu government was sworn in on 11 December 2022.
Aim of the CM’s Sukhashray Sahayata Kosh
The scheme will aim to provide the facility of higher education to needy children and destitute women.
The state government will bear the expenditure on skill development education, higher education, and vocational training of such children. They will also be given financial assistance as per their requirement so that they can lead a respectable life.
There will be no requirement for any income certificate for availing these facilities.
The Chief Minister said that children living in childcare institutions, all children being benefited under foster care, destitute women living in Nari Seva Sadan, Shakti Sadan and residents of old age homes would be benefited under this scheme.
Himachal Pradesh
Himachal Pradesh became a Union Territory on 1 November 1956. It became the 18th state of India on 25 January 1971.
The State is bordered by Jammu & Kashmir on North, Punjab on West and South-West, Haryana on South, Uttarakhand on South-East and China on the East.
District in State: 12
State Governor: Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar
Capital: Shimla
State Icons
State Animal: Snow Leopard
State Bird: Western Tragopan
State Flower: Pink Rhododendron
6. Tamil Nadu Launches Project to protect Nilgiri Tahr
Tags: Government Schemes State News
In a first of its kind initiative in India, the Government of Tamil Nadu announced the 'Nilgiri Tahr Project' on 28 December.
Important facts
The aim is to restore the original habitat of this state animal and stabilize its population.
With a budget of Rs 25.14 crore, this five-year initiative will constitute a dedicated team headed by a project director to deal with the conservation of the species.
The project will explore the possibility of captive breeding of the animal in forested areas where it has become locally extinct.
The state forest department will conduct a simultaneous survey in the Tahr range, which includes the Nilgiri hills and the Assambu highlands.
Under the project, radio-telemetry studies of some tahrs will be carried out to understand the pattern, habitat use and behaviour of this animal.
About Nilgiri Tahr
It is the state animal of Tamil Nadu.
This endemic species of the Western Ghats is listed as Endangered in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species and is protected under Schedule I of the Wildlife (Protection) Act of India, 1972.
The Nilgiri tahr faces several threats such as habitat loss due to large-scale deforestation, competition with domestic animals, hydroelectric projects and monoculture plantations.
October 7 will be celebrated as 'Nilgiri Tahr Day' in honour of ERC Davidar. He did the first study on Nilgiri Tahr in 1975.
7. Union Minister Dr; Jitendra Singh launches revamped Probity Portal, e-HRMS 2.0 Portal
Tags: National Government Schemes Person in news
Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science & Technology; Minister of State (Independent Charge) Earth Sciences; Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr Jitendra Singh has launched a revamped Probity Portal, e-HRMS 2.0 Portal and e-Books on major Initiatives/Achievements of Ministry of Personnel, PG & Pensions on 25 December 2022 on the occasion of the Good Governance Day in New Delhi.
The week-long ‘Governance Week’ (19-25 December 2022) celebrations with a nationwide launch of “PrashasanGaon Ki Ore” campaign also concluded on this day.
Revamped e-HRMS 2.0 Portal
The Revamped Probity Portal was launched for the central government employees in 2017. It provided limited HR related services to the employees .To add more services and interlink it with other government apps the government has launched the Revamped e-HRMS 2.0 Portal.
The Revamped e-HRMS 2.0 Portal will provide the following services in a digital mode to the employees - Transfers (Rotation/Mutual), Deputation, APAR, IPR, iGOT Trainings, Vigilance Status, Deputation Opportunities, Service Book and other basic HR Services like Leave, Tour, Reimbursements etc
The revamped e-HRMS 2.0 is the first digital system in Government of India to provide end-to-end HR Services.
Mobile Application of iGoTKarmayogi Portal by Karmayogi Bharat (SPV)
The Minister also launched Mobile Application of iGoTKarmayogi Portal by Karmayogi Bharat (SPV) with an aim to create professional, well trained and future ready civil service for India, The app and the platform will allow all government servants, at multiple levels, to undergo continuous training, depending on their domain areas. The app and the platform will provide anytime-anywhere-any-device learning to train about 2 crores users.
8. Railways plans to modernise 1,000 small stations under Amrit Bharat Station Scheme
Tags: National Economy/Finance Government Schemes
The Indian Railway will launch the “Amrit Bharat Station Scheme” under which 1000 small but important stations will be modernized. This scheme is different from the ongoing plan to revamp 200 railway stations.
According to the Indian Railways the stations will be selected not only on the passenger traffic but also on the cites they cater to. These stations will be redeveloped under what is called the ''Khurda model of redevelopment''.
Khurda station in Odisha was modernized for Rs 4 crore with all contemporary amenities for passengers. The main structure was renovated, the facade was redone and the number of railway tracks was also increased.
Under the “Amrit Bharat Station Scheme” the Divisional Railway Managers will be responsible for the redevelopment of the railway station. The DRMs have been instructed to review existing buildings in the station premises and release space for passengers near the entrances and enable relocation of rail offices to other places.
Modernisation of these stations would include improved station approaches to ensure smooth access by widening roads, removal of unwanted structures, properly designed signages, dedicated pedestrian pathways, well-planned parking areas, and improved lighting among others.
The station should also have a second entry station building and high-level platforms with a length of 600m.
Union Railway Minister: Ashwini Vaishnaw
9. 81 crore people to get free foodgrains for one year under NFSA
Tags: Government Schemes National News
The government on 23 December decided to provide free foodgrains to 81.35 crore people for one year under the National Food Security Act (NFSA) at an estimated cost of Rs 2 lakh crore. It will be implemented from 1 January 2023.
Important facts
- As per the cabinet decision, beneficiaries under NFSA will get free food grains for one year till December 2023.
- The decision comes a few days before the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY) expires on December 31, 2022.
- The beneficiaries will not have to pay a single rupee to get foodgrains.
About PMGKAY
- It is a food security welfare scheme announced by the Central Government in March 2020, during the Covid-19 pandemic.
- It is a part of the Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Package (PMGKP) to help the poor in the fight against COVID-19.
- The program is run by the Department of Food and Public Distribution under the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution.
- Under the programme more than 80 crore beneficiaries are provided 5 kg free wheat/rice per person per month.
- It is the largest food security program in the world.
Objective of the scheme
- To provide food security to all priority households (ration card holders and those identified by the Antyodaya Anna Yojana scheme), to provide food grains to India's poorest citizens through the Public Distribution System.
National Food Security (NFS) Act, 2013
- It aims to provide subsidized food grains to approximately two-thirds of India’s 1.2 billion people.
- This includes Re 3 per kg of rice, Re 2 per kg of wheat and Re 1 per kg of coarse grains under the Targeted Public Distribution System (TPDS).
- It converts the existing food security programs of the Government of India into a legal mandate.
- The existing food security programs include the mid-day meal scheme, the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) scheme and the Public Distribution System (PDS).
10. CM Naveen Patnaik launches 24×7 ‘Drink from Tap’ project in 19 cities of Odisha
Tags: Government Schemes Person in news State News
The Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik launched a 24×7 piped drinking water project — ‘Drink from Tap’ — in 19 cities of the state on 21 December 2022. About 5.5 lakh people in these cities will be benefited from the project.
Addressing the event, the chief minister said providing safe drinking water to every family has been his dream for a long time and it has always been the priority of his government.
He said that households in these cities will get drinking water directly from the tap adhering to the quality parameters of the Bureau of Indian Standards.
The state government scheme is different from the central government scheme of Jal Jeevan Mission which was launched on 15 August 2019. Under the Jal
Within the Jal Jeevan Mission, Har Ghar Nal se Jal scheme, aims to provide potable, quality drinking water to every rural household by 2024.
Goa, Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu became the first ‘Har Ghar Jal’ certified State and Union Territory in the country respectively,
Burhanpur district of Madhya Pradesh is the first certified ‘Har Ghar Jal’ district in India.
