09.12.22

Centre approves Rs 2,614 crore for 382 MW Sunni Dam Hydro Project in Himachal Pradesh

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The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has approved of Rs 2,614 crore for the 382 MW Sunni Dam Hydro Electric Project in Himachal Pradesh.

The Run of River project being executed on Satluj river in Shimla and Mandi districts of Himachal Pradesh will have 71-meter-high concrete gravity Dam and six generating units in its surface Power House.

The project shall generate 1382 million units annually and the levelized tariff of electricity generated will be R 3.90 per unit. The project is scheduled to be commissioned within 63 months of the commencement of construction works. The project is being financed on a 70:30 debt Equity ratio and on completion it will earn 16.50% return on equity for SJVN.

Conserve energy, focus on alternative sources of power: CM

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Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami has said that in the idea of the creation of the Uttarakhand State, the tourism and energy sectors formed the basis of the economy and the is keeping them in special focus. Dhami said that he has requested Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi for the clearance of the Hydro Power projects of the State. He was addressing a programme organised on the occasion of National energy conservation day at Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (Ongc) office.

The programme was organised jointly by the Uttarakhand RENEWABLE ENERGY Development Authority (UREDA) and ONGC. The CM said that continous development of any country is possible only by uninterrupted power and added that we should focus on the alternate sources of the power also.

He said that everyone should put in effort for conserving energy and it should become part of our daily life. Dhami said that the State government is making constant effort to strike a balance between the ECOLOGY and economy.

He said that under the Leadership of PM Modi India is leading the world community in the field of Solar Energy and our country is forwarding its commitment of the development of clean energy in the whole world. The CM said that energy and the tourism sectors hold vast potential in the State.

The CM visited an exhibition of the energy efficient equipment and released table calendar 2023 based on energy conservation on the occasion.

Prayagraj to get 3 more cement production units

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The district is all set to become the major hub ofcementmanufacturing in the state with three more cement units coming up in Shankargarh regio of the trans-Yamuna area.

Prayagraj already has two cement manufacturing Plants, both located at trans-Yamuna area. Land has been identified for the three new cement production units in Shankragarh area. These three units are being set up by three different private firms.

At present the district has two cement plants runninga Cement blending plant of 6.6 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) of Jaypee Group atSadwaand another of Ulta Tech Cement having a 2MTPA plant at Bara.

As per the official of theUttar Pradesh State Industrial Development Authority(UPCIDA), Prayagraj, an MoU with the company has already been signed. The firm will be setting up a Clinker grinding unit of a capacity of 2.50 MTPA at cost of Rs 400 crore in Bara area. The firm is already in the process of purchasing the land.

Govt adopts audio-visual module for early childhood education

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To foster continuity in early and primary Education of three to 14-year-old children, an audio-visual medium has been adopted by the .
Children in two districts West Shinghum and Gumla will get access to Gulmohar model that was inaugurated by education ministerJagarnath Mahto.

Gulmohar is an audio-visual module for early childhood education.
The framework of activities is holistic in nature, covering all domains of development physical, motor, cognitive and psychosocial as well as Elements on maintaining Health and hygiene and parenting tips.

On this occasion, the education minister said, The level of education inJharkhandmust be elevated. The education department has made the necessary preparations. Our governments top priority is to bring government schools on a par with private schools.

Currently, the programme is being implemented in Jharkhand, Bihar, Odisha, Delhi andWest Bengal. Altogether 1,237 anganwdi centres (AWCs) and 505 government primary schools are included in the project, which is being carried out in close collaboration with state governments. It aims to improve the quality and consistency of a childs experiences during the transition from pre-primary to primary school.

Bihar seeks Rs 20,000 crore for infra, 1% hike in fiscal deficit limit

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Biharhas urged the Centre to allot Rs 20,000 crore in the 2023-24 Union budget for development and creation of assets in the state and suggested 90:10 ratio of the central and state Shares of funding for the centrally sponsored schemes (CSS). The state also suggested to the Centre to increase the state’s Fiscal Deficit to 4% of the gross state domestic product (GSDP).

Similarly, Choudhary suggested that the Cess and Surcharge collected by the Centre should be included in the central divisible pool to transfer a part of it to the states.

Noting that the central fiscal deficit has been periodically increased in the past far beyond 6%, Choudhary said the Centre should permit the state to have its fiscal deficit 1% more than the mandatory 3% of the GSDP for a backward state like Bihar.

Choudhary said the Centre had provided Rs12,000 crore under Bihar specific plan (BSP) in the 2012 Budget for use in Infrastructure Development and on the creation of assets.

While 95% of the BSP fund provided in 2012 had been utilised, another chunk of Rs20,000 crore should be allotted in the forthcoming Union budget as BSP-Phase II, Choudhary said.

The minister also included a memorandum of the demands of the state. He asked for the transfer to the State Government the central fund meant for the repair and maintenance of thePMGSYroads, also separate allotment for the state to be used on the linking of panchayats, villages and haats/bazaars with the district headquarters.

Further, Choudhary demanded one-nation, one-tariff in the power sector and permission to raise Money from the specific fund ofNABARDfor use by the power distribution companies for fixing smart prepaid meters.

Solar power illuminating villages in far flung Cgarh

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Chhattisgarh is a leader in the country in using to illuminate villages, provide drinking water and supplyingelectricity in far-flung areas of the state.

An official Communication said rapid work has been done in solar energy. The Chhattisgarh State RENEWABLE ENERGY Development Agency has won the National Award for installing most solar pumps in the country and for energy conservation.

A total of 71,753 solar Irrigation pumps were set up in the state by CREDA in the last four years. A total of 86,104 hectares have been irrigated through these pumps.

More than 1.17 lakh solar irrigation pumps of 3 and 5 hp have been installed in the state to irrigate 1.17 lakh hectares of land. Over 1.26 lakh farmers benefit from the scheme.

Under the Saur Sujala Yojana, farmers are given a maximum grant of up to Rs 2 lakh by the government to set up solar irrigation pumps of 3 and 5 horse power capacity. Arrangements have been made to supplydrinking water for animals and irrigation facilities in 4,970 Gauthans.

Technology has changed the small business ecosystem

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Small and Medium Businesses (SMBs) are a vital element of Indias socio-economic future. While many SMBs faced hardships during the pandemic, the resilience of Indias small business community means theyre optimistic about the coming months.

A survey by ASSOCHAM-Dun & Bradstreet Small Business Confidence Index (SBCI) states that SMBs expect strong demand for exports in Q2 2022. The SBCI measures the level of optimism with regards to key parameters such as sales, inventory, , etc. among SMBs.

As more consumers embrace digital, SMBs will have to be where their consumers are online and social. With working from Home, employees have adopted a virtual and digital lifestyle, and more vendors and partners are moving their systems to the cloud, as the demand for instant data and business intelligence grows.

On National Technology Day, let us look at what the future of technology holds for Indian SMBs.

Rajasthan: Bill to regulate coaching centres yet to be tabled in House

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TheRajasthanPrivate Institutional Educational Regulatory Authority (RPIERA) Bill drafted to regulate coaching centres in August 2020 is yet to be tabled in the assembly. The suicides by three students in Kota allegedly under study pressure could have been averted had the bill become a law.

The bill drafted by a five member committee of academicians, sociologists, and psychologists mandate compulsory counselling sessions for students to de-Stress them to prevent suicides and penal provisions for errant coaching centres.

Road accidents linked to fog claimed 13,372 lives in 2021

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Road accidents caused due to foggy and misty weather conditions claimed 13,372 lives in 2021 and another 25,360 were left injured more than half were grievously injured. Among states and UTs,Uttar Pradeshrecorded a maximum of 3,782 fatalities, followed by Bihar (1,800) andMadhya Pradesh(1,233) on this account. Goa, and Lakshadweep did not report any road death due to this reason.

As per the latest report titled Road Accidents in India published by the road transport ministry, among the million-plus cities, all the top six cities reporting high number of such fatalities were from UP. While Kanpur reported a maximum of 173 fatalities, Agra recorded 108 deaths and the other cities that saw a high number of deaths werePrayagraj(97), Ghaziabad (91) Lucknow (67) and Varanasi (56).Patnaalso recorded 56 such deaths.

India, ADB sign $125 million loan to improve Urban Services in Tamil Nadu

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The Government of India and Asian (ADB) today signed a $125 million loan to develop Climate-resilient sewage collection and treatment, and drainage and water supply systems in three cities in the state of Tamil Nadu.

The signatories to the tranche 3 loan for Tamil Nadu Urban Flagship Investment Program were Rajat Kumar Mishra, Additional Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs in the Ministry of Finance who signed for the Government of India, and Hoe Yun Jeong, Officer-in-Charge of ADBs India Resident Mission who signed for ADB.

The financing is the third and the last tranche of the $500 million multi-tranche financing facility (MFF) for the Program approved by ADB in 2018 to build priority water supply, sewerage, and drainage Infrastructure in strategic industrial corridors across 10 cities in the state. The tranche 3 loan covers Coimbatore, Madurai, and Thoothukudi.