12.03.22

“Mission Samadhan” scheme ceremonially launched in ChirangThe Chirang district administration on Monday ceremonially launched “Mission Samadhan”, an initiative undertaken by the district administration to provide relief to the residents of Chirang district who are deprived of caste certificates due to lack of linkages.Deputy Commissioner Shah said that those residents from Other Backward Classes and Scheduled Castes of the district who have been deprived of getting caste certificates due to lack of linkage, would now be able to apply for caste certificate through this mission by March 22, 2022.NORTH-EASTERN STATES

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Meghalaya govt initiates talks with a terror outfit in hill state

After the Centre’s nod, the Meghalaya government has initiated the process to hold formal talks with the banned militant outfit Hynniewtrep National Liberation Council (HNLC), officials said on Friday. A senior official of the Meghalaya Home Department said that the state government has appointed retired IAS officer Peter S Dkhar as the interlocutor for facilitating the talks with the HNLC, which also last month offered to hold peace talks with the Centre and the Meghalaya government without any pre-conditions.

The HNLC has claimed responsibility for the low-intensity blasts that took place in recent months in the heart of Shillong and other areas in the state. While militancy is on the decline in Meghalaya over the last several years, but since 2020 the HNLC has been behind a few low-intensity IED blasts in the state. The HNLC, which has been demanding a sovereign Khasi tribal homeland in Meghalaya, is a breakaway faction of the Hynniewtrep Achik Liberation Council, the first tribal militant outfit of the mountainous state, formed in the mid-1980s.

State plans to ride on GatiShakti for growth

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The industries department is set to prepare a master plan, based on priority areas, as the state government looks to gain from the Centres huge investment proposal for infrastructure development under the ambitious PMGatiShaktiinitiative.

Launched in 2021 by the Narendra Modi government, PM GatiShakti national master plan aims to bolster multi-modal connectivity through coordinated planning and execution of infrastructure projects such as roads, railways, airports, ports, mass transport, waterways and logistics.

Though the commerce and transport department was initially assigned the task of preparing the master plan, the industries department has now been roped in for the purpose.
State industries secretaryHemant Sharmasaid the state government has already been preparing a logistics master plan with the help of Rail India Technical and Economic Service (RITES).

The industries department will soon appoint a state nodal officer for the project, who will coordinate with the nodal officers of other line departments to initiate the future course of action. The nodal officers will also attend a four-day (March 14 to 17) training programme at BISAG-N in Ahmedabad, Gujarat to deliberate on the plan.

Odishas 480-km long coastline offers long-term potential for cargo handling by leveraging the sea routes. At present, the state has three all-weather ports at Paradip,DhamraandGopalpurwhile three more ports are expected to be ready in a few years.

Tamil Nadu: Anaimalai Tiger Reserve boosts manpower to fight forest fire fast

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The forest department has deployed 64 temporary fire watchers and 69 anti-poaching watchers to preventforest fireinPollachiforest division in theAnaimalai Tiger Reserve(ATR).
ATR officials said they were creating fire lines for a length of 250km in the four forest ranges of Pollachi, Valparai, Monombolly and Ulandi in the division as well to curb the extent of fire. According to them, plans are also afoot to buy two off-road vehicles to transport the materials required to put out the fire in the reserve forest area.

Ganesan said the Forest Survey of India, an organization under the Union environment and forest ministry, was closely monitoring incidents of forest fire across the country with the help of ISRO satellite.

Livestock sector: stress on increasing fodder grass production

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Given the emphasis on livestock development and self reliance in milk production, the State government appears to have woken up to the need for rapidly stepping up production of green fodder.

Drawing attention to the decline in the area under fodder production, the Economic Review 2021, prepared by the Kerala State Planning Board and tabled in the State Assembly last week, noted that domestic cultivation meets just 46% of the fodder requirement.

The document indicated that the State has less than 2,500 hectares under fodder cultivation. Large-scale commercial production will have to be ensured to meet the demand in the next decade. Suitable contract farming models also should be explored, it said. Kerala urgently needs a fodder and feed plan for its livestock sector. About 15,000 acres of land has to be identified to cultivate fodder in the State over the next two years and domestic capacity of production needs to be expanded, the Economic Review noted.

Karnataka: Scheme launched at Moodbidri to deliver land papers at ryots doorstep

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Minister for energy, Kannada and cultureV Sunil Kumarlaunched the Revenue documents at farmers doorstep scheme at Moodbidri on Saturday.
Launching the scheme of delivering land and other revenue documents to the doorstep of farmers, at a programme in Padumarnadu, the minister said that similar programmes will be held in all villages in Dakshina Kannada district.

He said the scheme of delivering records to the doorstep of farmers is a revolutionary step taken by the government to help farmers. RTC of the farmers will also be made available in all Nadakacheris for free. Through this, the government has come to the doorsteps of the people, he said.

School dropout rate till class 8 zero during 2020-21 in Telangana: Report

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The dropout rate till class eight of Telangana was zero during the academic year 2020-21, revealed unified district information system for education plus (UDISE+) report 2020-21.

In the report released by the department of school education and literacy, 13.9% of students of a total 11,21,917 enrolled in class nine and class 10 had dropped out during 2020-21, of which 14.3% are boys and 13.4% are girls.

In Telangana, a total of 69,64,553 students had been enrolled in pre-primary to class 12 during the said year.

According to the report, a total of 4,79,174 new students were admitted in class 1 in various schools across the state.

Of the total new admissions, 2,51,143 are boys and 2,28,031 are girls. Of which, 1,54,249 joined government schools and the remaining were enrolled in government-aided, private among other schools in the state.

As per the report, enrollment of students in pre-primary level and class 1 has reduced by 29.1 lakh and 18.8 lakh respectively in 2020-21 as compared to 2019-20 in the country.

Total enrollment of CWSN in 2020-21 stood at 21.69 lakh as compared to 22.49 lakh in 2019-20 showing a decrease of 3.55% during 2020-21 as compared to 2019-20 across the country.

In Telangana, 43,216 CWSN were studying in class 1 to class 12 during 2020-21 as against 43,672 in 2019-20.

When it comes to teachers, a total of 3,20,216 were working in schools across Telangana in 2020-21 as against 3,05,597 in 2019-20.

Plan model to boost modern appliance use, says Andhra Pradesh Electricity Regulatory Commission

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TheAndhra Pradesh Electricity Regulatory Commission(APERC) has asked power utilities to study the on-bill financing model to encourage the usage of modern energy-efficient appliances by domestic consumers. According to the officials, the savings opportunity in transitioning to brushless direct-current motor (BLDC) fans is huge.

As per the initial estimates,Andhra Pradeshcan save energy worth almost 7,000 million units (MUs) by facilitating the market transition to BLDC fans through demand aggregation-based price reduction and upfront rebates. This implies monetary savings of 4,500 crore for the state government, discoms and consumers combined. This will also reduce about 3.4 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions.

CEEW representatives in their presentation said the Andhra Pradesh power sector is among the best performing sectors in the country, comprising around 1.5 crore domestic consumers with 92% of satisfied grid users as compared with the national average of 77%.

New govt must focus on needs of private sector

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Worried after the exit polls predicted a hung assembly, Goas private sector let out a sign of relief after voters gave a clear mandate to BJP. The industry now hopes that with a stable government in place, the needs and concerns of the private sector, particularly the manufacturing sector, will be addressed in a time-bound manner.

While calling for socio-economic growth, the private sector has also recommended that the government should adopt a path of sustainable development.

Assocham, one of the oldest industry bodies in the country, said that the clear mandate will help in the formation of a stable government. We are confident that the state of Goa will observe significant socio-economic growth under the new leadership. We positively look forward to initiating impactful changes that are likely to enhance the scope of commerce and industry in the state.

Maharashtra govt announces Rs 500 crore for land for Goa coastal project

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The state government has announced Rs 500 crore to acquire land along the coastal belt ofMaharashtra, betweenRevasin Raigad and Redi in Sindhudurg, for theMumbai-Goa coastal highway project.

A tender for a four-lane bridge over Dharamtar creek, costing around Rs 900 crore, was floated, finance minister Ajit Pawar revealed in his budget speech

The statesBalasaheb Thackeraymemorial prosperity corridor between Mumbai and Nagpur will be extended from Nagpur to Bhandara-Gondia and Nagpur to Gadchiroli. This will facilitate a fastest approach to tiger safaris in the jungles of Vidarbha. Around 77% work of this highway has been completed. Necessary funds will be provided for land acquisition of Jalna-Nanded Expressway, he added.

If all goes as planned, by 2025 Mumbaikars will be able to take a 500km scenic Marine highway along Konkan beaches and forts. In an earlier budget the Thackeray government had announced Rs 3,500 crore to develop the single-lane state highway (MSH4), with 30km of missing bridges over creeks and rivers, into a coastal highway on the lines of the pacific coast highway in US.

With focus on growth, women initiatives, environment Haryana govt presents Rs 1.77-lakh-cr Budget

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There has been no new tax in the Rs 1.77 lakh crore Budget, presented by the Haryana government on Tuesday which has emphasis on economic growth, ease of living for citizens and initiatives for women.

Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, who also has the Finance Department under him, said it lays emphasis on spurring growth through increased infrastructure investment. The Budget envisioned five developmental forces through the ‘Vajra Model’ for enhanced economic growth and human development, ease of living for citizens, lifting the poor and disadvantaged from all socioeconomic groups, leveraging productivity through increased adoption of technology accompanied by employment and entrepreneurship.

Among its focus areas are initiatives for women to boost infrastructure, agriculture and overall growth.

Khattar proposed a Budget of Rs 1,77,255.99 crore for the financial year 2022-23, a rise of 15.6 per cent over the Budget size of Rs 1,53,384 crore in 2021-22. The Budget outlay comprises 34.4 per cent as capital expenditure at Rs 61,057.36 crore and 65.6 per cent as revenue expenditure at Rs 1,16,198.36 crore.The debt liability is likely to go up to Rs 2,43,779 crore in the financial year 2022-23, from Rs 2,23,768 crore as of March 2022.

In Budget Estimates (BE) 2022-23, the total revenue receipts are projected to be at Rs 1,06,424.70 crore. They comprise tax revenues of Rs 73,727.50 crore, non-tax revenues of Rs 12,205.86 crore, share of central taxes of Rs 8,925.98 crore and a grant-in-aid of Rs 11,565.86 crore. Besides this, capital receipts are projected to be Rs 5,393.89 crore. The fiscal deficit is estimated to be 2.99 per cent of GSDP in 2021-22 and for FY 2022-23, it is expected to be within the prescribed limit of 3.5 per cent by the 15th Finance Commission, at 2.98 per cent of GSDP as per BE for 2022-23.