24.06.23

Haryana to give Rs 2,500 annually to custodians of trees older than 75 years, says minister

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The Haryana government will provide an annual pension of Rs 2,500 to custodians of trees older than 75 years, a minister said.

Haryana Forest and Environment Minister Kanwar Pal said trees older than 75 years have immense ecological value and a pension would be deposited in the bank accounts of those protecting and maintaining such trees.

The Haryana Pran Vaayu Devta Pension Scheme was launched to inculcate a sense of protection and conservation of old trees among people, he said, adding that the government was committed to protect such trees.

Pal said the pension amount will increase every year at rates pro-rata to the increase in the Old Age Samman Pension Scheme for people in the state.

A Pran Vaayu Devta Tree Conservation Committee will identify, map and make an inventory of the trees being covered under the scheme through a systematic census, he said.

Policy on decriminalisation of drug use on the cards in Punjab

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Taking forward the commitment of Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann to treat every drug addict like a patient and deal with them sympathetically, the government is mulling to bring a policy for decriminalisation of the drug use, said Health and Family Welfare Minister Dr Balbir.

Decriminalisation doesnt mean that drugs will get legalised, it will continue to remain illegal. Under this policy, drug addicts or patients of substance use disorders caught with meagre amount of drugs will be sent to de-addiction centres for treatment and rehabilitation instead of putting them into the jails, he said, while maintaining that drug smugglers/peddlers would be dealt by the Police with iron hand.

Dr Balbir Singh further said the problem of drug abuse had affected a large number of Population and created a barrier in the progress of the state. Our government is committed to making Punjab a Rangla Punjab as desired by Bhagwant Mann, he said.

He said the government had been working on formulation and implementation of a policy under which a multi-pronged and multi-disciplinary approach would be adopted to tackle the situation on utmost priority.

Himachal Pradesh govt notifies Draft Shimla Development Plan

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Himachal Pradesh government notified the Draft Shimla Development Plan, aimed at regulating construction activities in the capital city.

The state cabinet approved the final draft of the SDS, which includes new provisions with regard to the number of floors, habitable attic and garage in a building.

The cabinet, in a meeting presided by Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, cleared the draft plan presented by the urban development department.

The plan was approved by the previous government in February 2022 but it did not materialise as the (NGT) passed stay orders, terming it illegal and in conflict with earlier orders passed in 2017 to regulate haphazard constructions in Shimla.

The plan named Vision 2041, when implemented, would pave the way for construction in 17 green belts with certain restrictions and also in the core area where construction activity was banned by the NGT.

74% dip in loss of forest area due to wildfires this season

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As compared to 3,425 hectares of forest land that was gutted in 885forest fire incidents in Uttarakhandbetween November 1, 2021 and June 19, 2022, merely 885 hectares were burnt down this season (November 1, 2022 to June 19, 2023), registering a massive 74.1% dip in forest area that was affected, as per the state forest department.

Even as after a delayed start, forest fires flared up around mid-June this year, the impact of cyclone Biparjoy, which caused rains and thunderstorms, made sure they died down again soon.

In Uttarakhand, forest fires usually start raging by April, considered the start of the peak forest fire season, when temperature soars in the hills and forest floors dry up and turn inflammable. This year, due to unseasonal rains and snowfall from March to May, summer was delayed and forest fires much less than usual. An uptick in cases was recorded from June 9-14, when temperatures across state started settling 4 to 5 degrees above normal. With a week-long dry spell, the mercury had touched the 39-40 degrees Celsius mark.

Yogi govt implements Legal Aid Defence Counsel System

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The Yogi Adityanath government has implemented the Legal Aid DEFENCE Counsel System (LADCS), under the Uttar Pradesh State Legal Services Authority, for a period of two years to provide free legal assistance to the people and resolve disputes among them by working out a compromise formula.

The objective of the government behind implementing LADCS is to strengthen court-based legal services in order to provide effective and competent legal assistance to the weak and vulnerable sections of Society.

He said LADCS would provide qualitative and competent legal services to eligible individuals in criminal cases. This could benefit members of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes and those who have been affected by illegal acts of individuals could directly benefit from it.

LADCS will benefit numerous individuals including Women, daughters, and children who are victims in the state, individuals affected by disabilities such as blindness, leprosy, deafness, mental weakness, and nomadic individuals, industrial workers, juvenile delinquents and persons detained in custody.

17 schools register for Jharkhand School Innovation Challenge

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Altogether 17 schools have so far registered for the Jharkhand School Innovation Challenge (JHSIC)2023, the biggest innovation challenge contest for school students (Class 8 to 12) being organized by Naresh Vashisht Centre for Tinkering and Innovation (NVCTI), IIT (ISM) for which the registration began last week.

Notably, altogether 187 teams of different schools from across the state took part in the competition during the last year and all efforts are being made to ensure greater participation during this year.

state to participate in JH-SIC 2023 and said that the best ideas selected during the contest can also work to launch their own start up for which all necessary will be extended by various centres of IIT (ISM) including Mining Technology Innovation Hub, TEXMiN besides ACIC and NVCTI.

Bihar govt opposes Guvs decree for 4-yr degree course

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Bihars state universities are again turning into a battleground for the and the Raj Bhawan over the implementation of the four-year integrated graduation programme with choice based credit system (CBCS) from the new academic session that has just started.

The Raj Bhawans move is significant, as none of the Bihar universities had managed to implement the CBCS and semester system at the undergraduate level despite this being a common practice in most of the good universities.

The Chhattisgarh government is doing better work as compared with other states vis-a-vis against drug addiction, AIIMS Professor Dr. Yatan Pal Balhara said.

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He was participating in a consultation meeting on the issue. Central government experts as well as WHO and UNICEF representatives were present.

The experts underlined that not only the government but social and voluntary organizations need to work in coordination to bring public awareness regardingr drug addiction.

Experts said that it is necessary to keep the new generation, especially the youth, away from drugs. There is a need to run a massive campaign at the government and private level for drug eradication.

IIM-I signs MoUs with state pollution control board, MPBDC

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Indian Institute Of Management, Indore (IIM Indore) has signed aMoUwith MPPollutionControl Board (MPPCB) to address environmental challenges and foster sustainability in the state.

The institute also joined hands with the Madhya Pradesh Building Development Corporation (MPBDC) to revolutionize development initiatives in the state.

Both the MoUs were signed by IIM Indore director Prof Himanshu Rai and MPPCB member secretary and MPBDC directorChandra MohanThakur.
The MoUs aimed at solidifying commitment to environmental preservation and creating a positive change. This PARTNERSHIP aims to leverage the collective expertise of both institutions in generating valuable insights and practical solutions for effective environmental remediation efforts and creating an innovative landscape.

Income tax collection in Gujarat rose to Rs 41,000 crore, up 13% in FY 2022-23

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The (I-T) collection in the financial year (FY) 2022-23 rose by 13% compared to FY 2021-22, indicated the income tax department data. The collection rose from Rs 36,800 crore to Rs 41,700 crore.

The amount included Rs 24,800 crore in tax deducted at source (TDS), Rs 17,300 crore in advance tax, Rs 7,800 crore in self-assessment and Rs 1,000 crore in regular assessment. The income tax payers also received Rs 10,000 crore in refunds, nearly double from Rs 5,100 crore in FY 2021-22.
The income taxpayers contributed to half of the Rs 82,900 crore directtax collectionfromGujarat, indicated data. The other half came from the Corporate tax.

The rise is seen as the impact of Covid pandemic receding and corporate entities and individuals finding their feet again.

Recently, CBDT figures for direct collection for financial year 2023-24 showed collection of Rs 3.79 lakh crore till June 17 for India compared to Rs 3.41 lakh crore in FY 2022-23, showing an increase of 11%. The gross collection rose by 13% from Rs 3.71 lakh crore to Rs 4.19 lakh crore for the same period. The figures included corporation tax, and personal income tax.