27.10.22

Centre releases 407 crore PDRD grant for Assam

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The department of expenditure of the finance ministry released little over Rs 407 crore to Assam as the seventh monthly instalment ofPost Devolution (PDRD) Grant.

According to an official statement, Assam has so far received Rs 2,852 crore PDRD grant in the current fiscal. Altogether Rs 7,183.42 crore was released in the day to 14 states as per the recommendations of the Fifteenth Finance Commission.
Among the other northeastern states, the ministry has released Rs 192.50 crore toManipur, Rs 86.08 crore to Meghalaya, Rs 134.58 crore to Mizoram, Rs 377.50 crore to Nagaland and Rs 368.58 crore toTripura.

The 15th Finance Commission has recommended a totalPost Devolution Revenue Deficit Grantof Rs 86,201 crore to 14 states for the financial year 2022-23, which is released in 12 equated monthly instalments.

Rs 900 crore rail-cum-road bridge on Brahmaputra approved: Nitin Gadkari

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Road transport and highways minister Nitin Gadkari announced on Twitter that a new rail-cum-road bridge across the Brahmaputra, near the existing Saraighat bridge in Guwahati, has been approved at a cost of over Rs 900 crore under PM Gati Shakti national master plan for multi-modal connectivity.

This new bridge will be constructed on the upstream of the historic Saraighat bridge, the first bridge built over the Brahmaputra.

Odisha is a pocket-friendly tourist destination

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Odisha is a pocket-friendly tourist destination having quality and a diversified product portfolio comprising forests, sea, wildlife, tribal groups and hills.

Comparing Odisha with other States, he said people who visit Rajasthan only see palaces and desert; but in Odisha, they get chance to stay in lavish royal palaces and can visit forests and see wildlife animals. People whjo are going to Agra only see Taj Mahal; but in Odisha, they can see the iconic Konark Temple and many other beautiful temples across the State.

The three-day Odisha Travel Bazaar 2022 is organised by the Department of Tourism and the Federation of Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

Tamil Nadu CM Stalin announces plan to develop school infrastructure

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Chief minister M K Stalin on Wednesday announced majorinfrastructureprojects for development ofschools, roads and transport service in Nadu. He made the announcements in the assembly under rule 110 of the House.
He said the government needed to spend Rs 12,300 crore to construct 26,000 new classrooms, 7,500 km compound walls and carry out maintenance of old school buildings. Per Aasiriyar Anbazhagan development scheme was announced to ensure the same, he said.

As the student strength has increased, he said Infrastructure would be improved in 7,200 schools at a cost of Rs 1,050 crore. The works include construction of 6,000 classrooms in panchayat union, elementary and middle schools, and 1,200 classrooms in high schools and higher secondary schools this year. An additional Rs 115 crore was being allocated for maintenance of school buildings, he said.
The government schools in the state saw enrolment of 15 lakh students in the last two years. The State Government was implementing various programmes like free morning meals, Illam Thedi Kalvi, Ennum Ezhuthum, and Naan Mudalvan Scheme to develop the educational sector and be a role model for other states, said Stalin.

Kerala: Flags to be removed from depots

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Chairman and managing director ofKerala State Road Transport Corporation(KSRTC) has informed theState Human Rights Commission(SHRC) that directives were issued to all the heads of all its depots to remove flags from the premises.

The commission had sought a report from the KSRTC over a petition filed by social workerJohny Aliyapuramrequesting action to remove flags that are causing inconvenience to the public in KSRTC depots.

Karnataka banks on tech to plan MNREGA projects

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To ensure transparency and adopt a scientific approach to projects under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural EMPLOYMENT Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), the government has been using technology to avoid overlapping and unscientific projects.

While the Centre has decreed that 65% of annual MGNREGA work should be dedicated to water and conservation, theRDPRdepartment has made it mandatory for MGNREGA projects for the fiscal 2023-24 to be approved by a state core team.

This team will plan works based on data and approve those suited to a particular region. BesidesKarnatakas geographic information system and Geo MGNREGA for table-top planning, the NREGA commissionerate is using Composite Landscape Assessment & Restoration Tool, a mobile application developed byFoundation for Ecological Security(FES), a not-for-profit organization, for ground proofing.

Telangana Rashtra Samithi received over Rs 194 crore as contributions through electoral bonds & trusts in 2021-22

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‘s ruling partyTelangana Rashtra Samithi(TRS), now known as Bharat Rashtra Samithi, received almost all of its 193.9 worth of contributions for the year 2021-22 through electoral Bonds and electoral trusts. While it has declared 153 crore as income from electoral bonds in its latest contribution report filed with the Election Commission, another 40 crore landed in its kitty from the Prudent Electoral Trust.

Other Regional Parties that have declared income from electoral bonds in their contribution reports for the year 2021-22 areYSR Congress Party(60 crore or three-fourths of its total contributions of over 80 crore),Shiromani Akali Dal(50 lakh) and Samajwadi Party (3.21 lakh). In 2020-21, YSR Congress Party had declared 96.25 crore as its income via electoral bonds route, while SAD and SP reported nil income from bonds. In 2019-20, which was also the general election year, SP had received 10.8 crore via electoral bonds route and TRS, 98.15 crore.

Andhra Pradesh to implement national registration system

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The has decided to join National Generic Documentation Registration System (NGDRS) after the successful implementation of the pilot project in two areas. The new system is expected to ease setting up of new industries.

The Stamps andRegistration Departmentlaunched the pilot project in Kankipadu of NTR district andReniguntain Tirupati district. The state government has shifted the integrated data base of the registration department from Hyderabad to Vijayawada about a year ago with a view to join NGDRS.

Goa: Soon, scan a QR code to verify marital certificate

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The will soon start issuing digital marriage certificates with QR codes and will phase out certificates in the physical format.
The state law department has issued a notification stating that digital marriage certificates with aQR codewill be considered “authentic and the only type of certificate issued by the office of civil registrars-cum-sub-registrars”.

TheGoa governmentintroduced digitally-signed marriage certificates in 2020 as part of the ongoing digital reforms.

The QR code will ensure security and can be used for authentication of the marriage certificate. Citizens and authorities can verify the document’s authenticity by

Maharshtra’s first transgender ward to come up at GT hospital in January

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The state’s first transgender ward will come up at the state-run Gokuldas Tejpal (GT) Hospital near CSMT. The 35-to-45-bed ward will start in January 2023 and thereafter each of the JJ Group of hospitals in the city will get a trans ward.

The GT Hospital ward will contain two bathrooms and three toilets that will be gender-neutral. Dr Saple said that a separate examination room and dressing room will also be included in the ward to ensure that the patient’s privacy and dignity are maintained.

Transgenders, especially hijras, have complained about the trouble and stigma they face in accessing healthcare even in cities such as Mumbai. Many NGOs working for them had raised the issue with local governments, leading to the Preliminary Transgender Persons (Protection of Right) Act, 2019.