Dedicate the next decade to make India healthier – Vice President

The Vice President of India, Shri M Venkaiah Naidu today stressed the need to dedicate the next decade, from 2020 – 2030 to make India healthier by promoting healthy lifestyle, improving healthcare facilities, making healthcare affordable and accessible to all.

Inaugurating Delta Hospitals in Rajahmundry today, he expressed concern over the rising incidence of Non-Communicable Diseases owing to the change in lifestyle and dietary habits and stressed the need for following healthy lifestyle practices.

Quoting WHO report, he said that around 61 percent of deaths in India were attributed to non-communicable diseases, including heart disorders, cancer, and diabetes.

He suggested launching a national movement against the growing incidence of non-communicable diseases and wanted hospitals, the Indian Medical Association and the medical fraternity to take the lead in creating awareness among people, especially the youth.

Highlighting the importance of creating awareness among children and the youth of the hazards caused by unhealthy dietary habits and sedentary lifestyles, the Vice President said that students in schools must be encouraged to take part in at least one physical activity or yoga every day to stay fit and healthy.

Pointing out that achieving universal healthcare has many challenges including bridging the urban-rural divide in providing quality healthcare facilities, Shri Naidu urged the private sector to expand its footprint to the villages and remote rural areas and reach out to people with affordable healthcare.

“It is important for the private sector to complement the efforts of the government in reaching modern healthcare facilities to people living in rural areas,” he added.

Stating that the Government of India has launched several initiatives such as Ayushman Bharat to increase citizens’ access to good quality, affordable healthcare with an aim to achieve Universal Health Coverage by 2030, the Vice President called upon the Private sector to supplement government’s efforts in achieving the 2030 target.

Shri Naidu urged doctors to show empathy and compassion towards the patients and treat their profession as a mission to serve the people and not as a commercial vocation.

Shri Naidu while referring to the high stature given to professionals such as Doctors and Teachers in Indian culture asked them to keep service as their motto. He urged them to show empathy and compassion towards the patients and treat their profession as a mission to serve the people and not as a commercial vocation.

He stressed the need to innovate and adopt the best practices from world over to improve healthcare services and treatment protocols.

Shri Bharat Ram, Member of Parliament, Dr R.B.P.R Chowdary, Chairman & Managing Director of Delta Hospitals, Shri B. Sreenivas, Director, Delta Hospitals were among the dignitaries who graced the event.

Following is the full text of the speech –

“Namaskar,

I am delighted to be present here in the beautiful city of Rajahmundry (Raja Mahendravaram) located on the banks of Godavari River today.

I am happy to inaugurate Delta Hospital headed by a highly talented and experienced team of doctors.

I am happy to know that the hospital is equipped to provide advanced treatment for cancer, cardiac and other ailments.

Dear sisters and brothers

Our country has made significant progress in improving its health outcomes over the years. We have eliminated polio, guinea worm disease, yaws, and maternal and neonatal tetanus.

It is to the credit of successive governments at the Centre and in various States that we could achieve it.

Our Total Fertility Rate (TFR) has reduced sharply from 3.4 in 1992-93 to 2.2 in 2015-16. Contrary to expectations, we were able to achieve the Millennium Development Goals in respect of the Maternal Mortality Ratio (MMR level of 130 against a target of 139) and almost succeeded in meeting the Under-5 child mortality target (U5 MR level of 43 against a target of 42).

The Government of India has initiated several reforms to improve citizens’ access to good quality, affordable healthcare with an aim to achieve Universal Health Coverage by 2030.

India’s vision for a healthy India requires a transformation of the delivery of health services in both urban and rural areas, by involving both the public and the private sectors. Apart from improving the infrastructure in the public health institutions at the district level and in villages, we need to overcome the shortage of doctors and trained paramedical personnel, both in urban and rural areas.

In the context of the rising Non-Communicable Diseases, owing to the change in lifestyle and dietary habits, there is an urgent need to focus on the health and wellbeing of all the people. WHO report says that around 61 percent of deaths in India are attributed to non-communicable diseases, including heart disorders, cancer, and diabetes.

We need to dedicate the next decade– from 2020 – 2030 to make India healthier by focusing on promoting a healthy lifestyle, improving healthcare facilities, making healthcare affordable and accessible to all.

The private sector must supplement the efforts of the government in improving the healthcare infrastructure, particularly in the rural areas and in providing affordable treatment to the common man.

As you all aware, the out-of-pocket expenses constitute a major chunk of the spending by patients. As a result, many poor and needy families end up in debts. This is an area of concern and needs to be addressed by all stakeholders in the health sector. I am happy that the Government of India has launched Ayushman Bharat to provide affordable health insurance to all.

In view of the growing incidence of non-communicable, the private must play a prominent role in setting up of NCD clinics in both urban and rural areas

All our efforts must be aimed at enhancing both the efficiency and quality of medical services. We need to innovate, learn from the best practices world over to improve healthcare without financially burdening people.

Dear sisters & brothers,

Achieving universal healthcare has many challenges including the urban-rural divide in quality healthcare facilities. The disparity in providing healthcare facilities, especially to those living in rural areas remains a major concern for all of us.

I urge the private sector to expand its footprint to the villages and remote rural areas and reach out to people with affordable healthcare. It is important for the private sector to complement the efforts of the government in reaching modern healthcare facilities people living in rural areas.

There is a need to launch a national movement against the growing incidence of non-communicable diseases and hospitals such as yours and the Indian Medical Association should take lead in creating awareness among the people, especially the youth.

Children and youth must be made aware of the hazards caused by unhealthy dietary habits and sedentary lifestyles. Students in schools must be encouraged to take part in at least one physical activity or yoga every day to stay fit and healthy.

I am sure the management of Delta Hospitals, Doctors and the professionals associated with the hospital will keep service as their motto and perform to the best of their abilities to deliver good healthcare to people of this region.

Jai Hind!”

President of India Visit to Vivekananda Rock Memorial and Vivekananda Kendra, Kanyakumari

The President of India, Shri Ram Nath Kovind, visited Vivekananda Rock Memorial and Vivekananda Kendra, Kanyakumari from December 25 & 26, 2019.

Speaking on the occasion, the President said that we have gathered at a place which continuously emits to us highly positive vibes. It was this spiritual power of the rock at the very feet of Bharat Mata which drew Swami Vivekananda to Kanyakumari in his quest for inner peace. On this day 127 years ago, in 1892, Swamiji began deep meditation on this sacred spot. In three days and three nights, a simple monk transformed himself into an enlightened being and a global messenger of Bharatiya Sanatan Dharma Sanskriti. Swamiji attained enlightenment here and sparked a unique spiritual revolution. It was not for an individual’s own salvation; it was for the rejuvenation of the religious values of the motherland and service of its people.

In this context, let me recall letter by him written on 19th March, 1894, Swamiji wrote about his plans. He envisioned selfless sannyasins going from village to village, educating people and working to improve their condition. He wrote, “We, as a nation, have lost our individuality, and that is the cause of all mischief in India. We have to give back to the nation its lost individuality and raise the masses.”

Click here to see the President’s speech

Recruitment Results finalized by UPSC in November , 2019

The following Recruitment Results have been finalized by the Union Public Service Commission during the month of November 2019. The recommended candidates have been informed individually by post.

Click here for details

Year End Review 2019 – Ministry of Textiles

The Ministry of Textiles, Government of India, participated in World Cotton Day celebrations observed from 7^th October to 11^th October 2019 at the World Trade Organisation (WTO) in Geneva. The WTO organized the World Cotton Day event in collaboration with the Secretariats of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), the International Trade Centre (ITC) and the International Cotton Advisory Committee (ICAC). Union Minister of Textiles, Smriti Zubin Irani, participated in the plenary session of the event which was attended by heads of states and heads of international organisations.

WTO hosted the event at the request of the Cotton – 4 countries, Benin, Burkina Faso, Chad and Mali to celebrate their official application for the recognition of 7^th October as World Cotton Day by the United Nations. World Cotton Day celebrated the many advantages of cotton, from its qualities as a natural fibre, to the benefits people obtain from its production, transformation, trade and consumption. World Cotton Day also served to shed light on the challenges faced by cotton economies around the world because cotton is important to least developed, developing and developed economies worldwide.

Between 2011 and 2018, India implemented a Cotton Technical Assistance Programme (Cotton TAP-I) of about USD 2.85 million for seven African countries namely Benin, Burkina Faso, Mali and Chad and also Uganda, Malawi and Nigeria. The technical assistance focused on improving the competitiveness of the cotton and cotton-based textiles and apparel industry in these countries through a series of interventions which had significant outcomes leading to a demand for a follow on project.

At the Partners Conference in Geneva, Textiles Minister announced that India will launch the second phase of the Cotton Technical Assistance Programme (TAP) for Africa. In the five year long second phase, the programme will be scaled up in size and coverage and will be introduced in five additional countries, namely Mali, Ghana, Togo, Zambia and Tanzania. The Cotton TAP programme will now cover 11 African countries including the C4 (Benin, Burkina Faso, Chad and Mali).

Cotton is a global commodity that is produced all over the world and a single tonne of cotton provides year-round employment for five people on average. Cotton is a drought – resistant crop ideal for arid climates, it occupies just 2.1 % of the world’s arable land, yet it meets 27% of the world’s textiles need. In addition to its fibre used in textiles and apparel, food products are also derived from cotton like edible oil and animal feed from the seed.

Union Minister of Textiles tries her hand at the charkha at a demo during the World Cotton Day in Geneva on October 7, 2019

PROMOTION OF PASHMINA SHAWLS

Government of India has been providing marketing facilities for all handloom products including Pashmina Shawls all across the country under Handloom Marketing Assistance (HMA), a component of National Handloom Development Programme (NHDP). Since 2016-17, a total of 678 Handloom Marketing events/expos have been organized in different states to help weavers from all across the country to sell their products. The above product is also registered as Kashmir Pashmina vide application No.46 under Geographical Indications of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act, 1999.

Government of India has sanctioned 2 Textile Parks in Jammu and Kashmir under Scheme for Integrated Textile Park (SITP). Details are as under:

Sl.

No.

Name of Textile Park

District

GoI Share

J&K Textile Park, Kathua, Jammu

Kathua

39.70

Kashmir Wool & Silk Textile Park, Ghatti, J & K

Kathua

40.00

Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) has published an Indian Standard for identification, marking and labelling of Pashmina products to certify its purity in August this year.

The certification will help curb the adulteration of Pashmina and also protect the interests of local artisans and nomads of Ladakh who are the producers of Pashmina raw material. It will also assure the purity of Pashmina for customers.

The BIS certification of Pashmina will go a long way in discouraging counterfeit or substandard products presently mislabelled and sold as genuine Pashmina in the market.

TECHNICAL TEXTILES INDUSTRY IN INDIA

Technical textiles are material and products manufactured primarily for their technical properties and functional requirements rather than for aesthetic characteristics. The scope of use of technical textiles encompasses a wide range of applications such as; agro-textiles, medical textiles, geo-textiles, protection-textiles, industrial-textiles, sports-textiles and many other usages. Use of technical textiles have benefits of increased productivity in agriculture, horticulture and aquaculture fields; better protection of military, para-military, police and security forces, stronger and sturdier transportation infrastructure for highways, railways, ports and airports and in improving hygiene and healthcare of general public. In India, technical textiles hold immense growth opportunities both for the industry as well as across various applications.

Technical textiles is the harbinger of many new age applications covering almost all walks of life, and having immense potential for bringing in higher level of productivity, efficiency, cost economics; and offering innovative solutions to many engineering and general applications. In addition to their commercial use, technical textiles have been identified for mandatory use across various important missions, programmes and schemes of the Government of India. Some of these are National Health Mission, Jal Jivan Mission, National Horticulture Mission and infrastructure development of highways, railways and ports. In order to boost a rapid growth of the technical textile segment in the country, the government has taken following major initiatives:

207 technical textiles items have been brought under separate head in the Harmonised System of Nomenclature (HSN) code under the Foreign Trade Policy.

With a view to derive the benefits of technical textiles in various fields of applications, currently 92 application areas have been identified for mandatory use across 10 Central Ministries/Departments. Technical textiles has seen an increase in exports by 11% in April – June quarter of 2019.

Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) has developed standards for 348 technical textiles products.

On request from the Industry, Ministry of Textiles has included 6 additional courses for technical textiles in its Skill Development Programme called Samarth.

The work of conducting fresh baseline survey on technical textiles sector has been given to IIT Delhi.

The Ministry has issued Public Procurement (Preference to Make in India) Order dated 23.10.2019, prescribing minimum local purchase content for technical textiles items in 10 segments for government procurement.

In terms of the projections of the last baseline survey on technical textiles submitted in 2015, the market size in India for the year 2017-18 is projected as Rs 1,16,217 crore. Although, there is no projection in the last baseline study with regard to the projections for the 2020-21, taking into account the current trend of growth and various initiatives of the Government, domestic market size of the technical textiles is expected to cross Rs 2 lakh crores by the year 2020-21.

Scheme for Promoting Usage of Agro textiles in North East Region:

The usage of Agro textiles in the North East Region has led to average increase in farmers’ income by 67% to 75%. Increase in intensity of crop cycles by 3 to 4 crops in a year is seen as there is cultivation throughout the year. It has led to reduced water consumption by 30%-45% and has prevented damages to crops due to birds and hailstone.

Scheme for Promoting Usage of Geotechnical Textiles in North East Region:

Use of Geotextiles in infrastructure projects has led to improvement of serviceability of the infrastructure and increased maintenance intervals for infrastructure such as roads and hill slopes.

National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT)

Two new NIFT campuses will be set up at Panchkula (Haryana) and Ranchi (Jharkhand). At present, NIFT has 16 Campuses all over India:

S. No	NIFT Campuses	State
1	Bengaluru	Karnataka
2	Bhopal	Madhya Pradesh
3	Bhubaneswar	Odisha
4	Chennai	Tamil Nadu
5	Gandhinagar	Gujarat
6	Hyderabad	Telangana
7	Jodhpur	Rajasthan
8	Kangra	Himachal Pradesh
9	Kannur	Kerala
10	Kolkata	West Bengal
11	Mumbai	Maharashtra
12	New Delhi	Delhi
13	Patna	Bihar
14	Raebareli	Uttar Pradesh
15	Shillong	Meghalaya
16	Srinagar	Jammu & Kashmir

In view of the recent trends of apparels and costumes, and based on the feasibility study conducted by NIFT, the following Under Graduate Programmes will be introduced by NIFT at its existing two NIFT campuses from academic session 2020-21.

NIFT Shillong

1) Bachelor of Design (Textile Design)

2) Bachelor of Design (Fashion Communication)

NIFT Bhopal

1) Bachelor of Design (Fashion Communication)

2) Bachelor of Design (Fashion Design)

3) Bachelor of Fashion Technology (Apparel Production)

The above programmes will be in addition to the existing programmes already running at these campuses.

INTEGRATED TEXTILE PARKS

The Government is implementing the Scheme for Integrated Textile Park (SITP) which provides support for creation of world-class infrastructure facilities for setting up of textile units, with a Government of India grant up to 40% of the project cost subject to a ceiling of Rs. 40 crore. However, Government of India grant is up to 90% of the project cost for first two projects (each) in Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Tripura, Sikkim, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Jammu & Kashmir with ceiling of Rs. 40 crore for each textile park.

The Scheme is demand driven. A total of 59 textile parks have been sanctioned under SITP by the Ministry of Textiles out of which 22 textile parks have been completed and rest are under various stages of construction. The details are given below:

S.No.	Name of the Park	Location	State
S.No.	Name of the Park	Location	State
1	Islampur Integrated Textile Park	Islampur	Maharashtra
2	Latur Integrated Textile park	Latur	Maharashtra
3	Amitara Green Hi-tech Textile Park	Ahmedabad	Gujarat
4	Karanj Textile Park	Surat	Gujarat
5	Shahlon Textile Park	Surat	Gujarat
6	Palsana Textile Park	Surat	Gujarat
7	Shanti Integrated Textile Park	Surat	Gujarat
8	Satyaraj Integrated Textile Park	Ichalkaranji	Maharashtra
9	Dhule Textile Park	Dhule	Maharashtra
10	Shree Ganesh Integrated Textile Park	Dhule	Maharashtra
11	Aalishan Eco Textile Park	Panipat	Haryana
12	Guntur Textile Park	Guntur	Andhra Pradesh
13	Tarakeaswara Textile Park	Nellore	Andhra Pradesh
14	Brandix India Apparel City Private Limited	Vishakhapatnam	Andhra Pradesh
15	Gujarat Eco Textile Park Limited,	Surat	Gujarat
16	Mundra SEZ Textile & Apparel Park Limited,	Kutch	Gujarat
17	Fairdeal Textile Park Pvt. Ltd.,	Surat	Gujarat
18	Vraj Integrated Textile Park Limited ,	Ahmadabad	Gujarat
19	Sayana Textile Park Ltd.,	Surat	Gujarat
20	Doddabalapur Integrated Textile Park,	Doddabalapur	Karnataka
21	Metro Hi-Tech Cooperative Park Limited,	Icchalkaranji,	Maharashtra
22	Pride India cooperative Textile park Limited,	Icchalkaranji,	Maharashtra
23	Baramati Hi Tech Textile Park Limited,	Baramati,	Maharashtra
24	Purna Global Textiles Park Ltd.	Hingoli	Maharashtra
25	Lotus Integrated Tex Park	Barnala,	Punjab
26	Rhythm Textile & Apparel Park Ltd,	Nawanshehar,	Punjab
27	Ludhiana Integrated Textile Park Ltd,	Ludhiana	Punjab
28	Kishangarh Hi-Tech Textile Weaving Park Limited ,	Kishangarh,	Rajasthan
29	Next Gen Textile Park Pvt Ltd ,	Pali,	Rajasthan
30	Jaipur Integrated Texcraft Park Pvt Ltd,	Jaipur,	Rajasthan
31	Palladam Hi-Tech Weaving park,	Palladam,	Tamilnadu
32	Komarapalayam Hi-Tech Weaving Park Ltd. ,	Komalarapallyam,	Tamilnadu.
33	Karur Integrated Textile Park,	Karur Park	Tamilnadu
34	Madurai Integrated Textile Park Ltd,	Madurai,	Tamilnadu
35	The Great Indian Linen & Textile Infrastructure Company, Uthukuli,	Tirupur District	Tamil Nadu
36	Pochampally Handloom Park Limited,	Bhuvangiri	Telangana
37	White Gold Textile Park,	Rangareddy	Andhra Pradesh
38	Hosiery Park	Howrah	West Bengal
39	Prag Jyoti Textile Park	Darang	Assam
40	Hindupur Vyapar Apparel Park Limited	Ananatpuram	Andhra Pradesh
41	MAS Fabric Park (India Ltd	Nellore	Andhra Pradesh
42	Surat Super Yarn Park Limited,	Surat	Gujarat
43	Kejriwal Integrated Textile Park,	Surat	Gujarat
44	J&K Textile Park,	Kathua	J&K
45	Gulbarga Textile Park,	Gulbarga	Karnataka
46	SIMA Textile Processing Centre,	Cuddalore,	Tamilnadu
47	EIGMEF Apparel Park Ltd.,	Kolkata	West Bengal
48	Asmeeta Infratech Ltd.	Thane	Maharashtra
49	Deesan Infrastructure Pvt. Ltd.	Dhule	Maharashtra
50	RJD Integrated Textile Park Pvt. Ltd.	Surat	Gujarat
51	Kashmir Wool and Silk Textile Park	Ghatti	J&K
52	Farrukhabad Textile Park	Farukkhabad	Uttar Pradesh
53	Eco-Tex Textile Park	Bareily	Uttar Pradesh
54	NSP Infrastruture Pvt. Ltd	Surat	Gujarat
55	Hinganghat Integrated Textile Park	Vidharbha	Maharashtra
56	Pallavada Technical Textiles Park Pvt	Erode	Tamilnadu
57	Himachal Textile Park	Una	Himachal Pradesh
58	Kancheepuram Perarignar Anna Silk Park.	Kanchipuram	Tamilnadu
59	Kalapana Awade Textile Park	Kolhapur	Maharashtra

Two textile parks have been sanctioned in Uttar Pradesh so far, under the Scheme:

Sr. No.	Name of the Park	Location	Year of sanction	GOI grant (in Rs. Crore)	Status
1	Farrukhabad Textile Park	Farrukhabad	2016	40.00	Sanctioned
2	Eco-Tex Textile Park	Bareilly	2015	40.00	Sanctioned

CAPACITY BUILDING IN TEXTILE SECTOR

The Government has approved a skill development scheme titled SAMARTH, a Scheme for Capacity Building in Textile Sector, covering the entire value chain of the textile sector, excluding Spinning and Weaving in the organized sector, on pan India basis, including the state of Tripura, for a period of three years from 2017-18 to 2019-20, with an outlay of Rs.1300 crore to train 10 lakh persons. The salient features of the scheme are:

Training programmes are aligned with the provisions of Common Norms and courses offered under the scheme are National Skills Qualifications Framework (NSQF) compliant.
Web based MIS for ease of implementation and monitoring.

(iii) Physical verification of Training Centres before allocation of training target.
(iv) 70% mandatory placement within 3 months of completion of training for organized sector.

Training by certified Trainers having cleared Training of Trainers (ToT) course.

(vi) Aadhaar Enabled Biometric Attendance System (AEBAS).

CCTV recording of entire training programme and assessment process.
Post Placement tracking.

(ix) Mobile App for different stakeholders for ease of monitoring and implementation.

Preference to be given to marginalized social group and aspirational districts.

(xi) Public grievance redressal mechanism.

Internal Complaints Committee under the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibitions & Redressal) Act, 2013.

The details of State Government agencies allocated skilling targets so far and signed Memorandum of Understanding with Ministry of Textiles for undertaking training programme under Samarth, at a function held on 14th August, 2019 in New Delhi, are given below:

S. No.	Name of Implementing Agency	State
1	Arunachal Pradesh Handloom & Handicrafts Society Lt.	Arunachal Pradesh
2	Indian Institute of Handloom Technology, Kannur	Kerala
3	Handloom & Handicrafts Wing, Directorate of Commerce & Industries	Mizoram
4	Handloom & Textiles	Tamil Nadu
5	Telangana State Textile Complex Cooperative Society	Telangana
6	U P Industrial Cooperative Association Ltd	Uttar Pradesh
7	Khadi Village Industries Board (UPKVIB)	Uttar Pradesh
8	Institute of Entrepreneurship Development, Kanpur	Uttar Pradesh
9	Uttarakhand Skill Development Society, Dehradun	Uttarakhand
10	Director of Handlooms & Textiles-Andhra Pradesh	Andhra Pradesh
11	Assam Skill Development Mission	Assam
12	Handloom Textiles & Sericulture Department	Assam
13	Madhya Pradesh Laghu Udyog Nigam	Madhya Pradesh
14	Directorate of Skill Development	Tripura
15	Karnataka State Textile Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited	Karnataka
16	Department of Textiles, Commerce & Industry, Directorate of Handlooms & Textiles, Government of Manipur	Manipur
17	Directorate of Industries & Commerce	Haryana
18	Directorate of Sericulture & Weaving	Meghalaya
19	Directorate of Handloom, Sericulture & handicraft	Jharkhand
20.	Jammu & Kashmir Entrepreneurship Development Institute*	Jammu & Kashmir*
21.	Institute of Entrepreneurship Development Odisha*	Odisha*

*MoU has not been signed yet.

The Ministry has allocated over 4 lakh skilling targets in organised and traditional sectors to Government agencies in 18 States and skilling targets in traditional sector to Sectoral Organisations of Ministry of Textiles (Central Silk Board, Development Commissioner of Handicrafts, Development Commissioner of Handloom and National Jute Board) for commencing the training programme under the scheme. Process of empanelment and training target allocation to textile industry/industry association has also commenced as per the scheme guidelines.

The details of amount allocated and utilized since the inception of the Samarth scheme are given below:

Year	Fund allocated (Rs. in crore)	Fund utilised (Rs. in crore)
2017-18	100.00	100.00
2018-19	42.00	16.98
2019-20 (as on date)	100.50	17.39
Total	242.50	134.37

A web based centralised Management Information System (MIS) has been operationalized for monitoring of all aspects of the implementation of the training programme under the scheme. All aspects of the training programme viz. proposal for empanelling of implementing partners, training centre verification, trainee enrolment, Aadhaar Enabled Biometric Attendance System, Assessment & Certification, placement & tracking of trainees and payment to implementing partners are interfaced with the web based MIS of Samarth.

Rebate of State and Central Taxes and Levies (RoSCTL)

On 6th March 2019, Cabinet approved a Scheme for Rebate of State and Central Taxes and Levies (RoSCTL) to enhance competitiveness of apparel and made-ups exports. Rebate of Taxes/levies was approved through an IT driven script system at notified rates up to 31.03.2020.

POWERTEX INDIA

Under Powertex India 4797 looms have been upgraded under the in-situ Upgradation Scheme for Plain Powerloom and Rs.44.98 crores have been released. In the Group Workshed Scheme 141 projects have been approved and Rs. 7.64 crores have been released. In the Yarn Bank Scheme 8 projects have been approved and Rs.5.27 crores have been released. 12 Buyers Seller Meet organized at a cost of Rs.1.35 crores. Nineteen Powerloom Service Centres have been set up at a cost of Rs.4.58 crores.

GROWTH OF SILK PRODUCTION

Integrated Scheme for Development of the Silk Industry

For the development of the Indian silk industry patents have been obtained for 5 technology packages, 50 research projects have been concluded and 55 technology packages disseminated. 13885 persons have been trained under various programmes organized by the Research & Training institutes of Central Silk Board (CSB).

The total raw silk production has increased by 11% (35,468 MT) during 2018-19 over the previous year 2017-18 (31,906 MT). The bivoltine raw silk production achieved a record production of 6,987 MT during 2018-19 by registering 18.95% growth over previous year. Raw silk yield per hectare has increased to 105 kg during 2018-19 compared to 96 kg during 2014-15

The Textiles Ministry has taken various steps through the Central Silk Board (CSB) to protect the interest of the silk producers.

CSB through a restructured Central Sector Scheme Silk Samagra and 38 projects under North East Region Textile Promotion Scheme (NERTPS) protects the interests of the farmers by supporting them through beneficiary oriented components like raising of kisan nursery, plantation with improved mulberry varieties, irrigation, chawki rearing centres with incubation facility, construction of rearing houses, rearing equipment and door to door service agents for disinfection. 42,026 beneficiaries have been covered. Mulberry plantation in 32,552 acres have been developed. Raw silk production in the North East region has increased from 4,602 MT in 2013-14 to 7,482 MT 2018-19 with total increase from 17% to 22% of India’s total production. It has generated employment for the tribal communities and also created sustainable livelihood for them. The positive impact of this is reflected in significant increase in Disease Free Layings (dfls) consumption, cocoon production, raw silk production besides increase in income from sericulture and its share in the total annual family income.

Strengthened Research & Development system to improve the levels of cocoon production and productivity to develop improved mulberry/host plant varieties, silkworm hybrids and technology packages to minimize drudgery.

For production of 3A-4A grade raw silk from the bivoltine cocoons, Automatic Reeling Machines (ARM) have been established in the country.

Central Silk Board and State Governments mobilize additional funds for sericulture development through convergence by availing the schemes such as Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana (RKVY) being implemented by various other Ministries of Government of India.

The basic customs duty of 10% & 20% is levied on raw silk and silk fabric import respectively. This makes the domestic silk weaving market segment stronger and also makes Indian silk export sector highly competitive.

The Jute and Jute textile industry:

The jute industry occupies an important place in the economy of India and is one of the major industries in the eastern region, particularly in West Bengal. Jute, the golden fibre, meets all the standards for safe packaging in view of being a natural, renewable, biodegradable and eco-friendly product. It is estimated that the jute industry provides direct employment to 0.37 million workers in organized mill and in diversified units and supports the livelihood of around 4.0 million farm families.

Development of Jute Sector

For the welfare of jute farmers the JUTE – ICARE (Improved Cultivation and Advanced Retting Exercise) has been launched to promote scientific practices related to Jute Cultivation for Quality & Quantity improvements. In order to facilitate modernization and up-gradation of technology in existing/ new jute mills and JDP units an incentive Scheme for Acquisition of Select Machinery (ISAPM) has been launched.

In order to facilitate registered jute exporters for participating in foreign fairs/BSMs and Trade delegations to enhance exports of jute products an Export Market Development Assistance Scheme (EMDA) has been launched. To support jute entrepreneurs to display and promote jute diversified products through retail outlets in Metro cities, State Capitals and tourist places Retail Outlet of Jute Diversified Products and Bulk Supply Scheme has been put in place.

In order to provide assistance to the jute mills by supporting construction cost for toilet blocks for the jute mill workers a Workers’ Welfare Scheme (Sulabh Sauchalaya) has been implemented. Incentives are being given to successful 10th & 12th class girl children of workers of Jute Mills / MSMEs in order to provide education support.

To create new/ skilled work force for production of value added JDPs, to provide self-employment opportunity and facilitate backward and forward linkage to the existing and new entrepreneurs the Jute Integrated Development Scheme (JIDS) has been launched. To supply jute raw materials to MSMEs Units and artisans at mill gate price plus actual transportation cost the Jute Raw Material Bank (JRMB) scheme has been put in place.

In order to promote the Indian Jute Industry, the Government has set up the Indian Jute Industries’ Research Association (IJIRA). A variety of research activities has been undertaken by IJIRA for enabling faster retting of jute plant, softening of hard root cuttings of jute and eco- friendly oil-free processing of jute.

In the field of product development IJIRA has developed light-weight jute bag, Jute Geotextiles for construction of rural roads, Jute-thermoplastic composites and Bio-degradable laminates for jute cloth. IJIRA has also developed high-end products like jute-based air filter media, valuable chemicals from jute stick and process waste and jute-based sanitary napkins. In the field of machinery development, IJIRA has developed high-speed roller drafting machine and Continuous damping-calendaring-cutting machine.

COMPREHENSIVE HANDLOOM DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME

The Comprehensive Handloom Cluster Development Scheme (CHCDS) is targeted at development of Mega Handloom Clusters in clearly identifiable geographical locations covering at least 15000 handlooms with the Government of India contributing up to Rs.40 crore per cluster over a period of 5 years. Components such as conducting diagnostic study and corpus for raw material are fully funded by the Government of India whereas components like lighting units, technological up-gradation of looms and accessories are 90% funded by the Government of India. Other components such as creation of infrastructure for design studio/ marketing complex/garmenting unit, marketing development, assistance for exports and publicity are 80% funded by the Government of India.

Eight Mega Handloom Clusters viz. Varanasi (Uttar Pradesh), Sivasagar (Assam), Virudhunagar (Tamil Nadu), Murshidabad (West Bengal), Prakasam and Guntur districts (Andhra Pradesh), Godda & neighbouring districts (Jharkhand), Bhagalpur (Bihar) and Trichy (Tamil Nadu) have been taken up for development. Under the CHCDS, around 1.75 lakh handloom weavers have been covered for which Rs. 131.91 crore has been released for various interventions during the last four financial years and the current financial year.

Furthermore, under National Handloom Development Programme (NHDP), based on the viable proposals received from the State Governments, 294 Block Level Clusters (BLCs) have been sanctioned in the country covering around 1.6 lakh handloom weavers for which Rs. 165.99 crore has been released for various interventions during the last four financial years and the current financial year.

Under the MUDRA scheme loans were sanctioned to 35952 weavers with a total disbursement of Rs 181.68 crore. 8611 handloom workers have been provided skill upgradation training. 7417 Hathkargha Samvardhan Sahayata (HSS) items have been distributed to 7285 beneficiaries.

Financial Assistance of Rs 38.77 crores has been provided to 34 aspirational districts for handloom development. Hastkala Sahyog Shivirs are being organized throughout the country to spread awareness about various schemes and benefits available to the Artisans and Weavers. In order to enhance the weavers’ income, direct interface of textile companies are being developed with handloom clusters. Producer companies of handloom weavers, societies and SHGs are being formed under the Companies Act.

MODERNIZATION OF HANDLOOMS

In 2018-19, 29.93 lakh bales have been imported and 42.83 lakh bales exported up to 31.01.2019 as per Directorate General of Commercial Intelligence and Statistics (DGCIS), Kolkata. Cotton balance sheet including quantity of import and export as finalized by the Cotton Advisory Board (CAB) for last 3 years are as under:

(Quantity in lakh bales of 170 Kgs)
Crop Year	Opening stock	Production	Import	Consumption	Export	Closing stock
2016-17	36.44	345.00	30.94	310.41	58.21	43.76
2017-18	43.76	370.00	15.80	3019.06	67.59	42.91
2018-19 (P)	42.91	337.00	22.00	311.50	50.00	40.41

Taking into account demand and supply situation in the country, as per above statement, there is sufficient availability of cotton in the country.

Ministry of Textiles has been implementing – (i) Yarn Supply Scheme throughout the country to make available all types of yarn at mill gate price to handloom weavers. The scheme is being implemented through National Handloom Development Corporation. Under the Scheme freight is reimbursed and depot operating charges at 2% is given to depot operating agencies. For Handlooms, a component of 10% price subsidy also exists on hank yarn, which is applicable on cotton, domestic silk, wool and linen yarn with quantity caps.

(ii) In Power loom sector, Yarn Bank Scheme provides interest free corpus fund of up to Rs.2.00 crores to Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV)/ Consortium of Power loom weavers to enable them to purchase yarn at wholesale rate and give the yarn at reasonable price to the small weavers. 89 Yarn banks are in operation on pan India basis involving interest free corpus fund of Rs.26.17 crores of Government of India. There is no scarcity of supply of yarn to the Power loom weavers.

The Government of India, Ministry of Textiles has been implementing Block Level Cluster under National Handloom Development Programme (NHDP) and Comprehensive Handloom Cluster Development Scheme (CHCDS) for providing skill upgradation training in Weaving, Dyeing, Designing. disciplines and also provide upgraded looms/ accessories to handloom weavers to improve quality of fabric and enhance productivity. Total 436 Block Level Clusters have been sanctioned from 2015-16 to 2019-20 (till 18.11.2019) under NHDP/CHCDS covering 303366 beneficiaries across the country out of this, 52 BLCs have been sanctioned to Tamil Nadu covering 58268 beneficiaries.

For welfare of the handloom weavers, life & accident insurance coverage is provided to handloom weavers/ workers enrolled under the Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana (PMJJBY), Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana (PMSBY) and converged Mahatma Gandhi Bunkar Bima Yojana (MGBBY) across the country. The details of benefits and total annual premium, share i.e. Government of India, LIC and Weavers/ Workers under PMJJBY/ PMSBY & converged MGGBY under Handloom Weavers Comprehensive Welfare Scheme is as under:

Scheme components	Age group	Insurance coverage	Benefits (in Rs.)	Annual premium
Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana (PMJJBY)	18- 50 years	Natural Death	2,00,000	Rs.330/- GoI share – Rs.150/- LIC share – Rs.100/- Weaver/worker – Rs.80/-
Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana (PMJJBY)	18- 50 years	Accidental Death	2,00,000
Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana (PMSBY)	18- 50 years	Accidental Death	2,00,000	Rs.12/- entirely borne by Government of India (GoI)
		Total Disability	2,00,000
		Partial Disability	1,00,000
Mahatma Gandhi Bunkar Bima Yojana (MGBBY)	51- 59 years	Natural Death	60,000	Rs.470/- GoI share – Rs.290/- LIC share – Rs.100/- Weaver/worker – Rs.80/-
		Accidental Death	1,50,000
		Total Disability	1,50,000
		Partial Disability	75,000

Ministry of Textiles has signed Memorandums of Understanding with Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) and National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS) to secure educational facilities for the weavers and their families. NIOS offers Secondary and Senior Secondary level education with specialized subjects on design, marketing, business development, etc. through distance learning mode for handloom weavers, whereas IGNOU offers continuing education programs through accessible and flexible learning opportunities relevant to the aspirations of handloom weavers and their children for career progression. Ministry of Textiles is providing reimbursement of 75% of the fee towards admission to NIOS/IGNOU courses in case of SC, ST, BPL, and Women learners belonging to handloom weavers’ families.

UPLIFTMENT OF HANDICRAFTS

For the upliftment of the handicrafts sector financial assistance is provided to handicrafts artisans under Direct Benefit to Artisans under following schemes of Office of the Development Commissioner (Handicrafts), Ministry of Textiles:

(i) Mudra Loan with Interest Subvention & Margin Money for Handicrafts Artisans:

Under Mudra Loan assistance is provided to artisans/weavers with Interest subvention of 6 % for a period of 3 years to a maximum limit of Rs.100000 to meet their credit requirements. Further to encourage the artisans to avail the facility of MUDRA loan, 20% of loan amount is also being provided as margin money in their loan amount not exceeding Rs. 10,000. Handicrafts Service Centers are facilitating artisans in availing the credit facility by mobilizing them, creating awareness and submitting applications to the Banks.

(ii) Support to Artisans in Indigent Circumstances (Pension Scheme):

This scheme provides financial assistance to artisans who are the recipient of Shilp Guru Award/ National Award/ Nation Merit Certificate holders/ State Award in handicrafts and are not less than 60 years of age having annual income less then Rs. 50,000. Financial assistance of Rs. 3,500 per month is given to Master Craftsperson in indigent circumstances.

(iii) Insurance Scheme for Handicrafts Artisans:

Handicrafts artisans /workers in the age group of 18-50 years are being provided life, accident and disability cover under the PMJJBY and PMSBY. Handicrafts artisans /workers in the age group of 5l-59 years already enrolled under the Aam Admi Bima Yojana (AABY) are covered under the Converged Modified Aam Admi Bima Yojana (Converged AABY).

(iv) MoU with NIOS and IGNOU:

MoUs have been signed between Ministry of Textiles and National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS). Another MoU has been signed between Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) and the Office of the Development Commissioner (Handicrafts) for collaboration in the area of education for handicrafts artisans and their children wherein reimbursement of 75% of the fee for SC/ST/BPL and the women artisans is being made. In the MoU there is provision for designing courses exclusively for the handicrafts artisans and their children. Accordingly, NIOS has been sanctioned 15 training programme in Zari Zardozi craft in the Varanasi region under the component of Training through Established Institutions of Human Resource Development Scheme. So far, 99 Scheduled Caste artisans have completed training and are practicing the craft at present with enhanced earning.

The Ministry of Textiles implements various schemes for promotion and development of handicrafts sector under National Handicrafts Development Programme (NHDP) and Comprehensive Handicrafts Cluster Development Scheme (CHCDS).

The NHDP has following components:

Base Line Survey & Mobilization of Artisans under Ambedkar Hastshilp Vikas Yojana,
Design & Technology Up gradation,
Human Resource Development,
Direct Benefit to Artisans,
Infrastructure and Technology Support,
Research and Development,
Marketing Support & Services.

The CHCDS has following components:

Mega Cluster
Special projects under Integrated Development and Promotion of Handicrafts (IDPH).

The Government has taken initiative to implement cluster development project under Ambedkar Hastshilp Vikas Yojna (AHVY) for the overall development of artisans in Uttar Pradesh. 62 clusters have been sanctioned during last three years in Uttar Pradesh where 31000 artisans have benefitted. The Government has taken initiative under CHCDS, whereas 4 handicrafts mega cluster at Mirzapur -Bhadhoi, Moradabad, Bareilly & Lucknow in Uttar Pradesh have been sanctioned. Twenty-one New Block Level Clusters have been sanctioned.

Under PAHCHAN initiative, 23.68 lakh artisans have been provided Identity Cards up to March 31st 2019. 50000 new artisans will be enrolled under PAHCHAN initiative. 309 Handicrafts training programmes have been proposed under HRD scheme to benefit 7600 artisans directly.

In order to promote India’s handicrafts 5754 Improved tool kits have been distributed and 2000 Toolkits will be distributed under Design and Technical Upgradation scheme. 327 Handicrafts Training programmes have been organised to benefit 6720 artisans directly.

63 Domestic and 54 International Marketing events have been organized to benefit 12075 artisans directly. 190 Domestic and 80 International Marketing events have been proposed in the year 2019-20.

***

MM/ SB

Year End Review 2019 – Ministry of Textiles

Union Minister of Textiles tries her hand at the charkha at a demo during the World Cotton Day in Geneva on October 7, 2019

PROMOTION OF PASHMINA SHAWLS

Government of India has sanctioned 2 Textile Parks in Jammu and Kashmir under Scheme for Integrated Textile Park (SITP). Details are as under:

Sl.

No.

Name of Textile Park

District

GoI Share

J&K Textile Park, Kathua, Jammu

Kathua

39.70

Kashmir Wool & Silk Textile Park, Ghatti, J & K

Kathua

40.00

Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) has published an Indian Standard for identification, marking and labelling of Pashmina products to certify its purity in August this year.

The BIS certification of Pashmina will go a long way in discouraging counterfeit or substandard products presently mislabelled and sold as genuine Pashmina in the market.

TECHNICAL TEXTILES INDUSTRY IN INDIA

207 technical textiles items have been brought under separate head in the Harmonised System of Nomenclature (HSN) code under the Foreign Trade Policy.

Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) has developed standards for 348 technical textiles products.

On request from the Industry, Ministry of Textiles has included 6 additional courses for technical textiles in its Skill Development Programme called Samarth.

The work of conducting fresh baseline survey on technical textiles sector has been given to IIT Delhi.

Scheme for Promoting Usage of Agro textiles in North East Region:

Scheme for Promoting Usage of Geotechnical Textiles in North East Region:

Use of Geotextiles in infrastructure projects has led to improvement of serviceability of the infrastructure and increased maintenance intervals for infrastructure such as roads and hill slopes.

National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT)

Two new NIFT campuses will be set up at Panchkula (Haryana) and Ranchi (Jharkhand). At present, NIFT has 16 Campuses all over India:

S. No	NIFT Campuses	State
1	Bengaluru	Karnataka
2	Bhopal	Madhya Pradesh
3	Bhubaneswar	Odisha
4	Chennai	Tamil Nadu
5	Gandhinagar	Gujarat
6	Hyderabad	Telangana
7	Jodhpur	Rajasthan
8	Kangra	Himachal Pradesh
9	Kannur	Kerala
10	Kolkata	West Bengal
11	Mumbai	Maharashtra
12	New Delhi	Delhi
13	Patna	Bihar
14	Raebareli	Uttar Pradesh
15	Shillong	Meghalaya
16	Srinagar	Jammu & Kashmir

NIFT Shillong

1) Bachelor of Design (Textile Design)

2) Bachelor of Design (Fashion Communication)

NIFT Bhopal

1) Bachelor of Design (Fashion Communication)

2) Bachelor of Design (Fashion Design)

3) Bachelor of Fashion Technology (Apparel Production)

The above programmes will be in addition to the existing programmes already running at these campuses.

INTEGRATED TEXTILE PARKS

S.No.	Name of the Park	Location	State
S.No.	Name of the Park	Location	State
1	Islampur Integrated Textile Park	Islampur	Maharashtra
2	Latur Integrated Textile park	Latur	Maharashtra
3	Amitara Green Hi-tech Textile Park	Ahmedabad	Gujarat
4	Karanj Textile Park	Surat	Gujarat
5	Shahlon Textile Park	Surat	Gujarat
6	Palsana Textile Park	Surat	Gujarat
7	Shanti Integrated Textile Park	Surat	Gujarat
8	Satyaraj Integrated Textile Park	Ichalkaranji	Maharashtra
9	Dhule Textile Park	Dhule	Maharashtra
10	Shree Ganesh Integrated Textile Park	Dhule	Maharashtra
11	Aalishan Eco Textile Park	Panipat	Haryana
12	Guntur Textile Park	Guntur	Andhra Pradesh
13	Tarakeaswara Textile Park	Nellore	Andhra Pradesh
14	Brandix India Apparel City Private Limited	Vishakhapatnam	Andhra Pradesh
15	Gujarat Eco Textile Park Limited,	Surat	Gujarat
16	Mundra SEZ Textile & Apparel Park Limited,	Kutch	Gujarat
17	Fairdeal Textile Park Pvt. Ltd.,	Surat	Gujarat
18	Vraj Integrated Textile Park Limited ,	Ahmadabad	Gujarat
19	Sayana Textile Park Ltd.,	Surat	Gujarat
20	Doddabalapur Integrated Textile Park,	Doddabalapur	Karnataka
21	Metro Hi-Tech Cooperative Park Limited,	Icchalkaranji,	Maharashtra
22	Pride India cooperative Textile park Limited,	Icchalkaranji,	Maharashtra
23	Baramati Hi Tech Textile Park Limited,	Baramati,	Maharashtra
24	Purna Global Textiles Park Ltd.	Hingoli	Maharashtra
25	Lotus Integrated Tex Park	Barnala,	Punjab
26	Rhythm Textile & Apparel Park Ltd,	Nawanshehar,	Punjab
27	Ludhiana Integrated Textile Park Ltd,	Ludhiana	Punjab
28	Kishangarh Hi-Tech Textile Weaving Park Limited ,	Kishangarh,	Rajasthan
29	Next Gen Textile Park Pvt Ltd ,	Pali,	Rajasthan
30	Jaipur Integrated Texcraft Park Pvt Ltd,	Jaipur,	Rajasthan
31	Palladam Hi-Tech Weaving park,	Palladam,	Tamilnadu
32	Komarapalayam Hi-Tech Weaving Park Ltd. ,	Komalarapallyam,	Tamilnadu.
33	Karur Integrated Textile Park,	Karur Park	Tamilnadu
34	Madurai Integrated Textile Park Ltd,	Madurai,	Tamilnadu
35	The Great Indian Linen & Textile Infrastructure Company, Uthukuli,	Tirupur District	Tamil Nadu
36	Pochampally Handloom Park Limited,	Bhuvangiri	Telangana
37	White Gold Textile Park,	Rangareddy	Andhra Pradesh
38	Hosiery Park	Howrah	West Bengal
39	Prag Jyoti Textile Park	Darang	Assam
40	Hindupur Vyapar Apparel Park Limited	Ananatpuram	Andhra Pradesh
41	MAS Fabric Park (India Ltd	Nellore	Andhra Pradesh
42	Surat Super Yarn Park Limited,	Surat	Gujarat
43	Kejriwal Integrated Textile Park,	Surat	Gujarat
44	J&K Textile Park,	Kathua	J&K
45	Gulbarga Textile Park,	Gulbarga	Karnataka
46	SIMA Textile Processing Centre,	Cuddalore,	Tamilnadu
47	EIGMEF Apparel Park Ltd.,	Kolkata	West Bengal
48	Asmeeta Infratech Ltd.	Thane	Maharashtra
49	Deesan Infrastructure Pvt. Ltd.	Dhule	Maharashtra
50	RJD Integrated Textile Park Pvt. Ltd.	Surat	Gujarat
51	Kashmir Wool and Silk Textile Park	Ghatti	J&K
52	Farrukhabad Textile Park	Farukkhabad	Uttar Pradesh
53	Eco-Tex Textile Park	Bareily	Uttar Pradesh
54	NSP Infrastruture Pvt. Ltd	Surat	Gujarat
55	Hinganghat Integrated Textile Park	Vidharbha	Maharashtra
56	Pallavada Technical Textiles Park Pvt	Erode	Tamilnadu
57	Himachal Textile Park	Una	Himachal Pradesh
58	Kancheepuram Perarignar Anna Silk Park.	Kanchipuram	Tamilnadu
59	Kalapana Awade Textile Park	Kolhapur	Maharashtra

Two textile parks have been sanctioned in Uttar Pradesh so far, under the Scheme:

Sr. No.	Name of the Park	Location	Year of sanction	GOI grant (in Rs. Crore)	Status
1	Farrukhabad Textile Park	Farrukhabad	2016	40.00	Sanctioned
2	Eco-Tex Textile Park	Bareilly	2015	40.00	Sanctioned

CAPACITY BUILDING IN TEXTILE SECTOR

Training programmes are aligned with the provisions of Common Norms and courses offered under the scheme are National Skills Qualifications Framework (NSQF) compliant.
Web based MIS for ease of implementation and monitoring.

(iii) Physical verification of Training Centres before allocation of training target.
(iv) 70% mandatory placement within 3 months of completion of training for organized sector.

Training by certified Trainers having cleared Training of Trainers (ToT) course.

(vi) Aadhaar Enabled Biometric Attendance System (AEBAS).

CCTV recording of entire training programme and assessment process.
Post Placement tracking.

(ix) Mobile App for different stakeholders for ease of monitoring and implementation.

Preference to be given to marginalized social group and aspirational districts.

(xi) Public grievance redressal mechanism.

Internal Complaints Committee under the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibitions & Redressal) Act, 2013.

S. No.	Name of Implementing Agency	State
1	Arunachal Pradesh Handloom & Handicrafts Society Lt.	Arunachal Pradesh
2	Indian Institute of Handloom Technology, Kannur	Kerala
3	Handloom & Handicrafts Wing, Directorate of Commerce & Industries	Mizoram
4	Handloom & Textiles	Tamil Nadu
5	Telangana State Textile Complex Cooperative Society	Telangana
6	U P Industrial Cooperative Association Ltd	Uttar Pradesh
7	Khadi Village Industries Board (UPKVIB)	Uttar Pradesh
8	Institute of Entrepreneurship Development, Kanpur	Uttar Pradesh
9	Uttarakhand Skill Development Society, Dehradun	Uttarakhand
10	Director of Handlooms & Textiles-Andhra Pradesh	Andhra Pradesh
11	Assam Skill Development Mission	Assam
12	Handloom Textiles & Sericulture Department	Assam
13	Madhya Pradesh Laghu Udyog Nigam	Madhya Pradesh
14	Directorate of Skill Development	Tripura
15	Karnataka State Textile Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited	Karnataka
16	Department of Textiles, Commerce & Industry, Directorate of Handlooms & Textiles, Government of Manipur	Manipur
17	Directorate of Industries & Commerce	Haryana
18	Directorate of Sericulture & Weaving	Meghalaya
19	Directorate of Handloom, Sericulture & handicraft	Jharkhand
20.	Jammu & Kashmir Entrepreneurship Development Institute*	Jammu & Kashmir*
21.	Institute of Entrepreneurship Development Odisha*	Odisha*

*MoU has not been signed yet.

The details of amount allocated and utilized since the inception of the Samarth scheme are given below:

Year	Fund allocated (Rs. in crore)	Fund utilised (Rs. in crore)
2017-18	100.00	100.00
2018-19	42.00	16.98
2019-20 (as on date)	100.50	17.39
Total	242.50	134.37

Rebate of State and Central Taxes and Levies (RoSCTL)

POWERTEX INDIA

GROWTH OF SILK PRODUCTION

Integrated Scheme for Development of the Silk Industry

The Textiles Ministry has taken various steps through the Central Silk Board (CSB) to protect the interest of the silk producers.

For production of 3A-4A grade raw silk from the bivoltine cocoons, Automatic Reeling Machines (ARM) have been established in the country.

The Jute and Jute textile industry:

Development of Jute Sector

COMPREHENSIVE HANDLOOM DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME

MODERNIZATION OF HANDLOOMS

(Quantity in lakh bales of 170 Kgs)
Crop Year	Opening stock	Production	Import	Consumption	Export	Closing stock
2016-17	36.44	345.00	30.94	310.41	58.21	43.76
2017-18	43.76	370.00	15.80	3019.06	67.59	42.91
2018-19 (P)	42.91	337.00	22.00	311.50	50.00	40.41

Taking into account demand and supply situation in the country, as per above statement, there is sufficient availability of cotton in the country.

Scheme components	Age group	Insurance coverage	Benefits (in Rs.)	Annual premium
Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana (PMJJBY)	18- 50 years	Natural Death	2,00,000	Rs.330/- GoI share – Rs.150/- LIC share – Rs.100/- Weaver/worker – Rs.80/-
Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana (PMJJBY)	18- 50 years	Accidental Death	2,00,000
Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana (PMSBY)	18- 50 years	Accidental Death	2,00,000	Rs.12/- entirely borne by Government of India (GoI)
		Total Disability	2,00,000
		Partial Disability	1,00,000
Mahatma Gandhi Bunkar Bima Yojana (MGBBY)	51- 59 years	Natural Death	60,000	Rs.470/- GoI share – Rs.290/- LIC share – Rs.100/- Weaver/worker – Rs.80/-
		Accidental Death	1,50,000
		Total Disability	1,50,000
		Partial Disability	75,000

UPLIFTMENT OF HANDICRAFTS

(i) Mudra Loan with Interest Subvention & Margin Money for Handicrafts Artisans:

(ii) Support to Artisans in Indigent Circumstances (Pension Scheme):

(iii) Insurance Scheme for Handicrafts Artisans:

(iv) MoU with NIOS and IGNOU:

The NHDP has following components:

Base Line Survey & Mobilization of Artisans under Ambedkar Hastshilp Vikas Yojana,
Design & Technology Up gradation,
Human Resource Development,
Direct Benefit to Artisans,
Infrastructure and Technology Support,
Research and Development,
Marketing Support & Services.

The CHCDS has following components:

Mega Cluster
Special projects under Integrated Development and Promotion of Handicrafts (IDPH).

63 Domestic and 54 International Marketing events have been organized to benefit 12075 artisans directly. 190 Domestic and 80 International Marketing events have been proposed in the year 2019-20.

***

First Trial Run of Double Stack Train conducted on newly built Rewari-Madar section of Western Dedicated Freight Corridor (WDFC)

An inaugural Trial-Run of Indian Railways (IR) freight train on the newly built Rewari-Madar section of Western Dedicated Freight Corridor (WDFC), covering a distance of about 306 kms (Total 663 track Km) was conducted today (i.e. 27.12.2019). The trial run was flagged off from New Kishangarh Station by Station Sr. Executive Sh. Ravindra Sharma in the presence of Sh. Anurag Sachan, Managing Director, Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation India Limited (DFCCIL).

The Rewari-Madar section is in Haryana State (for approximately 79 Km in Mahendragarh & Rewari districts) and Rajasthan State (for approximately 227 Km in Jaipur, Ajmer, Sikar, Nagaur & Alwar districts). This section contains 16 major bridges and viaduct (1 viaduct & 15 major bridges), 270 minor bridges, 4 Rail Fly Overs, 19 Road Over Bridges (11 completed and 8 under construction) & 178 Road Under Bridges eliminating 148 Level crossings. There are 9 newly built DFC stations in this section, six crossing stations (i.e. New Dabla, New Bhagega, New Sri Madhopur, New Pachar Malikpur, New Sakun and New Kishangarh) and three junction stations (i.e. New Rewari, New Ateli and New Phulera).

DFCCIL will run freight trains at the maximum speed of 100 Kmph hour as against the current maximum speed of 75 kmph on Indian Railway tracks whereas the average speed of freight trains will also be increased from existing speed of 26 kmph on Indian Railways lines to 70 kmph on Dedicated Freight Corridors (DFC).

Cost

Total cost of works on this section is Rs. 3918 Crore, excluding land.

Industrial Areas likely to benefit

The opening of this stretch will benefit various industries in Rewari – Manesar, Narnaul, Phulera & Kishangarh areas of Rajasthan & Haryana. In addition to this, the container depot of CONCOR at Kathwas will also come on DFC map and get advantage in terms of faster throughput.

Highpoints

Heavy haul train operation with 32.5 Ton axle load has been envisaged for the first time in India (currently practiced only in USA, Canada, Brazil, Australia, China, Russia South-Africa and Sweden-Norway)
Double stack containers
Double line electric (2 X 25 KV) track to undertake higher haulage at higher speeds
Automated New Track Construction (NTC) machine with record single day track laying of more than 3 km.
More Powerful Locomotives 7000 kW (9000 HP) CO-CO 6 axles
High rise Over Head Equipment (OHE) of 7.4 meter height (existing IR OHE 5.5 m) for double stack container movement on flat wagons
Train Protection and Warning System (TPWS) for safe and efficient operation
Elimination of road crossing
Connecting Multi Modal Logistic Hubs and Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor
Water Conservation through Rainwater harvesting in all the stations and RUBs (road under bridge)
Reduced Energy Consumption using latest technology
Recycling and Re-use – Construction materials and Waste management
Green Initiatives – developed as “Low Carbon & Energy Efficient Green Transportation” with reduce GHG emissions w.r.t. freight transportation by existing rail and road system
Exclusive operation for freight trains.

After having successfully run Track Recording Car of RDSO on 20th and 22nd October 2019 and Oscillation trials of BOXNS Wagons at 110 Kmph, trial runs are being conducted on the DFCCIL tracks. These wagons have a Tare weight i.e. own weight of 19.85 ton and a carrying capacity of 80.15 ton. These wagons have 14% more weight carrying capacity than the wagons being currently used on Indian Railways. The DFCCIL infrastructure is well placed to utilise the carrying capacity of these wagons. Currently, Indian Railways freight trains can carry 61 -71 ton weight per wagon at an approximate speed of 60 kmph. The newer, advanced wagons can carry weights upto 81 ton per wagon at an approximate speed of 100 kmph. The newer wagons are safer and modern too.

Trial runs of BLCS-A and BLCS-B wagon prototype have also ensued. These wagons have enhanced axle load of 25 ton and been designed for DFCCIL by RDSO’s wagon department. The design will maximize capacity utilization and uniform distributed and point loading. These wagons on a long-haul double stack container train on the WDFC can carry 4 times in terms of container units compared to the current traffic on Indian Railways.

BPCL LPG Bottling Plant at Balangir Dedicated to the Nation

The BPCL LPG Bottling plant at Balangir, Odisha was dedicated to the nation today by Prof Ganeshi Lal, Governor, Odisha in the presence of Shri Dharmendra Pradhan, Union Minister for Petroleum & Natural Gas and Steel. Shri. Arun Kumar Sahoo, Minister for Agriculture & Farmers Empowerment, Govt. Of Odisha, Smt.Sangeeta Kumari Singh Deo, Member of Parliament, Balangir &Shri Narasingha Mishra, Member of Legislative Assembly, Balangir and dignitaries from the state and officials of BPCL were also present.

Initially, the BPCL LPG plant was to be dedicated to the nation by Shri. M. Venkiah Naidu, Hon’ble Vice President of India. He had come upto Raipur but could not make it to Balangir due to bad weather conditions today. In his audio messagewhich was played, the Hon’ble Vice President complimented Bharat Petrolum for completing the state-of-the-art LPG plant at Balangir within record 19 months, three months ahead of schedule. With the commissioning of the LPG Plant at Balangir, he said, people of the region would be supplied with hassle-free cylinders from now.

The foundation stone of Balangir LPG Bottling Plant was laid on 21^st May 2018 by Shri. Dharmendra Pradhan, the then Union Minister for Petroleum & Natural Gas &Skill Development, Mr. Thaawar Chand Gehlot, Union Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment, Govt. of India and Mr. K. V. Singh Deo, MLA, Patnagarh.This plant has been completed in a record 19 months period, at a total project cost of Rs. 103 Crores.

Addressing the gathering, Shri. Dharmendra Pradhan said that there were only 13.20 crore LPG consumers in the countrytill 2014, and now the number has crossed 27 crores and in Odisha it has crossed 80 lakhs. This new plant will benefit 14 districtsin the western part of the state. More than 150 trucks will be engaged in supply of LPG cylinders to different parts of the region, generatingmore than 500 direct and indirect employment. He further said that this plant will bring economic prosperity to the region.He further thanked Prime Minister Shri. Narendra Modi for his special focus on the development of Balangir which is also an aspirational district.

Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL), a Maharatna PSU under the Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas,has set up thisnew LPG Bottling Plant at Village Barkani,District Balangir in Odisha State. BPCL is already having a LPG Bottling Plant at Khurda in the State of Odisha. The Oil Marketing Companies are having LPG Bottling Plants at Balasore, Jharsuguda, Khurda and Jatni. In addition to thisLPG Bottling Plant at Balangir, Oil Marketing Companies have plans to set up new plants at Khurda and Rayagada. Odisha will have a total of 7 LPG Bottling Plants once all the new plants are completed. The bottling capacity of these 7 bottling plants will be 4.06 crores cylinders per annum.

YB/SK

MoS (PP) DR Jitendra Singh chairs review meeting of Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions

In total, 75 Central Ministries/Departments are actively using the e-Office platform, with Ministry of AYUSH being the recent Ministry to go live on the e-Office platform. Out of them, 57 Ministries/Departments have achieved the desired target of 80% on e-Office platform, with Department of Animal Husbandry, Dairying & Fisheries being the latest to have achieved this. This was informed during a review meeting of Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions, chaired by MoS (PP) Dr Jitendra Singh here today. The Secretary (DoPT and DARPG) Dr C. Chandramouli and senior officers of the Department of Personnel & Training (DoPT), Department of Administrative Reforms & Public Grievances (DARPG) and Department of Pension and Pensioners Welfare were also present during the meeting. He said that this is a step towards Digital Secretariat.

The Minister also appealed to the State Governments to expedite the implementation of e-Office in their respective States/UTs. He said that the Government has offered State Governments all guidance in implementation of e-Office, the latest being the newly created UTs of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh.

During the meeting, various issues were discussed, which included Vision Document of the Ministry, 100-day agenda of the departments, vacancy position in the departments, grievance redressal status, training programmes under National Centre for Good Governance (NCGG), status of e-Office implementation by Central Ministries/Departments, e-HRMS, web portals, dashboards, among others.

Among other activities, it was mentioned that the DARPG has organised Regional Conference on the theme ‘Improving Public Services Delivery – Role of Governments’ in collaboration with the Government of Maharashtra on 21-22 December, 2019 at Nagpur, Maharashtra. The Ministry has also launched the Good Governance Index (GGI) and the 15^th edition of Central Secretariat Manual of Office Procedure (CSMOP) on Good Governance Day i.e 25^th December, 2019. Besides, the workshops and Pension Adalat to be organised in future were also discussed.

During the meeting, various initiatives of the Ministry towards digitisation and e-governance were discussed. These included: e-service books, e-HRMS, e-Civil List, Pensions Portal and RTI Portal, among others.

2019 Year End Review: Ministry of I&B

The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting is regarded as one of the key Ministries that is entrusted with the task of disseminating information about government policies, schemes and programmes through the different mediums of communication.

The Ministry took a series of initiatives in the year 2019 to inform the public in a seamless, transparent and accurate manner of all important activities undertaken by the Government.

Information Sector

· World Book Fair at New Delhi from 5th to 13th January, 2019. Discussion on ‘Children’s Literature and Young Readers Trapped in Electronic Gadgets’ organized by Publications Division at World Book Fair. Publications Division also released ten books during the event – Saral Panchatantra Part I; Children’s Vivekananda; Children’s Mahabharat in English; Shekhawati ki Lok Sanskriti; Hamare Samay me Upanishad; Haar Ki Khushi; Maa Ka Janamdin; Bapu ki Vani; Ved Gatha; and Bal Mahabharat in Hindi.

· India Pavilion at London Book Fair, 12^th to 14^th March. 2019. The India Pavilion laid special focus on 150^th Birth Anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi and displayed the digital version of the Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi, apart from various other titles on Culture, History and Folklore of India.

· Reference Annuals ‘Bharat 2019’ and ‘India 2019’ released- the flagship publications brought out by Publications Division.

· Photo Exhibition to commemorate Centenary of Jallianwala Bagh incident in Amritsar by Regional Outreach Bureau organized in April 2019, titled Photo Exhibition on Freedom Struggle.

· Several e-projects of Publications Division launched, including its redesigned dynamic website, mobile app “Digital DPD”, e-version of Rozgaar Samachar and e-book “Satyagrah Geeta”.

· E-version of Rozgar Samachar launched with a view to make aspirants aware of job opportunities in government sector including public sector enterprises.

· ‘Jaldoot’ a travelling exhibition on Jalshakti Abhiyan arranged by Regional Outreach Bureau, Pune. The exhibition consisted of various information display panels and Audio-Visual components to create awareness about bold initiatives and decisive actions taken by the government.

· Second Volume of ‘Loktantra Ke Swar’ and ‘The Republican Ethic’ released– Compilation of selected speeches of President of India, brought out by Directorate of Publications Division.

Broadcast Sector

· Travelogue program “Rag Rag Mein Ganga” and quiz show “Meri Ganga” on Doordarshan launched. The travelogue series “Rag Rag Mein Ganga” has been made by Doordarshan in collaboration with National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG). The show relays the message of the need of rejuvenating River Ganga while also informing about the efforts of the Government to clean Ganga – presented in a unique and interesting format. The quiz show ‘Meri Ganga’ has also been made by DD in collaboration with NMCG in an attempt to cover school children from all zones of the country and trigger curiosity in them to feel closer to the cause of cleaning Ganga.

· Private FM Radio broadcasters permitted to broadcast All India Radio (AIR) News bulletins, in English/Hindi as per list of bulletins given in News Schedule, subject to certain terms and conditions.

· Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi launched DD Arunprabha, a dedicated 24×7 Doordarshan satellite channel for Arunachal Pradesh on 9^th February, 2019.

· 11 more State DD Channels brought on the Satellite footprint of India through DD Free Dish. It is for the first time that the States of Chhattisgarh, Goa, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Tripura and Uttarakhand have got their own DD Channel on a Satellite Network through DD Free Dish.

· Doordarshan’s Free Dish Set Top Boxes in Jammu and Kashmir distributed, besides launching half an hour Dogri programme and News Bulletin from DD Kashir and the signature tune of the channel, in an effort to reach out to the public in border areas to disseminate the message of Information, Education and Entertainment.

· Ministry aims to establish Community Radio Stations in every district of the Country, as announced at the 7th National Community Radio Sammelan in August 2019, as development of a vibrant culture of Community Radio will help in greater information dissemination at the grassroot level, which will result in further empowerment of people.

· Accessibility Standards for Persons with Disabilities in TV programmes implemented. In a significant beginning from this year’s Independence Day, Private Satellite News TV channels telecast programme on Independence Day Celebrations with sign language interpretation.

· Patriotic song “Watan” produced by Doordarshan to mark the occasion of Independence Day released. The song pays tribute to New India. It highlights several path breaking initiatives of the government including the determination and vision behind the successful launch of “Chandrayaan 2”. The song also pays tribute to the bravery and valour of our armed forces and the martyrs of the country.

Films Sector

· Facilitate in organization of 2nd Jharkhand International Film Festival in Ranchi, Jharkhand from 1st to 3rd February, 2019. The objective of promoting the Festival is to encourage states that have showcased potential of promoting cinema.

· Indian Panorama Film Festival organized by Directorate of Film Festivals at New Delhi. Festivals like this helps viewer’s rise above the barrier of language and understand each other’s culture better while also facilitating people to people contact from different cities.

· India Pavilion at the 69th Berlin International Film Festival acted as a platform to popularize Indian Cinema in overseas market and facilitate new business opportunities.

· India Pavilion at Abu Dhabi International Book Fair 2019, wherein India was designated as the Guest of Honour for the Book Fair, which was held from 24^th – 30^th April, 2019.

· India Pavilion organized at Cannes Film Festival 2019, to showcase Indian cinema across linguistic, cultural and regional diversity, with the aim of forging international partnerships in distribution, production, filming in India, script development, technology, promoting film sales and syndication. India Pavilion was also set at ‘Toronto International Film Festival’ (Sept. 2019).

· 50th International Film Festival of India organized in Goa. Russia was the focus country during the festival. The great doyen of Indian cinema Shri Amitabh Bachchan and the ‘Thalaiva’ of Indian film industry Shri Rajinikanth flagged off the extravaganza and announced the festival open. Shri Rajinikanth was conferred the ‘Icon Of Golden Jubilee Award’ for his outstanding contribution to Indian cinema, a first time award beginning with the 50th edition. One of French cinema’s defining faces actress Ms. Isabelle Anne Madeleine Huppert was conferred with the Lifetime Achievement Award. The festival opened with the Italian film ‘Despite the Fog’ directed by Goran Paskaljevic. ‘Particles’ directed by Blaise Harrison and produced by Estelle Fialon won the coveted Golden Peacock Award. Lijo Jose Pellissery conferred Best Director Award for ‘Jallikattu’; Seu Jorge was declared Best Actor (Male) Award and Usha Jadhav got Best Actor (Female) Award.

· 66^th National Film Awards. The Vice President of India, Shri M Venkaiah Naidu conferred National Film Awards for the year 2018in various categories at its 66^th edition, held at New Delhi. Union Minister for Information & Broadcasting (I&B), Shri Prakash Javadekar; Secretary, Ministry of I&B, Shri Ravi Mittal were amongst other dignitaries present on the occasion. Some of the prominent winners in various categories for this year National Film Awards includes Gujarati film Hellaroin Best Feature Film category. BadhaaiHo bagged the award for Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment, Hindi movie Padmanwas awarded Best Film on Social Issues, Aditya Dhar won Best Director Award for Uri: The Surgical Strike, AyushmanKhurana and Vicky Kaushal jointly won Best Actor Award for their performances in Andhadhun and Uri: The Surgical Strike, whileKeerthy Suresh bagged Best Actress trophy for her performance in Telugu movie Mahanati. Marathi movie Naal got the Indira Gandhi Award for Best Debut Film of a Director while another Marathi movie Paani won the award for Best Film on Environment Conservation/ Preservation. NargisDutt Award for Best Feature Film on National Integration was given to Kannada film OndallaEradallaand Uttarakhand was awarded the Most Film Friendly State.

In addition, it is pertinent to mention that the First Annual Conference of Media Units working under I&B Ministry was organized at New Delhi. During the Conference, performance of the Media Units was reviewed. The focus of the Conference was on ensuring synergy between the Media Units in their day to day functioning. Discussions on using modern technological tools for communication was also done during the course of Conference.

Union HRD Minister Shri Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’ inaugurates the National Workshop of HRD Ministry on Social Media Outreach & Communication held in New Delhi today

Union Human Resource Development Minister Shri Ramesh Pokhriyal ‘Nishank’ inaugurated the the ‘Social Media Outreach & Communication: National Workshop on Management and Best Practices’ organised by Ministry of HRD for various educational institutions and organisations in New Delhi today.Nearly 200 Social Media Champions from various Centrally funded educational institutions participated in the workshop. Principle DG, Press Information Bureau, Shri Kuldeep Singh Dhatwalia, Joint Secretary, Department of Higher Education Smt Neeta Prasad; Joint Secretary, Department of School Education, Shri R.C Meena; Additional Director General, Press Information Bureau, Smt Nanu Bhasin and other senior officials of the Ministry of HRD were present on this occasion.

Speaking on the occasion Shri Pokhriyal said that sharing of knowledge and information is very important in today’s world. It is the duty of every institution to promote their good work through various media platforms. He said that social media is a good tool for this purpose and social media champions have a very important role to play in building and maintaining the image of their organisations by highlighting their achievements which have relevance not only for the country but the whole world. The scale and quality of research, innovations and new studies taking place in IITs, IISERs, IISc etc cannot be seen anywhere else in the world, the HRD minister explained.

Shri Pokhriyal further said that social media champions will help to ensure improvement in the perception of the institution locally, nationally and globally. In QS rankings and other international rankings perception about the institute carries marks and Indian institutions are losing out on that front. The social media champions play a major role in improving perception, he explained.

He further said that purpose of the workshop is to bring the social media communication and outreach of various institutions under one umbrella and to open a channel for day to day communication and dialogue. Social media has become a powerful tool to connect, interact and collaborate. Use it as a tool for enhancing performance by improving delivery of services and convert the image of the organization into a brand, he added.

He said that we are here to take social media champions to next level and I believe this workshop will do that. He added that the information and tips you get to know here by experts, participants have to use them and prove that they all are real social media champions. He also promised to felicitate and reward best social media champions at national level.

During the first session of workshop Chief Executive Officer, MyGov, Shri Abhishek Singh guided the participants regarding strategies of social media platforms for Government Communication. Principal DG, PIB explained the support which can be extended to social media champions by PIB in highlighting their achievements. Addl. DG, PIB, Ms Nanu Bhasin in her introductory speech gave an overview of the programme and the broad purpose of bringing together the social media managers of various educational organisations of HRD ministry. Social media expert Smt. Gayatri Deshpande briefed participants about best practices of social media.

In the second session ADG, Social Media, PIB, Shri B. Narayanan guided the participants about the Challenges of social media. Advisor to HRM Dr. Rajesh Naithani in his session briefed participants about Initiatives and Campaigns of Ministry of HRD. All the participants received a participation certificate at the end of the workshop.

More than 1 Cr Houses Sanctioned Under PMAY(U) – Huge Job Opportunities In construction And Allied Sectors

Shri Hardeep S Puri, Minister of State(I/C) for Housing & Urban Affairs has informed that out of a validated demand of 1.12 Cr houses in urban areas, 1 Cr houses have already been sanctioned. Further, a total of 57 Lakh houses are in various stages of construction of which, nearly 30 Lakh houses have been completed. Compared to the earlier JnNURM scheme, PMAY (U) has achieved 10 times more in a span of 4.5 years, whereas the earlier scheme had taken 10 years to achieve a significantly less number. Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Urban), [PMAY (U)], is one of the largest affordable housing programmes in the world.

Shri DurgaShanker Mishra, Secretary, Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs has informed that the Mission has covered a range of social groups which comprises of around 5.8 Lakh senior citizens, 2 Lakh construction workers, 1.5 Lakh domestic workers, 1.5 Lakh artisans, 0.63 Lakh differently-abled (Divyang), 770 transgender and 500 leprosy patients as of now. Empowerment of women is an inbuilt design of the scheme where the ownership of the house is in the name of female head of household or in the joint name.

The implementation of PMAY (U), has induced a remarkable investment in housing sector especially in the affordable housing segment. The houses sanctioned so far under the Mission involve an investment of about Rs. 5.70 Lakh Cr with Central Assistance of Rs. 1.6 Lakh Cr. The Central Government is contributing Rs.1.00 Lakh to Rs.2.67 Lakh for each house under different verticals of the scheme. As on date, nearly Rs. 60,000 Cr of Central Assistance hasalready been released. Presently, works of aboutRs. 3 Lakh Cr is ongoing and by the time Mission accomplishes its target of 1.12 Cr houses, the entire activity will trigger an investment of more than Rs. 7 Lakh Cr.

Year-on-Year houses sanctioned under PMAY(U)

(ISSR+AHP+BLC+CLSS)

Houses Completed under PMAY(U)

The scheme promotes a synergetic partnership of the people and the Governments. In consonance of the Mission Guidelines, States/ UTs are also contributing a substantial amount of Rs 1-2 Lakh on an average which can go upto Rs 6 Lakh per house. Beneficiaries are also contributing their share in the range ofRs. 2 Lakh to Rs. 5 Lakhper house.

In order to supplement the additional requirement of providing the Central Assistance, over and above the budgetary support, Government has made a provision for raising Extra Budgetary Resources (EBR) to the tune of Rs. 60,000 Cr of which, Rs. 38,000 Cr have already been raised and disbursed. Government has also created an Affordable Housing Fund (AHF) in the National Housing Bank (NHB) with an initial corpus of Rs. 10,000 Cr using priority sector lending shortfallof banks/financial institutions for micro financing of the HFCs

The Credit Linked Subsidy for the Middle Income Group (MIG) was introduced for the first time in the housing sector with effect from 1 January 2017. The MIG beneficiaries with annual income upto Rs. 18 Lakh are eligible for claiming interest subsidy on their housing loans. For the MIG, the Government has increased the area of house up to 200 sq. m. This in turn has a significant impact on banking sector and in enhancing the investment in the housing sector. Government has developed a web based real time monitoring system called “CLSS Awas Portal (CLAP)” to ensure people’s participation and transparency leading to efficient delivery and minimising grievances.

In addition to this, the construction activity under the scheme has had a huge impact on the other sectors of the economy with a multiplier effect in employment generation. Approximately around 1.20 Cr employment has been generated through forward and backward linkages with about 250 auxiliary industries like, steel, brick kilns, cement, paint, hardware, sanitary etc.

Due to investment being made in the scheme, around 568Lakh metric tonne of cement would be required for sanctioned houses; out of which 178 Lakh Metric Tonof cement has already been consumed through completed houses. Around 130Lakh tonne of steel is required for the sanctioned houses; around 40LakhMetric Tonof steel has already been consumed in the completed houses. It also has an impact on livelihood, transport sector, skill development, horticulture, landscape development sector etc.

Government has identified many alternative and innovative technologies through a Global Housing Technology Challenge- India. This will usher a paradigm shift in the construction technology in India and will propel in a host of economic activities. 6 Light House Projects are being executed in six states across the country which will act as live laboratories demonstrating innovative, proven construction technologies for speedier and cost-effective construction of houses which are sustainable green, eco-friendly and disaster resilient.

The Ministry has launched angikaar- a campaign for change management. The campaign address and enables beneficiaries to adapt to life transformation that comes with shifting to a newly constructed house. The campaign has also converged with other government schemes like Ayushman Bharat and Ujjawala so that beneficiaries can avail the benefits of these schemes. Currently more than 12 Lakh households have been covered through this campaign which is ongoing and will conclude on January 26^th 2020.

Union Minister of Home Affairs Shri Amit Shah addresses the 1st Ground Breaking Ceremony of Himachal Pradesh Global Investors’ Meet at Shimla

Union Minister of Home Affairs Shri Amit Shah today said that Global slowdown is a temporary phenomenon and expressed hope that India will soon come out of it. Addressing the 1^st Ground Breaking Ceremony of Himachal Pradesh Global Investors’ Meet at Shimla, he said that Modi Government is working tirelessly for this. Shri Shah said that by 2024, India would become 5 trillion dollar economy and be placed among the top three global economies. He said, in 2014, in the list of world economy, we stood at 11th with the size of economy at 2 trillion dollar and after five years, India has moved from 11 number to 7 and have reached 3 trillion dollar mark.

Shri Shah added that the focus on Renewable Energy (RE) by the Union Government has ensured that India is the largest emerging market for the RE sector today. He said that the results of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s “Reform, Perform and Transform” approach was clearly visible in global indices, all of which showed improvement in India’s rank over the five years between 2014-2019.

Shri Shah emphasized upon the special focus on developing infrastructure in the hilly state by the Union Government and said that 69 roads of the state were classified as National Highways and are being developed by the Union Government. He also pointed out the development of an international airport in Mandi and the construction of three major four-lane highways in a geographically challenging area like Himachal Pradesh. He hailed Atal Tunnel as one of the landmark projects of the state that was completed in one of the shortest times.

Shri Shah highlighted steps taken by the state government to ensure an investor friendly atmosphere like creation of a land bank and the establishment of a single window clearance system for projects. He added that such decisions are the tangible results of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi’s philosophy of Minimum Government, Maximum Governance percolating down at every level. Shri Shah also noted the synergy of such steps at the state level with steps taken at the level of Union Government – such as the slashing of corporate tax rate and in creating a business-friendly environment, and hailed the state as a role model for the same.

Shri Shah also focused on the steps taken by the Union Government to encourage MSMEs, such as the provision of loans up to one crore rupees within 59 minutes, and the system of self-certification. He also remarked on the relaxation provided on Angel Tax for start-ups, and said that such a move would serve to provide a platform to Indian youth and help them become globally competitive.

The Home Minister addressed the function at the groundbreaking ceremony of 250 projects totaling 13,000 crore rupees. Present on the occasion were the Governor of Himachal Pradesh Shri Bandaru Dattatreya, Chief Minister Shri Jai Ram Thakur and Union Minister of State for Finance Shri Anurag Thakur, among other dignitaries

Dr Harsh Vardhan and Sh Kiren Rijiju meet for convergent thrust to ‘Fit India’ movement

“In a significant move, it has been decided that there shall be convergence of activities of the Ministries of Health & Family Welfare, and Youth Affairs and Sports for giving thrust to the national ‘Fit India’ movement, that was launched by Hon. Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi ji earlier this year to encourage people to remain healthy and fit by including physical activities and sports in their daily lives”. This was stated by Dr Harsh Vardhan after he met Shri Kiren Rijiju, MoS (I/c) Youth Affairs and Sports yesterday, for charting the convergent actions of the two Ministries for greater visibility and synergy towards popularising fitness in the country in various age groups.

He added that the Ministry shall be engaging with all institutions of the Health Ministry along with other medical institutions and organisations such as IMA to create nationwide consciousness about fitness and wellness. The Ministry shall also actively engage with the state governments, the state Health Ministers and principals of various medical colleges. Additionally, this shall be taken forward with the frontline health functionaries that implement the NationalHealth Mission (NHM) in close association with the communities.

The thrust for popularising Fit India movement shall now see convergence of activities of both the Ministries, as the goal of this national movement is to encourage people towards positive, preventive and promotive health and wellness, Dr Harsh Vardhan stated. This becomes all the more significant as world over the burden of non-communicable disease is growing due to our changing patter of lifestyle. “Fitness forms an integral part of wellness, and with this in view we have already included various activities such as yoga, meditation, daily physical activities, jumba etc., in the Ayushman Bharat Health & Wellness centres (HWCs) across the country”, Dr Harsh Vardhan said. In some states such as Gujarat, Shirodhara is also practised in some HWCs.“Even simple actions such as walking, cycling, stretching during our office and work hours, along with gyming and jogging help in keeping us fit and healthy”, he added.

Encouraging people to adopt healthy lifestyle with healthy eating habits has been one of the primary focus of the Health Ministry, he said. “We have launched the ‘Eat Right India’ initiative of FSSAI which has seen various promotional activities being rolled out, including the ongoing Eat Right Mela at Jawaharlal Nehra Stadium”, Dr Harsh Vardhan stated. FSSAI is also creating awareness about transfats in processed foods.

Ms. Preeti Sudan, Secretary, Health & Family Welfare, Shri Radheyshyam Julaniya, Sports Secretary, Shri Pawan Agarwal, CEO (FSSAI) and senior officers of the Health Ministry were also present during the meeting.

Now 125 crore residents of India have Aadhaar

The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) announced a new milestone achieved by the Aadhaar project – crossing of the 125 crore mark. This means that over 1.25 billion residents of India have the 12-digit unique identity.

The achievement comes along with the rapidly increasing use of Aadhaar as the primary identity document by the Aadhaar holders. This is evident from the fact that Aadhaar-based authentication services have been used close to 37,000 crore times since inception. At present UIDAI receives about 3 crore authentication requests every day.

Also, residents are more inclined on keeping their details in Aadhaar updated. UIDAI recorded close to 331 crore successful Aadhaar updates (biometric and demographic) till date. At present UIDAI receives about 3-4 lakh Aadhaar updates request every day.

MoS (DoNER) Dr Jitendra Singh chairs review meeting of Ministry of DoNER

The Minister of State for Development of North Eastern Region (I/C), Prime Minister’s Office, Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr.Jitendra Singh chaired a review meeting of the activities of the Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER), here today. The Secretary (DoNER), Dr InderJit Singh and senior officers of Ministry of DoNER and North Eastern Council (NEC) were present during the meeting.

During the meeting, Dr Jitendra said that the North Eastern Council (NEC), Ministry of DoNER, in collaboration with Government of Jammu and Kashmir will organise a workshop cum exhibition on ‘Bamboo – A wonder grass: Opportunity for Sustainable Development in Jobs’ in Jammu in January next year. The workshop is being organised through Cane and Bamboo Technology Centre (CBTC), Assam and Department of Social-Forestry, Government of Jammu and Kashmir. The workshop will focus on NE experience with bamboo in the UT of Jammu and Kashmir.

The Minister said that the development of North Eastern region has been on the priority of the Government under the leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi. He said that the experience of North Eastern states will help the artisans of UT of Jammu and Kashmir. This will help them in their economic development and job opportunities, he added. He said that this will also assist in commercial exploitation of bamboo grown in this region. A Bamboo Industrial Park has already been approved to be set up in the Dima Hasao district of Assam, he said.

Besides above, it was informed that nearly 65 percent Ministry of DoNER budget has been spent for the current financial year. The possibility of providing digital/virtual class rooms in districts of North eastern states was also discussed during the meeting. Dr Jitendra Singh said that it is an initiative towards digitisation of North east Region. During the meeting, the status of JNU hostel, Dwarka and Rohini projects was also discussed.

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