Tag: Rural Development

Union Minister Shri Shivraj Singh Chouhan officially takes charge of Ministry of Rural Development

 Union Minister Shri Shivraj Singh Chouhan today took charge of the Ministry of Rural Development. Addressing the media after taking charge, the Minister said that rural development is the priority of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and several schemes are being implemented in this direction. Shri Chauhan said that schemes like Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) has changed the rural landscape of the nation. Talking about the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), he said that it is a huge employment generator and there is now an emphasis on creating assets under the scheme. He said there has been revolutionary progress in rural development under leadership of PM Modi and empowering three crore lakhpati didis is a dream for him. Shri Chauhan said the scheme is very close to his heart and his government is committed to ensure justice for the female population of the country. The minister said woman empowerment is a mission for the government and self – help groups are playing an important role for it. The rural development minister also said that his Ministry will work to achieve the tasks set up in the 100-days plan of the government.  He also mentioned the decision taken by the union cabinet to construct three crore more houses under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana.

 

Later, he held a meeting of senior officials of the Ministry and underscored the need for transparency in Ministry functioning. He also handed government manifesto for rural development and called upon everyone to work towards its fulfilment.

 

Minister of State in Rural Development Shri Kamlesh Paswan also took charge of his portfolio today. The hon’ble Ministers were welcomed by department Secretaries and other senior officials of the Ministries.

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Special Campaign 3.0 of Department of Land Resources, Ministry of Rural Development

 The Special Campaign 3.0 is being undertaken in its real spirit in the Department of Land Resources (DoLR). Swachhata activities are being carried out in all its three offices, NBO Building, Shivaji Stadium Annexe and CGO Complex situated here. Swachhta Pakhwada of the Department is also observed during 1-14th October 2023.

As part of preparatory phase, identification of pending references, cleanliness activities, redundant materials and review of files, were uundertaken from 15th to 30th September, 2023 and tangible targets have been set. Obsolete and unusable items including e-waste and furniture have been identified through inventory management. The process for disposal through e-auction has also been initiated.

The following activities were taken up in the first week of Special Campaign 3.0.

  1. As a tribute to Mahatma Gandhi on the eve of his birth anniversary,   Department organized a “Shramdaan- Swachhata Hi Seva” (SHS)  at Shivaji Stadium Bus Terminal (NDMC Area), New Delhi on 1st October 2023.
  2. Review meetings were taken up by the Secretary for Department of Land Resource Shri Ajay Tirkey level with Senior Officers on the implementation of the Sepcial Campaign. Shri Ajay Tirkey visited all three offices of the Department along with senior officers. He directed all division heads that all cleanliness activities including reviewing and weeding of all files should be monitored effectively. Shri Tirkey also visited the record room of the Department. Nodal Officer has also taken review meetings and inspected all sites.
  3. As part of various initiatives taken by the department, employees have taken keen interest to keep at least one plant at their official desk and nurture them on their own. Employees are motivated to ensure switching off the power during lunch hours to save energy.
  4. Department of Land Resources had created a Rejuve Wellness Centre at its Shivaji Stadium Annexe Office premise in 2021. The Wellness Centre is used by employees for performing yoga, meditation as part of health de-stress management. The facility has been recognised as a special achievement in the Good Governance Week (GGW) organised by DAPRPG. As part of Special Campaign 3.0, Department has decided to organise a series of health lectures for the benefit of employees in the Centre in October 2023. The first lecture of the series ‘Ayurveda with special focus on Preventive Healthcare‘ was delivered by Ayurvedic expert, Ministry of AYUSH on 06th October 2023.
  5. Disposal of Pending references, weeding of files and identification of redundant materials/scrap (e-waste items) are being undertaken and data are being uploaded on the SCDPM Portal of DARPG. Pictures/Videos on Swacchhata activities are being shared through Social Media handles.

Shramdan-Swachhata Hi Sewa

At Shivaji Stadium Bus Terminal, New Delhi

 

WhatsApp Image 2023-10-07 at 12.18.20 PM

Health lecture in Rejuve Wellness Centre of DoLR

 

Renovation of Workstations in DoLR

Annual Capacity Building Plan of Department of Rural Development, Department of Land Resources and Ministry of Panchayati Raj

 Minister of Rural Development and Panchayati Raj Shri Giriraj Singh launched the Annual Capacity Building Plan of Department of Rural Development, Department of Land Resources and Ministry of Panchayati Raj in New Delhi today. While launching the ACBP, Shri Giriraj Singh said that this Plan will play a Pivotal role in service delivery, program implementation and performing core governance functions and will enhance the abilities of the officials by attending need based training to acquire relevant competencies to enable them to perform better so that the Ministry/Department can achieve the objectives set out with citizens centricity for improved performance.

With an objective to achieve PM’s Vision New India @ 2047, Capacity Building Commission has devised the approach for preparation of Annual Capacity Building Plan through 3 lenses namely National Priorities, Citizen Centricity, Emerging Technology and 3 Pillars- Individual, Organizational and Institutional, that are used as the guiding light for development of an ACBP to positively contribute for achievement of the objective. ACBP will have a profound impact in improving the efficiency and work ethics of all Departments, thereby, expedite the achievements of PM’s Vision for New India @2047.

Annual Capacity Building Plan (ACBP) is a plan document that is developed based on the competency enhancement requirements of the officials of the Ministry/Department/Organization (MDO), that is ascertained through carrying out Competency Need Analysis (CNA) and prioritization of the competencies based on requirement of the officials and also importance of the competency to the ministry so that the resources invested by MDO on Capacity Building are optimized.

A Capacity Building Unit (CBU) has been notified in all three Departments to implement and sustain ACBP. A budgetary outlay of 2.5 % of salary head of the Department will be ear-marked for implementation of ACBP. CBU will prioritize the training needs of officers for Quarter 2, Quarter 3 & Quarter 4. The trainings will be both in online and offline mode. CBC has identified institutes and knowledge partners to impart trainings in various issue to officers. The Ministry will also assess the impact of the trainings imparted to various officials and staff to ascertain the efficacy of ACBP.

On this Occasion, Secretaries and Officers of Department of Rural Development, Department of Land Resources and Ministry of Panchayati Raj and Member(Human Resource), Capacity Building Commission were present.

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Rural Development

 What is Rural Development?

Rural development is a method where you can enhance the quality if life. Now a days rural area is also getting developed but they need more good facilities to upgrade their life.

In rural areas people mainly do agriculture and forestry. It is their main occupation in which they are living their life. But today nature have also changed a lot. People of rural areas also need better and good facilities to upgrade themselves.

Rural development is important not only for the majority of the population residing in rural areas, but also for the overall economic expansion of the nation.

Rural development is considered to be of noticeable importance in the country today than in the olden days in the process of the evolution of the nation. It is a strategy that tries to obtain an improved  and productivity, higher socio-economic equality and ambition, and stability in social and economic development.

The primary task is to decrease the famine that exists in roughly about 70 percent of the rural population, and to make sufficient and healthy food available.

The secondary task is to ensure the availability of clothing and footwear, a clean environment and house, medical attention, recreational provision, education, transport, and communication.

Quality Education- Part of Sustainable Development Goal

Quality Education- Part of Sustainable Development Goal


Sustainable development goals are actions to create a just, fair, and equitable world ensuring no one is left behind. In 2015, all member states of the United Nations adopted the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. This agenda is comprised of 17 sustainable development goals (SDGs) that provide a shared blueprint for a more peaceful, prosperous, and sustainable future for all.

Quality education

Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all. Education is a key to escaping poverty. Over the past decade, major progress was made towards increasing access to education and school enrolment rates at all levels, particularly for girls.

More than half of all children and adolescents worldwide are not meeting minimum proficiency standards in reading and mathematics. In 2020, as the COVID-19 pandemic spread across the globe, a majority of countries announced the temporary closure of schools, which affect the education of children worldwide.

The covid-19 has created a great education crisis. Most education systems in the world have been affected by education disruptions and have faced unprecedented challenges. School closures brought on by the pandemic have a great effect on children’s learning and well-being. It is estimated that 147 million children missed more than half of their in-class instruction over the past two years. This generation of children could lose a combined total of $17 trillion in lifetime earnings at present value. School closures have affected girls, children from disadvantaged backgrounds, those living in rural areas, children with disabilities, and children from ethnic minorities more than their peers.

Early indications from low-income countries based on phone surveys point to a small decline in attendance upon a return to school but a larger increase in repetition, which may increase dropout rates in coming years. The participation rate in organized learning one year before the official primary entry age rose steadily in the years before the COVID-19 pandemic, from 69 percent in 2010 to 75 percent in 2020. In most countries, early education facilities and schools were partially or fully closed for more than a full school year.

Insufficient skills are often mentioned as an impediment to effective information and communications technology use. Only 10 percent of countries could more than 70 percent of individuals carry out one of the activities that compose basic skills.

Gender inequalities remain for many indicators. Basic school infrastructure is far from universal. In 2020, approximately one-quarter of primary schools globally did not have access to basic services such as electricity, drinking water, and basic sanitation facilities.

Shares among least developed countries tend to be substantially lower. During the pandemic, schools in comparatively disadvantaged areas were less equipped to keep children and staff safe. In 2020, there were about 12 million pre-primary school teachers, 33 million primary school teachers, and 38 million secondary school teachers working in classrooms around the world, and 83 percent of primary and secondary school teachers were trained.

Thus, this sustainable goal aims to improve the education facility worldwide and provide good quality education which can lead to removing poverty.

Rural Development for Better Nation

 Rural Development for Better Nation

Rural development means improving the quality of life of people living in rural areas. Its main concern is to secure natural resources like agriculture and forest, from exploitation. But the change in the global production network and urbanization have changed the rural areas. A lot of things like manufacturers, tourism, recreation, etc., have affected agriculture as the domain of economic drives. Education, entrepreneurship, physical infrastructure, and social infrastructure all play an important role in developing rural regions. Rural development remains the core of the overall development of the country. More than two-thirds of the country’s people are dependent on agriculture for their livelihood, and one-third of rural India is still below the poverty line.


Rural development focus on Education, Public health and Sanitation, Women empowerment, Infrastructure development (electricity, irrigation, etc.), Facilities for agriculture extension and research, Availability of credit, Employment opportunities, sufficient and healthy food, etc.


Importance of Rural Development

Rural development is important for the population to live in rural areas and overall economic expansion of the nation. It is very important to be concerned about rural development because it is very important for the evaluation of our nation. It will help to increase productivity, stability in socio and economic development, and social-economic equality.


The main objective of Rural Development

The main objective of the government for rural development is to improve the productivity and wages of rural people, increase the standard of living of the underprivilege population, increase employment opportunities, and provide the basic needs like education, healthcare, rural roads, clean drinking water, sanitation, etc.


Ministry of Rural Development

The Ministry of Rural Development has two departments, the Department of Rural Development and the Department of Land Resources. The Department of Rural Development came into existence as a part of the Ministry of Food and Agriculture in October 1974. On 23 January 1982, this ministry was renamed the Ministry of Rural Development. as the Ministry of Agriculture in September 1985. On July 5, 1991, this department was again given the status of Ministry of Rural Development. After that, the name of the department was changed many times. In the year 1999. The department gets it to rename as Ministry of Rural Development. 

The ministry aims to bring change in rural development with various programs. The main objective of this ministry is to remove rural poverty and provide a better quality of life to the rural population, especially the people living below the poverty line. To further enhance the efforts being made in these areas, the government launched the Pradhan Mantri Gramin Yojana (PMGY), and the Ministry of Rural Development was entrusted with the responsibility of implementing the following parts of the Pradhan Mantri Yojana (PMGY), namely – drinking water supply, Housing construction and construction of rural roads. Many other policies were started by the government for the welfare of the rural population.


Keeping in view the needs and aspirations of the local people, the cooperation of Panchayati Raj Institutions was taken in the implementation of this program. These institutions are a form of decentralized development of planning and its implementation. The Ministry is urging the State Governments to give requisite administrative and financial powers to the Panchayati Raj Institutions at the earliest as stipulated in the 73rd Constitutional Amendment of India. The empowerment of rural women is important for the development of rural India. Therefore, provision has also been made for the contribution of women in poverty alleviation programs so that adequate funds can be arranged for this section of society. The Constitution (73rd) Amendment Act, 1992 provides for reservation of selected posts for women.


The following major programs are being operated in rural areas by the Ministry of Rural Development,

  • Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) provides employment,
  • National Rural Livelihoods Mission (NRLM) for self-employment and skill development,
  • Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana Gramin (PMAYG) to provide housing to BPL families,
  • Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) for the construction of quality roads,
  • National Social Assistance Program (NSAP) for Social Pension,
  • Integrated Watershed Management Program (IWMP) to improve the productivity of the land.

The annual budget of Rs. 1 35944.29 crores have been allocated to the department of Rural Development for the Financial Year 2022-23.

Key Initiatives and Achievements of Ministry of Rural Development

 Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana – National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM)

  1. Launched in 2011, the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana – National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM) aims at mobilizing about 9-10 crore rural poor households into Self Help Groups (SHGs) in a phased manner and provide them long-term support such that they diversify their livelihoods, improve their incomes and quality of life.

 

As on 30th November 2021, Mission has its footprints in 6769 blocks of 706 districts in 30 states and 6 UTs. It has mobilised a total of 8.01 Crore women from poor and vulnerable communities into 73.19 lakhs SHGs and formed 4,24,189 Village organisation and 32,406 CLFs. In the current year, 248 blocks have been covered with the mobilization of 41.02 lakh households into 3.81 lakh SHGs.

 

These community institutions have been provided Capitalization Support fund in the form of Revolving Fund (RF) and Community Investment Fund (CIF) to the tune of Rs 15,661.13 Crore. In the current FY, Rs. 2241.90 Crore have been provided as RF and CIF.

 

Around 3.5 lakhs community resource persons (CRPs[1]) have been developed for providing capacity building and technical support to community institutions.

 

DAY NRLM has been able to facilitate a total of Rs. 4.35 lakh crore of Bank Loan to the SHGs from April 2013 till 30th November, 2021. The Non-performing Assets (NPA) is just 2.57% which shows the remarkable repayments culture in the SHG members under DAY-NRLM and also the confidence of women in the program. To provide last mile delivery of financial services, 55079 SHG members have been deployed as BC Sakhi (Business Correspondents/BC Points). The BC Sakhi provide last mile financial services including deposit, credit, remittance, disbursement of pensions & scholarships, payment of MGNREGA wages and enrollment under insurance and pension schemes.

 

On Livelihood front, 1.44 crore Mahila Kisans have been covered under DAY- NRLM, out of which 30 lakh have been covered in the current Financial Year. A total of 182 Producer Enterprises/Farmer Producer Organisations (PEs/FPOs) have been formed for organized livelihoods. A total of 22,292 Custom Hiring Centers/Tool banks of agricultural implements have been established, out of which 2629 CHCs have been formed in the current year.

 

A total of 1,78,328 small enterprises have been facilitated for SHG members or their family members under the Start-up Village Entrepreneurship Programme (SVEP), a sub-scheme of DAY-NRLM. 22783 enterprises were formed in the current year.

 

 

Major events held during the year

  1. DAY-NRLM National Awards are intended to provide public recognition to the outstanding performance of the community institutions- Self-Help Groups and Village Organizations promoted under DAY-NRLM. 

 

  1. Through an online platform, the Prime Minister interacted with the SHG members of DAY-NRLM on the 12th of August’21 to know about the work being done by them. The event was also utilized for supporting the work of SHGs by releasing funds to the SHGs members. A compendium of 75 inspirational success stories by SHG women was also released by the Prime Minister.

 

In addition, the Prime Minister also released funds to the SHGs under DAY-NRLM:

    1. Release of 25 Cr to 7,500 SHG members under PMFME
    2. Release of first instalment of Rs. 4.13 Crore to 75 FPOs
    3. Release of Rs.1,625 Cr of Capitalization support to 4.07 Lakh SHGs in 30 states and UTs

 

 

Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Grameen Kaushalya Yojana (DDU-GKY) RSETI:

 

A total of 39.17 lakh candidates have been trained under RSETIs in 64 courses [59 National Skill Qualification Framework (NSQF) aligned and 5 MoRD approved] and 27.34 lakh candidates settled in either self-employment or wage employment till November, 2021. Around 3.06 lakh candidates have trained under the programme between 01.01.2021 and 30.11.2021, while 1.88 lakh candidates have been settled between the same duration. The programme is currently being implemented in 27 States and 6 UTs with 585 RSETIs sponsored by 23 leading Banks. 

 

Building on to the schemes’ objective of training and settlement of candidates, either through self-employment or wage employment, new initiatives are introduced time and again. This allows for knowledge sharing with various schemes and paves the way for new learnings. Some of the initiatives that were introduced this year include establishing an ‘Assessment & Certification Board of RSETIs’ for independent assessment of trainees of RSETI to ensure credibility to their trainings. 

 

DDU-GKY:

 

The DDU-GKY program is currently being implemented in 27 States and 4 UTs and has over 2369 Training Centres in 1891 projects, in partnership with over 877 Project Implementing Agencies conducting training across 57 sectors, and over 616 job-roles. During FY 2021-22, a total of 23,186 candidates have been trained and 22,067 candidates have been placed till 30.11.2021. 

 

Progress since Inception under DDU GKY (2014-15) – Total of 11.23 lakh candidates have been trained and 7.13 lakh placed (till 30.11.2021).

 

Year-wise performance of DDUGKY

Year

Total no. of candidates trained under DDU-GKY

Total no. of candidates placed under DDU-GKY

2014-15

43,038

21,446

2015-16

2,36,471

1,09,512

2016-17

1,62,586

1,47,883

2017-18

1,31,527

75,787

2018-19

2,41,509

1,37,251

2019-20 

2,47,177

1,50,214

2020-21

38,289

49,563

2021-22(till Nov’21)

23,186

22,067

Total

11,23,783

7,13,723

 

75 PwD candidates from DDU-GKY & RSETI schemes were given out ‘Hunarbaaz Awards’ on the occasion of Antyodaya Diwas. The virtual event was jointly organised by MoRD and NIRD in association with State Rural Livelihood Missions (SRLMs) and Rural Self-employment Training Institutes. CEOs of SRLMs and Directors of RSETIs handed over the awards at the respective states to the specially-abled achievers. Some of the candidates who received the awards addressed the audience and recounted their life journey and the difference that skill training brought to their lives. Employers and training partners also shared their experiences of skilling and employing the candidates and also put forth suggestions to explore newer directions in the journey of inclusion

 

 

Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY)

  1. 2,067 Habitations connected with all weather reoads.
  2. 42,305 Km road length and 788 bridges sanctioned
  3. 40,931 Km road length completed, despite Covid related lock-downs, as compared to 31,736 Km in the year 2020 and 38,006 in year 2019.
  4. 13,969 Km road length completed using new and green technologies.

 

Saansad Adarsh Gram Yojana (SAGY)

 

Saansad Adarsh Gram Yojana (SAGY) is a unique scheme of the Ministry of Rural Development wherein, for the first time, the leadership, capacity, commitment and energy of the Members of Parliament are being leveraged directly for development at the Gram Panchayat level. Saansad Adarsh Gram Yojana (SAGY) was launched on 11 October 2014 with the aim of creating holistically developed model Gram Panchayats across the country. Primarily, the goal is to develop three Adarsh Grams by March 2019, of which one would be achieved by 2016. Thereafter, five such Adarsh Grams (one per year) will be selected and developed by 2024. These ‘Adarsh Grams’ serve as ‘nucleus of health, cleanliness, greenery and cordiality’ within the village community and, become schools of local development and governance, inspiring neighboring Gram Panchayats.

 

The role of Members of Parliament is that of a catalyst. They identify the Gram Panchayat to be developed into Adarsh Gram Panchayat, engage with the community, help propagate the values of the scheme, enable the initiation of start-up activities to build up the right environment and facilitate the planning process. The District Collector is the nodal officer for implementing SAGY. The District collectors conduct a monthly review meeting with representatives of the participating line departments. The Members of Parliament concerned chair the review meetings. The heads of the Gram Panchayats concerned also are invited for these monthly meetings.

 

Achievements :

Identification of Gram Panchayats 
The Members of Parliament adopted 1,011 Gram Panchayats under SAGY-II (2019-24). In addition, 703 Gram Panchayats across the country were identified under Phase-I of SAGY. Further, 502 Gram Panchayats have been taken up under the Phase-II and 305 Gram Panchayats under Phase-III for development under SAGY as on 29 December 2020. 

Phase-wise status of identification of GPs under SAGY, based on information available on the SAGY portal (saanjhi.gov.in) as on 29 December 2021

 

Sl

Year

No. of SAGY GPs

1

Phase – I (2014-16)

703

2

Phase – II (2016-19)

502

3

Phase – III (2017-19)

305

4

Phase – IV (2019-20)

451

5

Phase – V (2020-21)

250

6

Phase – VI (2021-22)

146
  1. Village Development Plan
    The Gram Panchayats adopted under SAGY prepare Village Development Plans (VDP) containing prioritised time-bound activities to achieve holistic progress of the village, through convergence of resources. Under SAGY, VDPs have been prepared for 1,824 GPs and works are under progress. In order to keep track of the progress of projects listed in the VDP, a Tracking Template has been developed and the progress is monitored online. As on 29 December 2021, 54,701 projects have been completed and 6,732 projects are in progress in these Gram Panchayats. 

 

Sl

Phase

No. of SAGY GPs

No. of GPs that uploaded VDP

No. of GPs that updated VDP progress

No. of projects planned

No. of projects completed

No. of projects in-progress

1

Phase-I (2014-16)

703

689

672

41104

27880

3296

2

Phase-II (2016-19)

502

431

392

21648

15693

1204

3

Phase-III (2016-19)

305

245

225

9048

6411

689

4

Phase-IV (2019-20)

451

295

209

8845

3811

1047

5

Phase-V

(2020-21)

249

118

50

3519

834

338

6

Phase- VI

(2021-22)

146

46

11

941

72

158

 

  1. Capacity Building of the Charge Officers under SAGY

Considering the COVID-19 pandemic, SAGY Division has organised capacity building programmes on SAGY in coordination with NIRD&PR through webinars for the Charge Officers and other stakeholders of SAGY GPs during 27-29 May 2021, 29-31 July, 2021 and 28-30 September 2021. A total of 440 Charge Officers have participated in this programme from various States/UTs.

 

  1. Documentation of Success Stories 

The Ministry of Rural Development has documented many success stories from SAGY Gram Panchayats based on inputs shared by the respective State Governments and made them available for public access on the programme website (https://saanjhi.gov.in/SuccessStory.aspx). A few successful initiatives have also been video documented by the Division (https://saanjhi.gov.in/Success.aspx) as well as Doordarshan, Rajya Sabha TV and other broadcasters. 

 

  1. SAGY awards have been conceptualised

As per the Chapter 17 of SAGY Guidelines, awards have been proposed to be given in the following categories and the criteria for the awards have been finalized: 

i. Best practices

ii. Best Charge Officers

iii.Best District Collectors

iv.Best Adarsh Grams

 

  1. Creation of MP Dashboard for the Members of Parliament

A new MP Dashboard has been created for the use of Members of Parliament with information relevant to their constituency/ state. There are similar Dashboards available on saanjhi portal, for the state and district administration, for easy monitoring and evaluation.

 

  1. SAGY online module for Integrated Government Online Training (iGOT)

A detailed online training module on SAGY was created and published on the Integrated Government Online Training (iGOT) platform, recently launched by the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT).

 

  1. Orientation programme on SAGY for Personal Assistants / Representatives of MPs

An orientation programme on SAGY for the Personal Assistants / Representatives of Members of Parlaiment was organised at Krishi Bhawan, New Delhi on 20th and 21st December, 2021. It was attended by over 100 participants. 

 

 

Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojana-Gramin (PMAY-G)

Pradhan Mantri AwaasYojana-Gramin (PMAY-G) is one of the flagship schemes of the Government of India launched on 20th November, 2016 which aims to provide “Housing for All” through the provision of pucca house with basic amenities to all houseless households and households living in kutcha and dilapidated house in rural areas by March 2024. As on 27.12.2021, a total of 2.15 Crore houses have been sanctioned and 1.68 Crore houses have been completed. Against the total target of completion of 44.09 lakh houses in the FY 2021-22, a total of 31 lakh houses has been completed till 27th December 2021.

Key Initiatives 

The program is being implemented and monitored through end to end e-governance solution, AwaasSoft and AwaasApp. AwaasSoft provides functionalities for data entry and monitoring of multiple indicators related to implementation aspects of the scheme. These statistics include, physical progress (registrations, sanctions, house completion and release of instalments etc.), financial progress, status of convergence etc. Since launch of the scheme in 2016, efforts are being taken to make the software more user friendly. New modules have been added in the software for making it more accessible and maintaining transparency in the implementation of the programme. 

The major initiative taken by the Ministry in the context of introducing new modules in the Awaassoft is as below:

  • Landless Module – The scheme has also taken care of landless households in the permanent waitlist (PWL). The State Government must ensure provision of land to landless households on priority as they are the neediest ones. Further, to map landless beneficiaries in the PWL of PMAY-G and to capture the status of availing land or financial assistance for land purchase to the landless beneficiaries, a module on landless has been developed. The module captures the status of land provided to landless beneficiaries either financially assisted or provided land in physical. 
  • E-Ticketing system – A Ticketing System is developed on AwaasSoft, with an aim to resolve/quantify all issue received from States/UTs in technical/policy category whenever faced by them while implementing the scheme of PMAYG. A grievance redressal mechanism is in process of setting up at different levels of administrations such as Gram Panchayat, Block, District, and the State. Issues raised by States/UTs are to be resolved within a stipulated time frame for immediate resolution. The module is available 24X7 and all days of the week. Head of technical team and RH Division are registered on the platform to have a closer look on the issues raised by the States/UTs. 

 

  • Adhaar Based Payment System –ABPS allows Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) to the PMAY-G beneficiary in his/ her bank account linked with the Aadhaar number of the concerned beneficiary for safe and authentic transaction.
  • Convergence Module- Convergence module has been developed to monitor the status of benefit availed by PMAYG beneficiary under other Government Schemes focusing on toilet construction, LPG, Drinking water, MGNREGA employment, involvement of SHG etc.
  • In addition to above, a training module on understanding the features of PMAYG, from design to execution, is also available on iGOT platform, which is an e-learning platform intended for capacity building of stakeholders of PMAY-G. 

 

Shyama Prasad Mukherji Rurban Mission (SPMRM)

 

The Shyama Prasad Mukherji Rurban Mission was launched by the Prime Minister on February 21st, 2016 with an outlay of Rs. 5142.08 crores. This is a unique programme, designed to deliver catalytic interventions to rural areas on the threshold of growth. 300 Rurban clusters with thematic economic growth points, are being developed across the country under this Mission, with a funding support of up to 30% of the estimated investment for each Rurban cluster, given as Critical Gap Funding (CGF), while 70% of the funds is mobilized by the States through convergence with synergic State and Central programmes as well as private investment and institutional funding. Upon being re-classified as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme, the CGF is now shared between the Centre and the State in a ratio of 60:40 for Plain area States and 90:10 for Himalayan and NE States. The following points which reflect the progress of the Mission, is being highlighted for your understanding:

Progress of the Mission at the National Level

  • The Mission has progressed at a fast pace since the launch in 2016, with Rs. 2,196.85 crore of Central Share of CGF, Rs. 1,159 crore as corresponding State share of CGF and Rs. 103.60 crore of Administrative Funding, released to 28 States and 6 Union Territories over the last five financial years
  • Till date, of the mandated 300 clusters, 299 clusters have been identified and approved across the country. Further, through intense engagements with the States, 291 Integrated Cluster Action Plans (ICAPs), which are the blue prints of investment for each cluster, have been approved for 28 States and 6 UTs
  • Rs. 27,716 crore of investment has been estimated in the approved 291 ICAPs, to be met by the funds mobilized through Convergence as well as the Central and State share of CGF. The reported expenditure on works grounded till date is Rs. 15,167 crore, out of which the CGF is the tune of Rs. 2,506 crore and Rs. 12,661 crore is under Convergence 
  • Of the total investment proposed, nearly 79% is targeted towards saturation of Economic and Basic Amenities. Various Thematic Areas have been identified for saturation of Economic Amenities, such as Agri Services and Processing, followed by Skill development to promote Small and Medium Scale Enterprises and Tourism activities

Mission achievement and Key activities undertaken: 

1. Spatial Planning:

    1. Spatial planning is being carried out using remote sensing and GIS technology under SPMRM. Spatial Planning for rural areas, being new subject, requires handholding support and therefore States were asked to nominate Mentor Institute by DoRD. 33 States/UTs have nominated mentor institutes for spatial plan preparation of which Mentor Institute for 30 States have been approved and others are in process. 
    2. Spatial Planning Platform having spatial plan preparation module has been prepared by BISAG – N under an MoU between Minsitry of Rural Development, Ministry of Panchayati Raj and Bhaskaracharya National Institute of Space Application and Geo-Informatics (BISAG-N). Spatial Planning module for preparation of Economic Plan, Social Infrastructure plan, land use plan, Disaster Management, Utility plan have been developed. On 3rd August 2021, the same was presented to the Secretary, Rural Development. Pilot study for Talabasta, Nirbhoypur and Singarayakonda Clusters is underway. 
    3. The platform has 101 layers detailing out topographical, agro – climatic zone, environmental, socio – economic – infrastructural layers suitable to prepare plan ranging from national to cluster level and further develop plan from Cluster to Village level.Apart from creating 101 layers in the Spatial Planning platform, API integration with PMGSY, Mission Antyodaya, PMAY – G and other schemes are in progress.
    4. Learning management system is being developed for stakeholder training and capacity development in spatial planing, ICAP and DPR preparation, carrying out research and innovation.
    5. A Spatial Planning Expert committee has been approved and members consent has been undertaken. Committee involves technical institutes of repute and other Ministries working in the field. 
    6. Spatial planning being a new subject required an in-depth study to prepare guidelines/ handbooks. A concept note on spatial plan duly approved by the competent authority has been prepared. Further, to handhold stakeholder to prepare the plan a Handbook for Spatial plan preparation of Rurban Clusters is under finalization.

2. RurbanSoft- PFMS Integration and Geo-Rurban App:Real time progress is being captured under the Mission through RurbanSoft (a MIS platform under SPMRM). RurbanSoft has been integrated with PFMS to capture real time financial progress.

    1. All States/UTs are targeted for onboarding PFMS Integration and as per current status, 32 States/UTs have already on-boarded payment through RurbanSoft-PFMS integration.
    2. Geo-Rurban App: An app for Geo-Tagging of the all the assets being constructed under the Mission has been launched in February 2020. Usage of mobile application is leading to geo-tagging of all assets created under the Mission and further helping the Ministry to monitor the physical monitoring of the assets created in the Mission, as well as ensure increased transparency.
    3. Dynamic ranking of Rurban clusters have been initiated on the basis of performance based indicators on RurbanSoft portal. This will enhance the spirit of competition among the States/UTs.

4. To strengthen the financial management system, fund pooling mechanism at State/UT level is being implemented to reduce parking of funds at State Nodal accounts and also the progressive clusters need not wait for Ministry level fund releases

5. Regular review and follow up with States/UTs on engagement of resource at State Project Management Unit, District Project Management Unit /Cluster Development Management Unit professionals for Mission implementation.

6. Capacity building under Rurban Mission:

  1. Regular trainings are organised by the Program Division for all the key officials and professionals at the State and District levels. In this year, trainings have included topics such as experience sharing and peer learning by the States/Clusters, as well as multiple trainings and hand-holding sessions/workshops for the purpose of onboarding the RurbanSoft platform, PFMS integration etc.
  2. Organized development of clusters by rural community and efficient handholding of these clusters by Rurban functionaries is a key aspiration of SPMRM. Dedicated support on spatial planning, Strengthening bottom-up institutions and need for research and innovation for Rurban are amongst the principle learning from NITI Aayog`s evaluation. Specifically, the need for Capacity Building revolves around spatial planning as well as comprehensive aspects pertaining to Rurban Mission to all stakeholders, from bottom-up.
  3. A Knowledge Platform and collaborative ecosystem development for providing clusters stakeholders with capacity building, leadership development and technical support is planned through setting up a dedicated Rurban specific Centre at NIRD&PR, Delhi. The platform will ensure that the support and guidance to Clusters is provided through virtual and in-person interface in the appropriate regional language. Further, this platform shall also provide a regular platform for citizens of the Clusters to participate in the Mission’s implementation through community feedback on various services and initiatives. 

 

DISHA

 

            Achievements of the calendar year 2021 are as under : 

 

  1. Constitution of DISHA Committees:- DISHA Committees have been constituted in 13 more Districts under the Chairmanship of Member of Parliament representing to ensure expeditious development of all the sectors with enhanced community participation and accountability. Thus, DISHA Committees have now been constituted in 711 Districts. 

 

  1. Meetings of DISHA Committee: DISHA Committee is mandated to monitor the implementation of the Central Government programmes in accordance with prescribed procedures and guidelines and promote synergy and convergence for greater impact through its quarterly meetings convened for the purpose. In the year 2021, 626 DISHA meetings have been held under the Chairpmanship of  Members of Parliament. 

 

  1. Formation of DISHA Monitoring Cell: To ensure effective, time-bound and result-oriented work of the DISHA Committees, Monitoring Cell at National Level has been formed to coordinate with State Nodal officers for regular conduct of DISHA meetings and follow up of action items decided in the DISHA meetings.

 

  1. Amendment Modification in Guidelines for Nomination of Members of Parliament in State Level DISHA Committee:  To make State Level DISHA Committee more representative, Para 3 of State Level DISHA Committee Guidelines modified in consultation with Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs and 200 Members of Parliament have been nominated to the State Level DISHA Committees. 

 

  1. State Level Meeting Reporting Module: To support the operations of DISHA Committee, facilitate structured and effective meetings, a web portal called ‘Meeting Reporting Module’ (https://rural.nic.in/en/disha) has been developed for State Level DISHA meeting. It has salient features such as Notice Board, Proceedings of Meeting and Summary for state and district level meetings which contains schedules meeting date, time, venue, and agenda, meeting notices and minutes and assign action points. 

 

  1. Social Media Platform for fast Communication: A ‘State DISHA Committee meeting’ Social Media group is created for quick dissemination of important communication from Ministry of Rural Development and capturing the DISHA State Committee meeting information held in States. Similarly 31 State-wise Social Media groups also created to exchange the important communication between districts and MoRD. 

 

  1. Enhancement in User Experience in DISHA Dashboard: The DISHA dashboard has been developed to create a data-based government solution for planning, monitoring and evaluating various parameters of various schemes under DISHA. DISHA application is envisaged as a single source of information regarding schemes being run by various ministries from different levels to the Gram Panchayat level. To enhance the user experience, recently following activities completed towards facelift of DISHA Dashboard:
  • Landing page developed to improve User Interface containing DISHA introduction, 12 schemes outcome trends, DISHA Meeting reports, Chairman details, Guidelines, Photo-gallery, Circulars and Links of all available schemes on dashboard 
  • Dashboard summary page redesigned completely with new parameters 
  • Improved visualization of scheme’s widgets, added new analytical charts, uniformity/consistency across pages, colour theme enhanced, added sliding navigation panel, heat map, more descriptive titles and labels, increased granularity, added AC/PC view, optimization of Dashboard Application to improve the speed.

 

International Co-operation

 

A. Training 

 

  • Online Training on “Agricultural Engineering Technologies for Enhancing Productivity and Profitability in Agriculture Sector”, ICAR-Central Institute of Agricultural Engineering (CIAE), Bhopal, India, 06 -17 December, 2021
  • Invitation for Talkshow and Seminar virtually held by Indonesia on Thursday, 18th November, 2021
  • AARDO-KOICA joint online Training on “Sustainable Rural Development”(SRD), 27 September-8 October, 2021
  • AARDO-BARD International Online Training Workshop on “Achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): Financial Inclusion and Rural Transformation”, Bangladesh academy for Rural Development (BARD), Bangladesh, 03-12 August, 2021.
  • AARDO-FERO Online Training Programme on “Sustainable Practices for Smart Agriculture and Livelihood in African-Asian Countries”, 25-29 October 2021, R.O. Korea
  • International Online Training Programme on “Green Innovation in Agriculture and Rural Development”, Rural Development Academy (RDA), Bogura, Bangladesh, 21-30 September 2021
  • Online International Training Programme on “Advanced Techniques ion Fishing and Fish Processing” in ICAR-CIFT, Kochi, India on 31 August-09 September, 2021
  • Online International Training Programme on “Value Chain Management in Fisheries” in ICAR-CIFT, Kochi, India on 13-16 September, 2021
  • Invitation of nominees for the Online 148th Regular Session on “Agricultural development and Policy”, scheduled to be hosted by the International Centre for Land Policy Studies and Training (ICLPST), Taiwan, R.O. China, during 17 September – 10 December 2021
  • International Online Training Workshop on “Achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): Financial Inclusion and Rural Transformation”, BARD, Cumilla, Bangladesh, 03-12 August, 2021
  • AARDO-MARDI Joint Online programme during July-August 2021, MARDI, Malaysia
  • AARDO International Online Training Programme on “Climate change-Implications and Adaptation” AHKNRD, Islamabad, Pakistan, 31 May to 04 June, 2021
  • Online International Training Programme on “A Panorama of Affordable Innovative, Technologies and Solutions for Rural Development” at IIT Madras (IITM), India on 22 March – 01 April, 2021
  • International Online Training Programme on “Recent Advances in Agricultural Surveys: Remote Sensing and GIS Applications”, ICAR-Indian Agricultural Statistics Research Institute (IASRI), New Delhi, India, 16-26 March, 2021 
  • Online Internation Training Programme on “Natural Resource Management and Climate Change Adaptation”, National Institute of Rural Development & Panchayati Raj (NIRD&PR), Hyderabad, India, 15-24 February, 2021

 

B. Meeting/Conference

 

  • Meeting of Dr. Manoj Nardeosingh, Secretary General, AARDO with Minister (Rural Development) on 25th October, 2021 at 12.30 P.M. at Krishi Bhawan
  • 77th Session of Liaison Committee (LC) of AARDO was held on Thursday, 07th October, 2021 at 07th October, 2021.
  • Seventy Second (72nd) Session of Executive Committee (EC) of AARDO was held on 24-25 November, 2021.
  • Seventy Third (73rd) Session of Executive Committee (EC) of AARDO was held on 06-07 December, 2021.
  • 20th General Session of AARDO Conference was held on 08-09 December, 2021.
  • Seventy Fourth (74th) Session of Executive Committee (EC) of AARDO was held on 10 December, 2021.

 

C. MoU

 

  • This Ministry had provided additional contribution of USD 6,00,000 (USD 2,00,000 per annum) for the triennium 2009-2011 and the same has been extended for the triennium 2012-2014 and 2015–2017. Additional contribution for the triennium 2021-23 has been signed on 03 December, 2021. Under this programme, five fully funded slots of PGDRDM course of one year in NIRD and eight fully funded training programmes. India has conferred Ambassador Status to Secretary General, AARDO.

 

D. Membership Contribution

 

  • Payment of Rs. 1, 00, 00,000/- equivalent to US $ 1,34,862 at the exchange rate of US$ 1 = INR 74.15 (subject to fluctuation), to the African-Asian Rural Development Organization (AARDO), Chanakyapuri, New Delhi on account of 1st Installment of India’s annual membership contribution for the calendar year 2021.
  • Payment of Rs. 68,00,000/- to the Centre on Integrated Rural Development for Asia and the Pacific (CIRDAP), Dhaka, Bangladesh on account of 1st Installment of India’s annual membership contribution for the calendar year 2021.