Highlights of PMs speech at Vibrant Gujarat Summit, January 11, 2015,

Gandhinagar

On this occasion, I express my gratitude to the old partners of this event - both
countries and organisations. These include Japan and Canada. Without their
support, this event could not have come this far.
I also welcome warmly and thank new partners like USA, UK, Netherlands, Australia,
Singapore and South Africa for joining this event. I particularly thank the Secretary
General of the United Nations and the President of the World Bank for their
presence. It shows their commitment towards progress and prosperity in emerging
economies.
Your partnership has enhanced the enterprising spirit of 60 million Gujaratis. It has
boosted the morale of 1.2 billion Indians. This event is perhaps the biggest
gathering on earth where, a budding entrepreneur has the opportunity to see the
President of the World Bank. And where a young farmer, dreaming to set up a food
processing unit, can listen to the views of the UN Secretary General on issues like
food security. That is why, during one of the previous events, I had called it Davos
in Action.
Friends! India has always believed that the whole world is one family (Vasudhaiva
Kutumbakam). Few have seen this in practice. I am informed that more than
hundred countries are participating in this event.
We are here as a family not only in terms of space, but also because we recognise
that
Someones dream is dependent on someones direction;
Someones success is related to someones support;
Someones curiosity is linked to someones care;
This is what a family does. The ultimate objective is welfare of all. Loka Samastah

Sukhinau Bhavantu.
I am sure all of us, from the Secretary General of UN to the President of the World
Bank, from leaders of the strongest economies to delegations of small countries,
from CEOs of Fortune 500 companies to start-up entrepreneurs, all want the planet
earth to become a better place to live.
Thus, our meeting here is not just A meeting of hands but also of hearts;
It is not only a meeting of ideas, but also of aspirations
As a host to this family gathering,
As a curator of thousands of dreams floating here,
I welcome you all once again.
I hope your stay here is comfortable. I trust you will enjoy our hospitality. This is the
time of Kite Festival in Gujarat. This festival gives us the message of high spirits. Do
participate in it.
Friends! After becoming Prime Minister, I have travelled to the remotest parts of
India and also to various parts of the world. I have been to the UN, BRICS, ASEAN,
East Asian Summit, G-20 and SAARC summits. Some common worries have been
expressed everywhere. The biggest concern is about the global economy. We all
have to find ways for its stability and recovery. We also have to work for sustainable
and inclusive growth.
We, in India, believe that problems present us with opportunities to become
stronger, disciplined and innovative.
My Government is trying to generate confidence. We have prepared a team to
secure a robust future. We believe that changes start with a change in mindset.

Friends! It is a matter of great pride that today, there is tremendous interest in

India. Countries are coming forward to work with us. This has, of course, generated
expectations from us.
Indias present as well as its rich past is being recognised. I thank the UN Secretary
General for giving a formal international stature to Yoga. A record number of 177
countries supported the Indian proposal. Yoga is both a science and an art for
improving human life. In todays world, it teaches us to remain stable even in
adverse situations. Friends, the 2009 edition of this event created vibrancy when
the state of the global economy was depressing. The summits of 2011 and 2013
succeeded in strengthening investor confidence.
It is only because of persistence with positivity that this event of Gujarat
Government has become an event for the entire country. This platform has been
enlarged so that other states too can take advantage. Today, many other states
have adopted this approach. The Government of India is committed to support such
initiatives by any state government.
Friends! We will have to change the way we have been approaching problems.
Recession is often seen just in the context of business and Industry.
Have we ever thought of recession as being the result of low per capita income in
countries where a majority of the global population lives?
Have we ever thought of its solution in terms of enhancing the common mans
employability, income and purchasing power? This is the biggest task at hand in
India. Mahatma Gandhi rightly talked about the last man. And Gandhijis message
can show us the way. It is therefore appropriate that this summit is taking place in
Mahatma Mandir.
An excellent multimedia exhibition on the life of the Mahatma has been set up in
Dandi Kutir nearby. It portrays the life journey of Gandhiji in brief. In addition, just a
few steps away from here, there is a world class mega exhibition which showcases
products and services by leading companies from India and abroad. I am sure you

will not miss the chance to see these magnificent exhibitions.

To me, the best outcome of this event should be inclusiveness and involvement of
communities needing care and development.
Thus, this event stands for Inclusiveness of small with big;
Inclusiveness of poor with rich;
Inclusiveness of gut feelings with mature thoughts
I assure this global platform that India wants to work with the global leadership. Be
they issues of poverty or ecology, we want to contribute to welfare of the global
community. We are aware that with one sixth of the worlds population, our
activities will have a global impact. We are ready to learn and make this impact
positive.
However, India has to be seen from a different angle. It is not just a country of
today. It is also an old civilisation. It is not just a country of a few cities. It is a
country of thousands of towns and several hundred thousand villages. It is a country
of diverse communities. Therefore, India has its own solutions for many pressing
problems.
Our philosophy is a philosophy of conservation;
Our culture teaches us nurturing of nature;
Our way of life is that of harnessing

You may be aware that our economic growth had slowed down during the last few
years. Now, my Government is putting all efforts to ensure faster and yet inclusive
growth. The initial results are encouraging.
On the economic front, during the first two quarters, we registered a growth rate

which was one percent higher than the previous year. The IMF has observed that
India will be the 2nd fastest growing economy in the coming years.
According to the latest forecast of the OECD, India would be the only country among
world`s top economies which would increase its pace of growth this year. HSBC`s
latest report has identified India as the world`s largest growing exporter, which is
set to move from being the fourteenth to the fifth largest exporter in the world by
2030.

We are planning to build smart cities equipped with world-class amenities. For this
purpose, we have further liberalized the FDI policy in construction sector.
I announced that a modern rail system including high speed rails will be set up.
Immediately, we opened up railways for 100% FDI. I announced that defence
production in the country would be encouraged. The next step was to open the
defence sector for FDI up to 49%. We have taken similar steps in many other areas.
These include bringing 49% FDI in insurance. It also includes liberalization of FDI
norms for manufacturing of medical devices.

In order to execute the infrastructure plan, a fast track PPP mechanism is being put
in place.
We are undertaking the Sagarmala project to ensure port led development. Existing
ports are being modernized. New world class ports will be developed along India`s
coast. Ports will be better connected to the hinterland through road and rail. Inland
and coastal waterways will be developed as major transport routes. Low cost
airports are being planned to improve regional connectivity, especially to tier-two
towns and places of economic and tourist importance.

Four months back, we launched Make In India initiative to encourage the growth of
manufacturing in the country. We are working hard to make India a global
manufacturing hub. We are promoting, in particular, labour intensive manufacturing.

I have launched these initiatives in a campaign mode so that they force us in the
Government to make faster corrections. They challenge us to do away with the red
tape and become pro-active. With this purpose, our applications and processes are
being aggressively put online.
Ease of doing business in India is a prime concern for you and us I assure you that
we are working very seriously on these issues We want to make them:
Not only easier than earlier;
Not only easier than the rest;
But, we want to make them the easiest
Friends! Many of you might be interested to know - Why India? India has three
things to its credit - Democracy, Demography and Demand. This is what you are
looking for.
And I am sure, you will not find all of them together at any other destination. India
offers you the potential of low cost manufacturing. India has low cost and high
quality manpower. 65% of our population is below 35 years of age. We are trying to
further harness these strengths through better management and good governance.
In the recently launched Mars Orbiter Mission, everything was made indigenously. In
fact, most mission components were made in very small factories.
Friends! We have large number of hands to work. And, we have even larger number

of dreams to be realised. Therefore, employment opportunities are being enhanced

by promoting manufacturing, agro-based industries, tourism as well as services. We
have undertaken labour reforms to encourage enterprise and to create a bigger job
market for our youth.
I have always said that development process should benefit the common man as
well as the business sector.
Therefore, my Government has established a new Ministry for skill development to
enhance our human resource potential. For this, we are placing equal emphasis on
knowledge, technology, innovation and research and development. This includes
the use of ICT for improving governance and resource management. I understand
this because I use modern tools of communication myself.
Friends! Today, India is a land of opportunities. We have to build fast track roads and
railways. We have to energise homes and factories on a continuous basis. We have
to build infrastructure for cities where almost half of our population lives. We have
to take the taste of modern amenities to every village. We have to propel our
growth through value addition in our natural resources and agri-produce. We have
to provide services to our people which are of global standards. At the same time,
the whole world is looking for certain services. If our human resource can be
equipped with skills and technology, we may serve the world in many areas.
Thus, there are immense possibilities for global investors in India. The process of
development we are taking up is not incremental. We are planning to take a
quantum leap. It is not limited to one sector or region, it is truly unlimited. And we
want to do things in a cleaner and greener way. We are open to ideas, investments
and innovations:
Friends!
We have made commitments to our people
We have made commitments to ourselves
We have made commitments for Indias great future

 We have to write our new destiny

And we have to write it in a very short time
We know that to do this, we need an enabling policy framework. We are working
constantly to improve it further.
However, I can say with confidence that even today, the strength of Indian
democracy and independence of our judicial system provide a level playing field for
long lasting business.
I would conclude by saying that We are dreaming big;
And our dreams are numerous;
Our dreams can become the seeds of your growth;
Our aspirations can propel your ambitions
Friends! on behalf of the Government, let me give an assurance. We assure you that
we will be available to hold your hands whenever you need us. You will find us
standing with you in your journey. If you walk one step; we will walk two steps for
you.
At the end, I urge you to see and realise for yourself that India is changing fast;
India is growing fast;
India is moving faster than expected;
India is learning even faster;
India is ready than ever before
Let us join hands! Let us work together for progress, prosperity and peace.
Idukki in Kerala Becomes the First District of India with Complete Rural
Broadband Coverage

With the commissioning of the NOFN network, Idukki district of Kerala has become
the first in India to be connected with high speed rural broadband
The establishment of NOFN would open up new avenues for Access service
providers such as Telecom Service Providers, Internet Service Providers, and Cable
TV operators, Content Providers etc. to launch next generation services and spur
creation of local employment opportunities in a big way.
Prakash Javdekar Announces Water Literacy Mission for Water
Conservation
Union Minister of Environment Mr. Prakash Javdekar today announced that
Government is going to launch Water Literacy Mission to ensure Water
Conservation. Speaking on Water Security, Climate Change and Sustainable
Development in a seminar at Vibrant Gujarat Global Investors Summit at Mahatma
Mandir, Gandhinagar today, he said that public awareness is most needed for water
conservation and for protection of natural resources. He added that no act or law
could ensure this target if not taken up by people as a mass movement.
He said that rejuvenation of Ganga is a step ahead towards cleanliness and added
that we should emphasize on pollution free rivers in addition to expand concept of
linking of rivers. He advocated linking of paralleled rivers Godavari and Krishna of
South India too.
Centre taking Major steps to Improve Investment Climate in the Country
The Finance Minister said that in the near future, GST could become a reality and
further improve the investment climate. Tourism would gain by e-visas and 24 hour
custom services at Airports and Seaports will smoothen trading activity. He said that
banks would be given more independence in management In conclusion, he said
that India must stand in the first row for investment after learning from its recent
mistakes.
Module Released on the Occasion of 152nd Birth Anniversary of Swami
Vivekananda

The Secretary, School Education and Literacy, Ministry of Human Resource

Development, Ms.Vrinda Sarup, inaugurated the National Lecturer Series organised
by the National Council for Teacher Education (NCTE) in New Delhi today. A module
on Swami Vivekananda entitled Swami Vivekananda and Education:
Empowering Teacher Educators prepared by NCTE, an autonomous body under
the Ministry of Human Resource Development was also formally released on this
occasion.
In this Series, NCTE in order to offer effective coverage of the ideas has decided to
organise lecturers and workshops all through the year, on great thinkers of the
country. Some of them who figure in the list are: Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, Bharat
Ratan Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya, Bharat Ratna Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, Sri
Aurobindo and Sant Kabir etc.
Modi Government is Committed to Provide Affordable and Clean Power
24x7 for all
Speaking at a seminar Sustainable Energy for All on the sidelines of Vibrant
Gujarat, in Gandhinagar today, the Union Minister of State for Power, Coal and New
& Renewable Energy, Shri Piyush Goyal said that his government led by Prime
Minister Shri Narendra Modi is committed to delivering 24x7 power for all. This
requires significant augmentation of energy generation, effective transmission and
distribution system and finally efficient consumption. At the same time, he
reiterated that commitment to economic development and concern for
environment, go hand in hand.
Energy for all is at the centre of all plans. India is enormously energy starved, since
average per capita consumption is just a tinge over 900 units per year versus
Gujarat at 1,800 units and developed countries at 15,000 a year. 280 million people
in 56 million homes are bereft of any electricity whatsoever. Further, a large number
of people who are connected to the grid, receive sporadic and inconsistent
electricity in many states of India. He hoped to make a long-lasting, transformative
impact on the lives of millions of fellow Indians.
In the last 7 months, since assuming office, the govt. has focused on increasing

production of key inputs for power generation. The action plan for doubling
production of Coal India Limited to 1 billion tons in 5 years is ready. His Ministry is
tripling exploration, investing $1 Billion for 250 additional rakes and expediting
evacuation (particularly, 3 critical railway lines which can evacuate 200 million
tons). Within a month of the Supreme Court`s judgment cancelling 204 coal blocks,
the centre promulgated an ordinance and the auction process has already begun in
the most transparent e-bidding format. This will help in augmentation of domestic
production and go a long way in eliminating the need to import thermal coal, at
great cost to the exchequer. The govt. has also initiated a coal linkage
rationalization exercise to link plants with their nearest coal mines to ensure
minimum transportation of coal, unclog railway network, reduce ash related
damage to the environment and pass-on the savings of approx. $1 billion to the
consumers. The first swap has already been completed between Gujarat and NTPCSipat in Chhattisgarh, saving the consumers, particularly Gujarat, $50 million. This
idea was received from Saurabhbhai Patel, Minister for Energy & Petrochemicals &
Finance, Government of Gujarat. This govt. was going for compulsory crushing and
washing of coal, to further minimize ash transportation, and taking up afforestation
programs at scale. Beside initiating studies to ensure that rivers stay perennial,
wherever a hydro project has been planned or is already in operation.
The minister said the centre was laying_ unprecedented thrust on renewable
sources of energy for the long-term energy security of India to meet our
commitment to preserve the environment. Thomas Alva Edison in 1931 in
conversation with Henry Ford and Harvey Firestone said: "We are like tenant farmers
chopping down the fence around our house for fuel when we should be using
Nature`s inexhaustible sources of energy-sun, wind and tide. I`d put my money on
the sun and solar energy. What a source of power! I hope we don`t have to wait
until oil and coal run out before we tackle that." The govt. has quintupled the solar
energy target to 100,000 MW by 2022 and have a clear roadmap to achieve this
ambitious target he said. Of this, 40,000 MW will be rooftop solar, where millions of
people will become micro-entrepreneurs and sell to the grid, thereby augmenting
their income and reducing power bills, since they will only have to pay the "net"
amount. Similarly, the govt. is tripling wind power generation capacity to 60,000
MW. India will become one of the principal markets for renewable energy

development in the near future. The Unnatchulhaabhiyaan is an innovative clean

cookstove programme, which functions on biomass and renewable fuels, and will
save women and children from carcinogenic fumes emanating when traditional fuels
are burned.

India`s carbon dioxide emissions are 1.64 tons per capita as against 16-17 tons per
capita in many countries of the developed world. Considering the large population,
in the aggregate the carbon footprint seems quite big. However, one must
appreciate that India is at the cusp of its development cycle taking off and has to
rapidly expand its infrastructure, home building programes affordable energy
generation etc. Millions of people have to be brought out of poverty and access to
education, healthcare and equal job opportunities need to be accelerated. Hence it
is essential to calibrate the environment protection program to our development
needs, the minister said. Renewable energy sources and energy efficient
technologies feature prominently are in the agenda, but "energy access for all" is
the first step. Also, from a cost perspective, while the trajectory of renewables looks
promising, at present, thermal power is indeed the cheapest source of energy
generation. For a country whose per-capita GDP is a modest $1,500, it unreasonable
to burden the common man with significantly higher costs in the present,
considering the large investments required; while major polluters in the world have
not done so themselves during their own development period. The Centre believes
it is only fair to have a reciprocal and just arrangement inter-se the developed and
developing countries of the world.
Shri Piyush Goyal said, while generation is obviously important, a strong
infrastructure in transmission and distribution is equally essential. Unfortunately,
this sector has remained historically under-invested. The government has launched
two flagship schemes - the Deen Daya lUpadhyay Gram JyotiYojana (DDUGJY) and
Integrated Power Development Scheme (IPDS), with central government grants of
$18 billion.
He added, DDUGJY was inspired by the pioneering initiative of the Gujarat
Government (Jyoti Gram Yojana). It will focus on feeder segregation in rural areas,

proper metering of usage and strengthening sub- transmission & distribution

infrastructure including replacement of suboptimal and burnt out transformers, so
that farmers receive adequate power and rural homes and small-scale industries
receive 24x7 power. Moreover, remote villages with small population will also be
connected to the grid, where feasible, or will be provided power through off-grid and
micro-grid solutions powered by renewable energy.
National Seminar on Nourishment of Tribal Children to be held at
Bhubaneswar
A national conclave would be held at Bhubaneswar on 15th and 16th of this month
to work out strategies for properly nourishing tribal children who suffer from chronic
under-nutrition. The conclave on Nourishing India`s Tribal Children: Voices of
Frontliners,Good Practices and Policy Implications has been jointly organized by
Ministry of Tribal Affairs,Govt.of India, Govt.of Odisha and UNICEF. Union Minister for
Tribal Affairs Shri jual Oram and Chief Minister of Odisha Shri Naveen Patnaik will be
attending the conclave besides large number of participants.
This conclave brings together frontline workers, practitioners, State and District
officials from Departments of Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe, Women and
Child Development, Health and Family Welfare, representatives from the Tribal
Research Institutes of various States as well as the Ministry of Tribal Affairs and
UNICEF. Together theyt will take stock of the nutrition situation of India`s tribal
children, discuss what works and how and how Departments of various States can
coordinate, contribute and collaborate for reducing stunting in India`s tribal
children. The Conclave will chart a road map for these States for improving access
to food, nutrition, health and sanitation services for children in tribal pockets and
solidify all stakeholders` commitment toward nourishing India`s tribal children. The
states are Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh,
Maharashtra, Odisha, Rajasthan and Telangana.
The need to organise the conclave was felt in view of high level of chronic under
nutrition or stunting which contributes to one-third of under-five child deaths.

The focus will be to collectively identify gaps and good practices and prepare a
roadmap for improving access of tribal children to food, nutrition, health and
sanitation that would improve their nutritional status.The participants would identify
implementation challenges in the National Tribal Policy and ensure better utilisation
of Tribal Sub Plan budgets. Core areas of discussion would be household food and
livelihood security, Integrated Child Development Services, health outreach and
referral, drinking water and sanitation, plans and budgets for improving service
delivery in tribal areas and engagement of civil society including academic
institution for improving service uptake
According to National Family Health Survey-3 (2005-06), India has the highest
number of stunted children globally and most of them are from tribal communities.
The conclave would find ways to ensure that the Tribal Sub Plan (TSP) becomes an
effective and dynamic tool to mobilise resources for tribal children`s needs in food,
nutrition and other developmental requirements. Participants would also discuss
how to strengthen Integrated Tribal Development Authority (ITDA) for inter-sectoral
coordination and monitoring of services in tribal areas.
. Stunting (too short for ones age) is an irreversible and chronic manifestation of
under nutrition. It contributes to one-third of under-five deaths. Stunting adversely
affects a childs survival, health, development, learning capacity, school
performance and his/her productivity in adulthood. . According to NFHS-3 (2005-06),
India houses the highest number of stunted children globally. Almost half of Indian
children are stunted with the prevalence being highest among children belonging to
scheduled tribes - Indias tribal people.
Stunting in tribal children, like that of all other children, is influenced by a multitude
of factors including household food insecurity, maternal nutrition, poor feeding and
care practices in the first two years of life and poor access to water, health and
sanitation services. The central focus of this conclave is to emphasize how various
government departments in various states can coordinate, contribute and
collaborate for reducing stunting in Indias tribal children.
The main purpose of the seminar is to collectively identify gaps and good practices,

and chart a road map for improving access to food, nutrition, and health and
sanitation services for children in tribal pockets and solidify all stakeholders
commitment toward tribal childrens development.
The seminar will have six thematic sessions on food and livelihood security; reach of
integrated child development services; outreach and referral of health services;
water and sanitation services; tribal budgets and plans; and role of development
agencies. Each thematic session will be facilitated by a technical expert in the
subject area. Around 150 delegates comprising experts, government officials,
practitioners and field workers from various states would be attending the conclave.

Smart Cities
Literature on smart cities has different definitions. We are keen to have own version of smart
cities keeping in view the contemporary problems in urban areas and emerging challenges like
reducing carbon emissions.
Contemporary issues in urban areas being urban mobility problems, inadequate water
and power supply, solid waste management, sanitation, lack of equity in access to resources like
land and public spaces, shrinking availability of land and above all, poor urban governance.
Urban areas being the seat of industrial, business and other economic activities and
coupled with high density of population, reducing adverse impact on environment through rising
pollution and carbon emissions is the major emerging challenge.
All those living in urban areas and in particular, the young, just born and still to be borne
have a fundamental right to a clean environment.
Youth and still to be borne also have a right to livelihood opportunities in urban areas. This
is particularly so because urban areas are seen as islands of opportunities.
It is in this context that our smart cities have a futuristic dimension.
Broadly, under smart cities initiative is to strengthen physical, social, economic and
institutional infrastructure for better living.
In other words, we intend to promote walk to work living, use of public transport instead
of private transport, easy access to educational, health and recreational facilities, 24 x 7 water
and power supply, cleanliness, participatory, citizen centric and responsive governance through
adoption of ICT platforms, reduced energy consumption etc.

In nutshell, our smart cities shall be financially and ecologically sustainable so that future
generations are not deprived of their right to quality living.
I know, it is easier said than done. In my view, what is more fundamental to better urban
planning and management is smart leadership. We need leadership in urban areas who can
adopt realistic approach towards collection of taxes and recovery of cost of utilities and ensure
effective urban governance.
Being aware of the magnitude of the challenge of ensuring a turn around in our urban
planning and governance to make urban areas as growth engines, soon after assuming office, I
have convened a National Conclave of Urban Development Ministers. After two days of intense
deliberations, for the first time, a National Declaration was adopted under which states have
committed to implement a set of 25 identified urban reforms.
Further to the exhortations of our Prime Minister on converting growing urbanisatioin into
an economic opportunity, a new consciousness has just begun to take roots. We need to take this
forward to realize desired outcomes.
Smart cities do not just mean building sky scrapers, constructing glossy buildings and
constructing wide roads for private vehicles to zoom up and down.
On the other hand, we need to usher in new mindsets and governance approaches for better
management of limited resources to realize inclusivity and sustainability.
In my view, a smart city is not one where in everyone prefers to own a car but one where
even a car owner prefers to use public transport. In Barcelona, over 80% use public transport
while in Atlanta, it is the reverse. With similar population size, adverse impacts of Atlanta on
environment are five times that of Barcelona.
Regarding operational principles of building smart cities, we are looking at different ways
of doing so. One is Retrofitting. Under this, infrastructure deficiencies will be addressed, like
building and widening of roads, laying water and electricity lines, providing public spaces,
promoting cycling, replacing halogen lights with LED bulbs, promoting solid waste management
etc.
The second way is Redevelopment under which identified areas would be rebuilt when the
existing conditions are just not amenable to improvement through retrofitting.
The third component being building new cities like the GIFT city and Dholera smart city
in Gujarat.
UN Secretary General calls on President
The President said it was true there are divergences on the reforms. But the UN has
been created to iron out these divergences and find solutions acceptable to the

large section of the international community. Reforms of the United Nations should
be advanced at least in the 70th year of the UN. India hopes and counts upon the
UN Secretary Generals leadership and persuasive skills to steer the discussions for
urgent reform of the UN.

The President expressed his happiness that the international community is working
to finalise a set of SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals) and a comprehensive
post-2015 development agenda. He said tackling the issue of global warming or
climate change requires both serious national action and genuine international
collaboration. Despite huge development challenges, India is undertaking ambitious
climate actions including through lowering of the energy intensity of its economic
growth, increasing energy efficiency across sectors and making greater use of
renewable energy. Pointing out that India became a member of the UN in 1945 even
before we attained independence, the President said Indian Armed Forces
participate in 10 out of the 16 UN peacekeeping mission with 8000 plus troops and
police personnel. India is firm in its commitment to the UN Charter and support of
the UN system.
The UN Secretary General expressed appreciation for the contributions of India to
peace keeping operations and the promotion of global democracy. He pointed out
that India was the second largest donor to the Democracy Fund, next only to the
United States. He also congratulated India for the measures being taken for gender
empowerment and appreciated the fact that 25% of the Cabinet were women. He
said he was aware of the aspirations of many countries including India for reforms of
the UN and their desire to play a leadership role in the UN Security Council. The UN
Security Council must become effective, representative, democratic and
transparent.
Union Agriculture Minister Emphasises On Efficient Water Management
Through Convergance Of Resources Of Various Ministries
Shri Singh said that heavy subsidies in electricity consumed for agriculture have
tended to encourage wasteful use of energy and also wasteful use of water. This has
also encouraged farmers to overdraw water from deep aquifers, thus causing water
quality deterioration in many cases. Despite huge significance of ground water in

agriculture growth, it is heading for crisis and needs urgent understanding and
attention, he added.
Agartala likely to be gateway to implement Act East Policy: Nirmala
Sitharaman

Tripura located in an advantageous position in respect of strategic, diplomatic and economic

relations with Bangladesh is likely to become the gateway in tandem with implementation of the
Act East policy adopted by the Government of India. The Minister of State (Independent
Charge) for Commerce & Industry Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman said this today during the
inauguration of the first Border Haat set up along Indo-Bangladesh international border at
Srinagar, a bordering village in South Tripura.
She said the Centre intended to move for development of Bangladesh through Tripura. Smt.
Sitharaman assured to look into the matter to expedite building the bridge over Feni river. She
said the Centre is looking forward to the North-East as the threshold to reach the South-East
Asian countries. Later in the afternoon, Smt. Sitharaman visited the Integrated Check Post at
Akhaura border at Agartala and enquired about the position of the ICP.
Chief Minister Shri Manik Sarkar made a plea to the governments of both countries to provide
transit facility using Ashuganj and Chittagong sea ports in Bangladesh. He said if allowing
transit facility is not possible, trans-shipment facility could be taken into consideration and that
would closer friendly relations between two sides. In the function, Mr. Tofail Ahmed conveyed
his governments thanks and gratitude to the Government of India. On the issue of border
disputes, Shri Sarkar said the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi is keen to address these issues.

Green building of the Environment Ministry showcased to the UN Secretary

General Shri Prakash Javadekar meets UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon

The Minister for Environment, Forests and Climate Change, Shri Prakash Javadekar today met
the UN Secretary General, Mr. Ban Ki-moon at the New Paryavarn Bhavan Building. Shri
Javadekar showcased to the Secretary General salient features of the Green Building and

highlighted that the design philosophy of the New Paryavaran Bhavan focused on increasing
the efficiency of resource usage i.e. energy, water and materials while minimizing the impact of
the building on Human Habitat and the Environment.

Shri Javadekar further said that this had been achieved through careful site planning,
most appropriate building form and very low effluent disposal and energy production on-site.
The objective was to have a Green Building with a state of art modern amenities and comfort
with Intelligent Building Management System which optimizes the energy consumption.
The basic design concept of the project was to have a NET ZERO ENERGY consuming green
building. It was expected to be the flag bearer for Green Buildings. The building has the
highest green building rating of 5star of GRIHA of Ministry of New & Renewable Energy and
also Platinum rating of LEED India of Indian Green Building Council.

The architectural design of the building is primarily based on following concepts.

Preservation of maximum possible number of trees standing over the site

Solar Passive Architecture with proper orientation and shading of Fenestrations

Appropriate building envelope design with envelope insulation to reduce heat intake.

Use of permanent, durable and local materials such as sand stone on exterior face, low

heat transmission glass, reflective roofing, etc.

Priority for pedestrians in the front, with vehicular access on the sides of the building

Reduction of conventional lighting load by ensuring 75% day-light use

Natural ventilation due to stack effect

The building is designed in such a way that there is free ventilation across the entire

building.
Energy Conservation Measures
o

Many energy conservation measures have been adopted to optimize the

overall design load.

o

Utilization of High Efficiency Solar Panels to achieve Net Zero criteria.

Energy efficient T-5 and LED fixtures

o

Innovative chilled beam system for cooling

Pre-cooling of fresh air from exhaust using heat recovery wheel in order to

reduce load on chiller plant

o

Water cooled chillers

Double skin air handling units with variable frequency drives

Geo thermal heat exchange technology used for heat rejection from Air-

conditioning system.
o

Innovative energy saving regenerative lifts which have been installed for the

first time in government institutional building.

Canadian Delegation meets Shri Bandaru Dattatreya

The Minister of labour and Minister of Women Canada, Dr. Kellie Leitch met the
Union Minister of State for Labour and employment (Independent charge) Shri
Bandaru Dattatreya today at Shram Shakti Bhawan, New Delhi. The two sides
agreed to work on a number of areas of mutual interest in the field of Labour
including capacity building for mediation and conciliation and promoting joint
certification for skilled workforce in the two countries.

Canada and India have longstanding bilateral relations, built upon shared traditions
of democracy, pluralism and the presence of a significant indo-canadian population
has strengthened the bond. India and Canada has also developed a mutual
understanding and partnership at various International labour Fora including ILO
and G-20. With the proposed visit of the Prime Minister of India to Canada in, both
are confident that the relationship will reach new heights.
Ministry of Labour and Employment is focusing on good governance in labour
issues. The Government is working on enhancing transparency, ease of compliance
and efficient compliance through better and effective use of technology. A Unified
Labour Web Portal (Shram Suvidha Portal) has been developed in Central Sphere
which provides a simplified single online return by the Industry for 16 labour Laws.
Through effective use of technology, government is trying to promote industrial
peace and harmony and to have a conducive environment for inclusive growth and
industrial development. To bring in more transparency and accountability in the
labour inspection system, Government of India has launched a Formal Labour
Inspection Scheme. Under the Scheme, a computerized list of inspections is to be
generated based on risk- based criteria as per respective labour Acts. Minister said
that we look forward to mutual cooperation in capacity building in labour and
sharing of good practices. The Minister added that conciliation and mediation is an
area where we would like to associate with Canada for capacity building.
For meeting the skill needs of our industry and for enhancing employability of our
youth, Ministry of Labour & Employment has taken several initiatives for qualitative
and quantitative improvement in the area of vocational training. Skill portability has
been recognised as an effective policy tool to address the demand supply balance
for skilled labour across globe. The Ministry is open to exploring the possibility
working with Canada on the issue of customisation of curriculum and portability of
certification under our new policy of flexi-MoU. Minister also mentioned the
initiatives being bilaterally addressed with other countries mainly Germany and
Australia and invited Canadian Government to partner in setting up of National
workers Vocational Institute. The two sides agreed to take forward the agenda in a
focussed and targeted manner.

Government Promulgates the Mines and Minerals (Development and

Regulation) (Amendment) Ordinance, 2015

The Government has promulgated an Ordinance on Monday, the 12th January, 2015 (MMDR
Amendment Ordinance, 2015) under Article 123(1) of the Constitution. This amends certain
provisions of MMDR Act, 1957.
The promulgation of Ordinance became necessary to address the emergent problems in the
mining industry. In the last few years, the number of new Mining Leases granted in the country
have fallen substantially. In addition, second and subsequent renewals have also been affected by
Court judgements. As a result, the output in the mining sector has come down drastically, leading
to import of minerals by users of those minerals. The salient provisions of the Ordinance are
listed separately in a page placed below.
Removalofdiscretion;auctiontobesolemethodofallotment
Essentially, Government intended to remove discretion in grant of mineral concessions. All
mineral concessions are granted by the respective State Governments. They will continue to do
so but all grant of mineral concessions would be through auctions, thereby bringing in greater
transparency and removing of discretion. This should also mean that the Government will get an
increased share from the mining sector. Unlike in the 1957 Act, there would be no renewal of any
mining concession. The tenure of the mineral concession have been increased from the existing
30 years to 50 years. Thereafter, the Mining Lease would be put up for auction (and not for
renewal as in the earlier system).
Impetustotheminingsector
The mining industry have been aggrieved due to the second and subsequent renewals remaining
pending. In fact, this has led to closure of large number of mines. The Ordinance addresses this
issue also. Government has kept in mind that interest of Mining Lease holders should not be
adversely affected. Therefore, Sub-Section 5 and 6 of Section 8(a) of the Ordinance provides that
the Mining Leases would be deemed to be extended from the date of their last renewal to 31st
March, 2030 (in the captive miners) and till 31st March, 2020 (for the merchant miners) or till the
completion of the renewal already granted, if any, whichever is later. Thus, no Mining Lease
holder is likely to be put into any disadvantaged condition. It is expected that this would
immediately permit such closed mines to start their operations.
Safeguardinginterestofaffectedpersons
There is provision to establish District Mineral Foundation (DMF) in the districts where mining
takes place. This is designed to address the long time grievance of the civil society with people
affected by mining are not cared for. There is seprate provision for contribution to the DMF not
exceeding 1/3rd of the royalty rate in the respective minerals.

Encouragingexplorationandinvestment
Indian mining industry has not seen the type of exploration as in other countries. To address this,
the Ordinance proposes to setup a National Mineral Exploration Trust created out of contribution
from the mining lease holders. This would allow the Government to have a dedicated fund for
undertaking exploration. In addition, the transferability provision (in respect of Mining Leases to
be granted through auction) would permit flow of greater investment to the sector and increasing
the efficiency in mining.
Simplificationofprocedureandremovalofdelay
In respect of ten minerals in Part C of First Schedule (like iron ore, manganese, bauxite, copper,
gold, etc.), State Government needed to obtain the prior approval of the Central Government
before grant of mineral concession. The amendment removes the need for such prior
approval from the Central Government, thereby making the process quicker and simpler.
Similarly, approval of mining plan by the Government would no longer be mandatory as a
provision has been added under 5(2)(b) permitting the State Governments to devise a system for
filing of a mining plan obviating need for approval by the Government. The Ordinance also
provides that the tenure of any Mining Lease would now be 50 years in place of 30 years in the
existing Act. Further, central government has been given powers to intervene where state
governments do not pass orders within prescribed timelines. This will eliminate delay.

Strongerprovisionsforcheckingillegalmining

In order to bring a check on illegal mining, the penal provisions have been made further
stringent. Higher penalties and jail terms have been provided in the ordinance. Further, a
provision has been made for constitution of special courts by the state govt. for fast-track trial of
cases related to illegal mining.
The salient provisions of the Ordinance are as follows:
Allmineralconcessionswillbegrantedonlythroughauction{Section10B&11}.
Directauctionforminingleasesforbulkminerals;auctionofprospectinglicencescum
miningleasesfordeepseatedminerals{Section10B&11}.
Uniformleaseperiodof50years;norenewals;auctionattheendofleaseperiod;willsolve
issuesarisingoutofallSCjudgmentsonsecondandsubsequentrenewals{Section8A(1),(2),
(3)and(4)}.

 Transitionperiodofminimum15yearsforcaptiveminesand5yearsforothermines;no
suddenstoppageasaresultofamendment{Section8A(5)and8A(6)}.CentralGovernment
empoweredtoprescribedeadlinesforvariousprocessesandtoissuebindingdirectionstoStates
{Section20A}.
CentralGovernmenttoframeseparaterulesforatomicminerals{AmendmenttoSection11
(B)}.
ThepreviousapprovaloftheCentralGovernmentwillnotberequiredforgrantofmineral
concessionexceptforAtomicMinerals,CoalandLignite{AmendmenttoSection5(1)}.
Enablingpowersforreservationforthepublicsectortocontinue{Section17A(2A)}.
Higherpenaltiesandjailtermsforoffences;specialcourtsmaybeconstituted,ifnecessary
{AmendmenttoSection21(1)&(2)}..
DistrictMineralFoundationtotakecareofpeopleandareasaffectedbymining{Section9
(B)}.
NationalMineralExplorationTrusttobesetupforimpetustoexploration{Section9(C)}.
Easytransferabilityofconcessionsobtainedthroughauctionssoastoattractprivate
investmentandFDI{Section12(A)}.
PowerstoCentralGovernmenttointerveneevenwhereStateGovernmentsdonotpassorders
withinprescribedtimelines;thiswilleliminatedelay{AmendmenttoSection30}.
Possible areas of cooperation between Kyoto and Varanasi discussed
The similarities between the Japanese city of Kyoto and the Indian city of Varanasi
and the probable areas of collaboration between the two cities were discussed in
detail today at the first meeting of the Steering Committee on Kyoto-Varanasi
Cooperation.
The similarities brought out included: both cities of tourism importance with Kyoto
attracting about 50 million tourists every year and Varanasi receiving about 5
million visitors, three rivers flowing through both the cities besides both being the
locations of rich cultural heritage with Kyoto being known as the city of one
thousand shrines and Varanasi as the temple town.
Three principles highlighted in respect of Kyotos initiatives were : conservation of

culture, radical changes in town planning, drastic reduction in garbage generation

and enhancing the appeal of citys cultural visibility through measures like banning
outdoor advertisements, river front development etc. The other measures taken by
Kyoto included : Bio-energy applications and Bio-fuel development, Waste to
energy, Life cycle greenhouse gas inventory of household waste, Application of
Ozone to municipal sewage treatment and waste water treatment.
Reviving the soul of Varanasi through organizing regular fairs based on the rich and
historical cultural traditions and creative skills of the people of the city were also
discussed.
Shri Venkaiah Naidu call for a five pronged strategy to meet water demand
(1) Create awareness among the people about the need for judicious use of and
conservation of water
(2) Inter-linking of rivers (Ganga Cauvery)
(3) Recycling and re-use of water
(4) Rain water harvesting
(5) Desalination plants for use of salt water
Shri Venkaiah Naidu said water is a scarce resource and every drop of available
water needs to be conserved. Stressing on the need to make rain water harvesting
mandatory, the Minister said, he intended to recommend to the States to make it a
mandatory provision while approving construction plans. He highlighted the need to
have check dams at various levels in rural areas.
Referring to the possibility of conflicts over water resources across the globe, Shri
Naidu called for international cooperation to meet water demand. He said, India has
a population of about 17% of the world but only 4% of water resources. In urban
areas, while the requirement is 135 litres. per person per day, only about 70 litres

are being provided.

He recalled that the inter-linking scheme was enunciated and a task force was set
up under Shri Suresh Prabhus leadership during the Vajpayeejis regime and that
the scheme was found technically suitable and financially viable. He said the
scheme would take care of the long term needs of the people and also address the
issues of floods, droughts and shortage of drinking water.
USAID, Bill & Milinda Gates Foundation to assist in Swachh Bharat Mission
in urban areas Sign Memoranda of Understanding and Cooperation with
UD Ministry Model City Sanitation System to be achieved in
Visakhapatnam on pilot basis with USAID support
As per the MoU, USAID will assist in:
1.Knowledge exchange and identification and sharing of best practices for water
and sanitation services:
This is aimed at effective knowledge transfer enabling more rapid delivery of
services. State and City level implementation staff will be provided with necessary
skills and incentives to deliver results under Swachh Bharat Mission and National
Urban Development Mission for 500 cities and towns.
2.Provision of targeted, demand driven technical assistance:
Under this, performance indicators and city ranking systems will be introduced for
incentivizing participation in Swachh Bharat Mission and triggering competition
between cities. USAID will provide a broad spectrum technical support to
demonstrate a fully functional sanitation system encompassing containment,
collection, transport, treatment, reuse and safe disposal of fecal waste in
Visakhapatnam.
3.Promoting Public-Private Partnerships:

Under this, USAID will assist in creating a profile consumer behavior and identify
behavior changes relating to purchase of toilets and related services besides
developing targeted and creative messaging for behavior changes to increase
demand for toilets and supply of sanitation products and services. USAID will assist
state governments in creating supporting regulatory environment for service
providers for operation and maintenance of community and public toilets.
USAID is likely to spend about US $ 2 million per year on these activities.
Under the Memorandum of Cooperation, Bill and Milinda Gates Foundation will:
1.Provide technical and management support and assistance in the implementation
of the Mission;
2.Fund National Level Program Management Unit for coordination of decentralized
and non-sewered sanitation solutions;
3.Award grants to organisations selected by the Ministry for delivering sanitation
services;
4.Release grant funds to grantees like NGOs, public or private organsiations
annually, based on satisfactory performance in respect of milestones specified;
5.Assist in capacity building for planning, project preparation, implementation and
management through training and skill development focusing on towns with
population of one to five lakhs located along the Ganga river at a cost of US $ 2.50
million per year;
6.Support IEC and Behavior change Communications; and
7.Extend Technology and Innovation support for Central Public Health Environmental
Engineering Office(CPHEEO) of the Ministry.
Speaking on the occasion, Shri Venkaiah Naidu said More than funds, changing

mindsets of the people towards safe sanitation practices and capacity building of
implementing agencies are the key issues to ensure a Clean India. The Government
is committed to Walk the Talk to realise the goals set under cleanliness mission in
the next five years. US cooperation will go a long way in this regard.
US Ambassador Shri Richard Verma said that India-US cooperation has exciting
prospects. On the eleventh day of being in India, I am delighted to be associated
with this partnership initiative in the area of sanitation which has significant
linkages with economic development.
Uma Bharti Underlines the Importance of Dissemination of Data on Water
Resources in Public Domain
India Water Week 2015 Inaugurated
Union Minister for Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation
Sushri Uma Bharti has said that dissemination of data in public domain constitutes
the most important aspect of the water resources management for peoples
participation and information sharing to increase transparency and public
awareness. Inaugurating the India Water Week 2015 here today she said, to fulfill
this objective the Central Water Commission in collaboration with National Remote
Sensing Centre of ISRO has launched the project Generation of database.
Sushri Bharti said our country has wide variation in water availability across various
river basins. While Ganga and Brahmaputra river basins are well endowed with
water, the basins in peninsular India are relatively water scarce and most of the
them have already reached the stage of full development. She said it is in this
context that the inter basin water transfer programme known as inter linking of
river has been conceived for transfer of water from surplus basins to deficit basins.
Sushri Bharti said The program is based on creating relatively large storage to
build resilience in the system and also provide an aggregate storage capacity
needed for the country in an area where the topography and geology provide
favourable condition. We will adopt a win-win strategy for implementation of the
programme.

During the week, Hamara Jal Hamara Jeewan initiative will be observed in every
district of the country. This will be an initiative to engage scientists, engineers,
water communities, PRIs, other stakeholders and NGOs to address the issues of
water resources planning at the local level and to generate awareness regarding
need for water conservation. Participation from school students will be an integral
part of the programme for sensitizing the next generation for water conservation.
This will also spread awareness regarding need to conserve water in the light of
growing water scarcity.
One day workshop will be organized in every district during the week to find
indigenous solution for meeting the water related demands and suggest future road
map to manage water for growth. During the workshop it is planned to prepare a
profile of each district covering its source of water, utilization for various uses and
constraint, possible local solutions for meeting the unsatisfied demands and future
roadmap to manage water for growth.
AFFORDABILITY OF HEALTH CARE IS A SERIOUS PROBLEM FOR VAST
MAJORITY OF POPULATION, ESPECIALLY IN TERTIARY CARE VICE
PRESIDENT

The Vice President of India Shri M. Hamid Ansari has said that affordabilityofhealthcareis
aseriousproblemforthevastmajorityofthepopulation,especiallyintertiarycare.Thelackof
extensiveandadequatelyfundedpublichealthservicespusheslargenumbersofpeopletoincur
heavyoutofpocketexpendituresonservicespurchasedfromtheprivatesector.Addressingat
5thFoundationDayand2ndConvocationoftheInstituteofLiverandBiliarySciences
heretodayhesaidthatHealthcareinfrastructuregapsremainsubstantialandareexacerbatedby
underutilisationofexistingresources.Thesituationisfurtheraggravatedbytheinequityin
healthcaredeliveryacrossstatesanddemographicsegments.Ruralareasareespeciallypoorly
served.Aroundseventypercentofourpopulationlivesinruralareasbutonlytwopercent
qualifieddoctorsareavailableintheseareas.
He expressed his concern that Healthcareworkforceremainsinadequateandunderutilised.
Regulatorystandardsforpublicandprivatehospitalsarenotadequatelydefinedand,inanycase,
areineffectivelyenforced.Awellfunctioningandeffectiveregulatorysystemisrequiredto
managethelargeanddiversesetofhealthcareserviceproviders.Theproblemsoutlinedabove
andsomemorearelikelytoworseninfuture.Healthcarecostsareexpectedtorisebecause,with
risinglifeexpectancy,alargerproportionofourpopulationwillbecomevulnerabletochronic
NonCommunicableDiseaseswhichtypicallyrequireexpensivetreatment.

The Vice President opined that the bulk of the population today relies upon private sector health
providers, paying amounts which they cannot afford, because of the inadequate reach of the
public sector. There must be substantial expansion and strengthening of the public sector health
care system if we are to meet the health needs of rural and even urban areas. As supply in the
public sector increases, it will free the vulnerable sections of society from dependence on high
cost and often unreachable private sector health care..
FollowingisthetextofVicePresidentsaddress:
Since its inception, the Institute of Liver and Biliary Sciences has emerged as a high-quality
super-specialty, medical and research institute, providing a high-class facility for diagnosis and
treatment in the field of Liver and Biliary Diseases. The Institute following a unique model of
university-based hospital and patient care has amalgamated teaching and research as its core
values.
I understand the Institute has treated thousands of patients suffering from liver disorders and has
performed the highest number of liver transplants amongst all government institutions in the
country. It has been declared by the World Health Organization as a Collaborative Centre on
Liver Diseases, the first such global centre. The Institute is also emerging as an acknowledged
centre for excellence for study and research in liver and biliary sciences.
The credit for these achievements goes collectively to the doctors, nurses, faculty, staff and the
leadership of the Institute whose professionalism, hard work and commitment have borne these
fruits. They are all worthy of our commendation and applause.
As we celebrate the achievements of the ILBS, we must remain cognisant of the fact that the
health outcomes and the quality of the underlying healthcare system in our country lags behind
peer nations. In 2000, the World Health Organizations global healthcare profile ranked Indias
healthcare system 112th out of 190 countries. Since then, concerted efforts have been made by the
Government and private sector but the outcomes have been mixed. India still lags behind other
comparable countries in most healthcare parameters.
While total healthcare spending as a percentage of GDP in India is comparable to other
developing countries, at similar levels of per capita income, public spending on health is very
low by any standard. Even the total healthcare spending is not commensurate to the increasing
demand for healthcare.
Affordability of health care is a serious problem for the vast majority of the population,
especially in tertiary care. The lack of extensive and adequately funded public health services
pushes large numbers of people to incur heavy out of pocket expenditures on services purchased
from the private sector.
Healthcare infrastructure gaps remain substantial and are exacerbated by underutilisation of
existing resources. The situation is further aggravated by the inequity in healthcare delivery
across states and demographic segments. Rural areas are especially poorly served. Around

seventy percent of our population lives in rural areas but only two percent qualified doctors are
available in these areas.
Healthcare workforce remains inadequate and underutilised.
Regulatory standards for public and private hospitals are not adequately defined and, in any case,
are ineffectively enforced. A well functioning and effective regulatory system is required to
manage the large and diverse set of healthcare service providers.
The problems outlined above and some more are likely to worsen in future. Healthcare costs are
expected to rise because, with rising life expectancy, a larger proportion of our population will
become vulnerable to chronic Non-Communicable Diseases which typically require expensive
treatment.
My intention in spelling out the myriad challenges before us in the healthcare sector was not to
devalue the work done or underestimate the progress made since independence. My purpose is to
underscore the unfinished agenda that is before us, especially for you all who work in this field.
In view of the large population size and the stark social and economic realities of our country, the
healthcare system, especially the doctors, have performed to the best of their ability. We are
thankful for the services rendered and proud of the work done by them.
However, much more needs to be done before we can attain our long-term objective of universal
health coverage, which has been defined as ensuring equitable access for all Indian citizens in
any part of the country, regardless of income level, social status, gender, caste or religion, to
affordable, accountable and appropriate, assured quality health services (promotive, preventive,
curative and rehabilitative), with the Government being the guarantor and enabler, although not
necessarily the only provider of health and related services.
The realisation of this objective will require filling the existing gaps in healthcare spending,
infrastructure and workforce by increasing significantly the resources deployed and better
utilisation of existing ones. Issues of availability, affordability and quality need to be addressed.
Our healthcare system will have to be prepared to cater to a much higher demand for healthcare
services as inclusive growth will raise incomes and living standards for all sections of society.
The bulk of the population today relies upon private sector health providers, paying amounts
which they cannot afford, because of the inadequate reach of the public sector. There must be
substantial expansion and strengthening of the public sector health care system if we are to meet
the health needs of rural and even urban areas. As supply in the public sector increases, it will
free the vulnerable sections of society from dependence on high cost and often unreachable
private sector health care.
The Institute of Liver and Biliary Sciences is a fine example of what the public sector can do
and must do in the actualization of our desired goal to have a universal health coverage and
thereby ensure healthy and economically productive population.

I once again complement all members of the Governing Council of the ILBS, Dr Sarin and his
entire team for making the coveted vision of establishing new super-speciality medical institute a
reality. I hope that the Institute would continue to deliver quality public and community health
care for all in the future and set a worthy example for other institutions to follow.
Let me conclude by leaving a thought for the graduating students. Gandhi ji said that the best
way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others. So, in the years ahead, remain
true to your Hippocratic Oath and take the opportunity your noble profession offers by rendering
selfless services to your fellow beings, especially those who are the neediest, irrespective of their
origin, economic status, caste or creed. By doing so, you will become better human beings and
even better professionals. You will also make the world a much better place for everyone to live
in.
India and US to Furher Strengthen their Ties in the Field of Electronic
Manufacturing and Information Technology
The USA, Under Secretary of State Ms. Catherine Novelli met the Minister for
Communications and Information Technology Shri Ravi Shankar Prasad last evening.

The Minister shared the Digital India vision with the Under Secretary and its broad
constituents namely- the digital infrastructure, digital delivery of services and digital
empowerment of citizens. He informed the Under Secretary about Idukki- the first
district where NOFN has been commissioned. The government is in the process of
digitizing the services of the states. We have launched Digital Literacy Mission to
educate the citizens about the usage of digital technology. He shared the recent
initiative of Jeevan Pramaan- a biometric identity based pension certification system
and the biometric attendance system. MyGov is a participative platform developed
for citizens to take active participation in the process of governance. Electronic
manufacturing is an area that this government is promoting in a big way. The
government has launched various incentives for promoting manufacturing in India.
The Under Secretary Ms. Novelli expressed that the companies from the USA are
very excited to join India in promoting manufacturing. But she felt that the
constraints of global supply chain must also be understood while promoting Make in
India. Minister assured the Under Secretary that if US companies are investing in
India, they will be treated at par with the Indian companies and they are not
subjected to any different conditions for investing in India. If they manufacture in

India, they not only sell their products in India but also export it to the rest of the
world and avail incentives.
The Minister shared that the Cyber Security is another area of great concern for
cooperation between India and the USA. He further raised the issue of governance
of Internet and net neutrality. The Under Secretary felt that the discussions on
internet governance has become more broad based and inclusive. There is a need
to have dialogues with engineers, IT professionals, companies, stakeholders. Net
neutrality is an area on which the US federal government has taken a firm stand
that we do not want any compromises on net neutrality. To this the Minister shared
that the Internet must promote local along with the global. For India, net neutrality
is very important. It is an instrument for the masses and it must remain an
instrument for the masses. As far as government architecture to deal with this issue
is concerned India is studying this and discussing it with stakeholders.
Shri Ravi Shanker Prasad also shared with Ms. Novelli, Indias global representation
in the internet governance the need to increase this. He felt that an open and
democratic society must allow larger space to each other. Ms. Novelli said that it is
very important for the USA also and the USA would like to see India playing larger
role in the internet issues of the world. The USA is open to talk more about these
issues and would like to be on the same side of these issues.
Agreement for Commercializing Novel Superabsorbent Hydrogels
Technology Signed
National Research Development Corporation (NRDC) an enterprise under the
Department of Scientific & Industrial Research, Ministry of Science & Technology,
Govt. of India and M/s Reliance Industries Limited, Mumbai executed an agreement
for commercialization of A Novel Superabsorbent Hydrogels technology. This
involves a novel hydrophilic super absorbent polymer indigenously developed by
the Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi to meet the requirements of
water productivity in Agriculture. The scientists had successfully demonstrated the
potential of resolving the problem of poor water use efficiency in agricultural crops.
Besides, improved nutrient use efficiency, an array of other benefits have been
achieved by using this product.

Hydrogel absorbs a minimum of 350 times its weight of pure water at 500C. It exhibits
absorbency at high temperatures suitable for semi-arid and arid regions. Besides, low rate of

application it also improves physical properties of soil such as porosity, aggregate stability and
hydraulic conductivity.
Key Characteristics:
Lessaffectedbythepresenceofsaltsinitsimmediateenvironment
Improvesphysicalpropertiesofsoilsandthesoillessmedia
Improvesseedgerminationandtherateofseedlingemergence
Improvesrootgrowthanddensity
Helpsplantswithstandprolongedmoisturestress
Reducesnurseryestablishmentperiod
Reducesirrigationandfertilizationrequirementsofcropswithimprovedinputuse
efficiency

No undesirable effect on the crops raised in the fields treated with hydrogel has ever been observed or
reported by the experimenters or the end users, the farmers
FM: Role of IT Sector is Crucial in Order to Promote E-Governance for
Empowering Citizens; to Promote the Inclusive and Sustainable Growth of
the Electronics, IT and ITeS Industries and Enhancing Indias Role in
Internet Governance
The Union Finance Minister Shri Arun Jaitley said that the role of IT sector, be it
hardware or software, is crucial in order to promote e-governance for empowering
citizens. He said that the role of this sector is also important in promoting the
inclusive and sustainable growth of the electronics, IT and ITeS industries and
enhancing Indias role in internet governance. The Finance Minister said that at a
larger scale, the role of IT sector is crucial for boosting manufacturing sector in the
country. He said that reviving manufacturing, diversifying its base and equipping it
for robust long run expansion is one of the major challenges of our economic
management in the next five years. The Finance Minister, Shri Jaitley was making
his Opening Remarks during the Pre Budget Consultative Meeting with the IT
(Hardware & Software) Groups here today. The Finance Minister further said that the
government introduced Make in India initiative in this context which refers to the

production in India at a competitive price with global quality standards. The Finance
Minister Shri Jaitley said that the idea is that large scale production at competitive
price in India for the global market will create gainful employment and will help
India reap demographic dividend, increase their purchasing power faster, and
finally, with rising incomes will generate a huge market within India.
The Finance Minister, Shri Jaitley said that the overall rapid growth of the section in
recent years, including exports earnings of about US$86 billion demonstrate
sustained competitiveness and an ability of the sector to overcome structural
deficiencies related to business and policy environment. He further said that the
portfolio and capabilities of Indian IT/ITeS industry have significantly expanded, and
is perhaps the only country other than the USA, with the capability of providing end
to end services in IT, BPM, Software Products and Engineering, Research and
Development and more recently in Internet and e-Commerce.
The Finance Minister Shri Jaitley said that the success of Digital India initiative will
necessarily rely on the IT/BPM sector for design, deployment and its continued
success. Realization of Make in India is inseparable from ICT sector. He said that
modern manufacturing relies on IT for efficiencies and innovation leading to knowwhy of products and processes. He further said that similar contribution from the IT
sector can be made in healthcare, education and defence etc. He said that the
Governments focus on financial inclusion will require enabling financial transactions
on the mobile and internet for greater access.
The Finance Minister Shri Jaitley said that the Government is, therefore, keen to
leverage the inherent strength of the IT sector as it charges the growth map for the
country and would certainly take further policy and regulatory initiatives based on
the inputs from the participants in todays meeting.
This was for the first time that the Finance Minister held an exclusive Pre-budget
meeting with the representatives of IT industry.
Various suggestions were made by representatives of IT industry during the
meeting. Major suggestions include incentives for setting-up of data centers within

the country. It was said there is a need to give tax incentives for building
infrastructure for large data centers and cloud services within the country to ensure
data security as well as to have a big network of large software products companies
within the country. Besides it, other suggestions include more budgetary allocation
for digital literacy programme in order to make Digital India a success, to promote
innovations by allowing angel funding, stable tax regime, direct tax benefits for the
sector, tax benefits for cashless transactions, resolving issues relating to double
taxation on software products, transfer pricing and duty drawback. There is need for
clarity on royalty payment on software products (whether goods or services)
Other suggestions include initiatives to improve overall business environment
including ease of doing business and setting-up of a High Level Committee for
industry interactions. In order to make Make in India success, extend investment
allowance for efficiency enhancing tools like IT products, remove exclusion for
expenses towards software tools for R&D deduction, incentives for digitization of
SMEs, tailor incentives for skill development and employment generation for SMEs
and large companies, revision/clarifications on export related issues like foreign tax
credit policy, drawback scheme for services, carry backward of business losses etc.
among other. Suggestions were made for clarity in service tax between domestic
and overseas vendors for e-commerce and export proceed realization (SEZ). There
is need for MAT rate to be rationalized, applicability on transfer pricing on
companies eligible under section 10A and 10 AA and introduce duty drawback
scheme for software services like goods among others.
Anant Geete Inaugurates International Workshop on Performance
Evaluation and Management of State Owned Enterprises

TheBoardsofCPSEshavebeenprovidedwithalargemeasureofflexibilityandautonomyto
dealwithdaytodaymanagementissues.Inaddition,wehaveidentifiedselectprofitmaking
CPSEsasMaharatna,NavratnaorMiniratnaandempoweredtheirBoardswithoperationaland
financialpowersintheareasofcapitalexpenditure,investmentinjointventures/subsidiaries,
humanresourcesmanagement,enteringintotechnologyjointventuresorstrategicalliances,etc,
ShriGeeteadded.HesuggestedthecountryrepresentativesandCPSEofficialstotakethis

opportunitytodiscusspossibilitiesofleveragingtheirrespectivestrengthstocollaborateand
expandtheiroperations.
Theministersaidallorganizationsneedtoconstantlyreflectontheirperformancestandards
andworkonstrategiestoconstantlyimprovesuchstandardsandtheorganizationofthis
workshopisoutcomeofsuchrealization.WhilediscussingtheissueofperformanceofState
OwnedEnterprises,itisgenerallyagreedthatmetricsofassessingperformancecannotbe
completelysimilartothatoftheprivatesectorSince,thechallengesofmanagementofSOEs
remainmoreorlesssimilaracrosscountries;itwouldbeveryusefultolearnaboutinitiatives
takenbyothercountriesasweshareourexperiencesinthisregard,theministernoted.
ShriGeeteexpectedofstimulatingdiscussionsonvariousissuesrelatingtomanagementand
evaluationofperformanceofSOEsduringthecourseofconferencewithsuitableconclusions.
He said an institutional network should be established which would allow cross learning on a
continuous basis. Hoping that senior officers and Chief Executives and Directors of our CPSEs
getting benefitted from the discussions in the workshop as well as interactions with their
international peers and such interaction would lead to innovative policy interventions. He
welcomed participating delegates coming from 11 countries and thanked the DPE as well as the
United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the World bank in organising the 1st ever
such workshop in India.
MinisterofStateintheM/oHeavyIndustries&PublicEnterprisesShriG.MSiddeshwarasaid
India with its mixed economic system had accorded its State owned enterprises, known here as
Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSEs), a crucial role in facilitating balanced social,
economic and regional development of the country. In terms of governance structure, our CPSEs
come under the administrative jurisdiction of line Ministries and agencies such as Department of
Public Enterprises, Ministry of Finance, Department of Personnel & Training, etc. coordinate
matters concerning all CPSEs.
ShriSiddeshwarasaidthestrongperformanceofourCPSEscanbegaugedfromthefigures
whichspeakforthemselves.Hesaidwestartedfrom5CPSEsin1951andtherearemore270
CPSEsoperatinginalmostallcriticalsectorsoftheeconomy.OurCPSEshaveaggregate
investmentofaroundninetythreethousandmillionUSdollarsandaturnoverofmorethan
sixtythousandmillionUSdollarsfortheyear201213.Thetotalnetprofitof228operating
CPSEswasaroundtwelvethousandmillionUSdollarsandourCPSEscontributedmorethan
thirteenthousandmillionUSdollarstotheCentralExchequerbywayofexciseduty,customs
duty,corporatetax,dividend,etc.duringtheyear201213.
TheMinistersaid,Governmentisawareofthedynamicnatureofthebusinessenvironmentof
CPSEsandhastakenappropriatepolicyinitiatives.ThesystemofMemorandumof
UnderstandinghasfacilitatedtheprocessofindicationoftheGovernmentsexpectationstothe
managementofCPSEsinanobjectivemanner.Intunewiththecurrentbusinessscenario,while
profitabilityhasbeenamajorconsiderationforcommercialCPSEs,parameterssuchasResearch
&Development,CorporateGovernance,Exports,CapitalExpenditure,HumanResources

Development,ProjectImplementation,etc.havebeengivendueimportanceintheMOUsofall
CPSEssothatmanagementofCPSEsdoesnotlosesightoftheseimportantaspects.
HesaidGovernmentofIndiaremainsfullycommittedtoastrongandvibrantpublicsectorso
thatitcansupplementeffortsoftheGovernmenttofulfilaspirationsofthecommonpeopleand
toensuredevelopmentofallpartsofthecountrywitheverysectionofthesocietygettingits
rightfulbenefits.TheGovernmentwillcontinuetotakeappropriateandrequiredpolicymeasures
tofurtherimprovetheperformanceofCPSEsinthecomingyears.
Thetopicsofthesesessionsareasfollows:
ExistingModelsofGovernanceofSOEs,StructureofPerformanceContractsinSOEs,
MeasurementofthePerformanceofSOEsvisvistargetsgiveninPerformanceContracts,
MethodsofProgressiveyetRealisticTargetSettingandLinkagesofPerformanceOutcomes
withIncentives.
Thesesessionswillfocusonissuesofenablingenvironmentincludingthepolicyenvironment,
thevariousownershipmodelsofSOEs,interrelationshipwithadministrative
ministries/regulatinginstitutions/auditinstitutions,accountabilityandcorporategovernance
issuesetc.Also,IssueslikescopeofperformancecontractsinSOEsinvariouscountries
includingtheperformanceindicatorsinthefinancialandnonfinancialparameters,institutional
structureforperformancemonitoring,theactualprocessofcontractingandfrequencyofreviews
etcwillalsobegivenpondering.
Moreover,therewillbeissueslikemeasurementmethodology,scaleofmeasurement,
scoring/grading,measurementofnonfinancialparameters,typesofevaluationselfevaluation,
360degreeevaluation,balancedscorecards,thirdpartyevaluation,techniquesforinputting
findingsfromevaluationforsystemimprovementsetcforconsideration.
Inaddition,issueslikemethodsoftargetsettingforSOEs,benchmarkingtechniques,alignment
withnationalpriorities/statepriorities,compareandcontrastwithissuesoftargetsettingin
privatesectoretcwillalsobediscussed.
Ultimately,thefocuswillbeonhowperformanceevaluationandoutcomesarelinkedto
incentiveswhichmaybemonetary/nonmonetaryinnature,challengesinimplementing
incentivesystems,successfulpracticesinthisarea,leveragingtechnologyetc.
Home Minister hands over Resident Identity Card (RIC) readers to Chief of
Naval Staff and DG Coast Guard
The Union Home Minister Shri Rajnath Singh formally handed over Resident Identity
Card (RIC) readers here today to Admiral R.K.Dhowan, Chief of Naval Staff and Vice
Admiral Anurag G Thapliyal, Director General (Coast Guard) in the presence of
Defence Minister Shri Manohar Parrikar.

One of the measures to strengthen coastal security was the creation of National
Population Registrar (NPR) in 3,331 coastal villages in the 9 maritime states and 4
UTs and issue of Resident Identity Cards (RIC). The scheme of issuing Resident
Identity Cards is being implemented by the Office of the Registrar General and
Census Commissioner, India. Under the scheme more than 65 lakh people have
been issued Resident Identity Card.
The Smart Card readers are capable of demographic and biometric authentication
on an offline mode and are manufactured indigenously by M/s ITI Limited & M/s
Electronics Corporation of India Limited (ECIL).
The Card readers work on the principle of Key Management System and the cards
can be read only when the key present in the RIC is authenticated by the
Verification Authentication (VA) card.
The RIC reader is tamper-proof and self-destructs if it is opened in an unauthorized
manner. The card reader has been put through sea-trials by the Navy and Coast
Guard.
The office of Registrar and Census Commission has incorporated all the suggestion
given by the Navy and Coast Guard in the designing of the RICs. These cards
readers will initially be issued to the Navy and Coast Guard and later to the Maritime
Police stations and State Governments.
Minister of MSME to inaugurate Rapid Incubation Centre in Rwanda
Minister of MSME Shri Kalraj Mishra will be visiting Rwanda on 16 & 17 January,
2015 to inaugurate the Rapid Incubation Centre in the fields of food processing,
light engineering and vocational trades established by NSIC under India Africa
Forum Summit (IAFS-II). The Minister will also witness the progress of vocational
training in the country set with the help of Indian Government. He has been invited
by the Minister of Education , Prof. S.L. Wakabamba, Government of Rawanda.
Rwanda`s economy is based mostly on subsistence agriculture and its

manufacturing sector is dominated by the production of import substitutes for

internal consumption. The Government of Rwanda is in the process of establishing
small enterprises in the country and looks towards India for cooperation in the
development of MSMEs in that country. The visit will provide an insight into the
structure of Micro, Small & Medium enterprises in Rwanda and will help strengthen
areas of cooperation at policy level in this sector.
On his return journey the Minister Shri Kalraj Mishra will also visit South Africa. India
and South Africa, besides historical linkages, share industrial and trade relations
extensively. The Minister of Small Businesses of Government of South Africa during
her recent visit to India in November, 2014, had invited the Minister of MSME, to
South Africa to further discuss expansion of bilateral cooperation in the field of
MSMEs between the two countries.
As the process of industrialization expands further in South Africa, it finds greater
synergy with Indian MSMEs particularly in entrepreneurship development and
technological incubation in South Africa. In this reference, NSIC, an enterprise with
the Ministry of MSME, is signing an MoU of Cooperation with Black Business
Council(BBC) of South Africa for developing youth owned enterprises in South Africa.
The MoU is scheduled to be signed in the presence of Minister of MSME, during his
visit to South Africa. The MoU, besides cooperation in MSME sector, also focuses on
BBCs efforts to economically empower the marginilised group in South Africa
through NSICs Rapid Incubation Programm. NSIC has been requested by BBC to
establish five such Rapid Incubation Centres in South Africa.
The presence of the Minister of MSME, during the signing ceremony between two
organizations will further strengthen the commitment of cooperation with South
Africa in developing MSMEs in the country and thus, be a partner in economic
transformation of South Africa.
The visit of Shri Kalraj Mishra will also provide an opportunity to further renew
NSICs cooperation with Small Enterprise Development Agency (SEDA) under the
Ministry of Small Business, Government of South Africa. NSICs Cooperation with
SEDA has been instrumental not only in enhancing cooperation in the field of MSMEs

in South Africa but also plays an important role in tri-nations cooperation under
India, Brazil and South Africa (IBSA) Forum.
Rajiv Pratap Rudy Calls Upon the Corporate Sector and PSUs to Participate
in Skill Development Initiatives
The Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Skill Development and
Entrepreneurship, Shri Rajiv Pratap Rudy today called upon the corporate sector and
PSUs to contribute in the skilling initiatives of the Ministry of Skill Development and
Entrepreneurship (MSDE). According to him India has focussed in the domain of
education for many years and needs to now place its attention to skilling people and
creating jobs such that the large demographic dividend is employed. He indicated
that such an initiative requires scale that could be achieved through public-private
partnerships.
The Minister said, the country is lagging behind in skill development for at least 50
to 55 years. He said, we have been focussing on education but not on skill
development. The next 5 to 10 years are crucial to meet the emerging challenges in
making India a great power amongst the comity of nations. He said, India has
merely 2% skilled people vis-a-vis many growing and developed economies.
In a first of its kind partnership, National Skill Development Fund (NSDF) and
National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) under the Ministry of Skill
Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) and Power Grid Corporation of India
(PGCI), have signed a tripartite agreement with that will see PGCI contribute its CSR
funds for NSQF (National Skill Qualification Framework) aligned skill development
activities in the country. The event was graced with the presence of the Shri Rajiv
Pratap Rudy MoS (Skill Development and Entrepreneurship) and Secretary Shri Sunil
Arora.
Union Agriculture Minister Urges Students and Scientists of Agriculture
Faternity to Adopt one Village for Creating Awareness among Farmers
Union Agriculture Minister, Shri Radha Mohan Singh underlined the importance of
fundamentals of agricultural growth for the development of country as he
mentioned improved soil health, high productive seeds, modern agriculture practces

and best practices, effective irrigation facilities, water to every agricultural land, apt
marketing facility for agricultural produce are essential points for development of
agriculture as a whole.
Union Agriculture Minister, Shri Radha Mohan Singh was presenting his views on the
occasion of a function titled Agri@8%- Challanges and Way out in New Delhi today.

Various discussion points during the programme included Efficient system of

Agricultural production and agricultural productivity, Storage and distributon of food
products, Soil Mapping, Efficient water management, increasing yield and variety of
crops, tradiitional farming, awareness building among farmers, balanced use of
fertilisers, organic farming among a number of prespectives presented by the
presenters.
Mentioning about Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai Yojana, Shri Singh said that the
programme will play a vital roile in bringing water to every agricultural land in the
country. He added that Soil Health Card provided to farmers will be a tool to identify
the nutritional requirement of the soil and apt laboratory analysis for increasing the
agriculture production and productivity. He emphasised about organic fertiliser and
traditional farming practices during his discussion.
He said that with the setting up of the Price stabilisation fund, farmers will be able
to get renumerative prices for their agriculture products.
Shri Singh spoke about e-Marketing of agriculture products especially horticulture
produce like lichi, mango, gauva and emphasised that horticulture, dairy and fishery
has potential to generate huge employment for farmers, especially youth.
He mentioned that Government has made inititives for development of Animal
Husbandary, Dairy and Fisheries sector. He said the indigenous cows have a high
tolerance towards the climate change and breeding of indigenous cows is essential
for long term prespective of growth and productivity in agriculture output. He also

mentioned that there is a need for adopting scientific attitude towards agriculture
production to achieve the goal of higher growth in agriculture as a whole.
Finance Minister Stresses the need to Give Impetus to Credit Growth;
Reassures the Banks and Financial Institutions About Governments
Commitment of Non-Interference in Matters of Commercial Decisions,
Transfers and Postings Etc.
The Union Finance Minister Shri Arun Jaitley said that there is an immediate need to
give impetus to credit growth. He said that credit growth, on year-on-year basis,
declined to 10.0% in September 2014, with Public Sector Banks (PSBs) recording a
growth of 7.9%. He further informed that growth in deposits also declined to 12.9%
as of September 2014 from 13.7% as of March 2014. The Finance Minister, Shri
Jaitley was making his Opening Remarks during the Pre Budget Consultative
Meeting with the representatives of Banks and Financial Institutions here today.
Highlighting the major initiatives of his Government, the Finance Minister Shri Jaitley
said that about 10.8 crore accounts have been opened till 6.1.2015 out of which
around 60% are in rural areas under Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY)which
was launched on August 28, 2014. He said that banks have been asked to provide
universal access to banking facilities under which all the six lakh villages in the
country will be provided at least one Basic Banking Account, per household, with
indigenous RuPay Debit Card having inbuilt accident insurance of Rs. 1.00 lakh and
Life Insurance cover of Rs. 30,000/-. He said that an amount of Rs. 8487.4 crore was
deposited in PMJDY accounts till 6.1.2015. He said that the number of RuPay Debit
Cards issued as on 6.1.2015 stood at 8.88 crore.
The Finance Minister Shri Jaitley said that a top level Retreat for Banks and Financial
Institutions called Gyan Sangam was organized in order to create a platform for
discussions on issues relating to banking sector reforms, achieve consensus on what
went wrong and what should be done to improve and consolidate the position of
Public Sector Banks (PSBs), get ideas from prominent experts in the field, and
prepare a blue print of reform action plan. He said that during the two day Bankers
Retreat, the Prime Minister assured that the banks would be run professionally, and
there would be no interference. Shri Jaitely informed that in follow-up, Ministry of

Finance had issued a circular to PSBs, Financial Institutions and Insurance

Companies assuring them of freedom of non-interference in matters of commercial
decisions, transfers and postings etc. Various suggestions were made by
representatives of Banks and Financial Institutions. Major suggestions include
incentivizing digital/plastic payment in lieu of cash payments by giving 1% cash
credit incentive and exemption from service tax to digital payments, digitization of
profitable and capable primary agriculture credit societies about 30, 000 in number,
measures to give impetus to credit growth, uniform stamp duty for mortgages, and
measures for early settlement of disputes through DRTs including Lok Adalats etc.
Other suggestions include exemption from service tax to interest payments made to
senior citizens under Vridh Awastha Bima Yojana, giving priority sector status to
micro finance sector, and credit to Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe youth for
setting-up their enterprises to boost self employment among them, setting-up of
Ambedkar Central Credit Guarantee Scheme to support SC/ST entrepreneurs among
others.
Other suggestions include revised RBI Regulatory Framework for NBFCs to give
them parity with banks and Financial Institutions, exemption from TDS on interest
u/s 194 A of IT Act to NBFCs, Government requested to place Rs.1500 crore as share
capital deposit with NABARD during 2015-16 to support the growing demand for
agriculture credit, government asked to discourage populist ideas like agriculture
loan write-offs and SHG loan write-offs etc.
Shri J P Nadda stresses on the role of research in strengthening health
sector
IT can be a crucial enabler in addressing health issues
Focussed academic research can go a long way in strengthening the health sector,
and provide solutions to many challenges facing the country in providing accessible
and affordable health care to all, particularly the needy and vulnerable. Similarly, IT
can play a crucial role as an enabler to address several critical issues in the
countrys health sector.
The Union Minister for Health & Family Welfare, Shri J P Nadda stated this during his

address as the keynote speaker at the H3C Health Sciences Innovation Conference,
at Mumbai today. The theme of the health conference was H3C: Health - Care,
Career and Commerce.
The Health Minister commended the collaboration between the Ohio State
University and AIIMS, New Delhi in the field of regenerative medicine. He informed
that the countrys first Regenerative Medicine Center at AIIMS has been launched in
partnership with the Center for Regenerative Medicine and Cell Based Therapies
(CRMCBT) at The Ohio State University. The Minister was hopeful that such ventures
will give fillip to health based research in the country. Such research must be
people-centric and benefit humanity, the Minister stated. He beckoned students,
fellows and faculty from the Ohio State University to collaborate with Indian
universities and health institutions to undertake research in varied health issues.
India with its huge population, the burden of communicable as well as noncommunicable diseases, coupled with shortage of human resources in the health
sector including doctors, specialists and para medical staff still faces several
challenges, he stated. He looks forward to partnership with the Ohio State
University and other such academic bodies to work together to address these
challenges, he stated.
The Health Minister assured political commitment towards all health issues in the
country, and towards any collaboration with academic bodies that seek to work in
the health sector in the country. Echoing the sentiments of the Prime Minister, he
emphasised on need for paying attention to skill, scale and speed while developing
solutions to health issues. Skill is not a static process; it is continuous and succeeds
with constant updation and sharing, he opined, adding that academic exercises
such as this conference form a crucial element towards skill development and
enhancement. Looking at the population of the country, scale assumes a realistic
character too, he said. Shri Nadda said that a balance needs to be struck between
quality and quantity when providing health services. Quality cannot be allowed to
suffer to take care of the numbers.
Seamless Policing System on Railways is need of the Hour

A Conference of Director Generals of State Police (DGsP) was held here today, to discuss issues
related to security on the Indian Railways. Speaking on the occasion, the Minister of Railways
Shri Suresh Prabhakar Prabhu said that country is passing through a very turbulent time and
there is a phase of growing crimes and increasing subversive activities and some elements in the
society are hell bent upon creating trouble. It is in this context that police reforms and
strengthening of law and order machinery is one of the top agendas of the Ministry of Home
Affairs under the leadership of Shri Rajnath Singh. The Indian Railways also is the victim of this
increasing crime scenario and it is a big challenge for the law and order enforcers to provide
security to the travelling public. Policing in case of Railways is a very difficult job and there are
multiple agencies for the same area of focus. We have Railway Protection Force (RPF), General
Railway Police (GRP) and District Police handling security issues pertaining to Railways, he
added.
The Railway Minister emphasized that the Indian Railway system being the life line of the nation
cannot afford to compromise on security issues. Shri Prabhu pointed out that a common man,
does not know distinction between State Police and Railway Police and only needs relief from
crimes. Shri Suresh Prabhu said that as a Minister of Railways he is often required to answer
questions from Members of Parliament cutting across difference parties on security of
passengers, so it is necessary to address this issue, we need to have a seamless policy on
Railways. The Railway Minister informed that he has already written to the Chief Ministers,
seeking their support for creating a foolproof system where crime prevention could be effectively
done for the travelling passengers and best security is ensured for them. He also talked of
creating a data bank of criminals for which he sought help of Forensic Departments of different
State Governments. This will help in tracking criminals expeditiously and arrest them for trial.
Referring to security of women, he pointed out that there are several instances of attacks on the
modestly of women during travel and it needs special attention of all the concerned agencies.
Shri Prubhu said that Ministry of Railways is contemplating to have a Mahila Vahini and
proposal for it has already been sent to Finance Ministry and he sought help of Home Ministry
in this proposal..
The Railway Minister said that there is a need to have effective intelligence network
involving both Central and State agencies so that the necessary information could be shared
which will help in preventing crimes. He also emphasized on keeping security agencies prepared
to meet any kind of contingency. Referring to security issues in the Naxalite areas and
insurgency affected areas in North Easter region, Railway Minister called for special attention to
deal with this
Shri Suresh Prabhu also said that the Ministry of Railways has initiated programme on
sensitivity training for RPF personnel all over India for improvement in their behavior. He said
that such training for those personnel who come in contact with the public will be useful. He
requested State Police Chiefs to consider a similar exercise for their personnel. Shri Suresh
Prabhu said that Railways is already working on installing CCTVs in passenger coaches after
addressing privacy issues to keep an eye on untoward criminal activity. Shri Prabhu said that we
are also trying to use ex-army personnel in security issues. He said that there is also a need to
find a mechanism for immediate evacuation and shifting of injured persons from railway
premises to hospitals so as to save precious human lives. Referring to the growing number of

accidents at unmanned level crossings, Shri Prabhu sought help of State law and order machinery
to come up with innovative ideas to reduce such tragic train incidents like use of home guard or
any other institution.
The Railway Minister also suggested that we may explore the possibility of imposing onthe-sport fine on the lines of traffic violation fine, in case of any security violation. The Railway
Minister said that the constable or a jawan is at the cutting edge of the security setup and
administration should think of his welfare also which is important. He again underscored that
security is a joint challenge and t a national issue.
In his concluding speech, the Railway Minister said that it is hoped that there would be a
fruitful interaction during the Conference covering the entire gamut of issues of security and a
future road map will be prepared.
In his speech, the Minister of Home Affairs, Shri Rajnath Singh said that the objective of todays
Conference is very significant as coordination among various security agencies is important for
ensuring security of the travelling public. The Home Minister emphasized that Indian Railways
is the steel frame of countrys economy. He said that Indian Railways makes wheel of
development move and in fact is a developmental and strategic asset. He said that the security in
the running trains is a complex subject and we have to find a solution within our federal
structure. Shri Rajnath Singh suggested that we need to explore the system of online FIR which
will expedite investigation and help in controlling crimes.
Shri Rajnath Singh said that women security is of paramount importance and appreciated the
women security mobile application launched by Indian Railways in Mumbai suburban trains.
The Home Minister informed that his Ministry is also planning to utilize ex-army personnel in
various security related mechanisms. The Home Minister admitted that Railway is a soft target
and we need to give serious thought to address security issues on Railways. Shri Rajnath Singh
said that along with Railways the security issues in connection with other modes of transport are
also important and therefore we may work on National Transport Security Strategy. He called
upon Indian Railways to take initiative in this direction and assured the support of Human
Ministry in this endeavour.
The Minister of State for Home Affairs Shri Haribhai Parthibhai Chaudhary said that security of
Railways is an important part of internal security. Shri Chaudhary said that he is confident that
the concerted efforts and better coordination between state police force and railway police force
will lead to improved security scenario. He said that security is important as it is one of the
indispensable factors for development. Referring to the naxal problem and other terrorist
activities, he said that we need to be more alert and more geared up to meet these challenges. I
am sure that todays Conference will suggest new innovative solutions and all the stake holders
will take innovative initiatives to address the issues.

Shri Mital assured that all the genuine operational needs of GRP with regard to infrastructural
facilities like construction of new Police Stations Out Posts and barracks for GRP staff,

reimbursement of 50% share of Railways towards GRP personnel, etc. will be looked into with
all the seriousness that they deserve. He expressed confidence that the various issues in
conference agenda will lead to meaningful discussions and evolution of viable action plans
which will go a long way in ensuring better security and Policing on Railways.The focus of the
one-day conference was on improving Railway Security through empowerment of the Railway
Protection Force (RPF) and better coordination with the State Police. There were detailed
discussion on issues concerning registration of FIRs including effective methodology for
registration of cases where RPF and Train Ticket Examiners (TTE) have collected complaints
from passengers, inter-state transfer of cases, effective escorting of trains and better protection of
railway tracks and railway construction projects especially in Left Wing Extremism affected
areas in the conference. Involvement of Homeguards, civil defence, panchayat, village voluntary
force and other village level functionaries of state govt. in guarding the unmanned railway
crossings and in sensitizing people to the perils of trespass on railway tracks was also discussed
during the conference. Other issues relating to infrastructure such as construction of new police
stations, outposts, accommodation/barrack & housing facilities to GRP and other matters
pertaining to the work and welfare of GRP of the States were also discussed at the Conference.
National Seminar on Nourishment of Tribal Children inaugurated at
Bhubaneswar
This conclave brings together frontline workers, practitioners, State and District
officials from Departments of Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe, Women and
Child Development, Health and Family Welfare, representatives from the Tribal
Research Institutes of various States as well as the Ministry of Tribal Affairs and
UNICEF. Together they will take stock of the nutrition situation of India`s tribal
children, discuss what works and how and how Departments of various States can
coordinate, contribute and collaborate for reducing stunting in India`s tribal
children. The conclave will chart a road map for these States for improving access to
food, nutrition, health and sanitation services for children in tribal pockets and
solidify all stakeholders` commitment toward nourishing India`s tribal children. The
states are Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh,
Maharashtra, Odisha, Rajasthan and Telangana.
The conclave is a way to synergize efforts of all concerned Ministries and
stakeholders under the convening power of the Ministry/Departments of Tribal
Affairs for improving nutrition of tribal children. The conclave also showcases
promising practices from various states. Rajasthan for example has set up special
malnutrition treatment centers in drought prone districts for children suffering from

severe acute malnutrition. Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh have innovated various

models of crches for tribal children given that most tribal women work for long
hours away from home. Another noteworthy initiative is the one full meal scheme of
Andhra Pradesh to improve nutrition of tribal women.
The two day conclave will have six thematic sessions on food and livelihood
security; reach of integrated child development services; outreach and referral of
health services; water and sanitation services; tribal budgets and plans; and role of
development agencies. Each thematic session will be facilitated by a technical
expert in the subject area. Around 150 delegates comprising experts, government
officials, practitioners and field workers from various states would be attending the
conclave.
Key Points of PMs address at Economic Times Global Business Summit

Economy
India is a 2 trillion dollar economy today. Can we not dream of an India with a 20 trillion
dollar economy?
Development
Development has to result in jobs. What we need is not just more production, but mass
production and production by masses.
Development seems to have become the agenda only of government. It is seen as a scheme. That
should not be the case. Development should be everyone`s agenda. It should be a people`s
movement.
Economic development cannot take a nation forward on its own. We need a society and economy
which complement each other. We need to take care of the poor, deprived and left behind
sections of society.
The ultimate objective of subsidies should be to empower the poor, to break the cycle of
poverty, and become foot-soldiers in our war on poverty.
We need to cut subsidy leakages, not subsidies themselves.
Governance

 - ; Government systems suffer from

two weaknesses. They are complex. And they are slow. We need to change this. Our systems
need to be made sharp, effective, fast and flexible. This requires simplification of processes and
having trust in citizens. This needs a Policy Driven State.
What is Maximum Governance, Minimum Government? It means government has no business
to be in business.
First, we need to focus government on the things that are required of the State. Second, we need
to achieve competence in government so that the State delivers on the things it sets out to do.
Reforms
Reforms are not an end in itself. Reforms must have a concrete objective.
Small acts can drive reforms. What appears minor can actually be vital and fundamental.
Generating 20,000 MW of power attracts a lot of attention. That is important. At the same time,
20,000 MW of power can be saved through a peoples movement for energy efficiency. The
second is more difficult but is as important as the first. Small indeed, is beautiful.
A major institutional reform is the move away from merely planning, to transforming India.
The setting up of NITI Aayog, is a step in this direction.
Laws are the DNA of government. They must evolve with time.
Finance
We are committed to achieving the fiscal deficit target announced in the budget.
We are today a nearly 100% banked country.
Financial unity - bringing everyone into the financial system - is one cause which both
capitalists and socialists agree on. What, my friends, can be a bigger reform?
The consensus we arrived with States for amending the Constitution to implement GST is a
major breakthrough. This alone has the potential to make India competitive and attractive for
investment.
Today, Indias cooking gas subsidy is the worlds largest Cash Transfer Programme.
I recently assured Public Sector Banks they will have total autonomy in taking business
decisions.

Sectoral

The mantra of independence was Satyagraha. And the warriors were Satyagrahis. The mantra
of New Age India must be Swachhagrah. And the warriors will be Swachhagrahis.
People must understand the Clean Ganga program, as an economic activity also. The Gangetic
plains account for 40% of our population. They have over one hundred towns, and thousands of
villages.
I intend to launch a massive National Program for PDS Computerisation.
Railway stations can become growth points for the nearby villages.
We will link farmers to global markets. We will give the world the Taste of India.

WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement to boost South-South trade by reducing

trade costs by 15 per cent: WTO Director General
The Minister of State for Commerce & Industry (Independent Charge), Smt. Nirmala
Sitharaman has appreciated the good work of World Trade Organization (WTO) in
stemming protectionism and urged it to be more responsive to the needs of
developing and least-developed countries. Speaking at The Partnership Summit
2015 in Jaipur today, Smt. Sitharaman expressed concern that some countries have
started to equate only free trade with development.
The Minister highlighted that few developing countries have improved their share of
global trade. Least Developed Countries (LDCs), according to her only accounted for
1% of global trade. She felt that in order to sustain growth, job creation and
inclusive development must be emphasised. Development encompasses other
things besides trade including the burden to feed over 32 per cent of Indias poor
who live under abject poverty - a concern that the WTO recognised. The Minister
urged the members of the WTO to show the same urgency on food stockholding as

the Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) under the Bali Package.

Development is at the centre of the Doha Development Agenda (DDA), and many
issues of importance for developing countries such as subsidies and non-tariff
barriers that are not part of free trade agreements can be addressed through the
WTO. Trade negotiations need to refocus on multilateral agreements which
recognise the legitimate concerns of the developing countries, said Smt.
Sitharaman.
Mr. Roberto Azevedo, Director General, World Trade Organisation (WTO) said that
the Bali Package will deliver on the development front by enhancing developing
countries ability to integrate into the world economy. Mr. Azevedo also highlighted
Indias contribution to the multilateral trading system.
Mr. Azevedo noted that the benefits of TFA will be visible to Indian industry as
competitiveness and exports will receive a boost once members ratify the
agreement. The TFA will bring down trade costs by 15 per cent and bolster southsouth trade. He added that the remaining issues under the DDA will need to be
refocused before the Ministerial Conference in Nigeria at the end of the year.
Mr. Azevedo also added that development has been made a priority as the
development dimension is crucial in balancing the global trading system. He stated
that WTO provides developing and least-developed countries a seat in the rulemaking table as they are not included in the current regional and mega-regional
trade agreements.
Landing Craft Utility Ship for Indian Navy Launched at Grse
The third ship of the Landing Craft Utility(LCU) Mk IV project, Yard 2094, for the
Indian Navy was launched at an impressive ceremony at Garden Reach Shipbuilders
and Engineers Ltd (GRSE), Kolkata here today, in the presence of Vice Admiral Sunil
Lanba, Vice Chief of the Naval Staff and Smt. Reena Lanba.
LCU L53 is the third vessel in the series of eight Landing Craft Utility Ships being
built by GRSE for the Indian Navy. The first LCU was launched on March 12, and the

second on September 23, last year. These ships will play significant role in
transportation of Main Battle Tanks, Armoured Vehicles and Troops of the Indian
Army during amphibious operations.
The ship will be fitted with an advanced Integrated Platform Management System
for remote control of propulsion, auxiliary and power generating equipment. Two
CRN-91 indigenous 30 MM guns to provide fire support during operations will also be
fitted onboard. The ship can be deployed for maritime roles like maritime security,
beaching/un-beaching, humanitarian relief operations and evacuation from distant
islands, search and rescue operations and peace-keeping missions.
Our Aim is to move Towards National Common Market for Agricultural
Commodities and Improve the Supply Chain: FM
The Union Finance Minister Shri Arun Jaitley said that our aim is to move towards
National Common Market for agricultural commodities and improve the supply
chain. He said that with the cooperation of States, we propose to move ahead on
GST and APMC reforms. The Finance Minister Shri Jaitley was making the Opening
Remarks during his Pre Budget Consultative Meeting with the representatives of
Agriculture Groups here today.
The Finance Minister Shri Jaitley informed that the Government has taken a number
of measures/policy decisions in last few months to make the agriculture sector more
vibrant including setting-up of Warehouse Infrastructure Fund and Long Term Rural
Credit Fund, of about Rs. 5000 crore each; and setting-up of special fund of Rs.
2000 crore under NABARD, which was announced in the Union Budget for 2014-15
to provide affordable credit to agro-processing units, setting-up of food parks and
cold chain projects. He said that the Revised Kisan Credit Card (KCC) Scheme has
been re-launched where in the cards have been converted into ATM enabled debit
card with facilities of one-time documentation, built-in cost escalation in the limit
and any number of drawls with the limit etc. Shri Jaitley further said that other
initiatives include setting-up of Agriculture Universities in Andhra Pradesh (AP ) &
Rajasthan, scheme to issue soil health card to every farmer, establishing National
Adaptation Fund for climate change, providing finance to five (5) lakh joint farming
groups of Bhoomi Heen Kisan, establishing Price Stabilization Fund, and Kisan TV

channel among others.

The Finance Minister Shri Jaitley said that as per estimates of GDP for the second
quarter, (July-September) of 2014-15, the growth in the agriculture and allied sector
was 3.2 per cent.
Many suggestions were received from the representatives of Agriculture sector.
Major suggestions include fixation of remuneration prices for agriculture crops,
incentives to encourage agriculture research, education and extension activities
including investments in technological innovations and advancement in agriculture
research; and impetus to micro irrigation financing, R&D support to Pradhan Mnatri
Krishi Sanchai Yojana and strengthening of existing irrigation facilities among
others.
Other suggestions include that Government come out with dependable and
creditable export and import policies that safeguard farmers interest,
decentralization of food grain procurement, Minimum Support Price (MSP) to include
cost of production and profitability for farmers and be linked to the index of
inflation. Some other suggestions include taxation of foreign dividends at reduced
rates with multi-state cooperatives, extension of investment allowance to
cooperative societies in the manufacturing sector, flexibility of the automatic
approval route be extended to multi state cooperative societies at par with
corporate and LLPs under different FEMA regulations.
Some other suggestions include greater emphasis on agriculture research and
education, allowance to agriculture research, extension and education be raised
from the current level of around 0.8% of agriculture GDP to at least 1.5 percent,
giving Indian Agriculture Institute the status of Institute of National Importance,
check on mushroom growth on universities and colleges imparting higher education
in agriculture including under distance learning mode; higher allocation for
agricultural diversification, exempting livestock sector from income tax, incentives
for natural resources conservation and farm mechanization, promoting value edition
to enable crop diversification and acceleration, strengthening of agro machinery
service sectors and clear policy for genetically modified crops and compensation to

farmers in border areas among others. It was also suggested that ICAR laboratories
whenever releasing new varieties of different crops from time to time should also
inform about the cost of production and productivity along with that. Other
suggestions include higher allocations to ICAR, restructuring of ICAR and
strengthening of agriculture extension services, setting-up of seed processing and
soil fertility measure plants at Panchayat level, eco friendly grain storage at farm
levels and serious efforts on part of the Government to bring industry and
agriculture closer to each other among others.
Finance Minister Shri Arun Jaitley Stressed the need for Long Term
Investment in Agriculture for Meeting the Food Related Demands of the
Country in the Future;
The Union Finance Minister Shri Arun Jaitley stressed the need for long term
investment in agriculture for meeting the food related demands of the country in
the future. Shri Jaitley asked the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural
Development (NABARD) to continue to address the inadequacies in rural finance
market and thereby enhance its unique Apex development bank status for
development of agriculture and rural sector. Emphasising the need to support rural
housing, the Finance Minister noted NABARDs efforts in allocating Rs.3000 crore by
way of refinance and also underlined for enhanced efforts in this regard. The
Finance Minister Shri Jaitley was addressing the Board of Directors of NABARD here
today. Shri Jaitley also interacted with the Directors about the priorities of his
Government and the expectations from the Apex Development bank. He advised
NABARD to continue to provide leadership in areas such as financial inclusion, farm
credit to the small and marginal farmers besides those farmers [tenants/lessees etc]
who do not have clear title deeds to the farms they till. He noted that NABARD had
effectively utilised the initial corpus of Rs.5000 crore of Long Term Rural Credit Fund
allocated in the current years Union budget.
The Union Finance Minister also appreciated NABARDs idea of district centric
approach for development of backward districts in a project mode and its plan to
pilot it in 10 backward districts to double the per capita rural credit in the next three
years.

On this occasion, the Finance Minister Shri Jaitley launched two NABARD supported
e-commerce portals ekraftindia and shilpicraft, for marketing of handicrafts and
artisan products of Self Help Groups (SHGs).
He also unveiled the roadmap for digitisation of Small Help Groups (SHGs) across
the country. There are 73 lakh SHGs in the country today and digitisation is
expected to lead to better participation of the members of the SHGs in the PMJDY.
Digitisation will also enable better interface of SHGs with the banking system.
Msme Kigali rwanda
He said that in India Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) sector has
emerged as a highly vibrant and dynamic sector of the Indian economy over the last
five decades. It has been playing an important role in socio economic development
of India. This sector contributes around 8% of GDP. MSME sector accounts for
around 40% of the total exports and around 45% of the manufacturing output. As
per the Fourth All India Census of the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, total
number of Enterprises of the MSME sector in India is 44 million. The sector provides
employment to 80 million persons.
With the spectacular growth being maintained by MSME sector in the overall
manufacturing output of the country, we are focusing on maintaining the growth of
this sector which is a very important constituent of Indian economy. MSMEs will play
an important role in realizing Prime Ministers vision of Make in India i.e. to make
India a manufacturing hub with Zero Defect and Zero Effect policy -Zero Defect is
for global quality standards and Zero Effect means environment-friendly and
sustainable products.
Emphasizing on adequate flow of credit from financial institutions/ banks; support
for technology up-gradation and modernization; creating integrated infrastructural
facilities; entrepreneurship development and skill up-gradation through appropriate
training facilities; providing support for product development, design intervention
and packaging; assistance for better access to domestic and export markets are
some of the initiatives taken by my Ministry to assist MSMEs to compete in the

global market.
We understand that Rwanda`s economy is based mostly on subsistence agriculture
and its manufacturing sector is dominated by the production of import substitutes
for internal consumption. Government of Rwanda is in the process of establishing
small enterprises in the country.
In this reference, let me here reiterate Prime Minister of India Shri Narendra Modis
Slogan Sabka Saath Sabka Vikas i.e. Participation of all for development of all.
I have been told that NSIC is already extending such knowledge sharing with other
African Countries. NSIC reach knowledge and experience in such consultancy
services could be availed on mutually agreed terms.
Venture Capital Funds for Scheduled Caste launched
Shri Thaawar Chand Gehlot, Union Minister of Social Justice & Empowerment,
launched the schemes of Venture Capital Fund for Scheduled Castes and Green
Business scheme here today.
The Government of India has launched this Venture Capital Fund for Scheduled
Castes with initial capital of Rs. 200 crore. IFCI Ltd. will act as Sponsor, Settler and
Asset Management Company (AMC) / Nodal Agency to operate the scheme. The IFCI
Ltd. would contribute Rs.50 crore which would comprise Rs.5.00 crore as sponsor
and Rs. 45 crore as investor.
The objectives of the Venture Fund are as follows:
It is a Social Sector Initiative to be implemented nationally in order to promote
entrepreneurship amongst the SCs who are oriented towards innovation and growth
technologies.
To provide concessional finance to the SC entrepreneurs, who will create wealth
and value for society and at the same time will promote profitable businesses. The
assets so created will also create forward/ backward linkage. It will further create

chain effect in the locality.

To increase financial inclusion for SC entrepreneurs and to motivate them for
further growth of SC communities.
To develop SC entrepreneurs economically.
To enhance direct and indirect employment generation for SC population in India
NSFDCs Green Business Scheme for providing financial assistance has been
launched keeping into the concern for the climate change. Under this Scheme, loan
for unit cost upto Rs.1 lakh at concessional rate of interest will be provided to
Scheduled Castes for activities such as e-rickshaw, Solar Pump and Solar energy
powered implements, poly house etc.
Cabinet Minister Shri Gehlot informed that the aim of Venture Capital Fund for
Scheduled Caste is to provide support and concessional finance. Under the scheme,
financial assistance upto Rs.15.00 Crore for a period upto 6 years would be provided
to the SC entrepreneurs.
Selection of smart cities to be competition based

MinisterofUrbanDevelopmentandHousing&UrbanPovertyAlleviationShriM.Venkaiah
NaidutodayrevealedthatItwillnotbebusinessasusualinthematteroffinancingofcitiesand
townsundernewurbaninitiativesandinstead,itwillbebasedontheabilityofurbanlocal
bodiestoreformurbangovernanceandrisetothenewchallenges.Hewasaddressinga
ConsultativeWorkshoponUrbanGovernanceorganizedheretodayforMunicipal
Commissionersof130citiesandtownsfromninenorthernstatesofDelhi,Haryana,Chandigarh,
Punjab,HimachalPradesh,Jammu&Kashmir,Uttarakhand,UttarPradeshandRajasthan.The
Workshophasbeenorganizedtosensitizemunicipalcommissionersaboutthedemandsofnew
urbaninitiativesandtheimplementationissuesinthelightoftheexperienceofimplementation
ofJNNURM.TheMinisterdidsomeplainspeakingaboutseriousshortcomingsinurban
planning,executionandmanagementofrapidurbanizationandstatedthatthingsareinabad
shapeonseveralcounts.
ShriVenkaiahNaiduinformedthathisMinistryiscurrentlyworkingonaCity
Challengeframeworkwiththeobjectiveofselectingrightcitycandidatesforparticipationin
schemeslikebuilding100smartcitiesanddevelopmentof500citiesandtowns.Elaboratingon

thenewinitiative,hesaidthatallcitiesandtownsseekingtoparticipateintheseschemeswillbe
profiledbasedonspecificparametersthathaveabearingontheirabilitytoaddressissuesof
governancereforms,resourcemobilization,executionetc.theMinisterfurthersaidWhile
addressingtheissueofgeographicalspread,onlythedeservingwillbeassisted.TheMinister
referredtosuboptimalperformanceinrespectofpromotingreforms,physicaltargetsand
resourcemobilizationunderJNNURM.ShriNaidustressedthataradicalreorientationof
mindsetsandmethodologiesistheneedofthehourtoconvertrapidurbanizationintoan
economicopportunity.
ShriVenkaiahNaidureferredtothepresentappallingstateofaffairsinurbanareaswhich
ismarkedby:weakurbangovernancestructures,uninspiringleadershipatthelevelofboth
selectedandelectedurbanmanagers,poorinventorymanagementandresourcebase,weakurban
planningandexecution,urbanmobilitybeinganightmarishexperience,housingshortage,
inadequatewaterandpowersupplyanddespicablemanagementofsolidwasteandtreatmentof
sewerageetc.
Intermsofserviceparameters,ShriNaidunotedthatonly73litresofwaterpercapitaper
dayisbeingsuppliedasagainstthenormof135litres,only50%ofhouseholdshavingwater
connection,40%householdswithtoiletfacilities,treatmentofonly16%ofsewerage,collection
anddisposalofonly23%ofsolidwasteandrecyclingonly10%ofcitywaste.
Referringtotheinvestmentneedsforurbaninitiatives,ShriNaidusaidthataboutRs.40
lakhcroreisrequiredforprovisionofbasicinfrastructurebesidesanotherRs.20lakhcrorefor
Operation&Maintenanceofurbanutilitiesoverthenext20years,anotherRs.15lakhcrorefor
meetinghousingshortagebesidesRs.60,009crforsanitation.Thetotalinvestmentneedscomes
toaboutUS$1200billion,mostofwhichhastocomefromprivatesources,saidtheMinister.
Statingthatprivateinvestmentflowswouldbedependentontheconfidenceofinvestors
inurbanlocalbodiesincludingtheirgovernancecapacities,creditworthinessandcity
management,ShriNaiduurgedthemunicipalcommissionerstorisetotheoccasionsoasto
leaveamarkoftheirownonrespectivecitiesaswasdonebyShriS.R.RaoasMunicipal
CommissionerofSurat.
ShriVenkaiahNaidusuggested,tobeginwith,thefollowing10pointchartertobe
ensuredforeachcity:
1.CityMasterPlanswhereverdueandCitySanitationPlans;
2.LongTermUrbanDevelopmentPlansfordistrictheadquartersfocusingonanareaof25km
radius;
3.LongTermCityMobilityPlans;
4.Cityspecificstrategiesforpromotionofrenewableenergysourceslikesolarandwindpower,
wastetoenergyetc.;

5.Regulatorybodiesforpricingofutilitieslikewaterandpowerandassessmentandrevisionof
taxesfromtimetotimetoenhanceresourcebase;
6.Takingnecessaryinitiativesforassessingcreditworthinessofeachcitytomobiliseresources
fromappropriatesources;
7.Promotionofwaterharvestingandwaterrecyclingonalargescalethroughnecessary
provisionsbyrevisingBuildingByelawsinlinewithemergingneedsofcitiesandaspirationsof
people;
8.Promotingcitizensinurbanplanning,decisionmakingandmanagement;
9.Capacitybuildinginkeydisciplines;and
10.ImprovingurbangovernancethroughadoptionofICTplatformstoensureaccountabilityand
transparencybesidesonlinedeliveryofvariousservices.
ShriVenkaiahNaidualsoexpressedconcernoverinadequateeffortsforenhancingskills
ofurbanpoorandevolvingschemesundertheStreetVendors(RegulationofLivelihoodsand
StreetVending)Act,2014.
TheMinistermadeitclearthatthecountrycannotaffordtomissanotheropportunityto
buildanewurbanIndiaandmunicipalcommissionershaveakeyroletoplayandtheyhave
cometobeasimportantasDistrictCollectors.
Focus of his Government is to Create More Jobs and Employment
Opportunities beside Safeguarding the Existing Jobs and Give Better
Environment for Ease of Living for the Common Man
The Union Finance Minister Shri Arun Jaitley assured the representatives of various
Trade Unions that the Government has no intention to privatise either railways or
Coal India. He said that focus of his Government is to create more jobs and
employment opportunities beside safeguarding the existing jobs and give better
environment for ease of living for the common man. The Finance Minister said thats
why we need more money for investment in infrastructure sector in order to create
more job opportunities for our youth. He said that our approaches may be different
but goal is same.The Finance Minister Shri Jaitley was making the Opening Remarks
during his Pre Budget Consultative Meeting with the representatives of Trade Union
Groups here today. He said that the Government wants to create better social
security system for the labour force working both in organized and unorganized
sector.

The Finance Minister Shri Jaitley said that more than 63 percentage of population in
our country is in age group of 15-59 years which is defined as Indias demographic
dividend. The challenge for the country now is in planning and acting towards
converting its potential into enhanced opportunities of growth by dovetailing the
quality of manpower through skill development etc. The Finance Minister mentioned
that according to an Indian Labour Report (2007), 300 million youth would enter the
labour force by 2025. The main issue to address today is not just providing
employment but of increasing the employability of labour force in India. He said that
skill deficit among the labour force has been recognized as a major factor that
drives a large number towards low income levels and perpetrates inequality.
Consequently, the Finance Minister said that the thrust on skill development as well
as on Make in India are Governments endeavors to improve employability and
generate employment avenues.
The Finance Minister Shri Arun Jaitley informed the trade union representatives that
a cause for concern is that the compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of
employment decelerated during 2004-05 to 2011-12 to 0.5 per cent, as compared
to the 2.8 per cent growth during 1999-2000 to 2004-05. Highlighting the major
initiatives of his Government in labour sector, the Finance Minister said that the
Apprentice Act 1961 was amended on 18.12.2014 to make it more responsive to
industry and youth. He said that the Government is also working affirmatively to
bring a single uniform law for MSME sector to ensure their operational efficiency and
improve productivity while ensuring job creation at a large scale. The Finance
Minister further said that a unified Labour Portal Scheme called Shram Suvidha
Portal has been launched to for timely redressal of grievances and to create a
conducive environment for industrial development. Its main features are : (1)
Unique Labour Identification Number (LIN) allotted to around six lakhs units
facilitating online registration. (2) Filing of self-certified, simplified single online
return instead of 16 separate returns by industries. (3) Transparent Labour
Inspection Scheme via computerized system as per risk based criteria and
uploading of Inspection Reports within 72 hours by labour inspectors. He said that
many States like Rajasthan have also introduced major reforms in three labour
legislations viz. the Industrial Disputes Act, the Factories Act and the Contract

Labour Act.
Various suggestions were made by representatives of representatives of Trade
Union Groups. Major suggestions include more allocation for social security schemes
for workers, same wages for contract labour as being paid to regular worker for the
same job on the principle of same pay for same work, regularization of Contract
Labour after certain time, to ensure strict compliance of labour laws by MNCs, prior
consultation with trade unions before initiating any amendment of any laws
affecting directly or indirectly the interests of labour force, and increase in minimum
wages based on the decision of the Raptakos Judgement of the Honble Supreme
Court .
Other suggestions include to keep prices of food items and other essential items
under check, increase in purchasing power of common man, make living easies for
them, revival of viable sick industries, post budget interaction with representatives
of trade unions, expansion of MGNREGA to all the districts and increase in number
of working days to 200, more allocation of funds in budget for social sector including
health and education sector and 10% cut in defence expenditure, no privatization of
coal, railways and insurance sectors, PF Act be amended to cover every
employee/worker under EPF Act, and role of labour market institutions be
strengthened among others.
Other suggestions include raise in Corporate tax, impose tax on SEZ and FDIsand
use this for enhanced social security expenditures, convergence of all medical
schemes and benefits into one scheme for the benefit of unorganized sector
workers, support price for tea, rubber, cardamom and other agriculture products ,
budgetary support for traditional industries like jute, textiles, handloom, silk and
carpet, establish universal PDS, and special package to retrieve the closed and
abandoned plantations etc. among others.
President launches Pulse Polio Programme for 2015
The President of India Shri Pranab Mukherjee launched the Pulse Polio programme
for 2015 by administering polio drops to children less than five years old, at the
Rahstrapati Bhawan, here today. Tomorrow is the National Immunization Day.(18

jan) Around 174 million children of less than five years across the country will be
given polio drops as part of the drive of Government of India to sustain polio
eradication from the country.
Speaking at the function on the eve of the National Immunization Day, the Union
Minister for Health & Family Welfare Shri J P Nadda applauded the sustained hard
work of nearly 23 lakh volunteers and 1.5 lakh supervisors, along with donor
partners for eradicating polio from India. The Health Minister stated that there has
been no case of wild polio since 13 January 2011. India was certified Polio Free last
year, and is part of the 11 countries of South-East Asia Region of WHO (along with
Bangladesh, Bhutan, Democratic People`s Republic of Korea, Indonesia, Maldives,
Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Timor-Leste) which are polio free.
Affirming that India is looking forward to playing a major role in the implementation
of Polio endgame strategy, the Minister informed about introduction of inactivated
polio vaccine in routine immunization program and a switch from trivalent OPV to
bivalent OPV six months later in a synchronized manner globally.
The Health Minister stated that efforts to keep the country polio free are being
sustained. Being mindful of the risk of importation from other countries including
the neighbourhood, immunity against polio infection is maintained through National
and Sub National Polio rounds along with sustained high quality polio surveillance. A
travel advisory has also been issued as per WHO guidelines to vaccinate all
travellers who are travelling between India and eight polio-infected countries
comprising Pakistan, Afghanistan, Nigeria, Cameroon, Syria, Ethiopia, Somalia &
Kenya. Moreover, Emergency Preparedness and Response Plan (EPRP) has been put
in place under which Rapid Response Teams (RRT) have been formed in all
States/UTs to respond urgently to any importations.
PM chairs meeting of the Council on Climate Change
The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi today called for a paradigm shift in global
attitudes towards climate change, from "carbon credit", towards "green credit."
Chairing a meeting of the Prime Minister`s Council on Climate Change, Shri
Narendra Modi said that instead of focusing on emissions and cuts alone, focus

should shift on what we have done for clean energy generation, energy
conservation and energy efficiency, and what more can be done in these areas. Shri
Narendra Modi called for a careful evaluation of all the initiatives that have been
taken by India in this regard. These include, to mention some: initiatives in solar
energy, wind energy, biomass energy, and transportation projects that have
reduced distances or travel times.
The Prime Minister said India looks at the global concern and awareness on Climate
Change, as a great opportunity for working towards improving the quality of life of
its citizens, and making a positive contribution for mankind.
The Prime Minister emphasized India`s "sanskar" (traditions) and "soch" (thinking),
where "prakriti prem" (love of nature) was imbibed among people from childhood.
The Prime Minister recalled his meeting with leaders of Pacific island nations in Fiji in
November 2014, and the apprehension they had over the issue of climate change.
PAN IIT - ONGC MoC in Hydrocarbons and Energy Signed
Responding to the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modis Make in India initiative, the
IITs and the ONGC have agreed to work towards a collective R&D Programme for
Developing Indigenous Technologies to enhance Exploration and Exploitation of
Hydrocarbons and Alternate Sources of Energy. This is a long-term initiative for
sustained research, development and capacity building aimed at a multi-pronged
approach that will help foster research capability and transform experiential based
learning in this core sector. The Programme will be funded by ONGC and shall take
advantage of the available infrastructure and manpower of the IITs and ONGC.
The Programme has identified seven initial thematic areas namely (i) Geological &
Geophysical studies (ii) Reservoir characterization, modeling & simulation (iii) Oil &
gas Production & Recovery Enhancement (iv) Software Development (v)
Unconventional Energy Resources (vi) Engineering solutions/tools & technology
development (vii) Alternate Energy researches. Sub-topics have also been identified
in each of these areas.

In this regard, I would like to appreciate the initiative of NSIC to launch Build
SMME web portal dedicated to India-South African MSMEs. I am sure MSMEs of both
the countries would be taking full benefit of this portal to enhance the technical and
business linkages between the two countries.
Also, Coinciding with the India International Trade Fair (being held in New Delhi,
during 14 27 November every year), NSIC with my Ministry organizes Techmart
India (an exhibition of Small & Medium Enterprises). A large number of MSMEs from
across the world participate in this event and it helps build greater understanding
and connectivity among MSME for business. I would like to invite South African SMEs
to participate in this event annually and network with progressive Indian MSME
units. Similarly, NSIC is regularly organizing the participation of Indian MSMEs to
SAITEX Exhibition.
There is still a lot of scope in enhancing cooperation between the MSMEs of both the
countries. I would like to emphasize that the Indian government is keen to promote
cooperation in MSME sector with South Africa. Let me here reiterate Prime Minister
Shri Narendra Modis Slogan Sabka Saath Sabka Vikas i:e participation of all for
development of all.
With this, I would like to thank you again for your patient listening and sparing your
valuable time to attend this conference. I am confident that we will see the contours
of a new bilateral economic relationship between India and South Africa emerge
today and the MSME delegates of NSIC, who have come all the way from India, will
initiate technical and business alliances with their South African counterparts
MMDR Ordinance will prove to be a milestone in the revolution for
transparency

greatertransparencyandhigherrevenueforthestates.Simultaneouslysimplificationand
transferabilitywillalsoattractprivateinvestment.Headdedthattheclassificationofminerals
willleadtotheirbetterscientificexplorationandwithmorepowertothestatesminingprocess
willbeexpedite.

PressingupontheneedfordevelopingasounddatabaseformineralsinIndia,ShriTomar
averredthatdetailedexplorationisthefirststepinminingandtosetrealisticgoalsandmake
workableplans,itisimperativetoknowthetruemeasureofourresourcebase.Hestatedthatas
perpreliminaryassessment,199casesofvariousstateswouldbereadyforauctionwithsome
effort.Butsuchauctionswouldalsodependonthefinalisationofmodalitiesforconducting
auctionandsubordinaterulestherein.TheMinisterpointedoutotherprovisionsofthe
Ordinance,suchas,stricterpenaltiesforillegalmining,establishmentofNationalMinerals
ExplorationTrust(NMET)togiveimpetustoexploration,removalofpriorapprovalofthe
centretoeliminatedelays,andprovisionforDistrictMineralFoundation(DMF)toaddressthe
concernsofminingaffectedpeople.Citingtheexampleoffallinglevelsofironoreproductionin
thecountry,ShriTomarurgedstatestorevivemininginallearnestness.Acknowledgingthe
uniquenessofdifferentmineralsanddifferentregions,ShriTomarsolicitedopinionsand
suggestionsofstaterepresentativesforfirmingupaholisticimplementationplantofurther
strengthentheMakeinIndiavisionofthegovernment.

Removal of discretion; auction to be sole method of allotment: The amendment seeks

to bring in utmost transparency by introducing auction mechanism for the grant of mineral
concessions {Section 10 B &11}. The tenure of the mineral concession have been increased from
the existing 30 years to 50 years {Section 8 A (1), (2), (3) and (4)}.

Impetus to the mining sector:Theminingindustryhasbeenaggrievedduetothe

secondandsubsequentrenewalsremainingpending.Infact,thishasledtoclosureofalarge
numberofmines.TheOrdinancealsoaddressesthisissue.SubSection5and6ofSection8(a)of
theOrdinanceprovidesthattheMiningLeaseswouldbedeemedtobeextendedfromthedateof
theirlastrenewalto31stMarch,2030(inthecaptiveminers)andtill31stMarch,2020(forthe
merchantminers)ortillthecompletionoftherenewalalreadygranted,ifany,whicheverislater.
Safeguarding interest of affected persons: There is provision to establish
District Mineral Foundation (DMF) in the districts affected by mining related activities {Section
9 (B)}.
Encouraging exploration and investment: Further, the Ordinance proposes to
setup a National Mineral Exploration Trust created out of contribution from the mining lease
holders, to have a dedicated fund for encouraging exploration in the country {Section 9 (C)}.
Simplification of procedures and removal of delay: The amendment removes
the need for previous approval from the Central Government for important minerals like iron
ore, bauxite, mangese, etc., thereby making the process quicker and simpler. Similarly, under
Section 5(2)(b), the State Governments to devise a system for filing of a mining plan obviating
need for approval by the Central Government. The Ordinance also provides that the tenure of any
Mining Lease would now be 50 years in place of 30 years in the existing Act.
Stronger provisions for checking illegal mining: In order to address the
escalating problem of illegal mining, the penal provisions have been made further stringentHigher penalties up to 5 lakh rupees and imprisonment up to 5 years.

Ministry of Planning19-January, 2015 13:28 IST

Programmes and policy need effective monitoring and evaluation
One of the major objectives of the new Government is Minimum Government
Maximum Governance and the governance implies ensuring that requisite social
and economic services reach all sections of the society in an effective and efficient
manner, which would be possible only with a strong and robust system of
monitoring and evaluation. This was started by Shri Rao Inderjit Singh, Minister of
State for planning while inaugurating EvalWeek, a five days event featuring
consultations on strategies to spread awareness about and use of evaluation as a
tool for enhancing result from policies and programmes of good governance here
today. The event was jointly organized by National Institute for Labour Economics
Research and Development (NILRD) and Programme Evaluation Organization of the
NITI Aayog. The Minister pointed out that the new Government has taken a number
of new developmental initiatives such as Make in India campaign, Swachcha Bharat
Abhiyan, Digital India campaign, Jan Dhan Yojana, etc which have need to be
monitored regularly for better delivery.
Shri Rao said that a major task before the NITI Aayog, constituted recently, is to
actively monitor and evaluate implementation of programmes and initiatives. The
Minister stated that with Central Plan expenditure of the order of Rs. 5.75 lakh crore
(i.e. about US$ 92 billion) were being channelized per year for development, it was
absolutely necessary that there is concurrent, comprehensive, credible and reliable
evaluation.
He stressed the need for time-bound, ethical and credible evaluations based on
ground level evidence and feedback, and conducted by independent organisations
without any conflict of interest. The minister pointed out that in spite of the long
history of monitoring and evaluation (M&E) in the country, somehow, a national
evaluation policy had not come into existence. It was time to consider developing a
National Evaluation Policy that would provide direction to M&E activities in the
country, laying stress upon quality standards and sound, ethical procedures and
provide for appropriate institutional mechanisms.
The Minister observed that United Nations was in the process of developing a set of

Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) which would build upon the MDGs and
would form the basis for global development for the next 15 years. A robust system
should be in place to monitor progress towards these goals of gender equality,
social equity and protection of environment.
The Minister congratulated NITI Aayog and NILERD for coming together to take this
timely initiative to organize this Evaluation Week, which coincided with the
declaration of the year 2015, as the International year of Evaluation. He hoped that
EvalWeek would deliberate upon all important issues that would contribute to
generating awareness, learning strategies for evaluation and creation of a culture of
evaluation.
A number of technical sessions of presentations discussions on the theme of
evaluation have been programmed for the five days of the Evalweek. Other events
include interactions of delegated form other countries with various divisions of NITI
Aayog, Round tables on gender-responsive and equity focused evaluations, case
studies, emerging challenges, participatory approaches to evaluation and so on.
The EvalWeek will conclude on 23rd January 2015 with a summing up on the
outcomes and valedictory address by the CEO, NITI Aayog. The Evaluation Torch will
also be formally handed over to the next event of the International Evaluation Year.
On the occasion a compendium of articles on evaluation policies and practice
contributed by various evaluation researchers and evaluation practitioners titled
Evaluation for Sustainable Development- Experience and Learning was also
released by Minister to mark the EvalWeek.

Ministry of Railways19-January, 2015 20:00 IST

Indian Railways needs Investment from All Possible Sources for Speedy Development of
Infrastructure
The Centre for Transportation Research and Management (CTRAM), New Delhi, an
autonomous body of Transport Professionals, organized the 15thNational Seminar
on PPP and FDI in Indian Railways today i.e. 19thJanuary, 2015 at the Indoor
Auditorium of Indian Railway Institute of Signal Engineering and Telecommunication

(IRISET), Tarnaka Road, Secunderabad. Shri E S L Narasimhan, Honble Governor of

Telangana and Andhra Pradesh was the Chief Guest. Shri Suresh Prabhakar Prabhu,
Honble Minister of Railways presided over the inaugural session of the Seminar.
Shri Devi Prasad Pande, Member Traffic, Railway Board, New Delhi & President,
CTRAM and Shri P.K.Srivastava, General Manager, South Central Railway were
amongst those present.
Addressing the audience comprising of delegates from across a wide spectrum of
the Corporate sector, Public sector and senior Railway officials etc., Shri Suresh
Prabhakar Prabhu made a strong pitch to formulate the growth plans for Indian
Railways on the basis of new ideas and innovative decisions to suit to the current
realities. The need of the hour is to understand the symptoms ailing the
organization first, correct identification of the problem areas next and then drawing
up the required prescription for solution, he stated.
Noting that there are large number of demands from people/public representatives
for new rail lines and more number of train services, the Honble Minister stated
that the present infrastructure of Indian Railways is inadequate to cope up with
these demands. The immediate requirement is to enhance the capacities on
railways to decongest the routes and vertical expansion in cities towards upgrading
the network / infrastructure, he added. As money is needed to modernize Indian
Railways and also keeping in view the present fiscal constraints, Railways has to
explore all possible means to mobilize resources to develop a high class
infrastructure to cater to the future needs, stressed Shri Suresh Prabhakar Prabhu.
He highlighted that Indian Railways needs investments both financial and
technological - from various sources both within and outside. Towards this, Railways
is exploring to draw investments from new sources such as foreign pension funds
and other institutions, he stated.
The Honble Railway Minister categorically stated that Indian Railways is never
going to be privatized and that it continues to be owned by the Govt. of India. The
driving wheel of Indian Railways will firmly be in the hands of Railway Ministry
only, he stressed. Describing the task of upgrading and modernizing Indian
Railways as a National challenge, Shri Suresh Prabhu stated that it is in the interest

of Indian Railways and its Employees that investments from all sources should be
mobilized for this task. He emphasized that any decision being taken by the Govt.
on PPP / FDI etc. is clearly aimed at enabling growth of Railways and the economy.
He cautioned that there should not be any communication gap with the employees
on this subject and that the interest of railways will be paramount in any new
policy decision. He further stated that efficiency and productivity in railway working
shall also be improved to generate more revenue. Shri Suresh Prabhakar Prabhu
also spoke of plans to induct the best of technologies to modernize Railways duly
involving scientific and research organisations such as DRDO and ISRO.

Ministry for Development of North-East Region20-January, 2015 17:43 IST

Dr. Jitendra Singh announces 'Make in Northeast' initiative
The Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) of the Ministry of Development of
North Eastern Region (DoNER), MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions,
Atomic Energy and Space, Dr. Jitendra Singh has announced Make in Northeast
initiative beginning with a comprehensive tourism plan for the region, here today.
He also announced the decision to appoint a Brand Ambassador who, he said, could
personify the heritage and identity of Northeast and at the same time, inspire the
rest of the countrymen to look east and act east.
Chairing a joint meeting of the senior officers of Ministry of DoNER and the Union
Ministry of Tourism, Dr. Jitendra Singh said, Make in Northeast initiative, inspired
by Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modis Make in India concept, will in the long run
seek to promote exclusive Northeast expertise in areas like tea processing, organic
farming, food processing, exploitation of wind power through wind mills, AYUSH,
wellness therapies like spas, etc. A detailed Brochure for investors will also be
prepared and released across the country to encourage investment in Northeast, he
added.
In order to develop Northeast as a destination for investors, holiday seekers and
tourists, Dr. Jitendra Singh said, mega circuit and mega destination projects of
Tourism Ministry in the area will also be pursued.

Ministry of Agriculture20-January, 2015 17:36 IST

Union Agriculture Minister, Shri Radha Mohan Singh says that Cooperative Leadership
and Training are Essential for Stable Economy and Inclusive Development
Union Agriculture Minister, Shri Radha Mohan Singh said that cooperative leadership
and training are essential for stable economy and inclusive development in the
present age of globalisation when the Indian economy is passing through an era of
competitiveness. He was speaking at a function organised in New Delhi today, titled
National Conference on Strengthening of Cooperative Education and Training.
Efficient management of human resources are the bedrocks for the development of
cooperatives. For this, the training training programmes of cooperatives have to be
dove-tailed to the hour of the day, he said.
Government have received proposals for opening cooperative management
institutes from North Eastern Region like Sikkim, Mizoram, Tripura and states of
Chattisgarh and Jharkhand, he said. Union Agriculture Minister mentioned that
Government is keen to strenthen cooperative education and training in these states
and all efforts will be made to provide sufficient funds and other resources in this
regard.
Shri Singh said that in North East region, Government is implementing cooperative
programme through NCUI. NCUI have established 8 field projects in North Eastern
region which include Aizawl (Mizoram), Thoubal and Imphal (Manipur), Magalbara
(Sikkim, Shillong(Meghalaya), Kohima(Nagaland), Morigaon and Jorhat (Assam).
Shri Singh said that National Cooperative Development Corporation (NCDC)
provides encouragement and financial assistance to cooperatives from primary level
to national level and also provides them with technical guidance including
computerisation skills. So far, NCDC have sanctioned Rs 269.15 cr to 352
cooperative committees/banks and have released Rs 202.15 cr. He said that NCDC
implements ICDP (Integrated Cooperative Development Projects) in selected
districts. NCDC released Rs 405.70 cr for 19 projects in Arunachal Pradesh,

Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Haryana.
NCDC have released a total amount of Rs 3126.23 cr to least developed states as
against sanctioned amount of Rs 5535.05 cr.
Shri Singh said that NABARD is playing an important role as an advisor to provide
core banking solution to cooperative banks. NABARD also gives
technical/technological infrasture and Human Resources training to state and
district level cooperative banks. Recently, Government have decided to provide Rs
23.75 cr as special package to 23 district cooperative banks (16 from Uttar Pradesh)
to revive them.
Mentioning Cooperative movement of India as Worlds largest one, Shri Singh said
that there are about 5.89 lakh cooperative committees spread across from village to
national level. These Committees have a membership of 25 crore people covering
97% villages and 71% total rural families. Agriculture cooperative credit contributes
16.9%, fertiliser production 29%, weaver cooperatives 54% and sugar production
40% towards the Indian economy.
Mentioning Dairy cooperatives, Shri Singh complimented Amul model of Gujarat and
said that it has played an important role.

Ministry of Commerce & Industry20-January, 2015 10:47 IST

Key Highlights of Nirmala Sitharamans Bilateral Engagements on Sidelines of
Partnership Summit 2015
On the margins of the Partnership Summit held in Jaipur, Rajasthan during 15-17
January 2015, the Minister of State for Commerce & Industry (Independent Charge),
Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman met a number of her counterparts from the participating
countries as well representatives of international organizations.
In a meeting with H.E. Y.B. Dato Sri Mustapa Mohamed, Minister of International
Trade and Industry of Malaysia, the Ministers exchanged views on the Regional
Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) negotiations, Malaysias increasing
investment in India and the India-Malaysia Comprehensive Economic Partnership
Agreement.

Smt. Sitharaman also met H.E. Dr. Ekwow Spio-Garbrah, the Minister for Trade &
Industry of Ghana. They discussed bilateral trade relations and expressed hope that
this would continue to grow. Smt. Sitharaman expressed satisfaction at the recent
successful visit to India by the Vice President of Ghana in November 2014 for
attending the CII World Economic Forum Summit. She noted the need to have the
next round of the Joint Commission which will provide the necessary platform to
take stock of economic and commercial ties. They also spoke of the next India-Africa
Forum Summit (IAFS). The Indian Minister also referred to training programmes
offered by India under the Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation (ITEC)
Programme. Dr. Garbrah extended an invitation to Smt. Sitharaman to visit Ghana.
The Indian Minister met H.E. Mr. Tofail Ahmed, Minister of Commerce, Bangladesh.
They had a frank and friendly discussion on several issues including bilateral trade,
the renewal of the Trade Agreement between the two countries and opening of
Border Haats, transit arrangements, Indias Duty Free Tariff Preference Scheme for
LDCs and trade infrastructure. Smt. Sitharaman also had a meeting with Ms. Gao
Yan, Vice-Minister in the Ministry of Commerce of China. Smt. Sitharaman spoke of
the important role of the two countries in many international forums such as the
WTO and BRICS. While expressing satisfaction at the remarkable expansion of
bilateral trade between the two countries, which stood at USD 65.90 bn in 2013-14,
the Minister expressed concern at the growing trade deficit which was USD 36bn in
the same period. The Minister said that India has global competitive advantage in
niche engineering products, pharmaceuticals, cotton textiles, home furnishings etc.
However these products have a limited presence in the Chinese market due to
various issues related to tariff barriers, regulatory and other complexities which
impede Indias exports. India also has concerns regarding market access for
agricultural and pharmaceutical products. Also, Indian entities face several
regulatory hurdles and other complex domestic certification requirements to bid for
government tenders and government sponsored IT projects.
Smt. Sitharaman drew attention to the many opportunities for Chinese investment
in India.

The Chinese Vice-Minister referred to the numerous interactions that had taken
place in 2014 between the two countries, including the visit of the Chinese
President to India, which had taken relations to a new stage. She expressed
satisfaction at the in-depth discussion on India-China commercial relations at the
10th JEG meeting at the Ministerial level which took place in September 2014. The
Vice-Minister acknowledged the trade imbalance and said that the Chinese
government was keen on promoting imports into the country.
Smt. Sitharaman met H.E. Mr. Andrew Robb AO, MP, Australias Minister for Trade
and Investment. They had a productive discussion on taking the India-Australia
CECA negotiations forward in a creative and constructive manner. On the issue of
market access for Australian goods, both agricultural and industrial, Minister Robb
said that they were looking at the premium end of the Indian market and would not
be competing with domestic production, given the size of the Indian market, and the
high costs of production coupled with far lower levels of production in Australia.
The Indian side said that there is considerable potential for Australia to scale up
their investment in India very substantially, in areas including cold chain, bio-tech
projects, marine sector, engineering and manufacturing sectors apart from mining
and energy related projects.
Smt. Nirmala Sitharaman also met the Director General (DG) of the World Trade
Organization (WTO) and representatives of OECD, the Confederation of British
Industry and the UK India Business Council. The Minister had a frank discussion with
the DG, WTO, Mr. Roberto Azevdo. The Minister appreciated the openness and
flexibility shown by the DG in their earlier interactions. Observing that she was
aiming to set the contours of the discussion in the months ahead, rather than the
agenda, the Minister said that India strongly subscribed to the multilateral trading
system and the WTO. The Minister emphasised that that there should be no
differentiation made amongst developing countries as regards commitments to be
undertaken or in the matter of special and differential treatment for developing
countries. The Minister also said that the Doha mandate should not be re-opened;
nor should there be any cherry picking of issues from the Doha Development
Agenda or introduction of new issues that only served the commercial interests of a

few developed countries. The Minister also said that a permanent solution on the
issue of public stockholding for food security purposes was critical and should be
addressed on priority.
Referring to the commitment by WTO members to finalise a Work Programme on the
rest of the Doha Development Agenda by July 2015 and the upcoming Tenth
Ministerial Conference of the WTO in Nairobi, Kenya in December 2015, Mr. Azevdo
said that pragmatism was needed in order to move forward and promised that he
would do everything he could to help the WTO members to decide on the way
forward.
In discussions with the Director Generals of WIPO and UNIDO, the Minister stressed
on the strengths of the Indian IPR regime and said that the draft of a new IP Policy
had been circulated to stakeholders recently. The Indian judiciary is strong in
protecting and upholding intellectual property rights. The Indian Government is
keen to bring greater clarity and transparency to assure foreign participation under
the Make in India initiative.
DG UNIDO Dr. Li Yong expressed keenness of UNIDO to design and implement the
new Country Programme to support the Make in India initiative. He promised cutting
edge technologies under the aegis of UNIDO, especially for the MSME sector.

Ministry of Environment and Forests20-January, 2015 14:57 IST

Government initiatives on Tiger Conservation & Forest Management yield impressive
results Shri Prakash Javadekar
Shri Prakash Javadekar, Minister of Environment, Forests& Climate Change has said
that Government initiatives to streamline Tiger Conservation along with effective
Forest Management and Community Participation had led to increase in the number
of tigers.All around involvement of all stakeholders had helped enhance the number
of tigers from 1706 in 2010 to 2226 in the latest estimates. This increase in Tiger
Population was a testimony of the success of various measures adopted by the
Government. These measures related to Special Tiger Protection Force, Special
Programme for Orphan Tiger cubs, efforts to control poaching and initiatives to
minimize Human-Animal conflict and encroachment. India was willing to donate

Tiger cubs to international community and play a key role in the global Tiger
Conservation efforts.The Minister stated this while inaugurating the two day
meeting of the Chief Wildlife Wardens of Tiger States and Field Directors of Tiger
Reserves, here today.
Shri Javadekar further stated that the successful Tiger Conservation practices in the
country could be adopted and practiced by the international community as a step
towards sustainable forest management.Shri Javadekar lauded the efforts of the
Tiger ReservesManagement and Project Tiger Team for the achievement.
The Third Round of country-level Tiger Assessment employing refined technology of
double sampling using camera traps hadrecorded an increase in tiger population.
The midvalue of the snapshot assessment using the same methodologyin 2006 was
1411. In 2010 the Tiger population was 1706 and in 2014 it stood at 2226 with an
increase 30.5 % since the last estimate. A total of 3,78,118 sq.kms of Forest Area in
18 Tiger States was surveyed, with total of 1540 unique Tiger Photo captures. As
per the survey, Tiger population has increased in Karnataka, Uttarakhand, Madhya
Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, and Kerala. The third round of independent Management
Effectiveness Evaluation of Tiger Reserves has shown an overall improvement in the
score of 43 Tiger Reserves from 65% in 2010-11 to 69 in 2014.
The Economic Valuation of 6 Tiger Reserves carried out for the first time provided
qualitative and quantitative estimates of benefits accruing from tiger reserves.
These included ecological, economic, social and cultural services. The assessment
of Forest Cover Change in Tiger Landscape of Shivalik-Gangetic Plain has indicated
an improvement of forest cover in core areas of Tiger Reserves.
The Minister released various Reports on the status of Tiger population in India
namely Report on All India Tiger Estimation 2014, Report on Management
Effectiveness Evaluation of Tiger Reserves -2014, Compendium on Status of Tiger
Reserves, Report on Economic Valuation of Tiger Reserves, Report on Assessment of
Changes Forest Cover in Tiger Reserves (Shivalik- Gangetic Plain Landscape), and
Report on Corridors: Connecting Tiger Population for Long term Conservation. Shri
Javadekar also distributed NTCA awards for Excellence in various categories.

Ministry of Finance20-January, 2015 17:40 IST

FM: Record Number of 11.50 Crore Bank Accounts Opened Under Pradhan Mantri Jan
Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) as on 17th January 2015 against the original Target of 7.5 Crore by
26th January, 2015;
GuinnessbookofWorldRecordsRecognisestheAchievementsMadeUnderPMJDY;FM:
PMJDYisaGameChangerfortheEconomyasitProvidesthePlatformforDirect
BenefitsTransfer(DBT)whichinTurnwillhelpinPluggingLeakagesinSubsidiesand
therebyProvideSavingstotheExchequer

The Union Finance Minister Shri Arun Jaitley said that the financial Inclusion is one of the top
most priorities of the government. He said that exclusion of a large number of people from any
access to financial services inhibits the growth of our country. Highlighting the achievements
made under Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY), the biggest financial inclusion initiative
in the world, the Finance Minister Shri Jaitley said here today that against the original target of
opening bank accounts for 7.5 crore uncovered households in the country by 26th January, 2015,
banks have already opened 11.50 Crore accounts as on date 17th January 2015 after conducting
survey of 21.02 Crore households in the country. The Finance Minister Shri Jaitely said that
Guinness Book of World Records has also recognized the achievements made under Pradhan
Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) and has given certificate stating that the Most bank accounts
opened in one week as part of the Financial Inclusion Campaign is 18,096,130 and was achieved
by the Department of Financial Services, Government of India from 23rd to 29th August, 2014.
He said that the coverage of 99.74% of the surveyed households has been achieved. The Finance
Minister Shri Jaitely further said that the survey was conducted in about 2.27 Lakh Sub Service
Areas (SSAs) in rural areas and wards in urban areas in a record time of 4 months. He said that
out of the accounts opened, 60% are in rural areas and 40% are in urban areas. Share of female
account holders is about 51%, the Minister added.

The Finance Minister Shri Jaitely further said that Rupay cards have been issued to more than 10
crore beneficiaries who will get a benefit of personal accidental insurance of Rs. 1.00 Lac under
the Yojana. In addition there is a life insurance cover of Rs.30, 000 for eligible beneficiaries. Shri
Jaitley said that a deposit of Rs. 9,188 crore has been mobilized in the accounts opened under
PMJDY.

. Under the PAHAL scheme which is the Direct Benefits Transfer in LPG subsidy, he said that
an amount of Rs. 1,757 crore has been transferred to the beneficiary accounts through the
banking network since 15th November, 2014

The Union Finance Minister Shri Jaitley said that the earlier campaign on financial inclusion
started in 2011 had a limited objective. The focus was on the coverage of villages with
population of 2000 or more with banking services. He said that the major shift in PMJDY is that
households were targeted instead of only villages as targeted earlier. The Finance Minister Shri
Jaitely further informed that both rural and urban areas are covered this time as against only
rural areas targeted earlier. He said that the present plan pursued digital financial inclusion with
special emphasis on monitoring by a Mission headed by the Finance Minister. The Finance
Minister said that a mission office comprising of bankers, IT professionals and data analytic was
set up for coordination, collation and follow up with various State Governments, Banks and other
stakeholders. He said that there was weekly monitoring of the efforts made by the Banks in
PMJDY. Banks organized account opening camps on every Saturday with a mega camp on last
Saturday of the month form 8.00 A.M. to 8.00 P.M. in coordination with District Authorities for
opening of bank accounts. Financial literacy camps with a counter for Aadhar enrolment and
insurance companies were also part of camps organized by the Banks, the Finance Minister
added.

The Union Finance Minister Shri Arun Jaitley also informed that to provide universal access to
banking facilities for all households across the country through a bank branch or a fixed point
Business Correspondent (BC) called Bank Mitra, 1.23 Lacs Bank Mitr have been set-up in the
country. He said that steps are being taken to ensure that the Bank Mitr are provided with device
capable of on line interoperable transactions using Rupay cards and Aadhaar enabled payment
system. The Finance Minister said that use of Rupay cards at other access points will help in
reduction in cash transactions and making them digital which will move the economy towards a
less cash society.

Earlier the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY), the biggest financial inclusion initiative
in the world, was announced by the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi on 15th August 2014
from the ramparts of the Red Fort and launched by him on 28th August 2014 across the country.
While launching the Yojana, the Prime Minister had described the occasion as a festival to
celebrate the liberation of the poor from a vicious cycle. The Prime Minister had referred to the
ancient Sanskrit verse: Sukhasya Moolam Dharma, Dharmasya Moolam Artha, Arthasya
Moolam Rajyam which puts the onus on the state to involve people in economic activity. This
Government has accepted this responsibility, the Prime Minister had said. The Prime Minister
had also sent email to an estimated 7.25 lakh bank employees, exhorting them to help reach the
target of 7.5 crore bank accounts, and bring freedom from financial untouchability.

Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation20-January, 2015 15:35 IST

MIS for monitoring of progress under skill development in urban areas launched
Shri M.Venkaiah Naidu calls for stepping up efforts under DAY
Minister of Housing & Urban Poverty Alleviation (HUPA) Shri M.Venkaiah Naidu today
launched Management Information Systems (MIS) for regular online monitoring of
progress in respect of skill development and enhancing livelihood opportunities for
urban poor under Deeendayal Antyodaya Yojana (DAY). This MIS has been
developed by National Informatics Centre (NIC) at a cost of Rs.2.24 cr.
This MIS enables real time and regular monitoring of the progress under the seven
components of DAY which include Employment through Skill Training and
Placement, Self-Employment Groups, Shelters for Urban Homeless and Support to
Urban Vendors. This will also remove the deficiencies in the present submission of
Monthly Progress Reports being submitted by States. These lacunae include
considerable time lag, non-availability of beneficiary wise details, limited scope for
further analysis on account of information only about a few parameters, data
integrity etc.
MIS also enables stakeholders like Training Providers, Certification Agencies, Banks,
Resource Orgnisations etc., to feed required information directly which can be
accessed by urban local bodies, states and Ministry of HUPA for monitoring and
other purposes.
Shri Venkaiah Naidu while welcoming introduction of MIS urged the Ministry officials
to ensure that states step up efforts to ensure skill development and augmenting
livelihood opportunities in urban areas under DAY.

Ministry of Railways20-January, 2015 17:44 IST

Need to Address Problems & Challengs Arrising Out of Carbondioxide Emmission: Suresh
Prabhu
The Minister of Railways, Shri Suresh Prabhakar Prabhu released a book Carbon
Capture, Storage and Utilization (CCSU) edited by Ms. Malti Goel, Shri M. Sudhakar
and Shri R.V. Shahi, here today. The book deals with the issue of mitigating climate
change concerns arising out of emission of carbondioxide in atmosphere. It is a

collection of papers prepared by eminent authors. R.V. Shahi is the Former Power
Secretary, Govt. of India, Malti Goel, Former Advisor in the Ministry of Science and
Technology, and M. Sudhakar, Advisor/Scientist, Ministry of Earth Sciences.
The book has been published by TERI (The Energy and Resources Institute) a
Nongovernmental organization which works for sustaining environment with a
global vision and a local focus. Carbon Capture, Storage and Utilization(CCSU) is a
global response to the challenge of climate change mitigation. It is an emerging
energy technology dealing with capturing carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, storing
it away in underground reservoir and / or utilizing it by conversion to various food,
feedstock and fuels etc.
Shri Suresh Prabhu said that Ministry of Railways is the biggest consumer of energy
in the country. While it mostly uses electricity and diesel but now using alternate
sources of energy like wind, solar, CNG and Bio fuels. Referring to the energy
scenario in the country, he said that while India is making vigorous efforts to use
alternate sources of energy like solar energy, wind geo thermal, bio fuels but our
dependence on fossil fuel will continue for many years. Therefore it is imperative
that problems and challenges arising out of carbondioxide emissions are addressed
approximately. Global efforts in this direction, particularly during last ten years,
have raised some optimism that in coming years Carbon Capture and Storage could
become a reality and very soon thereafter could even become cost effective. All
efforts have to be mobilized to see that these technologies become relevant for
developing economies to adapt. It is should be the responsibility of developed
economies to share the findings of various researches, so that these become
affordable for developing economies. Indian Industry and Research Institutions have
also to do and contribute much more than they have been doing so far.
Shri Shahi, while introducing the book mentioned that even though the Carbon
Capture and Storage Technology might take some time to be cost effective, it is
important that Indian industry consuming coal become responsive towards research
and technology development. There is a need for networking and integrating global
efforts in this direction.

Dr. Malti Goel while explaining the concept of carbon capture said that Carbon
capture and storage (CCS) is among the advanced energy technologies suggested
to make the conventional fossil fuel sources environmentally sustainable. It is of
particular importance to coal based economies. Emphasizing the importance of this
sustainable technology Anupama Jauhary Head TERI Press said that TERI is
committed toward finding innovative solutions for a sustainable future and our
latest publication provides a possible climate change solution for energy industry.
She also hoped Carbon Capture, Storage ad Utilization will prove beneficial for the
readers in their research and academic pursuits.
The climate change concerns arising from combustion and increasing accumulation
of green house gases have given rise to the need for development of clean energy
technologies; and CO 2 mitigation is one of them. While increasing use of solar
energy for CO2 management is taking place leading to social transformations,
among its different options CCSU is receiving attention as an emerging energy
technology from both scientific community and policy makers.

Prime Minister's Office21-January, 2015 17:46 IST

PM reviews preparations for "Housing for All"
Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, today chaired a review meeting on the goal of
"Housing for All" by 2022.
. The Finance Minister had said Our government is committed to endeavour to have
housing for all by 2022. For this purpose, I intend to extend additional tax incentive
on home loans to encourage people, especially the young, to own houses. I propose
setting up a Mission on Low Cost Affordable Housing which will be anchored in the
National Housing Bank. Schemes will be evolved to incentivize the development of
low cost affordable housing.
In pursuance of this commitment, the Prime Minister has been holding a series of
meetings to give shape to this vision and commitment. In the last meeting on this
held on 22 December 2014, the Prime Minister had concurred with the basic
elements of the programme and had asked for some fine-tuning and phasing of the
proposals. The Ministry of Housing & Urban Poverty Alleviation recrafted its
programme in alignment with the decisions in the meeting and presented the final

design of the programme to the Prime Minister.

The programme proposes to build 2 crore houses across the nation by 2022. This
would cover both slum housing and affordable housing for weaker sections. It will
cover urban poor living in slums, urban homeless and new migrants to urban areas
in search of shelter. It would cover metros, small towns and all urban areas.
.
The Programme involves an urban reform component to generate the resources and
capacities for urban housing, a set of guidelines, an element of government support
and a significant contribution from beneficiaries, in addition to bank financing. A
large portion of the programme is to be financed in a PPP mode by leveraging land
and other resources in urban areas. A large number of process improvements and
policy changes are also inherent in the programme.
The Prime Minister directed all concerned departments to immediately finalise the
programme and finalise the financing models for alternate sets of housing
requirements. He emphasized the need to ensure that there is no compromise in
quality during the roll-out of this ambitious programme. He further directed that
safety concerns of specific areas, such as coastal zones, eco-sensitive zones and
disaster-prone areas be factored into the planning process in cities. He said existing
success stories and innovative technologies must be carefully studied so that the
best practices can be adopted during the implementation of the scheme.

Prime Minister's Office21-January, 2015 9:46 IST

PM chairs review meeting on tribal welfare, describes the tribal communities of India as a
great force for national development
The Prime Minister has described the tribal communities of India as a great force for
national development. Chairing a high-level review on tribal welfare on Tuesday, the
Prime Minister called for the development of strategies to stop the spread of Left
Wing Extremism. He said a key role in this has to be played by the Ministry of Tribal
Affairs. The Prime Minister said various Ministries and wings of the Government of
India should work in coordination to achieve this goal.
Speaking of the cultural aspects of tribal life, and their vast repository of ancient
knowledge, the Prime Minister urged the Ministry of Tribal Affairs to work towards

digital documentation of the same. The Prime Minister has asked officials to work
towards organizing a Tribal Cultural Troupe Carnival, on the lines of the Republic Day
Parade. He has also called for exploring the possibility of online marketing of
products produced by tribals through e-commerce platforms.
On health aspects, the Prime Minister stressed the need for mapping of sickle cell
anaemia among the tribal population, on a scientific basis. The Prime Minister has
also called for concerned departments to explore the possibility of a cure for this
disease through stem cell therapy.

Ministry of Commerce & Industry21-January, 2015 11:22 IST

Hope to achieve US$15 bn bilateral trade target by 2020: Vietnamese Dy. PM
2nd Meeting of the India-Vietnam Joint Sub-Commission on Trade held in Hanoi
Shri Rajeev Kher, Secretary, Ministry of Commerce, Government of India led a
delegation consisting senior officials from the Ministries of Commerce, Textiles and
the Department of Pharmaceuticals along with export promotion councils and
companies from the textiles, pharmaceuticals, engineering, agriculture and leather
sectors to Vietnam from 19-21 January 2015. Commerce Secretary co-chaired the
2nd Meeting of the India-Vietnam Sub-Commission on Trade with Vietnamese Vice
Minister of Industry and Trade H.E. Mr. Cao Quoc Hung on January 20, 2015 in Hanoi.

At the meeting, both sides reviewed the progress made since the first meeting and
discussed measures to enhance cooperation in textiles, pharmaceuticals, agri-trade,
investment, services and so on. The discussions focused on implementing decisions
taken during Prime Minister of Vietnam H E Mr. Nguyen Tan Dungs visit to India in
October 2014 wherein both Prime Ministers agreed to enhance economic and trade
cooperation as a strategic objective.
Deputy Prime Minister Hoang Trung Hai, while meeting the delegation, expressed
his pleasure at the blossoming of trade and economic relations and his confidence
that both sides would be able to achieve the target of bilateral trade of US$15
billion by 2020. He noted that there is great potential for trade and investment
cooperation in textiles, agriculture, pharmaceuticals, leather, energy and oil and

gas, and invited Indian companies to invest in Vietnam. He also accepted the Indian
sides invitation conveyed by Commerce Secretary to visit India this year.
The Joint Sub-Commission on Trade was established in 2013 between India and
Vietnam with an objective to boost bilateral trade and economic cooperation. The
first meeting was held in November 2013 in New Delhi.
Shri Kher also met Vice Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development H E Mr. Vu
Van Tan, Vice Minister of Health H E Mr. Pham Le Tuan and senior officials of the
Drug Administration of Vietnam. He called on Deputy Prime Minister of Vietnam H E
Mr. Hoang Trung Hai in Hanoi and Vice Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City Peoples
Committee H E Mr. Le Manh Ha in Ho Chi Minh City.

Ministry of Culture21-January, 2015 18:40 IST

Parrikar Invites Russian Defence Industry to Join in Make In India Plan
India and Russia re-affirmed today their commitment to the long standing friendship
and cooperation in the area of Defence Cooperation. This was reiterated during the
meeting of the visiting Russian Minister of Defence, Mr. Sergei Shoigu with Defence
Minister of India, Mr. Manohar Parrikar.
Both Defence Ministers recalled the discussions between Prime Minister Modi and
President Putin last month which were constructive and fruitful. The two Defence
Ministers resolved to carry forward the understanding reached during the summit
meeting in order to further strengthen the special and privileged strategic
partnership between the two countries. The two sides reviewed the entire gamut of
defence cooperation. They expressed confidence that the cooperation would be
taken forward and be further strengthened.
Both sides reviewed the ongoing area of defence cooperation and projects. They
fdecided to hold interactions at regular intervals to conform to project deadlines.In
this context, Mr. Parrikar mentioned Indias policy of Make in India and sought
Russian defence enterprises participation in a big way. The two Defence Ministers
also discussed possible future areas of cooperation in high technology defence
platforms as well as armament for the three Services.

Besides signing the agreed protocol, the two leaders also witnessed the signing of
an Agreement on exchange of Flight Safety Exchange Information.
The two Defence Ministers expressed satisfaction over the successful conduct of
joint exercises conducted individually between Army, Navy and Air Force of both
sides in 2014. This is the first time that all three Services have done joint exercises
in a year. The two Defence Ministers also noted that both sides are working together
to progress cooperation in the field of training.
The two sides resolved to continue to meet at regular intervals to carry forward an
already robust defence cooperation between the two countries.

Ministry of Health and Family Welfare21-January, 2015 16:06 IST

Shri J P Nadda assures all support to Telangana to manage H1N1 cases
In view of the reported cases and deaths from H1N1 influenza from Telangana, the
Union Health Minister Shri J P Nadda has reviewed the situation. The Minister has
assured all support to the State by way of logistics and medicines to supplement its
efforts to manage the cases. As part of this, the Health Minister stated that he has
spoken today with the State Chief Minister, Shri K. Chandrashekar Rao and Health
Minister Shri T. Rajaiah on the incidence of H1N1 cases in the state. The Minister has
also reviewed the situation with the State Health Secretary, here today.
The Health Minister informed that a high level three-member team is being sent to
Telangana to review the situation and give necessary technical guidance to the
state. The team will leave today and hold a meeting with the state health
authorities tomorrow covering availability of medicines and diagnostics,
arrangements at hospitals, clustering of cases, surveillance by IDSP, sufficiency of
lab facilities, preventive measures and IEC campaign. The team will submit its
report on return.
The Minister informed that he has directed the officials in the Ministry to be in
constant touch with all States to ensure that the situation is under control and to
prevent further cases. He added that the Central Government will keep stock of

medicines (Oseltamivir) for about 3000 number of patients in addition to a stock of

Personal Protective Equipment to meet the sudden requirement of any State
Government which has failed to procure the same.

Ministry of Heavy Industries & Public Enterprises21-January, 2015 17:06 IST

Union Heavy Industries Minister Anant Geete Exhorts Auto Industry to Adopt The Best
Technology-Ensures Full Support For Make in India
The Union Minister for Heavy Industries & Public Enterprises Shri Anant Geete has
exhorted the automobile industry to face the challenges of competition and advent
of new technology. In his address at the inauguration of the Symposium on
International Automotive Technology (SIAT 2015) at Pune today he said the future is
a future of competitiveness and appealed to the automotive industry to adopt the
best world technology. Shri Geete said "Make in India` is a good tiding for the
industry and government will give its full support to the industry to make it
successful. While admitting that India is not the best in terms of auto industry but
expressed confidence that the way we are going we will be the number one in the
industry in the world. He said issues of the auto industry will get the support of the
Ministry.
Earlier the Minister inaugurated the 3 day Symposium and the SIAT EXPO 2015 in
which about 200 companies are participating at the ARAI premises on Paud Road,
Pune. President Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI) & MD Ashok
Leyland Shri Vinod Dasari expressed happiness that new technology is being
showcased at the EXPO. Director ARAI Mrs Rashmi Urdhwareshe in her speech said
fostering R & D and innovation is crucial in the industry. She said six top vehicle
manufacturing companies from China, USA, Japan, Germany, South Korea, India are
invited to discuss the issue of `international mobility beyond borders` and the
deliberations at the discussions will be submitted to the central government. The
Minister also inaugurated through remote mode the new facility of Passive Safety
Lab(PSL). Dr David Schutt, Chief Operating Officer SAE International USA also spoke
on the occasion. Additional Secretary Ministry of Heavy Industry & Public Enterprises
Shri Ambuj Sharma was present at the function. The EXPO & Symposium will
conclude on 23rd January 2015.

Addressing a press conference after the inauguration Shri Geete said that industry
will get priority as in a young country such as ours as along with development, the
generation of employment is also important. In implementing the PMs `Make in
India` he said all Ministries are expected to contribute to make it success. His
Ministry he said will do all that is necessary in this respect. Geete said issues of
environment and technology are becoming important for the auto industry and the
auto sector should adopt the `clean and green` technologies. Accepting that energy
security and oil is important for the country`s future he said it was important that
we work on alternate fuels and the related technology in a sustained manner to get
over this problem. He said India is the biggest auto market in the world and
technology up-gradation through seven centres of NATRIP is being done in a phased
manner. He said ARAI is working on electrical cars, hybrid cars technology including
affordable hybrid technology from the Rs 1000 crores sanctioned for the Technology
up-gradation program for a two year period.

Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment21-January, 2015 17:28 IST

Shri Thaawar Chand Gehlot, reviews Pradhan Mantri Adarsh Gram Yojana
Shri Thaawar Chand Gehlot, Union Minister for Social Justice & Empowerment
reviewed PMAGY during 2nd meeting of the Central Advisory Committee (CAC) here
today. The meeting was organized to review the progress of implementation of
PMAGY in the selected 1000 villages of 5 PMAGY States. The meeting was chaired by
Shri Thaawar Chand Gehlot with Minister (Rural Development) as co-chair. The
meeting was also attended by the Shri V. Sampla, MoS (SJE), Shri P L Punia,
Chairman, National Commission for Scheduled Castes, Shri Dhani Ram P Shandil,
Minister (SJE) from Himachal Pradesh, Shri Arjun Ram Meghwal, MP (Lok Sabha) and
Shri Ramen Deka, MP (Lok Sabha).
The five PMAGY States were represented by senior officials of these States. Advisor
(HRG, ENSD), Niti Ayog , representatives of the Central Ministries/ Departments, and
National Institute of Rural Development, Hyderabad were also present along with 5
non-official members of the CAC.
The Pilot Scheme of PMAGY was launched in March, 2010, as a Centrally Sponsored
Pilot Scheme, for the integrated development of 1000 villages with > 50% SC

Population in 5 States. The objective of the Scheme is integrated development of

the said villages. Primarily through convergent implementation of the relevant
Central and State Schemes and providing these villages gap-filling funds to the
extent of Rs.20.00 lakh on an average basis.
Presently the Scheme is being implemented in 5 States namely Assam, Bihar, HP,
Rajasthan and Tamil Nadu selected from 5 geographical regions of the country,
namely North-East, East, North, West and South respectively. From each state
except Assam, 225 villages are being covered under the Scheme. In Assam, 100
villages have been selected.

Ministry of Urban Development21-January, 2015 18:08 IST

Heritage City Development Scheme (HRIDAY) launched : Centre to fund entire
expenditure
The National Heritage Development and Augmentation Yojana (HRIDAY) that seeks
to preserve and rejuvenate the rich cultural heritage of the country was launched by
the Minister of Urban Development Shri M.Venkaiah Naidu, here today. Minister of
Tourism and Culture Dr.Mahesh Sharma and Members of Lok Sabha representing
different cities selected under HRIDAY also attended the launch.
Speaking on the occasion, Shri M.Venkaiah Naidu said No nation can move forward
ignoring its cultural heritage and legacy. India is a diverse land of languages and
religions and we need to preserve the legacy of all kinds. HRIDAY is a step towards
reviving the soul of cities hosting such rich heritage.
Elaborating on the new initiative, Shri Naidu said, HRIDAY seeks to promote an
integrated, inclusive and sustainable development of heritage sites, focusing not
just on maintenance of monuments but on advancement of the entire ecosystem
including its citizens, tourists and local businesses. He said, with 32 UNESCO
recognized natural and cultural heritage sites, ranking second in Asia and fifth in the
world, the tourism potential of the country is still to be fully harnessed and the new
scheme will help in this regard.
Informing that Rs.500 cr would be provided to the 12 cities selected in the first

phase under the Central Schme of HRIDY, Shri Naidu said, central government will
meet the entire expenditure under the scheme. He however, urged the states and
local urban bodies to supplement their resources for rapid development of heritage
cities. He also called for involvement of NGOs, spiritual organisations and private
sector for effective implementation of the scheme. He stressed that urban
development efforts should aim at blending nature and culture for a better future.
Shri Venkaiah Naidu distributed sanction letters to the 12 cities for spending over
the next two years. Based on city population, Varanasi was allocated Rs.89.31 cr,
Amritsar-Rs.69.31 cr, Warangal(Telangana)-Rs.40.54 cr, Ajmer-Rs.40.04 cr, GayaRs.40.04 cr, Mathura-Rs.40.04 cr, Kanchipuram-Rs.23.04 cr and Vellankini-Rs.22.26
cr, both in Tamil Nadu, Amaravati(AP)-Rs.22.26 cr, Badami (Karnataka)-Rs.22.26 cr,
Dwaraka(Gujarat)-Rs.22.26 cr and Puri-Rs.22.54 cr.
Minister of Tourism and Culture Dr.Mahesh Sharma welcoming the HRIDAY scheme
said that in conjunction with the schemes of his ministry, it will help in promoting
tourism in the country. He stressed that development cant be at the cost of
heritage of the country.
Shri Pinaki Mishra, MP from Puri said that after 68 years of Independence such a
novel initiative has been launched which would go a long way in developing
heritage cities. He noted that under the leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra
Modi, the country is learning to think big.
Municipal Commissioners of all the 12 selected cities made brief presentations on
the tangible and intangible cultural assets of respective cities and the plans for their
development under HRIDAY. An exhibition was also organized highlighting various
aspects of these cities.