Simplification of names of Central Sector Schemes run through the Coir Board during XII

Plan
MSME Mobile friendly website launched

Central Sector Schemes being implemented by the Coir Board namely Rejuvenation,
Modernization and Technology Upgradation(REMOT) and Coir Plan (General) Scheme,
have been re-named as Coir Udyami Yojana (CUY) and Coir Vikas Yojana (CVY)
respectively to make it better understood by the Stakeholders. The decision was taken in a
review meeting chaired by the Union Minister for MSME Shri Kalraj Mishra.
TheSalientFeaturesoftheCoirUdyamiYojana(CUY)are:
Thisisacreditedlinkedsubsidyschemeincoirsector,aimstointegrateanddevelopcoir
units.
The scheme provides 40% as Govt. subsidy, 55% as Bank loan and 5% beneficiary
contributionforsettingupofcoirunitswithprojectcostuptoRs.10.00lakh(revisedfrom
Rs.5.00lakh)
Marketingsupportassistanceforbeneficiaries.
Nocollateralsecurity/thirdpartyguaranteeisrequired.
There is no income ceiling for the assistance. Assistance is available to individuals,
companies, self help groups, NGOs,institutions registered under Societies Registration Act,
1860,cooperativesocieties,jointliabilitygroupsandcharitabletrusts.
CoirVikasYojana(CVY)hasthefollowingcomponents:
Skill Upgradation and Quality Improvement and Mahila Coir Yojana training for men &
women coir workers and providing subsidized Ratts to women workers.
DevelopmentofProductionInfrastructureassistanceforsettingupandexpansionofcoir
units.
DomesticMarketPromotionassistancetoparticipateindomesticfares,exhibitionsetc.
ExportMarketPromotionassistancetoparticipateininternationalfares,exhibitionsetc.
WelfareMeasures(CoirBoardCoirWorkersGroupPersonalAccidentInsurance).
TradeandIndustryrelatedfunctionalsupportservices.

Beti Bachao Beti Padhao(BBBP) Scheme

Smt Maneka Gandhi urged the DCs to give their personal attention and commitment to the said
programme and appealed to engage themselves fully in successful implementation of BBBP
scheme. She emphasized on a comprehensive strategy to focus on both- strict implementation
and monitoring of Pre-Conception and Pre Natal Diagnostic Techniques Act (PC&PNDT Act)
and as well as media & advocacy efforts towards changing societal mind-sets and creating value
of girl child.

The Minister laid thrust on the key actionable points mainly focusing on ensuring early
registration of pregnancies; institutional deliveries, registration of birth; training and sensitization
of front line workers- ASHAs, AWWs and ANMs; creating gender champions at local level;
celebrating birth of the girl child & felicitating the mother, incentivizing and recognizing
individuals, villages, gram panchayats supporting the cause of BBBP. Smt. Gandhi encouraged
the DCs to develop a mechanism through informers and community watch groups to keep a vigil
on the ultrasonography centres or persons indulging in unfair or illegal practices. She told DCs to
ensure that Gudda-Guddi boards should be displayed in every panchayat office providing the
details of number of boys and girls born in a month.
National Programme for LED-based Home and Street Lighting
Prime Minister Narendra Modi today described the LED bulb as a Prakash Path
way to light, as he launched a scheme for LED bulb distribution under the
domestic efficient lighting programme in Delhi; and a National Programme for LEDbased Home and Street Lighting.
The Prime Minister called for making energy conservation through the spread of LED
bulbs, a peoples movement. He noted that it is much more economical to conserve
power, than to produce power. However, he added, it is much more difficult to
conserve power, than to produce power, because while one producing entity can
produce a large quantity of power, it requires the active participation of crores of
people to conserve that amount of power. Therefore, he called for generating
awareness among people for the same. He called for extensive involvement of
celebrities and eminent citizens in these programmes, who could motivate people to
adopt LED bulbs.
The Prime Minister said these programmes launched today also represent a
challenge to manufacturers, to rise to the occasion, and produce LED bulbs without
any compromise on quality.
Suggesting innovative ways to generate awareness and spread the message of
energy efficiency, the Prime Minister said gifts such as diaries and calendars on New
Year should be replaced by gifts of LEDs. Companies could distribute LED bulbs
along with dividend payments, he suggested.
The Prime Minister called for setting district level goals, and to prioritize this scheme
in all towns with population above one lakh.

The Prime Minister said involvement of entrepreneurs, eminent citizens and

common people in this programme would represent an act of patriotism as it
would reduce import bills, and an act of social service as it would save the
environment.
The initiative is part of the Governments efforts to spread the message of energy
efficiency in the country. LED bulbs have a very long life, almost 50 times more than
ordinary bulbs, and 8-10 times that of CFLs, and therefore provide both energy and
cost savings in the medium term.
The Prime Minister launched a web-based system to enable consumers in Delhi to
register requests for procuring LED bulbs under Domestic Efficient Lighting
Programme (DELP). Consumers can register either through the programme website
(www.eeslindia.org/Delhi-Launch) or by sending an SMS to a designated number.
Shri Narendra Modi also handed over two LED bulbs to one common citizen of Delhi
who was the first person to register.
LED bulbs shall be distributed in a phased manner from March 2015 onwards. The
entire project of installing LED bulbs for domestic and street-lighting in 100 cities is
targeted for completion by March 2016.
MHA proposes to set up Investigative Units on Crimes Against Women
The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) proposes to set up Investigative Units on Crimes
against Women (IUCAW), in 20% of the districts of each State on a 50:50 cost
sharing basis with the states.
The Union Home Minister Shri Rajnath Singh has written to the Chief Minister of the
States that there is a need to strengthen various elements of the criminal justice
system, namely, Investigation, Prosecution and Trials by courts to deal with the
issue of rise of crimes against women.
MHA has proposed to set up 150 such IUCAW units initially on pilot basis in most
crime prone districts of each state. Elaborating the IUCAW, the Home Minister

mentioned that these units may consist of 15 personnel, preferably five of them
women. The states will have full flexibility on whether to create new posts or to
designate from the existing strength. Each IUCAW will be headed by an officer of the
rank of Additional Superintendent of Police assisted by two DSPs. Out of the total
2250 personnel required for the 150 IUCAWs, 750 will be women. This will involve a
total expenditure of 84 crore rupees annually, out of which 42 crore rupees will be
provided by the Centre.
Shri Rajnath Singh mentioned that the objective of these units will be to investigate
cases referred to them, augment the investigative machinery of the States in
relation to the heinous crimes against women, especially Rape, Dowry Death, Acid
Attack and Human Trafficking, instill confidence and encourage women to come
forward and lodge their complaint and improve the gender ratio in the State Police
forces which is adversely impacting effective implementation of the legislations
relating to women. Besides, these units will have the additional functionality of
proactive policing, intelligence gathering, tackling organized crime, monitoring
proper implementation of the legislative provisions, helping awareness generation
and promotion of social participation in checking crimes against women.
The Home Minister mentioned that these measures will help in ensuring higher
conviction rate in different states to check crimes against women and human
trafficking.
Shri Rajnath Singh has also advised the states to set up separate Fast Track Courts
to deal with these cases expeditiously. He has also assured all possible assistance to
the States in taming the menace of crimes against women.
Motivated Teachers Inversely Proportional to Needy Students (CAN BE
USED IN ESSAY)
The demand for good motivated teachers at the university level has gone up but
the supply for it has gone down, said Mr.A.S.Kolaskar, Consultant and Mentor of the
Neotia University, Kolkata. He was speaking at the session on Internet 2025- its
impact on Research and Higher Education, being conducted at the National Centre
for Nanosciences and Nanotechnology at day three of the 102nd session of the

Indian Science Congress, at University of Mumbais Kalina Campus here in Mumbai

today.
Kolaskar was speaking about the exponential growth of new knowledge,
globalization of commerce and culture, lifelong educational needs of citizens in a
knowledge-driven, global economy being challenges of our times in the arena of
higher education. He presented Case Studies of Internet Impact on Research and
Education, where he underlined that textbook structure hasnt really changed as
such. We need to bring about pedagogical changes where one is thinking about the
job of the teacher as not a provider of information but as someone who can tell you
how to learn. Assessing children should be driven not by examinations but by
competency driven credentialing. Technology should be helped to grow both parts
of the brain. Children should be evaluated differently and not examined so that a
great future musician does not end up in an engineering college without his wish.
He also added that there should be improved collaboration between researchers
through next-gen high definition Skype or Telepresence for conferences. Stressing
on affordable, inclusive access to higher education by all, he put forth that while
combating existing severe faculty shortages, relying on experts globally is essential.
Orbital Angular Momentum (OAM) Multiplexing is a potential technology which
requires new fibers and there is room for improvement in the current technology,
said Stephen Wolff, Principal Scientist from Washington, DC 200036, USA. He was
speaking on The Internet, Reloaded.
Prof. Bharat Bhaskar from IIM Lucknow very confidently told that it was time to think
of newer ways of folding the future in today. He was speaking on the Impact of
Digital Technology on Society. Redundant IT plants bring overspending and
inefficiency, said he. With digital camera countless sensors and IoT becomes reality.
With improvement in technology, the big data and AI based analysis technique
would probably be anticipating our every move! With wearable devices and
augmented reality, early detection of disease risks would be possible and lifestyle
and medication, gaming sectors would be benefited.

At a time when selfies are a craze amongst the youngsters, Bijendra Nath Jain,
Vice-Chancellor, BITS, Pilani spoke about e-attendance being a reality. By using
selfies with smart devices and automated attendance in large classes, face
recognition in cloud and analytics on recorded attendance, he transported the
audience into a completely digitalized educational institution. With ERP system
using PeopleSoft, multi-campus high-definition video conferencing has also been
made possible. With changing technology trends in internet, speed, reach and
security become prime areas of importance and change. With time, internet would
achieve greater reach in developing and developed countries with wireless access
beyond 3G, 4G or LTE. He also echoed the audiences concern about greater access
control and robust user authentication. He also spoke about ICTBioMed, a
consortium built on foundation of domain knowledge, network and computing
resources. The session also shed light on foreign institutes using Indian facilities for
research and development, on the request of a member in the audience.

A Well Educated Population, Equipped with Relevant Knowledge, Attitudes

& Skills is Essential for Economic and Social Development in this CenturyVice President
The Vice President of India Shri M. Hamid Ansari has said that Education is a critical
tool for developing a modern economy, a just society and a vibrant polity. It
provides skills and competencies for economic well-being and social mobility.
Education strengthens democracy by imparting to citizens the tools needed to fully
participate in the governance process. It also acts as an integrative force in society,
imparting values that foster social cohesion and national identity.
Imparting quality education to our youth is one of the highest forms of service, an
individual or institution, can render to the nation. Its importance was best described
by the Greek philosopher, Diogenes, who said the foundation of every state is the
education of its youth.
Education is a critical tool for developing a modern economy, a just society and a
vibrant polity. It provides skills and competencies for economic well-being and social
mobility. Education strengthens democracy by imparting to citizens the tools

needed to fully participate in the governance process. It also acts as an integrative

force in society, imparting values that foster social cohesion and national identity. A
well educated population, equipped with the relevant knowledge, attitudes and
skills is essential for economic and social development in this century.
India has a younger population not only in comparison to advanced economies but
also in relation to the large developing countries. In 2011, around 50% of our
population was less than 24 years of age. By 2020, around two thirds of our
population will be in the working age group (15-64 years). Over the next 20 years,
labour force in India is expected to increase, while it will decline in industrialized
countries and in China.
This demographic structure presents us with an opportunity of a potential
demographic dividend, which tapped, could add to our growth potential, provided
two conditions are fulfilled. First, higher levels of health, education and skill
development are achieved. Second, an environment is e created in which the
economy not only grows rapidly, but also enhances good quality
employment/livelihood opportunities to meet the needs and aspirations of the
youth. It is thus evident that education is a vital ingredient for actualizing the
demographic dividend and for achieving higher, sustainable and more inclusive
economic growth. India has the potential to capture a higher share of global
knowledge-based work, for example by increasing its exports of knowledgeintensive goods and services, if there is focus on higher education and its quality is
globally benchmarked.
We have made progress in the field of higher education since 1947. Today, India has
the third largest higher education system in the world. We have around 652
universities and university level institutes that impart higher and technical
education. They also provide affiliation to more than 33,000 colleges and institutes.
However, our higher education system continues to be afflicted with the three
problems of access, equity and quality. Enrollment rates in our higher education
institutions have gone up to around 17% but are still well below the world average
of 26 per cent. Wide disparities exist in enrolment percentages among the States
and between urban and rural areas while disadvantaged sections of society and

women have significantly lower enrolments than the national average.

The higher education sector is plagued by a shortage of well-trained faculty, poor
infrastructure and outdated and irrelevant curricula. The use of technology in
remains limited and standards of research and teaching at Indian universities are far
below international standard.
Curricular reforms leading to regular revision and upgrading of curricula,
introduction of semester system, choice-based credit system, and examination
reforms are yet to take place in higher educational institutions across the country.
Exceptions apart, majority of our higher education institutions perform poorly in the
area of quality on a relative global scale. Our system turns out nearly seven lakh
science and engineering graduates every year. However, industry surveys show that
only 25 percent of these are employable, without further training. The picture is
more dismal in other disciplines if a recent, non-official, employability report is to be
believed.
In recent years, the massive expansion in enrolment in higher education in the
country has resulted in unbearable burden being put on the physical and pedagogic
infrastructure of colleges and universities. This is reflected in overcrowded
classrooms and distortion of desirable student-teacher ratios, overall shortage of
teaching and tutorial space, overloading of laboratory and library facilities, and
often a lowering of quality of teaching. All these issues require urgent correctives.
Curricular and academic reforms are required to improve student choices, with a
fine balance between the market oriented professional and liberal higher education.
Higher education must be aligned to the countrys economy and also to the needs
of the global market. Innovative and relevant curricula should be designed to serve
different segments of the job market or provide avenues for self-employment.
Emphasis must be given to the expansion of skill-based programmes in order to
make our youth employable in the job market.
Another aspect relates to the fact that today, around 60% of total enrolments in
higher education are in private institutions. Some of them excel in their chosen

areas. There also exist legitimate concerns about many of these institutions being
substandard, exploitative and suffering from the general shortcomings mentioned
earlier. Governance reforms are required to enable these institutions to have their
autonomy to develop distinctive strengths, while being held accountable for
ensuring quality and fulfilling their responsibility to society.
The future expansion of education would have to be carefully planned so as to
correct regional and social imbalances, reinvigorate institutions to improve
standards and reach international benchmarks of excellence, match demand with
supply by improving employability, and extend the frontiers of knowledge. The
reform of higher education system will require a comprehensive and collective
efforts of the Government, private sector, academia and civil society, so that the
three objectives of access and expansion, equity and inclusion, and quality and
excellence can be achieved in a time bound manner.
Review of the policy on Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in Pharmaceutical
Sector- carve out for medical devices
Greenfield- 100% (automatic) and Brownfield-100% (Government)
Conditions-

(i) Non-compete clause would not be allowed except in special circumstances with the approval
of the Foreign Investment Promotion Board.
(ii) The prospective investor and the prospective investee are required to provide a certificate
along with the FIPB application.
(iii) Government may incorporate appropriate conditions for FDI in brownfield cases, at the time
of granting approval.
Note: i. FDI up to 100%, under the automatic route is permitted for manufacturing of medical
devices. The abovementioned conditions will, therefore, not be applicable to greenfield as well
as brownfield projects of this industry.
ii. Medical device meansa. any instrument, apparatus, appliance, implant, material or other article, whether used alone or
in combination, including the software, intended by its manufacturer to be used specially for
human beings or animals for one or more of the specific purposes of-

(aa) diagnosis, prevention, monitoring, treatment or alleviation of any disease or disorder;

(ab) diagnosis, monitoring, treatment, alleviation of, or assistance for, any injury or handicap;
(ac) investigation, replacement or modification or support of the anatomy or of a
physiological process;
(ad) supporting or sustaining life;
(ae) disinfection of medical devices;
(af) control of conception,
and which does not achieve its primary intended action in or on the human body or animals by
any pharmacological or immunological or metabolic means, but which may be assisted in its
intended function by such means;
b. an accessory to such an instrument, apparatus, appliance, material or other article;
c. a device which is reagent, reagent product, calibrator, control material, kit, instrument,
apparatus, equipment or system whether used alone or in combination thereof intended to be
used for examination and providing information for medical or diagnostic purposes by means of
in vitro examination of specimens derived from the human body or animals.
iii. The definition of medical device at Note (ii) above would be subject to the amendment in
Drugs and Cosmetics Act.
FM: Infrastructure Sectors Such as Coal, Power and Cement have been
Recording Double Digit
Growth in the Last Few Months While Growth in Manufacturing Sector is
Still Patchy; Reviving Manufacturing is One of the Major Challenges of our
Economic Management
The Union Finance Minister Shri Arun Jaitley said that the Infrastructure Sectors such
as coal, power and cement have been recording double digit growth in the last few
months while growth in manufacturing sector is still patchy. 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. The Finance Minister,
Shri Jaitley was making the Opening Remarks during the Pre Budget Consultative
Meeting with the representatives of Trade and Industry here today. He said that we
still have lot of distance to cover. The Finance Minister said that ease of doing
business is high priority for the Government. He said that we are working on a task

given the Prime Minister to improve Indias ranking on the ease of doing business
index. He said that implementation of GST is expected to improve the tax
administration regime and would help in bringing more transparency in the system
and ensure smooth flow of goods. It will also help in better implementation and
collection of taxes. He said that reforms measures undertaken by the present
Government in coal sector, insurance and amendments in Land Acquisition Act etc
will make a major difference in improving the Indian economys performance. The
representatives of Trade and Industry made various recommendations for
consideration of the Union Finance Minister while formulating the budgetary
proposals for the financial year 2015-16. The major recommendations include
measures for fiscal consolidation, promoting investment (both domestic and
foreign), containing inflation, generating employment and creating skills as well as
for facilitating ease of doing business among others. Other recommendations
include flag-off strategic sale of loss making Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs),
deployment of PSUs surplus funds to add and expand capacity, effect phased
dilution of Government stakes in Public Sector Banks to 51%, create a National
Asset Management Company (NAMCO) which would take NPAs off the banks
balance sheet and also focus on reconsolidation, recapitalization and refinancing of
banks, encourage use of the reverse BOT structuring to finance infrastructure
projects where the initial construction cost is borne by the Government/PSUs ; and
to fund programmes such as Swacch Bharat Ahbiyan, Clean Ganga Programme,
creation of Smart Cities, create an SPV based on a revenue generated model among
others.
It was suggested that all major subsidies be made available to only BPL households,
create a Fuel Price Stabilization Fund to check volatility in fuel prices, implement
PSU disinvestment systematically, strategy required on restructuring/ privatization
of loss making PSUs (both Centre and States). The representatives of trade and
industry also suggested incentives to kick start investment, fast track clearance of
stalled/stuck projects and encourage investments in infrastructure funds/trusts, and
development of an efficient and Vibrant Corporate Bond Market among others.
Various suggestions were also made with regard to tax reforms and tax
administration including genuine efforts to establish non-adversarial and conducive

tax environment, tax regime to be made predictable, sustainable and transparent

among others.
Some of the representatives suggested the need for affordable housing, digitization
of land records, single window clearances, introduction of municipal bonds, smart
city bonds. Some of the representatives emphasized the need for higher investment
in health care and education sector and to focus on generation of resources through
railways to meet requirements of other infrastructure sector, and consolidation of
regulators etc. It was also suggested that woman on Board of Directors of all Public
Sector Banks and Financial Institutions be made mandatory, establishment of
National Tourism Holding Company with tripartite agreement with State Government
for global bidding fund for large international conventions and sport events tec.
In order to boost the exports, it was suggested among others that the removal of
duty on petroleum products imports under advance licenses, expediting payment of
duty drawback and central excise rebate claims, exemption from excise duty on
purchase of capital goods from indigenous manufacturers under EPCG scheme,
service tax exemptions for exports and currency hedging not be treated as
speculative transaction rather be treated at par with trading in derivatives,
incentivizing manufacturing firms in exports, safe harbor rules for contract
manufacturing for other sectors including pharma, continuation of interest
subvention scheme for a further period of three years( it expired on 31st March,
2014) and setting-up of an Export Development Fund with focus on marketing
research and innovative tools of marketing as it would help not only existing
exporters but would also attract new entrepreneurs in the field of exports.
Other suggestions include continuous support for export of small cars, extension of
Investment Allowance under Section 32 Ac of IT Act to the non-corporate sector
including readymade garment manufacturers and minimum ceiling of investment
maybe scaled down from Rs. 25 crore to Rs. 1 crore among others.
Some of the trade representatives appreciated the Governments bold steps to issue
Ordinances with regard to coal blocks auction, insurance laws and Amendments in

Land Acquisition Act etc. which indicates that Government is decisive and fully
committed in making reforms.

Government Assures the Public Sector Banks (PSBs), Financial Institutions

(FIS) and Insurance Companies of Freedom of Non-Interference in Matters
of Commercial Decisions, Transfers, and Postings etc.
The Department of Financial Services, Ministry of Finance issued a circular yesterday
to the Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of all Public Sector Banks (PSBs), Financial
Institutions (FIs) and Insurance Companies assuring them of freedom of noninterference in matters of commercial decisions, transfers, and postings etc. It was
conveyed in very clear terms that the Government will not interfere in the
commercial decisions of the Banks/FIs. It is further amplified as follows:
The Banks/FIs should take all commercial decisions in the best interest of the
organization without any fear or favour. All decisions should be taken based on facts
of the case and objectivity. No such decision should be taken out of any other
extraneous considerations such as the influence or the position that the borrower is
holding.
Each Bank/FI should have their own objective, well laid out transfer and posting
rules which should be followed strictly. No exception should be made in such rules
at the behest of any recommendation given by anyone including anybody from the
Ministry of Finance. If, for genuine reasons, any exception to the rule is made, it
should be done only by CMD by giving proper reasons.
Each Bank/FI should have a robust grievance redressal mechanism for borrowers,
depositors as well as staff. The aggrieved person should have an opportunity to
represent his case at least at two levels.
It is trusted that the freedom given to Banks/FIs by assurance of non-interference
will be used in the most objective manner. However, if any complaint comes to this

Department from anybody informing that exceptions were made in certain cases
without any objective basis, and in order to favour somebody, the person taking
such decision would be accountable.

Ministry of Labour and Employment strives to safeguard the interests of workers in

organized and unorganized sectors

Following material was distributed in the Press Conference addressed by the Minister of State
(IC) for Labour & Employment, Shri Bandaru Dattatreya, here today.
TheMinistryofLabourandEmploymentstrivestosafeguardtheinterestsofworkers
from the countrys organized and unorganized sectors, while simultaneously providing an
enablingenvironmentforindustry.Labourisoneofthemostcriticalfactorsofproduction.The
MinistryofLabour&Employmentiscommittedtopromoteanenvironmentconduciveforthe
countrysinclusivegrowthanddevelopment.
Thewelfareandsocialsecurityofworkers besidesimpartingtrainingtotheunskilledlabour
forceviavocationalskillstraining,toimprovetheirqualityoflifethroughprogressivepolicies,
programmes,schemesconstitutesthecoreprioritiesfortheMinistry.
InitiativesforOrganisedworker:
Social Security for Organized Workers:
Initiatives by EPFO:
(i)
Digitization of complete database of 4,24,58,329EPF subscribers and allotment of
UAN to each of them.
(ii)
UAN is being seeded with Bank account and Aadhar Card and other KYC details
for financial inclusion.
(iii)
EPF account of employee to be updated monthly and at the same time he will be
informed through SMS.
(iv)
Direct access to their EPF accounts and will also enable them to consolidate all their
previous accounts.
InitiativesinProgress:
(i)

Special drive is being taken up for enrolling contract and construction workers.

InitiativesbyESIC:
(i)
CeilingonfundsgiventoStatesincreasedfromexistingRs.1500perIPfamilyto
Rs.2000from1.4.2014withprovisionsofincrementalincreaseeveryyear
(ii)
StateExecutiveCommitteetobeconstitutedwhichwouldensureavailabilityof
medical/para medical manpower, drugs, monitor SST referrals and shall have powers to
empanel/deempaneltieuphospitalsandalsopowersforspecialrepairsi.e.Rs.3crorefor200

beddedandRs.5croreformorethan200beddedhospitals
(iii)
ToensurewideraccessofmedicalcaretoInsuredPersons(IP)/theirfamiliesaswell
as to nonIPs, the Corporation has taken up with all State Governments for utilization of
underutilizeddispensaries/hospitalsofESIS/ESICtononIPsandviceaversa.
(iv)
CoverageofESIActextendedto56newareasinthecountryduring201415(upto
30.12.2014).
(v)
Completionof300beddedhospitalatKandivali,Mumbaiand300beddedportions
atAlwar,Rajasthan.
InitiativesforUnorganisedWorker:
1.

Social Security for Unorganized Workers:

Initiatives in progress
IssueofUnorganisedWorkersCardaspertheAct
(i)
Identification and registration of unorganized workers as per the
Unorganized Workers Social Security Act, 2008 leading to creation of database of unorganized
workers.
(ii)
Issue of portable, smart card to unorganized workers with linkages
with Aadhar No. and Bank account No.
(iii)
Convergence of three Social Security Schemes for unorganized
workers on a single platform namely RSBY, AABY and IGNOAPS.
(iv)
Workers Facilitation Centre as Single point of contact for Social
SecuritySchemeforUnorganizedWorkers.
(v)
Holistic monitoring of schemes for assessment of access to and quality
of services to unorganized workers.
2.National Workers Vocational University:
(i) Vocationalstreamisimportantforoureconomy. Recentstudieshaveshownthatonly
around18%ofengineeringgraduatesareemployableduetolackofhandsonpractice.People
withstrongskillbackgroundandstrongknowledgebackgroundaretheimportantdriversin
areaslikeadvanceddesign,testing,researchandteaching/training.
ii)Presentacademicstructureinourcountrylaysgreatemphasisonclassroomlearningwhich

isnotsuitableforprovidingcareerpathwaystovocationaltrainedpersonswhoacquirevery
significantexperientiallearning.
(iii) Therefore, in order to provide career pathways in vocational stream leading to higher
qualifications,andalsotodevelopproperresearchanddevelopinfrastructureforvocational
training,anationalinstituteofhigherlearninghasbecomeabsolutelynecessary.
(iv)Germanyhasdemonstratedthesuccessofvocationaltrainingbyattractinglargenumberof
itspopulationtothisstream.Ithasseveraluniversitiesofferingcoursesofhigherlearningwhich
leverageexperientiallearningofskilledworkforce.
(v) Building upon the agreement in IndoGerman cooperation, Ministry of Labour &
Employment has constituted a Steering Committee under the chairpersonship of Secretary,
Labour&EmploymentandwithrepresentativesfromNSDA,MinistryofHRD,DEA,Planning
Commission,UniversitiesandexpertiseinstitutionsandCIItoevolvetheobjectivesandother
detailsoftheproposedinstitution.
(vi) TheSteeringCommitteehasagreedthattheMinistryofLabour&Employmentshould
immediately take steps for setting up National Workers Vocational University in order to
leverageexperientiallearning,providepathwaysforupwardmobilityandtoprovidenecessary
frameworkandexpertiseintheareasofresearchandinstitutionaldevelopmentforvocational
training. The university would facilitate continuous learning by Indian workforce. A Core
Groupisbeingsetuptoworkoutfurtherdetails.
(vii) Collaboration with industry would be a key feature of the structure of the proposed
university.Industrywouldbeassociatedwithitsvariousactivities.Theuniversitywouldalso
havepartnershipswithotheruniversities/institutionsofhigherlearningandtraininginstitutions.
ItisproposedthattheuniversitywouldhavemaincampusatHyderabad,Telenganawith
regional campuses at Ludhiana, Kolkata, Gujarat and Chennai. Land/premises are
alreadyavailableatLudhiana,KolkataandChennai.
National Seminar on Tribal Health Issues
Ministry of Tribal Affairs in association with ICMR has organized a national level
seminar to discuss all tribal health issues covering thematic areas i.e, malaria,
nutrition, sickle cell anaemia and maternal and child health. The daylong seminar
will be held here tomorrow. Statistics says that the tribal health issues are different
from the mainstream health issues as a result of which they are in the bottom line
of
indication.
The main objective of this seminar is to share good case studies and researches
done by ICMR and RMRC to eradicate burning health problems of the tribals and to
find out how the findings from these case studies can be replicated by other states.

More than a decade of research has shown that small and affordable measures can
significantly reduce the health risks that women face when they become pregnant.
Most maternal deaths could be prevented if women had access to quality Antenatal
care (ANC) during pregnancy, childbirth, and immediately afterwards. Quality ANC
includes minimum of at least 4 ANCs including early registration of pregnant mother
and first ANC in first trimester along with physical and abdominal examinations, Hb
estimation and urine investigation, two doses of T.T Immunization and consumption
of
IFA
tablets
for
100
days.
Web Enabled Mother and Child Tracking System (MCTS) is being implemented by
Department of Health as a mission mode project under the National e-Governance
Plan (NeGP) to register and track every pregnant woman. Having said so, till date
significant percentage of ST women do not fall under the radar of MCTS registration
mechanism and hence being deprived of quality ANC service. As per NFHS-3
estimates, the likelihood of having received care from a doctor is lowest for
scheduled tribe mothers (only 32.8% compared to all India total of 50.2 % and 42%
for
Scheduled
Caste).
In spite of providing facility for free immunization to the pregnant mothers, only
32.4% of ST mothers (lowest among all social groups) received advice about where
to go if they experienced pregnancy complications. The seminar would discuss the
reasons attributing to this and interventions required to achieve 100% coverage of
immunisation of pregnant mothers amongst tribals. Role of various Ministries and
agencies including NGOs will also be discussed. More than a dozen experts from all
over the country will be participating in the seminar.
Chemcials and Fertilizers Minister says there would neither be increase in
Urea price nor change in subsidy
The Government has taken steps to encourage production and availability of
fortified and coated urea in the country. In this regard, the cap / restrictions to
produce Neem coated urea has been removed. The Minister of Chemicals and
Fertilizers Sh. Ananth Kumar today said that a notification in this regard has been
issued. Addressing a press conference here today, he said that using neem coated
urea will not only increase crop yields but also lower input cost to farmers. He said
it will also reduce imports of precious fertilizers as well as reduce ground and soil
pollution.
Shri Ananth Kumar said that presently India is using only 60 lakh mt neem coated
urea which can be increased to full demand of 310 lakh MT in the country. He said
that neem coated urea is costly by 5% compared to plain prilled urea but it reduces
Nitrogen loss by more than 10%, thereby incurring a net savings of Rs. 13.5 per bag
for farmers. Due to higher nitrogen use efficiency, the use of nitrogen coated urea
can also eliminate import of urea resulting in huge foreign exchange savings.
Presently, India is importing about 71 lakh MT urea. He said that, additionally,
farmers will also get advantage of better yield, less pest attack due to less use of
urea which will also ensure better NPK use ratio and balanced use of fertilizers.

Pravasi Bharatiya Divas 2015

External Affairs and Overseas Indian Affairs Minister Smt. Sushma Swaraj inaugurated the
Youth Pravasi Bharatiya Divas in Gandhinagar today, as a precursor to the main Pravasi
Bharatiya Divas starting tomorrow. She exhorted young global Indians to come, Connect,
Celebrate and Contribute to build Ek Bharat Shrestha Bharat.
Smt. Sushma Swaraj speaking at the Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas said, what excites the world today
is India`s economy which is showing new dynamism under the new government under PM
Narendra Modi. Even though situated thousands of miles away, Indian Diaspora have kept the
spirit of Bharat alive. The Minister said, providing skills to our people, particularly the young,
is also our priority
The External Affairs Minister and Overseas Affairs Minister said that she feels great joy in
addressing this gathering of youth from across the world, who share a special bond with India, a
bond of the heart. Speaking to the young generation of Pravasis, she said that this Youth PBD is
about 3Cs.
The first C is Connect.
Today, an estimated 25 million people of Indian origin and non-resident Indians live and work
outside India. The Pravasi Bhartiya Diwas is essentially a platform to connect this Indian
diaspora with the motherland and involve the diaspora in the development and advancement of
India. With this PBD we mark 100 years of the return of the greatest Pravasi Bharatiya, Shri
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, who arrived back in India from South Africa on January 9,
1915, she said. Today, India is seen as a rising power, and appreciated across the world for the
way it has converged strong democratic institutions with rapid development. The biggest asset of
this new India is its youth.
Even though India is an old civilization, today it is also one of the youngest countries in the
world, with more than 50 per cent of our population being under the age of 25, which means that
soon one fifth of the worlds working age population will be in India.
The Youth PBD seeks to connect the new generation of Indians who are confident, aspirational
and transcend the old boundaries of caste and class, the minister said.
The second C is Celebrate.
We want the young Pravasis to take pride in the history and civilizational heritage of India which
is their cultural inheritance. M K Gandhi came back to India a hundred years ago and brought
about momentous changes to this land, which made him a Mahatma. Gandhi thought that it was
necessary for him to get to know India better before he launched himself into the national
freedom movement. He went around the country on trains, always traveling in third class, to be
among the people, and observed many things about the country. This voyage of discovery
opened his eyes to the true face of India and its problems, which he then set out to solve. To
know more about India, its traditions, and its art and culture, a session on Bharat ko Jano will
tell you that zero and the decimal system were Indias gift to the world. The value of Pi was

first calculated by Budhayana in the sixth century. The worlds first university was established in
Takshila in 700 BC. The earliest school of medicine known to humans was Ayurveda which was
consolidated by Charaka, the father of medicine, some 2,500 years ago.
Ideas such as non-violence, tolerance and respect for diversity and difference are enshrined in
our way of life and have shown the world the way to live with peace and harmony. In second
plenary session called Bharat ko Mano tells youth about the remarkable strides that modern
India has taken, especially in the fields of science and technology. The nation which gave the
world the concept of zero, has also mastered the nuclear cycle, sent expeditions to Antarctica and
even unmanned missions to the moon and Mars. In fact ISROs Mars Orbiter Mission
Mangalyaan was recently named among the best inventions of 2014 by TIME magazine. The
spacecraft, which took just four years from feasibility study to arrival in Mars orbit, cost
approximately 25 million dollars, less than the budget for the Hollywood film Gravity. India
also became the first nation to reach Mars orbit in its very first attempt.
Indias soft power has also been spreading around the world. The intensity of Indias
international engagement has also increased manifold which can be seen from the calendar of
high level visits both to and from India. Prime Minister Modis out-of-the-box initiatives and
whirlwind tours have raised Indias global profile. In a few days from now President Obama will
grace our Republic Day parade as the Chief Guest, she said. The Indian economy which is now
the third largest in terms of purchasing power parity, is showing new dynamism under the NDA
government , with a complete transformation in the business sentiment vis--vis India.
To enhance ease of doing business, the Government has taken multiple steps to simplify
procedures, rationalize rules and increase use of technology for efficient and effective
governance. Efforts are on to identify obsolete laws and regulations which need to be repealed.
Skilling our people, particularly the young, is also a priority.
There is also a clear focus on infrastructure. Several steps have been taken to enhance financing
of infrastructure, and we have moved towards a more transparent policy on natural resources.
Given the enormous requirements for infrastructure development over the next few years,
foreign investment is going to be extremely important.
And the third C Contribute.
We want you, the Pravasis, to contribute to the development of India. We want you to participate
in the vision that Prime Minister Modi has for Indias future. We have launched several
programmes that have the potential to transform India. The Jan Dhan Yojana, the worlds largest
programme of financial inclusion, has just crossed the 100 million mark and 98.4 per cent of
households in India now have bank accounts.
The Swachh Bharat campaign for cleanliness has become a mass movement. This is an issue that
affects not only peoples health but is also an attack on social ills like untouchability and manual
scavenging.

The Make in India programme signals our commitment to transforming India into the
manufacturing hub of the world.
The Digital India initiative aims at delivering government services electronically by 2018. It
will encompass not only e-governance, but also broadband for all, IT-enabled education and
telemedicine. We have already rolled out biometric attendance in government offices as a
practical example of this initiative.
The Smart Cities programme aims to build 100 smart cities in India which will be well-planned,
technologically integrated and environment-friendly.
The Government has been working in mission mode to implement all these programmes. The
Modi Government is fully committed to good governance, efficiency, accountability,
transparency, and speedy decision making. There are tremendous opportunities today for you to
join us, especially in the fields of manufacturing, infrastructure development, education, health,
skills development, science and technology, research and innovation, knowledge economy and
youth development as part of our effort to realise Indias full potential. Friends, just as Mahatma
Gandhi was the greatest ambassador of peace, non-violence and truth during his time, you can
become the ambassadors of the new India. Today, the pravasi is the most significant example of
Indias soft power. Through your work abroad as software gurus, tech wizards, eminent
academics and trail blazing business persons, a clear and powerful message of Indias
capabilities has been conveyed to the world. Your honest work ethic, law abiding and hard
working nature have contributed to the global image of India and Indians.
The Minister said that most important of all, the diaspora have retained a bit of India in their
hearts. Even though situated thousands of miles away, you have kept the spirit of Bharat alive.
For some of you this may be the very first visit to the land of your fathers or forefathers. For
some others it may be yet another link in the voyage of discovery that you have embarked upon.
So global Indians, come, Connect, Celebrate, Contribute and become a part of the momentous
transformation taking place in the country to build Ek Bharat Shrestha Bharat.
Earlier, delivering the keynote address, Union Minister for Youth Affairs and Sports Shri
Sarbananda Sonowal said, Indian diaspora shared strong links with motherland and have been
partners in progress. He said overseas Indian remittances totalled $ 70 billion last fiscal. The
Minister further said "these are exciting times for partnering. Ideas and investments are needed
for Clean Ganga, Smart Cities and Make In India initiatives, which in turn offer tremendous
opportunities". He said the government is also simplifying rules to promote engagement for
building a modern India.
Two interesting sessions on the opening day deal with themes - `Bharat Ko Jaano` focusing on
Indian Diaspora youth linkage with traditions, culture and philosophy, and `Bharat Ko Maano`
highlighting innovations and contributions of modern India.
Citizenship (Amendment) Ordinance, 2015 Promulgated

The President of India has promulgated the Citizenship (Amendment) Ordinance,

2015 on January 06, 2015 with immediate effect which provides for the following
amendments
to
the
Indian
Citizen
Act,
1955:
At present one year continuous stay in India is mandatory for Indian Citizenship
which is relaxed stating that if the Central Government is satisfied that special
circumstances exist, it may, after recording such circumstances in writing, relax the
period of twelve months specified upto a maximum of thirty days which may be in
different
breaks.
To enable for registration as Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) by a minor, whose
parents
are
Indian
Citizens.
To enable for registration as Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) by a child or a grandchild
or
a
great
grandchild
of
such
a
citizen.
To enable for registration as Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) by such spouse of a
citizen of India or spouse of an OCI registered under Section 7A and whose marriage
has been registered and subsisted for a continuous period of not less than two
years immediately preceding the presentation of the application under this section.
In respect of existing PIO card holders central government may, by notification in
Official Gazette, specify a particular date from which all existing PIO card holders
will
be
deemed
to
be
OCI
card
holders.
The Indian Citizenship Act, 1955 provides for acquisition, termination, deprivation,
determination of Indian Citizenship and other related aspects. The Act provides for
acquisition of Indian citizenship by birth, descent, registration, naturalization and
incorporation of territory under certain circumstances, and also for the termination
and
deprivation
of
citizenship.
EBook of Ministry of MSME launched

TheMinisterforMicro,Small&MediumEnterprisesShriKalrajMishratodaylaunchedthee
bookoftheMinistryofMSME.TheEBookinitiativeofMSMEisanentrepreneurfriendly
stepandcanbeaccessedattheMinistrieswebsite:
http://msme.gov.in/WriteReadData/Whatsnew/MSME%20eBook%20201507012015.pdf
The EBook details priority and programmes relevant to different stakeholders. It covers the
following:

INTRODUCTION

ACHIEVEMENTS

ThrustonKhadi&VillageIndustry

FocusonCoirSector

EGovernanceinitiatives

PrimeMinistersEmploymentGenerationProgramme(PMEGP)

BUDGETANNOUNCEMENTS

HIGHLIGHTSOFGOODGOVERNANCEINITIATIVESINLASTSEVENMONTHS

FUTUREPLANS

SkillDevelopmentforentrepreneurshipandenterprisecreationTalentMela:

FocusArea:EmploymentGenerationJobledGrowth

FocusArea:GrowthOrientationZeroDefect

ActionPlanforMakeinIndiaMinistryofMSME

MSMEsectorhasbeenplayinganimportantroleinsocioeconomicdevelopmentofthe
country.MSMEsectorcontributesaround8%ofGDP.MSMEsectoraccountsforaround40%
ofthetotalexportsandaround45%ofthemanufacturingoutput.AspertheFourthAllIndia
CensusoftheMicro,SmallandMediumEnterprises,totalnumberofEnterprisesoftheMSME
sectoris361.76lakhofwhich15.64areregisteredEnterprises.Thesectorprovidesemployment
to805.24lakhpersons.
TheroleoftheMinistryofMicro,SmallandMediumEnterprises(M/oMSME)andits
organizationsistoassisttheStatesintheireffortstoencourageentrepreneurship,employment
andlivelihoodopportunitiesandenhancethecompetitivenessofMSMEsinthechanged
economicscenario.
The schemes/programmes undertaken by the Ministry and its organizations seek to
facilitate/provide: i) adequate flow of credit from financial institutions/banks; ii) support for
technology up-gradation and modernization; iii) integrated infrastructural facilities; iv) modern
testing facilities and quality certification; v) access to modern management practices; vi)
entrepreneurship development and skill up-gradation through appropriate training facilities; vii)
support for product development, design intervention and packaging; viii) welfare of artisans
and workers; ix) assistance for better access to domestic and export markets and x) cluster-wise
measures to promote capacity building and empowerment of the units.
Parliamentary Consultative Committee of Social Justice & Empowerment

Ministry
Deliberates
on
Steps for prevention of alcoholism and substance (Drugs) Abuse
Welfare of De-Notified, Nomadic and Semi-Nomadic Tribes
The Minister informed the Members about the steps taken by the Ministry regarding
the prevention of alcoholism and substance (Drugs) Abuse and Welfare of DeNotified, Nomadic and Semi-Nomadic Tribes. He said that the Department of SJ&E is
the Nodal Ministry for drug demand reduction and has adopted a three pronged
strategy towards addressing the issue which is awareness building and educating
people community based intervention for motivational counseling and training of
volunteers/service providers to built a committed as skilled cadre for achieving
whole
person
recovering.
The Minister further informed that a Working group has been constituted by
National Statistical Commission (NSC) under the Ministry of Statistics & Prog.
Implementation to devise the modalities of advance Pilot survey. As the problem of
drug abuse is reported to be high in the State of Punjab and Manipur, the
Department has initiated a survey work in these two States. RRTC in Punjab under
the aegis of Department has been assigned to conduct survey in collaboration with
NDDTC, AIIMS. The Survey is expected to be completed by June, 2015. The Minister
added steps have also been taken for prevention of Alcoholism and drug abuse by
formulation of the First National Policy for Drug Demand Reduction which is under
finalization; Awareness generation programmes through Voluntary Organization,
Regional Resource Training Centres, NYKS, NSS and NCC and setting up of a
prevention
of
Alcoholism
and
Drug
Abuse
Helpline.
The Minister also informed that the Government has set up National Commission for
DNTs (Denotified Nomadic Tribes) which will work for framing of an appropriate
scheme for pre and post metric scholarships and construction of hostels for such
DNT students not included in the SCs/STs/OBCs, the commission will also prepare a
State-wise list of castes belonging to DNTs besides identifying the castes belonging
to DNTs in the list of SCs, STs and OBCs.
Retracting the Governments commitment for the welfare of DNTs the Minister said
that his Ministry would also release financial assistance to the State/UTs/Universities
which would cater to the requirements of the students belonging to DNTs.
Benefits of Demographic Dividend will flow only if our Population is
Healthy,
Educated and Properly Skilled; Meets Representatives of Social
Infrastructure,
Human Capital and Development Groups as Part of his Pre Budget
Consultative Meeting
The Union Finance Minister Shri Arun Jaitley said that apart from on-going schemes
and programmes for the marginalized and vulnerable section of the society, the
Government has initiated various special social sector programmes. He said that
these programmes among others include Swacch Bharat Mission (Gramin), which
will set the base for improving sanitation and health standards; Pradhan Mantri Jan

Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) and RuPay debit card which will extend financial inclusion and
give financial empowerment to the account holders at large. The Finance Minister,
Shri Jaitley was making his Opening Remarks during the Pre Budget Consultative
Meeting with the representatives of Social Infrastructure, Human Capital and
Development Groups here today. He said that more than 63% of the population is in
the age group of 15-59 years, broadly termed as Indias demographic dividend. He
said while this young population provides India a great opportunity, but it also
poses a great challenge to the Government. He said that benefits will flow only if
our population is healthy, educated and properly skilled. In this context, he said that
investments, especially in social infrastructure that build-up human capital are
crucial. Shri Jaitley said that India needs to take advantage of this demographic
window in the next couple of decades and garner its benefits. Therefore, the
Finance Minister said that his Government has put thrust on skill development as
well as on Make in India as the Governments endeavour to improve employability
and create large employment avenues for the youth among others. He said that
skill development has been given focused attention for which a dedicated
Department of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship has been created in the
Central Government. He said that the challenge for the country now is in planning
and acting towards converting its potential demographic force for enhancing
opportunities of growth by dovetailing the quality of manpower to the requirements
of employers, both domestic and international. Various suggestions were received
from the representatives of the different social sector groups during the meeting.
Major recommendations include that immediate steps be taken in the budget to
prevent any scope of diversion and misallocation of funds meant for the benefit of
dalits and adivasis. This will result in about Rs. 30,000 crore to be available for the
development of Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribes. Other suggestions include
to set apart in the coming budget the entire 16.2% for Scheduled Castes and 8.2%
for Scheduled Tribes, establishment of well designed and dedicated institutional
mechanism for Schedule Caste Sub Plans (SCSPs) Tribal Sub Plans (TSPs) separately
at the Centre and State levels, creation of a separate unit within Niti Ayog with
power to review, monitor and direct to ensure effective implementation of the SCSP
and TSP as well as setting-up of a nodal unit headed by a Joint Secretary with the
responsibility of preparation of Annual SCSP Plans and their subsequent
implementation.
Other suggestions include adequate allocation for ICDS budget, Mid Day Meal
Scheme and for the programmes for the nutrition of mother and child under Food
Security Act as well as clear demarcation of funds to remove malnutrition among
children of dalits and adivasis etc. Besides this, there was suggestion for budget
transparency at local level in order to have better utilization of funds and results of
various social welfare schemes at the grass root level etc.
Other suggestions made during the aforesaid meeting include that a mechanism
needs to be built to develop entrepreneurship among dalits, schemes to be brought
out for developing art and culture of dalit and adivasi communities. Suggestions
were also made about proper implementation of Prevention of Domestic Violence
against Women Act, appointment of women protection officers, increasing the
scope of Nirbhaya Fund to cover the domestic violence against women etc. A
suggestion was made that Finance Minister may include a statement in his Budget

Speech condemning violence against women showing unequivocal commitment of

the Government in this regard.
Some suggestions were also made on investment on youth, especially from those of
socially excluded communities, investment in skill and entrepreneurship building,
more spending on education and social enterprises, inclusion of youth leadership in
CSR activities, higher spending to change the social mindset of people against the
use of toilets etc.
Other suggestions include adoption and implementation of the National
Competition Policy to push the growth on higher trajectory, adoption and
implementation of Public Procurement Act. As public procurement accounts for
almost 30% of the total GDP worth US $136 billion annually, therefore, Public
Procurement Act would help in promoting the good governance by curbing
corruption in public procurement; and adoption of a National Public Procurement
Policy; adoption and implementation of Financial Consumer Protection Act, fixing of
fiscal management practices by establishment of Parliamentary Budget Office,
adoption of international best practices in budgetary planning and reduction of nonmerit subsidies among others.
In end, suggestions were also made for enhancement of allocation to education
with an emphasis on making functional investment in early childhood and
elementary education, enhanced allocation to education to 6% of GDP in line with
Kothari Commission and National Education Policy recommendations and enhance
allocation to elementary education by 1% to accommodate a cumulative gap in
education, enhanced allocation to areas with strongest implications on quality
availability of teaching learning materials, improved libraries and strengthening of
the capacity of the resource unit at the cluster level, enhance allocation for
research, monitoring and evaluation, address gaps in financial and planning process
to ensure full expenditure of allocated funds in education sector among others.

PM calls upon the Indian diaspora across the world to unite as a positive
global force in the cause of humanity

The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, today called upon the Indian diaspora across the world
to unite as a positive global force in the cause of humanity. In his inaugural address at the Pravasi
Bharatiya Diwas at the Mahatma Mandir in Gandhinagar, the Prime Minister recalled that
exactly 100 years ago, a Non Resident Indian - Gandhi - had returned to India to serve the
people. Today, he said, he was welcoming NRIs from across the world as a Non Resident
Gujarati.
The Prime Minister said NRIs are present across the world, in more than 200 countries. "India is
global because of you," he told the gathering. He said that in the past, Indians had travelled

across the world in search of opportunity, or to gain knowledge and exposure. "Today,
opportunities beckon you in India," he asserted, adding that today, the world looks at India with
hope. He said times are changing quickly, and India is rising with great strength.
The Prime Minister exhorted the Indian diaspora to contribute to India`s success in any way
possible, including knowledge, expertise or skills. The Prime Minister mentioned in particular,
the Namaami Gange project to clean the River Ganga, and make it a source of economic
empowerment for 40 percent of India`s population. He said he was sure all NRIs would be
inspired to contribute to this cause.
The Prime Minister welcomed the dignitaries from Guyana, South Africa and Mauritius. He
recalled how Indian festivals such as Holi and Diwali are enthusiastically celebrated in Guyana.
He recalled that today - January 8th - was the founding day of the African National Congress in
South Africa. He mentioned that Mahatma Gandhi`s birth anniversary - October 2 - is observed
in Mauritius with even greater vigour than it is observed in India.
The Prime Minister called upon NRIs across the world to forge and take pride in a common
identity and heritage, and to use this strength collectively. He said even if a solitary NRI is
present anywhere in the world, India is alive and present in that corner of the world through him.
The Prime Minister said he had met representatives of 50 countries since assuming office, and
he could say with confidence that rich or poor, all nations across the world, today feel that their
goals and objectives can be met in partnership with India. He said this was a rare opportunity,
and it was now upto everyone to use this opportunity for the benefit of humanity, and for India`s
benefit.
The Prime Minister said the world was showering affection on India, as was evident from the
fact that a record 177 nations out of 193, had co-sponsored India`s resolution on International
Day of Yoga at the United Nations.
The Prime Minister said he firmly believes that NRIs are a big strength of India, and India can
make a global impact by reaching out to them. The Prime Minister said he was happy to
announce that he had fulfilled all promises made to NRIs, such as lifelong visa for PIO
cardholders, merging of PIO and OCI schemes, visa on arrival for 43 countries, and electronic
travel authorization.
Contribution of Indian diaspora
Minister for External and Overseas Indian Affairs, Ms Sushma Swaraj in her welcome address
said the 25 million strong Indian diaspora has become a unique force in the world culture. She
said, the government is keen to work closely with the Indian diaspora and welcomed the
investors and professionals to partner with India. I promise, it will be a mutually rewarding
experience, she added.
Recalling Indias close ties with nations having significant population of people of Indian origin,
Ms. Sushma Swaraj said , Mauritius calls itself a chhota Bharat and celebrates its national day

on March 8, the day when Mahatma Gandhi began his historic Dandi March. The Minister
informed that the government is setting up a monument of arrival of indentured labour in
Guyana. She also mentioned about Indias close bilateral relations with South Africa, the other
karm-bhoomi of Gandhiji, which is also the partner country at the Vibrant Gujarat summit. Ms.
Swaraj said her Ministrys doors are open to all for any assistance.
Chief Guest Donald Ramotar, President of Guyana and Guest of Honour, Ms. Maite Nkona
Mashabane, South African Minister for International Affairs Relations and Cooperation also
spoke on the occasion and stressed upon close bilateral ties their countries shared with India.
President of Guyana recalled the influence the Indian Independence Movement had in shaping
political and economic destinies of other colonial countries. Referring to Indias growing
economic clout, Mr. Ramotar urged India to provide leadership to other developing countries,
who have no voice, to realize their potential. Stressing upon the need for reforming the UN
system, Mr Ramotar said the global struggle for equality continues. Ms.Mashabane claimed
Mahatma Gandhi to be the national hero of South Africa, as much he is of India. She expressed
South Africas keenness to deepen ties with India in the fields of Information and
Communication Technology, health care and clean energy.
Ms. Anandiben Patel, Chief Minister of Gujarat said that her state is elated to be the partner state
of Pravasi Bharatiya Divas on the centenary of Mahatma Gandhis return to India. She said
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is trying to fulfill the dreams of Mahatma through various
schemes like Swachch Bharat, skill India etc. She extended a warm welcome to the diaspora
delegates and invited them to absorb the culture and ethos of Gujarat.
Dandi Kutir
Earlier, the Prime Minister inaugurated the Dandi Kutir museum located opposite the Mahatma
Mandir in Gandhinagar. The three storey exhibition, housed in a dome shaped structure, traces
the life and times of Mahatma Gandhi through various faces as barrister, his struggles in South
Africa, return to India and successfully leading the freedom struggle. Depiction of Gandhiji
breaking the salt law after the Dandi March is a major draw. Key concepts of Gandhian
thoughts like Satyagraha, non-violence, self reliance, gram swaraj are elaborately explained
through a number of exhibits. There is also an audio-visual presentation of milestone incidents
of the Indian Independence Movement. The contents of the museum are expressed through a
combination of traditional and contemporary media.
Nearly 4,000 delagates from 44 countries are attending the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas 2015 in
Gandhinagar. A mega exhibition spread over 1.1 million sq ft has also been organized as part of
the programme.

Achievements and Initiatives of Ministries of Power, Coal and New &

Renewable Energy in the first 200 Days

Mission:

Affordable, 24x7 power for all homes, industrial and commercial establishments and
adequate power for the agricultural sector
Long-term energy security of India
Keytakeaways
5 unions of Coal India Limited have called off the strike after cordial discussions with
senior leadership of the company and the Ministry of Coal yesterday.
After collapse of grid in Delhi in May leading to frequent power cuts, Central
government acted decisively to restore power lines and provide power to all homes. From these
learnings, we have prepared a short term and medium term plan to ensure such a crisis does not
occur again, for which massive investments worth Rs. 7,700 crores are already underway for:
oUpgradingpowerinfrastructure
oBringingmoretransmissionlinestothecity
oUndergroundcabling
oSmartmeteringtostopwrongbilling
oEmergencyresponsesystems
NationallaunchofLEDandenergyconservationmissionbyHonblePrimeMinisterShri
NarendraModiji:1crorebulbsinDelhiwillbereplacedwithLEDwithinoneyear.Similar
replacementprogramof500,000streetlightsofDelhiinoneyeartoo.Nationwiderollout
thereafterwillseeasavingofoverRs.10,000crores.
AmendmentsintheElectricityAct introduced in Parliament for providing choice to
consumers in electricity suppliers (just like we have the freedom to choose a mobile phone
operator and can change if dissatisfied, so will be the case with electricity suppliers too). This
will ensure more competition, affordable power and better customer service.
50%increaseincapacityaddition in June-Nov 2014 versus June-Nov 2013
Record15.8%increaseinthermalbasedelectricitygenerationinJuneNov2014versus
JuneNov2013
Alltimehigh14.1%increaseincoalproductioninOctNov2014versus1.0%inOct
Nov2013(and8.4%productiongrowthinJuneNov2014overJuneNov2013)

CentralGovernmentgrantofRs.1.1lakhcroresforcomprehensiveinfrastructureup
gradationpanIndiaundertwoschemes(DeenDayalUpadhyayGramJyotiYojana
(DDUGJY)forruralIndiaandIntegratedPowerDevelopmentScheme(IPDS)forurban
India)towards24x7affordablepowerforall.
oDDUGJYwillseefeederseparationinruralIndiagivingassuredpowertothefarms,
and24x7forhomesandsmallscaleindustries
oTheRemotevillageswithsmallpopulation(e.g.,dhanis)willalsobecoveredunder
DDUGJY.
Actionplan towards doubling Coal Indias production target to 100 crore tons in 5 years
is in place, and transformation process has been initiated.
100,000MWsolarand60,000MWwindenergycapacityinstallationtargetby2022for
longtermenergysecurityofIndia.ThiswillentailaninvestmentofRs.10lakhcrore.
o40,000MWofrooftopsolar
o20,000MWofsolarparks
AworldclassRenewableEnergyInvestmentSummit(REInvest2015)isbeingheldin
midFebruarytoshowcaseIndiaspotential,easeofdoingbusinessandtoattractsuchquantum
ofcapital.
Historiccoalordinancewaspromulgatedwithinamonthofcancellationofcoalblocksby
HonbleSupremeCourt.Allocationandauctionprocesswillbeheldinatransparentmanner
exclusivelybyebidding.ThiswillprotecttheinterestsofCoalIndiaLimitedsemployeesand
increasedomesticproductiontowards24x7affordablepowerforall,andlongtermenergy
securityofIndia.
CoalbearingstateswillreceiveoverRs.7lakhcroresfromeauctionofcoalblocksin
future,forsocioeconomicdevelopmentandacceleratingeconomicgrowth.
MakeinIndia:Rs.1lakhcrore worth orders being placed by NTPC, Coal India Limited,
Energy Efficiency Services Limited, PGCIL etc. to boost manufacturing and kick start the
economy.
LongpendingtransmissionprojectsworthRs.35,000croresclearedandgovernmentgrant
ofRs.10,000croresforcomprehensivestrengtheningandupgradationofpowersystemsin8
NorthEasternStates

SupplyofcoalfromnearestmineswillreducetransportationcostsbyRs.6,000crores,
reducingtariffs:
oAlreadyoneexchangebetweenNTPCandGujaratsavedRs.300croresforthe
customers
PSUsundertheadministrativecontroloftheMinistriesofPower,CoalandNew&
RenewableEnergyareconstructingover100,000toiletsinschools,by15thAugust2015
towardsSwachhBharatAbhiyaan.
Scientific Research to be the Engine for Make In India in Years to Come

Dr. Harsh Vardhan said that India today is definitely a more happening place in the areas of
Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) than the West. The Prime Ministers
confidence is definitely having an effect, he added.
The Modi government has already announced a package of incentives to Indian-origin STEM
researchers so that they could get competitive salaries in India. Many private sector companies
have already succeeded in wooing back to India talented scientists. This is reflecting well on
Indias image as a country with innovation and STEM-based entrepreneurship.
Dr. Harsh Vardhan said that Ministry of Science & Technology (BIRAC and CSIR) would work
with State Industry Development Corporations for enabling deployment of technology
benefitting SMEs.
The spurt in the number of Indias intellectually talented students turning to the pure sciences has
been noticed worldwide. Recently, the widely respected US think tank, Brookings Institution, has
revealed in a report that 8 of the top10 cities worldwide in terms of sending STEM scholars to
the United States on F-1 visas are in India. These cities are: Vijayawada, Hyderabad,
Secunderabad, Chennai, Bangalore, Mumbai, Kolkata and Pune.
The Minister said that falling world oil prices will not distract Indias commitment to seeking
breakthroughs in making renewable energy harnessing and its affordable adoption in everyday lif
Solar power
The Minister said that he would drive the Department of Science and Technology (DST)
to push the frontiers of research into renewable energy research, particularly solar power.
World oil prices have fallen from $ 115 a barrel in June to less than $ 50 this week. But
Prime Minister Modi, himself a great backer of solar energy research, development and adoption
in everyday life, has instructed me not to be distracted from the pursuit of the ultimate goal of
having a fossil fuel free economy. This is definitely good news for the Environment as the
present dependence on non-renewable forms of energy is killing us all and would be disastrous
for the future generationsthe Minister said.

The total renewable energy potential from various sources is conservatively estimated at
2.5 lakh MW. According to United Nations, India has achieved less than 12.5 percent of the
potential. As for solar power, he said, the potential is unlimited.
Dr. Harsh Vardhan said, In solar power the present trend is to think in terms of
Gigawatts and not Megawatts because that would lead to prices dropping. In Germany, the
government is encouraging house owners to rent out their rooftops so that more and more solar
power can be harnessed for feeding into the grid. This policy needs to be incorporated into our
national policy.
Milestones: 2014-15
Extending his warm New Years greetings to the media representatives, Dr. Harsh
Vardhan said that the Ministries of S&T and Earth Sciences, which he heads, have had a most
fruitful 2014. He congratulated all scientists, researchers, technicians and administrative staff of
government laboratories and foundations who have made Mangalyaanand other milestones
possible.
The Indian private sector should also be congratulated because it is functioning in many start up
fields and competing with established players in the West. In the past 20 years many Indian
companies based on biotechnology, biological sciences and other fields have attracted world
recognition the Minister said. Dr. Harsh Vardhan said that India a large youth are now expected
to take the country to its glory through the scientific path.

He listed the following achievements of the Department of Science and Technology at the Press
Conference.
Cutting-edge Technology: Make in India. India is a partner in the Thirty Metre Telescope (TMT)
project at Mauna Kea, Hawaii, USA at a total cost of 1,299.8 Crore from 2014-23. 70% of
Indias contribution will be in kind, in the making of quality mirrors and engineering in India.
Partners: USA, Japan, Canada, China and India.

High performance computing resource of 800 TFLOPS has been commissioned for
weather and climate modeling. Most powerful machine in the SE Asia.

Supercomputing for the future: India has mounted an ambitious National

Supercomputing Mission (NSM): Building Capacity and Capability with the aim of building
Exascale computing with a total budget outlay of 4,500 Crore over 7 years (jointly with
Department of Information Technology).

Understanding Climate Change and Saving the Himalayan Ecosystem: National Mission
for Sustaining the Himalayan Ecosystem. National Mission on Strategic Knowledge for Climate
Change.

Tsunami Early Warning System at ESSO-INCOIS designated as Regional Tsunami Service

Provider (RTSP) for providing advisories to all Indian Ocean Rim countries. India only country
capable of providing advisories for both tsunamigenic zones: Makran coast and AndamanSumatra sub-duction zone.

Cyclone Prediction. Remarkable improvements: Recent events such as Thane, Phailin, and
Helen and Hudhud.

Modeling Monsoon: A dynamic model employed to predict quantitative precipitation

associated with the southwest monsoon.

Helping Recovery of Naval Science and Technological Laboratory (NSTL) heavy weight
torpedo VARUNASTRA. The support and participation by Vessel Management Cell of MoES
ESSO-NIOT and crew of Sagar-Nidhi vital.

Make in India in High-end S&T: Deployed first Sub-surface Ocean Moored Observatory
in the Arctic. ESSO-NCAOR and the ESSO-NIOT successfully deployed IndARC, the countrys
first multi-sensor moored observatory in the Kongsfjorden fjord of the Arctic, roughly half way
between Norway and the North Pole. This is a testimony to the capabilities of India in designing,
developing and installing underwater observatories.

Investing for our future talent:, New thrust in Human Resource Development. Indian
Scientists teach and train in Scale. International Scientists to teach in India. Opportunities for
attracting Overseas Indian Scientists to return to India.


Enhanced Innovation Ecosystem: Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council
now supports nearly 300 companies, 100 young entrepreneurs. Biotechnology Translational
research and industry academia partnership are being promoted through 3 Biotech clusters, 8
Biotech Parks and 13 Bioincubators.

Rotavirus vaccine indigenously developed. The developed Rotavirus Vaccine at $1 per

dose has been cleared for market license.

Decoding the Wheat Genome: 15 countries joined hands to complete this huge task of
decoding 17,000 million bases. Indian Scientists participated in Decoding Chromosome 2A.

The Council of Scientific & Industrial Research (CSIR) provides significant technological
interventions in many areas of economic and social importance which include environment,
health, drinking water, food, housing, energy, farm and non-farm sectors.

CSIR has 90% of US patents granted to any Indian publicly funded R&D organization.
CSIR licenses 13.86% of its patents - above global average.

National Capacity Building and in some areas, global leadership. Example: CSIR
technology provides gasoline with less than 0.3% benzene. A 0.60 MMTPA plant is being
constructed at Reliance Refinery in Jamnagar. First in world.

Novel Broad Spectrum Confocal Microscope: Under CSIR-CGCRI and NMITLI

programme a Broad Spectrum Confocal Microscope, world class Made in IndiaHigh-end
Product based on Supercontinuum Light Source. Paved the way for Indias presence in global
photonics research.

Strategic Sector: DHVANI, a state-of-the-art marksmanship training system and Drishti

Systems, airport visibility measuring tools.

KrishiShakti, an indigenous diesel engine tractor.

Just Announced: Indian Neutrino Observatory. A major high-tech Make in India initiative
and a new-thrust in High-Energy Experimental Physics. Collaboration with Department of
Atomic Energy.
Shri M.Venkaiah Naidu invites Overseas Indians to partner in building
modern Urban India Unveils US $ 1200 billion investment opportunities in
new urban initiatives Mahatma was the man of the moment 100 years ago
and now it is Shri Modi, says Shri Naidu Minister says, secular
development aspirations of people are the Gita, Bible, Koran for
government Dwaraka and Puri included for development under heritage
cities project

Minister of Urban Development Shri M.Venkaiah Naidu today made a fervent appeal
to millions of Overseas Indians to join hands in the task of building a modern urban
India. Presiding over the Plenary Session on Opportunities in India at the Pravasi
Bharati Divas programme at Gandhi Nagar, Gujarat, Shri Naidu outlined investment
need of over US $ 1200 billion in building 100 smart cities, development of 500
cities and towns, Swachh Bharat Mission in urban areas, Rejuvenation of cities of
cultural heritage, construction of over 20 million low cost and affordable houses and
skill development.
Elaborating on the ambitious urban development initiatives of the central
government, Shri Venkaiah Naidu informed the participants that domestic and
foreign private investments will be the main sources of investments for new urban
initiatives. He said that about 60 lakh crore (950 billion US $) investments would be
required for providing urban infrastructure across the country and as Operation &
Maintenance costs of urban utilities over the next 20 years. About Rs.45,000 cr (US
$ 7.50 billion) private investment in Clean India initiative in urban areas besides
another Rs.15 lakh crore (US $ 238 billion) in ensuring housing for all is also
required.
Giving details of various urban initiatives, Shri Naidu informed that 12 cities with
rich cultural heritage assets would be taken for development of core heritage areas
and making them more tourist friendly with all services and facilities. The cities
identified under HRIDAY (Heritage Development and Augmentation Yojana) include:
Amritsar, Ajmer, Gaya, Mathura, Varanasi, Amaravati(Andhra Pradesh),
Warangal(Telangana), Badami (Karnataka), Kanchipuram and Vellankini (Tamilnadu),
Dwaraka (Gujarat) and Puri (Odisha).
Shri M.Venkaiah Naidu said that the mission of the Modi led government is
Resurgent India and various initiatives are being taken to improve investment
climate and the ease of doing business in the country. He noted that the
sentiment within and outside the country has changed significantly after Shri
Narendra Modi took over as Prime Minister. The country is firmly on the path of
recovery. Shri Modis simple mantra is to Make India through Skill India, Digital India
and Clean India. The secular aspirations of the people of the country for

development were clearly expressed during the recent elections to the Lok Sabha
and assemblies of 8 states. These wishes and aspirations of the people constitute
the Gita, Bible and Koran for our government. Some efforts are being made to divert
the attention from our agenda of development and governance and we will not
allow them to succeed. Gandhi ji arrived in India 100 years ago on a mission of
liberating our county and Shri Modi has come to Delhi as Prime Minister with a
mission of Resurgent India.
Shri Naidu observed that since the formation of Shri Modi led government at the
centre, inflation has been steadily declining with Wholesale Price Index recoding
Zero during November last year, economic growth rate increasing from 4.60% to
5.70%, Foreign Institutional Investments touching US $ 42 billion in 2014 as against
only 12 billion US $ in the previous year, core manufacturing picking up, power
generation going by 22% etc. He further said that with emphasis on punctuality and
accountability, actual working hours by employees too increased. Shri Naidu noted
that in nut-shell, the management of the economy and governance is marked by
clear sense of purpose and direction creating the right environment for realizing a
Resurgent India.
Vice President Inaugurates World Congress on International Law

I deem it an honour to be invited by the Indian Society of International Law to address the
World Congress on International Law. This distinguished galaxy of Justices, Judges of the
International Court, legal scholars and lawyers constitutes a formidable and learned audience.
The relevance of international law in todays rapidly changing world, and the new challenges we
have to collectively address, is a good subject for serious cogitation.
International Law as it is now understood and practiced is of relatively recent origin. It owes its
origin primarily to the Westphalian World Order forged in Europe in the 17th century. Its
beginnings, modest and limited, coincide with the rise of nation states in Europe, bore its stamp
and focused on common values and the reciprocity of interests.
The principles of sovereignty and legal equality of states were first enunciated by the Dutch
jurist Hugo Grotius in 1625. The principles of sanctity of agreements entered into, as also the
saving conditionality allowing non-compliance, lent balance to the commitments entered into by
nation states.
The two World Wars presented fresh challenges to the principles and practices of international
law. These related to rectification of boundaries, care of refugees and administration of the

territory of the defeated enemy. Efforts to address these and related issues through the creation of
the League of Nations were unsuccessful. This failure, and the horrors of World War II, led to
appreciation of the necessity of international cooperation and the formation of the United
Nations as a body capable of ensuring obedience to international law and maintaining peace. The
Preamble of the UN Charter assert this as one of the objectives: to establish conditions under
which justice and respect for obligations arising from treaties and other sources of international
law can be maintained.
The period since 1945 has been highly productive in regard to the growth and evolution of
international law. International cooperation was widely accepted, though not universally. The
first few decades in particular gave cause for optimism.

The UN assisted the process of decolonization and the effort to end Apartheid. The UN
Multilateral system contributed to the enunciation of normative principles to regulate
international conduct. Questions such as disarmament, social development, gender equality,
population, food and water and a host of problems relevant for the developing world were
addressed. Common trans-national services related to civil aviation, maritime regulations, health,
telecommunications, postal systems, refugees, world weather and food security were put in
place.
193 nations are now members of the UN and subscribe to its Charter. The ambit of rules of
international law has widened and includes intergovernmental organizations, corporations, nongovernmental organizations as well as individuals.
The founding fathers of Indias Constitution accepted these broad principles and incorporated
them in the Directive Principles of State policy. Pursuant to this, the state shall foster respect for
international law and treaty obligations of organized people with one another.
II
The United Nation has its limitations. It is a voluntary association of sovereign nation States.
These States have their own aspirations and had sought membership of the UN in their perceived
self-interest.
For this reason, some parts of international law remain highly contested. These relate to the laws
of warfare, to the concept of state sovereignty, and to a full range of self serving interests of the
powerful who wish to use international law to further their political, economic and security
interests. A case in point is the Charter of the International Court of Justice and its Optional
clause.
Within the ambit of Public International Law, institutions and organizations have been used to
impose unequal treaties and evolve concepts that have encouraged curtailment of sovereignty
(Right to Protect), seek intrusive presence within Sovereign States (Peace Keeping and Peace
Building). Conflicts of laws in civil law jurisdictions, which constitutes Private International

Law, seeks to address disputes between business corporations outside a unified legal framework.
This has led to increasing use of commercial arbitration (Under the New York Convention 1958).
There is also the growing application of Supra-National law to address global commons and such
international issues relating to new technologies, evolutions in genetic sciences and problems
presented by pandemics and catastrophic disaster events.
Globalisation has not only increased the importance of international law but also the complexity
of international legal issues. International law has grown to encompass a wide variety of fields
including the prohibition of the use of force; human rights; protection of individuals during wars
and armed conflicts; fight against terrorism, trafficking in drugs and other serious crimes;
environment; trade and development; telecommunication; and transport.
The power structure of the Organization created in 1945 clearly reflected the power realities of
the world after the Second World War. It was dominated by the victors of the Second World War
who fashioned its modalities to further and facilitate the pursuit of power in political and
economic terms.
Much has changed in the world since then, but the underlying realities of the power lesson
remain true. If anything the intervening years have eroded the effectiveness of the UN and its
institutions, and the need for reforms has never been more urgent. The world has changed, new
power realities have emerged, several new regional and trans-regional groupings have come into
being, but the United Nation remains largely unaltered.
The need for reforms is widely recognized and several halting efforts have been made to change
methods of work, procedures, financing arrangements, delivery mechanisms and accountability
criteria, but the outcomes have been less than satisfactory. What is required is structural and
systemic reforms and that has still to happen.
There is a growing perception that there has been a decline in multilateralism. Developed
countries have begun to look upon the UN and its functioning in terms of their own priorities and
objectives. The UNs Charter functions in the area of money, finance, trade, expenditure,
indebtedness and developmental strategies have been transferred to IMF, World Bank and WTO.
In these bodies the major economic powers, because of their voting power or the power of
retaliation (WTO) have come to dominate the decision making in these vital areas.
In the area of development the focus is on the economic and social problems of developing
countries and their internal governance issues. Here too, in the name of globalization, the thrust
is on the open market, foreign investment, lowering tariffs and reducing the role of the State.
The UNs method of functioning has also changed from being a negotiating forum on hard
economic issues, where substantive legally bidding commitments were undertaken, it has
increasingly become a forum for the exchange of views and where experts are invited to conduct
dialogues and analyze global economic and social trends.

Another important, and in some ways a game changing development, relates to the funding of
the UN. The UN finds itself starved of adequate and predictable funding. Dues have been
withheld, budgetary restrictions have been imposed and assessed contributions today account for
a small percentage of the total expenditure of the UN. The proportion of voluntary funding has
grown dramatically and today provides a high percentage of the total. This feature has been
effectively used by the major powers to impose their own priorities on the UN, by dominating its
budgeting, accounting and administrative apparatus. This has resulted in the dilution of the UNs
regulatory and norm setting activities.
III
Although international laws and the institutions created to further its influence and application
have grown significantly over the last six decades, International Law is at a crossroads and needs
new direction. Its ambit has grown from interstate relations, to individual rights and now covers
civil society and corporations apart from State conduct. It extends to the Global Commons and
attempts to address new challenges being posed by new technologies, non-state actors,
unhindered information and financial flows. While it is trying to cope with transnational
concerns relating to pandemics, narcotics, illegal trafficking in human beings and arms, it cannot
escape addressing some fundamental issues. A few of these need to be mentioned here:
1.
The nature of the State is being called into question. Today, several parts of the
world are engulfed by crises of identity, political control and stability. The nation-state system is
under strain, prompted by geo-political, short term strategic compulsions and radicalized nonstate actors. Colonial geographies have begun to dismantle. Military interventions in established
nation states have led to instability and to the growth of sectarian and ethnic discord. Non-state
actors, of different ideological persuasions, have violated borders and sovereignty at will. Some
of these transgressions have received support from other powers and nation states.
2.
There is a contradiction at the heart of globalization. The international economic
system is becoming global, while the political structure of the world is still based on the nation
state. Goods and capital seek to flow unhindered across national boundaries. Individual nation
states resist global pressures in seeking to protect their national interests. Economic globalization
in its essence, as Henry Kissinger has put it, ignores national frontiers. International policy
emphasizes the importance of frontiers, even as it seeks to reconcile conflicting national aims.
3.
Values and state structures, Western in origin and proclaimed as having universal
validity, are increasingly being questioned. Concepts such as democracy, human rights and
international law are subject to divergent interpretations. In the absence of a consensus and a
mechanism for enforcement, international law is increasingly proving ineffective.
4.
The logical consequence of the promotion of democracy as a universal value
necessitates its induction in the governing structures of the international system. A theory of
legitimate power, in the words of the political scientist David Held, is inescapably a theory of
democracy in the interlocking processes and structures of the global system. Reforms aimed at
bringing this about are essential to rejuvenate confidence in the international system,
accommodate the polarities and induce movement towards a more stable world order.

Here then is the challenge to International Law and the organizations that are responsible for its
implementation.
PM asks Health Ministry to establish mechanisms to ensure accountability
among public sector health officials
The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, today instructed the Health Ministry to
establish mechanisms to ensure accountability among doctors and health officials in
the public sector. Chairing a high-level meeting on healthcare, the Prime Minister
said that in order to achieve the desired goal of health for all, there is need to
substantially improve the efficiency of existing mechanisms and schemes. Giving an
example of insurance, the Prime Minister called for establishing synergy in all
schemes for the health sector being run by the Central and State Governments.
Reviewing progress of key health indicators such as under-5 mortality rate and
Maternal Mortality Ratio, the Prime Minister asked for specific identification of worstperforming districts, and even within them, particular blocks which required
maximum attention. He said these areas should be targeted in a two-pronged
approach prioritized health intervention, and appropriate social interventions to
dispel local beliefs and customs that may be hindering progress. He said animation
films should be shown to women in health centres immediately post-delivery, to
promote good health and nutrition habits. He said simple technology interventions
such as SMS should be used to reach ASHA workers across the country on a realtime basis.
The Prime Minister emphasized that the effects of Swachhta Abhiyan should also
become visible in hospitals and public health facilities across the country. Officials
from the Health Ministry said that Swachhta Abhiyan would contribute greatly to
achieving health goals. The Prime Minister asked for a comprehensive audit of all
medical equipment in public health facilities.
Describing Yoga as one of the most-effective preventive health mechanisms, the
Prime Minister asked the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare to draw up plans for
International Yoga Day, on June 21st.

Expressing acute concern about the prevalence of diseases like encephalitis,

especially among children, the Prime Minister asked officials to prepare a roadmap
to tackle such diseases, just like natural disasters and other national calamities are
tackled.
The Prime Minister referred to an earlier announcement made by him, of Indias
promise of help to ensure that the entire SAARC region becomes polio-free. He
asked the Health Ministry to prepare a proper follow-up action plan in this regard.
The Prime Minister called for institutionalizing a comprehensive database,
containing individual health records, which could be eventually linked to the Aadhar
system.

Union Agriculture Minister calls upon the farmers to use modern

techniques and machinery
Organisation of such events gives inspiration to horticulture fraternity to work
together and facilitates the availability of horticulture products of various states at
single place. The ethos behind organising this event is in consonance with Integral
part of Indian culture ie, Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam. Attributing, horticultural
production at 275 million tonnes during 2014-15 (as per initial estimates) to the
efforts of farmers, Shri Singh said that Government has intergrated all horticulture
programme into Mission for Integrated Development of Horticulture (MIDH), so that
farmers and entrepreneurs are benefitted. Indian horticulture products such as,
mango, lichi, grapes, saffron, have their disctinct identity in global market. By
exporting horticulture products, farmers have contributed in increasing the
countrys foreign exchange, he added.
Shri Singh said that Government is facilitating the use of advanced horticulture
techniques through its Horticulture Central Programmes so that farmers can achieve
high productivity with quality and efficiency in cultivation of horticulture products.
Government is also promoting chain of cold storage across the country so as to
avoid wastage of horticulture products. In this Horticulture Sangam business

groups such as Mother Dairy, Reliance, Walmart, Big Bazaar, Spencer are
participating so that farmers can directly sell their products to them.
Union Agriculture Minister emphasises about the potential of neem
coated urea
Union Agriculture Minister Shri Radha Mohan Singh while addressing farmers in a
function at the launching of Neem coated urea organised by KRIBHCO, Hebbal,
Bengaluru today, emphasised on the maximum use of neem coated urea for
increase of production and reduction in production cost. He further said that neem
coated urea is helpful in reducing the pollution of water, soil and air. Shri Singh said
that India have to import about 70 lakh ton of urea every year, which affects the
foreign exchange. He further said that plants cannot absorb nitrogen found in urea
to its maximum extent as a result a large component of it goes waste. By increasing
the utility factor of nitrogen (through neem coated urea), the consumption of urea
can be reduced, he added.
India has been using neem over the centuries in one way or the other. Neem is a
true friend of farmers from ancient times. KRIBHCO has developed neem coated
urea, by mixing neem oil in urea, which is being used by various farmers across
the country and they are benefitted by it. Shri Singh further said that by using neem
coated urea the utility capacity of nitrogen can be increased by 10 to 15%. By
balanced use of fertilizers, the health of soil can be sustained over a long period
Union Agriculture Minister urges ICAR to have programme to improve
indigenous breeds of cattle
Union Agriculture Minister Shri Radha Mohan Singh while addressing a programme
at National Institute of Veterinary Epidemiology and Disease Informatics (NIVEDI) in
Bengaluru today, urged upon ICAR to have major programs to improve the
indigenous breeds as the products from the indigenous cattle also have health
attributes to humans. He said that empirical evidence suggests that our indigenous
breeds of cattle are relatively less prone to diseases as compared to exotic and
cross-bred. He further said that the efforts should be made to improve indigenous
stock in terms of production and productivity. He mentioned that the best
indigenous breeds like Gir, Tharparkar, Rathi, Sahiwal etc. have better heat

tolerance, feed conversion efficiency and disease resistance.

Shri Radha Mohan Singh said that in the XII Five Year Plan, the institute was
renamed as the National Institute of Veterinary Epidemiology and Disease
Informatics to expand its research activities with 32 AICRP centers covering all
states and union territories of the country. Shri Singh mentioned that the role of
scientists of NIVEDI continues to be in the prevention, control and eradication of
diseases to help maximize animal production and safeguarding human health from
those diseases transmitted by animals and their products using risk analysis data
and precise diagnostics. He urged the institute to research and study the aspects
which make the indigenous breeds resistant to diseases.
Shri Singh complimented NIVEDI for developing excellence in several frontier areas
in veterinary and animal sciences in terms of specialized laboratories, human
resource development, technology generation and dissemination. He said that as
the role of animal health and production has an important place for sustainable
livestock production systems in improving the countrys economy, NIVEDI has a role
to play in this direction.
Shri Singh congratulated the Indian Council of Agricultural Research for setting up of
a world class facility for research on epidemiology of animal diseases at National
Institute of Veterinary Epidemiology and Disease Informatics (NIVEDI) in Bengaluru.
In addition to development of diagnositics, Shri Radha Mohan Singh said research
partnership between the public and private sector is also essential to achieve faster
progress and dissemination of technology to the end-users. Thus, there is a need to
link these two sectors to have their activities complemented in a Public Private
Partnership mode. He expressed hope that the institute will make use of the new
opportunities to give a new direction to their R&D and other service sector activities
in a huge way.
Quoting Mahatma Gandhi, Union Agriculture Minister told The greatness of a
nation can be judged by the way its animals are treated. He urged all to join hands
to provide quality health to the animals.

Union Home Minister at the CMs Session on Investment Opportunities in

States

I take this opportunity to applaud the hard work, dedication and determination displayed by the
25 million strong Indian diaspora that has earned global respect for its work culture, discipline
and successful integration with the local community. You are truly an embodiment of The
Indomitable Spirit of India of which we are all proud of.
It was exactly one hundred years ago from today that the brightest beacon of Truth and Nonviolence in modern times Mahatma Gandhi - returned to India from South Africa. As you all
know, Gandhijis epoch-making return to India shaped the countrys struggle for Independence.
Mahatma Gandhi believed that political freedom would lead to the social and economic
transformation and cultural revival of the country. Gandhijis call for Khadi and Swadeshi
were an attempt to deal with the problems of shortages in the economy and create a sense of
confidence among the people. Swaraj would be incomplete without Swadeshi which in a
broad sense signifies economic vitality of our country.
When Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee became the Prime Minister of India he also had to deal with the
problems of shortages in our economy. He was successful in transforming our economy from an
economy of shortages to an economy which was self-reliant. He made Good Governance and
Development the biggest priority of his government and he ensured peoples participation in this
endeavour. It was the vision of Shri Atalji to connect with the Indians living abroad which
fructified as this annual meet and the first Pravasi Bharatiya Divas was organized in 2003. This
event marks the historical importance of the return of Mahatma Gandhi to his motherland and the
success of Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas lies in rekindling the spirit of Bharatiyata in every
Pravasi.
Mahatma Gandhi assertion that True Bharat is to be found not in its few cities, but in its seven
hundred thousand villages is true even today in its spirit. On the one hand rapid growth in
urbanisation has created new opportunities in the cities and on the other hand our villages cannot
be left behind. The process of development has to reach the far flung areas of our country and
even our villages in the remotest areas should be brought within its ambit. If we fail to develop
our rural areas it would create a sense alienation and distress among the major sections of our
society.
Indias potential to prosper lies in the growth of its villages, cities and States and Union
Territories. From spinning Indias textile success to harnessing information technology for good
governance, from leading in conventional and renewable energy to exploring exciting vistas in
tourism, every success of the state has added to the nations strength and prestige. And this is the
reason why todays session on Investment Opportunities in States holds a special significance.
In democracy we follow the dictum of collective wisdom and collective responsibility. No
state is an island itself and there has to be an active cooperation and connection among all the

states and also between the Centre and States. We are here to share our ideas and experiences on
how this great nation can lead to a path of more progress and prosperity.
There could be difference of opinion on how to pursue our national goals but I am confident that
our collective wisdom will definitely help us in overcoming all our differences and outlining the
future course of this great country.
We are here to deliberate on economic issues and opportunities present before us. There are
certain challenges facing the economy and the country but we have to put up a collective fight
against these odds. India as a nation is not a Lifeless Idea but it is a Living Organism which
comprises of a body and soul. It gets adversely affected if one of its organs malfunctions.
Therefore regional imbalances and lopsided development are major problems which need to be
addressed on priority for a healthy and equitable growth in this country.
As a Federal Polity India offers a unique opportunity to all the states to pursue its agenda for
development and governance with the active support from the Centre. India today demands
greater impetus to Cooperative Federalism than the Competitive Federalism. The Centre and
the states need to work together in one direction to fulfil the dreams and aspirations of its people.
The new government headed by Shri Narendra Modi at the Centre has taken a series of measures
to re-ignite the economy. We have reasons to be optimistic as we are constantly making course
corrections to gain investor confidence. The Government has taken a number of policy measures
to stabilize the economy and restart the engine of our economic growth.
Our Government is focused on infrastructure development and a number of new road and rail
projects have been taken up, including priority to completion of projects already announced.
Projects of metro rail and high speed rail systems are being structured on fast track. Industrial
hubs and smart cities are being given planned. We are seriously pursuing early implementation of
the Goods and Services Tax (GST) which will create a buoyant source of revenue and place the
fiscal position on a permanently solid footing and serve to make India more of a common market
by eliminating internal barriers to trade.
We are focusing on bringing transparency in allocation of natural resources including coal
blocks, iron ore and other minerals as well in time to come. In particular e-auction of coal blocks
and the recent amendments to the Mines & Minerals (Development & Regulation) Act will bring
more transparency, competitiveness and efficiency in the system. Through these measures we
have been able to rebuild confidence and trust that is extremely important to revive investments
and drive higher growth.
In his Independence Day Speech the Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modi gave us a
vision and exhorted investors from all corners of the globe to come and Make in India. The
Make in India initiative was launched in the background of a stagnating manufacturing sector
and increasing levels of unemployment among the youth. Make in India is a mission to
transform this country from an importer of manufactured items to an exporter of manufactured
products. India has a vast pool of natural resources and skilled human resources to make this

country a New Manufacturing Hub. The people of Indian origin and the NRIs should invest in
actualising the dream of Make in India.
The Prime Minster is focussed on improving the business environment in the country. He has
stressed on improving the business conditions and drew the attention towards the mantra of
Minimum Government, Maximum Governance. The vision at the root of this transformational
endeavour is Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas. It naturally encompasses all of the Union of India,
including all of its States.
In order to improve the global perception about difficulties in doing business in India the Centre
is working tirelessly to remove the bottlenecks and busy cutting the red tape. There was never a
better time to invest in the country that is determined to take its rightful place in the comity of
nations. Today, I exhort the people of Indian origin to come and invest in this great country and
become an active partner in our definitive march towards prosperity and in making India a global
superpower.
The government under the astute leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Bhai Modi is
committed to resolve all the key issues facing the people of Indian origin. Addressing the
concerns of our overseas brothers and sisters the Prime Minister announced that all PIO card
holders will enjoy life long visa and exemption from police reporting. Now the government has
issued an ordinance merging both PIO and OCI cards giving way to an improved scheme where
they can enjoy life long visa facility and other benefits pertaining to citizenship.
Before I take my seat, and we all listen to our Chief Ministers on the opportunities in their
respective States, I sincerely thank the organisers for giving me the honour to chair this session. I
thank you all for your attention, and look forward to interesting presentations on the remarkable
opportunities in our States.
Government removing bottlenecks to promote NRI partnership to script
Indias success story

Chairing a session on Investment Opportunities in Indian States at the Pravasi

Bharatiya Divas in Gandhinagar, Shri Rajnath Singh asserted that the country is moving towards
an era of cooperative federalism, giving voice to states in shaping the economic destiny of the
nation. He said, with this objective in mind, the erstwhile Planning Commission has been
replaced with the Niti Ayog, w.e.f 1st January 2015. In democracy, we follow the dictum of
collective wisdom and collective responsibility. I am confident that our collective wisdom
will help us in overcoming any differences he said.

The Home Minister said, the new government headed by Shri Narendra Modi has
already taken a series of measures to re-ignite the economy. We have reasons to be optimistic as
we are constantly making course corrections to gain investor confidence he added. Shri
Rajnath Singh said the Make in India initiative is a mission to transform this country from an

importer of manufactured items to an exporter of manufactured products. The objective is to

increase the share of manufacturing in the GDP from the current level of 14% to 25 %."
In order to improve the global perception about difficulties in doing business in India the
Centre is working tirelessly to remove the bottlenecks and busy cutting the red tape. Mr.
Rajnath Singh said the Prime Minster is focussed on improving the business environment in the
country and has stressed on the mantra of Minimum Government, Maximum Governance. He
said the Government is seriously pursuing early implementation of the Goods and Services Tax
(GST) which will create a buoyant source of revenue and create a large common market by
eliminating internal barriers . Mr. Singh said a decision has been taken to allocate natural
resources only through e-auction to ensure transparency. Such measures are necessary to
rebuild confidence and trust that is extremely important to revive investments and drive higher
growth he said.
Mr. Singh said India has a vast pool of natural resources and skilled human resources to
make this country a New Manufacturing Hub. The people of Indian origin and the NRIs
should invest in actualizing the dream of Make in India. Indias progress can not be achieved
only by the people living within the country. Today, I exhort the people of Indian origin to come
and invest in this great country and become an active partner in our definitive march towards
prosperity and in making India a global superpower, the Minister said.
The Home Minister however, did not forget to stress on inclusive growth and removing regional
imbalances. Stating that Indias potential to prosper lies in the growth of its villages, Shri
Rajnath Singh said the process of development has to reach the far flung areas of our country
and the villages even in the remotest areas should be brought within its ambit. If we fail to
develop the rural areas of India it would create a sense of alienation, isolation and dejection
among the major sections of our society.
Transcript of Media Briefing by Official Spokesperson on the ongoing
Pravasi Bharatiya Divas-2015 on 8 January

So let me start with three areas. Those three areas are, of course youve been there this morning
for Prime Ministers speech that was as a part of his on-going engagement with Indian Diaspora.
Number two is that Ill try and run through Prime Ministers bilateral interactions today with
visiting dignitaries. Number three is the notification that is being issued for the Pravasi Bharatiya
Samman Awards. There are 15 awardees this year. So let me try and run through all these three
areas and then I am open to any questions that you may want ask on any of those things or on
anything else.
As you are aware, Prime Ministers speech this morning was to set the tone of Indias new
governments engagement with its Diaspora. This is the third major interaction that the Prime
Minister has had with the Diaspora, the first one was at the Madison Square Garden in New
York, the second one was at the Alphonse Arena in Sydney and today was the third major
interaction.

One of the principal areas of focus today was that he had delivered on what he had promised in
the earlier two interactions. For example, he had promised on unification of the OCI cards and
PIO cards, that is done; an ordinance was issued. Number two was that both OCIs and NRIs will
have only one time visa that will be available for a life time. They do not have to renew their
requirements for visa year after year. Number three was- those of them who were not benefitting
from either of these could avail of tourist visa on arrival. These were the three areas that he had
promised and all have been delivered. So, that was one theme that the Government of India, in its
engagement with the Diaspora, is willing to walk the talk. Its not only talking but in six months
or less since the announcement was made, they are also walking that.
Number two was that India is a land of opportunities. It is a land where we would invite the
entire world to come and invest in and the NRIs in particular. Number three was that there are
some sentimental areas where we would like to engage NRIs more than others and those are
things like clean Ganges initiative. Prime Minister also emphasized that this engagement with the
Diaspora is not a one off thing; it will be a continuing thing. So, these were the main themes of
the engagement this morning.
Subsequently, I come to number two and that is Prime Minister had fairly substantive meetings
with three leaders who have come here. The first meeting was with the President of Guyana, Mr.
Donald Ramotar. In that meeting, they discussed on-going possibilities of India assisting Guyana
and the Prime Minister has informed the President of Guyana that, for the two major projects that
Guyanese President is interested in, India will be providing a Line of Credit for approximately
US $ 60 million. These two projects are: relating to the East Coast Road which is going to
enhance road connectivity in Guyana; and the second one is an ocean ferry, they require ocean
ferries for riverine traffic. So, these were the two major projects to which India is going to
contribute. In addition, the Prime Minister also informed the President of Guyana that apart from
the 43 countries for whom visa on arrival has already been notified, the 44th country will by
Guyana. That notification is now under process. So, Guyana will be the 44th country for whom
visa on arrival facilities will be provided. It is, as you are aware, a country which has a large
Indian Diaspora. They would want in places where they do not have PIO or OCI cards to visit
India in a more frequent basis. So, that was the other major element of the discussion. The third
element was that sugarcane is a major product for Guyana, and the President of Guyana was
keen to know about facilities and the cooperative movement in India and how Guyana can
benefit from it. I understand that the Prime Minister has suggested that he visit Valsad in Gujarat
where they have a very active cooperative sector focussed on sugarcane. These were broadly the
areas which were discussed with Guyana. Of course, the President of Guyana was grateful for
the Indian gift of a cricket stadium as well as the lighting for the cricket stadium for T20. He said
that this has made Guyana the best cricketing venue in the region because of the facilities that are
now provided for the stadium that was built by India and which has been lighted up by India.
After that, Prime Minister had a meeting with the visiting Foreign Minister Mashabane of South
Africa. The discussion was largely in economic terms and the Prime Minister explained to her
the various reforms that are underway in India and invited greater economic cooperation between
South Africa and India. The major sectors that he outlined were infrastructure and deep mining
because South Africa is a leading mining country. They have technology and ability for deep
mining which we could find useful. So this was in relating to South Africa in terms of bilateral

relations. In addition, they have agreed that the External Affairs Minister Smt. Sushma Swaraj
will visit South Africa in the first quarter to further pursue opportunities for increasing bilateral
economic ties. They also discussed various other international issues including reform of the
Security Council because both India & South Africa feel that this year, which is the 70th
anniversary of the United Nations, is a good opportunity for India and South Africa to work
together for reform of the Security Council. They discussed the BRICS grouping in which both
India and South Africa are members; possibilities of activating the new development bank at an
early stage. As you are aware, an Indian will be the first President of the new development bank
which is an initiative of the BRICS.
Finally, the Prime Minister met the Vice Premier of Mauritius. Incidentally, he said that he traces
back his ancestry to Kachch in Gujarat. There is a new government in Mauritius which has just
been elected and the Vice premier is very keen that the Prime Minister visits them on their
National Day which is, I think, March 12. Prime Minister said that he will work out his schedule
which has not been worked out for the rest of the year and he will keep in mind the request that
has come from Mauritius. Also, there was a discussion about possibilities of greater economic
cooperation, especially when Mauritius is trying to utilize its ocean resources and their focus is
on what is called the blue economy or the ocean economy. For your information, Mauritius has
one of the largest EEZs in the world. So, they want to utilize it appropriately. The Vice Premier
has asked Prime Minister for Indian assistance and the Prime Minister has agreed that a multi
sectoral Indian team will work on certain projects and visit Mauritius to see how we can take this
project further because this is a new concept called the Ocean Economy whereby you can utilize
your ocean or riverbed resources or seabed resources to the maximum and India is also very keen
to work with Mauritius on this. There will also discussion regarding possibilities of cooperation
in existing sectors of the civilian infrastructure etc.
India Water Week to be Celebrated from 13 to 17 January
In an effort to raise awareness, conserve and use water resources in an integrated
manner, the Ministry of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga
Rejuvenation, Government of India will be observing India Water Week from 13 to
17th of this month to use it as a platform to elicit ideas and opinions from global
level decision makers, politicians, researchers and entrepreneurs in the field of
water resources for mutual benefit and goodwill. The theme for water week will be
Water Management for Sustainable Development". India Water Week-2015 will
address the issues of sustainability of water resources development and
management in line with Sustainable Development Goals 2015 being finalized by
UN.
Australia will be the partner country for this event and 30 Australian companies will
be participating in the exhibition to showcase the technological advancement in the
area of water resources. Maharashtra will be associated as partner State. The main

function will be held at New Delhi with a conference cum policy dialogue forum
coupled with a Business to Business exhibition organized professionally. The event is
targeted at international and national audience comprising of policy planners and
technologists involved with water resources management in all key sectors of
economy like agriculture, irrigation, energy, industry and drinking water supply.
The event is being organized in co-ordination with nodal Ministries of Agriculture,
Environment & Forests and Climate Change, Rural Development, Urban
Development, Drinking Water and Sanitation, Power and NITI Ayog along with their
associated expert organizations and Public Sector Units, key international bodies
and private and public business houses.
The IWW-2015 will be celebrated with a multi- disciplinary conference and a
concurrently running exhibition enriching the theme and showcasing the
technologies and solutions available for the areas under deliberation of the meet.
The event will have the following major components:
A multi- disciplinary dialogue in form of a conference discussing issues of water
management for sustainable development in, water for sustaining life, agriculture
and irrigation, drinking water supplies in rural and urban, industrial water use,
energy generation applications. A large group of international and national persons
of eminence will be sharing their experiences in the field of water management. In
addition, there will be three special sessions involving dignitaries, delegates,
politicians, experts on various topics of the event. Expert professional bodies and
think tanks are invited to put up side events addressing specific issues under the
theme.
There will also be an exhibition running in parallel supporting the theme and
showcasing the technologies, latest development and solutions available for the
areas of water management for sustainable development in agriculture and
irrigation, drinking water supplies in rural and urban, industrial water use. The
exhibition will provide a unique networking opportunity to the exhibitors for
exposing their products and services to the practicing water resource professionals
from various countries. Exhibitors will also have a unique opportunity to spread their

network in this region and find new joint ventures and profit from the growing
business in this emerging and technologically important area. Business firms will
have the opportunity of direct contact with thousands of potential clients, highly
qualified visitors including decision makers, enormous PR and promotional
opportunities, to find joint ventures to enable them to expand their business in the
rapidly growing India water market and to increase brand visibility/image and free
hosting of exhibitors profiles and company website links on event web portal.
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. The States have been asked to submit a
report in this regard after the workshop is over. The recommendations received
during the deliberations of the workshop will also be used for preparation of an
overview of State level recommendations. Such recommendations would enable
Ministry to utilize the same for policy making.
Conceptualised and organised for the first time in 2012, the India Water Week is an
annual forum where the Ministry of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga
Rejuvenation, Government of India discusses, talks, strategizes with eminent
stakeholders through seminars, exhibitions and sessions to build public awareness
to get support to implement key strategies for conservation, preservation and
optimum use of available water. This is the third event in line with the theme Water

management for sustainable development. The second event namely India Water
Week-2013 with the theme Efficient Water Management: Challenges and
Opportunities was organised during 8-12 April, 2013 at New Delhi.
Shri Ravi Shankar Prasad to Commission India First Hi-Speed Rural
Broadband Network in Kerala
The event marks a key milestone in ushering in a new era of Digital India. NOFN is
the largest rural connectivity project of its kind in the world. It seeks to link each of
the 2.5 lakh Gram Panchayats of India through Broadband optical fibre network. On
its completion, NOFN is expected to facilitate Broadband connectivity to over 600
million rural citizens of the country.
NOFN, which is being funded by the Universal Service Obligation Fund (USOF),
Department of Telecom, Ministry of Communications & IT, Govt. of India is
envisaged as a non-discriminatory telecom infrastructure, which will bridge the gap
in rural telecom access.
NOFN will enable each of the 2.5 Lakh GPs to have 100 Mbps of bandwidth, thereby
facilitating the delivery of various e-Services and applications including e-health, eeducation, e-governance and e-commerce in the future.
In the first phase NOFN shall be extended to cover 50,000 GPs, with the balance
2,00,000 GPs expected to be covered in a phased manner by 2016. The project is
being implemented by three central PSUs (CPSUs) namely BSNL, PGCIL and Railtel
in the phase first.
A key feature of the project is that the GPON equipment used in the project has
been indigenously designed and developed by C-DOT and manufactured
domestically. The project will be centrally managed by BBNL through a high capacity
Network Management System being developed by C-DOT.
With the commissioning of Idukki, the district, which is relatively inaccessible and
has a large tribal and rural population, will become the first district in the country to
have all its GPs connected through NOFN. It is expected that the establishment of

NOFN would open up new avenues for access service providers like mobile
operators, cable TV Operators etc. to launch next generation services, and spur
creation of local employment opportunities encompassing e-commerce, IT
outsourcing etc. as well as services such as e-banking, e-health and e-education for
inclusive growth. This will also enable delivery of various services such as local
planning, management, monitoring and payments under Government schemes at
panchayat level.
Digital India is a flagship programme of the Central Government which aims to
transform India into a digitally empowered society and knowledge economy. The
provision of broadband connectivity to every citizen is one of the key objectives of
Digital India, and the commissioning of the NOFN network at Idukki is expected to
mark a significant step towards realization of this ambitious vision.
Health Minister: The Tablets will aid in efficient delivery of services to
urban areas under NUHM
The Health Minister stated that the Tablets will help the ANMs in more efficient
delivery of services to the urban areas, particularly the urban slums. These devices
will be useful for real-time data collection and reporting on the various health
services being provided under the NUHM, the Minister informed. Observing that
record keeping of the data from the field was a weak link in effective monitoring of
progress of the schemes, the Minister stated that the Tablets will aid in efficient
record keeping and better monitoring of the schemes. These will thus provide a
platform for a sturdy MIS system for the NUHM and sharing of experiences and best
practises, he said.
Video clippings of 1 to 2 minute duration on different health issues shall be available
on the ANMs Tablet which will be used to educate and train them, and also create
awareness among the slum and other areas on various health schemes of the
government. The Tablets will be used to generate necessary alerts (SMS and Voicebased) to the ANMs and beneficiaries. Tablets can also be used as links to other
health experts and doctors under the tele-medicine programme of the government.
Additionally, the Central Government provides monetary help under various health
services under DBT in the account of beneficiaries. This modern technology will also

help ANMs to inform beneficiaries about this money transfer.

The Tablets will be distributed to more than 300 urban ANMs in the first phase on a
pilot basis. Based on the impact this has on improved delivery of services, the
scheme will be expanded to NRHM, the Health Minister stated.
Workshop held to Discuss Delivery of Health Services to Tribal People
A one day national workshop aimed at identifying issues concerning delivery of
health services to tribal people, disease burden on tribal people and augmenting
capacity of Institutions involved in tribal welfare was held recently in New Delhi. Dr.
Hrusikesh Panda, Secretary, Ministry of Tribal Affairs and Dr. VM Katoch, DG, Indian
Council of Medical Research ( ICMR) jointly chaired the consultation cum workshop
organized by ICMR and Ministry of Tribal Affairs.
Speaking on the occasion, Dr. Panda said that his Ministry has been offering untied
funds to the States in its Project Appraisal Committee meetings for addressing tribal
health issues. He highlighted on the importance of malaria control whose burden
was higher for the tribal people as compared to non-tribal areas. He said, with only
8.6% of the population share, tribals account for 30% of Malaria cases, 70% of
Falciparum cases and 50% of deaths due to Malaria. In many tribal areas, the
incidence of Falciparum is 90% or more. Furthermore, Sickle Cell Anemia was
another enormous health problem. The secretary was of the opinion that the
Ministrys intervention in writing to the State Welfare Departments to screen tribal
students for sickle cell trait and disease has not reaped sufficient response due to
lack of awareness of diagnosis and treatment amongst medical officers in the tribal
areas.
Sharing his observation of his field visits, Dr. Panda said many young tribal girls
were deprived of education as they were involved in new born children care due to
absence of Anganwadi Centres in many of the areas. He said Malnutrition among
tribal population was yet another issue that requires action. The issue of
malnutrition is aggravated due to shift in food basket. The traditional crops which
were rich in minerals, proteins and vitamins have disappeared and substituted by
high carbohydrate cereals. Dr Panda said knowledge in traditional vegetables and

tubers, particularly, those gathered from the forests has also disappeared. He
informed the gathering that his Ministry has been supporting revival of these crops.
At the same time, cultivation and consumption of green leafy vegetables is also
being emphasized to address malnutrition issues. He said activities like dairy,
poultry and fisheries are also encouraged because, in addition to livelihood support,
this will make available nutritious food to the tribal households.
The workshop focused on specific themes of Maternal & Child health, Nutrition,
Malaria, Sickle Cell Anemia and TB. It was realized that ICMR has a vast body of
knowledge with regard to tribal health and issues concerned therein. A better coordination and collaboration between the ICMR and Tribal Welfare Departments,
Tribal Research Institutes (TRIs) and Integrated Tribal Development Agencies/
Integrated Tribal Development programmes not only in resources but also in
knowledge and design interventions based on best practices can help in improving
health status of tribal people.
It was felt that high incidence of Sickle Cell Anemia amongst tribal poeple needs to
be addressed by screening of all school going children on the status of Sickle Cell
Disease and they have to be provided with health card indicating status. This would
help in counseling of parents availing services and disease management through
health facility. Each State/UT would ensure 100 % screening of school children for
Sickle Cell Disease. It was also decided to draw up a training plan in collaboration
with ICMR for Medical Officers and Technicians of tribal areas on Sickle Cell
screening and disease management. A user manual on disease management would
also be prepared.
Experts attending the workshop were of the view that to contain Malaria, in tribal
areas, services of traditional healers can be used by training them on Malaria
medicines, who can also distribute medicine to the patients. Similarly to contain
mosquito to population, composite fish culture in ponds was recommended. This
would also provide protein in the form of fish to the tribal people.
Participants were of the view that malnutrition and Anemia issues were to be
addressed by bringing back traditional food of minor millets, green leafy vegetables

and effective implementation of ongoing folic acid supplements and de worming

programmes in these areas. Training Manual prepared by ICMR for paramedic would
be shared with State Tribal Welfare Departments/TRIs for capacity building of local
educated persons.
It was also suggested that use of Cassia tora (chakoda Bhaji) in meals of schools in
tribal areas would ensure Calcium and B- complex supplement in the food in cost
effective manner. This can also help in improving conditions of Fluorosis. Ministry of
Tribal Affairs should issue advisory to the State/UT for inclusion of the Cassia tora in
the menu of the meals in the schools.
Issue of adolescence pregnancy including bringing every pregnant mother under
heath cum nutrition support system was emphasized using best practices. Hiring
local girls/women for paramedical service by appropriate training can deepen the
service in tribal areas was another important suggestion.
Referring to the high incidence of TB amongst Saharia in Madhya Pradesh it was felt
that it can be addressed through better ventilated houses. A special effort by the
State should be undertaken towards this.