No Decision to Close Railway Institute in Jamalpur

It has been reported in some sections of media that Railways have decided to close the Indian Railways Institute of Mechanical and Electrical Engineers (IRIMEE) at Jamalpur. Ministry of Railways clarifies that there is no decision to close the IRIMEE at Jamalpur. IRIMEE shall continue as a Centralised Training Institute of the Ministry devoted to training Mechanical Engineers and other officers of the Indian Railways.

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Major National News Stories This Week

Court awards frist Sentence in Vyapam Scam

A court in Madhya Pradesh awarded five years jail term to two accused invovled in Vyapam Scam. They were convicted in Pre-Medical test racket in 2014. This is the ever first punishment in the scam.

President Pranab Mukherjee comples Three Years at Office

President of India, Pranab Mukherjee completed three years in office. To mark the occasion, president inaugurated a new AYUSH Wellness Clinic and restored clock tower in Rashtrapati Bawan.

Sushma Swaraj says never recommended Travel Docs for Lalit Modi

External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj tweeted that she never recommended travel documents for Ex-IPL Chief Lalit Modi. Congress accused her of misuising her position and demanded resignation.

Special Packaagefor Bihar, BJP kicks off campaing for Assembly Polls

Prime Minister visited Bihar and kicked off BJP’s poll campaign. And, he also dedicated various projects during his visit to Bihar.

16th Kargil Anniversay observed

Indian Army Chief, General Dalbir Singh said that Indian army would not allow to repeat of the 1999 Kargil conflict with Pakistan. Paid tribute to the brave soilders those sacrificed their life in the war for the nation.

PM Modi launches Deendayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojana

The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, today launched various development projects at Patna. He launched the Deendayal Upadhyay Gram Jyoti Yojana; inaugurated the Daniawan-Bihar Sharif new railway line; flagged off the Rajgir-Bihar Sharif-Daniawan-Fatuha passenger train and Patna-Mumbai AC Suvidha Express; dedicated to the nation the permanent IIT Campus at Patna.

Union Agriculture Minister says Love Affairs, Impotency behind Farmer Suicides

Union Agriculture Miniser Radha Mohan Singh said that dowry, love affairs and impotency were among the reasons for the deaths of over 1,400 farmers in India this year. BJP said that the farmers suicide reduced last one year under the NDA govoernemnt.

Install CCTVs at all Prisons: Supreme Court

In a significant move, the Supreme Court directed central governemnt and state governments to install CCTVs in all jails across India.

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PM Modi congratulates Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponnappa

The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi has congratulated Indian badminton players Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponnappa, on winning women’s doubles title in Canada Open.

"Very proud of Ashwini P. and jwala Gutta for the wonderful victory at the Canada Open. Congratulations to the brilliant sportspersons", the Prime Minister said. (PIB)

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PM Modi lays Foundation Stone of the Indian Agricultural Research Institute

The Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi today said that amid rising population and increasingly fragmented land-holdings, the need of the hour for the nation is a second green revolution without any delay, which could only happen in eastern India.

He was speaking after laying the Foundation Stone of the Indian Agricultural Research Institute at Barhi in Jharkhand, and witnessing the exchange of an MoU between the Government of India and NMDC Ltd for setting up a new Steel Plant.

The Prime Minister also called upon farmers to raise the level of pulses production in the country, to help make India self-sufficient in pulses. Invoking former Prime Minister Shri Lal Bahadur Shastri’s call “Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan,” Shri Narendra Modi asked every farmer to try and grow pulses on a part of his land. He also mentioned steps being taken by the Union Government for the pulses sector. He said pulses were an important part of the diet of the common man.

The Prime Minister said he was happy to note that a large number of people from South Bihar were present at the function, because the Institute whose foundation was being laid today would serve that region as well.

The Prime Minister said Indian agriculture has been lagging in several areas including inputs, irrigation, value addition and market linkages. He said the Union Government was committed to modernizing Indian agriculture and making it more productive. He said this required proper allocation of resources and training.

Noting that population was rising and land holdings are getting fragmented, the Prime Minister emphasised the need to enhance productivity to ensure the nation’s food security as well as ensure good income for farmers.

Towards this end, the Prime Minister said proper research was required in all agro climatic zones of the country. This would ensure best results, as well as greater acceptability among farmers. He said this required the spread of agricultural research and education in various regions.

The Prime Minister said the need of the hour was a second green revolution, without any delay, in eastern India. He said that the Union Government was therefore committed to the development of this region. He mentioned the setting up of fertiliser plants, which would ensure proper availability of fertilisers in the region.

Shri Narendra Modi mentioned the Government’s programme to provide soil health cards to all farmers. This too, he mentioned, could provide a source of employment to youth, through soil testing laboratories.

The Prime Minister said animal husbandry and fisheries were equally important for the agriculture sector. He laid stress on the importance of raising productivity in the dairy sector. He said the Government had decided to pay special attention to the dairy sector in Jharkhand. He suggested that one district in each state could be developed as a honey producing district. He also mentioned the Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai Yojana, to provide adequate irrigation to farmers. Recalling his mantra of per drop, more crop, the Prime Minister said micro irrigation helped raise productivity and incomes for farmers.

The Governor of Jharkhand Smt Droupadi Murmu, the Chief Minister of Jharkhand Shri Raghubar Das, the Union Minister for Agriculture Shri Radha Mohan Singh and the Union MoS for Finance Shri Jayant Sinha were present on the occasion. (PIB)

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Gurgaon’s ITM University bags Best Private University of Haryana Award

Gurgaon’s ITM University was awarded ‘Best Private University of Haryana’ by Dialogue India Academia at a recent award function in Delhi. The Chief Guest of the occasion was Sh. Sanjay Singh, Member of Parliament from Uttar Pradesh. Prof (Dr) Prem Vrat, Pro Chancellor and Brig. SK Sharma (Retd.), Pro Vice-Chancellor of ITM University received the award from Sh. Singh.

Speaking on the occasion, Prof. Vrat identified the key factors for continued academic excellence at ITM University, Gurgaon. “The passion to excel with excellent life quality infrastructure, efficient and IT enabled teaching-learning processes is key to ITM University’s success year after year,” he said. He was also a panelist and speaker at the valedictory session of the event.

ITM University, Gurgaon was given the first rank among Private Universities of Haryana out of 17 Private Universities of the State. The Annual Survey 2015 was conducted by Dialogue India, a Delhi based publication.

ITM University has also been titled as No. 1 Emerging University in India, in a survey by Higher Education Review. It did well in the Edu-Rand survey, June 2015, based on Rand Corp of USA process, with an All India ranking of 71 out of 795 Engineering Colleges in India. Many of these awards have ranked the University consistently in the top slots in the last several years due to its commitment in imparting quality education in Engineering, Management and Law at the UG, PG and PhD level. The University also provides fee concessions and scholarships to over 200 students annually

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Virgin Produced India ties up with Anil Kapoor Film Company

Virgin Produced India has partnered with Anil Kapoor and Rhea Kapoor to produce Karan Boolani’s currently entitled feature directorial debut , India’s first teen comedy about urban youth who meet during their freshmen year at an American university.

In a truly game-changing move, Virgin Produced India, part of the Cinema Capital Group,makes its foray into the Hindi film industry with a film that perfectly amalgamates Indian and Western talent.The film tells a story of teenagers who start college as strangers, but leave as friends for life. A crazy ride of young preoccupations and aspirations - for the youth, by the youth, and backed by powerhouse names that believe in nurturing new talent and providing a platform for young urban artists to shine.

It doesn’t get bigger than this, as the film also marks the coming together of two music influencers, Oscar winning music composer and one ofthe world’s top selling recording artists ,A.R Rahman of Slumdog Millionaire & 127 Hours fame and Sir Richard Branson’s Virgin Produced. With music roots dating back to the founding of Virgin Records in 1972,the Virgin Group comprises over 100 companies in more than 50 countries worldwide.

Together these industry stalwarts unite to introduce a young talented bunch of actors, technicians and musicians capturing the essence of Generation-Next.

Producer Anil Kapoor says, “With the film, we look forward to taking Virgin Produced’s unique and successful business model, expanding it here in Bollywood and building a significant partnership that will cater to youth through a film that will truly be on par with global standards. We truly believe that the film will showcase young talent both in front & behind the camera.”

Adds producer Rhea Kapoor of Anil Kapoor Film Company, "Over the years, Virgin Produced has successfully reached out to a younger demographic and we are truly excited to co-produce this film with them. The movie is a coming of age story that truly epitomizes young India.”

Known to only associate with selective projects, adds global music sensation A.R. Rahman, “Growing up and discovering the world is one of the real highs of life for most of us . We hope to articulate this and put a unique sound to it in this movie as it's based on some real life experiences."

Samir Gupta, also a Producer on the film and the Managing Director of Cinema Capital Venture Fund says,“ “Given the talent associated with the project we are fortunate to bring together the vision of VPI of telling real stories of young India coupled with avante garde music which will resonate with todays audience sensibilities. We look forward to kick start and nurture the brand here in India.”

Says Jas Mann,Partner of Virgin Produced India, “We are delighted to join forces with Anil and Rhea on the film and look forward to a long and productive relationship. They are as passionate and dedicated to filmmaking as we are.”

About Anil Kapoor Film Company : Perhaps best known for his roles in SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE, MISSION: IMPOSSIBLE – GHOST PROTOCOL and “24,” Indian superstar Anil Kapoor will produce the untitled film along with his daughter, Rhea Kapoor in association with Virgin Produced India. Most recently, Anil and Rhea co-produced the hit movie KHOOBSURAT, the first Disney-branded Hindi-language film in many years.

About Virgin Produced India :Launched in November 2013, Virgin Produced India is a revolutionary addition to the thriving Indian entertainment industry, with a full service operation that develops, produces and distributes Bollywood films – in addition to remaking Hollywood content for Indian audiences. The company is bringing a unique brand of youthful and irreverent content, along with a socially driven marketing focus to the Indian market, where more than half the population is under the age of 25. This new venture is leveraging the Virgin brand to attract India’s best creative talent and provide them with the tools to bring their most inspired work to Indian audiences.

About Cinema Capital: Cinema Capital Group is India’s first SEBI approved Venture Capital Fund.Cinema Capital Group manages over 28 Million USD$ worth of assets in the Indian Film Industry and has invested close to 24 Million USD$ across the 4 portfolio companies within its group. These companies have financed and distributed films grossing over 80 Million USD$ at the Indian domestic box-office in the last 5 years.

About Jas Mann : Jasbinder Singh Mann is a Partner of Virgin Produced India, the film and television development, packaging and production arm of the Virgin Group in India. He is an industry expert with more than 20 years of creative and business experience in film and music content. Having produced twenty-one #1 worldwide hit records, he is also co-owner of an extensive music publishing catalogue with EMI publishing. Jasbinder has spearheaded the distribution and production of over twenty feature films, including Fantastic Fear of Everything, Cabin Fever, Holy Motors, Flying Swords of Dragons Gate and The Imposter. Jasbinder is also co-founder of Pinewood Indomina Studios, a $250MM Film and television studios in the Caribbean/Latin America featuring the largest horizon tank in the world.

About Karan Boolani : Boolani holds a Masters Degree in Film and Television from Australia’s Bond University and has extensive experience in television commercial and Internet exclusive production. He directed the short film LA FOURCHETTE and the documentary THAT HEALING FEELING

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Therapeutic Benefits of Yoga

Even as yoga has become India’s most famous cultural export to the world, a large number of Indians are oblivious to its efficacy in boosting body’s defenses and improving its mental functionality. To drive home the benefits of yoga in stress-prone Gurgaon city, Paras Hospitals, Gurgaon organized a special session on Yoga’s therapeutic benefits for back pain and its ability to boost body’s immunity against cancer.

The session on International Yoga Day was held at Tao Devilal Park, Sector-52, Gurgaon, where the yoga instructors taught the participating people about the yoga positions especially relevant for back pain and educated them about its benefits for building cancer immunity.

The session was held early in the morning was led by Sanjeev Vatta, General Manager, Sales and Marketing, Paras Hospital, Gurgaon, and Dr. Meenakshi Sharma , Senior Consultant , Laparoscopic Surgery , Paras Hospitals , Gurgaon who participated in the initiative.

“Therapeutic yoga works like a magic wand for people suffering from back pain. Although, practicing yoga in back pain may sound like an irony but the fact is that therapeutic yoga can reduce pain and improve function in people with chronic low back pain. Additionally, yoga practice also helps people better fight cancer. It detoxifies body, helps neutralize free radicals, increases its immunity, and improves resilience and strength, thereby helping people better fight cancer,” said Dr. Meenakshi Sharma , Senior Consultant , Laparoscopic Surgery , Paras Hospitals , Gurgaon.

Originating nearly 6000 years ago, the practice has the power to rejuvenate soul, body and mind. Yoga further has numerous divisions, which are effective in treating several health issues. For instance, therapeutic yoga is particularly effective in treating back pain and helping cancer patients in speedier recovery.

“People with cancer tend to get weaker and less energetic due to the sickening therapies and treatment. Although, it may sound contradictory, but gentle poses of yoga for cancer patients can help them on many levels. Yoga used as therapy can also help in clearing the toxics in the body accrued during the cancer treatment. Yoga positions also have the ability to stimulate muscles, increases blood flow, enhancing the lymphatic flow in body and enhancing body’s internal purification processes. Yoga for cancer survivors and patients also provides an internal anchor of calm,”added Mr Pradeep, Yoga Intructor, Yoga – On – Call .

Besides curing illness and pain, yoga in general has de-stressing quality because of which it is widely practice across the world. Deep breathing, which is often emphasized in yoga, helps in increasing the current of oxygen-rich blood to the cells, delivering vital nutrients to tired cells and further clearing out toxins. With celebration such as a day like this, more people will be able to get to know the benefits and will be able to connect with the person already in practice to get a guided training.

“The session experienced a good response from the people in the vicinity. With a footfall of over 100 people, the park was full of enthusiasts. People were very keen to learn and know about yoga practices. The excitement of the people was very overwhelming. It encouraged us to conduct more such session in future,” said Sanjeev Vatta , General Manager , Sales and Marketing, Paras Hospital, Gurgaon.

It was effort made by PM Narendra Modi during address to UN General Assembly that influenced United Nations to announce June 21 as the International Yoga Day. The move is supported by more 177 countries including USA, China, Canada and Egypt. Celebrated for the first time in history, the day will encourage and motivate mass of people to opt Yoga in their lives for a better living.

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Amitabh Bachchan An Inspiration For Designers

Mr. Amitabh Bachchan was in the town at Le Meridian for promoting his upcoming movie Shamitabh with Dhanush and Akshara Haasan. The whole movie cast gave their best wishes to Mr.RC Dalal, Executive Director and Ms. Rupal Dalal, Director of JD Institute of Fashion Technology for the upcoming 25th JD Annual Design Annual Awards.

JD Annual Design Awards is the perfect platform for the students to showcase their inherent talent .The institute with an expertise of 26 years is renowned in the industry for its quality of education and training and has proved its worth time and again. The theme for this year’s Awards is “Pure”.

Wishing all the JEDIIANS, Mr.Amitabh bachchan,added”PURE is registering the first thought in your mind and following that first thought fearlessly and curiously. Not diluting it with history or approval of others. Pure is being faithful to your vision. Our best wishes to all graduating designers at JD Annual Design Awards 2015.

Mr.RC Dalal , Executive Director of JD Institute of Fashion Technology who was present at the occasion said,” Like every year the theme sets the mood and shows a direction in which a student not only thinks about a design but creates a whole new explanation about the collection the student will present in that particular year. We have taken Sir Amitabh Bachchan as our inspiration as he is one of the purest and finest actors of the world.

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Government celebrates MGNREGA Diva

The Ministry of Rural Development has decided to focus intensely on convergence of MGNREGA with other Schemes to create durable and useful assets. It has introduced a new module to capture planning and implementation of convergence initiatives. 21 States have prepared their Convergence Plans already. Convergence has been closely linked to measuring outcomes of works and their impact on the rural economy. This was stated by Minister of Rural Development, Shri Birender Singh, while addressing the tenth MGNREGA Divas celebrations here today. He said that the objective is to use MGNREGA for livelihood based sustainable development.

The Minister of Rural Development emphasized that MGNREGA has provided employment to crores of households every year and has become an important vehicle for enhancing the livelihoods of rural poor and strengthening the rural natural resource base. Over the last year, the Ministry has streamlined the Scheme to make it more relevant to the local needs and demands of the beneficiaries with greater focus on backward areas. The ministry also purposes to undertake skilling and entrepreneurship of MGNREGA workers and their family members in convergence with NRLM, he added

The Rural Development Minister also stressed on the recent initiatives taken by the Ministry to address issues around transparency and accountability in MGNREGA. For instance, some forward looking IT based initiatives like universalization of eFMS, notification of MGNREGA under DBT and mobile monitoring systems to have been introduced. The Social Audit systems have also been strengthened.

The Minister said that MGNREGA is also supporting the other flagship programmes like Swachh Bharat Mission through the construction of toilets. As a part of Swachh Bharat Mission (Gramin), to achieve the goal of a clean India by 2019, MGNREGA has been aligned with this initiative whereby nearly 2 Crore IHHLs will be constructed during the next five years. States have also been requested to bring the existing MGNREGA workers with bank accounts under Prime Minister Jan Dhan Yojana and to open bank accounts for new workers under this Yojana.

Shri Birender Singh expressed the hope that the current initiatives will address some of the concerns around MGNREGA in a definite manner and contribute significantly to the more efficient implementation of the Scheme.

On the occasion, MGNREGA documents- Report to the People and Report on Capacity Building were also released. The Ministry also showcased some of the achievements through a compilation of photos-Towards Creating Sustainable Assets under MGNREGA. Madhya Pradesh has been awarded for its outstanding work in the area of convergence of Schemes with MGNREGA and supporting livelihoods

Three States, 11 districts, 15 Postal Department officers and 9 Sarpanches were recognized and awarded for demonstrating excellence and undertaking specific initiatives to ensure effective implementation of MGNREGA. These awards will encourage and motivate other ground level functionaries as well to further improve implementation of the Scheme.

The tenth MGNREGA Divas celebrations organized by the Ministry of Rural Development, Government of India were attended by Minister of Rural Development Shri Birender Singh, Minister of State for Rural Development Shri Sudarshan Bhagat, Minister of State for Drinking Water and Sanitation Shri Ram Kirpal Yadav, Minister of State for Panchayati Raj, SHri Nihal Chand, State Rural Development Ministers, Senior State Government officials, Secretary Rural Development Shri L.C. Goyal and officials of the Ministry of Rural Development, eminent professionals, representatives of Panchayati Raj Institutions, MGNREGA workers, District Collectors and District Programme Coordinators and members of their team. (PIB)

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Dr Mahesh Sharmam lays Foundation Stone of NMI and ICI Campus Building

The Minister of State for Tourism (Independent Charge), Culture (Independent Charge) and Civil Aviation, Dr Mahesh Sharma on Saturday laid the foundation stones of campus buildings of National Museum Institute of History of Art, Conservation and Museology (NMI) and Indian Culinary Institute (ICI) in Noida today. While NMI belongs to the Ministry of Culture, ICI is an Institute of the Ministry of Tourism.

Speaking on the occasion, Dr Mahesh Sharma said that both these projects were languishing for more than a decade but the hard work of both the Ministries has made it possible to start the process of construction within a short time. He said that these Institutes will help train the youth to find new avenues of employment within the country as well as abroad. They will also go a long way in promoting the culture and culinary art of India, he added. The Minister explained that with the tourism sector expected to witness exponential growth, this sector would require matching trained manpower to manage the infrastructure and services, which these two institutes seek to do.

The Minister disclosed that it will be possible to start the first session of ICI by 2017 and the Institute will also have collaboration with its foreign counterparts. The Culture Secretary, Mr Ravindra Singh said that the NMI is celebrating its silver jubilee and there is no other institute in the country apart from NMI which is training youth in the area of conserving art and cultural heritage. A permanent campus with world class facilities will help train the youth to set up world class museums along the lines of British Museum or Musée du Louvre which will further promote tourism in the country.

The Tourism Secretary said that setting up of both the Institutes simultaneously and in close proximity to each other will be highly beneficial since tourism is incomplete without culture. Indian cuisine is highly appreciated all over the world and ICI will try to train youth who will match upto international standards and have global demand, he said.

The ICI will offer programs in kitchen management, molecular gastronomy, plate presentation, food styling and displays, anthropology, etc. Besides documentation and research of regional and global cuisines, the institute would comprise a patent and legal cell and a museum of traditional foods.

While the project cost of NMI is Rs 90 cr, that of ICI is Rs 70 cr. The Institutes are expected to be completed within two years. (PIB)

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18th National Conference on e-Governance concludes in Gandhinagar

The two-day 18th National Conference on e-Governance with the theme “Digital Governance-New Frontier” concluded in Gandhinagar, Gujarat today. Addressing the valedictory session, Governor of Gujarat, Shri Om Prakash Kohli said that that e-Governance is important because it is the most easy, effective and economical governance.

He said that it is one of the most useful fields of Information Technology and brings about Empowerment, Equity, Efficiency besides being the most economic mode of governance. He said that this conference has been very useful in creating awareness among officers dealing with e-Governance.

Shri Kohli mentioned the successful implementation of various e-Governance Programmes executed by the Gujarat State Government. He mentioned that Mobile technology is a preferred mode for delivery of services under the e-Governance. He expressed the hope that the Government, Industry and Academia would forge stronger ties to create programmes and institutes with focus on Skill Development in the field of Information & Communication Technology (ICT). He stated that Indian youth will bring development to our nation through the use of ICT.

The second day of the conference started with a panel discussion on “Skill Development and Employability” within the perspective of e-Governance, being the focus sector of this year’s Conference. Further, panel discussions on “Partnership with Industry – New Business Model and Service Delivery”; and “Citizen Services in a Smart City – New Paradigm” were also held. In all the panel discussions held during the two-day conference, eminent personalities from Government, Industries, IIM, e-Governance Board, Estonia, ILO, World Bank, etc participated as panelists.

Shri Govindbhai Patel, Minister of State, Science and Technology, Government of Gujarat also addressed on this occasion. He emphasised the need for all the States to work towards restructuring and re-focusing of existing schemes so as to implement them in a synchronized manner by introducing process improvements at minimal costs. 

He urged to take a few steps to enable access, make it affordable, allow for an environment for development of applications and encourage people to adopt internet. Shri Patel expressed confidence that this would lead to a self-sustaining process.

The Conference was inaugurated by Chief Minister of Gujarat, Smt. Anandiben Patel yesterday. During the inaugural Session, the Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi gave his message on Twitter that e-Governance is an essential part of our dream of Digital India. 

The two-day Conference was organized by the Department of Administrative Reforms & Public Grievances (DARPG) and Department of Electronics & Information Technology (DeitY), Government of India in collaboration with the Department of Science & Technology, Government of Gujarat. The National Awards on excellence in e-Governance for the year 2014-15 were given by Gujarat Chief Minister yesterday.(PIB)

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News in Pics: Manohar Parrikar with the tableaux artistes

The Union Minister for Defence, Shri Manohar Parrikar with the tableaux artistes, who participated in the Republic Day Parade 2015, in New Delhi on January 31, 2015.(PIB)

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PM reviews PaHaL Scheme for Direct Benefit Transfer for LPG Subsidy

The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, today reviewed, in a high level meeting, PaHaL (Pratyaksha Hastaantarit Laabh), the Direct Benefit Transfer Scheme for LPG Subsidy.

PaHaL, which covers more than. 9.75 crore LPG consumers, is perhaps the world’s largest cash transfer program as compared to similar programs in other countries, such as China, Mexico and Brazil.

Shri Dharmendra Pradhan, the Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas, made the presentation on PahaL to the Prime Minister at the high level meeting.

Under PaHaL, LPG cylinders are sold at market rates and entitled consumers get the subsidy directly into their bank accounts. This is done either through an Aadhaar linkage or a bank account linkage.

PaHaL aims to reduce diversion and eliminate duplicate or bogus LPG connections.

The Prime Minister conveyed his congratulations for the scheme having witnessed massive enrolment in a short span of time. As on date, 9.75 crore LPG consumers have joined the scheme. This is 66% of the total consumer base of 15 crore.

An amount of Rs. 3654 crore has already been transferred into the bank accounts of LPG consumers through 9.25 crore transactions. The modified scheme has put in place various mechanisms to simplify enrolment and enhance consumer convenience, and thus, only 1.09 lakh complaints have been received so far, which constitute a mere 0.1% of the transactions. Over 85% of the complaints have been resolved.

Preliminary data from 54 districts indicate that the growth of subsidised LPG has reduced significantly accompanied by a corresponding increase in sale of commercial LPG. This indicates that the scheme will enable substantive savings in subsidy which can then be deployed for other productive purposes, without reducing any entitlements of existing consumers.

The success of the scheme is a result of an intensive Information Education Campaign comprising advertising through various means, direct reaching out to consumers, and dealer level campaigns. The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas has undertaken several innovative measures such as guardian officers for each district, deployment of technology by use of SMS, and a single window portal www.mylpg.in to enable consumers to join the scheme. This portal is an important step in bringing transparency and gives details of who is benefiting from subsidy.

The Prime Minister said that after Pradhaan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana, this is the next big scheme which will substantially benefit the economy. He directed that all steps should be taken to bring the remaining LPG consumers into the fold of PaHaL as soon as possible. He wanted Aadhaar enrolment and linkages with bank accounts to be expedited, taking advantage of the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana. The Prime Minister has also asked for an impact analysis of the programme to be conducted in a professional manner.

The Prime Minister complimented the staff and management of Oil PSUs and dealers for the successful rollout of the scheme.

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Commemorative Postage Stamp on Swachh Bharat Released

Department of Posts, Ministry of Communications & IT has come out with a set of Commemorative Postage Stamps on the theme Swachh Bharat. The Union Minister of Communications &IT, Shri Ravi Shankar Prasad released a set of Commemorative Postage stamps on Swachh Bharat.

Speaking on the occasion, the MOC&IT said that cleanliness was close to the heart of Mahatma Gandhi and to realise his cherished ideal there is a strong need to observe Swachhagraha just as Gandhiji had launched Satyagraha. He also exhorted all citizens to participate whole heartedly in the Clean India campaign and to work strenuously to develop the culture of cleanliness and hygiene.

The MOC&IT was hopeful that the stamp on Swachh Bharat will provide impetus and momentum to the Clean India campaign started by Hon’ble Prime Minister on 2nd October, 2014 with the target of achieving the Clean India goal by 2019,when the nation will celebrate the 150th Birth Anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.

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Nucle Capable Agni-V Missile Test Fired, President, PM laud Scientists

The President of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee congratulated DRDO on the successful test-firing of the third developmental trial of Agni-V surface-to-surface missile from Bhadrak in Odisha.

In his message to Dr. Avinash Chander, Scientific Advisor to Raksha Mantri and Director-General, DRDO, the President has said, “I extend hearty congratulations to all those associated with the successful test-firing of the third developmental trial of India’s indigenous Agni-V surface-to-surface missile.

I am happy to know that many new technologies relating to navigation and guidance, warhead as well as engine has been tried out in this version. I understand today’s test is also the first time the missile has been tried out in a canisterised version.

Kindly convey my felicitations to the members of your team of scientists, engineers, and all others involved in this effort. Our nation is grateful for their hard work and proud of their accomplishment”.

The Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has saluted our scientists, on the successful test-firing of Agni V missile.

"Successful test-firing of Agni V from a canister makes the missile a prized asset for our forces. I salute our scientists for their efforts", the Prime Minister said.

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Jual Oram says Tribal Community is the Base of India

Shri Jual Oram Union Minister of Tribal Affairs today said that tribal community is the base of India and without strengthening it no developmental infrastructure could be firm. Shri Jual Oram said this while hosting a reception here in New Delhi in the honour of Tribal Guests and the Tableaux Artistes & supporting staff, who had participated in this Year’s Republic Day Parade.

Members of Parliament belonging to Scheduled Tribes were also invited to the Reception. Welcoming them the minister said Government of India is committed to make tribals a partner in the developmental process of nation by keeping focus on their interests. They also presented gifts on behalf of Ministry of Tribal Affairs to Tableaux Artistes.

Welcoming the Tribal Guests and the artists Shri Jual Oram said the tradition of inviting tribals to attend Republic Day Parade has been continuing since the first Republic Day in 1952.He said the purpose to invite Tribal Guests is to provide them an opportunity of visiting the National Capital and interact with the diverse and rich cultural tradition of this country so that they could feel proud of it . This includes the meeting of tribal representatives with the President, Vice-Presidemt, Prime Minister and the Defence Minister, Dilli Darshan and a visit to the Museum and Library of Parliament.

Giving an account of the Ministry’s activities Shri Oram said education is the main theme of Tribal Development hence Union Gonvernment is implementing special programmes for the girls education in particularly those areas where girls literacy rate is below par. He also said that the recently launched “Vanbandhu Kalyan Yojana”, a scheme for the integrated development of tribal community will prove to be a mile stone.

Shri Oram reiterated that present government is fully concerned for the tribal development along with the conservation of their cultural heritage. However, the role of state governments and their cooperation is equally importamt in this regard, the Minister added.

On this occasion the Minister of State Shri Manusukhbhai Dhanji Bhai Vasava ans senior officers of the ministry were was also present.

It is important to note that for the Republic day parade 2015, the 60 special Tribal Guests from 25 States and Union Territories were invited and this provided a good opportunity to each one of them to know more about the other cultural traditions of the country. In response the tribal representatives appreciated the efforts and vision of Shri Oram and his ministry.

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Jammu and Kashmir Govt rebuilds infrastructure revive Tourism

 Jammu and Kashmir, which witnessed ravaging floods last year, is limping back to normalcy with the state opening up all again to tourists in a record time of three months, bringing a sigh of relief to all those wished to explore the scenic beauty of the northernmost Indian state.

Floods hit the state in September last year, bringing the state to a complete halt, especially Srinagar. Tourism is the mainstay of the people of the state, and it was badly affected in the aftermath of floods that incurred huge losses to the state exchequer to the tune of Rs one lakh crore.

The state machinery was fast enough to deal with the natural disaster and bring the tourism industry back on track. Roads and infrastructure problems were taken up on priority basis and they were rebuilt to allow the traffic to flow smoothly. Clean water for tourists was another challenge which has been surmounted. All the hotels in affected areas now has ample amount of clean drinking water.

“After the natural calamity which did so much damage, reviving tourism was a difficult job. However, as we knew tourism is the lifeline of the state, it was important to revive it no matter how impossible it seemed. But our conviction and the support from the people of the state made it a reality, that too in a record time of three months. We are very proud to say that 99% hotels in Jammu and Kashmir are back in business,” said Mr Talat Parvez, Director, Tourism Kashmir, and Government of Jammu & Kashmir.

The hotels in flood-hit areas sought re-registration, which were granted after through inspections. After a span of one-and-a-half month, hotels and cars were partially operational which now in due course of time have become fully operational.

The Department of Tourism, Jammu and Kashmir has been holding road shows and exhibitions across the country to let people know that conditions are now absolutely favouable for the tourists to visit the state. It has conducted the exhibitions and roadshows in Chennai, Hyderabad and Delhi so far and plans to do the same at other places, including in Kolkata and Mumbai.

The department is also running on its YouTube channel clips of recent tourists to the state and their experiences with an aim to build confidence among other people who want to visit the state.

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Manoj Santhalia, CMD, New Indian Express meets PM

Shri Manoj Santhalia, CMD, New Indian Express meeting and presenting a cheque of Rs 1.35 crore to PM towards PMNRF

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12 kids died in Kolkata

12 kids died in last two days at B C Roy Children's hospital in Kolkata. According to the officials of the hospital delay in admission of the critically ill children caused the death. No complaint so far has been lodged over the issue. Parents of dead children blocked roads and protested over the death of their kids in the hospital.

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Review of RTI is needed: PM

Business News This Week: The Prime Minister of India, Dr. Manmohan Singh said on Friday that RTI and the authorities work is very crucial for the society. He also stressed on the review of the RTI further and it should not affect the delivery process of governance.

RTI Act has been a strong instrument for social activists and common man to get information from government organizations and departments. The act was enacted in the year 2005.

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