ATMANIRBHAR BHARAT ABHIYAN (SELF-RELIANT INDIA MISSION)

Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers welfare

Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana

• About PMFBY:
  • It is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme, launched in 2016.
  • It replaced National Agricultural Insurance Scheme (NAIS) and Modified National Agricultural Insurance Scheme (MNAIS).
  • It follows an Area Approach basis, which assumes that all the farmers in a notified area i.e. ‘Insurance Unit (IU)’ face similar risks for a notified crop. 
• Objectives of the Scheme:
  • To provide financial support to farmers suffering crop loss/damage arising out of unforeseen events.
  • To stabilizing the income of farmers to ensure their continuance in farming. 
  • To encourage farmers to adopt innovative and modern agricultural practices. 
  • To ensure the creditworthiness of the farmers, crop diversification, and enhancing growth and competitiveness of the agriculture sector besides protecting the farmers from production risks.
• Coverage:
  • The Scheme covers all Food & Oilseeds crops and Annual Commercial/Horticultural Crops for which past yield data is available and for which the requisite number of Crop Cutting Experiments (CCEs) are being conducted under General Crop Estimation Survey (GCES).
  • All farmers including sharecroppers and tenant farmers growing notified crops in a  notified area during the season who have an insurable interest in the crop are eligible.
  • Losses arising out of war and nuclear risks, malicious damage, and other preventable risks shall be excluded.
• PMFBY to PMFBY 2.0:
  • Completely Voluntary: It has been decided to make enrolment 100% voluntary for all farmers from 2020 Kharif.
  • Limit to Central Subsidy: The Cabinet has decided to cap the Centre’s premium subsidy under these schemes for premium rates up to 30% for unirrigated areas/crops and 25% for irrigated areas/crops.
  • More Flexibility to States: The government has given the flexibility to states/UTs to implement PMFBY and given them the option to select any number of additional risk covers/features like prevented sowing, localized calamity, mid-season adversity, and post-harvest losses. States have been allowed to set up their own insurance companies for implementing the scheme.
  • Penalizing the Pendency: In the revamped PMFBY, a provision has been incorporated wherein if states don’t release their share before March 31 for the Kharif season and September 30 for rabi, they would not be allowed to participate in the scheme in subsequent seasons.
  • Investing in ICE Activities: Insurance companies have to now spend 0.5% of the total premium collected on information, education, and communication (IEC) activities.

PM KISAN

• About the scheme:
  • It is a central sector scheme that was introduced to augment the source of income of all farmer families in the country irrespective of the size of their landholdings.
  • Initially, there was a limit of cultivable land up to 2 hectares, which was later removed.
  • Definition of the family for the Scheme is husband, wife, and minor children.
  • Under the Scheme, an amount of Rs.6000/- per year is transferred directly into the bank accounts of the farmers, in three equal instalments of Rs.2000/- every four months.
  • It is subject to certain exclusion criteria relating to higher-income status.
  • The amount supplements the financial needs of farmers for procuring various inputs related to agriculture and allied activities as well as domestic needs.
  • The entire responsibility of identification of beneficiaries rests with the State / UT Governments.
  • Farmers can do their self-registration through the Farmers Corner in the portal or through Common Service Centers.
  • PM-KISAN Mobile App was launched on the 1st Anniversary of PM KISAN to broaden the reach of the scheme. 
  • The benefit shall be paid to only those farmers’ families whose names are entered into the land records except for Forest dwellers, North-eastern states, and Jharkhand which has separate provisions for land records.
  • All PM-KISAN beneficiaries will be given the Kisan Credit Cards (KCC) so that farmers can take easy loans from the banks. 
• Similar programs by states:
  • Bhavantar Bhugtan Yojana- MP.
  • The Rythu Bandhu scheme- Telangana.
  • Krushak Assistance for Livelihood and Income Augmentation (KALIA)- Odisha.

Sub-Mission on Agroforestry (SMAF) Scheme

• Context:
  • The Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Central Silk Board on a convergence model for the implementation of Agroforestry in the silk sector under the ongoing Sub-Mission on Agroforestry (SMAF) Scheme.
• About the Scheme:
  • It is implemented by the Department of Agriculture, Cooperation, and Farmers Welfare (DAC & FW) 2016-17 as part of the recommendation of the National Agroforestry Policy 2014.
  • This sub-mission is under the National Mission for Sustainable Agriculture (NMSA).
  • India was the first country to have such a comprehensive policy which was launched at the World Agroforestry Congress held in Delhi in February 2014.
  • At present, the scheme is being implemented in 20 States and 2 UTs.
• Aim of the mission:
  • SMAF aims to encourage farmers to plant multi-purpose trees together with agriculture crops for climate resilience and an additional source of income to the farmers, as well as enhanced feedstock to inter alia wood-based and herbal industry.

The large Area Certification scheme

• Context:
  • 14,491 ha area of UT of A&N Islands has become the first large contiguous territory to be conferred with organic certification under the ‘Large Area Certification’ scheme.
• About the ‘Large Area Certification’ scheme:
  • Department of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare under its flagship scheme of Paramparagat Krishi Vikas Yojna (PKVY) has launched this unique quick certification program to harness these potential areas.
  • Under LAC, each village in the area is considered as one cluster/group.
  • All farmers with their farmland and livestock need to adhere to the standard requirements and on being verified get certified en-mass without the need to go under conversion period.
  • Certification is renewed on annual basis through annual verification by a process of peer appraisals as per the process of PGS-India.
• Benefits of LAC:
  1. As per the established norm of organic production systems, the areas having chemical input usage history are required to undergo a transition period of a minimum of 2-3 years to qualify as organic.
  2. During this period, farmers need to adopt standard organic agriculture practices and keep their farms under the certification process.
  3. On successful completion, such farms can be certified as organic after 2-3 years.
  4. The certification process also requires elaborate documentation and time-to-time verification by the certification authorities.
  5. Whereas under LAC, requirements are simple and the area can be certified almost immediately.

Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution

Scheme

Features

Pradhan Mantri Gareeb Kalyan Anna Yojana (PMGKAY)

• Context:
  • The first phase of the PMGKAY was from April to June 2020 and the second Phase was from July to November 2020.
  • In 2021, the scheme has been reintroduced for two months (May and June) in the backdrop of the resurgence of COVID-19.
• What is Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana?
  • Considered as the world’s largest food security scheme, it aims at ensuring sufficient food for the poor and needy during the coronavirus crisis.
  • As part of the scheme, the food needs to be provided to all the beneficiaries under the public distribution system (TPDS) for Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY) and priority household (PHH) ration cardholders.
  • The eligible beneficiaries will receive 5kg free foodgrains and 1 kg free Gram per month via ration shops to 80 crore beneficiaries registered under National Food Security Act (NFSA).
  • The cost of free food grains distribution under the scheme is entirely being borne by the Central government.
  • It is over and above the existing monthly entitlement of 5 kg grains per person.

One Nation One Ration Card scheme

• About the scheme:
  • One Nation One Ration Card (RC) will ensure all beneficiaries, especially migrants can access PDS across the nation from any PDS shop of their own choice.
  • Integrated Management of Public Distribution System (IM-PDS) portal provides the technological platform for the inter-state portability of ration cards, enabling a migrant worker to buy foodgrains from any Fair Price Shops (FPS) across the country.
  • Another portal (annavitran.nic.in) hosts the data of the distribution of foodgrains through E-PoS devices within a state.
  • In Budget 2021-22, the government announced that the ONORC scheme is being implemented in 32 States and Union Territories reaching about 69 crore beneficiaries (i.e. around 86% of the total beneficiaries). 
  • The remaining four states and UTs (Assam, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, and West Bengal) will be integrated into the scheme in the coming few months.
• Benefits:
  • National/inter-State and intra-state portability to all ration card holders under NFSA (National Food Security Act).
  • No poor person is deprived of getting subsidized foodgrains under the food security scheme when they shift from one place to another.
  • It also removes the chance of anyone holding more than one ration card to avail benefits from different states.
• Significance:
  • This will provide freedom to the beneficiaries as they will not be tied to anyone PDS shop and reduce their dependence on shop owners and curtail instances of corruption.
• The standard format of ‘one nation, one ration card :
  1. For national portability, the state governments have been asked to issue the ration card in the bi-lingual format, wherein besides the local language, the other language could be Hindi or English.
  2. The states have also been told to have a 10-digit standard ration card number, wherein the first two digits will be state code and the next two digits will be running ration card numbers.
  3. Besides this, a set of another two digits will be appended with a ration card number to create unique member IDs for each member of the household in a ration card.

Ministry of Rural development

Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana- Gramin (PMAY-G)

• Context:
  • 1.10 crore houses completed under Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojana-Gramin.
• About PMAY- G:
  • The erstwhile rural housing scheme Indira Awaas Yojana (IAY) has been restructured into Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojana –Gramin (PMAY-G) from 01.04.2016.
  • PMAY-G aims at providing a pucca house, with basic amenities, to all houseless householders and those households living in kutcha and dilapidated houses, by 2022.
• Target:
  • Construction of 2.95 crore houses with all basic amenities by the year 2022.
• Cost-sharing:
  • The cost of unit assistance in this scheme is shared between Central and State Governments in the ratio 60:40 in plain areas and 90: 10 for North Eastern and the Himalayan States.
  • The scheme envisages training of Rural Masons to improve workmanship and quality of construction of houses while at the same time, increasing the availability of skilled masons and enhancing the employability of such masons.
• Selection of beneficiaries:
  • Based on housing deprivation parameters of Socio-Economic and Caste Census (SECC), 2011, subject to 13 point exclusion criteria, followed by Gram Sabha verification.

Start-Up Village Entrepreneurship Programme (SVEP)

• What is the Start-Up Village Entrepreneurship Programme (SVEP)
  • Implemented by Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana –National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM), Ministry of Rural Development, as a sub-scheme since 2016.
• The focus of the scheme:
• Providing self-employment opportunities with financial assistance and training in business management and soft skills while creating local community cadres for the promotion of enterprises.
• Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India (EDII), Ahmedabad is the technical support partner of SVEP.
• SVEP promotes both individual and group enterprises, set-up,  and promotes enterprises majorly in manufacturing, trading, and service sectors.
• Who are community resource persons – enterprise promotion?
• The program seeks to develop a pool of community resource persons – enterprise promotion (CRP-EP) who are local and support entrepreneurs setting up rural enterprises.
• The CRP-EPs are certified and provides business support services to entrepreneurs.

Saansad Adarsh Gram Yojana

• The goal of the Scheme:
  • Under the Yojana, Members of Parliament (MPs) are responsible for developing the socio-economic and physical infrastructure of three villages each by 2019, and a total of eight villages each by 2024.
  • From 2019 to 2024, five more Adarsh Grams must be developed by each MP, one each year. This implies that a total of 6,433 Adarsh Grams, of the 2,65,000 gram panchayats, will be created by 2024.
• Process:
  • Gram Panchayat: The basic unit for development.
  • Lok Sabha MP chooses a Gram Panchayat from within his/her constituency.
  • Rajya Sabha MP chooses Gram Panchayat from the rural area of a district of his/her choice in the State from which he/she is elected.
  • Nominated MPs choose a Gram Panchayat from the rural area of any district in the country.
• Action Taken:
  • The MPs engage with the community, facilitate the Village Development Plan, and mobilize the necessary resources particularly from Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and philanthropies.
  • The planning process in each village is a participatory exercise coordinated by the District Collector.
  • MPs also fill up critical gaps in the plan using the Member of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme (MPLADs) funds.

Unique Land Parcel Identification Number (ULPIN) scheme

• Context:
  • The Unique Land Parcel Identification Number (ULPIN) scheme has been launched in 10 States this year and will be rolled out across the country by March 2022.
  • This plan has been laid out in a parliamentary standing committee report submitted to the Lok Sabha, as part of the Digital India Land Records Modernisation Programme (DILRMP) which began in 2008 and has been expanded several times.
• About the Scheme:
  • Under the scheme, a 14-digit identification number will be issued to every plot of land in the country.
  • It is being described as “the Aadhaar for land” — a number that would uniquely identify every surveyed parcel of land and prevent land fraud, especially in rural India, where land records are outdated and disputed.
  • The identification will be based on the longitude and latitude of the land parcel and is dependent on detailed surveys and geo-referenced cadastral maps.
• Benefits:
  • The benefits of ULPIN are multitudinous.
  • The single source of information can authenticate the ownership and in turn, it can end the dubious ownership.
  • It will help identify the government lands easily and protect the land from shabby land transactions.

Ministry of Finance

Special Window for Affordable and Mid-Income Housing (SWAMIH)

• About SWAMIH:
  • SWAMIH Investment Fund has been formed to complete the construction of stalled, RERA-registered affordable and mid-income category housing projects which are stuck due to the paucity of funds.
  • The fund was set up as a Category-II AIF (Alternate Investment Fund) debt fund registered with SEBI.
  • The Investment Manager of the Fund is SBICAP Ventures, a wholly-owned subsidiary of SBI Capital Markets, which in turn is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the State Bank of India.
  • The Sponsor of the Fund is the Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance, Government of India on behalf of the Government of India.
• Who will be the investors of the fund?
  • AIFs created/funded under the Special Window would solicit investment into the fund from the Government and other private investors including cash-rich financial institutions, sovereign wealth funds, public and private banks, domestic pension and provident funds, global pension funds, and other institutional investors. 

Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana

• Context:
  • Completes six years of successful implementation and the number of total PMJDY accounts stands at 40.35 crores.
• About PMJDY:
  • Announced on 15th August 2014, PMJDY is National Mission for Financial Inclusion to ensure access to financial services, namely, Banking/ Savings & Deposit Accounts, Remittance, Credit, Insurance, Pension in an affordable manner.
  • Intended beneficiary: Persons not having any other account
• Objectives:
• To ensure access to financial products & services at an affordable cost.
• Use of technology to lower cost & widen reach.
• Basic tenets of the scheme:
• Banking the unbanked – Opening of basic savings bank deposit (BSBD) account with minimal paperwork, relaxed KYC, e-KYC, account opening in camp mode, zero balance & zero charges.
• Securing the unsecured – Issuance of Indigenous Debit cards for cash withdrawals & payments at merchant locations, with free accident insurance coverage of Rs. 2 lakhs.
• Funding the unfunded – Other financial products like micro-insurance, overdraft for consumption, micro-pension & micro-credit.
• The scheme is based upon the following 6 pillars:
  1. Universal access to banking services – Branch and Banking Correspondents.
  2. Basic savings bank accounts with overdraft facility (OD) of Rs. 10,000/- to every household.
  3. Financial Literacy Program– Promoting savings, use of ATMs, getting ready for credit, availing insurance and pensions, using basic mobile phones for banking.
  4. Creation of Credit Guarantee Fund – To provide banks with some guarantee against defaults.
  5. Insurance – Accident Insurance Cover of Rs.1 lakh (enhanced to Rs. 2 lakh to new PMJDY accounts opened after 28.8.2018) is available with a RuPay card issued to the PMJDY account holders.
  6. Pension scheme for Unorganized sector.
• Extension of PMJDY with New features:
  • Focus shift from Every Household to Every Unbanked Adult.
  • RuPay Card Insurance – Free accidental insurance cover on RuPay cards increased from Rs. 1 lakh to Rs. 2 lakhs for PMJDY accounts opened after 28.8.2018.
  • Enhancement in overdraft facilities – OD limit doubled from Rs 5,000 to Rs 10,000; OD up to Rs 2,000 (without conditions).
  • Increase in upper age limit for OD from 60 to 65 years.

Faceless tax assessment scheme

• About the scheme:
  • It was proposed in Union Budget 2019.
  • It is an attempt to remove individual tax officials’ discretion and potential harassment for income taxpayers.
  • The scheme allows for appropriate cases where a certain hearing is necessary, so then after following protocols, a hearing is given.
  • The main objective is to remove physical interaction as much as possible.

Remission of Duties and Taxes on Export Products (RODTEP) scheme

• About the scheme:
  • The scheme was announced in 2020 and applies to all export goods with effect from 1st January 2021.
  • It is a replacement for the Merchandise Export from India Scheme (MEIS), which was not compliant with the rules of the World Trade Organisation.
  • The scheme would refund to exporters the embedded central, state, and local duties or taxes that were so far not be rebated or refunded and were, therefore, placing India’s exports at a disadvantage.
  • The refund would be credited in an exporter’s ledger account with Customs and used to pay Basic Customs duty on imported goods.
  • The credits can also be transferred to other importers.
  • The RoDTEP rates would be notified by the Department of Commerce, based on the recommendation of a committee chaired by Dr G.K. Pillai, former Commerce, and Home Secretary. 
• Significance:
  • Indian exporters will be able to meet the international standards for exports as affordable testing and certification will be made available to exporters within the country instead of relying on international organizations.
  • Also under it, tax assessment is set to become fully automatic for exporters.
  • Businesses will get access to their refunds for GST via an automatic refund route.
  • This would increase the economy of the country and the working capital for the enterprise.

Stand Up India Scheme

• Performance of the scheme:
  • So far Banks have sanctioned more than ₹25,000 crores to over 1.14 lakh accounts.
  • Women-led enterprises have dominated the sanctions so far under the scheme.
• About the Stand Up India Scheme:
  • It was launched in 2016 to promote entrepreneurship at the grassroots level of economic empowerment and job creation.
  • This scheme seeks to leverage the institutional credit structure to reach out to the underserved sector of people such as SCs, STs, and Women Entrepreneurs.
  • The objective of this scheme is to facilitate bank loans between Rs.10 lakh and Rs.1 crore to at least one SC or ST borrower and at least one woman borrower per bank branch for setting up a Greenfield enterprise in agri-allied activities manufacturing, services, or trading sector.
  • The government does not allocate funds for loans under the Stand Up India Scheme. 
  • Loans under the Scheme are extended by all the branches of the Scheduled Commercial Banks as per commercial parameters, Board-approved policies of respective banks, and extant RBI guidelines. 
  • An amount of Rs. 500 crore each was however released by Government in FY 2016-17 and FY 2017-18 and Rs. 100 crore in FY 2O2O-21 towards the corpus of the Credit Guarantee Fund for Stand Up India (CGFSI).
  • The offices of SIDBI and NABARD shall be designated Stand-Up Connect Centres (SUCC).
  • It also provides for the creation of a credit guarantee mechanism through the National Credit Guarantee Trustee Company (NCGTC).
• Eligibility under Stand Up India Scheme:
  1. SC/ST and/or women entrepreneurs; above 18 years of age.
  2. Loans under the scheme are available for only the Greenfield project.
  3. The borrower should not be in default to any bank or financial institution.
  4. In the case of non-individual enterprises, at least 51% of the shareholding and controlling stake should be held by either an SC/ST or Woman entrepreneur.
  5. Borrowers shall be required to bring in a minimum of 10% of the project cost as their own contribution.
• Interest rate and loan repayment:
  • The loan is repayable in 7 years with a maximum moratorium period of 18 months.
  • The rate of interest would be the lowest applicable rate of the bank for that category (rating category) not to exceed Bank’s base rate (MCLR) +3%+ tenor premium.
  • Besides primary security, the loan may be secured by collateral security or guarantee of Credit Guarantee Fund Scheme for Stand-Up India Loans (CGFSIL) as decided by the banks.
• Recent changes:
  • The scheme has been extended up to the year 2025.
  • The margin money requirement for loans under this has been reduced from ‘up to 25%’ to ‘up to 15%’.
  • Activities allied to agriculture have been included in the Scheme.

Scheme of Financial Assistance to States for Capital Expenditure

• Context:
  • The Ministry of Finance, Government of India has decided to provide an additional amount of up to ₹15,000 crores to States as an interest-free 50-year loan for spending on capital projects.
  • The Department of Expenditure has issued fresh guidelines in this regard on the “Scheme of Financial Assistance to States for Capital Expenditure” for the financial year 2021-22.
• About the scheme:
  • The scheme is aimed at boosting capital expenditure by State Governments who are facing a difficult financial environment due to a shortfall in tax revenue arising from the COVID-19 pandemic.
  • The amount will be available to those States who carry out at least 3 out of the 4 reforms: One Nation One Ration Card; Ease of Doing Business Reform; Urban Local Body/ Utility Reform and Power Sector Reform
• Allocation under the scheme:
  • The first part of the scheme is for Northeast and hill states and an amount of ₹2,600 crores has been earmarked.
  • The second part of the scheme is for all other states with an amount of ₹7,400 crores. This amount has been allocated among states in proportion to their share of central taxes as per the award of the 15th Finance Commission for 2021-22.
  • The third part of the scheme is for providing incentives to states for monetization or recycling of infrastructure assets and disinvestment of state public sector enterprises. An amount of ₹5,000 crores is allocated.

Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers

Scheme for promotion of Bulk Drug Parks

• About:
  • It is in line with the vision and clarion call for making India Atma Nirbhar in the pharma sector.
• Scheme for promotion of Bulk Drug Parks:
  • The scheme envisages the creation of 3 mega bulk drug parks in partnership with the states.
  • The grant-in-aid will be 90% of the project cost in the case of North-East and hilly States and 70% in the case of other States.
  • The maximum grant-in-aid to states for one bulk drug park is limited to Rs.1000 crore.
  • State Implementing Agencies (SIA) to be set up by the respective  State Governments.
• Need of the Scheme:
  • Despite being 3rd largest in the world by volume the Indian pharmaceutical industry is significantly dependent on the import of basic raw materials, viz., Bulk Drugs that are used to produce medicines.
  • In some specific bulk drugs, the import dependence is 80 to 100%.
  • The scheme is expected to reduce the manufacturing cost of bulk drugs in the country and dependency on other countries for bulk drugs.
  • The scheme will also help in providing a continuous supply of drugs and ensure the delivery of affordable healthcare to the citizens.

Ministry of Education

Unnat Bharat Abhiyan (UBA)

• Context:
  • TRIFED has entered into a partnership with IIT Delhi for the Unnat Bharat Abhiyan (UBA).
  • Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India (TRIFED) functions under the Tribal Affairs Ministry.
• Significance of the move:
  • With the partnership with IIT Delhi and ‘Unnat Bharat Abhiyan’, the tribal forest dwellers engaged in Minor Forest Produce will get exposure to newer processing technologies, product innovation, mentorship, transformational digital systems, and handholding.
• About UBA:
  • It is to enable higher educational institutions to work with the people of rural India in identifying development challenges and evolving appropriate solutions for accelerating sustainable growth.
  • IIT Delhi has been designated to be the Coordinating Institute (CI) for UBA.
  • Unnat Bharat Abhiyan (2.0): Under this institutions have been selected on a Challenge Mode and the scheme has been extended to 750 reputed Higher Educational Institutes (both public and private) of the country.
  • Students from these educational institutions will adopt villages and visit them to get acquainted with the lifestyle of people there and the problems faced by them.

Mission SAMOOHAN: Marks the beginning of Accelerate Vigyan

• About:
  • It aims to encourage, aggregate, and consolidate all scientific interactions in the country under one common roof.
• It has been sub-divided into:
  • SAYONJIKA is an open-ended program to catalogue the capacity-building activities in science and technology supported by all government funding agencies in the country.
  • SANGOSHTI is a pre-existing program of SERB.

Swachh Vidyalaya Abhiyan

• Context:
  • Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) recently submitted a report on the performance of this program.
• Aim:
  • To meet the Right to Education Act’s mandate that all schools must have separate toilets for boys and girls.
  • Central public sector enterprises (CPSEs) were roped in to implement the program.
  • The program norms require the CPSEs to build toilets with running water and handwashing facilities.
  • It also requires CPSEs to maintain the toilets for three to five years while charging the annual expenses to their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) budgets.
• Key Highlights:
  • Launched in 2014, it is under Samgra Shiksha Abhiyaan.
  • Public sector units claimed to have constructed 1.4 lakh toilets in government schools as part of a Right to Education project, but almost 40% of those surveyed were found to be non-existent, partially constructed, or unused.
  • Over 70% did not have running water facilities in the toilets, while 75% were not being maintained hygienically.
  • The objective of providing separate toilets for boys and girls was not fulfilled in 27% of the schools, according to the CAG report.

Mid-day meal scheme

• About Mid-Day meal scheme:
  • The scheme guarantees one cooked mid-day meal to all children in government and aided schools and madrasas supported under Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan.
  • The Centres run under Education Guarantee Scheme (EGS)/Alternative & Innovative Education (AIE) and National Children Labour Project (NCLP) schools of all areas across the country are also included under the MDM.
  • Students up to Class VIII are guaranteed one nutritional cooked meal at least 200 days a year.
  • It was launched in the year 1995 as the National Programme of Nutritional Support to Primary Education (NP – NSPE), a centrally sponsored scheme.
  • In 2004, the scheme was relaunched as the Mid Day Meal Scheme.
  • The objective of the scheme is to enhance enrollment, retention, and attendance and simultaneously improve nutritional levels among school-going children.
• The MDM rules 2015, provided that:
  • The place of serving meals to the children shall be school only.
  • If the Mid-Day Meal is not provided in school on any school day due to the non-availability of food grains or any other reason, the State Government shall pay the food security allowance by the 15th of the succeeding month.
  • The meal shall be prepared following the Mid-Day Meal guidelines issued by the Central Government from time to time.
  • Procuring AGMARK quality items for preparation of midday meals, tasting of meals by two or three adult members of the school management committee, including at least one teacher, before serving to children.
• Recent changes
  • The annual increase in Cooking cost linked to the Inflation Index to offset the impact of inflation on the food items under the MDM.
  • Fortification of food items in a systematic manner through the Food Corporation of India (FCI) starting with rice Kitchen gardens in each school will be encouraged.
• Monitoring mechanism:
  • Empowered Committee, headed by Minister of Education, National Steering-cum-Monitoring Committee (NSMC) headed by Secretary-Deputy of School Education as well as Programme Approval Board (PAB).
  • The State Steering-cum Monitoring Committee (SSMC)  headed by the State Chief Secretary shall oversee the implementation of the scheme including the establishment of a mechanism for the maintenance of nutritional standards and quality of meals.
  • District Level Committee under the Chairpersonship of the senior-most Member of Parliament of Lok Sabha of the District.
  • At the local level Gram Panchayats/Gram Sabhas, members of Village Education Committees (VECs), Parent-Teacher Associations (PTAs), and the School Management Committees (SMCs)
  • The School Management Committee mandated under the Right to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009 shall also monitor implementation of the Mid-day meal Scheme.
• Nutritional norms:
  • 450 calories and 12 g of protein to every child at the primary level.
  • 700 calories and 20 g of protein at the upper primary level.
  • It also involves providing nutritional support to children of the elementary stage in the drought-affected areas during summer vacation.
• Financing:
  • It is a centrally sponsored scheme and the cost of the MDMS is shared between the central and state governments.
  • The central government provides free food grains to the states.
  • The cost of cooking, infrastructure development, transportation of food grains, and payment of honorarium to cooks and helpers is shared by the center with the state governments.
  • The central government provides a greater share of funds.
  • The contribution of state governments differs from state to state.

Strengthening Teaching Learning and Results for States Program (STARS)

• Context: 
  • Under STARS, the Ministry of Education will set up and support the National Assessment Centre called PARAKH as an independent and autonomous institution under the Department of School Education and Literacy.
• About the Scheme:
  • It is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme and is aligned with the objectives of National Education Policy 2020.
  • It is a long partnership between India and the World Bank, for strengthening public school education and to support the country's goal of providing Education for all.
  • It envisions improving the overall monitoring and measurement activities in the Indian School Education System through interventions.
  • The project aims to improve the quality and governance of school education in Six states (Himachal Pradesh, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, and Rajasthan).
  • States will get support in developing, implementing, evaluating, and improving interventions with direct linkages to improved education outcomes and school-to-work transition strategies for improved labor market outcomes.

Prime Minister’s Special Scholarship Scheme (PMSSS)

• Context:
  • Extending support to J&K and Ladakh students, AICTE has decided to release the instalment of Rs. 20,000/- as maintenance allowance under Prime Minister’s Special Scholarship Scheme (PMSSS).
• About:
  • This scheme aims to build the capacities of the youths of J&K and Ladakh by Educating, Enabling, and Empowering them to compete in the normal course.
  • It is implemented by the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE)
• Features:
  • Under the scheme, these youths are supported by way of scholarship in two parts namely the academic fee & maintenance allowance.
  • The academic fee is paid to the institution where the student is provided admission after an online counselling process conducted by the AICTE.
  • This academic fee covers tuition fees and other components as per the ceiling fixed for various professional, medical, and other UG courses.
  • To meet the expenditure towards hostel accommodation, mess expenses, books & stationary, etc., a fixed amount of Rs.1.00 Lakh is provided to the beneficiary.

YUVA: Prime Minister’s Scheme For Mentoring Young Authors

• It is a national Scheme For Mentoring Young Authors’ to encourage youngsters to harness their writing skills.
• This scheme will ensure creating a pool of authors of below 30 years who are ready to express themselves and project India on any international platform, as well as it will help in projecting Indian culture and literature globally.
• The National Book Trust, India under the Ministry of Education as the Implementing Agency will ensure phase-wise execution of the Scheme under well-defined stages of mentorship.
• ​The books prepared under this scheme will be published by National Book Trust, India; and will also be translated into other Indian languages ensuring the exchange of culture and literature, thereby promoting 'Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat'.
• The selected young authors will interact with some of the best authors of the world; participate in literary festivals etc.

Ministry of Science & Technology

‘Accelerate Vigyan’ Scheme

• About:
  • Launched by the Scientific and Engineering Research Board (SERB).
  • It seeks to provide a single platform for capacity-building programs, research internships, and workshops across the country.
  • The primary objective of this scheme is to give more thrust to encouraging high-end scientific research and preparing scientific manpower, which can lead to research careers and a knowledge-based economy.
• Components:
  • ABHYAAS: To boost research and development in the country by enabling and grooming potential PG/Ph.D. students through developing their research skills in selected areas across different disciplines or fields.
  • It has two components: High-End Workshops (‘KARYASHALA’) and Research Internships (‘VRITIKA’).

Biotech-Krishi Innovation Science Application Network (Biotech-KISAN)

• It is a farmer-centric scheme for farmers, developed by and with farmers under the Department of Biotechnology, Ministry of Science and Technology.
• It is a pan-India program, following a hub-and-spoke model and stimulates entrepreneurship and innovation in farmers, and empowers women farmers.
• Scientists will work in sync with farmers to understand problems and find solutions.
• It aims to understand the problems of water, soil, seed, and market faced by the farmers and provide simple solutions to them.
• It identifies and promotes local farm leadership in both genders. Such leadership helps to develop science-based farming besides facilitating the transfer of knowledge.

Ministry of Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises

Prime Minister Employment Generation Program (PMEGP)

• About Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Programme:
  • PMEGP is a central sector scheme.
  • Launched in 2008-09, it is a credit-linked subsidy scheme that promotes self-employment through the setting up of micro-enterprises, where subsidy up to 35% is provided by the Government through the Ministry of MSME for loans up to ₹25 lakhs in manufacturing and ₹10 lakhs in the service sector.
• Implementation:
  • National Level- Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) as the nodal agency.
  • State Level- State KVIC Directorates, State Khadi and Village Industries Boards (KVIBs), District Industries Centres (DICs), and banks.
• Eligibility:
  • Any individual above 18 years of age, Self Help Groups, Institutions registered under the Societies Registration Act 1860, Production Co-operative Societies, and Charitable Trusts are eligible.
  • Existing Units and the units that have already availed Government Subsidy under any other scheme of the Government of India or State Government are not eligible.
  • Only new projects are considered for sanction under PMEGP.

Gramodyog Vikas Yojana

• Context:
  • Ministry of Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) has approved a program for the benefit of artisans involved in the manufacturing of Agarbatti under the ‘Gramodyog Vikas Yojana’ (As a pilot project).
• Key points:
  • Initially, four Pilot Projects will be started, including one in the North-Eastern part of the country.
  • Each targeted cluster of artisans will be supported with about 50 Automatic Agarbatti making machines and 10 Mixing machines.
  • Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) will provide training, and assist artisans working in this area.
• Significance:
• The program aims to enhance the production of ‘Agarbatti’ in the country and create sustainable employment for the traditional Artisans, by providing them regular employment and an increase in their wages.
• This will give a boost to the domestic Agarbatti Industry in the country and will reduce imports of Agarbatti.

Ministry of Textiles

Samarth Scheme

• Context:
  • As per the information provided by the Union Minister of Textiles, under Samarth, 18 State Governments have been allocated a training target of 3.6 lakh beneficiaries for conducting a training program in traditional and organized sectors.
• About Samarth Scheme:
  • Also known as the ‘Scheme for Capacity Building in the Textile Sector (SCBTS)’.
  • It seeks to provide demand-driven, placement-oriented National Skills Qualifications Framework (NSQF) compliant skilling programs.
• Target:
  • To train 10.00 lakh persons (9 lakhs in organized & 1 lakh in the traditional sector) excluding Spinning & Weaving in the organized Sector.
• Key features:
  • Training of Trainers (ToT).
  • Aadhar Enabled Biometric Attendance System (AEBAS).
  • CCTV recording of the training program.
  • Dedicated call center with helpline number.
• Implementing Agencies:
  • Textile Industry.
  • Institutions/Organization of the Ministry of Textiles/State Governments having training infrastructure and placement tie-ups with the textile industry.
  • Reputed training institutions/ NGOs/ Societies/ Trusts/ Organizations/ Companies /Start Ups / Entrepreneurs active in textile sector having placement tie-ups with textile industry.

Mega Investment Textiles Parks (MITRA) scheme

• Context:
  • The Union Finance Minister in her Budget Speech 2021-22 has announced the Mega Investment Textiles Parks (MITRA) scheme.
• About:
  • The textiles ministry has proposed to develop seven Mega Integrated Textile Region and Apparel (MITRA) parks as part of a plan to double the industry size to $300 billion by 2025-26.
  • This will create a world-class infrastructure with plug-and-play facilities to enable create global champions in exports.
  • It would enable the textile industry to become globally competitive, attract large investments, boost employment generation and exports.
  • The parks are to be set up over 1,000 acres of land.
  • Along with the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme, MITRA will lead to increased investments and enhanced employment opportunities.

Ministry of Health and Family Welfare

Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojana (PMSSY)

• Context:
  • Cabinet approves the establishment of the new All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) at Darbhanga, Bihar under the Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojana (PMSSY).
• About PMSSY:
  • PMSSY was announced in 2003 with the objectives of correcting regional imbalances in the availability of affordable/ reliable tertiary healthcare services and also augmenting facilities for quality medical education in the country.
• It has two components:
  • Setting up new AIIMS (All India Institute of Medical Sciences).
  • Upgradation of government medical colleges in various states.
  • The project cost for the up-gradation of each medical college institution is shared by the Centre and the state.

Ayushman Bharat: Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB PM-JAY)

• Context:
  • The 'Ayushman CAPF' scheme was launched recently, extending the benefit of the central health insurance program to the personnel of all armed police forces in the country.
• Key Features of PM-JAY:
  • It is a Centrally sponsored scheme.
  • Launched in 2018, it is the world’s largest health insurance/ assurance scheme.
  • It provides coverage of 5 lakhs per family per year, for secondary and tertiary care hospitalization.
  • Provides cashless access to health care services for the beneficiary at the point of service. 
  • It is fully funded by the Government and the cost of implementation is shared between the Central and State Governments.
  • National Health Authority (NHA) is the implementing body. 
• Coverage:
  • Over 10.74 crore poor and vulnerable entitled families (approximately 50 crore beneficiaries) are eligible for these benefits.
  • The households included are based on the deprivation and occupational criteria of Socio-Economic Caste Census 2011 (SECC 2011) for rural and urban areas respectively.
  • Since it subsumed the then-existing Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana (RSBY), it also covers families that were covered in RSBY but are not present in the SECC 2011 database.
• Eligibility:
  • No restrictions on family size, age, or gender.
  • All pre-existing conditions are covered from day one.
  • Covers up to 3 days of pre-hospitalization and 15 days of post-hospitalization expenses such as diagnostics and medicines.
  • The benefits of the scheme are portable across the country.
  • Services include approximately 1,393 procedures covering all the costs related to treatment, including but not limited to drugs, supplies, diagnostic services, physician’s fees, room charges, surgeon charges, OT and ICU charges, etc.
  • Public hospitals are reimbursed for the healthcare services at par with the private hospitals.

PM-JAY SEHAT

• Context:
  • Prime Minister launched Ayushman Bharat PM-JAY SEHAT to extend coverage to all the residents of the Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir.
• About:
  • It aims to ensure Universal Health Coverage by providing free-of-cost insurance cover to all the residents of the UT of J&K.
  • The scheme will cover the remaining population which has not been covered under the Ayushman Bharat Scheme.
• Key Features of the scheme:
  • It provides financial cover up to Rs 5 lakh per family on a floater basis to all residents of the UT of J&K.
  • It provides for the operational extension of PM-JAY to 15 lakh (approx.) additional families.
  • The scheme will operate on insurance mode in convergence with PM-JAY.
  • The benefits of the scheme will be portable across the country.
• Significance:
  • With the launch of the ‘SEHAT’ Scheme, J&K will be among the first in the country to achieve Universal Health Coverage.

Ministry of Communications

Five Star Villages Scheme

• Context:
  • The Department of Posts has launched a scheme called Five Star Villages, to ensure universal coverage of flagship postal schemes in rural areas of the country.
  • The scheme was launched on a pilot basis in Maharashtra.
• The schemes covered under the Five Star scheme include:
  1. Savings Bank accounts, Recurrent Deposit Accounts, NSC / KVP certificates.
  2. Sukanya Samridhi Accounts/ PPF Accounts.
  3. Funded Post Office Savings Account linked India Post Payments Bank Accounts.
  4. Postal Life Insurance Policy/Rural Postal Life Insurance Policy.
  5. Pradhan Mantri Suraksha Bima Yojana Account / Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana Account.
• Rating of villages:
  • If a village attains universal coverage for four schemes from the above list, then that village gets four-star status.
  • If a village completes three schemes, then that village gets three-star status and so on.
• Scheme Implementation Team:
  • The scheme will be implemented by a team of five Gramin Dak Sevaks who will be assigned a village for the marketing of all products, savings, and insurance schemes of the Department of Posts.
  • This team will be headed by the Branch Post Master of the concerned Branch Office.
  • Mail overseer will keep personal watches on the progress of the team on daily basis.
  • The teams will be led and monitored by the concerned Divisional Head, Assistant Superintendents Posts, and Inspector Posts.

Ministry of Earth Sciences

Ocean Services, Technology, Observations, Resources Modelling, and Science (O-SMART) Scheme 

• About the scheme:
  • It encompasses a total of 16 sub-projects addressing ocean development activities such as Services, Technology, Resources, Observations, and Science. 
  • Its Implementation will help in addressing issues relating to Sustainable Development Goal-14, which aims to conserve the use of oceans, marine resources for sustainable development. 
  • This scheme also provides the necessary scientific and technological background required for the implementation of various aspects of Blue Economy. 
• The objectives of the O-SMART Scheme are:
  • To generate and regularly update information on Marine Living Resources and their relationship with the physical environment in the Indian Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).
  • To periodically monitor levels of seawater pollutants for health assessment of coastal waters of India.
  • To develop shoreline change maps for assessment of coastal erosion due to natural and anthropogenic activities.
  • To develop a wide range of state-of-the-art ocean observation systems for the acquisition of real-time data from the seas around India.
  • To develop algorithms for the validation of satellite data for coastal research and to monitor changes in coastal research.
  • To explore Polymetallic Nodules (MPN) from a water depth of 5500 m in the site of 75000 sq. km allotted to India by the United Nations in the Central Indian Ocean Basin.

Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology

Ghar Tak Fibre scheme

• About the scheme:
  • Launched in September 2020.
  • It aims to connect all the villages with high-speed internet.
• Targets:
  • Under the scheme, Bihar has to provide at least five fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) connections per village, while there should also be at least one WiFi hotspot per village.
• Implementation: 
  • The project will be jointly executed by the Department of Telecom (DoT), Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology, and Common Service Centres (CSC).

Ministry of Panchayati Raj

Survey of villages and Mapping with Improvised Technology (SVAMITVA) Scheme

• About the Scheme:
  • SVAMITVA is a Central Sector Scheme, which was launched by the Prime Minister on National Panchayati Raj Day, 24th April 2020.
  • The scheme aims to provide the 'record of rights' to village household owners in rural areas and issue Property cards.
• Objectives:
  • To bring financial stability to the citizens in rural India by enabling them to use their property as a financial asset for taking loans and other financial benefits.
  • Creation of accurate land records for rural planning.
  • Determination of property tax, which would accrue to the GPs directly in States where it is devolved or else, add to the State exchequer.
  • Creation of survey infrastructure and GIS maps that can be leveraged by any department for their use.
  • To support the preparation of better quality Gram Panchayat Development Plan (GPDP) by making use of GIS maps.
  • To reduce property-related disputes and legal cases.
  • The scheme aims to provide an integrated property validation solution for rural India.

Ministry of Women and Child Development

Poshan Abhiyaan

• Context:
  • NITI Aayog has released a review report on Poshan Abhiyaan.
• NITI Aayog Suggestion:
  • The program must be stepped up to meet the targets set by the Centre to reduce stunting, wasting, and anemia by 2022.
  • Graduate to a POSHAN-plus strategy which apart from continued strengthening the four pillars of the Abhiyaan also requires a renewed focus on other social determinants in addition to addressing the governance challenges of NHM/ICDS delivery mechanisms.
  • Lay as much emphasis on complementary feeding as it does on breastfeeding.
  • This can help avert 60% of the total stunting cases in India.
• About Poshan Abhiyaan:
  • The program seeks to improve nutritional outcomes for children, pregnant women, and lactating mothers.
  • Launched in 2018 with specific targets to be achieved by 2022.
• Aim:
  • Stunting and wasting by 2% a year (total 6% until 2022) among children.
  • Anaemia by 3% a year (total 9%) among children, adolescent girls and pregnant women, and lactating mothers.
  • The target of the mission is to bring down stunting among children in the age group 0-6 years from 38.4% to 25% by 2022.

One-Stop Centre Scheme

• Context:
  • The Central government will set up One Stop Centres (OSCs) across 10 missions to assist Indian women who are survivors of gender-based violence.
  • The missions where the OSCs will come up are Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, UAE, Jeddah, and Riyadh in Saudi Arabia, Australia, Canada, and Singapore.
• About the scheme:
  • Popularly known as Sakhi, the Ministry of Women and Child Development (MWCD) has formulated this Centrally Sponsored Scheme.
  • It is a sub-scheme of the Umbrella Scheme for the National Mission for Empowerment of women.
• Target group:
  • The OSC will support all women including girls below 18 years of age affected by violence, irrespective of caste, class, religion, region, sexual orientation, or marital status.
• The Centres will be integrated with a Women Helpline to facilitate access to the following services:
  1. Emergency response and rescue services.
  2. Medical assistance.
  3. Assistance to women in lodging the FIR.
  4. Psycho-social support and counselling.
  5. Legal aid and counselling.
  6. Shelter.
  7. Video conferencing facility.
• Funds:
  • The Scheme will be funded through Nirbhaya Fund.
  • The Central Government will provide 100% financial assistance to the State Government /UT Administrations under the Scheme.

Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment

Vanchit Ikai Samooh Aur Vargon Ki Aarthik Sahayta (VISVAS) Yojana

• Context:
  • To implement the VISVAS Yojana National Backward Classes Finance & Development Corporation (NBCFDC) and the National Scheduled Castes Finance and Development Corporation (NSFDC) have signed an agreement with the Central Bank of India.
• About:
  • It is an Interest subvention Scheme for financial empowerment of economically marginalized OBC/SC Self Help Groups (SHGs) & Individuals.
  • The scheme will benefit OBC/SC SHGs with loans up to Rs.4 Lakh and OBC/SC individuals with loans up to Rs.2 Lakh with a quick interest subvention benefit of 5% directly into the standard accounts of borrowing beneficiaries.

SMILE Scheme

• Context:
  • The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment has formulated this scheme for Support for Marginalized Individuals.
• About the scheme:
  • SMILE stands for “Support for Marginalized Individuals for Livelihood and Enterprise”.
  • The focus of the scheme is on rehabilitation, provision of medical facilities, counselling, basic documentation, education, skill development, economic linkages, etc.
  • It includes sub-scheme – ‘Central Sector Scheme for Comprehensive Rehabilitation of persons engaged in the act of Begging’.
  • The scheme would be implemented with the support of State/UT Governments/Local Urban Bodies, Voluntary Organizations, Community Based Organizations (CBOs), institutions, and others.

Ministry of  Commerce & Industry

New Industrial Development Scheme for Jammu & Kashmir (J&K IDS,2021)

• Context:
  • The government of India has formulated New Industrial Development Scheme for Jammu & Kashmir (J&K IDS, 2021) for the development of Industries in the UT of Jammu & Kashmir.
• About the scheme:
  • It is a Central Sector Scheme.
  • The scheme aims to take industrial development to the block level in UT of J&K, which is the first time in any Industrial Incentive Scheme of the Government of India.
  • The financial outlay of the proposed scheme is Rs.28400 crore for the scheme period 2020-21 to 2036- 37.
  • The scheme while encouraging new investment, also nurtures the existing industries in J&K by providing them working capital support at the rate of 5% for 5 years.
• Objective:
  • The main purpose of the scheme is to generate employment which directly leads to the socio-economic development of the region.
  • It aims at the development of Manufacturing as well as Service Sector Units in J&K.
• Key Features of the Scheme:
  • The scheme is made attractive for both smaller and larger units.
  • It attempts for a more sustained and balanced industrial growth in the entire UT.
  • The scheme has been simplified on the lines of ease of doing business by bringing one major incentive, GST Linked Incentive- that will ensure less compliance burden without compromising on transparency.
  • It is not a reimbursement or refund of GST but gross GST is used to measure eligibility for industrial incentives to offset the disadvantages that the UT of J&K faces.

One District One Product Scheme

• About the scheme:
  • To identify one product per district based on the potential and strength of a district and national priorities.
  • A cluster for that product will be developed in the district and market linkage will be provided for that.
  • This initiative is seen as a transformational step towards realizing the true potential of a district.
  • It will fuel economic growth and generate employment and rural entrepreneurship.
• Background:
  • ODOP is basically a Japanese business development concept, which gained prominence in 1979.
  • It is aimed at promoting a competitive and staple product from a specific area to push sales and improve the standard of living of the local population.
  • Over time, it has been replicated in other Asian countries as well.
• Merging of ODOP with Districts as Exports Hub initiative:
  • One District One Product (ODOP) initiative is operationally merged with the ‘Districts as Export Hub’ initiative being implemented by DGFT, Department of Commerce, with the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) as a major stakeholder.
• Objective:
  • To convert each District of the country into an Export Hub by identifying products with export potential.
  • It also aims to address bottlenecks in exporting products and support local manufacturers.
  • Under the initiative, the State Export Promotion Committee(SPEC) and District Export Promotion Committee (DEPC) have been constituted in several districts.

Market Access Initiative (MAI) Scheme

• Objective:
  • It is an Export Promotion Scheme.
  • The scheme aims to act as a catalyst to promote India’s exports on a sustained basis.
• Product and Country Focus Approach:
  • The scheme is formulated based on the product and country focus approach.
  • It will evolve specific markets and specific products through market studies/surveys.

Ministry of Jal Shakti

Gobar-Dhan Scheme

• About the scheme:
  • The Gobardhan scheme is expected to help enhance farmers' income by converting biodegradable waste into compressed biogas (CBG).
  • The scheme is being implemented as part of the Swachh Bharat Mission (Gramin).
  • The Swachh Bharat Mission (Gramin) comprises two main components for creating clean villages:
    • Creating open defecation free (ODF) villages
    • Managing solid and liquid waste in villages.
  • The GOBAR-DHAN scheme, with its focus on keeping villages clean, increasing the income of rural households and generating energy from cattle waste.

Ministry of Tourism

Development of Iconic Tourist Destinations Scheme

• Context:
  • Tourism Ministry, in association with Madhya Pradesh Tourism and India Convention Promotion Bureau,  organized ‘MICE (MICE – Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions) Roadshow – Meet in India’ at Khajuraho, Madhya Pradesh.
• About the Scheme:
  • It is a central sector scheme for the development of identified iconic destinations in the country following a holistic approach.
  • The objective of the scheme is to boost the tourism influx in India and serve as a model for other tourism sites.
  • The nodal agency for the scheme is the Tourism Ministry while other ministries such as civil aviation, railways, etc. are also involved.

Ministry of Food Processing Industries

 Production Linked Incentive Scheme for Food Processing Industry (PLISFPI)

• Context:
  • Union Cabinet has approved the Central Sector Scheme – “Production Linked Incentive Scheme for Food Processing Industry (PLISFPI)” entailing an outlay of Rs. 10,900 crore.
• PLI Scheme:
  • It is a Central Sector Scheme.
  • To boost domestic manufacturing and cut down on import bills, the central government in March 2020 introduced a PLI scheme that aims to give companies incentives on incremental sales from products manufactured in domestic units.
  • The scheme is “fund-limited”, i.e. cost shall be restricted to the approved amount.
  • The maximum incentive payable to each beneficiary shall be fixed in advance at the time of approval of that beneficiary.
  • Regardless of achievement/ performance, this maximum shall not be exceeded.
• Objectives of the PLISFPI:
  • To support the creation of global food manufacturing champions.
  • To strengthen select Indian brands of food products for global visibility and wider acceptance in the international markets.
  • To increase employment opportunities of off-farm jobs.
  • To ensure remunerative prices of farm produce and higher income to farmers.
• Coverage:
• It will support food manufacturing entities with stipulated minimum Sales and be willing to make a minimum stipulated investment for expansion of processing capacity and Branding abroad.
• The first component relates to incentivizing manufacturing of four major food product segments viz. Ready to Cook/ Ready to Eat (RTC/ RTE) foods, Processed Fruits & Vegetables, Marine Products, Mozzarella Cheese.
  • It also covers organic products, free-range eggs, poultry meat, and egg products.
• The second component relates to support for branding and marketing abroad.
• Duration:
  • The scheme will be implemented over a six-year period from 2021-22 to 2026-27 through a Project Management Agency (PMA).

Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation

MP Local Area Development Scheme (MPLADS)

• Context:
  • MPs have been demanding to restart the Member of Parliament Local Area Development Scheme (MPLADS).
• Background:
  • The Union government had resorted to Disaster Management Act to suspend the member of Parliament local area development (MPLAD) scheme in April 2020.
• About MPLAD scheme:
  • Launched in December 1993.
  • Seeks to provide a mechanism for the Members of Parliament to recommend works of developmental nature for creation of durable community assets and provision of basic facilities including community infrastructure, based on locally felt needs.
  • The MPLADS is a Plan Scheme fully funded by the Government of India.
  • The annual MPLADS fund entitlement per MP constituency is Rs. 5 crores.
• Special focus:
  • MPs are to recommend every year, works costing at least 15% of the MPLADS entitlement for the year for areas inhabited by Scheduled Caste population and 7.5% for areas inhabited by S.T. population.
• Release of Funds:
  • Funds are released in the form of grants-in-aid directly to the district authorities.
  • The funds released under the scheme are non-lapsable.
  • The liability of funds not released in a particular year is carried forward to the subsequent years, subject to eligibility.
  • The MPs have a recommendatory role under the scheme.
  • The district authority is empowered to examine the eligibility of works, sanction funds, and select the implementing agencies, prioritize works, supervise overall execution, and monitor the scheme at the ground level.
  • At least 10% of the projects under implementation in the district are to be inspected every year by the district authority.
• Recommendation of works:
  • The Lok Sabha Members can recommend works in their respective constituencies.
  • The elected members of the Rajya Sabha can recommend works anywhere in the state from which they are elected.
  • Nominated members of the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha may select works for implementation anywhere in the country.

Ministry of Power

Integrated Power Development Scheme (IPDS)

• About IPDS:
  • Launched in 2014
  • Power Finance Corporation(PFC) is the Nodal agency for the implementation of the scheme.
• It has the following objectives:
  • Strengthening of sub-transmission and distribution networks in the urban areas.
  • Metering of distribution transformers /feeders/consumers in the urban areas.
  • IT enablement of distribution sector and strengthening of distribution network under R-APDRP.
• The scheme will help in
  • Reduction in AT&C losses
  • Establishment of IT-enabled energy accounting/ auditing system
  • Improvement in billed energy based on metered consumption,
  • Improvement in collection efficiency.

Ministry of Civil aviation

Ude Desh Ka Aam Naagrik (UDAN)/Regional Connectivity Scheme (RCS)

• Context:
  • The government has announced new flights under the UDAN scheme to connect small cities with the metros.
  • The flights utilize less-used airports in the country and seek to offer affordable flights to the people of the country.
• Background:
  • The Centre plans to operationalize 100 unserved and underserved airports and start at least 1,000 air routes under a regional connectivity scheme called the UDAN scheme (Ude Desh Ka Aam Nagrik).
• About UDAN Scheme:
  • The scheme is aimed at enhancing connectivity to remote and regional areas of the country and making air travel affordable.
  • It is a key component of the Centre’s National Civil Aviation Policy launched in 2016.
  • Airports Authority of India (AAI) is designated as implementing agency.
  • t has a unique demand and market-based model to develop regional connectivity.
  • RCS will be operational only in States and at airports/aerodromes/helipads which commit and support the scheme by providing concessions as required in the scheme.
  • Airfares on regional flights are capped at ₹2,500/ hour of approximately 500 km on an aircraft or for 30 min on the helicopter.
  • Under the scheme, nearly half of the seats in Udan flights are offered at subsidized fares, and the participating carriers are provided with a certain amount of viability gap funding (VGF).
  • The scheme will be jointly funded by the central government and state governments.
  • The scheme will run for 10 years and can be extended thereafter.
• UDAN 4.0:
  • The 4th round of UDAN was launched in December 2019 with a special focus on North-Eastern Regions, Hilly States, and Islands.
  • The airports that had already been developed by the Airports Authority of India (AAI) are given higher priority for the award of VGF (Viability Gap Funding) under the Scheme.
  • Under UDAN 4, the operation of helicopters and seaplanes is also been incorporated.

Ministry of Minority Affairs

Pradhan Mantri Jan Vikas Karyakaram (PMJVK)

• Context:
  • The Ministry of Minority Affairs is implementing the Pradhan Mantri Jan Vikas Karyakaram (PMJVK), in the identified Minority Concentration Areas (MCAs) of the country.
• About the PMJVK:
  • The erstwhile Multi-sectoral Development Programme (MsDP) has been restructured and renamed Pradhan Mantri Jan Vikas Karyakram for effective implementation since 2018.
  • It seeks to provide better socio-economic infrastructure facilities to minority communities.
• Special focus by earmarking funds:
  • 80% of the resources under the PMJVK would be earmarked for projects related to education, health, and skill development.
  • 33 to 40% of resources under the PMJVK would be specifically allocated for women-centric projects.
• Beneficiaries of PMJVK:
  • As far as PMJVK is concerned, the communities notified as minority communities under Section 2 (c) of the National Commission for Minorities Act, 1992 would be taken as Minority Communities.
  • At present 6 (six) communities namely Muslims, Sikhs, Christians, Buddhists, Zoroastrians (Parsis), and Jains have been notified as Minority Communities.

Ministry of Steel

PLI Scheme for Specialty Steel

• Context:
  • Union Cabinet approves Production-linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme for Specialty Steel.
• Highlights and significance of the scheme:
  • The duration of the scheme is from 2023-24 to 2027-28 (five years).
  • It aims to boost the production of high-grade specialty steel in the country.
  • There are 3 slabs of PLI incentives under the scheme.
  • The lowest being 4% and the highest is 12%, which has been provided for electrical steel (CRGO).
  • It has a budgetary outlay of ₹6322 crores.
  • It is expected to bring in an investment of approximately ₹40,000 crores and a capacity addition of 25 MT for specialty steel.
  • The scheme is expected to give employment to about 5,25,000 people of which 68,000 will be direct employment.
• Coverage:
  • The five categories of specialty steel that have been chosen in the PLI Scheme are Coated/Plated Steel Products, High Strength/Wear-resistant Steel, Specialty Rails, Alloy Steel Products, and Steel wires, and Electrical Steel.
• What is Specialty Steel?
  • Speciality steel is value-added steel wherein normal finished steel is worked upon by way of coating, plating, heat treatment, etc. to convert it into high-value-added steel.
  • This steel can be used in various strategic applications like Defense, Space, Power, apart from the automobile sector, specialized capital goods among others.
• Why was Speciality Steel chosen for the PLI Scheme?
  • It is because out of the production of 102 million tonnes of steel in India in 2020-21, only 18 million tonnes of value-added steel/specialty steel was produced in the country.
  • Apart from this, out of 6.7 million tonnes of imports in 2020-21, about 4 million tonnes import was of specialty steel alone resulting in Forex expenditure of Rs.30,000 crores.
  • Hence, by becoming Atma Nirbhar in producing specialty steel, India will move up the steel value chain and come at par with advanced steel-making countries like Korea and Japan.

Ministry of Culture

Adarsh Smarak Scheme

• Context:
  • Monuments at Nagarjunakonda, Buddhist remains at Salihundam, and Veerabhadra Temple at Lepakshi is identified as ‘Adarsh Smarak’ in Andhra Pradesh for providing additional facilities.
• About the Adarsh Smarak scheme:
  • Launched in 2014 for providing improved visitor amenities, especially for the physically challenged.
  • The civic amenities are being augmented at the protected sites under the scheme.
  • Archaeological Survey of India had identified 100 monuments as “Adarsh Smarak” for upgradation.
• Objectives of the Scheme:
  1. To make the monument visitor-friendly.
  2. To provide interpretation and audio-video centers.
  3. To make the monument accessible to differently-abled people.
  4. To implement Swachh Bharat Abhiyan.