Madhya Pradesh

• 02 Jun 2023

Indore Pride Day

Why in News?

On 31 May 2023, 'Indore Gaurav Diwas' was celebrated on the occasion of the birthday of Lokmata Ahilya Bai at a ceremony held at Nehru Stadium in Indore, the cleanest city of India and the financial capital of Madhya Pradesh.

Key Points:

• Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan inaugurated the works of Umang Park to be built by Indore Municipal Corporation and the incubation centre set up by Indore Development Authority for the support of startups. He also released the resolution paper of solar city and inaugurated tree ambulance.
• It is known that 298 years ago on this day in 1767, Devi Ahilya Bai was born. Therefore, in his honour, the whole city celebrates this day as Pride Day.
• Devi Ahilyabai Holkar was the wife of Khanderao, the son of the famous empress of the Maratha Empire and the famous Subedar Malharrao Holkar.
• In 1754, when Khanderao attained martyrdom in the battle, father-in-law Malharrao Holkar handed over the command of the Holkar Empire to Ahilya Devi.
• Ahilya Devi's name is taken with respect, for the renovation and reconstruction of temples during her reign of 28 years. He built about 65 temples, Dharamshalas not only in her state but all over India.
• Apart from this, roads, wells, ponds, bawdis, ghats and water tanks were built with basic facilities. While living in Maheshwar, she built Dharamshalas in remote places of the country, such as Amarkantak, Badrinath, Kedarnath, Ayodhya, Gangotri, Pushkar, Mathura, Rameshwar and Haridwar.
• It is worth mentioning that Indore is the only city in India where both the Indian Institute of Management (IIM Indore) and the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT Indore) are located.

MP gets honoured for Remarkable Work in PM Swanidhi Yojana

Why In News?

On 1 June 2023, Union Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Hardeep Singh Puri felicitated Madhya Pradesh for their remarkable work in the PM SVANidhi scheme in New Delhi. Additional Commissioner Urban Administration and Development Awadhesh Sharma received the award.

Key Points:

• Significantly, Madhya Pradesh is number one in the country in the PM Svanidhi Scheme.
• In Madhya Pradesh, a total of 7,31,517 cases have been approved under the Prime Minister's Svanidhi Scheme. Out of these, loans have been disbursed in 7,08,894 cases against the target of 6,48,850 allotted to the state. The percentage of progress in the scheme is 109.25%.
• It is worth mentioning that a scheme named 'Pradhan Mantri Street Vendors Atma Nirbhar Nidhi' (PM SVANidhi) was launched by the Union Ministry of Housing & Urban Development to provide financial support to small shopkeepers and street vendors.
• The Pradhan Mantri Street Vendors Atma Nirbhar Nidhi (PM SVANidhi) was announced as a part of economic incentive II under the Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan.
• It was implemented from 1 June 2020, to provide affordable working capital loans to street vendors who have been adversely affected due to the COVID-19 lockdown to restart their livelihoods.
• It is a Central Sector Scheme i.e. it is a fully funded scheme by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, it has the following objectives:
• Providing a working capital loan facility
• Encourage regular repayments and
• Rewarding digital transactions
• Under this scheme, small shopkeepers can apply for a loan of up to Rs 10,000. Applicants do not need any collateral to get the loan.
• One year time is given to repay the capital received under this scheme, sellers can repay the loan through monthly instalments during this period.
• Also, under this scheme, if the beneficiaries pay on the loan taken on time or before the stipulated date, then they are provided with an interest subsidy of 7% (annually), which is directly deposited in the bank account of the beneficiary at an interval of 6 months through 'Direct Benefit Transfer' (DBT).
• The scheme is available only to beneficiaries from those States/UTs which have notified rules & schemes under the Street Vendors (Protection of Livelihood and Regulation of Street Vending) Act, 2014. However, beneficiaries from Meghalaya, which has its own State Street Vendors Act, can participate.

Sports Minister inaugurates new range of Shotguns

Why In News?

On 1 June 2023, Madhya Pradesh's Sports and Youth Welfare Minister Yashodhara Raje Scindia inaugurated the newly-built Shotgun Range at the Madhya Pradesh State Shooting Academy at Bishankhedi.

Key Points:

• Spread over 32 acres of shooting academy, the new shotgun range, spread over 10 acres, has five ranges, including the final range, two administrative buildings and pavilions.
• On this occasion, Sports Minister Scindia said that Shotgun World Cup can also be organized in the new shotgun range. In this episode, the National Rifle Association of India is organizing a selection trial of shotguns from June 11 to 18.
• The Sports Minister also reviewed the Madhya Pradesh State Boxing Academy. She also directed the officials to conduct a talent search for the academy soon and weed out the C-category boxers.