• 03 Feb 2024

Rajasthan to Start Prerana Schools

Why in News?

The Rajasthan government is planning to develop Prerana schools, learning from the experience of Mehsana district of Gujarat.

Key Points

• The objective is to give students exposure by interaction with different students, learning about technological advancements, life skills among other skills.
• The initiative started by the Ministry of Education, Prerana: An Experiential Learning programme, aims to offer a meaningful, unique and inspiring experience to all participants, empowering them with leadership qualities.
• The Prerana programme currently running in a vernacular school in Gujarat is a week-long residential programme for selected students of Class IX to XII.
• It is an experiential and inspirational learning programme for students with the best-in-class technology where heritage meets innovation.
• For this initiative, 20 selected students which include 10 boys, and 10 girls attend the program there, every week from various parts of the country. For this school, the curriculum has been prepared by IIT.

Jharkhand CM Arrested in a Corruption Case

Why in News?

Hemant Soren, of the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) party, has been accused of corruption and was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) after seven hours of questioning.

Key Points

• JMM party has named transport minister Champai Soren as the next chief minister of the eastern state.
  • The case against him relates to a piece of land he allegedly owns in Ranchi city.
  • According to the ED, the property was bought through "proceeds of crime" by illegally selling land owned by the Indian army.
  • Hemant Soren denies the charge and claims the property was "wrongfully alleged to be owned" by him.
  • The JMM has called the investigation against him a politically motivated "witch-hunt".
• Several other chief ministers and opposition leaders are also facing corruption allegations.

Chhattisgarh Implements Pay Raise and Women Empowerment Scheme

Why in News?

Recently, the Chhattisgarh government decided to increase the remuneration of tendu patta collectors from Rs 4000 per standard bag to Rs 5500 and implement the Mahtari Vandan Yojana.

Key Points

• The Cabinet has approved the Mahtari Vandan Yojana, under which married women will receive financial assistance of Rs 1000 per month, totaling Rs 12,000 annually, directly credited to their bank accounts through Direct Benefit Transfers (DBT).
  • The objective of this scheme is to eliminate gender discrimination, inequality, and lack of awareness among women in the state, and to improve their health and nutrition levels.
  • The benefits will be available to married women who are residents of Chhattisgarh and are aged 21 or above as of 1st January, 2024. Widowed, divorced, and abandoned women are also eligible for the scheme.
• To ensure the social security of tendu patta collectors, a new scheme will be implemented, with 75% of the financial assistance provided by the government and the remaining 25% by the Chhattisgarh State Minor Forest Produce (Trading and Development) Co-operative Federation.
• The Cabinet has also decided to implement the Bharat (BH) series vehicle registration in the state of Chhattisgarh.
  • Under the BH series implemented by the Government of India, two-wheeler and four-wheeler vehicles will have to pay tax for two years at one go.
• The draft of the Chhattisgarh Goods and Services Tax (Amendment) Bill-2024 was also approved.

Maoist Tunnel Found in Chhattisgarh's Bastar

Why in News?

• Recently, troops returning from an operation in Maoist-hit Bijapur discovered a 130 ft-long Viet Cong-style tunnel dug by the insurgents.

Key Points

• It's the first such discovery in Bastar since the insurgency began nearly two decades ago and adds a layer of complexity to counter-insurgency operations.
• District Reserve Guard jawans found the tunnel near Tadopot village on the banks of Indravati, around 330 km south of Raipur.
• The discovery of such a tunnel indicates that Maoists are changing tactics to tackle the intensification of security operations and aerial surveillance.

Left Wing Extremism in India

• Left-wing extremists, popularly known as Maoists worldwide and as Naxalites in India.
• The term Naxalism derives its name from the village Naxalbari of West Bengal. It originated as a rebellion against local landlords who bashed a peasant over a land dispute.
  • The rebellion was initiated in 1967, with an objective of rightful redistribution of the land to working peasants under the leadership of Kanu Sanyal and Jagan Santhal.
• The movement has spread across Eastern India in less developed areas of states such as Chhattisgarh, Odisha and Andhra Pradesh.
• It is considered that Naxals support Maoist political sentiments and ideology.
  • Maoism is a form of communism developed by Mao Tse Tung. It is a doctrine to capture State power through a combination of armed insurgency, mass mobilization and strategic alliances.

Subsidy to Farmers on Solar Energy Pumps

Why in News?

Online applications for solar water pumping systems at 75% subsidy under the PM-KUSUM (Pradhan Mantri Kisan Urja Suraksha evam Utthaan Mahabhiyan) Scheme on behalf of Haryana Government can be made from 19th January to 29th January, 2024.

Key Points

• The state government, through the PM-Kusum scheme, aims to provide farmers with the opportunity for irrigation using solar energy.
• Applications are invited for solar pumps ranging from 3hp to 10hp under this scheme. The selection of beneficiaries for the current year will be based on the family's annual income and land ownership.
• As per the survey by the Haryana Water Resources Authority, in villages where the groundwater level has dropped below 100 feet, the installation of micro-irrigation systems is mandatory.
• Other farmers must install underground pipe lines or micro-irrigation systems. Farmers engaged in rice cultivation whose fields have a groundwater level below 40 meters are not eligible for this scheme.

Pradhan Mantri Kisan Urja Suraksha evam Utthaan Mahabhiyan (PM KUSUM)

• The PM-KUSUM is a flagship scheme initiated by the Indian government in 2019 with the primary objective of transforming the agricultural sector by promoting the adoption of solar energy solutions.
• It operates on a demand-driven approach. Capacities are allocated based on the demands received from various states and union territories (UTs).
• Through various components and financial support, PM-KUSUM envisions achieving a significant solar power capacity addition of 30.8 GW by March 31, 2026.