• 12 Oct 2023

Chief Minister Green Road Infrastructure Development Urban (CM GRID) Scheme.

Why In News?

On October 10, 2023, in a cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, it was decided to launch the 'Chief Minister Green Road Infrastructure Development Urban (CM GRID) Scheme to further improve the roads of the cities.

Key Points:

• Rs. 500 crore will be spent in the financial year 2023-24 in the Chief Minister's Green Road Infrastructure Development Urban (CM GRID) Scheme.
• In this regard, Urban Development Minister A.K. Sharma said that in the first phase, 17 municipal corporations Ayodhya, Aligarh, Agra, Kanpur, Ghaziabad, Gorakhpur, Jhansi, Prayagraj, Firozabad, Bareilly, Mathura-Vrindavan, Meerut, Moradabad, Lucknow, Varanasi, Work will be done under this scheme in Shahjahanpur and Saharanpur.
• In the second phase, nagar panchayat and municipal council roads will be included. For this, an Urban Road Infrastructure Development Agency will be set up.
• In this scheme, grants will be given for the development of roads on the basis of income earned by the bodies in the previous financial year.
• Under the scheme, all the facilities related to the road, such as utility duct, footpath, green zone, solar based street light, bus stop, EV charging station, beautification, pedestrian facility etc. will be provided. All roads in cities will be made safe, sustainable and inclusive and these roads will be greener and environment friendly.

10 Pesticides Banned to Save Taste and Quality of Basmati

Why In News?

On October 10, 2023, Dr. Ritesh Sharma, Principal Scientist, Basmati Export Development Foundation (BEDF), Modipuram, informed that 10 pesticides have been banned to protect the taste and quality of basmati crop due to indiscriminate use of chemicals.

Key Points:

• Additional Director (Agriculture Defence) Tripurari Prasad Choudhury has banned 10 pesticides in 30 districts of the state. By banning them, the quality of Basmati and its true taste will be saved. This will also increase basmati exports.
• These pesticides are banned: The insecticides include Acephate, Buprofezin, Chloropyriphos, Methamidophos, Propiconazole, Thiamethoxam, Profenofos, Isoprothiolane, Carbendazim, and Tricyclazole.
• Dr. Ritesh Sharma said that Basmati is cultivated in 30 districts of western Uttar Pradesh. These include Agra, Aligarh, Auraiya, Baghpat, Bareilly, Bijnor, Badaun, Bulandshahr, Etah, Kasganj, Farrukhabad, Firozabad, Etawah, Gautam Buddh Nagar, Ghaziabad, Hapur, Hathras, Mathura, Mainpuri, Meerut, Moradabad, Amroha, Kannauj, Muzaffarnagar, Shamli, Pilibhit, Rampur, Saharanpur, Shahjahanpur, Sambhal.
• Basmati rice is a geographical indication (GI) category crop of Uttar Pradesh. Agricultural chemicals are used to prevent pests and diseases in it. Residues of these chemicals are being found in basmati rice.
• APEDA (Agriculture and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority) has stated that the maximum pesticide residue level of tricyclazole in basmati rice has been set by the European Union at MRL 0.01 ppm, but due to the amount of more than the prescribed ppm, exports to Europe, America and Gulf countries have decreased by 15 percent in the year 2021-2022 compared to the year 2020-21.

ASHA worker Kalpana Kumari and volunteer Lalita Kumari received the Award.

Why In News?

On October 10, 2023, Union Minister for Women and Child Development Smriti Irani felicitated two women ASHA workers from Bihar, Kalpana Kumari and Volunteer Lalita Kumari at a function held in New Delhi.

Key Points:

• Bihar-based ASHA worker Kalpana and volunteer Lalita Kumari have done excellent work in providing referral services and management of severely malnourished children.
• Activist Lalita Kumari is from Bhagalpur and ASHA worker Kalpana Kumari is a resident of Khagaria.

Seed Hubs will be Built in 10 Districts of Bihar

Why In News?

On October 11, 2023, Bihar Agriculture Department approved the setting up of seed hubs in 10 districts of the state. Wheat, pulses and oilseeds seeds will be produced in these districts.

Key Points:

• In the first phase, farming will be done in 3125 acres for certified seed production. The Assistant Director (Cultivation) of the concerned district will select the village or Panchayat for the Seed Hub.
• The work of seed production here will be done by the farmers or farmer groups of the selected village under the supervision of the Agriculture Department.
• For this, the department has decided to give 80 percent subsidy on seeds to the farmers. Apart from this, if needed, farmers will be provided help (revolving fund) for three years. The amount received as assistance will have to be returned to the farmers.
• It is noteworthy that in the fourth agricultural road map, a target has been set to make the state self-reliant in seed production. Therefore, a target has been set to create 100 seed hubs in the next five years, out of which ten seed hubs will be created in the Rabi season.
• 683.75 quintals of seeds will be distributed in this. Through this, a target has been set to produce 16375 quintals of seeds. Next year, seed hubs will be created in new villages or panchayats.
• District wise crops have been determined as follows - wheat, gram and moong in Gaya, wheat, lentils and moong in Vaishali, wheat, mustard and moong in Bhagalpur, wheat, lentils and moong in Nalanda, wheat and rye in Begusarai, Samastipur. A seed hub will be created for wheat, lentil and moong in Patna, wheat, mustard and moong in Patna, wheat, lentil and moong in Nawada, wheat, lentil and moong in Darbhanga and seed hub for wheat, lentil and moong in Purnia.
• The area of the seed hub will be a minimum 125 acres for wheat and 62.5 acres for pulses and oilseeds.

For the First Time in the State , Media Workers are Included in the Category of Essential Services .

Why In News?

On October 11, 2023 Chief Electoral Officer of the Election Commission of India Praveen Gupta said that in the Rajasthan Assembly General Election-2023, apart from the service voters, the Election Commission of India has also provided the facility of voting through postal ballot to the employees working in other eight departments. For the first time, media persons in Rajasthan have also been included in this category.

Key Points:

• The Election Commission has issued a notification in this regard. Employees of electricity-water, roadways-metro, dairy, fire fighter, medical education department and medical and health department are also involved in this.
• According to the orders issued by the Election Commission, doctors in the medical sector, para medical staff, ambulance workers, electricians in the energy department, linemen, pump operators in PHED, turners, employees working in milk committees of Rajasthan, driver-conductors in roadways and election officials. Media employees authorized by the Commission will be given the facility of voting through postal ballot from this year.
• For the first time, journalists have been included in the category of service voters. Till now, the facility of service voting was available only to the employees-officers posted on election duty, army or para military personnel.
• All these essential service personnel have been given the facility of postal ballot from now on. The concerned departments will tell how many employees they have who will be on duty on the day of voting and who may be deprived of voting on that day. On the basis of that list, the Returning Officer will issue Form 12-D to those employees and they will be given the facility of voting through ballot paper at the Facilitation Centre.

Important Decisions of Haryana Cabinet

Why In News?

On October 11, 2023, In the Haryana Cabinet meeting held under the chairmanship of Chief Minister Manohar Lal, many other important decisions were taken along with approving the Haryana Municipal Urban Built-up Planning Reform Policy 2023.

Key Points:

• Under the Haryana Municipal Urban Built-Planning Reform Policy 2023, permission will be given to convert residential plots into commercial use in the unplanned area of Haryana. The condition is that the colony should have been built at least 50 years ago.
• This policy will be applicable in the residential areas situated within the core areas of the municipality limits except the areas of Haryana Urban Development Authority (HSVP), Housing Board (Haryana), Haryana State Industrial Infrastructure Development Corporation and Town and Country Planning Department.
• This scheme will also be applicable to those plots who have divided their plots. Parameters like floor area ratio (FAR), ground coverage and plot height will remain in line with the original housing plan. The building line of the original plan will also be maintained.
• The application process will be facilitated through an online portal developed by the Urban Local Bodies Department. To apply, property owners will have to pay a conversion fee of Rs 10 per square meter and a development fee of five per cent of the commercial collector rate.
• They will also have to pay composition charges of Rs 160 per square meter on the converted area. For this, the applicant will have to apply by March 31, 2024. If the plot owners do not apply during this time period, action will be taken against them.
• A survey will be conducted to identify illegal commercial buildings and map the rights of way and affected plots. If a property is rejected or an application for regularization is not made, municipalities can demolish the illegal construction and restore the building to its original condition or cancel the license.
• The Cabinet meeting approved construction of the first floor or basement or both on single booths, shops and service booths allotted by municipalities and urban improvement trusts. The Cabinet has approved the policy for this also.
• To regularize the existing unauthorized construction on the first floor or basement or both at the booth, application will have to be made by March 31, 2024.
• There is no fixed time limit for new permission for construction of the first floor or basement or booth. This policy will not be applicable to controlled areas which require Change of Land Use (CLU) permission.
• This also does not include the licensed schemes approved by the Town and Country Planning Department within the municipal limits.
• Further the policy does not cover any temporary structures allotted by shops or municipalities under Tehbazari or Khoka.
• A fee of Rs 10 per square meter will be charged from the applicants on the total proposed built up area. The fee for regularization of existing first floor or basement construction is Rs 10 per square meter, but this is applicable to both the proposed and existing built up area on the plot including the structure on the ground floor.
• Haryana Digital Media Advertisement Policy was approved in the meeting. This policy has been brought to include social media news channels and social media influencers.
• The existing policy of the year 2007 and 2020 was limited only to print media, electronic media and websites. Under the new policy, five categories have been created for empanelment of social media news channels taking into account the number of subscribers, followers and posts on their social media accounts.
• DIPR Haryana will list social media news channels according to these categories. The Panel Advisory Committee will decide the rates from time to time for each category, ad format and social media platform.
• The Cabinet has also approved increasing the pension of journalists of the state from Rs 10,000 to Rs 15,000.
• The Cabinet has approved rounding off the fares of State Carriage buses up to Rs 5 for the convenience of passengers. For traveling up to seven and a half kilometers, Rs 5 will be charged and for traveling between eight to 10 kilometers, Rs 10 will be charged. With this, the general public as well as the conductors will no longer have to face problems like coins and change.

Five Cities of Jharkhand included among 500 Cities of the Country under 'Amrut' Mission (AMRUT)

Why In News?

Recently, the Union Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs has included five cities of Jharkhand - Deoghar, Madhupur, Basukinath, Godda and Mahagama in the 500 cities of the country under the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT).

Key Points:

• The Union Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry has also sanctioned Rs 50 crore in the first phase for the rejuvenation and urban transformation of these five cities of Godda parliamentary constituency. With this amount, work will be done on basic civic amenities like water supply, sewerage, urban transport, parks, infrastructure in these 5 cities.
• In 2015, the Government of India launched the Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT), which aims to provide basic civic amenities such as water supply, sewerage, urban transport, parks, to improve the quality of life for all, especially the poor and marginalized.
• The focus of the mission is on building infrastructure, which has a direct link with the provision of better services to citizens.
• The objectives of the 'AMRUT' Mission are:
• To ensure that every household has access to a tap with assured supply of water and a sewerage connection.
• Increase the convenience value of cities by developing greenery and well-maintained open spaces.
• Reduce pollution by switching to public transport or by creating facilities for non-motorised transport.
• The major project components are water supply system, sewerage, septage, storm water drainage, urban transport, green spaces and parks, improvement management and support, capacity building etc.
• Universal coverage of water supply and sewerage services is the first charge in the mission. The maximum allocation for development of parks with child and elderly friendly facilities is 2.5% of the project cost.
• The mission covers 500 cities, including all cities and towns with a population of more than one lakh with notified municipalities.
• The total outlay for AMRUT was Rs 50,000 crore for five years from FY 2015-16 to FY 2019-20.
• The Mission is being operated as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme. The project fund is divided among the States/UTs in a uniform formula with 50:50 weightage being given to the urban population and number of statutory towns of each State/UT.

Survey of Tourist Places will be Conducted for the First Time in the State

Why In News?

On October 10, 2023, Additional Secretary of Uttarakhand Tourism Department Yugal Kishore Pant said that for the first time a survey of tourists coming from the country and the world will be conducted for tourism in different areas in the state. The data obtained from the survey will prove to be helpful in making tourism development plans in the future.

Key Points:

• Yugal Kishore Pant said that during the survey, many questions will be answered from tourists. Which place is most preferred by foreign and domestic tourists to visit in the state? Also, what other tourist activities including religious and adventure come to Uttarakhand and what kind of problems have they faced? To know this, a survey will be conducted at different tourist places across the state.
• The survey will be conducted at many tourist places of the state including Haridwar, Rishikesh, Dehradun, Mussoorie, Nainital, Bhimtal, Lansdowne, Tehri, Rudraprayag, Chamoli, Pithoragarh, Bageshwar, Champawat, Almora, Uttarkashi.
• It is worth mentioning that about five crore tourists visit Uttarakhand every year. These include pilgrims coming in the Chardham Yatra. Tourists from all over the country and abroad come here for summer holidays, weekends, New Year celebrations, rafting, mountaineering, and spirituality.