• 24 Jun 2022

Preparations to Start Campaign Against Infectious Diseases

Why in News?

• Addressing a high-level meeting on June 23, 2022, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has asked officials to ensure regular sanitation and fogging campaigns to save the state from Dengue, Malaria, Chikungunya and other vector-borne diseases.

Key Points

• The state-wide special drive against communicable diseases will be launched from July 1 to address the health challenges posed by water-borne diseases and other seasonal irregularities.
• It is worth noting that every year from June to November, a large number of children are affected by Japanese Encephalitis in the Purvanchal region of the state. Due to the continuous efforts made by the government, not only has the spread of this disease been controlled, but the deaths due to it have also come down by more than 95 percent.
• Taking extra vigil and precautions in this context, the State Government has set up Encephalitis Care Centers at the Block level equipped with PICU beds and trained medical personnel.
• On this occasion, the Chief Minister also told that very soon, effective control of malaria would be established in Uttar Pradesh with the release of Kala-azar. According to the latest figures, Malaria is less than one per 1,000 population and Kala-azar disease is less than one per 10,000 population in the state.

Spices Will be Cultivated in the Gardens of Bihar

Why in News?

• Recently, the Bihar government, taking steps to increase the income of the farmers of the state, has planned to cultivate spices in the gardens.

Key Points

• The Department of Agriculture has started work on this to encourage farmers under the Integrated Farming Scheme. The need has been assessed on the basis of actual acreage of vacant land available in the garden.
• The cultivation of spices will start as an experiment this year. For this, Hail, Ginger and Turmeric have been selected. They will now be cultivated in the gardens of 12 districts of the state.
• The districts that have been selected for this scheme are Vaishali, Muzaffarpur, East Champaran, West Champaran, Sheohar, Sitamarhi, Darbhanga, Samastipur, Begusarai, Saharsa, Khagaria and Bhagalpur.
• After planting trees in the gardens, the vacant land will be used for the cultivation of spices. With this, farmers will not only sell the fruits of the garden, but will also be able to trade in spices.
• Under the scheme, the state government will provide technical assistance to the farmers cultivating spices in the garden as well as half the price of seeds and manure.
• It is worth mentioning that on an average, farmers in the state cultivate only two crops throughout the year. In weather-friendly farming, the government has planned to increase it to three crops. At the same time, emphasis is also being laid on integrated agriculture scheme in the cultivation of annual crops. The new plan is a part of this effort.
• Barring fruit orchards like Bananas, only 40 percent of the land in Mango and Litchi orchards is used for planting trees, the remaining 60 percent of the land can be cultivated by crops in which even if there is less sunshine, the production is not affected. Under this, Hail, Ginger and Turmeric have been selected.
• It is noteworthy that the cultivable area in Bihar is much higher than the average in the country. 60 percent of the total land area in the state is used for agriculture. The average in the country is 42 percent. Despite this, the state government wants to increase production by increasing cropping intensity. This is also a unique step to increase the income of the farmers.

Administration Campaigns with Cities

Why in News?

• On June 23, 2022, Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot told in the review meeting of 'Administration with cities' campaign that camps of this campaign would be organized ward wise from July 15 in all the municipal bodies of the state.

Key Points

• In these, the distribution of pattas will be done after completing all kinds of administrative process on the spot.
• Before launching the campaign, workshops will be organized for the councilors of the municipal bodies in which they will be made aware of the new format along with complete information of the campaign and the simplifications and exemptions made by the state government so that the councilors can help the people of their area get the lease.
• Principal Secretary, Urban Development and Housing Department, Kunji Lal Meena, while making a presentation, explained about the works, including leases issued during the drive, that 3 lakh 36 thousand 61 leases have been issued under the Campaign with The Administration Cities, 2021.

Chief Minister Bal Gopal Yojana

Why in News?

• On June 23, 2022, Additional Chief Secretary of education department Pawan Kumar Goel informed that on the initiative of Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, children of classes 1 to 8 in the state will be provided milk two days a week under the 'Mukhyamantri Bal Gopal Yojana'.

Key Points

• Under the scheme, about 69 lakh 21 thousand children studying in government schools will be provided with powdered milk two days a week on Tuesdays and Fridays.
• Milk will be made available on the next academic day when these days are holidays. 150ml of milk will be distributed to children of classes 1 to 5 and 200ml to children of classes six to eight.
• It is worth mentioning that this scheme was announced in the state budget for the financial year 2022-23. With the implementation of this scheme, the nutrition level of the children of classes 1 to 8 will improve and the enrolment and attendance in government schools will increase and the dropout of students will also be stopped.
• For this, powder milk will be procured from Rajasthan Co-operative Dairy Federation and district wise allocation of powder milk will be done through Mid-Day Meal Commissionerate. Door step delivery of powdered milk will be done to the schools as per the allocation by RCDF itself.

The Ban on 27 Percent Reservation Remains Intact

Why in News?

• On June 23, 2022, the Madhya Pradesh High Court refused to amend the order of interim stay on giving 27 percent reservation to OBC category in PSC (Public Service Commission).

Key Points

• All the petitions filed regarding OBC reservation were heard by a double bench of Justice Sheel Nagu and Justice A.K. Sharma.
• It may be recalled that more than 60 petitions were filed on behalf of Ashita Dubey and others against the state government's 27 percent OBC reservation and in Favour. The High Court had stayed the grant of 27 percent OBC reservation on several pending petitions.
• An application was filed by the government to withdraw the stay order. The High Court had on September 1, 2021, refused to withdraw the stay order and issued directions for final hearing to the respective petitions.
• The General Administration Department of the State Government had issued orders for appointment of medical officers through PG NEET 2019-20, PSC on the basis of the opinion given by the Advocate General on August 25 , 2021 and 27 per cent reservation to OBC category in other departments except teacher recruitment. A petition was also filed in the High Court against the said order.
• The petitions against reservation had said that the Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court had given clear orders in the matter of Indira Sawhney in 1993 and Maratha reservation in 2021 that the limit of reservation should not exceed 50 percent. With the OBC reservation of 27 percent in the state, the limit of reservation will go up to 63 percent.
• During the hearing of the petition, the reply filed by the government had said that as per the 2011 census, the number of OBC category in the state is about 51 percent. During the hearing, the bench was requested to modify the interim stay order issued regarding 27 percent reservation for OBC category in PSC. The bench passed the said orders rejecting the request.

Bhim Award

Why in News?

• On June 23, 2022, 52 sportspersons of Haryana were presented the state's highest sports award 'Bhim Award' at the award function held under the chairmanship of Haryana Governor Bandaru Dattatreya in Panchkula.

Key Points

• The awards have been given for achievements in the last four years 2017-18, 2018-19, 2019-20 and 2020-21.
• The 52 Bhim Award winners include Tokyo Olympic silver medalist Ravi Dahiya, Tokyo Paralympics gold medalist Sumit Antil, silver medalist Yogesh Kathunia, silver and bronze medalist Sinhraj Adhana and Tokyo Paralympics bronze medalist Archer Harvinder Singh.
• The awardees were given Rs.5 lakh in cash along with a miniature statue of Bhima and a citation.
• Apart from this, the awardees will also be given a monthly honorarium of Rs 5,000 by the Haryana government.

Bhuiyan Programme of Chhattisgarh State

Why in News?

• On June 23, 2022 Bhuyan Software, a Land Records project run by the Office of the Commissioner of Land Records in Chhattisgarh, has been awarded the prestigious IMC Digital Awards, 2021 at a grand ceremony held in Mumbai.

Key Points

• The award has been conferred on the Office of the Commissioner for Excellence in the Government Sector, Commissioner, Land Records and National Informatics Centre.
• It may be mentioned that the Bhuiyan programme has been created to digitize the land records in the state and to make it available to the people in a seamless manner through online medium.
• Bhuiyan software map presents Khasara and its associated land papers online, as well as solves the problem of duplicate registry by integrating the registry of the property.
• In this software, the project has created the log-in ID of key officials of the departments - Revenue, Food, Agriculture, NCPI, Soil Health, Commercial Taxes, Town and Country Planning and Secretaries of many other departments and Collector of the District, SDM, Tahsildar, Revenue Inspector and 3800 More than one bank has been integrated with the land, which can prevent the delivery of duplicate loans on a land and also online entry of loans.

Sahastradhara

Why in News?

• Recently, the Uttarakhand High Court has partially allowed a proposal to cut thousands of trees to widen the road connecting Sahastradhara, an important tourist destination in Uttarakhand.

Key Points

• A division bench of acting Chief Justice Sanjay Kumar Mishra and Justice Ramesh Chandra Khulbe approved the proposal on the condition that these precious trees would be replanted and taken care of by the state.
• Sahastradhara, which literally means 'Thousand Fold Spring', is a famous tourist destination situated at a distance of 16 kms from Dehradun on the Baldi River.
• Sahastradhara is a natural sulphur water spring, which has various medicinal properties, such as treatment of skin diseases and stomach disorders is possible by using its water.
• The waters of the Sahastradhara form a projected mountain range from limestone residues. Here the cave situated in a temple on the hill is known as Drona Cave, which has many miniature Shivalingas carved out of the rock.