Instruction to Use Hindi

The Department of Official Language issues circulars from time to time for implementation of official language policy as per the Official Languages Act, 1963 and Official Languages Rules, 1976. In compliance to the same, D.O. No. 12015/13/2013-OL(Tech) dated 17.09.2013 has been issued. 

In continuation of the same, O.M. No. 12019/03/2014-O.L.(Deposited) dated 10.03.2014 has been issued to all Central Government Ministries / Departments / Subordinate Offices / Undertakings / Corporations / Banks and officials of Government of India to use Official Language Hindi or bilingual (Hindi and English) on official accounts of social media. It was also requested to issue necessary directions to all the attached/subordinate offices/undertakings etc. located in ‘A’ Region i.e. Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Rajasthan, Haryana, Delhi and UTs of Andaman & Nicobar islands. In compliance of the above Ministry of Home Affairs issued circular No 11020/01/2013-Hindi dated 27th May, 2014. From the above, it is quite clear that the circular issued by the Ministry of Home Affairs was applicable only to Central Government offices and employees working in Region ‘A’ and the same is not applicable to State Governments. 

The issuing of this circular is a part of routine official work. Hence, there appears no cause of apprehension for people in the non-Hindi speaking States. 

This was stated by Shri Kiren Rijiju, Minister of State in the Ministry of Home Affairs in written reply to a question by Shri C.N. Jayadeven in the Lok Sabha

Crime and Criminal Tracking Network and Systems

Pilot testing including Intensive Field Testing under Crime and Criminal Tracking Networks and Systems (CCTNS) was initiated across the country in January 2012. The objectives of pilot testing were to identify bugs related to functioning of application, errors, adding or removing of mandatory fields, work flow, missing functionality, suggestion and enhancements. 

As an outcome of pilot testing of intensive field testing, total 2829 bugs in Core Application Software (CAS) were reported by States/UTs since January 2012. Out of these 2764 have been resolved by Software Development Agency (SDA) till date and the remaining 65 are under process by SDA/National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB). 

The implementation activities like Site Preparation, Commissioning of Hardware, Network Provisioning etc. is going on in full fledged manner in all the States/UTs, except Rajasthan and Bihar where presently System Integrator is not on board. 

This was stated by Shri Kiren Rijiju, Minister of State in the Ministry of Home Affairs in written reply to a question by Shri Nagendra Kumar Pradhan in the Lok Sabha 

Employment Generation in Tourism Sector

          The Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Culture & Tourism Shri Shripad Yesso Naik has said that as per the 2nd Tourism Satellite Account (TSA) of India 2009-10 and subsequent estimation, the contribution of tourism to total employment of the Country during 2009-10, 2010-11 and 2011-12 was 10.17% (4.37% direct and 5.80% indirect), 10.78% (4.63% direct and 6.15% indirect) and 11.49% (4.94% direct and 6.55% indirect), respectively. 

          In a written reply in the Lok Sabha today Shri Naik said, the working Group on Tourism for 12th Five Year Plan, set up by the Planning Commission, has estimated the generation of additional employment of 24.5 million (direct and indirect) between  2010 and 2016. The steps taken by the Government to boost tourism in the country are given as below:

1.       Visa:

(a)     The Government announced Tourist Visa-on-Arrival in 2010. At present, it provides Tourist Visa on Arrival facility (TVoA) to the nationals of 12 countries namely Finland, Japan, Luxembourg, New Zealand, Singapore, Cambodia, Indonesia, Vietnam, Philippines, Laos, Myanmar and South Korea. South Korea was added to this list on 15.04.2014.

(b)     The facility of TVoA was initially available at the international airport of Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata. However, with effect from 15 August, 2013 this facility has been extended through Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram.

(c)      The restriction of two-month gap on re-entry of foreign nationals coming to India on Tourist Visa and Tourist Visa on Arrival has been lifted.  

(d)     Ministry of Tourism organised a two day training program covering 450 officials of Bureau of Immigration handling Tourist Visa on arrival at Kochi, Chennai, Goa, Mumbai, Kolkata, Bengaluru and Hyderabad Airports.

(e)      Tourist Visa on Arrival fee payment can now be made by credit cards.  Earlier it was only to be paid in rupees.

2.       Low Cost Airlines:

The Ministry of Tourism regularly interacts with the Ministry of Civil Aviation in matters pertaining to air connectivity to the tourist destinations and development and upgradation of airports. Government has identified development of low cost airports in the Tier II and Tier III cities as one of the thrust areas.

3.       Safety of Women Tourists:

The measures taken by the Ministry of Tourism towards safety and security of domestic and foreign tourists including women travelers are:

(a)     Grant of Central Financial Assistance to Governments of Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh for setting up of  Tourist  Facilitation and Security Organisation (TFSO)  on a pilot basis.

(b)     Adoption of code of conduct for Safe and Honourable Tourism which contains a set of guidelines to encourage tourism activities to be undertaken with respect to basic rights like dignity, safety and freedom from exploitation of both tourists and local residents, in particular women and children.

(c)      Letters have been written to all the Chief Ministers of the State Governments and Administrators of Union Territory Administrations to take immediate effective steps for ensuring conducive and friendly environment for all tourists and also request them to publicize the steps being taken/proposed to be taken to increase the sense of security amongst the present/ prospective visitors and also to counter the negative publicity.

(d)     In the wake of some unfortunate incidents involving foreign tourists, Ministry of Tourism has posted an advisory on its website www.incredibleindia.org.

(e)      Safety and Security of Tourists was discussed in the National Conference of State Tourism Ministers held on 18th July, 2013.

4.       Cleanliness and Hygiene:

To tackle the problem of hygiene and cleanliness at tourist destinations, the Ministry of Tourism has taken the initiative of launching the Campaign Clean India with a vision to ensure an acceptable level of cleanliness and hygiene practices at tourist destinations. This campaign is to be sustained though adoption and involvement of private and    public sector stakeholders as a part of their Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).

5.       Highway Facilities en route to tourist places:

Development of tourism infrastructure including wayside amenities is primarily undertaken by State Governments/Union Territory Administrations. Ministry of Tourism, however, provides financial assistance based on the proposals received from them subject to availability of funds and inter-se priority. The Ministry of Tourism accords high priority to the sanctioning of wayside amenities to the states/UTs during the prioritization of tourism infrastructure projects.

6.       Trained Language Speaking Guides:

Selection and Training of Regional Level Tourist Guides including linguist guides is an ongoing process and the Ministry conducts the training programmes through the Indian Institute of Tourism & Travel Management (IITTM) periodically based on the demand of guides and foreign tourist arrivals from a particular country to the respective region

7.  Rationalisation of Taxes:

(a)       The Ministry of Tourism in collaboration with the Ministry of Road Transport & Highways and the State Governments of NCT of Delhi, Rajasthan, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh has made an arrangement whereby taxes would be collected centrally at each of the four starting nodes at Delhi, Gurgaon, Jaipur and Agra in such a way that the taxes thus collected are apportioned and the tourist coach/car would be allowed unhindered movement in the Golden Triangle.

(b)     Empowered Committee of officers on the ‘Issue of National permit System’ for tourist buses and goods vehicles (below 7.5 tons) has been constituted.

(c)      Five Year Tax  Holiday for 2, 3 and 4 star category hotels located in all UNESCO declared World Heritage sites (except Mumbai and Delhi) for hotels operating w.e.f. 01.04.2008 to 31.03.2013.

(d)     Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) – Hotel and Tourism related industry declared as high priority industry and FDI up to 100% under the automatic route Enhancement of FAR in Delhi from 150 to 225 for hotels excluding Lutyens Zone.

(e)      An investment linked deduction Under Section 35 AD of the Income Tax Act had also been announced in the Union Budget 2010-2011 for establishing new hotels of 2 star category and above, all over India thus allowing 100% deduction in respect of the whole or any expenditure of capital nature excluding (land, goodwill and financial instruments) incurred during the year.

(f)      In a Notification dated October 7, 2013 the Ministry of Finance expended its “Harmonized Master List of Infrastructure Sub-Sectors” to include such hotels and Convention centres for benefit of Hospitality Industry. Hotels with a project cost of Rs.200 crore and above each at any place in India and of any star rating, and Convention Centre with a project cost of more than Rs.300 crores has been included in the Harmonized Master List of Infrastructure Sub-Sectors. This is equivalent to granting infrastructure status to the hospitality industry.

Festivals of India Abroad – Procedure for Selection of Dance Productions

The Festivals of India abroad were revived by the Ministry of Culture in 2013. Festivals of India have been conducted in Peru, Cuba, Lao PDR, Cambodia, Thailand, Vietnam and China since October 2013. In the year 2014, Festivals of India have been proposed in China, South Africa, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Indonesia, Myanmar, Mongolia and SAARC countries.

The dance festival is an integral part of the Festivals of India and represents the centrality of the entire event. Hitherto participation in the Festivals of India abroad by the Ministry of Culture was restricted to Kalakshetra Foundation and Sangeet Natak Akademy. While dance festivals were being conducted, a need was felt for procedural streamlining with regard to outsourced productions and transparent choices of artists and choreographers while maintaining international quality parameters. In this backdrop, the following procedural guidelines are laid down for selection of dance productions for Festivals of India abroad.

Guidelines for Selection of Dance Productions:

A.     Institutions under Ministry of Culture

The dance schools under the aegis of Ministry of Culture namely Kalakshetra Foundation, the Kathak Kendra, the Sattariya Kendra Guwahati and the Jawaharlal Nehru Dance Academy Imphal should present in-house productions  by their repertory  represented by students and faculty. Quality productions shall be identified for Festivals of India abroad. If outsourced choreographers are used, the copy-right of the dance production shall vest with the institutions, and the dancers used shall be from the institutions. However students shall be used and alumni will be encouraged in exceptional cases.

B.     Others

A two-step selection process for selection of dance productions  shall be put in place:The first step shall be to create a graded resources list of performing groups by a specialist committee;

The second step is recommendation of performances for Festivals of India abroad.

Preparation of the Graded Resource List:

The graded resources list including State Cultural Akademies shall be prepared on an bi-annual basis and updated on an bi-annual basis.

 The Kalakshetra Foundation Chennai, an institution of national importance shall be responsible for formulation of the graded resources list and its updation in the States of Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka, Orissa, Maharashtra, Goa, Chattisgarh, West Bengal, and Gujarat

The Sangeet Natak Akademy shall be responsible for formulation of the graded resources list and its updation in the States of Jammu & Kashmir, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Delhi NCR, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Assam, Manipur, Tripura, Meghalaya, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh.

The nominations for graded resources list are restricted to ballets. The nominations will be accompanied by bio-datas of artists, the publicity photographs along with costs of production.

Kalakshetra Foundation and the Sangeet Natak Akademy will seek nominations for the graded resource list from States identified against their names by adopting processes that will ensure adequate publicity. In seeking such nominations the Kalakshetra Foundation and Sangeet Natak Akademy will not be restricted to the grantee organizations of the Ministry of Culture but will try to be as inclusive as possible in identifying the best selections for depicting Indian culture abroad.

The Director Kalakshetra Foundation shall head the screening committee for screening nominations for States mentioned in para 5 (a) with Secretary Sangeet NAtak Akademy as a member comprising of 2 senior faculty members representing dance and music faculties of Kalakshetra Foundation.  The Secretary Sangeet Natak Akademy shall head the screening committee for screening nominations for States mentioned in para 5 (b) with Director Kalakshetra Foundation as member comprising of Director Kathak Kendra, Director Jawaharlal Nehru Dance Akademy, Imphal and Director Sattriya Academy Guwahati. Government shall nominate one official on each of the selection committees

Establishment of IIITs

Union HRD Minister Smt. Smriti Irani informed the Lok Sabha in a written reply to its question today that the Centrally funded IIITs, currently located at Allahabad, Gwalior, Jabalpur and Kancheepuram are fully funded by the Central Government through plan and non-plan allocations. The concerned State Government provides approximately 100 acres of land, free of cost and encumbrances. The capital cost of each IIIT is Rs. 128.00 Crore to be contributed in the ratio of 50:35:15 by the Central Government, the State Government and the industry respectively (57.5:35:7.5 in case of North-Eastern region). Concerned State Government will provide 50-100 acres of land, free of cost and encumbrances. 

Based on Public-Private-Partnership(PPP) model, the Union Cabinet approved a Scheme for setting up 20 New Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIIT), on 7 December 2010, with an outlay of Rs. 2808.71 crores (Rs. 2558.71 crores for non-recurring, Rs. 200.00 crore for recurring expenditure and Rs. 50.00 crore for faculty development expenditure). 

Schemes for Small Scale Sector

The Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) has been implementing various schemes and programmes for development and promotion of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) across the country. The major schemes / programmes include Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP), Credit Guarantee Scheme, Credit Linked Capital Subsidy Scheme (CLCSS), National Manufacturing Competitiveness Programme, Cluster Development Programme, Marketing Development Assistance, Skill Development Programmes, International Cooperation Scheme etc. 

The proposal of Ministry of MSME for setting up a dedicated fund in the name of ‘India Inclusive Innovation Fund’ has been approved by Cabinet. The fund aims to promote grass-root innovations with social returns as well as modest economic returns. This fund would, operate as a for-profit entity with a social investment focus. The India Inclusive Innovation Fund would back enterprises developing innovative solutions primarily for citizens who lie in the lower half of India’s economic pyramid, with limited physical and institutional access to basic services. The total corpus of this fund is proposed to be an initial minimum size of Rs.500 crore and maximum size of Rs.5, 000 crore with initial GOI contribution of Rs.100.00 crore. 

All plan schemes implemented by the Ministry of Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises are Central Sector Schemes. Therefore, funds are not allocated State-wise, under these schemes. 

This information was given by the Union Minister of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, Shri Kalraj Mishra in a written reply to a question in Lok Sabha here today. 

UGC Issues Directives to DU on B.Tech and BMS Programme

The UGC has issued directives to the University of Delhi for making appropriate arrangements for students already admitted in the FYUP in the general degree courses during 2013-14 to migrate to the 3-year undergraduate programme while ensuring that students acquire the necessary academic and other competence during the next two academic years. In respect of the students who were admitted to the 4-year B.Tech programmes in Computer Sciences, Electronics, Food Technology, Instrumentation Electronics and Polymer Science during 2013-14, the UGC had issued an advisory to the University of Delhi that such students may continue in the said Programmes and further that the colleges which admitted students in academic year 2013-14 in these Programmes may, wherever required, obtain approval of the regulatory bodies such as UGC and All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) and ensure that students admitted in these Programmes are not put to any disadvantage. 

The UGC had also issued an advisory to the University of Delhi in respect of students admitted in the 4-year Bachelor of Management Studies (BMS) Programme in 2013-14 stating that students already admitted during 2013-14 in the BMS Programme may continue in that Programme; however, the duration of the Programme shall be of 3 years. It was further advised that the colleges which admitted the students to the BMS Programme in 2013-14 may, wherever required, obtain approval of the regulatory bodies such as the UGC and AICTE and ensure that students admitted in the Programme are not put to any disadvantage. 

This information was given by the HRD Minister, Smt Smriti Irani in a written reply to a Lok Sabha question today. 

Railway Reservation System improvise

The Minister of Railways Shri D. V. Sadananda Gowda has said that Railway Reservation System will be revamped into Next Generation e-Ticketing System. Ticket booking through mobile phones and through Post Offices will be popularized. 

Presenting the Railway Budget 2014-15 in Parliament today he said, the Indian Railways will improve the system capabilities in e-ticketing to support 7200 tickets per minute as against 2000 tickets per minute and allow 1,20,000 simultaneous users at any point in time. 

The Minister said, facility of Coin Operated Automatic Ticket Vending Machines will be experimented. 

He said, efforts will also be made to provide facility of buying Platform Tickets and unreserved tickets over internet. Parking-cum-Platform Combo Tickets will be launched to facilitate the passengers and to save their time. 

He said that online booking facility of Railway Retiring Room will be extended to all the stations during the course of the year. Presenting the Railway Budget 2014-15 in Parliament today he said, the Indian Railways is expanding the scope of online booking for people to book a Train, book a Coach, book a Berth and book a Seat in Chair Car. 

Medical Students in the Country

As per information received from Medical Council of India (MCI) there are twenty seven Medical Universities functioning in India. Out of 27 Medical Universities, 14 are in private sector. There are 387 medical colleges including six new AIIMS in the country upto 30.06.2014. Of these, 205 medical colleges are privately run and 5 out of them are not functioning as on date. 

Total intake capacity in these medical colleges is 51,979 MBBS seats. However, no separate data in respect of girls’ students is maintained in the Ministry. There are 25,905 number of medical students enrolled in private medical institutions in India. 

The Health Minister was replying to a question in the Rajya Sabha here today. 

Boosting of Solar Power

Norway has supported a project to electrify 28 villages with solar Mini-grid plants in Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Jharkhand & Jammu and Kashmir. This was stated by Sh. Piyush Goyal, (Minister of state for Power, Coal & New and Renewable Energy (Independent Charge) in a written reply to a question in the Rajya Sabha today. 

Under Off-grid and decentralized solar applications scheme of Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission, the Ministry provides 30% capital subsidy which ranges from Rs.27/-per Wp to Rs.135/- per Wp for installation of solar PV systems and power plants. 

The Minister further stated that In special category States viz. North Eastern States, Sikkim, Jammu & Kashmir, Himanchal Pradesh and Uttarakhand, Lakshadweep and A&N Islands, the Ministry provides 90% capital subsidy which ranges from Rs.81/- Wp to Rs.405/-per Wp for Government organizations (Not for commercial organizations and corporations). Ministry is supporting state governments in these states to exploit solar potential, the Minister added.

NABARD and SFAC Ink Deal for Development of Small Farm Producers

Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed by National Bank of Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) and Small Farmers Agribusiness Consortium (SFAC) in the presence of Union Agriculture Minister, Shri Radha Mohan Singh here today. 

The Minister appreciated the efforts of both institutions to work together to fulfil their mandates efficiently. The MoU was signed by Dr.Harsh Kumar Bhanwala, Chairman, NABARD and Shri Pravesh Sharma, MD, SFAC. 

The MoU seeks to bring the two institutions in close coordination for implementing schemes for promotion of Producer Organisations (POs). The SFAC is implementing a scheme of the Government of India whereby the Producers Organisations are given equity support and the financing banks are given credit guarantee cover to enable formation of PO’s. 

NABARD will proactively leverage the benefits of the equity grant and credit guarantee fund for FPOs set up by SFAC to ensure that finance for producer company flows smoothly. 

NABARD would actively collaborate with the SFAC at national, state and district level by participating in the Food Security Mission. NABARD informed that it has a fund of Rs.50 crore for supporting producer organisations. 

Seven New Projects worth Rs.87.88 Crore Sanctioned for Development of North Eastern Region

The Ministry of Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER) has sanctioned seven  new projects during current financial year 2014-15 (up to 30^th June 2014).The projects worth combined approved cost of Rs.87.88 crore have been sanctioned under Non Lapsable Central Pool of Resources(NLCPR) scheme. The details of the Projects including road construction, irrigation scheme and renewing electric installations are-

Sl. No.	NLCPR Project	Sanction Date	Approved Cost (Rs. lac)
1	Construction of an approach road from Chokpot in South Garo Hills to Jetra (jetragre) (0-17 Km)	09-06-2014	1764.76
2	Thengkhari Barhola Pathar Irrigation Scheme	27-06-2014	410.32
3	Remodeling of Electrical Installation including System Improvement Works at Rhenock Bazar and adjoining areas in East Sikkim	27-06-2014	1595
4	Constn of road from 52.0 km point of NH 154 – Katlicherra Grant of District Hailakandi to Veterbond – Dullavcherra NEC road of Dist Karimganj	27-06-2014	1616.58
5	Construction of Nyodu Sibe Siru Road (23km) in West Siang District	27-06-2014	1949.98
6	Construction of road from Parsi-Parlo (Patuk ADC HQ) (Phase-I; 5km length complete upto blacktopping level including culverts, bridges etc.	27-06-2014	500.52
7	Construction of road from Pakoti to Kamsha Village (6.50km)	27-06-2014	950.81
	Total		8787.97

           

Approved by cabinet in 1997, Non Lapsable Central Pool of Resources(NLCPR) was created in 1998.The Pool  accrues unspent balances out of 10% earmarked for North Eastern Region in the budget of various Ministries/Departments. Funding under NLCPR is on 90:10 (Grant: State Share) basis. 

Agriculture Minister Inaugurates Eco-Friendly Sewage Water Treatment Plant of IARI

Agriculture Minister Shri Radha Mohan Singh inaugurated eco-friendly sewage water treatment plant in the Water Technology Centre of IARI here today. Minister of State for Agriculture and Food Processing Industries, Dr Sanjeev Kumar Balyan, Director General ICAR, Shri S. Ayyappan and Director IARI, Dr H S Gupta were also present. 

The Water Technology Centre (WTC) of IARI, which is engaged primarily in efficient use of water resources in agriculture, has developed an eco-friendly sewage water treatment plant in the IARI Delhi premises. The facility is spread over 1.42 hectares and is capable of treating 2.2 million liters of sewage per day from the Krishi Kunj Colony, at a cost of approx. Rs 1.2 crore and with a potential to irrigate 330 acres of IARI farmland. The eco-friendly sewage treatment plant (e-STP) has 3-treatment cells (of 80 meter by 40 meter dimension each) and ensures complete gravity flow of the wastewater from the sewage wells to the treated water containing cell of the system. 

The noteworthy feature of this facility is that the environmental stress is 33 times lesser than that of a conventional sewage treatment plant (STP) and output i.e. treated water is associated with significantly lower turbidity, BOD, Nitrate, Phosphate, Lead, Iron, Nickel and Sulphate. 

Compared to the conventional wastewater treatment systems, the IARI's wastewater treatment technology requires just 1% energy; zero-chemical application; zero-sludge generation; 50-65% reduced treatment cost and no skilled manpower requirement. To top it all, it has an integrated business model by utilizing system biomass harvested from wetland, which can be transformed to particle board thereby making the complete model self-sustainable. It is, therefore, aptly called "Cash from Trash" business model.