20 Nov 2020: PIB Summary & Analysis

November 20th, 2020 PIB:- Download PDF Here

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. Micro-irrigation Fund under PMKSY
2. Ethanol Blended Programme
3. Indo-Thai CORPAT
4. Unnat Bharat Abhiyan Scheme
5. World Fisheries Day
6. National Newborn Week 2020
7. eSanjeevani
8. Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020
9. Awas Diwas and Awas Week

1. Micro-irrigation Fund under PMKSY

Context:

Release of interest sub-vented loan from Micro-Irrigation Fund (MIF).

Background:

• Micro Irrigation Fund with a corpus of Rs. 5000 crore created with NABARD was operationalised in 2019-20.
• The objective of the Fund is to facilitate the states in availing an interest sub-vented loan for expanding coverage of micro-irrigation by taking up special and innovative projects and also for incentivising micro-irrigation beyond the provisions available under PMKSY-Per Drop More Crop to encourage farmers to install micro-irrigation systems.

Know more about the Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana (PMKSY) in the linked article.

2. Ethanol Blended Programme

Background:

• In the normal sugar season, about 320 LMT of sugar is produced against a domestic consumption of 260 LMT.
• This 60 LMT of surplus sugar which remains unsold, blocks funds of sugar mills to the tune of about Rs. 19,000 crore every year thereby affecting liquidity positions of sugar mills resulting in accumulation of cane price arrears of farmers.
• To deal with surplus stocks of sugar, sugar mills are being encouraged by the Government to export sugar, for which the Government has been extending financial assistance.
• However, India being a developing country, can export sugar by extending financial assistance for marketing and transport only up to the year 2023 as per WTO
• So, as a long term solution to deal with surplus sugar, to improve the sustainability of the sugar industry and to ensure timely payment of cane dues to farmers, the Government has been encouraging diversion of excess sugarcane & sugar to ethanol for supplying to Oil Marketing Companies for blending with petrol.
• Benefits of diverting excess sugarcane & sugar to OMCs for ethanol blending:
  • Help reduce import dependency on crude oil.
  • Help promote ethanol as a fuel which is indigenous & non-polluting.
  • Help enhance the income of sugarcane farmers.

Know more about the ethanol blending programme in PIB dated Sep 3, 2019.

Targets under the programme:

• Earlier, the Government had fixed a target of 10% blending of fuel-grade ethanol with petrol by 2022 and 20% blending by 2030 but now the Government is preparing a plan to advance the achievement of 20% blending target.
• However, as the blending targets cannot be achieved only by diverting sugarcane/sugar to ethanol, therefore, the Government is also encouraging distilleries to produce ethanol from other feedstocks like grains, etc. for which the present distillation capacity is not sufficient.
• Hence, the government is also making efforts to enhance the distillation capacity in the country.

3. Indo-Thai CORPAT

Context:

30^th edition of the Indo-Thai CORPAT (Indo-Thai Coordinated Patrol) was conducted in November 2020.

Details:

• Indian Naval Ship (INS) Karmuk, an indigenously built Missile Corvette, participated in the exercise.
• CORPAT builds up the understanding and interoperability between navies and facilitates the institution of measures to prevent and suppress Illegal Unreported Unregulated (IUU) fishing, drug trafficking, maritime terrorism, armed robbery and piracy. It further enhances the operational synergy by the exchange of information for the prevention of smuggling, illegal immigration and for the conduct of SAR operations at sea.

More on Indo-Thai CORPAT in PIB dated Sep 6, 2019, under the headline, ‘28^th Indo-Thai CORPAT’.

4. Unnat Bharat Abhiyan Scheme

Context:

Union Education Minister holds a review meeting on the progress of Unnat Bharat Abhiyan Scheme (UBA) through video conferencing.

To know more about the Unnat Bharat Abhiyan, check PIB dated 16 March 2020.

5. World Fisheries Day

Context:

World Fisheries Day is observed every year on 21 November.

Details:

• The Department of Fisheries, Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying, Government of India will award the best performing states in this sector for 2019-20.
• The awardees are:
  • Odisha (marine states category)
  • Uttar Pradesh (inland states category)
  • Assam (hilly and NE states category)
• Besides, the government will also award the best performing fisheries enterprise, cooperative society, individual entrepreneur, etc. for their achievements and contribution to the growth of this sector.

Also read: National Fisheries Policy, 2020

About World Fisheries Day:

• World Fisheries Day is celebrated on 21^st November every year to demonstrate solidarity with all fisherfolk, fish farmers and concerned stakeholders throughout the world.
• It started in 1997 where the “World Forum of Fish Harvesters & Fish Workers” met at New Delhi leading to the formation of the World Fisheries Forum with representatives from 18 countries and signed a declaration advocating for a global mandate of sustainable fishing practices and policies.
• The event aims to draw attention to overfishing, habitat destruction and other serious threats to the sustainability of our marine and inland resources.
• The celebrations serve to focus on changing the way the world manages global fisheries to ensure sustainable stocks and healthy ecosystems.

Also read: Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana

6. National Newborn Week 2020

Context:

Union Health Minister launches the National Newborn Week 2020.

Details:

• The National Newborn Week is being observed from 15^th through 21^st November to reinforce the importance of newborn health as a key priority area of the health sector and to reiterate the commitment at the highest level.
• National Newborn Week 2020 theme: ‘Quality, Equity, Dignity for every newborn at every health facility and everywhere’.

Additional information:

In 2014, India became the first country to launch the India Newborn Action Plan (INAP), in alignment with the Global Every Newborn Action Plan towards eliminating preventable deaths of new-borns and stillbirths.

7. eSanjeevani

Context:

Health Ministry’s eSanjeevani completes 8 Lakh consultations.

To know more about the telemedicine service eSanjeevani, check PIB dated Aug 9, 2020.

8. Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020

Context:

Union Labour Ministry notifies Draft Rules under the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020.

Details:

• The draft rules provide for the operationalization of provisions in the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions Code, 2020 (OSH Code) relating to safety, health and working conditions of dockworkers, building or other construction workers, mine workers, inter-state migrant worker, contract labour, working journalist, audio-visual workers and sales promotion employees.
• Salient features of the draft rules:
  • The draft rules provide for appointment letter in prescribed format including designation, category of skill, wages, avenue for achieving higher wages or higher position to every employee of an establishment within three months of coming into force of the rules.
  • According to the draft rules, no employee shall be employed in any establishment unless he has been issued a letter of appointment.
  • It also made provision for annual health examination to be conducted by the employer free of cost for every worker of factory, dock, mine and building or other construction work, who has completed 45 years of age.
  • Provision has also been made in the rules for journey allowance once a year.
  • It also provides for single electronic registration, licence and annual integrated return for an establishment.
  • An all-India single licence for contractor supplying or engaging contract labour in more than one state for five years has been provided as against work order-based licensing at present.
  • Prohibition of employment of contract labour for the core activity of an establishment and classification of core and non-core activities, are also provided in the OSH Code.
  • Rules regarding payment of wages to contract labourers provide that the contractor shall fix the wage periods and no wage period shall exceed one month.
  • Besides, the wages of every person employed as contract labour in an establishment or by the contractor shall be paid before the expiry of the seventh day after the last day of the wage period.
  • It also provides the wages shall be disbursed through bank transfer or electronic mode only.
  • Under the rules, safety committees have been made mandatory for every establishment employing 500 or more workers to provide an opportunity for the workers to represent their concern on occupational safety and health matters.
    • Rules have been provided for the composition and functions of safety committees.
  • Rules have been made regarding conditions related to the safety of women employment in all establishments for all types of work before 6 am and beyond 7 pm with their consent.
  • It provides that for calculating overtime on any day, a fraction of an hour between 15 to 30 minutes shall be counted as 30 minutes. Currently, less than 30 minutes is counted as no overtime.
  • Mines rules have also been simplified and integrated with the Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions rules.

Read more about the Four Labour Codes in the linked articles.

9. Awas Diwas and Awas Week

Context:

Awas Diwas and Awas Week celebrated.

Background:

• The Rural Housing Scheme, Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojana – Gramin (PMAY-G) was launched by the Prime Minister on 20^th November 2016 at Agra, Uttar Pradesh.
• To commemorate the launch of PMAY-G, which aims to provide “Housing for All” by 2022, it was decided to celebrate the 20^th November every year as “Awaas Diwas”.
• The program envisages the completion of 2.95 crore PMAY-G houses with all basic amenities by the year 2022.
• Under PMAY-G, with the introduction of certain implementation reforms, the Government aims at maintaining transparency and enhancing the speed of house construction, maintaining quality, ensuring timely release of funds to beneficiaries through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT), technical assistance to beneficiaries, offering a bouquet of region-specific house designs to the beneficiaries, stringent monitoring through MIS-Awaas Soft and Awaas App.

Read previous PIB here.

November 20th, 2020, PIB:- Download PDF Here