NATIONAL NEWS
Mission Sahbhagita
Mission Sahbhagita has been launched by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change.
It is an important step towards participatory conservation and wise use of wetlands
Its aim is to enable a society ownership approach with communities leading at the forefront.
The Ministry is currently implementing a centrally sponsored scheme namely, National Plan for Conservation of Aquatic Eco-systems (NPCA).
Under the NPCA scheme, the ministry has sanctioned the central assistance for conservation of 165 wetlands across the country, including 42 Ramsar sites.
PM Modi inaugurated Whitefield (Kadugodi) for Krishnarajapura Metro Line
The Whitefield (Kadugodi) to Krishnarajapura Metro Line was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who expressed his happiness in a tweet. He mentioned that this new metro line will enhance the ‘Ease of Living’ for the people of Bengaluru, by improving transportation and connectivity in the region. The Prime Minister launched the 13.71 km extension project of Reach-1 under Bangalore Metro Phase 2, which runs up to Krishnarajapura Metro Line. The project was completed at an estimated cost of around Rs 4250 crores.
India’s highways infra to match US by 2024
According to Nitin Gadkari, India’s Union Road Transport and Highways Minister, the country’s highways infrastructure will be at par with that of the United States by 2024. He revealed that the government is working on this goal in a time-bound ‘mission mode,’ which includes the development of green expressways and rail over bridges. These initiatives are aimed at ensuring that India’s highway infrastructure matches the standards of the US by the specified timeline.
TAMIL NADU
TN Disaster Management Policy
Chief Minister released the updated Tamil Nadu State Disaster Management Policy and Disaster Management Plan 2023.
The policy aims at reducing the negative impact of disasters with the help of strong disaster management machinery.
The policy has been developed adhering to the global and national frameworks for disaster risk reduction and contextualised to the State perspectives and priorities
It provides a consistent, state-wide institutional framework to enable the state, local governments, Central government, and the private sector to work together.
COMMITTEES NEWS
Indian government forms committee to explore pension reforms
The Indian government has formed a committee led by finance secretary TV Somanathan to explore ways to address concerns raised by government employees over the National Pension System (NPS). The committee aims to find a middle ground between the fiscally imprudent old pension system (OPS) and the reform-oriented NPS. The committee will develop a strategy that meets the requirements of government employees while also ensuring financial responsibility to safeguard the interests of the general public. The new approach will apply to both the central and state governments.
REPORTS AND INDICES
Report on social protection for children
The International Labour Organization–UNICEF Second joint report on social protection for children has been released.
Globally 26.4 per cent (just 1 in 4 children) of children aged 0-15 years are only shielded by social protection.
The remaining 73.6 per cent are exposed to poverty, exclusion and multidimensional deprivations.
Nearly 1.77 billion children aged 0-18 years lack access to a child or family cash benefit
It is a fundamental pillar of a social protection system.
Regional disparities exist in effective social protection coverage for children.
31 Indian states have implemented the national “PM CARES for Children” scheme launched during the pandemic.
So far, only 4,302 children have received support from the scheme.
