Current Affairs Assam – December 2017 eMagazine
December 16
Non-Lapsable Central Pool of Resources (NLCPR) to continue, Centre clears Rs 5,300 crore
In a major relief to North-eastern States, the Union Cabinet on Friday cleared the continuation of the existing Non-Lapsable Central Pool of Resources (NLCPR) scheme with funding pattern of 90:10 till March, 2020 with an outlay of Rs 5,300 crore.
A Cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi approving the extension said that it would enable completion of ongoing projects.
Meanwhile, the Union Cabinet also approved the introduction of a new Central Sector Scheme of “North East Special Infrastructure Development Scheme” (NESIDS) from 2017-18 with 100 per cent funding from Central Government to fill up the gaps in creation of infrastructure in specified sectors till March, 2020. The new scheme will broadly cover creation of infrastructure relating to water supply, power, connectivity and specially the projects promoting tourism, besides infrastructure in social sectors of education and health.
The assets to be created under the NESIDS will not only strengthen health care and education facilities in the region but will also encourage tourism and thereby employment opportunities for local youth. The scheme will act as a catalyst in overall development of the region in the years to come.
Govt approves Rs 264 cr capital investment subsidy for NE
The government approved capital investment subsidy amounting to Rs 264.67 crore to four industrial units located in North East, including Sikkim. The decision was taken at a meeting of Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
“The grant of subsidy to the industrial units will not only provide incentives to the operational units but also boost confidence of existing investors as well as potential investors in North Eastern Region (NER),” an official statement said.
The four industrial units are located in North East including Sikkim. The subsidy has been granted under the Central Capital Investment Subsidy Scheme (CCISS), 2007 of the North East Industrial Investment and Promotion Policy (NEIIPP), 2007. Government of India has been implementing this scheme to promote industrialisation in the North East.
The CCEA has also revised financial powers for approval of capital investment subsidy claims up to Rs 500 crore which will be now approved by Minister of Commerce and Industry.
The third World Telugu Conference began in Hyderabad
The main aim of the Conference is to promote Telugu and its literature besides helping the present generation learn more about Telugu language and its rich culture and heritage.
Telangana Government has put in place elaborate arrangements for the 5-day event for which about eight thousand Telugu speaking delegates from 40 countries all over the globe will be taking part.
Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu had formally inaugurated the Conference.
December 17
Connectivity in NE to get huge fillip: Prime Minister Modi
The road, railway and air connectivity in the Northeast would get a huge fillip in the coming years with many of the projects, sanctioned by the NDA government in the recent past, progressing reasonably well. This was stated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi while dedicating the 261-km Shillong-Nongstoin-Tura road to the nation, saying the road project would boost the East-West Corridor and bring in transformation of the region through transportation.
“We want transformation through transportation. We want to deepen connectivity and reach out to every aspiring Indian,” he said after the inauguration at Polo Grounds.
Modi said this road would now help better connect East and West Khasi Hills and East and West Garo Hills, and encourage activities between different areas of the state and also reduce travel time between Shillong and Tura by half.
The Shillong-Nongstoin-Tura project was given the necessary impetus only in 2014.
Stressing the importance accorded by the NDA government towards development of the Northeast, he said road projects totalling 4,000 km had been sanctioned for the region in the past three years, out of which 1,200 km have been constructed.
Proposals worth Rs 90,000 crore have been received in the road sector in the region for the next two years under the Special Accelerated Road Development Programme-NE and Bharatmala project.
In Meghalaya, 80 km of National Highway project has been completed and work is on for another 200 km. The National Highway and Infrastructure Development Corporation would undertake road project in the state worth Rs 5,700 crore.
Speaking about railways, Modi said that in the past three years the Centre spent on an average Rs 5,300 crore for development of the rail network in the region annually, which is a two-and-a-half time more than the spending of the UPA Government for this sector in the region.
On air connectivity, Modi said a specific roadmap is being prepared to develop air connectivity of the region and said connectivity between different cities of the region would be developed.
Vijay Diwas observed in Manipur
Vijay Diwas was observed in Manipur on Saturday by paying tributes to the martyrs, who laid down their lives for the Nation during the Indo-Pakistan War in 1971. The State-level observance was held at Banquet Hall of 1st Manipur Rifles Battalion in the presence of Chief Minister N Biren Singh and Deputy Chief Minister Y Joykumar Singh.
FACTILE – Vijay Diwas
- It is commemorated every 16 December in India, as it marks its military victory over Pakistan in 1971 during the war for the independence of Bangladesh from Pakistan.The end of the war also resulted in the unilateral and unconditional surrender of the Pakistan Army and subsequent secession of East Pakistan into Bangladesh.
- On this day in 1971, the chief of the Pakistani forces, General Amir Abdullah Khan Niazi, along with 93,000 troops, surrendered to the allied forces consists of Indian Army and Mukti Bahini, led by General Jagjit Singh Aurora, of India in the Ramna Race Course, now Suhrawardy Udyan, in Dhaka after their defeat in the war.
December 18
Meghalaya launches India’s first social audit law
The Government of Meghalaya has launched ‘The Meghalaya Community Participation and Public Services Social Audit Act, 2017.
With this, Meghalaya has become the first state in the country to do so.
The law will make the social audit of Government programmes and schemes a part of government practice.
WHO declares Gabon as polio free
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has declared Gabon, a Central African country as a polio free country. The status has been accorded due to lack of new reported or suspected cases in the country.
Now Polio is endemic only in Afghanistan and Pakistan.
