• 10 May 2025

Haryana AI Development Project (HAIDP)

Why in News? 

The Haryana government the Haryana AI Development Project (HAIDP) and the formation of a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) for 2025–28 with a total outlay of Rs 474.39 crore. 

 Key Points 

• About the Project:  
  • Strategic Vision: 
    • The state envisions the initiative to transform Haryana into a national hub for Artificial Intelligence-enabled development. 
      • The project will be implemented over three years (2025–2028). 
      • The total outlay will be a 70:30 funding ratio between the World Bank and the Haryana Government. 
  • Key facilities:  
    • Global Artificial Intelligence Centre (GAIC) in Gurugram. 
    • Haryana Advanced Computing Facility (HACF) in Panchkula. 
  • Skill Development Focus: 
    • The project aims to train and transition over 50,000 professionals in areas such as AI, machine learning, and data science. 
    • HAIDP seeks to integrate AI into public governance and enhance data-driven service delivery across government departments. 
  • Support for Start-ups and Innovation: 
    • The project will promote start-ups, R&D, and entrepreneurship by providing incubation, mentoring, and shared computing infrastructure. 

 World Bank 

• About:  
  • The World Bank is a global development cooperative comprising 189 member countries.   
  • These countries, or shareholders, are governed by a Board of Governors, typically made up of finance or development ministers.   
  • The Board meets annually to set policy and oversee the institution’s work in global development.  
• Mission and Functions:   
  • The World Bank aims to reduce poverty and promote shared prosperity.   
  • It provides financial products, technical assistance, and policy advice to help countries address complex development challenges.   
  • The World Bank collaborates with multilateral institutions, civil society, private sector players, and foundations to maximise impact.   
  • The World Bank has funded over 15,000 projects in areas such as education, health, infrastructure, and environmental sustainability.  
    • Some of the Projects funded by the Word Bank in India are India Energy Efficiency Scale-up Program, SANKALP, Raising and Accelerating MSME Performance (RAMP), Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor, and Mumbai Urban Transport Projects etc. 

Neera Production in Bihar

Why in News? 

Under the 'Mukhyamantri Neera Samvardhan Yojana' launched on 30 April 2025, the Bihar government aims to provide employment and financial support to palm tree owners and toddy tappers who extract Neera, the unfermented palm sap drink. 

 Key Points 

• Implementation of the Scheme: 
  • The scheme runs from toddy season (April to July 2025) and is jointly implemented by Prohibition, Excise and Registration Department and Jeevika (Bihar Rural Livelihoods Promotion Society). 
  • The Bihar government will provide Rs 8 per litre of Neera to 20,000 toddy tappers through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT). 
  • The scheme targets production from 2 lakh palm trees identified across Bihar. 
• Support for Palm Tree Owners: 
  • Palm tree owners will receive an incentive of Rs 3 per litre of Neera from up to 10 trees. 
  • This translates to Rs 585 per tree and a maximum of Rs 5,850 for 10 trees. 
  • The incentive will be paid directly to their bank accounts via DBT by Jeevika. 
• Health Benefits of Neera: 
  • Neera is rich in minerals like calcium, iron, potassium, sodium, and phosphorus. 
  • It is a natural probiotic, helps boost immunity, and increases hemoglobin levels. 
  • These health benefits are a major reason for its promotion by the state government.

Custom Hiring Scheme of SMAM

Why in News? 

The Custom Hiring Scheme under Sub-Mission on Agricultural Mechanization (SMAM) is supplying modern farm machinery to rural Madhya Pradesh farmers, boosting their productivity and income.  

Key Points 

• About Custom Hiring Scheme:  
  • This scheme has been launched with the aim of economically empowering small and marginal farmers through modern agricultural equipment and providing them self-employment opportunities. 
  • This is an important initiative running under the Union Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare . 
  • Under this, Custom Hiring Centers (CHCs) are established. 
    • These are centres from where farmers can rent agricultural equipment like tractors, harrows, rotavators, seed drills, reapers, threshers, dryers, sprayers etc. 
    • CHCs can be run by farmers, Farmer Producer Organisations (FPOs), cooperatives, gram panchayats or private entrepreneurs. 
  • Under the scheme, the government provides a subsidy of maximum 40% and interest subsidy of up to 3%. 
• Beneficiary Eligibility: 
  • Under the scheme, 12th pass unemployed farmers between the ages of 18 and 40 can apply. 
  • The selection is done through a lottery system, and the selected beneficiaries are given training and then allowed to purchase the device. 
• Importance: 
  • This scheme decentralises the reach of mechanisation. 
  • This ensures timely harvesting , solves the problem of labour shortage and improves the efficiency of agricultural operations . 
  • Youth get an opportunity to participate in agricultural service business, which also increases employment opportunities in villages. 

Sub-Mission on Mechanisation (SMAM) Scheme  

• About: 
  • It was launched by the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare in 2014. 
    • Under this, subsidy is provided for purchase of various types of agricultural equipment and machinery to the extent of 40-50% for states other than NER (North Eastern Region) states and for NER states it is 100% limited up to Rs. 1.25 lakh per beneficiary.  
  • The Ministry of Agriculture has also developed a multilingual mobile app, 'CHC (Custom Hiring Centre) – Farm Machinery' which connects farmers with the Custom Hiring Service Centres located in their area. 
• Goal: 
  • Increasing access to agricultural mechanisation to small and marginal farmers and in remote areas where availability of electricity for agriculture is low. 

Farmer Producer Organisation  

• Introduction:  
  • FPO is a type of Producer Organization (PO) whose members are farmers and is promoted and supported by the Small Farmers Agri Business Consortium (SFAC). 
    • It came into existence in 2008, inspired by a recommendation (2002) of amendment to the Companies Act, 1956 by economist Y.K. Alagh . 
    • It can be registered as a public trust under the Companies Act, 2013, Societies Registration Act, 1860, or the Indian Trusts Act, 1882. 
  • Producer organisation is a group formed by producers such as farmers, non-agricultural class or artisans, which may take legal forms such as producer companies or co-operative societies with profit sharing among the members. 
• Objective and Need: India's agriculture sector is dominated by small and marginal farmers (87% have less than 2 hectares of land), who face seasonal and market risks, and struggle to get fair prices. 
  • FPOs help small farmers by facilitating bulk input procurement, better bargaining power, and ensuring better price realization at lower costs. 
  • These also improve market access of farmers, helping in achieving the goal of doubling income and entering global markets. 

Greenfield Airport in Kota

Why in News? 

Recently, the Union Civil Aviation Minister has given in-principle approval for the development of Greenfield Airport at Kota, Rajasthan . 

Key Points  

• About the Airport: 
  • The proposed airport will serve the city of Kota — known as a major educational and industrial hub — and the wider Hadauti region. 
    • Districts like Bundi, Baran and Jhalawar will also get direct benefit from this. 
  • The project will facilitate travel for thousands of students, businessmen and residents of the region and boost the economy . 
  • The development of the airport will also boost job creation, investment attraction and tourism, thereby boosting local development . 
  • This project is a concrete step towards the "UDAN" scheme of the Central Government and strengthening the transport infrastructure in developing India. 
• Greenfield Project: 
  • A 'greenfield project' refers to a project that does not follow any previous work/project. Infrastructure projects that are built on unused land and do not require remodeling or demolition of the existing structure are called 'green field projects'.  

UDAN Scheme 

• About:  
  • UDAN aims to democratize aviation and enhance regional connectivity, ensuring that even remote regions of the country are accessible by air.  
  • The scheme was designed under the National Civil Aviation Policy (NCAP) 2016, with a focus on connecting Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities through a market-driven yet financially supported model.  
  • The Airports Authority of India (AAI) serves as the nodal agency responsible for its implementation.  
• Objectives and Significance: 

 

Meerut Tops in GST Collection

Why in News? 

In April 2025 , Meerut Zone of Uttar Pradesh secured first place in the state in GST collection under the State Tax Department. 

Key Points 

• About GST Collection:  
  • According to the state tax department portal, GST collection by Meerut zone in April 2024 was Rs 147.34 crore, while the target for April 2025 was set at Rs 287.08 crore. 
    • Meerut Zone achieved a major part of the target by collecting revenue of Rs 211.87 crore in April this year. 
  • The Excise Department also made a significant contribution to the revenue, with liquor sales earning Rs 103 crore in April 2025 , which is Rs 42.04 crore more than Rs 78.96 crore received last year (April 2024) . 
    • This success has been possible due to increasing tax compliance, awareness among traders, improvements in ITC rules and strengthening of digital monitoring systems . 
    • The expansion of industries such as telecommunications, manufacturing, education and the service sector has fueled this accumulation. 
• Others: 
  • Lucknow's Corporate Circle Headquarters remained at the second position in the state. 
  • Gautam Buddha Nagar, Lucknow Second Zone and Bareilly Zone remained at the third, fourth and fifth positions respectively. 

Goods and Services Tax 

• Introduction: GST is a value added tax system levied on the supply of goods and services in India.  
  • It is a comprehensive indirect tax which was implemented in India on July 1, 2017 through the 101st Constitutional Amendment Act, 2016 with the slogan 'One Nation One Tax' . 
• Benefits of GST: 
  • Simplified tax regime: GST replaced several indirect taxes, making compliance easier and reducing paperwork for businesses. 
  • Increased Transparency: The online GST portal simplifies tax administration and promotes transparency in the system. 
  • Reduction in tax burden: The elimination of cascading taxes benefits consumers as prices are lower. 
  • Boost economic growth: By removing tax barriers and improving efficiency, GST is expected to contribute to higher economic growth and job creation. 
• GST Council: The GST Council is a constitutional body responsible for making recommendations on issues relating to the implementation of GST in India . 
  • The GST Council was constituted by the President as per Article 279A (1) of the amended Constitution.