State PCS

• 29 Sep 2021

CM Distributes Smart Phones to Anganwadi Workers

Why in News

• Recently, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath distributed smartphones to 1.23 lakh Anganwadi workers of the state and 1.87 lakh Newborn Development Monitoring Equipment (Infantometer) in Anganwadi centers to measure the development level of newborns in a function organized in Lucknow.

Key Points

• Speaking on the occasion, the Chief Minister said that Smart Anganwadi would be the foundation for all round development of children. Smartphones will provide health information for every child, making daily work easy and transparent.
• As part of monitoring committees set up to contain the spread of the deadly viral infection in rural areas during the second wave of COVID-19, these Anganwadi workers went door-to-door to provide medical kits and inform people about the COVID vaccine.
• He said that the Anganwadi workers made the 'Dastak Abhiyan' successful. Today Uttar Pradesh has successfully eradicated encephalitis by 95-97 percent, credit of this achievement should be given to the Anganwadi workers.

Council of Ministers’ Meeting

Why in News

• On September 28, 2021, a meeting of the State Council of Ministers took place.
  
  • In the meeting, along with the decision regarding handing over of the managerial work of 7 nutritional food plants from Madhya Pradesh Agro Industries Development Corporation Limited to the Federations of Women Self-help Groups formed under Madhya Pradesh State Livelihood Forum, some other decisions were also taken. .

Key Points

• It is noteworthy that in March 2018, the decision of setting up 7 THR plants was taken by the Government of Madhya Pradesh.
  
  • Its purpose was to do the work of providing THR for pregnant / lactating mothers, children of 6 months to 3 years and adolescent girls in the Anganwadis of the state by the Federation of Self-Help Groups.
• In view of the above decision, plants were set up at Dewas, Dhar, Hoshangabad, Mandla, Sagar, Shivpuri and Rewa. Ready to Eat Take Home Ration (THR) is being provided from all these plants in all the districts of the state (except the district of Bhopal division). The THR production and delivery work was entrusted to the Federation of Self-Help Groups formed by the State Livelihood Forum.
• The cabinet has decided to constitute a state level committee under the chairmanship of the Chief Secretary for the determination of reserve price/offset price for the sale of paddy, determination of tender process and approval of the rates received in the auction.
• The cabinet decided to ratify the formation of 'Madhya Pradesh Backward Classes Welfare Commission' constituted to study their social, economic and educational status with special reference to the backward classes in the state, to submit necessary suggestions and recommendations to the state government.
• The cabinet approved amendments to the Madhya Pradesh Sand (Mining, Transport, Storage and Trade) Rules, 2019. According to the decision-
  
  • Tenders will be floated by forming more than one cluster in a large district (high volume of sand).
  • The initial base price (offset price) will be determined by the product of Rs.250 and the quantity of sand tendered.
  • After the publication of the sand group's tender from the state level, all the process of tender (e-tender) will be decentralized from the district level and contract with the sand contractor will be done at the district level.
  • The contract period of the sand group will be fixed in June 2023.
• The cabinet decided to construct 'Khel Gram' with all facilities of international level at village Satgarhi, Bhopal through a public-private partnership.

Bhopal Government College Name Changed

Why in News

• On September 28, 2021, the Higher Education Department changed the name of Bhopal's Government Postgraduate College BHEL to 'Babulal Gaur Government Postgraduate College'.

Key Points

• Government PG College, BHEL (Bhopal) was established on August 28, 1984 by Arjun Singh, the then Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh and managed by JanBhagidari Samiti (JBS) and Navratna company 'BHEL'.
• The college is affiliated to Barkatullah University, Bhopal and is recognized by the University Grants Commission (UGC) under section 2(f) and 12(b) of the Act, 1956.
• It is accredited by the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) with a grade of 'B++'.
• Babulal Gaur was born on June 2, 1930 in Village-Naugir, District- Pratapgarh (Uttar Pradesh). He was first elected as an independent MLA in 1974 in the by-election of Bhopal South Assembly Constituency as a Janata support candidate.
• He was the Minister of Local Government, Law and Legislative Affairs, Parliamentary Affairs, Public Relations, Urban Welfare, Urban Housing and Rehabilitation and 'Bhopal Gas Tragedy' Relief Minister of Madhya Pradesh from 7 March 1990 to 15 December 1992.
• He was also the Leader of the Opposition in the Madhya Pradesh Legislative Assembly from 4 September 2002 to 7 December 2003.
• Babulal Gaur was the Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh from 23 August 2004 to 29 November 2005. He was the first leader of the state, who reached the assembly after winning the elections 10 times and was also a minister in the government. He passed away on August 21, 2019.

Bhavantar Bharpayee Yojana

Why in News

• The Haryana government has announced to include Bajra in the ‘Bhavantar Bharpayee Yojana’ from this kharif season. Earlier, 'Bhavantar Bharpayee Yojana' has also been implemented for horticulture crops in Haryana.

Key Points

• Haryana is the first state in the country to implement this scheme. 21 horticultural crops have been included in this scheme.
• Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar informed that the following decisions have been taken regarding the purchase of bajra/millet-
  
  • Average market price and MSP of millet Considering the difference of Bhavantar, after verification of the crop of the farmers registered on the 'Meri Fasal-Mera Byora' portal, the farmers found genuine will be given Rs 600 per quintal on the average yield.
  • The minimum support price for bajra has been fixed at Rs 2250 per quintal, while in neighboring states - Rajasthan and Punjab, this time also no MSP is allowed for bajra and it seems that they will not buy Bajra this time as well.
  • It has been decided to compensate only those farmers of Haryana state who have registered on 'Meri Fasal-Mera Byora' portal for buying Bajra. To maintain the yield price, the government agency will buy 25 percent of the produce at the market price.
  • In Kharif season 2021, 2 lakh 71 thousand farmers have registered on 'Meri Fasal-Mera Byora' portal for millet or bajra. Out of this, about 8 lakh 65 thousand acres of land has been verified. As soon as the procurement starts, Rs 600 per quintal will be paid according to the average yield through DBT in the accounts of the farmers.
  • In this season, the government will purchase five crops at the minimum support price. In Kharif crops, in addition to millet, the purchase of moong, maize and paddy will start from October 1 and the purchase of groundnut will start from November 1.
  • Apart from this, the state government is also going to procure tur, urad and sesame for the first time, which will start from December 1.
  • Farmers are being encouraged to grow crops like oilseeds and pulses like moong, tur, castor, groundnut in place of millet. A grant of Rs 4,000 per acre will be given to the farmers who sow alternative crops in place of bajra and reduce the total production of bajra.
  • In the state, 86 procurement centers have been set up for the purchase of millets, 38 for moong, 19 for maize and 7 for groundnut. 199 procurement centers have also been set up for the purchase of paddy.

'Vaccine Express'

Why in News

• On September 28, 2021, Chief Minister Hemant Soren flagged off the COVID-19 Vaccine Drive (Vaccine Express) in support of Care India with an aim to accelerate the COVID-19 vaccination campaign in the state.

Key Points

• The Chief Minister said that a vaccination campaign has been started in the state in collaboration with Care India to vaccinate the maximum number of people in the state. Under this, 60 mobile vaccination vans are being sent to different districts of the state.
• All these vans will work as 'Vaccine Express' to take the vaccination campaign to the masses.
• With the help of these 'Vaccine Express', it will be easier for people to get the vaccine. People will get this facility at their homes only.
• Soren said that till now more than 1 crore 70 lakh people across the state have received the first dose of Covid-19 vaccine and about 40 lakh people have received the second dose.

Cabinet Approves Kantatoli Flyover

Why in News

• On September 28, 2021, the state cabinet gave its approval for the construction of a 2,240 meters long Kantatoli flyover connecting Yogoda Satsanga to Shantinagar at Kokar at a cost of Rs 224.94 crore.

Key Points

• Cabinet Secretary Vandana Dudel informed that the objective of the project is to improve road infrastructure in the Kantatoli area of Ranchi.
• Kantatoli is a strategic point connecting the various localities within the city of Ranchi. It is an important transit point for people traveling by road to Jamshedpur, Hazaribagh, Patna and other important cities of the region.
• Along with this, the cabinet also approved to start a pilot project to provide fortified rice under the Rice Fortification Scheme.
• Apart from this, the cabinet also approved a water supply project for Jhumri Tilaiya in Koderma district under the Urban Water Supply Improvement Project to ease the process of water supply within the city.
• Similarly, the state cabinet gave its nod for setting up a transport town of over Rs 113 crore in Kanke, with the objective of providing space for parking and unloading heavy trucks entering from other districts and states during the no-entry period. This will be the first transport city of Jharkhand.

Jharkhand Gets Train Connectivity From Goa

Why in News

• On September 28, 2021, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnav flagged off the Jasidih (Jharkhand) - Vasco da Gama (Goa) train. With this, Jharkhand has a direct train connection with Goa.

Key Points

• This train will pass through Dhanbad, Bokaro and Ranchi. It will take about 48 hours to reach Goa from here.
• Apart from Goa, it will also help people reach Odisha, Chhattisgarh and Telangana.

Teachings of Mahatma Gandhi in the School Curriculum

Why in News

• The Chhattisgarh State Government has informed that the basic teachings of Mahatma Gandhi will be included in the curriculum of classes 5 to 12 in the schools of Chhattisgarh, so that children can be made aware of his ideals and principles related to non-violence.

Key Points

• Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel has given instructions to the Chief Secretary that the state government to ensure that the education of the children is made self-reliant along with the all-round development.
• In this, education will be given to the children of urban as well as rural areas according to the intention of Gandhiji.
• On the initiative of Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel, in order to fulfill the concept of self-reliant village of Gandhiji, school children will be told about Narva, Garuva, Ghurva and Bari in detail under the government's ambitious Suraji Gaon Yojana by taking a tour of the village.
• With this, children will be able to get information on topics like water and soil conservation along with the rural economy and the dream of a self-reliant village will be realized.

Chhattisgarh Got One More Medical College

Why in News

• Recently, the National Medical Commission has given a Letter of Intent (LOI) for 150 seats to Shri Balaji Institute of Medical Science, operating in Raipur, the heart of Chhattisgarh.

Key Points

• After getting recognition as a medical college, students will be admitted for MBBS in it this year.
• Dr. Devendra Nayak, Director of Shree Balaji Hospital said that the hospital will have facilities of 1,000 beds.
• With the opening of this medical college, students of the area will get a new platform for study and more doctors will be available, which will further strengthen the health system of the state.
• It is worth mentioning that it is the third private medical college in the state after Shri Shankaracharya Medical College Bhilai and Medical Sciences Raipur.
• Shree Balaji Institute of Medical Science (SBIMS) is a part of Shree Balaji Group of Hospitals, a 1050 bedded (largest private hospital group in Central India) modern and state-of-the-art tertiary care centre. It was inaugurated on February 15, 2009.

Three New Food Testing Laboratories in Uttarakhand

Why in News

• On September 28, 2021, Uttarakhand Chief Secretary S.S. Sandhu ordered the opening of three new food testing laboratories in Uttarakhand. He also directed to set up one mobile food testing lab each in Garhwal and Kumaon region.

Key Points

• These laboratories will be set up at Dehradun, Haridwar and Haldwani.
• At present there is only one food testing laboratory in the state, which is located at Rudrapur.
• The Chief Secretary also directed to start portal based surveillance, conduct regular campaigns and take strict action against those involved in illegal business to check adulteration of food items in the state.
• He said that short video clips should be made to spread awareness among the people. Along with this, he also directed people associated with hotel business to adopt cleanliness ratings.

Country's First Naturally Grown Fernatum (Conservation Zone)

Why in News

• Recently the country's first naturally grown fernatum (conservation zone) has been created in the Kalika forest range in Ranikhet of Almora district. Efforts will be made by the department to make it an Asian level study site so that researchers can get to know about these fern species of the Jurassic era.

Key Points

• The new fernatum was recently opened on Dalmoti Road of Kalika Forest Research Center by Sanjeev Chaturvedi, Chief Conservator of Forests (Research), Uttarakhand.
• He informed that fern species are very beneficial medicinally and they need to be protected. For their protection, Fernatum has been prepared in one hectare area in Kalika.
• According to Sanjeev Chaturvedi, the fernatum has a stock of species found in the high, middle and lower Himalayan regions of Uttarakhand and soon this fernatum will be made the largest naturally grown area of its kind in Asia.
• There are currently 103 different types of ferns. 95 percent of these species are from Uttarakhand.
• Among the many fern species found in Fernatum, Hansraj is a typical fern species of Uttarakhand. It is rich in medicinal properties and its roots are used to combat the effects of snakebites. There are 10 species in Kalika.
• Chaturvedi informed that a conservation center has been set up for fern species in green and shed houses in Kerala, but in Kalika, the country's first ferntum has grown naturally according to the local climate. It will be made the nodal center for the study of fern species.