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PRITHvi VIgyan Scheme

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To enhance the understanding of the Earth and its vital signs, the Union Cabinet recently approved the “PRITHvi VIgyan (PRITHVI)” scheme.

About the PRITHVI Scheme:

  • It is an initiative of the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) to enhance the understanding of the Earth and its vital signs.
  • This overarching initiative, with an allocation of Rs 4,797 crore for the period 2021-26, aims to significantly enhance research, modelling, and service delivery across crucial areas like weather, climate, oceans, and the polar regions.
  • The Prithvi scheme integrates five existing sub-schemes:
    • Atmosphere and Climate Research-Modelling Observing Systems and Services (ACROSS)
    • Ocean Services, Modelling Application, Resources and Technology (O-SMART)
    • Polar Science and Cryosphere Research (PACER)
    • Seismology and Geosciences (SAGE)
    • Research, Education, Training, and Outreach (REACHOUT).
  • These programs collectively aim to enhance our understanding of the Earth’s vital signs and translate scientific knowledge into practical services that benefit society, environment and economy.
  • Objectives:
    • One of the primary objectives of Prithvi is to augment and sustain long-term observations across the atmosphere, ocean, geosphere, cryosphere, and solid earth.
    • This will enable recording and monitoring of the Earth System’s vital signs and changes.
    • Additionally, the scheme focuses on developing predictive models for weather, ocean, and climate hazards, as well as advancing the understanding of climate change science.
    • Exploration of the polar regions and high seas is another key aspect, aiming at discovering new phenomena and resources.
    • The scheme also emphasises the development of technology for the exploration and sustainable harnessing of oceanic resources for societal applications.
  • Various components of the PRITHVI scheme are interdependent and are carried out in an integrated manner through the combined efforts of the concerned institutes under the MoES.


PRERANA program

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Recently, the Department of School Education & Literacy, Ministry of Education has launched ‘Prerana: An Experiential Learning program’.

About PRERANA program:

  • It aims to offer a meaningful, unique, and inspiring experience to all participants, thereby empowering them with leadership qualities.
  • It is driven by a strong commitment to integrate principles of the Indian education system and the philosophy of value-based education which is a cornerstone of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.
  • It is a week-long residential program for selected students of class IX to XII.
  • A batch of 20 selected students (10 boys and 10 girls) will attend the program, every week from various parts of the country.
  • It will run from a Vernacular School, established in 1888, in one of the oldest living cities of India, Vadnagar, district Mehsana, Gujarat.
  • The curriculum of Prerana School prepared by IIT Gandhi Nagar is rooted in nine value-based themes: Swabhiman and Vinay, Shaurya and Sahas, Parishram and Samarpan, Karuna and Sewa, Vividhta and Ekta, Satyanishtha and Shuchita, Navachar and Jigyasa, Shraddha aur Vishwas, and Swatantrata and Kartavya.
  • The day-wise program schedule will feature yoga, mindfulness, and meditation sessions, followed by experiential learning, thematic sessions, and hands-on interesting learning activities.
  • Evening activities will include visits to ancient and heritage sites, inspirational film screenings, mission life creative activities, talent shows etc. ensuring a holistic learning approach.
  • Apart from this, students will engage in diverse activities, embracing indigenous knowledge systems, latest State-of-Art technologies, and learning from inspirational personalities.
  • Selection procedure:
    • Students can register through the portal, wherein applicants can fill the requisite details.
    • The registered applicants will go through a selection process, as prescribed on the portal.
    • Applicants can also join the selection procedure conducted at the School/block level, on designated ‘Prerana Utsav’ day, through various activities.


“Viksit Bharat Sankalp Yatra” Boosts Beneficiary Numbers

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With a significant decline in the number of PM-Kisan beneficiaries, the government launches a special drive under the Viksit Bharat Sankalp Yatra to add 34 lakh farmers back into the scheme.

Background

  • PM-Kisan, initiated on February 24, 2019, provides eligible farmer families with Rs 6,000 annually in three equal installments through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT).
  • The number of beneficiaries, which peaked at 10.47 crore in April-July 2022, witnessed a decline to 8.12 crore by the latest payment round in November 2023.

Need for the Special Drive:

  • The launch of Viksit Bharat Sankalp Yatra on November 15, six months ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, seeks to address the decreasing numbers of PM-Kisan beneficiaries.
  • Efforts are made to cover all intended beneficiaries under various government flagship schemes.

Inclusion of 34 Lakh Farmers:

  • Under the saturation drive, 34 lakh farmers are added to the PM-Kisan beneficiary list.
  • Uttar Pradesh leads with 8.50 lakh additions, followed by Rajasthan (2.39 lakh), Manipur (2.27 lakh), Jharkhand (2.2 lakh), and Maharashtra (1.89 lakh).
  • This inclusion ensures eligibility for the next PM-Kisan installment before the end of the 2023-24 financial year.

Expected Impact by January 2024:

  • The Union Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare anticipates that the total number of farmer beneficiaries will surpass 8.75 crore by January 2024, the conclusion of the Viksit Bharat Sankalp Yatra.

Addressing Decline and Disbursement Challenges:

  • The decline in PM-Kisan beneficiaries over the past financial year is acknowledged, and efforts are made to address the challenges.
  • The annual disbursement of funds, which peaked at Rs 67,121 crore in 2021-22, dropped to Rs 58,258 crore in 2022-23.
  • The current financial year, till November 22, has seen a disbursement of Rs 38,660 crore.
  • A decline in funds was attributed to the introduction of mandatory land seeding and Aadhaar linking.



PM KISAN App

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Recently, the PM-Kisan Mobile App with Face Authentication Feature was launched by Union Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare Minister.

PM KISAN App:

  • The newly launched application has the feature of face Authentication.
  • From this app, farmers can complete e-KYC remotely, sitting at home easily by scanning their face without OTP or fingerprint.
  • The app was designed and developed by the National Informatics Centre in collaboration with the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology.

Key facts about PM Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN)

  • It is a Central Sector scheme with 100% funding from the Government of India.
  • Objective: The scheme aims to supplement the financial needs of the farmers in procuring various inputs to ensure proper crop health and appropriate yields commensurate with the anticipated farm income.
  • Benefits and Eligibility Conditions:
    • Under the scheme, an income support of 6,000/- per year in three equal instalments will be provided to all land-holding farmer families.
    • The definition of family for the scheme is husband, wife and minor children.
  • State Government and UT administration will identify the farmer families which are eligible for support as per scheme guidelines.
  • The fund will be directly transferred to the bank accounts of the beneficiaries.
  • The following categories of beneficiaries shall not be eligible for benefits under the scheme:
    • All Institutional Landholders.
    • Farmer families which belong to one or more of the following categories:
    • Former and present holders of constitutional posts.
    • Former and present Ministers/ State Ministers and former/present Members of Lok Sabha/ Rajya Sabha/ State Legislative Assemblies/ State Legislative Councils, former and present Mayors of Municipal Corporations, former and present Chairpersons of District Panchayats.
    • All superannuated/retired pensioners whose monthly pension is Rs.10,000/-or more (Excluding Multi-Tasking Staff / Class IV/Group D employees) of the above category
    • All Persons who paid Income Tax in the last assessment year
    • Professionals like Doctors, Engineers, Lawyers, Chartered Accountants, and Architects are registered with Professional bodies and carry out their profession by undertaking practices


Grievance Redressal Assessment and Index (GRAI) 2022

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Recently, the Union Minister of Public Grievances, and Pensions, launched the Grievance Redressal Assessment and Index (GRAI) 2022.

About Grievance Redressal Assessment and Index (GRAI) 2022:

  • It was conceptualised and designed by the Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances (DARPG), Govt. of India.
  • Objective: To present an organisation-wise comparative picture and provide valuable insights about strengths and areas of improvement regarding the grievance redressal mechanism.
  • Eighty-nine Central Ministries and Departments were assessed and ranked based on a comprehensive index in the dimensions of (1) Efficiency, (2) Feedback, (3) Domain and (4) Organisational Commitment and corresponding 12 indicators.
  • To compute the index, data between January and December 2022 was used from the Centralised Public Grievance Redressal and Management System (CPGRAMS).

Key facts about CPGRAMS

  • It is an online platform available to the citizens 24×7 to lodge their grievances to the public authorities on any subject related to service delivery.
  • It is a single portal connected to all the Ministries/Departments of the Government of India and States.
  • Every Ministry and State have role-based access to this system.
  • It is also accessible to the citizens through a standalone mobile application.


Anna Bhagya Scheme

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After the refusal by the Food Corporation of India (FCI) to provide additional rice to Karnataka, the launch of the Anna Bhagya scheme by the State government has been planned to make the availability of rice at competitive cost in other States.

About the Rice conflict:

  • About 28 lakh tonnes of rice is required every month to provide an additional five kgs of rice per person in the family of those holding BPL and Antyodaya cards.
  • If Karnataka gets rice from other States, it has to spend a minimum of ?2.60 per kg on transportation while it could go up further in case rice comes from
  • Besides, the cost of implementing the scheme could go up as the State may have to purchase rice from the open market.

Highlights of the scheme:

  • Karnataka Anna Bhagya Scheme is also called as” Karnataka Free Rice Distribution Scheme” in which free of cost food grains will be given by the Government of Karnataka.
  • The following benefits will be provided to eligible beneficiaries of Karnataka under Karnataka Anna Bhagya Scheme :-
    • Free of Cost Rice will be given to all beneficiaires.
    • 10 Kg of Rice per Person per Month will be given.
  • Person belongs to below poverty line (BPL) are only eligible to get free of cost rice under Karnataka Anna Bhagya Scheme.
  • Having a BPL Card is mandatory to avail the benefit of scheme.
  • There is no cap on family members, every family member will get free of cost 10 Kg rice per month per head.
  • Eligible Persons/ Households will have to wait little more to get their Free of Cost 10 Kg Rice under Karnataka Anna Bhagya Scheme/ Karnataka Free Rice Distribution Scheme.
  • Government of Karnataka Announced date from which the beneficiary will get free food grains.
  • Implemented from:
  • From 1st of July 2023, every eligible beneficiary will get 10 kg of rice under Karnataka Anna Bhagya Scheme.
Food Corporation of India:

  • FCI is a statutory body set up in 1965 under the Food Corporations Act 1964.
  • It was established against the backdrop of major shortage of grains, especially wheat.
  • Simultaneously, Commission for Agricultural Costs and Prices (CACP) was created in 1965 to recommend remunerative prices to farmers.
  • Role:
    • It has primary duty to undertake purchase, store, and move/transport, distribute and sell food grains and other foodstuffs.

Targeted Public Distribution System:

  • The Targeted Public Distribution System (TPDS) was launched in 1997 to benefit the poor and to keep the budgetary food subsidies under control to the desired extent following failure of the earlier PDS system.
  • Conceptually, the transition from universal PDS to TPDS was a move in the right direction, as it was designed to include all the poor households and raise the unit subsidy and ration quota considerably for them.
  • TPDS aims at providing food grains to people below the poverty line at highly subsidised prices from the PDS and food grains to people above the poverty line at much higher prices than the poverty line.
  • Thus, the TPDS adopted by the Government of India maintains the universal character of the PDS but adds a special focus on the people below the poverty line.
  • The National Food Security Act, 2013 (NFSA) has been notified which provides for all India coverage of upto 75% of the rural population and up to 50% of the urban population of the country for receiving highly subsidized foodgrains


Dugdh Sankalan Sathi App

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Recently, the Union Minister of Heavy Industries unveiled the ground-breaking “Dugdh Sanakalan Sathi Mobile App” at Mussorie, Uttarakhand.

About Dugdh Sankalan Sathi App:

  • This is designed and developed by Rajasthan Electronics & Instruments Limited (REIL), a “Mini Ratna” Central Public Sector Enterprise under the Ministry of Heavy Industries.
  • It aims to improve the quality of milk, foster transparency among stakeholders, and streamline operations at the grassroots village level, including Milk Cooperative Societies.
  • This will inform all services to milk producers in English, Hindi, Punjabi, Telugu and other languages

 Key features and benefits of the app include:

  • Increased transparency among stakeholders
  • Online monitoring of daily milk poured at Milk Cooperative Societies
  • Real-time milk price updates from the cloud server, ensuring transparency and eliminating human errors
  • Direct beneficiary transfers of milk payments and government subsidies to the milk producers’ bank accounts through the app
  • Push notifications for milk collection to the milk producers’ app


Shakti Scheme

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Karnataka government has recently launched the Shakti scheme

  • Sakthi Scheme offers free travel to women and transgender people in government-run buses in the state of Karnataka.
  • The scheme allows women and transgenders irrespective of their age.
  • It aims to empower women financially by providing them free of cost bus service.
  • The government has also reserved 50% of the seats for men in all RTCs, except BMTC services.
  • The scheme follows the footsteps of Delhi, Punjab and Tamil Nadu, which have introduced similar initiatives.


VAIBHAV fellowships Programme

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The Government of India has launched a new fellowship programme to connect the Indian Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics and Medicine (STEMM)diaspora with Indian academic and R&D institutions.

About VAIBHAV fellowships Programme: 

  • The fellowship would be awarded to outstanding scientists/technologists of Indian origin (NRI/OCI/PIO) who are engaged in research activities in their respective countries.
  • The VAIBHAV Fellow would identify an Indian Institution for collaboration and may spend up to two months in a year for a maximum of 3 years.
  • Funding: The government offers the researchers an amount of INR 4,00,000 per month for the entire period.
  • Aim: Improving the research ecosystem of India’s Higher Educational Institutions by facilitating academic and research collaborations between Indian Institutions and the best institutions in the world.
  • This is done through the mobility of faculty/researchers from overseas institutions to India.
  • Eligibility: Researchers from institutions featuring in the top 500 QS World University Rankings will be eligible for the fellowship.
  • The applicant must have obtained Ph.D./M.D/M.S degree from a recognized University.
  • The 75 selected fellows would be invited to work in 18 identified knowledge verticals including quantum technology, health, pharma, electronics, agriculture, energy, computer sciences, and material sciences amongst others.
  • It is implemented by the Department of Science and Technology (DST), Ministry of Science and Technology


Dheeram Scheme

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The Ernakulam District Kudumbashree Mission is set to roll out ‘Dheeram’, a project aimed at imparting martial arts-based self-defence training to women, at two gender resource centres shortly.

About the scheme:

  • Dheeram is a joint project by Kudumbashree and Sports Kerala Foundation.
  • It is part of the state government’s 100-day programme, aimed at empowering women through self-defence and self-confidence building.
  • Aim:
    • The project aims to create a livelihood for women and empower them for self-defence by forming karate training groups on an entrepreneurial model.

About Kudumbashree scheme:

  • Kudumbashree is the poverty eradication and women empowerment programme implemented by the State Poverty Eradication Mission (SPEM) of the Government of Kerala.
  • Kudumbashree has a three-tier structure for its women community network:
    • Neighbourhood Groups (NHGs) at the lowest level,
    • Area Development Societies (ADS) at the middle level, and
    • Community Development Societies (CDS) at the local government level.
  • Kudumbashree is essentially a community network that covers the entire State of Kerala.
  • It is arguably one of the largest women’s networks in the world.


Open Market Sale Scheme (OMSS)

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The Central Government recently discontinued the sale of rice and wheat from the central pool under the Open Market Sale Scheme (OMSS) to State governments.

About Open Market Sale Scheme (OMSS):

  • Under OMSS, the Food Corporation of India (FCI) sells surplus stocks of wheat and rice at pre-determined prices through e-auction in the open market.
  • Objective: To enhance the supply of food grains, especially wheat, during the lean season and thereby moderate the open market prices, specially in the deficit regions.
  • The FCI conducts a weekly auction to conduct this scheme in the open market using the platform of commodity exchange NCDEX(National Commodity and Derivatives Exchange Limited).
  • The State Governments/ Union Territory Administrations are also allowed to participate in the e-auction, if they require wheat and rice outside the Targeted Public Distribution Scheme (TPDS) and Other Welfare Schemes (OWS).
  • The reserve price is fixed by the government. In the tenders floated by the FCI, the bidders cannot quote less than the reserve price.
  • The present form of OMSS comprises 3 schemes as under:
    • Sale of wheat to bulk consumers/private traders through e-auction.
    • Sale of wheat to bulk consumers/private traders through e-auction by dedicated movement.
    • Sale of Raw Rice Grade ‘A’ to bulk consumers/private traders through e-auction.

Key facts about Food Corporation of India (FCI):

  • It is a statutory body set up in 1965 (under the Food Corporation Act, 1964) against the backdrop of major shortage of grains, especially wheat, in the country.
  • It comes under the ownership of the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, Government of India.
  • Headquarters: New Delhi
  • FCI was mandated with three basic objectives:
    • to provide effective price support to farmers;
    • to procure and supply grains to PDS for distributing subsidized staples to economically vulnerable sections of society; 
    • keep a strategic reserve to stabilize markets for basic foodgrains;


India Infrastructure Project Development Funding Scheme (IIPDF)

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Recently, to promote the Digital India initiative of the Government of India, the Infrastructure Finance Secretariat has launched the IIPDF Portal for submitting applications for consideration under IIPDF Scheme.

About IIPDF Scheme:

  • What it is? It is a Central Sector Scheme which will aid the development of quality PPP projects by providing necessary funding support to the project sponsoring authorities, both in the Central and State Governments.
  • Funding:
    • The corpus of the IIPDF shall comprise of initial budgetary outlay of Rs. 100 Crore by the Ministry of Finance.
    • Funding under IIPDF Scheme is in addition to the already operational Scheme for Financial Support to PPPs in Infrastructure (VGF Scheme).
  • Composition of the IIPDF approval committee:
    • Chairperson: Joint secretory, DEA
    • Representative of NITI Aayog
    • Member Secretary: Deputy Secretory/Private Investment Unit, DEA
  • The approval committee will
    • Select projects for which project development costs will be funded.
    • Set the terms and conditions under which the funding will be provided and recovered.
    • Set milestones for disbursing and recovering (where appropriate) the funding.
  • The Public-Private Partnership Cell of the DEA will provide support functions to examine the applications received for assistance under IIPDF.


PM Matru Vandana Yojana

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Recently, The Prime Minister of India has lauded the new initiative of celebrating ‘Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana’ as ‘God Bharai’ ceremony in Dausa, Rajasthan.

About PM Matru Vandana Yojana:

  • It is a Centrally Sponsored Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) scheme launched in 2017.
  • Objectives
    • Providing partial compensation for the wage loss in terms of cash incentive, so that the woman can take adequate rest before and after delivery of the first child
    • To improve health-seeking behaviour amongst Pregnant Women & Lactating Mothers (PW&LM).
  • Features
    • The scheme is to provide maternity benefits to women belonging to socially and economically disadvantaged sections of society.
    • The maternity benefit is to be provided to a woman for the first two living children provided the second child is a girl
    • Under this scheme monetary benefit of Rs. 5,000 is given to the expecting mothers from the time of the initial stage of pregnancy to till the time the child is born.
    • Additionally, Rs. 1,000 is provided under the Janani Suraksha Yojana post-institutional delivery.
    • The Rs. 5,000 is provided in three installments.
    • The first installment of Rs. 1,000 is paid at the time of registration of the pregnancy.
    • The second installment of Rs. 2,000 is paid at the time of completing 6 months of pregnancy and receiving at least one antenatal checkup.
    • The third installment of Rs. 2,000 is received after the birth and registration of birth of such child and after such child receives the first cycle of immunization for BCG, OPV, DPT and Hepatitis-B.
    • Cases of miscarriage/stillbirths are to be treated as fresh cases for providing maternity benefits under the scheme.


Kanya Shiksha Pravesh Utsav

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Recently, officials from the Union Ministry of Women and Child Development (WCD) have brought back 1 lakh girls into the mainstream education system under the `Kanya Shiksha Pravesh Utsav’’.

About Kanya Shiksha Pravesh Utsav:

  • It was launched by the Ministry of Women and Child Development (MoWCD), in partnership with the Ministry of Education and UNICEF
  • Objective: Enhancing enrolment and retention of girls between 11-14 years of age in school.
  • The initiative intends to build on the existing schemes and programmes like Schemes for Adolescent Girls (SAG), BetiBachaoBetiPadhao (BBBP) and National Education Policy (NEP) to work on a comprehensive system for out-of-school girls.
  • Now Ministry of Women and Child Development has decided to club together three programmes under a new scheme — Anganwadi services, poshan Abhiyan and scheme for adolescent girls — since all these had the same nutritional targets.”
  • In the new scheme, a new category is created in which adolescent girls between 14 and 18 years are covered


SANKALP Programme

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Recently, the Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship (MSDE) certifies 98 trainers trained under the SANKALP programme.

About SANKALP Programme:

  • The Skills Acquisition and Knowledge Awareness for Livelihood Promotion (SANKALP) programme was launched in 2018.
  • Nodal Ministry: Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE)
  • It is a World Bank loan-assisted project and is aligned with the overall objectives of the National Skill Development Mission (NSDM).
  • The project focuses on transforming the overall skilling ecosystem of India, covering both central and state-level agencies for improved outcomes.
  • It also encourages innovative best practices at the local level, resulting in enhanced access, quality and capacity in the skilling ecosystem and improved access to and completion of skills training for female trainees and other disadvantaged groups.
  • Strategy: Under SANKALP four key result areas have been identified viz –
    • Institutional Strengthening (at National, State & District level)
    • Quality Assurance Quality Assurance of skill development programs;
    • Inclusion of marginalised population in skill development; and
    • Expanding Skills through Public-Private Partnerships (PPPs).


Operation Amanat

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The Railway Protection Force (RPF) recently conducted a successful operation named “Amanat,” resulting in the retrieval of lost or left-behind luggage and valuable articles.

 

About Operation Amanat:

  • Under the Operation Amanat initiative, the Railway Protection Force has taken a novel initiative to make it easier for the passengers to get back their lost luggage.
  • It helps to track lost belongings of passengers.
  • The details of lost luggage along with photos are uploaded by RPF personnel of the respective Divisions. The details are uploaded in the web portal https://wr.indianrailways.gov.in/ in the tab of divisions under the link “Mission Amanat – RPF”.
  • Passengers can check whether their luggage which went missing or was lost in railway premises or trains is available at the Lost Property Office centres at stations. 

Key facts about Railway Protection Force (RPF):

  • RPF is a security force of India entrusted with protecting railway passengers, passenger area and railway property of the Indian Railways.
  • It was established by the Railway Protection Force Act, 1957.
  • This is only central armed police force (CAPF, commonly known as Para-Military force) which has power to arrest, investigate and prosecute criminals.
  • It is under the authority of Ministry of Railways (India).
  • All the officers of RPF are members of the Indian Railway Protection Force Service (IRPFS) and are recruited through UPSC Civil Services Examination. 
  • It is headed by the Director General (DG). However, the post of Director-General of RPF is held on deputation by a senior Indian Police Service (IPS) officer


National Training Conclave

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Prime Minister will inaugurate the first National Training Conclave at the International Exhibition and Convention Centre Pragati Maidan, New Delhi.

 

About National Training Conclave:

  • The conclave is part of the National Programme for Civil Services Capacity Building (NPCSCB) – ‘Mission Karmayogi’.
  • Objective: To foster collaboration among civil services training institutes and strengthen the training infrastructure for civil servants across the country.
  • The Conclave is being hosted by the Capacity Building Commission. 
  • More than one thousand 500 representatives from various training institutes, including Central Training Institutes, State Administrative Training Institutes, Regional and Zonal Training Institutes, and Research institutes, will participate in the conclave. 
  • Civil Servants from the Central government departments, State governments, and local governments, as well as experts from the private sector, will take part in the deliberations.
  • The Conclave will have eight-panel discussions, each focusing on key concerns related to Civil services training institutes such as faculty development, training impact assessment, and content digitisation.

What is Mission Karmayogi?

  • Mission Karmyogi, or National Programme for Civil Services Capacity Building (NPCSCB), aims to prepare Civil Servants for the future by making them more creative, constructive & innovative through transparency and technology.
  • This unique programme will help to lay the foundation for civil servants in the country.
  • There will be more focus on ‘on-site learning’ in complementing “off-site learning“.
  • Executing Bodies:
    • It will be steered by four new bodies.
    • The new entities will be a Prime Minister’s Public Human Resources Council, a Capacity Building Commission, a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) that will own and operate the digital assets and technological platform for online training, and a Coordination Unit, which will be headed by the Cabinet Secretary.


Poshan Tracker App

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More than 57,000 migrant workers have registered for the special one nation one Anganwadi programme by using the Poshan Tracker App on mobile phones.

About Poshan Tracker App:

  • This application provides a 360-degree view of the activities of the Anganwadi Centre (child care centers), service deliveries of Anganwadi Workers and complete beneficiary management for pregnant women, lactating mothers and children under six.
  • It also digitizes and automates physical registers used by workers to help improve the quality of their work.
  • The Anganwadi workers are being provided smartphones procured through Government e-Market (GeM) for efficient service delivery.
  • A nodal person has also been appointed for providing technical support and resolving any issue with downloading the new Poshan Tracker application and its functioning in each state.
  • The sources that each migrant worker who had registered in their original state could go to the nearest Anganwadi in their current place of residence and avail of the schemes and services offered.
  • It was launched by theMinistry of Women and Child Development (MoWCD).

What is Poshan Abhiyaan?

  • It was launched by the Prime Minister of India on 8th March 2018 and has been instrumental in ensuring people’s participation and bringing the discourse on nutrition to the forefront.
  • It was launched to improve nutritional outcomes holistically.
  • The focus of Abhiyaan is to emphasize the nutritional status of adolescent girls, pregnant women, lactating mothers and children from 0-6 years of age.
  • The programme, through the use of technology, convergence and community involvement with a targeted approach strives:
    • To reduce the level of stunning, undernutrition, Anaemia and low birth weight in children.


Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana (PMKSY)

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Under the Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana, Aadhaar cards being misused to create beneficiaries under Per Drop More Crop Scheme in Jharkhand state has been revealed.

About Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana:

  • It was launched in 2015 to improve farm productivity and ensure better utilization of the resources in the country.
  • Objectives
    • Convergence of investment in irrigation at the field level
    • Expand cultivable area under irrigation
    • Improve On-farm water use efficiency to reduce the wastage of water
    • Enhance the adoption of being precise in irrigation and other water-saving technologies (more crop per drop)
  • It consists of two major components namely,
    • Accelerated Irrigation Benefit Programme (AIBP)
    • Har Khet Ko Pani (HKKP): It consists of four sub-components, being Command Area Development & Water Management (CAD&WM), Surface Minor Irrigation (SMI), Repair, Renovation and Restoration (RRR) of Water Bodies, and Ground Water (GW) Development component.
  • In addition, PMKSY also consists of two components
    • Per Drop More Crop (PDMC) component is being implemented by the Department of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare.
    • The Watershed Development component (WDC) is being implemented by the Department of Land Resources


Amrit Generation Campaign: Naye Bharat Ke Sapne

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Meta and Ministry of Women and Child Development launch the Amrit Generation Campaign: Naye Bharat Ke Sapne

Key details:

  • The Amrit Generation campaign is an initiative to empower and engage the youth of India by encouraging them to express their aspirations and dreams for the future.
  • The campaign invites young people from across the country to showcase their creativity and share their aspirations by creating Reels on Instagram and Facebook.
  • Fifty entries from the campaign will be selected and invited to New Delhi for a unique opportunity to interact with senior policymakers and industry leaders, providing valuable insights into their respective fields and offering guidance on how to achieve their dreams.

About Meta:

  • Meta builds technologies that help people connect, find communities, and grow businesses.
  • Meta is moving beyond 2D screens toward immersive experiences like augmented and virtual reality to help build the next evolution in social technology.