National Mission on Education Through Information and Communication Technology(NME-ICT)

The National Mission on Education through Information and Communication Technology (ICT) has been envisaged as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme to leverage the potential of ICT, in teaching and learning process for the benefit of all the learners in Higher Education Institutions in any time any where mode. This is expected to be a major intervention in enhancing the Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) in Higher Education by 5
percentage points during the 11th Five Year Plan period.

Main Objectives

• The objectives of the National Mission on Education through ICT shall include:  
• building connectivity and knowledge network among and within institutions of higher learning in the country with a view of achieving critical mass of researchers in any given field; 
• spreading digital literacy for teacher empowerment;  
• development of knowledge modules having the right content to take care of the aspirations of academic community and to address to the personalized needs of the learners; 
• standardization and quality assurance of e-contents to make them world class;  
• research in the field of pedagogy for development of efficient learning modules for disparate groups of learners; 
• making available of e-knowledge contents, free of cost to Indians;
• experimentation and field trial in the area of  performance optimization of low cost access devices for use of ICT in education;  
• providing support for the creation of Virtual Technological University;  
• identification and nurturing of talent;
• certification of competencies of the human resources acquired either through formal or non-formal means and the evolution of a legal framework for it; and 
• developing and maintaining the database with the profiles of our human resources. 

Components
The Mission has two major components:

1. providing connectivity, along with provision for access devices, to institutions and learners; 
2. content generation.

It aims to extend computer infrastructure and connectivity to over 18000 colleges in the country including each of the departments of nearly 400 universities/deemed universities and institutions of national importance
as a part of its motto to provide connectivity upto last mile.  Therefore, the Mission, in addition to utilize the connectivity network of BSNL/MTNL and other providers, shall explore the possibility to provide connectivity utilizing Very Small Apperture Terminal (VSAT), Very Personal Network (VPN) and
EduSat channels.

It seeks to bridge the digital divide, i.e., the gap in the skills to use computing devices for the purpose of teaching and learning among urban and rural teachers/learners in Higher Education domain and empower those, who have hitherto remained untouched by the digital revolution and have not been able to join the mainstream of the knowledge economy so that they can make best use of ICT for teaching and learning.
The Mission would create high quality e-content for the target groups.

National Programme of Technology enhanced Learning (NPTEL) Phase II and III will be part of the content generation activity.

The peer group assisted content development would utilise the wikipaedia type of collaborative platform under the supervision of a content advisory committee responsible for vetting the content. Interactivity and problem solving approach would be addressed through “Talk to a Teacher” component, where the availability of teachers to take the questions of learners shall be ensured appropriately.

Mission also envisage, on line, for promoting research with the objective to develop new and innovative ICT tools for further facilitation of teaching and learning process. It plans to focus on appropriate pedagogy for
e-learning, providing facility of performing experiments through virtual laboratories, on-line testing and certification, utilization of available Education Satellite (EduSAT) and Direct to Home (DTH) platforms, training and empowerment of teachers to effectively use the new method of teaching learning etc.

Central Government would bear 75% of the connectivity charges for 5 years even for institutions not belonging to it.

Renowned institutions would anchor various activities in their areas of excellence. The Mission would seek to enhance the standards of education, in Government as well as in private colleges. Enlistment of support and
cooperation of States/Union Territories, Institutions and individual experts would be an integral part of the Mission.

One of the mandate of the Mission is to generate a data base of the human resources in different fields/disciplines and also to predict the availability and demand of the human resources in different disciplines.  It shall also develop certain testing modules to test and certify the skills of the human resources acquired through various formal and non-formal means. The Mission also seeks to give further impetus to NPTEL (being implemented by IITs and IISc.  It would also promote open source culture and provide platform for sharing of  ideas, techniques and pooling of knowledge resources.

While about 100 premier institutions are being provided 1 Gbps connectivity under National Knowledge Network initially and the number is slated to go up in future, under this Mission, without any duplication, 20000 other institutions  of higher learning and nearly 10000 University Departments will be provided connectivity as per their requirement, beginning with a minimum of 5 Mbps for each one of them, through satellites and terrestrial means.  Vocational education would be strengthened through ICT and class room teaching would be supplemented under the Mission.  Under the Mission, quality enhancement of teaching through digital empowerment of teachers would bridge the digital divide and there would be on-line availability of experts and teachers to remove doubts of students.


Budget Allocation
An amount of Rs.4612 crore has been allocated by the Planning Commission during the 11th Five Year Plan for the National Mission on Education through ICT. There is a budget provision of Rs.502 crore during
the current financial  year 2008-09.

Administrative structure and functioning 
The Mission  have a three tier committee system to monitor and guide its functioning.  The National Apex Committee of the Mission is chaired by Hon’ble Minister of Human Resource Development, and decides on all policy issues and prescribes guidelines for the functioning of the two sets of Committees namely ‘Empowered Committee of Experts (also known as ‘Project Approval Board’) and ‘Core Committees of Domain Experts’. It has  a ‘Mission Director’, who heads the Mission Secretariat and also acts as the
Secretary to the National Apex Committee and Project Approval Board.

The proposals submitted to the Mission by various agencies/individuals/institutions undertake activities which come under the domain of the Mission are scrutinized by the concerned Core Committee of Domain Experts. This Committee makes its recommendations to Project Approval Board for consideration and decision on sanctioning the projects.
The monitoring of the overall progress of the approved project activities is to be done through various peer reviews and concurrent evaluation.

SABLA : RAJIV GANDHI SCHEME FOR EMPOWERMENT OF ADOLESCENT GIRLS (RGSEAG )

The Ministry of Women and Child Development, Government of India, in the year 2000, came up with a scheme called Kishori Shakti Yojana (KSY), which was implemented using the infrastructure of the Integrated Child Development Services Scheme (ICDS). The objective of this scheme was to improve the nutrition and health status of girls in the agegroup of 11 to 18 years, to equip them to improve and upgrade their homebased and vocational skills, and to promote their overall development, including awareness about their health, personal hygiene, nutrition and family welfare and management. Thereafter, the Nutrition Programme for Adolescent Girls (NPAG) was initiated as a pilot project in the year 2002-03 in 51 identified districts across the country to address the problem of under nutrition among AGs(Adolescent Girls). 

Under this programme, 6 kg of free food grain per beneficiary per month was given to undernourished AGs. Though both these schemes have influenced the lives of AGs to an extent, but have not shown the desired impact. Moreover, the extent of financial assistance and coverage under them has been limited and they both had similar interventions and catered to more or less similar target groups. Therefore, a new comprehensive scheme, called Rajiv Gandhi Scheme for Empowerment of Adolescent Girls or SABLA, merging the erstwhile KSY and NPAG schemes has been formulated to address the multi dimensional problems of AGs. SABLA will be implemented initially in 200 districts selected across the country, using the platform of ICDS. In these districts, RGSEAG will replace KSY and NPAG. In rest of the districts, KSY would continue as before.

OBJECTIVES OF THIS SCHEME:

The objectives of the scheme are to:

• enable self development and empowerment of AGs(Adolescent Girls);
• improve their nutrition and health status;
• spread awareness among them about health, hygiene, nutrition, Adolescent Reproductive and Sexual Health (ARSH), and family and child care;
• upgrade their home based skills, life skills and vocational skills;
• mainstream out of school AGs into formal/non formal education; and
• inform and guide them about existing public services, such as PHC, CHC, Post Office, Bank, Police Station, etc.

FOR WHOM THIS SCHEME IS FOR?

The scheme aims at covering AGs in the age group of 11 to 18 years under all ICDS projects in selected 200 districts across India on pilot. Keeping in view the need of different ages and in order to give age‐appropriate attention for certain components of ARSH and family matters, the target group may be subdivided into two categories, viz., 11-14 and 15-18 years. Interventions on health and personal hygiene, etc. would have to be planned accordingly.

The scheme focuses on all out-of-school AGs, who would assemble at the Anganwadi Centre (AWC) as per timetable and frequency to be decided by the State Governments /UTs concerned. The others, i.e., school-going girls, would meet at the AWC at least twice a month, and more frequently (once a week) during

vacations/holidays. Here they will receive life skills education, nutrition and health education, awareness about socio-legal issues, etc. This will provide an opportunity for mixed group interaction between school-going and out-of-school girls, motivating the latter to also join school and help the school going to receive the life skills.

MODALITIES OF THE SCHEME

Formation of Kishori Samooh

‘Kishori Samooh’ (KS) will be a group of average 15 to 25 AGs from the village/area of the AWC and will be formed at the AWC level. In case there are less than 15 AGs, Kishori Samooh can still be formed. Kishori Samooh will not be formed if there are less than 7 AGs in the area of the AWC in which case, the benefits of the Scheme may be given to these AGs without nominating sakhi and saheli. The AGs will select three leaders of their choice for a year from within the KS. In this selection, they may be guided by the AWW and, wherever possible, a school teacher from the village. Selection may be based on age, education level, maturity, willingness of the girl and her acceptability within the group. 

These girls will be called ‘Sakhi’ (one girl) and ‘Saheli’(two girls), which in English mean ‘friend’. As far as possible, the Sakhi and Sahelis may be selected from among the out of school girls. One of these girls will be Sakhi, i.e., peer monitor. Each of the three selected girl will have a term of four months as Sakhi, on rotation basis, while the remaining two will function as Sahelis assisting Sakhi. Thus, each Kishori Samooh will be headed by Sakhi, assisted by two Sahelis. Sakhi and Sahelis will serve the group for a period of one year, after which a fresh selection would be made. Names of Sakhi and Sahelis may be displayed on the wall of AWC and, if possible, on the school wall.

The concept of Sakhi and Saheli is meant to serve several purposes: development of leadership abilities, team spirit, motivation to be the next Sakhi and Saheli, understanding democracy at a very fundamental level, and providing information and guidance to peers.

The identified girls, i.e., Sakhi and Sahelis, will be imparted training as per prescribed module at the project or sector level to serve as peer monitors for KS. Sakhi and Sahelis are to participate in regular activities of AWC, like providing pre school education and supplementary nutrition, growth monitoring, etc. They may also accompany the AWW for home visits, which will serve as training ground for future.

State Governments /UTs may decide to give a certificate to Sakhi and Sahelis upon completion of their term of work. This will motivate the AGs to take on a leadership role.

Kishori Diwas

Kishori Diwas will be a special health day, celebrated once in three months on a fixed day, as decided by the State Governments /UTs. On this day, the AWWs with the help of health functionaries, including Medical Officer, Auxiliary Nurse Midwife (ANM) and Accredited Social Health Activist (ASHA), will mobilize AGs and their families, especially mothers, to assemble at the AWC. For better coordination, the State Governments /UTs may choose to combine Kishori Diwas with the corresponding month’s Village Health and Nutrition Day (VHND). However, care should be taken that .the overall aim of the Kishori Diwas is not lost and that it is not overshadowed by the VHND.

State Governments / UTs must ensure coordination and convergence with respective Health Departments so that Health personnel specially the Medical Officers are present on Kishori Diwas. On Kishori Diwas, AGs and their families will be able to interact freely with ICDS and health personnel to obtain basic services and information.

The ICDS and health functionaries will be responsible for educating AGs and their families about the preventive and promotive aspects of nutrition and healthcare, for encouraging them to adopt healthy behaviour as well as seeking healthcare from proper healthcare facilities. Village Health and Sanitation Committees (VHSCs), comprising ASHA, AWW, ANM and PRI representatives, should be involved in organizing the event. Adequate publicity of Kishori Diwas should be ensured to maximise participation.

On Kishori Diwas, the following services are to be provided:

1. General health check up, including recording of height, weight, Body Mass Index (BMI) for all AGs, by the Medical Officer / ANM
2. Filling up of Kishori Cards for every AG, marking major milestones
3. Referral to specialized healthcare facilities, as required specially for conditions like malnutrition (BMI < 18.5), menstrual problems, frequent headaches, prolonged acne, worm infestation, etc.
4. Organising of special health camps
5. Providing nutrition and health education
6. Demonstration of preparing nutritious recipes(FNB may be involved for these)
7. Holding counselling / behaviour change communication (BCC) sessions with AGs and their families for promoting good practices
8. Imparting information, education and communication (IEC) to community, parents, siblings etc.
9. Mobile Health Units (where existing) may be utilised.

Kishori Card

A card for each AG to be called “Kishori Card”, will be maintained at the AWC. This will contain information regarding the weight, height, Body Mass Index (BMI) , Iron Folic Acid (IFA) supplementation, referrals and services received under Sabla. The card will also contain important milestones in the girl’s life like joining school, leaving school, marriage, etc. which will be marked as and when they are achieved. AWW will help the girls in maintenance of Kishori Cards. Sakhi and Sahelis will assist the AGs in filling up the Kishori Cards, after which the AWW will countersign it.

Timetable for Implementation

Activities may be planned for AGs for two hours per day for three days in a week at the AWC, or at any other place where alternative arrangements may be made. AGs must be provided non nutrition services for a minimum of 5-6 hours per week.

The timings and days would be decided by the State Government /UT concerned, keeping the following in view:

(a) The timings for providing services under ICDS Scheme, so that its implementation is not adversely impacted. Time coordination may be done between the ICDS and Sabla Scheme in such a manner that the timings for activities for AGs may not overlap with or impinge upon ICDS timings.

(b) Availability of AWW/AWH and resource persons on these days

(c) Convenience of AGs for coming to the sessions

(d) Suitability of the location where the sessions are to be held, if other than AWC

For conducting sessions on different issues, a day-wise timetable must be drawn for AWCs by the CDPO in consultation with Supervisor and AWW. The venue, days and themes for sessions as fixed must be made known to the AGs so that they are made aware about it. The interventions may be divided into two groups of 11‐14 and 15‐18, with age‐specific inputs. These sessions will be conducted by resource persons, who could be drawn from among NGOs, CBOs, SHGs, field trainers, local artisans, etc. The sessions would be facilitated by the CDPO and the Supervisor and aided by AWW/ASHA/ANM. Field units of Food and Nutrition Board (FNB) may also be involved. Sakhi and Saheli would assist in organization of groups for these sessions.

Mixed group interactions for school-going and out-of-school AGs would be held twice a month when schools are working, and more frequently during school vacations (once a week, i.e 4 times a month). Timings and days for these interactions may be decided by the State Governments /UTs concerned taking into consideration various factors relating to the availability of school-going AGs, like school timings, examinations, etc.

Stories, games, group discussions, etc. could be carried out as activities during the sessions. School teachers may be called to address AGs on these days to inspire and motivate out-of-school girls so that they willingly enrol in school. This, along with the activities and interactions with school-going AGs, would provide plentiful motivation to the out-of-school AGs to join mainstream education, like their peers. It would help school-going AGs understand about public services, life skills, etc.

Location

ICDS infrastructure will be used for implementation of SABLA. AWC will be the focal point for delivery of services under the scheme. Where infrastructure and facilities like appropriate space, toilet, drinking water, etc at the AWC are not adequate, the scheme may be implemented using alternate arrangements like at the school building, panchayat building, community building, etc., with space earmarked for the purpose. In case of non-availability or non-suitability of the AWC, a mapping exercise to identify a suitable location for holding sessions for AGs may be carried out by the ICDS Supervisor.

For this, the DPO / CDPO may take support from panchayat members. The infrastructure and facilities must include adequate space for conducting activities of the group, functional toilets, drinking water, etc.

Services under the Scheme

There are two major components under the Scheme - Nutrition Component and Non Nutrition Component as under:

i) Nutrition Component:

11‐14 years AGs : Out of school girls

14 ‐18 years AGs : All girls

ii) Non Nutrition Component

For Out of school AGs :

a)11‐18 years

‐ Nutrition provision,

‐ IFA supplementation,

‐ Health check‐up and Referral services,

‐ Nutrition & Health Education (NHE),

‐ Counseling/Guidance on family welfare, ARSH, child care practices,

‐ Life Skill Education and accessing public services

b)16‐18Years

‐ Vocational training under National Skill Development Program (NSDP)

For school going AGs of 11‐18 years, the services at ii) a) will be provided twice a

month in school days and four times a month in vacations.

SWABHIMAAN

In a big nation like India providing banking facilities across length and breadth of the country, especially in rural areas, has always been a great challenge for the successive governments since Independence. Though Nationalisation gave a big boost to expansion of banks in rural areas with Public Sector Banks becoming important instruments for advancement of rural banking and changing lives of rural populace. However, financial inclusion remains one of the biggest challenges before our nation even today as only about 38% of bank branches are in rural areas and only 40% (approx.) of the country’s population have bank accounts.

To address this problem, a nationwide programme on financial inclusion, “Swabhimaan” was launched in February, 2011 by the Government, with its focus on bringing the deprived sections of the society in banking network to ensure that the benefits of economic growth reach everyone at all levels.

“Swabhimaan” is a path-breaking initiative by the Government and the Indian Banks’ Association to cover economic distance between rural and urban India. This campaign is a big step towards socio-economic equality by bringing the underprivileged segments of Indian population into the formal banking fold for the first time. The vision for this programme is social application of modern technology. 

This campaign ensures to provide the following services to the Rural India:

• Promises to bring basic banking services to 73,000 unbanked villages with a population of 2,000 and above by March, 2012 and at least 5 crore new accounts will be opened.
• The movement will facilitate opening of banks accounts, provide need-based credit, remittance facilities and help to promote financial literacy in rural India. 
• The programme will increase the demand for credit among the millions of small and marginal farmers and rural artisans who will benefit by having access to banking facilities.
• This financial inclusion campaign aims at providing branchless banking services through the use of technology.
• Banks will provide basic services like deposits, withdrawals and remittances using the services of Business Correspondents (BCs) also known as Bank Saathi.
• The initiative also enables Government subsidies and social security benefits to now be directly credited to the accounts of the beneficiaries so that they could draw the money from the Business Correspondents (BCs) in their village itself.
• The Government hopes to reach the benefits of micro insurance and micro pension products to the masses through this banking linkage.
• This programme now makes it possible for the large number of migrant workers in urban areas to remit money to their relatives in distant villages quickly and safely.
• The facilities provided through banking outlets will enhance social security by facilitating the availability of allied services in course of time like micro insurance, access to mutual funds, pensions, etc.
• Banking facilities like Savings Bank, recurring Deposits, Fixed deposits, Remittances, Overdraft facility, Kisan Credit Card (KCCs), General Credit Cards (GCC) and collection of cheques will be provided.
• The Banks are also working together with the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) for enrolment, opening bank accounts and also to facilitate transfer of government subsidies and other payments.

Bank Saathis / Business Correspondents:

The success of this programme will depend on the proper utilization of the Business Correspondents (BCs) or Bank Saathis, who are persons engaged by Banks to create a closer relationship between the formal financial system and the people living in the rural hinterland, far away from brick and mortar bank branches. The BCs will help in making available banking facilities to the interior areas through various handheld mobile devices and other technologies that reduce cost and have the ability to record banking transactions and to communicate the record of such transactions to the Bank using the internet facilities / GPRS.

Monitoring of the program:

“Swabhimaan” campaign is expected to benefit millions of small and marginal farmers and rural artisans by providing them easy access to credit at lower rates and save them from clutches and exploitation by moneylenders. The progress of this programe will be monitored through the State Level Bankers Committee mechanism. District Magistrates/Collectors are being sensitized in this regard to ensure proper monitoring of the programme through coordinated efforts of all stake-holders. The State Governments have been advised to route all Government benefits and social security payments through the banking system so that the benefits reach the beneficiaries timely and efficiently and leakages are reduced substantially.

FSLRC was constituted for legislative reforms in Financial Sector

The Government of India issued a resolution notifying the constitution of Financial Sector Legislative Reforms Commission (FSLRC) in pursuance to the announcement made by the Union Finance Minister Shri Pranab Mukherjee in his budget speech of 2010-11 to rewrite and harmonise financial sector legislations, rules and regulations. This become necessarily required for rewriting and streamlining the financial sector Laws, Rules and Regulations to bring them in harmony with the requirements of India’s fast growing financial sector.

The Chairman of the Commission is Justice (Retd.) B. N. Srikrishna, Shri C K G Nair is Secretary and the members include Justice (Retd.) Debi Prasad Pal, Dr. P.J. Nayak, Smt. K.J. Udeshi, ShriYezdiH.Malegam, Prof. JayantVarm, Prof. M. GovindaRao, Shri C. Achutan,  and Shri Dhirendra Swarup Member Convenor Joint Secretary, Capital Markets Nominee Member to the Commission.

The Commission’s headquarter would be in Delhi. The Commission will submit its report to the Union Finance Minister within 24 months. The first meeting of the Commission is scheduled to be held on 5th April 2011.

There are over 60 Acts and multiple Rules/Regulations in the sector and many of them date back decades when the financial landscape was very different from what is obtaining today. Large number of amendments made in in these Acts over time has increased the ambiguity and complexity of the system. The Commission would simplify and rewrite financial sector legislations, including subordinate legislations, to achieve harmony and synergy among them.This will remove ambiguity, regulatory gaps and overlaps among the various legislations making them more coherent and dynamic and help cater to the requirements of a large and fast growing economy in tune with the changing financial landscape in an inter-connected financial world. In the long-term, it would help usher in the next generation of reforms, contribute to efficient financial intermediation enhancing the growth potential of the nation.

The Terms of Reference of the Commission include the following:

1. Examining the architecture of the legislative and regulatory system governing the Financial sector in India,
2. Examine if legislation should mandate statement of principles of legislative intent behind every piece of subordinate legislation in order to make the purposive intent of the legislation clear and transparent to users of the law and to the Courts.
3. Examine if public feedback for draft subordinate legislation should be made mandatory, with exception for emergency measures.
4. Examine prescription of parameters for invocation of emergency powers where regulatory action may be taken on ex parte basis.
5. Examine the interplay of exchange controls under FEMA and FDI Policy with other regulatory regimes within the financial sector.
6. Examine the most appropriate means of oversight over regulators and their autonomy from government.
7. Examine the need for re-statement of the law and immediate repeal of any out-dated legislation on the basis of judicial decisions and policy shifts in the last two decades of the financial sector post-liberalisation.
8. Examination of issues of data privacy and protection of consumer of financial services in the Indian market.
9. Examination of legislation relating to the role of information technology in the delivery of financial services in India, and their effectiveness.
10. Examination of all recommendations already made by various expert committees set up by the government and by regulators and to implement measures that can be easily accepted.
11. Examine the role of state governments and legislatures in ensuring a smooth inter-state financial services infrastructure in India.
12. Examination of any other related issues.

Services Sector Advantage India

As the world stand on the cusp of financial recovery it is an opportunity to build upon and maximise our potential as an important economic power. The recent changes in the global economic landscape shows the epicentre of growth has finally moved to our time zone. We have sustained the growth of 8-9% even in the hard time and embarking on the reform process keeping focus on the more open and equitable market. The story of India’s success is driven by growth in ‘services sector’ and powered by controlled monetary and fiscal policies of the Government. Today, India stands out for the size and dynamism of its services sector. The contribution of the services sector to the India economy has been very impressive; today services sector accounts for  around 60% of our GDP, growing by 10% annually, contributing to about a 35% of the total employment, accounting for the high share of the Foreign Direct Investment ( FDI ) inflows and in value terms over one-fourth  of India’s total exports.

India is perceived as service economy. The high growth rate achieved by the Indian economy over the last decade has much to owe to the growth of services sector in the country. The services sector contributes around 25% of India’s total trade, around 40% to exports, and 20% of our imports. It accounts for more than 50% of FDI into the country. Internationally, India has registered the highest growth rate of service exports in recent years, averaging 26% during 2000-07 as against the world average of 14% and much larger than most other countries (23% for China, 14% for EU and 8% for US). The Boston Consulting Group (BCG) study says that 40 million new services jobs, $200 billion will be generated by 2020 in India.

We as a country have leveraged on foreign investment and expertise, to advance in international services markets – from tourism and construction to software development and health care. Services liberalization has thus become a key element of our development strategies. There is strong evidence in many services which says developed services sector leads to lower prices, better quality and wider choice for consumers. Such benefits, in turn, work their way through the economic system and help to improve supply conditions for many other products. The strength of India at the global competitiveness at services has guided developed countries to keep services out of ambit of WTO negotiations.

In light of the above mentioned strengths we have positioned ourselves as a ‘demandeur’ in Services negotiations at the WTO as well as in the bilateral FTA negotiations. The objective behind these negotiations is to secure maximum and effective market access for our services exports. Based on our comparative advantage our critical requests in the services areas have focussed on getting meaningful commitments in Cross Border Supply (Mode 1) and Movement of Natural Persons (Mode 4). One of the areas of crucial interest to India is development of disciplines in Domestic Regulations involving qualifications and licensing requirements and procedures, without which Mode 4 access gets severely impeded.  The lack of a legal framework for international services trade is anomalous and dangerous—anomalous because the potential benefits of services liberalization are at least as great as in the goods sector, and dangerous because there was no legal basis on which to resolve conflicting national interests.

There is a concept that why services are not the part of GATS? As we are aware that services are intangible therefore, tariff can’t be imposed on them, and so they are not part of any trade negations. Countries regulate services by domestic regulations by non trade-specific legislation.  Services are the way in which a country takes a commitment keeping in mind their unique advantage and skill potential, so internal legislations governs the trade in services. In sovereign sense these legislations touches the health and safety regulations, investment regulations and immigrations restrictions– because trade in services has a human dimensions and a capital dimensions attached to it.

Today, compelled by pressures of a rapidly ageing population and the compulsions to remain competitive in a highly globalised world, developed countries are increasingly relying on the services of skilled professionals from developing countries like India. India’s rising share in the global export of commercial services and workers’ remittance is a testimony to this fact. According to one estimate, at any point of time, around five million Indians work abroad. Thus, with a demographic advantage and the large pool of skilled and low cost English speaking workforce, India can well provide the solution to the world's skills shortage problem. 

This dominant position in services has also helped us to generate a huge services trade surplus. This surplus from services trade has over the last decade or so helped to offset a major part of the deficit accruing from the merchandise side, and thereby helped in checking the current account deficit. 

However, to get a complete picture we also need to analyse India’s position in global exports of services. In the year 2008 India’s share in global exports of services was 2.7 percentage points and we ranked 9^th in the list of leading services exporters in the world. Thus, there is not only a need to consolidate and maintain our position but there is also a need to try and  capitalize on our inherent strengths in Services and move up in the share of world exports of commercial services.

India resource and size and its demographic profile, sets a strong stage for advantage in service sector which indeed is crucially linked to development. Times are changing fast and the world is looking forward to us to play an active role of a financial life boat in this globally turning economic paradigm.  A strong skilled work force and people to people partnership can take India to the position which has been due since long time.

Committee set up to strengthen ways to curb black money

The Government has constituted a committee under the chairmanship of the chief of Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) to examine ways for strengthening laws to curb generation of black money and prevent its transfer abroad, besides recovering such illegal assets. 
 

The committee will consult various stakeholders and submit its report within six months, a statement from the Finance Ministry said on May28.

It will be headed by chairman of central board of direct taxes, CBDT.

"The Government has constituted a committee under the chairmanship of Chairman, CBDT, to examine ways to strengthen laws to curb the generation of black money in the country, its illegal transfer abroad and its recovery," it said.

The committee will examine the existing legal and administrative framework to deal with generation of black money through illegal means.

Among the likely measures are to declare wealth generated illegally as national asset, enact or amend laws to allow confiscation and recovery of such assets and providing for exemplary punishment against its perpetrators.

Besides the CBDT Chairman, other members of the committee would include CBDT Member, Legislation and Computerisation (L&C), Director of the Enforcement Directorate, Director General of the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), Director General (Currency), CBDT Joint Secretary (FT&TR) and Financial Intelligence Unit - India (FIU-IND) Joint Secretary.

CBDT's Commissioner of Income Tax (CIT)(Investigation) would be the committee's Member Secretary

Govt panel recommends hike in grant for India Awas Yojna

A govt-appointed committee has recommended a hike in allocation of grants for construction of rural houses for Below Poverty Line category from Rs 45,000 to Rs 75,000 per dwelling unit.

The Banker's Committee on Rural Housing submitted its report to Rural Development Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh on recommending the hike in grant for the Indira Awas Yojana for the people living Below Poverty Line.

The committee also proposed a loan of Rs 50,000 to BPL families in form of affordable credit at four per cent under Differential Rate of Interest (DRI) scheme of the Centre.

One of the key recommendations of the committee is to extend the repayment period for the loans to 15 years.

It has viewed that since the loan is given for housing, the EMI may be limited to Rs 300-350 so that it is within the repayment capacity of the borrower.

Deshmukh said the recommendations of the expert committee would be examined by the ministry towards its commitment of providing affordable housing for the rural people across the country.

So far the benefits available under Indira Awas Yojana are grant of Rs 45,000 each for construction of new houses in plain areas and Rs 48,500 in hilly and difficult areas, while it is Rs 15,000 for upgradation of old houses.

The eight-member panel headed by R Sridhar, CMD of Central Bank Of India also recommended a group based lending approach for rural housing for giving better results and need for policy changes with regard to linking of repayment of rural housing loans to crop cycle.

The Bankers' Committee also suggested that a multi dimensional strategy with necessary risk safeguards is required to be adopted which will focus on effective collaboration and partnership with financial institutions and other successful channels including NGOs for evolving projects as 'community-managed and driven'.

The panel proposed setting up a dedicated "Rural Habitat Development Fund" for the planned development of rural housing and housing finance landscape.

It also recommended setting up a "Rural Risk Fund" with contributions from all stakeholders to encourage insurance-linked products with housing so as to reduce the cost of housing finance to various stakeholders.

The committee has also made certain recommendations for providing loans with subsidy and without subsidy to Above Poverty Line (APL) households, saying the loan amount without subsidy should be decided by the lending institution based on the credit worthiness of the borrower.

SELF HELP GROUPS

A small group (15 to 20 members), voluntarily formed and related by affinity for specific purpose, it is a group whose members use savings, credit and social involvement as instruments of empowerment.

he dictionary meaning of federation is "Association of autonomous bodies uniting for a common perceived benefits". "an association of autonomous bodies united for common perceived benefits" (FWWB, 1998).
A federation is an association of primary organizations.  Primary organizations may federate to realize economies of scale or to gain strength as an interest group. Federations of cooperatives have a long history. (Nair 2002).
A Cluster Level Federation is a network of several SHGs and a structure or body evolved by SHGs themselves consisting of representatives from all member SHGs, with a motive of supporting member-SHGs attain the goals of economic and social empowerment of women members and their capacity building.  (TNCDW, 1999)
In other words, it is an another forum for SHGs to step up development of women members taking advantage of collective effort of members SHGs, enabling a holistic and need based economic and social development. A SHG Federation is a democratic body formed with certain number of SHGs functioning in a specific geographical area with the objective of uniting such SHGs for common cause and for achieving these causes which an individual SHG would not be able to do. In short, the SHG Federation has to be necessarily of SHGs, by SHGs and for SHGs.

Objectives of Self Help Groups:
Experiences and literature shows that federations are set up with one or more of the following objectives:

• To get access to policy making bodies through political empowerment and social mobility
• To facilitate linkages between SHGs and banks/govt. agencies/local institutions
• To have better access to development information and marketing linkages
• To resolve any conflicts that may arise within member SHGs
• To assist in strengthening the performance of member SHGs
• To help in achieving sustainability of SHG
• To strengthen (through training, information dissemination, on-site support, etc) the capacity of member-SHGs in one or more of a variety of fields (bookkeeping, accounting, marketing, financial management, advocacy, bank-linkage, accessing government schemes, to name some)
• To provide credit, especially multiple credit lines
• To provide savings facilities, especially voluntary savings
• To undertake marketing of the produce of the members of the SHGs
• To provide life/loan insurance services
• To provide staff support to member-SHGs
• To write and/or audit the accounts of member-SHGs
• To review/regulate/supervise the functioning of member-SHGs
• To promote new SHGs
• To create the political/social space that women need to live their lives as fully as they desire to
• To be the window to the outside world, in replacement of the promoter organisation
• To undertake all that the external facilitator was undertaking, after its departure.

Microfinance

Microfinance:
Microfinance means providing very poor families with very small loans (microcredit) to help them engage in productive activities or grow their tiny businesses. Over time, microfinance has come to include a broader range of services (credit, savings, insurance, etc.) as we have come to realize that the poor and the very poor who lack access to traditional formal financial institutions require a variety of financial products.
Microcredit came to prominence in the 1980s, although early experiments date back 30 years in Bangladesh, Brazil and a few other countries. The important difference of microcredit was that it avoided the pitfalls of an earlier generation of targeted development lending, by insisting on repayment, by charging interest rates that could cover the costs of credit delivery, and by focusing on client groups whose alternative source of credit was the informal sector. Emphasis shifted from rapid disbursement of subsidized loans to prop up targeted sectors towards the building up of local, sustainable institutions to serve the poor. Microcredit has largely been a private (non-profit) sector initiative that avoided becoming overtly political, and as a consequence, has outperformed virtually all other forms of development lending.
Traditionally, microfinance was focused on providing a very standardized credit product. The poor, just like anyone else, need a diverse range of financial instruments to be able to build assets, stabilize consumption and protect themselves against risks. Thus, we see a broadening of the concept of microfinance--our current challenge is to find efficient and reliable ways of providing a richer menu of microfinance products.

 Micro Credit:

Micro Credit is defined as provision of thrift, credit and other financial services and products of very small amount to the poor in rural, semi-urban and urban areas for enabling them to raise their income levels and improve living standards. Micro Credit Institutions are those which provide these facilities.
Banks have been given freedom to formulate their own lending norms keeping in view ground realities. They have been asked to devise appropriate loan and savings products and the related terms and conditions including size of the loan, unit cost, unit size, maturity period, grace period, margins, etc. Such credit covers not only consumption and production loans for various farm and non-farm activities of the poor but also include their other credit needs such as housing and shelter improvements .

Difference between microfinance and microcredit:

Microfinance refers to loans, savings, insurance, transfer services and other financial products targeted at low-income clients. Microcredit refers to a small loan to a client made by a bank or other institution. Microcredit can be offered, often without collateral, to an individual or through group lending.

PRADHAN MANTRI GRAM SADAK YOJANA (PMGSY)

The Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) was launched on 25th December, 2000 as a fully funded Centrally Sponsored Scheme. The primary objective of the PMGSY is to provide all-weather road connectivity to all eligible unconnected habitations in the rural areas having population of 500 persons and above. In respect of Hill States (North-East, Sikkim, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Uttarakhand), Desert Areas (as identified in the Desert Development Programme) and Tribal (Schedule V) areas, habitations of population of 250 persons and above were considered eligible for providing all weather connectivity. It was estimated that about 1.68 lakh were eligible for coverage under the programme. It has been reported by State Governments that 31,804 eligible habitations have been connected under their own schemes or not feasible. Thus net eligible habitations required to be covered under the program are 1.36 lakh. The programme also provides for the upgradation of the existing Through Routes and important Link Routes to prescribed standards to ensure full farm-to-market connectivity.
Bharat Nirman
The President of India, in his address to Parliament on 25th February, 2005, announced a major business plan for rebuilding rural India called ‘Bharat Nirman’. Rural Roads have been identified as one of the six components of Bharat Nirman and a goal to provide connectivity to all the habitations of population of 1000 or more in the plain areas and of 500 or more in hilly or tribal areas in a time bound manner by 2012. The systematic upgradation of the existing rural road networks is also an integral part of the rural road component of the Bharat Nirman. Based on ground verification by States, 54,648 habitations were targeted to be connected under Bharat Nirman with a length of 1,46,185 km. It is also targeted to upgrade/renew 1,94,130 km roads in the rural areas.
Programme Objectives
The primary objective of the PMGSY is to provide Connectivity, by way of an All-weather Road (with necessary culverts and cross-drainage structures, which is operable throughout the year), to the eligible unconnected Habitations in the rural areas, in such a way that all Unconnected Habitations with a population of 1000 persons and above are covered in three years (2000-2003) and all Unconnected Habitations with a population of 500 persons and above by the end of the Tenth Plan Period (2007). In respect of the Hill States (North-East, Sikkim, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Uttaranchal) and the Desert Areas (as identified in the Desert Development Programme) as well as the Tribal (Schedule V) areas, the objective would be to connect Habitations with a population of 250 persons and above.

The PMGSY will permit the Upgradation (to prescribed standards) of the existing roads in those Districts where all the eligible Habitations of the designated population size  have been provided all-weather road connectivity. However, it must be noted that Upgradation is not central to the Programme and cannot exceed 20% of the State’s allocation as long as eligible Unconnected Habitations in the State still exist. In Upgradation works, priority should be given to Through Routes of the Rural Core Network, which carry more traffic.
Guiding Principles of PMGSY and Definitions
The spirit and the objective of the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) is to provide good all-weather road connectivity to unconnected Habitations. A habitation which was earlier provided all-weather connectivity would not be eligible even if the present condition of the road is bad. The unit for this Programme is a Habitation and not a Revenue village or a Panchayat. A Habitation is a cluster of population, living in an area, the location of which does not change over time. Desam, Dhanis, Tolas, Majras, Hamlets etc. are commonly used terminology to describe the Habitations. An Unconnected Habitation is one with a population of designated size located at a distance of at least 500 metres or more (1.5 km of path distance in case of Hills) from an Allweather road or a connected Habitation.

The population, as recorded in the Census 2001, shall be the basis for determining the population size of the Habitation. The population of all Habitations within a radius of 500 metres (1.5 km. of path distance in case of Hills) may be clubbed together for the purpose of determining the population size. This cluster approach would enable provision of connectivity to a larger number of Habitations, particularly in the Hill / mountainous areas. The eligible Unconnected Habitations are to be connected to nearby Habitations already connected by an All-weather road or to another existing All-weather road so that services (educational, health, marketing facilities etc.), which are not available in the unconnected Habitation, become available to the residents. A Core Network is that minimal Network of roads (routes)that is essential to provide Basic access to essential social and economic services to all eligible habitations in the selected areas through at least a single all-weather road connectivity. A Core Network comprises of Through Routes and Link Routes. Through routes are the ones which collect traffic from several link roads or a long chain of Habitations and lead it to Marketing centres either directly or through the higher category roads i.e., the District Roads or the State or National Highway. Link Routes are the roads connecting a single Habitation or a group of Habitations to Through Routes or District Roads leading to Market Centres. Link routes generally have dead ends terminating on a Habitation, while Through Routes arise from the confluence of two or more Link Routes and emerge on to a major Road or to a Market Centre. It should be ensured that each road work that is taken up under the PMGSY is part of the Core Network. While keeping the objective of Connectivity in view, preference should be given to those roads which also incidentally serve other Habitations. In other words, without compromising the basic objective (covering 1000+ Habitations first and 500+ Habitations next and 250+ Habitations where eligible, last), preference should be given to those roads which serve a larger population. For this purpose, while Habitations within a distance of 500 metres from the road is considered as connected in case of plain areas, this distance should be 1.5 km (of path length) in respect of Hills.

The PMGSY shall cover only the rural areas. Urban roads are excluded from the purview of this Programme. Even in the rural areas, PMGSY covers only the Rural Roads i.e., Roads that were formerly classified as ‘Other District Roads’ (ODR) and ‘Village Roads’ (VR). Other District Roads (ODR) are roads serving rural areas of production and providing them with outlet to market centres, taluka (tehsil) headquarters, Block headquarters or other main roads. Village Roads (VR) are roads connecting villages / Habitation or groups of
Habitation with each other and to the nearest road of a higher category. Major District Roads, State Highways and National Highways cannot be covered under the PMGSY, even if they happen to be in rural areas. This applies to New Connectivity roads as well as Upgradation works.

The PMGSY envisages only single road Connectivity to be provided. If a Habitation is already connected by way of an All-weather road, then no new work can be taken up under the PMGSY for that habitation. Provision of connectivity to unconnected Habitations would be termed as New Connectivity. Since the purpose of PMGSY inter alia is to provide farm to market access, new connectivity may involve ‘new construction’ where the link to the habitation is missing and additionally, if required, ‘upgradation’ where an intermediate link in its present condition cannot function as an all-weather road. Upgradation, when permitted would typically involve building the base and surface courses of an existing road to desired technical specifications and / or improving the geometrics of the road, as required in accordance with traffic condition. The primary focus of the PMGSY is to provide All-weather road connectivity to the eligible unconnected Habitations. An All-weather road is one which is negotiable in all seasons of the year. This implies that the road-bed is drained effectively (by adequate cross-drainage structures such as culverts, minor bridges and causeways), but this does not necessarily imply that it should be paved or surfaced or black-topped. Interruptions to traffic as per permitted frequency and duration may be allowed.

There may be roads which are Fair-weather roads. In other words, they are fordable only during the dry season, because of lack of Cross Drainage (CD) works. Conversion of such roads to All-weather roads through provision of CD works would be treated as upgradation. It must be noted that on all the road works of the PMGSY, provision of necessary CD works is considered an essential element PMGSY does not permit repairs to Black-topped or Cement Roads, even if the surface condition is bad. The Rural Roads constructed under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana will be in accordance with the provision of the Indian Roads Congress (IRC) as given in the Rural Roads Manual. In case of Hill Roads, for matters not covered by the Rural Roads Manual, provisions of Hills Roads Manual may apply.

SWARNJAYANTI GRAM SWAROZGAR YOJANA

The Swarnjayanti Gram Swarojgar Yojana (SGSY) is a major self employment scheme launched in April, 1999 after restructuring and combining the IRDP with allied programmes i.e. TRYSEM, DWCRA, SITRA, GKY, MWS. It has been designed as a holistic self employment scheme aimed at providing sustainable income to rural BPL families through income generating assets / economic activities so as to bring them out of the poverty line. It is a process oriented scheme involving processes like organization of the rural poor (BPL) into Self-Help Groups (SHGs) through social mobilization, capacity building & training, provision of revolving fund, making available credit and subsidy, technology, infrastructure & marketing. Each process has a bearing on the successive process. The SGSY is trying to achieve social mobilization through formation of member owned, member controlled and member managed institutions of the poor in the form of Self Help Groups (SHGs).
Salient Features
SGSY aims at bringing the assisted poor families (swarozgaries) above poverty line by providing them income generating – assets through a mix of bank credit and government subsidy.

The objective is achieved through organizing rural poor into Self - Help Groups (SHGs) at the grassroots level through the process of social mobilization. The process of social mobilization is followed by capacity building and training of rural poor.

The scheme is being implemented in the States through the District Rural Development Agencies (DRDAs) and funds are transferred by Ministry of Rural Development directly to the DRDAs with active involvement of Panchayati Raj Institutions(PRIs).

 Funds are allocated to the States on the basis of inter se poverty ratios fixed by the Planning Commission and further to the districts on the basis of their Below Poverty Line (BPL) population.

Selection key economic activities are based on available natural resources, occupational skills of the people and available markets. Cluster approach for taking up economic activities is emphasized.

 Emphasis is on provision of credit to the rural poor. Subsidy is just an enabling element and is linked to credit from banks.

Thrust is on empowerment of the vulnerable sections of the society, i.e. 50% for SC/STs, 40% for women, 15% for minorities and 3% for disabled persons.

Funds shared between Centre and State, except for north eastern states, on 75:25 basis. The ratio of sharing of funds between Centre and north eastern states including Sikkim is 90:10.

 NGOs can be involved for assisting in the formation of SHGs and their handholding for which the NGOs can be paid a remuneration of up to Rs. 10,000 per SHG in separate instalments.

The SHGs are taken through a grading process whereby they are graded as Grade I and Grade II based on certain criteria.

Financial assistance is provided to both SHGs and individuals under the scheme though more focus is on the groups than the individuals.

The beneficiaries are provided training and capacity building inputs to familiarize them with the basics of group dynamics and skill training is provided to make their micro enterprises sustainable and more productive.

Revolving Fund assistance is provided to the SHGs for augmenting their group corpus and the banks are expected to give a cash credit limit to the SHGs equal to four times their group corpus.

Subsidy under the SGSY is given at the uniform rate of at 30% of the project cost, subject to a maximum of Rs.7500. In respect of SC/STs and disabled however, these will be 50% and Rs.10,000/ respectively. For Groups of Swarozgaris (SHGs), the subsidy would be at 50% of the cost of the scheme or per capita subsidy of Rs.10,000/- or Rs.1.25 lakh, whichever is less. There will be no monetary limit on subsidy for irrigation projects. Subsidy is back ended. The SGSY seeks to promote multiple credits rather than a one – time credit injection.

20 percent of the allocation at the district level has been earmarked for meeting expenditure critical gaps in infrastructure creation required supporting the livelihood activities of the rural poor.

 Provision is also made for taking care of all aspects of marketing including marketing intelligence, backward and forward linkages and creation of marketing infrastructure.

15% outlay under SGSY is set apart for Special Projects to field test and validate alternative strategies for livelihood opportunities and enhancement of livelihood support for rural poor.

Each Special Project is expected to execute a time-bound programme for bringing a specific number of BPL families above the poverty line through a projectised approach with the funding requirement to be shared between centre and state, except for north eastern states, in the ratio of 75:25. The ratio of sharing of funds between Centre and north eastern states including Sikkim is 90:10.

Regional Rural Banks in India

Regional Rural Banks in India are an integral part of the rural credit structure of the country. Since the very beginning, when the Regional Rural Banks in India (RRBs) were established in October 2, 1975, these banks played a pivotal role in the economic development of the rural India. The main goal of establishing regional rural banks in India was to provide credit to the rural people who are not economically strong enough, especially the small and marginal farmers, artisans, agricultural labours, and even small entrepreneurs.


The Conception and the Brief history

The history of regional rural banks in India dates back to the year 1975. It's the Narsimham committee that conceptualized the foundation of regional rural banks in India. The committee felt the need of 'regionally oriented rural banks' that would address the problems and requirements of the rural people with local feel, yet with the same level of professionalism of commercial banks. Five regional rural banks were set up on October 2 with a total authorized capital of ` 1 crore, which later augmented to ` 5 crore. There were five commercial banks, viz. Punjab National Bank, State Bank of India, Syndicate Bank, United Bank of India and United Commercial Bank, which sponsored the regional rural banks. The equities of rural banks were divided in a proportion of 50:35:15 among the Central Government, the Sponsor bank and the concerned State Government.

The following years have not been so easy for the regional rural banks in India, as there were major concern of financial viability. A number of committees were formed to find out solution. Studies were conducted to find out the factors that influence RRBs performance. The roles played by the sponsor banks were also analyzed.

List of Regional Rural Banks in India

There are a number of regional rural banks in India. Following are the state-wise list of Indian regional rural banks.

Andhra Pradesh

• Andhra Pradesh Grameena Vikas Bank
• Andhra Pragathi Grameena Bank
• Deccan Grameena Bank
• Chaitanya Godavari Grameena Bank
• Saptagiri Grameena Bank
• Pinakini Grameena Bank

Arunachal Pradesh

• Arunachal Pradesh Rural Bank

Assam

• Assam Gramin Vikash Bank
• Langpi Dehangi Rural Bank

Bihar

• Madhya Bihar Gramin Bank
• Bihar Kshetriya Gramin Bank
• Uttar Bihar Kshetriya Gramin Bank
• Kosi Kshetriya Gramin Bank
• Samastipur Kshetriya Gramin Bank

Chhattisgarh

• Chhattisgarh Gramin Bank
• Surguja Kshetriya Gramin Bank
• Durg-Rajnandgaon Gramin Bank

Gujarat

• Dena Gujarat Gramin Bank
• Baroda Gujarat Gramin Bank
• Saurashtra Gramin Bank

Haryana

• Harayana Gramin Bank
• Gurgaon Gramin Bank

Himachal Pradesh

• Himachal Gramin Bank
• Parvatiya Gramin Bank

Jammu & Kashmir

• Jammu Rural Bank
• Ellaquai Dehati Bank
• Kamraz Rural Bank

Jharkhand

• Jharkhand Gramin Bank
• Vananchal Gramin Bank

Karnataka

• Karnataka Vikas Grameena Bank
• Pragathi Gramin Bank
• Cauvery Kalpatharu Grameena Bank
• Krishna Grameena Bank
• Chimagalur-Kodagu Grameena Bank
• Visveshvaraya Gramin Bank

Kerala

• Narmada Malwa Gramin Bank
• North Malabar Gramin Bank

Madhya Pradesh

• Narmada Malwa Gramin Bank
• Satpura Kshetriya Gramin Bank
• Madhya Bharath Gramin Bank
• Chambal-Gwalior Kshetriya Gramin Bank
• Rewa-Sidhi Gramin Bank
• Sharda Gramin Bank
• Ratlam-Mandsaur Kshetriya Gramin Bank
• Vidisha Bhopal Kshetriya Gramin Bank
• Mahakaushal Kshetriya Gramin Bank
• Jhabua Dhar Kshetriya Gramin Bank

Maharashtra

• Marathwada Gramin Bank
• Aurangabad-Jalna Gramin Bank
• Wainganga Kshetriya Gramin Bank
• Vidharbha Kshetriya Gramin Bank
• Solapur Gramin Bank
• Thane Gramin Bank
• Ratnagiri-Sindhudurg Gramin Bank

Manipur

• Manipur Rural Bank

Meghalaya

• Ka Bank Nogkyndong Ri Khasi-Jaintia

Mizoram

• Mizoram Rural Bank

Nagaland

• Nagaland Rural Bank

Orissa

• Kalinga Gramya Bank
• Utkal Gramya Bank
• Baitarani Gramya Bank
• Neelachal Gramya Bank
• Rushikulya Gramya Bank

Punjab

• Punjab Gramin Bank
• Faridkot-Bhatinda Kshetriya Gramin Bank
• Malwa Gramin Bank

Rajasthan

• Baroda Rajasthan Gramin Bank
• Marwar Ganganagar Bikaner Gramin Bank
• Rajasthan Gramin Bank
• Jaipur Thar Gramin Bank
• Hodoti Kshetriya Gramin Bank
• Mewar Anchalik Gramin Bank

Tamil Nadu

• Pandyan Grama Bank
• Pallavan Grama Bank

Tripura

• Tripura Gramin Bank

Uttar Pradesh

• Purvanchal Gramin Bank
• Kashi Gomti Samyut Gramin Bank
• Uttar Pradesh Gramin Bank
• Shreyas Gramin Bank
• Lucknow Kshetriya Gramin Bank
• Ballia Kshetriya Gramin Bank
• Triveni Kshetriya Gramin Bank
• Aryavart Gramin Bank
• Kisan Gramin Bank
• Kshetriya Kisan Gramin Bank
• Etawah Kshetriya Gramin Bank
• Rani Laxmi Bai Kshetriya Gramin Bank
• Baroda Western Uttar Pradesh Gramin Bank
• Devipatan Kshetriya Gramin Bank
• Prathama Bank
• Baroda Eastern Uttar Pradesh Gramin Bank

Uttaranchal

• Uttaranchal Gramin Bank
• Nainital Almora Kshetriya Gramin Bank

West Bengal

• Bangiya Gramin Vikash Bank
• Paschim Banga Gramin Bank
• Uttar Banga Kshetriya Gramin Bank

Bharat Nirman

The Bharat Nirman Plan is a project undertaken by the Central Government of India in collaboration with the State Governments of the particular state and the Panchayat Raj Institutions of the particular rural area of that state. The project Bharat Nirman Plan is time confined and the main purpose of the project is the development of the rural infrastructure. The Bharat Nirman Plan has the objective of the all round development of the rural areas such as development of roads and systems of transportation under Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana, development of irrigation facilities, development of telecommunication, development of the rural water supply, construction of rural housing under Indira Awaas Yojana, etc.

Bharat Nirman Plan - Development of rural roads

The development of the rural transport infrastructure is an important factor for the growth of the rural business and economy. The project falls under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana and it is one of the major projects in the country. The total cost of the rural road project is about ` 1,74,000 crores and the main objective of this project is to promote the growth of the rural areas by the means of facilitating the provision of proper transportation facilities. The project covers all villages with population more than 1000 and hilly areas with population more than 500.

Bharat Nirman Plan - Telecommunication

The development of the telephone sector in the rural areas is an important factor for the growth of the rural business and economy. The project would also provide to the up gradation of the rural infrastructure. The project covers nearly 66,822 revenue-generating villages in India and all these villages would be provided with the Village Public Telephone (VPT) scheme. The telecommunication services in the remote villages would be provided by the means of digital satellite phone terminals. The Universal Services Obligation Fund (USOF) would provide with the financial assistance in form of the working cost and capital for the establishment of the village public telephone.

Bharat Nirman Plan - Rural Water Supply

The supply of drinking water is one of the most important infrastructures in the Bharat Nirman Plan. The availability of drinking water is one of the key factors in the sustenance of life. Proper supply of drinking water would bring down the diseases rate in the rural areas as in India most of the diseases are water borne. The lack of proper drinking water forces the rural populace to depend on the ponds, lakes, rivers, tube wells, wells and these water sources are highly contaminated due to certain agents of water pollution. The main responsibility of facilitating the provision of safe drinking water supply lies with the State Governments. The State Governments with the financial assistance of the Central Government of India has implemented the project called Centrally Sponsored Scheme of Accelerated Rural Water Supply Programme (ARWSP).

Bharat Nirman Plan - Rural Housing

Housing and shelter is one of the basic needs of an individual. To the rural folks house carries a great importance, as it is the sign of dignified and secured life. The project aims at providing houses for every individual in the rural areas. Under the plan Indira Awaas Yojana nearly 60 lakh houses would be constructed in the rural sector by the government of India.

Bharat Nirman Plan - Electricity

The provision of electricity is another important factor for the growth of the rural areas. Under the Rajiv Gandhi Gramin Vidyutikaran Yojana, the Ministry of Power would provide more than 1,25,000 villages with electricity. This project would also cover 230 lakh households more for the provision of electricity.

Bharat Nirman Plan - Irrigation

Irrigation is one of the major growth contributors to the Indian economy. As India is an agro based economy irrigation plays an important part in the development of agriculture. Under the Bharat Nirman Plan most of the under irrigated rural areas would have irrigation facilities by the means of extension of inundation canals, renovation, ground water development, and different water management procedures.

Rural Development in India

The Rural Development in India is one of the most important factors for the growth of the Indian economy. India is primarily an agriculture-based country. Agriculture contributes nearly one-fifth of the gross domestic product in India. In order to increase the growth of agriculture, the Government has planned several programs pertaining to Rural Development in India.


The Ministry of Rural Development in India is the apex body for formulating policies, regulations and acts pertaining to the development of the rural sector. Agriculture, handicrafts, fisheries, poultry, and diary are the primary contributors to the rural business and economy.

The introduction of Bharat Nirman, a project set about by the Government of India in collaboration with the State Governments and the Panchayat Raj Institutions is a major step towards the improvement of the rural sector. The National Rural Employment Guarantee Act 2005 was introduced by the Ministry of Rural Development, for improving the living conditions and its sustenance in the rural sector of India.

Rural Development in India-Schemes

• Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY): This is a scheme launched and fully sponsored by the Central Government of India. The main objective of the scheme is to connect all the habitations with more than 500 individuals residing there, in the rural areas by the means of weatherproof paved roads.
  
  
• Swarnjayanti Gram Swarozgar Yojana (SGSY): This was implemented as a total package with all the characteristics of self employment such as proper training, development of infrastructure, planning of activities, financial aid, credit from banks, organizing self help groups, and subsidies.
  
  
• Sampoorna Gramin Rozgar Yojana (SGRY): This scheme aims at increasing the food protection by the means of wage employment in the rural areas which are affected by the calamities after the appraisal of the state government and the appraisal is accepted by the Ministry of Agriculture.
  
  
• Indira Awaas Yojana (Rural Housing): This scheme puts emphasis on providing housing benefits all over the rural areas in the country.

Rural Development in India-Organizations

• Department of Rural Development in India: This department provides services such as training and research facilities, human resource development, functional assistance to the DRDA, oversees the execution of projects and schemes.
  
  
• Haryana State Cooperative Apex Bank Limited: The main purpose of the Haryana State Cooperative Apex Bank Limited is to financially assist the artisans in the rural areas, farmers and agrarian unskilled labor, small and big rural entrepreneurs of Haryana.
  
  
• National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development: The main purpose of the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development is to provide credit for the development of handicrafts, agriculture, small scaled industries, village industries, rural crafts, cottage industries, and other related economic operations in the rural sector.
  
  
• Sindhanur Urban Souharda Co-operative Bank: The main purpose of the Sindhanur Urban Souharda Co-operative Bank is to provide financial support to the rural sector.
  
  
• Rural Business Hubs (RBH): RBH was set up with the purpose of developing agriculture. The Rural Business Hubs Core Groups helps in the smooth functioning of the Rural Business Hubs.
  
  
• Council for Advancement of People's Action and Rural Technology (CAPART): The main purpose of this organization is to promote and organize the joint venture, which is emerging between the Government of India and the voluntary organizations pertaining to the development of the rural sector.

OECD pegs India’s growth at 8.5% in 2011-12

The OECD on May 25 pegged India’s growth at 8.5 per cent for the current fiscal, indicating that economic expansion would be slower.

The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development has projected the Indian economy to expand 8.5 per cent in 2011-12, much lower than the growth of 9.6 per cent witnessed in 2010-11 financial year.

Recently, Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee had said the Indian economy is expected to grow 8 per cent in 2011-12, which is lower than budgetary estimate of 9 per cent growth.

The Reserve Bank of India has pegged the GDP growth at 8 per cent, citing high oil prices among other things as the reason for this moderation.

The OECD said in 2012-13, the economy is projected to expand 8.6 per cent.

The OECD, a grouping of 34 developed and developing nations, noted that India’s growth slowed to a more sustainable pace towards the end of 2010, after strong post-crisis rebound driven by a surge in private investment.

“Going forward, growth will pick up somewhat, underpinned by buoyant corporate sentiment and demand for infrastructure spending,” the think-tank said.

Pointing out that inflationary pressures have become more generalised due to rising non-food prices, the OECD said that liberalisation of FDI in retail sector would help in easing pressures of food inflation.

“... Liberalisation of foreign direct investment in the retail sector would promote competition and help modernise supply chains, thereby reducing food inflation pressures,” it added.

Food inflation, which was in double digits for most of 2010, stood at 7.47 per cent for the week ended May 7.

Meanwhile, headline inflation has been above 8 per cent since January last year and touched 8.66 per cent in April 2011.

The government is likely to take a decision soon on FDI in multi-brand retail. Presently, FDI is allowed only in single brand retail, which is capped at 51 per cent.

“The recent increase in world oil prices has been passed through into domestic petroleum product prices only to a limited extent and higher energy subsidy outlays are likely in 2011,” the OECD said.

Revenue Secretary Sunil Mitra said  that “inflation can affect domestic demand and thereby adversely affect GDP growth... and consequently our tax collection”.

“A renewed commitment to reducing subsidies is needed to lower the burden on public finances. Efforts to better target subsidies on the needy ought to be stepped up,” the OECD added.

Constitution of Working Group on “Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises Growth”

The first meeting of Working Group on “Micro, Small & Medium Enterprises Growth “ for the Twelfth Five Year Plan (2012-2017) was held New Delhi at May 25 under the Chairmanship of Secretary MSME, Uday Kumar Varma.

A number of sub-groups on vital areas of MSME growth like Credit and Institutional Finance, Skill Development, Technology & Innovation, Marketing & Procurement, Infrastructure, KVIC, Coir Board, Special Packages & Groups and Emerging Technology etc. were formed.

The members of the Working Group which represented the Government Departments, State Departments, Industrial Associations and Financial Institutions attended the meeting. They also suggested that sub-groups may be formed on Informal Sector, Environment Sustainability etc.

The terms of Reference of the Working Group would be as under:

1. Taking the report of PM’s Task Force on MSME sector, as the basis, to evaluate the progress of the sector in terms of overall growth, potential for job creation and as a vehicle for innovation.

2. To review the implementation of measures recommended by the PM’s Task Force and other schemes of the sector and suggest corrective measures, if any.

3. To articulate the problems of small & micro enterprises in the unorganized sector and suggest measures for improving their productivity, quality of products, easy access to credit, technology up-gradation/adoption etc.

4. To specify the milestone to be achieved within the12th Plan period.

5. To suggest/recommend programmes/schemes those are to be terminated in the11th Plan or initiated or continued in the12th Plan period, together with the broad budgetary implications, if any.

6. To make any other recommendations as may be appropriate for sustained growth and competitiveness of the sector.

7. The Working Group would submit the report by 30th August, 2011.

CENSUS 2011 MCQs

1. The first census was conducted in India in?
a) 1872
b) 1881
c) 1891
d) 1901
e) None of these

2. At Present Registrar General and Census Commissioner of India?
a) P.Chidambaram
b) G.K.Pillai
c) C.Chandramouli
d) G.E.Vahanvati
e) None of these

3. Second most populous country in the world?
a) China
b) India
c) USA
d) Indonesia
e) Brazil

4. The population of India, as per provisional population data of Census 2011?
a) 121,01,93,422
b) 623,724,248
c) 586,469,174
d) 102,87,37,436
e) None of these

5. Most populous state in India?
a) Uttar Pradesh
b) Maharashtra
c) Bihar
d) West Bengal
e) Andhra Pradesh

6. Least populous state?
a) Sikkim
b) Mizoram
c) Arunachal Pradesh
d) Goa
e) Nagaland

7. Most populous Union Territory?
a) Delhi
b) Puducherry
c) Chandigarh
d) Andaman & Nicobar Islands
e) Dadra & Nagar Haveli

8. Least populous Union Terri-tory?
a) Lakshadweep
b)Daman & Diu
c)Dadra & Nagar Haveli
d)Andaman & Nicobar Islands
e) Chandigarh

9. The population of India has increased by more than ……… million during the decade 2001-11?
a) 171
b) 181
c) 191
d) 201
e) None of these

10. Density of population is defi-ned as the number of persons per square ?
a) Millimetre
b) Centimetre
c) Decimetre
d) Kilometre
e) None of these

11. As per provisional population data of Census 2011, the population density of India?
a) 325
b) 382
c) 482
d) 582
e) None of these

12. Which of the following pairings is wrong (state & Pop-ulation Density)?
a) Bihar - 1102
b) West Bengal - 1029
c) Kerala - 859
d) Uttar Pradesh - 828
e) Haryana - 555

13. As per provisional population data of Census 2011, the popul-ation density of Andhra Pradesh?
a) 277
b) 308
c) 408
d) 508
e) None of these

14. Which state has become the most densely populated state with 1102 persons per square kilometer?
a) Bihar
b) West Bengal
c) Kerala
d) Uttar Pradesh
e) None of these

15. Which state has least densely populated state with 17 persons per square kilometer?
a) Arunachal Pradesh
b) Mizoram
c) Sikkim
d) Nagaland
e) None of these

16. As per provisional population data of Census 2011, India's Sex Ratio is ?
a) 933
b) 940
c) 1084
d) 877
e) 992

17. Which state has the highest sex ratio?
a) Kerala
b) Haryana
c) Andhra Pradesh
d) Punjab
e) None of these

18. Which state has the lowest sex ratio?
a) Haryana
b) Kerala
c) Tamil Nadu
d) Maharashtra
e) None of these

19. As per provisional population data of Census 2011, India's Literacy Rate?
a) 64.83%
b) 74.04%
c) 93.91%
d) 63.82%
e) 67.66%

20. Which state has the highest Literacy Rate with 93.91%?
a) Kerala
b) Bihar
c) Uttar Pradesh
d)Sikkim
e) None of these

21. Which state has the Lowest Literacy Rate with 63.82%?
a) Orissa
b) Jharkhand
c) Bihar
d) Kerala
e) None of these

22. As per provisional population data of Census 2011, Popula-tion growth rate for the period (2001-11)?
a) 21.65%
b) 17.64%
c) 18.12%
d) 17.19%
e) None of these

23. As per provisional population data of Census 2011, Andhra Pradesh Population?
a) 19,95,81,477
b) 11,23,72,972
c) 103,804,637
d) 9,13,47,736
e) 8,46,65,533

24. As per provisional population data of Census 2011, Andhra Pradesh density of population?
a) 382
b) 1102
c) 17
d) 308
e) None of these

25. As per provisional population data of Census 2011, Andhra Pradesh Sex Ratio?
a) 940
b) 1084
c) 877
d) 992
e) None of these

26. As per provisional population data of Census 2011, Andhra Pradesh Literacy Ratio?
a) 74.04%
b) 82.14%
c) 65.46%
d) 67.66%
e) None of these

27. As per provisional population data of Census 2011, Andhra Pradesh Population growth rate for the period (2001-11)?
a) 17.64%
b) 11.10%
c) 12.10%
d) 13.10%
e) None of these

28 Consider the following statem-ents (As per provisional popul-ation data of Census 2011)?
A. Uttar Pradesh is the state with highest population.
B. Sikkim is the state with Least population.
C. West Bengal is the state with highest density of population with 1102 persons per square kilometer.
D. Arunachal Pradesh is the state with least density of popul-ation with 17 persons per square kilometer.
E. India's population is 121,01,93,422.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
a) A and B Only
b) B and C only
c) C and D only
d) D and E only
e) A,B,D & E only

29. Consider the following statem-ents (As per provisional popul-ation data of Census 2011)?
A. India's Literacy rate is 74.04%.
B. India's Males literacy rate is 82.14%.
C. India's Female literacy rate is 65.46%.
D. Kerala state has the highest Literacy Rate with 93.91%.
E. Orissa state has the Lowest Literacy Rate with 63.82%.
Which of the statements given above is/are incorrect?
a) A only
b) B only
c) C only
d) D only
e) E only

30. Which of the following pairings is wrong (State & Sex Ratio)?
a) Kerala - 1084
b) Andhra Pradesh - 992
c) Delhi - 866
d) Haryana - 893
e) Tamil Nadu - 995

ANSWERS:

1) a 2) c 3) b 4) a 5) a 6) a 7) a 8) a 9) b 10) d 11) b 12) e 13) b 14) a 15) a 16) b 17)a 18) a 19)b 20) a 21) c 22) b 23)e 24) d 25) d 26) d 27) b 28) e 29) e 30) d