Headlines at a Glance – 8th August 2020

Conclave on Transformational Reforms in Higher Education under NEP held

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday gave the inaugural address at the Conclave on Transformational Reforms in Higher Education under National Education Policy. The conclave has been organized by the Ministry of Education along with the University Grants Commission (UGC). The Prime Minister joined the conclave through video-conferencing. Throwing light on various aspects of the new education policy, the Prime Minister urged all to work towards implementation of new national education policy. Union Human Resource Development Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal and Union Minister of State for Communications Sanjay Dhotre participated in the event along with a number of dignitaries, including, Chairman and Members, Committee for Draft NEP as well as eminent academicians/scientists. PM Modi in his inaugural address said, “Today the new education policy is widely discussed across the country. People from different fields, ideologies are giving their views and reviewing the policy. This is a healthy debate that will benefit the country’s education system. National Education Policy has been approved after a long brainstorming session with millions of suggestions and after 3-4 years of extensive deliberations.”

SOURCE: Hindustan Times

G.C. Murmu appointed Comptroller and Auditor General of India

Girish Chandra Murmu was named as the next Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) on Thursday, a day after he resigned as the Lieutenant Governor of Jammu and Kashmir. Rajiv Mehrishi, the current CAG, completes his term on Friday.

A former IAS officer of the Gujarat cadre, Murmu had taken charge as J&K L-G on October 25 last year, a month before his retirement as Expenditure Secretary in the Finance Ministry. Murmu had first moved to the Centre as Joint Secretary in the Expenditure Department in April 2015, moving on to become Additional Secretary. Between June 2016 and December 2017, he had served as Additional Secretary in the Department of Financial Services, and was involved in the implementation of the Indradhanush plan for public sector banks. Murmu then worked in the Revenue Department as Additional Secretary, becoming Special Secretary in May 2018. In March 2019, he was appointed as Secretary, Department of Expenditure.

SOURCE: The New Indian Express

1st ‘Kisan Rail’ train flagged off from Deolali in Nashik to Danapur in Bihar

Railway Minister Piyush Goyal and Union Agricultural Minister Narendra Singh Tomar on Friday flagged off India’s first “Kisan Rail” from Deolali in Maharashtra’s Nashik at 11 am on Friday for Danapur in Bihar’s capital Patna via video conferencing. The train, which will run on a weekly basis with an initial composition of 10 +1 VPs will reach Danapur at 6:45 pm on Saturday after covering the journey of 1,519 kilometres in over 31 hours.”Kisan Rail was announced in the budget. Agriculture produces the best possible distribution and returns. Indian farmers have proved that they would never be deterred by any calamity or challenge. Kisan Rail will ensure that agri products reach from one corner to another corner of the country,” he said. Kisan Rail will be a game changer in ensuring a fast transportation of agriculture produce across the nation, he said. The minister praised Indian Railways for maintenance of foodgrains supply chain during covid times.The chargeable rates for major pair of stations are as under Freight per Tonne from Nasik Road/Deolali to Danapur is Rs 4,001, from Manmad to Danapur is Rs 3,849, from Jalgaon to Danapur Rs 3,513, from Bhusawal to Danapur is Rs 3,459, from Burhanpur to Danapur Rs 3,323 and from Khandwa to Danapur is Rs 3,148.

Indian Railways aims to help double farmers’ income with the launch of Kisan Rail.

SOURCE: The Hindu

RBI provides additional liquidity of Rs 5,000 cr each for NABARD, NHB

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Thursday announced additional special liquidity facility of 5,000 crore each for the National Housing Bank (NHB) and the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) at the policy repo rate of 4 per cent.In the case of NHB, the central bank said the 5,000 crore facility is being provided to shield the housing sector from liquidity disruptions and augment the flow of finance to the sector through housing finance companies (HFCs). The RBI expects the 5,000-crore facility for NABARD to ameliorate the stress being faced by smaller non-bank finance companies (NBFCs) and micro-finance institutions in obtaining access to liquidity.

The RBI had earlier announced refinancing of 25,000 crore to NABARD and 10,000 crore to NHB on April 17 as they were facing difficulties in raising resources in view of tightening financial conditions amid the pandemic.

SOURCE: Business Standard

PM SVANidhi Scheme: Letter of Recommendation module launched

Housing and Urban Affairs Secretary Durga Shanker Mishra today launched a Letter of Recommendation module for PM SVANidhi Scheme. The module is designed to give access to street vendors who do not have Identity Card and Certificate of Vending and are not in the surveyed list for availing benefits under the scheme. The module provides for an end to end,  digitally enabled process wherein an eligible vendor can request for a Letter of Recommendation from the Urban Local Body and on receipt of the same he can apply for loan under PM SVANidhi. The vendors possessing Letter of Recommendation shall be issued Certificate of Vending or ID Card within a period of 30 days. This provision will help in extending reach of the Scheme to the people who were hitherto unable to avail these benefits.

SOURCE: Economic Times