Book by BestCurrentAffairs.com for IAS Prelims 2020
RURAL DEVELOPMENT
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The Ministry was again renamed as the Ministry of Rural Development in 1999 with three departments viz., Department of Rural Development, Department of Land Resources and Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation. The Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation was made a separate Ministry from July 2011. Presently, the Ministry of Rural Development consists of two departments, namely, Department of Rural Development and Department of Land Resources. The major programmes being operated by the Ministry of Rural Development are: Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) for providing wage employment; National Rural Livelihoods Mission (NRLM) for self employment and skill development; Housing for All: Pradhan Mantri Awaas Yojana - Grameen (PMAY-G) for providing housing to BPL households; Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) for construction of quality roads; National Social Assistance Programme (NSAP) for social pension; Shyama Prasad Mukherjee RURBAN Mission; Integrated Watershed Management Programme (IWMP) for improving the productivity of the land. Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA): The objectives of the scheme are: providing upto 100 days of unskilled manual work in a financial year to every household in rural areas as per demand resulting in creation of productive assets. To streamline the fund flow mechanism and bring down delay in payment of wages, the Ministry of Rural Development has implemented National Electronic Fund Management System (NeFMS) in 21 states and 1 union territory. National Rural Livelihoods Mission, renamed as Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana—National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM) was launched in 2011. It seeks to reach out to 8-9 crore rural poor households and organize one woman member from each household into affinity based women SHGs and federations at village level and at higher levels. While doing so, DAY-NRLM ensures adequate coverage of vulnerable sections of the society such that 50 per cent of the beneficiaries are members of the scheduled castes and scheduled tribes, 15 per cent from minority groups and 3 per cent from persons with disability, while keeping in view the overall target of 100 per cent coverage of the rural poor households identified through Socio Economic and Caste Census (SECC) and through participatory processes of identification of poor households and approved by Gram Sabha. Community Investment Support Fund is routed to SHGs through federations (primary and secondary level) to support development of suitable livelihoods of members and to initiate collective activities, wherever feasible. A part of the CIF is provided as Vulnerability Reduction Fund (VRF) for supporting the inclusion of very poor communities and making credit accessible to them with or without interest. National Special Fund Support for Convergence under DAY-NRLP was provided to help states mainstream convergence as an effective method to reduce poverty and empower rural poor. Mahila Kisan Sashaktikaran Pariyojana (MKSP): MKSP is a sub-component of NRLM to meet the specific needs of women farmers and achieve socio-economic and technical empowerment of the rural women farmers, predominantly small and marginal farmers. Aajeevika Grameen Express Yojana: The Government of India has introduced a new sub-scheme under Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana- National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM) entitled “Aajeevika Grameen Express Yojana” (AGEY) from the financial year 2017-18. It has been decided to set up one Rural Self Employment Training Institute (RSETI) in each district of the country. RSETIs are bank lead initiative with the active support of state government. Government of India, as the part of poverty reduction strategy, launched the Pradhan Mantri Gram SadakYojana (PMGSY) 2000 as a centrally sponsored scheme to assist the states, though rural roads are in the State List under the Constitution. The primary objective of Scheme 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 as per core-network with a population of 500 persons (as per 2001 census) and above in plain areas. In respect of ‘Special Category States’ (North- East, Sikkim, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir and Uttarakhand), the desert areas, the tribal (Schedule V) areas and 88 selected tribal and backward districts, the objective is to connect eligible unconnected habitations as per Core-Network with a population of 250 persons and above (census 2001). The rural housing scheme Indira Awaas Yojana (IAY) implemented by Ministry of Rural Development, aimed at providing houses to families below the poverty line (BPL) in rural areas has since inception provided assistance for construction of 360 lakh houses.
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In 1952, an organization known as Community Projects Administration was set up under the Planning Commission to administer the programmes relating to community development. The Community Development Programme, inaugurated in 1952, was an important landmark in the history of rural development. This programme underwent many changes and was handled by different ministries. In October, 1974, the Department of Rural Development came into existence as a part of Ministry of Food and Agriculture. In August, 1979, this Department was elevated to the status of a new Ministry of Rural Reconstruction. That ministry was renamed as Ministry of Rural Development and again converted into a Department under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development. It was later rechristened as Ministry of Agriculture in September, 1985. In 1991 the Department was upgraded as Ministry of Rural Development. Another Department viz., Department of Wasteland Development was created under this ministry in 1992.
India Year Book 2020 Synopsis
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