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Scientific and Technological Developments
INDIA has a long and distinguished tradition in science and technology since the ancient times and great achievements during the twentieth century. At the time of independence, our scientific and technological infrastructure was neither strong nor organised as compared to the developed world. This had resulted in our being technologically dependent on the skills and expertise available in other countries. In the past four decades, an infrastructure and capability largely commensurate with meeting national needs has been created minimising our dependence on other countries. A range of industries from small to the most sophisticated has been established covering a wide range of utilities, services and goods. There is now a reservoir of expertise well acquainted with the most modern advances in basic and applied areas that is equipped to make choices between available technologies, to absorb readily new technologies and provide a framework for future national development. Science and Technology Infrastructure : Scientific and technological activities in India are carried out under a wide set-up consisting of Central Government, State Governments, higher educational sector, public and private sector industry and non-profit institutions/associations. These institutional structures, with their research laboratories, are the main contributors to research and development being carried out in the country. Notable among these are: the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR); Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR); and Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR). In addition, there are many laboratories of various departments/ministries, viz. Department of Atomic Energy, Department of Electronics, Department of Space, Department of Ocean Development, Defence Research and Development Organisation, Ministry of Environment and Forests, Ministry of Non-Conventional Energy Sources and the Ministry of Science and Technology. Further, there are over 1,200 in-house research and development units in industrial undertakings supporting research in their respective industries. Many Indian Universities and Deemed Universities such as IITs also undertake substantial research and development work. New Science and Technology Policy 2003 : In order to build a blue print for future programmes of Science and Technology and to give a direction to the initiatives to be undertaken, the Government announced the Science & Technology Policy 2003. The policy outlines the approach to S & T governance, optimal utilisation of existing physical and knowledge resources, development of innovative technologies, systems and technologies for mitigation and management of natural hazards, generation and management of intellectual property and creation of awareness amongst general masses about the use and benefits of science and technology. DEPARTMENT OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY The Department of Science and Technology was set up in May 1971 with the objective of promoting research in new areas and to play the role of a nodal department for organising, co-ordinating and promoting science and technology activities in the country. Over the years, the Department has evolved policy statements and
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guidelines, provided me chanisms for co-ordination in the areas of science and technology in which a number of institutions have interests and capabilities, supported grants-in-aid to scientific institutions and professional bodies. The Department has played a catalytic and co-ordinating role and in this process over the past few years, the efforts at promoting science and technology in the States and Union Territories have also gathered considerable momentum. RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMMES The Department of Science and Technology has been playing a crucial role in identifying and promoting front-line and priority areas on Research and Development (R&D) in various disciplines of science and engineering. This support is provided through Science and Engineering Research Council (SERC) - an advisory body consisting of eminent scientists and technologists drawn from academic institutions like IITs, universities, national laboratories and industry. The Council through its advisory committees, assists the Department not only in peer reviewing the proposals but also identifies newer and inter-disciplinary areas of R&D for concerted efforts. The Council, with the help of the advisory committees, also monitors progress of individual projects sponsored in various disciplines along with monitoring the progress of co-ordinated and concerted efforts. Every year around 1,000 project proposals are received for consideration in the Department, most of which fall in the category of basic sciences and engineering research. Assessing the importance of the emerging, highly interdisciplinary field of Nanoscience and Technology, a national programme titled “Nanomaterials Science and Technology Initiative (NSTI)” has been started. The programme focuses at overall research and development in nanoscience and technology with vigour so that India can become a significant player in the area and contribute to the development of new technologies. On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of India’s Independence, the Government launched Swarnajayanti Fellowships for enabling outstanding young scientists to attain world class levels in science. The Fellowships are open to Indian scientists in the age group of 30-40 years, with proven capability for outstanding research work exploring new frontiers in their field of specialisation. Infrastructure Development : The Department through its various programmes has been playing a catalytic role in supporting the setting up of new R&D facilities along with the modernisation of the existing ones. ‘Intensification of Research in High Priority Areas’- IRHPA has helped in strengthening the infrastructure and research capabilities in selected areas of science and engineering. Under this programme, units/core groups and National Research Facilities are established around an outstanding scientist to act as a focal point to nucleate research activity in these areas. Universities are cradles of innovation and research. In order to provide and improve basic infrastructure in academic sector for research and teaching a scheme viz. Fund for Improvement of S&T Infrastructure in Universities and Higher Educational Institutions (FIST) was initiated during the 9th Five Year Plan. Under this programme support is provided for up-gradation of laboratories by providing equipment, computer networking, library facilities, etc. The programme identifies active university/academic departments for support through a peer review mechanism including on-site visits.
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Human Resource Development : The Department also supports different programmes aimed at identifying new talent and providing them with financial assistance in the form of fellowships for pursuing research in front-line areas of science and technology. Also, for the researchers the Department supports training programmes, summer schools and contact programmes. The programmes supported are: BOYSCAST fellowships, SERC student fellowships, etc. Fellowships are also awarded to undergraduate students to get first hand exposure to research in leading research laboratories. To involve young scientists (below 35 years) in national S&T development process and to provide opportunities to them for pursuing exciting and innovative research ideas an exclusive scheme for Young Scientists is being implemented by the Department. In order to motivate bright young minds at their secondary school/college levels, and to encourage them to stick on to a career in science, a new scheme called Kishore Vaigyanik Protsahan Yojana has been initiated. Talent would be scouted through a competitive mechanism at school level and scholars would be selected for an attractive fellowship/scholarship until they pass their Masters Degree in Science. Further, in order to generate trained manpower in selected areas of science and technology, training courses, summer/winter schools were organised in theoretical chemistry, earth sciences, astronomy and astrophysics, lasers, optics, atomic and molecular physics. Women Scientists Scheme was launched during the year 2002 by the Department of Science and Technology. The scheme provides support to women scientists, with or without a break in career, to pursue science in all its aspects and encourage them to continue in the scientific profession and also to contribute towards application of science and technology to societal development. TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT AND RELATED PROGRAMMES The Department of Science and Technology under its scheme on “Drugs and Pharmaceuticals Research’ supports collaborative Research and Development projects jointly submitted by drug companies and the academic national R&D institutes. The programme aims towards the development of new drugs and cleaner process technologies for known drugs/key intermediates for drugs. The programme covers all systems of medicine - Allopathic, Ayurvedic, Homeopathic, Siddha and Unani. In addition, National Facilities essential to undertake R&D have also been set up under this programme. Specific mention may be made of the Medium Throughput Facility, Pharmacological Testing Facility and Centre for Pharmacokinetic and Metabolic Studies at CDRI, Lucknow, Immunomodulatory Potential Testing Facility at IICB, Kolkata; National Facility on Transgenic and Gene Knockout Mice at CCMB, Hyderabad; and National Centre for Bioavailability at National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education & Research, Mohali. So far 45 projects including 7 national facilities have been funded by creating industry–institutional alliances among 20 institutions (national labs. and universities) and 19 drug industries. The programme has resulted in the filing of 12 patents in India and abroad. The Department has guided 24 socio-economic ministries in the setting up of Science and Technology Advisory Committees (STACS) for formulation of long/ short-term joint technology development programmes. For coordinating the efforts of STACs and to take stock of activities of various ministries, the Department has also set up an Inter-Sectoral S&T Advisory Committee under the Chairmanship of Secretary, DST. A quarterly newsletter STAC SCAN is being brought out by IS-STAC to disseminate information.
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The Department has been catalytic in identifying, formulating and implementing a number of technology development programmes with the help of industries and socio-economic ministries. Efforts of the Department in this direction have helped in initiation of multi-institutional programmes in the emerging areas of technology. As a part of this programme, projects were continued to be supported in the areas such as instrument development, advanced materials, critical technology, sugar technology, fly ash utilisation, advanced composites and in higher technical education. The Department has set up an autonomous body – Technology Information, Forecasting and Assessment Council (TIFAC). The main objectives of TIFAC include generation of Technology Forecasting, Technology Assessment and Techno Market Survey (TMS) documents and enabling a Technology Information System. TIFAC has brought out more than 280 specialised reports covering most of the sectors of economic relevance, ranging from Agriculture to Advanced Sensors and from materials to biotechnology. These reports have also focused on the upcoming and frontier technologies like transgenic seeds, biochips, R-DNA products, transgenic animal models, surface engineering, etc. The reports provide a vision and options for technology trajectories for industries, institutions, entrepreneurs and experts. TIFAC has also brought out a series of reports giving a comprehensive picture of 16 areas of scientific research carried out in our country in the last 50 years. TIFAC carried out a long-term Technology Vision (Forecasting) exercise known as “Technology Vision for India up to 2020" covering 17 sectors important to Indian economy. The reports include realistic technology road maps for achieving desired goals as well as intermediate milestones. A few of the recommendations of these reports are being implemented through projects in different sectors. This has resulted in follow-up actions on a limited scale towards demonstration projects of technology for wider replication in six identified sectors namely: Agriculture and Agro Food Sector, Road Construction and Transportation Equipment, Upgradation of Textile Machinery/Textile Industry, Health Care Services and Herbal/Natural Products, Upgradation of Science, Engineering and Professional Institutions relevant to Industry (Mission REACH), and Targeted Programmes in other important areas like Hydrogen Energy, Waste to Energy, Emerging Energy Sectors, Electric Power, Rural Connectivity, SMEs, etc. Mission REACH has been launched by TIFAC with the objective of upgrading select science and engineering colleges so as to create Centres of Relevance and Excellence (COREs) in achieving new heights in selected institutions at par with the world’s best. 26 such centres have been set up across the country on a wide range of emerging areas of relevance to industry and society. A unique feature and of these TIFAC-COREs is the very active participation of Industry in the form of training programmes, research projects and consultancy. Details of Institutions/ Areas, etc. could be seen on www.missionreach.org . A Patent Facilitating Centre (PFC) has been set up in TIFAC with the objectives of introducing patent information as a vital input in the process of promotion of R&D programmes, provide patenting facilities for scientists/technologists of the country on a sustained basis, keep a watch on developments in the areas of intellectual property rights, create awareness and understanding relating to patents and undertake studies and analysis of policy related to TRIPS Agreement and other agreements under World Trade Organisation, etc. The Centre has been organising awareness workshops to sensitise scientists/technologists from various universities, government, R&D institutions and industries. The PFC has also brought out two CD
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ROM databases containing data from 1995. The website www.indianpatents.org.in provides comprehensive details of the service and facilities provided by the PFC. The PFC has also brought out a report on patenting of micro-organisms and has developed a video programme on patent awareness titled “Patents Made Easy”. To promote innovation among entrepreneurs, a new golden jubilee initiative called “Technopreneur Promotion Programme (TePP)” has been initiated and implemented jointly by TIFAC with DSIR. The main thrust of TePP is to tap the vast untapped innovative potential of the Indian entrepreneurs. The support is provided to projects of individual innovators towards scaling up the idea/invention/knowhow/designs to working models/prototypes/pilot plants. Besides financial support, the endeavour is to link and couple them to the most appropriate existing R&D facilities and expertise; assist them in patent search/filing of patents; interface for tying-up with financial institutions for commercial exploitation, etc. To encourage grassroot level innovators, National Innovation Foundation (NIF) of India has been established with the main goal of providing institutional support in scouting, spawning, sustaining and scaling up grassroots level green innovators and helping their transition to self-supporting activities. TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENT BOARD The Technology Development Board was constituted in September 1996. The Board provides financial assistance to industrial concerns and other agencies for attempting development and commercial application of indigenous technology or adapting imported technology for wider domestic application. The areas that got financial assistance from the Board were health and medicine, engineering and electronics, chemicals and lubricants, agriculture and biotechnology, information technology, road/air transport, energy and waste utilisation, and telecommunication. The technology providers include national laboratories, academic institutions and recognised in-house R&D units in the industry. Some of the products successfully produced and marketed include first genetically engineered hepatitis B vaccine; biofertiliser from maize waist, gluten with the brand name Suryamin; DL2 Amino Butanol, an important substitute drug intermediate in the manufacture of anti-tuberculosis drug; Cefixime - an orally active fourth generation Cephalosporin anti-biotic; recombinant hepatitis B vaccine; CAL reagent for detection of bacterial endotoxin; carding machines for textile mills; Nicotinamide; Undecenoic Acid from castor oil; and fuel pellets from municipal garbage, etc. The TDB instituted a ‘National Award for successful commercialisation of indigenous technology’ by an industrial concern to be given away on the Technology Day, i.e. 11 May every year commencing from 1999. The National Award consists of two components: (i) to the industrial concern which has successfully commercialised the indigenous technology and (ii) to the developer/provider of such technology. Each component carries a cash award of Rs. 2 lakh to be given to an SSI unit which has successfully commercialised a technology-based product. NATIONAL ACCREDITATION BOARD FOR TESTING AND CALIBRATION LABORATORIES The National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories (NABL) provides formal recognition for technical competence of testing, calibration and medical laborator ies. NABL accreditation is primarily based on ISO/IEC 17025:2005 for testing and calibration laboratories and ISO 15189:2003 for medical laboratories.
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As on 31 May 2006 NABL had granted accreditation to 428 testing, 220 calibration and 68 medical testing laboratories. The NABL accreditation system complies with ISO/IEC 17011:2004 and Asia Pacific Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (APLAC) MR001. Based on evaluation of NABL operations by APLAC in 2000, NABL has been granted signatory member status by APLAC and International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC) under their Mutual Recognition Arrangements (MRAs). This status has been renewed up to 2008 based on re-evaluation of NABL in 2004. Under these MRAs, the reports issued by NABL-accredited laboratories are considered to be equivalent to reports issued by laboratories accredited by 54 accreditation bodies in 46 economies. To complement its laboratory accreditation services, NABL plans to initiate accreditation programmes for Proficiency Testing Providers and Certified Reference Material Producers in the near future. S & T PROGRAMMES FOR SOCIO-ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT The Department of Science and Technology is also devoted to evolving and implementing specific programmes to promote applications of S & T to improve the quality of life especially for the disadvantaged sections of the society. The areas in which significant achievements have been made are: setting-up of Technology Parks for women; low-cost housing and sanitation; integrated land water and cover management; eco-restoration and sustainable use of biomass in the hilly region; artisanal pottery; artisanal blacksmithy; artisanal leather tanning; training of agricultural labour (SC youth) in the use of modern agricultural appliances for improved agricultural productivity; farm-oriented low-cost technology for utilisation of Azolla as biofertilizer; developing livelihood base for tribals in Melghat region through watershed development, etc. Some of the tangible benefits of such programmes have been the generation of appropriate rural technologies, reducing drudgery, generating employment, improving health, and conserving environment. For socio-economic development of the north-eastern states including Sikkim, steps have been initiated to involve State S&T councils, NGOs and S&T personnel. A number of projects are being supported both in farming and non-farming sectors after identifying specific areas. The National Science and Technology Entrepreneurship Development Board (NSTEDB) established in January 1982 has been implementing several schemes and programmes on promotion of entrepreneurship and creation of sustainable employment through the application of S&T. S&T persons are being trained under Entrepreneurship Development Programmes (EDPs) and Technology-based EDPs to equip them to set up their own ventures. The Board has also been organising skill development training programmes in various skill areas for providing sustainable jobs/self-employment opportunities to unemployed youth. Science and Technology Entrepreneurship Parks (STEPs) have been set up in and around different S&T institutions in the country in order to provide facilities to existing as well as start-up entrepreneurs on technology development, testing and calibration, documentation and computation, training, etc. A scheme for establishment of Technology Business Incubators (TBIs) was launched in 2000 -2001 to promote the growth of technology-based enterprises and to foster faster
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commercialisation of R&D results. TBIs are being established in and around academic and R&D institutions in the country. Entrepreneurship Development Cells (EDCs) have been established in academic institutions for creating facilities for the promotion of entrepreneurship and other avenues of self/wage employment among qualified S&T personnel. Science and Technology Entrepreneurship Development (STED) projects are in operation in backward districts. STED projects aim at establishment of micro-enterprises in the district of its operation. For those unable to join regular Entrepreneurship Development Programmes (EDPs), Open Learning Programmes in Entrepreneurship (OLPE) was initiated in 1994-95 in collaboration with Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India (EDII), Ahmedabad. The Board has launched a comprehensive website www.techno-preneur.net which gives detailed information on several aspects of entrepreneurship development. A monthly e-zine entitled “Science-Tech Entrepreneur” is being brought out by the Board for dissemination of useful information among upcoming and existing entrepreneurs. NATURAL RESOURCES DATA MANAGEMENT SYSTEMS The Natural Resources Data Management programme is being implemented to upgrade the existing data management methodologies at the district level to facilitate decision making process with regard to local area management and development. Launched in 1982-83, the programme involves several R&D institutes of national repute, universities and non-governmental agencies in a consortium mode. As a part of this programme, spatial and non-spatial databases are being generated and updated at the state and district GIS centres. Different modules of Geo-Referenced Area Management (GRAM) software package are being developed to assist the information processing needs of the district and sub-district level planning. The programme also envisages developing and demonstrating the use of GIS technology through specific decision support systems for the identified sectors, viz. water conservation, land use planning, energy management and infrastructure development. Several R&D projects in the areas of land and water management, study of landslides and hydrology of small watersheds were also supported. NATIONAL SPATIAL DATA INFRASTRUCTURE (NSDI) NSDI was initiated in the year 2000 in R&D mode to provide collated Geo-Spatial data to user community. Over the period, NSDI policy framework was formulated and organisational structure was provided. The Government approved creation of NSDI in June 2006. The NSDI is an infrastructure for the availability of and access to organised spatial data. Use of the infrastructure is at local, community, city, regional and national levels for sustainable developments. India, has over the past years, produced a rich “base” of map information through systematic topographic, geological, soil and cadastral surveys, various natural resources inventory programmes and the use of the remote sensing images. Further, with the availability of precision, high resolution satellite images, data enabling the organisation of Geographical Information System (GIS), combined with the Global Positioning System (GPS), the accuracy and information content of these spatial datasets or maps is extremely high. The NSDI has an overarching frame work for the existing data generating agencies with the authority to mand ate their constituent agencies to commit their data resources and generate new data/ products/ services on the basis of user needs.
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NSDI will create a reliable and supportive environment to access geographically related information using a minimum set of standard practices, protocols and specifications. It will facilitate stakeholders: Government, Corporate Sector, NGOs, Community Organisations, Academia, Research Community and Citizens in accessing the collated datasets. STATE S&T PROGRAMME The Department of Science and Technology has been operating a scheme entitled ‘Assistance for Development of State Councils on Science and Technology' since 1980. The main objective of the scheme is to assist States and Union Territories in setting up State Councils on Science and Technology which in turn could help the states in formulation, planning, co-ordination and promotion of S&T activities within their areas. The State Councils on Science and Technology have been set-up in all States and UTs. The State Councils have now reached a phase of programme-based S&T cooperation to address location-specific and region specific problems. Steps were initiated to formulate studies on health care, traditional artisanship, agricultural practices, etc. to identify and plan S&T intervention. Steps were also initiated to help the State Councils to encourage replication of successful technologies developed by them. SCIENCE COMMUNICATION AND POPULARISATION The National Council for Science and Technology Communication (NCSTC), ever since its inception some 18 years ago, has been engaged in science and technology communication/popularisation and inculcation of scientific temper among the people. The emphasis has been on the development, adaptation, promotion and use of different communication technologies and techniques utilising various media traditional and non-traditional. The activities undertaken centred around a few natural phenomena and specific events utilising these for S & T communication. The National Children’s Science Congress is an important activity involving children in the age group of 10-17 years from all over the country. The programme is envisaged to encourage the students to relate the learning of science to the environment around, to their immediate social and physical environment and provide them a forum to interact with scientists to quench their curiosity and thirst for creativity. In this programme, children in teams of five each on an average take up scientific projects related to the local issues, work under the guidance of teachers/science activists, and report their findings at school/block, district, state and national level congress. A programme has been developed for promoting voluntary blood donation in the country with the objective of meeting the near total requirement of blood from healthy voluntary donors. Bibliographies of popular science books in different Indian languages published during the last 150 years have been compiled. To create awareness on issues of environment and sustainable development several resource persons have been trained to organise activities for co-ordinators of school science clubs and activities of S&T based voluntary organisations. Year 2004 was declared as the year of Scientific Awareness by the Government. Vigyan Rail, Scientific Jathas, interaction of scientists with common man were some of the activities taken up to celebrate the year of scientific awareness. An extended
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run of Vigyan Rail and Vigyan Mail (Science and Technology Exhibition on wheels) was done in 2005 to cover a few selected smaller towns throughout the country. Vigyan Prasar : Vigyan Prasar was established in 1989 to take up large scale science popularisation programmes. It has been striving hard to reach out to masses through the mass media. Besides, efforts are underway to put together a network of Science Clubs for spreading scientific awareness and promoting use of scientific methodology in our lives. S&T RESOURCES INFORMATION The Department of Science and Technology makes available on a continuous basis information on both manpower and financial resources devoted to science and technology activities. The directory of R&D institutions in India being brought out regularly covers names and addresses of R&D institutions under Central government, State governments, in-house R&D units of public sector and private sector industries, universities including deemed universities and institutes of national importance, and scientific and industrial organisations in the private sector. The database on extramural research and development projects funded by different Central government agencies is being maintained and updated regularly. The data is being utilised to compile the Directory of Extramural Research Projects. INTERNATIONAL
CO-OPERATION
International Science and Technology co-operation is realised at three levels, viz. bilateral co-operation with developed and developing countries, regional co-operation such as with SAARC, ASEAN and BIMST countries; and multilateral co-operation through NAM Science and Technology Centre, COSTED, UNESCO, etc. India has got bilateral science and technology co-operation with 56 countries. Suitable mechanisms have been established with conclusion and implementation of programmes of cooperation with Bangladesh, Belarus, Brazil, Bulgaria, China, Cuba, Egypt, France, Germany, Hungary, Indonesia, Iran, Israel, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Mexico, Myanmar, Poland, Republic of Korea, Romania, Russian Federation, Singapore, Sri Lanka, South Africa, Tunisia, Ukraine, UK, USA, Uzbekistan and Vietnam. An Integrated Long Term Programme of Co-operation in Science and Technology between India and Russia is the major interaction instrument between the two countries. Indo-French Centre for Promotion of Advanced Research (IFCPAR) is one more initiative between India and France for promotion of collaborative research in advanced areas of fundamental and applied science and technology. A major bilateral programme in the form of Indo-US Science and Technology Forum has been launched. A new project-based personnel exchange programme with German Academic Exchange Service (DAAD) is being implemented. Indian scientists have conducted experiments in the fields of crystallography, condensed matter physics, high energy scattering, solid x-ray spectroscopy, nuclear resonant scattering, magnetic compton studies, etc., and received advanced training and international research facilities under various international Science and Technology co-operation programmes. Under international science and technology co-operation programme the following Joint R&D Centres have been established: Indo-Russian Research Centre in Advanced Computing at Moscow; International Advanced Research Centre for
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Powder Metallurgy (ARC-I) at Hyderabad; and Indo-Uzbek Centre for Medical Applications of Low Level Lasers for treatment of Tuberculosis and allied diseases at New Delhi. A number of collaborative national programmes, viz. design and development of INDUS-I and INDUS-II synchrotron radiation sources at Indore with Russian collaboration; characterisation of Ladakh (Hanle) site for installation of the 2-m telescope and setting up of 14 GFLOP computer at Indian Institute of Astrophysics, Bangalore for N-Body simulations with Japanese experts; Development of gamma ray telescope at Mount Abu with Russian collaboration; a plant for production of 100 million doses of oral polio vaccine (OPV) at Bulandshahar with Russian collaboration; and superconducting cyclotron and cryogenics at VECC, Kolkata have been established. Initiatives have been taken with Indian diaspora to mobilise the skills and expertise of Indian scientists and technologists working abroad. A dedicated website (http://stio.nic.in) for registration of Scientists and Technologists of Indian Origin Abroad (STIO) as well as to receive their offers to share their expertise and/or to join Indian S&T initiatives has been put up. METEOROLOGICAL SERVICES The India Meteorological Department (IMD) was established in 1875. It is the National Meteorological Service and the principal Government agency in all matters relating to meteorology, seismology and allied subjects. The Department has units all over the country engaged in collecting meteorological and seismological data besides providing various meteorological services. Its main objective is to provide meteorological information for weather sensitive activities like aviation, shipping, agriculture, irrigation, off-shore oil exploration and industries. The Department also issues warning against severe weather phenomena like cyclones, dust storms, heavy rains, cold and heat waves that cause destruction of life and property. Besides, it also provides climatological information, records earthquakes and promotes research in meteorology. The Department maintains an extensive network of modem observatories and communication links all over the country. Observations received through high power radars and weather satellites are extensively used these days for analysis and prediction of weather. India launched a geostationary meteorological satellite METSAT in September 2002, and re-named it KALPANA-l. Another geostationary (multipurpose) satellite INSAT-3A was launched in April 2003. Meteorological Data is being received from Kalpana INSAT -3A and NOAA Series of Satellites for Meteorological Analysis and Weather forecasting apart from generating hourly cloud imagery, INSAT Meteorological Data Processing System (IMDPS), producing the following products from the data received: l
Cloud Motion Vector (CMVs).
l
Sea Surface Temperatures (SSTs).
l
Outgoing longwave Radiation (OLR).
l
Quantitative Precipitation Estimates (QPE).
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A National Satellite Data Centre (NSDC) was commissioned w.e.f. October 2005 for the archival and supply of INSAT imageries and desired products to the users and research community through a Web portal. For dissemination of Cyclone Warning to various State Governments, Port Officials, etc. 252 analogue and 100 digital Cyclone Warning Dissemination System Receivers have been installed in the Cyclone prone areas of east and west coasts. The IMD has a network of 40 RADARS installed throughout the country. Under modernisation scheme of RADAR network, one S-Band Doppler Weather Radar Metero 1500S imported from Germany was installed at Visakhapatnam. Three Doppler Radars are already functioning round-the-clock at Chennai, Kolkata and Machilipatnam. Proposals for replacing four old and obsolete radars by new Doppler Weather Radars at Bhuj, Kochi. Mumbai and Paradeep have been approved by Council of Meteorological and Atmospheric Sciences. The India Meteorological Department is maintaining 51 seismological observatories under the national network to monitor the seismic activity in and around the country. Of these, twenty-four seismological observatories were upgraded with state-of-the-art digital broadband seismograph systems and modern communication facilities. A Central Receiving Station (CRS) and a National Seismological Data Base Centre (NSDC) have been established at New Delhi to receive, analyse and systematically archive the seismic data. In operational mode, the Centre is responsible for quick determination of earthquake parameters and dissemination to various user agencies. Recently, a 16 element VSAT-based digital telemetry seismograph station network with a central receiving station at New Delhi was established for close monitoring of seismicity of the region. The IMD continues to participate in multi-disciplinary scientific cruises of Ocean Research Vessels in the Arabian Sea, Bay of Bengal and Indian Ocean, etc. during pre-monsoon, monsoon and post-monsoon periods. These cruises are planned to collect meteorological data over the adjoining sea areas for the study of various aspects of monsoon circulation and other important weather systems affecting the country and also to validate satellite data of meteorological parameters on board the Indian Remote Sensing Satellite (IRS P3) as and when required. The first operational Long Range forecast of seasonal southwest monsoon rainfall (June-September) of India was issued by IMD in 1986. IMD has developed new long range forecast models which were introduced in 2003. The Crop Yield Formulation Unit of the Department has developed statistical models using correlation and regression techniques to forecast crop yield on operational basis for 26 sub-divisions growing kharif rice and for 16 sub-divisions growing wheat. Based on these models, pre-harvest monthly crop yield forecast for kharif rice are being prepared for every year from August to December and for wheat from January to May. IMD has also installed 250 Cyclone Warning Dissemination Systems (CWDS). This is unique in the world and helps in direct broadcast of Cyclone warning to the public in general and coastal authorities in particular. Currently 100 more Digital Cyclone Warning Dissemination Systems (DCWDS) are being installed along Andhra Coast.
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IMD publishes its quarterly journal MAUSAM, annual publications of Indian Astronomical Ephemeris, Rashtriya Panchang in 13 languages and Sunrise, Sunset, Moonrise and Moonset tables are brought out by the Positional Astronomy Centre, Kolkata. The National Centre for Medium Range Weather Forecasting (NCMRWF) has been a leading centre in India for all weather and climate model-related research and operation. This is the only organisation in India where real-time global and regional data assimilation works are being carried out for providing operational mediumrange weather forecasting. NCMRWF also renders Agro Advisory Services (AAS) to the farming community of India. International standard research on all aspects of data assimilation, global/regional modelling, extended-range/seasonal prediction, climate variability and Crop Weather Modelling are carried out by the scientists of the Centre. Utilisation of satellite data is crucial to improve the quality of weather forecasts. Scientists at NCMRWF develop new and innovative methods to utilise data from every satellite that provides weather information. The Centre also provides input to space agencies on the weather sensors of satellites. Improving the global model physics and global model resolution are the areas in which NCMRWF has the strongest competence. High-resolution regional models are run every day at NCMRWF to supplement the operational high-resolution global model (T170/L28) outputs. For this purpose, the Centre has the most powerful super-computing facility in India. NCMRWF provides information on impending weather four to seven days in advance to ensure optimum effectiveness of modern farming practices. Weather forecast bulletins are disseminated biweekly to AAS units via fax or internet/e-mail. Currently 71 units are linked with the Centre through this facility. Weekly forecast bulletins are issued to 107 AAS units. District level forecasts have also started recently. NCMRWF gives special focus for weather and climate prediction for mountainous regions. For this purpose, high-resolution mesoscale model (MM5) is run operationally specific to the Himalayan region. The Centre runs a global ocean wave model to predict wave heights, peak wave direction and period. The Centre provides its routine and special products to other organisations such as the India Meteorological Department, Indian Military, Indian Navy, Snow and Avalanche Study Establishment, Indian Space Research organisation, Bhaba Atomic Research Centre etc. on a regular basis and on their special request. In addition, the user community also includes power sectors, water resources, shipping and fisheries, transportation, etc., where customised forecasts are given. NCMRWF has many National and International collaborations with various Institutes and Organisations. NCMRWF also hosts the BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for multi-sectoral technical and economic co-operation) Centre for Weather and Climate. This Centre aims at addressing and coordinating weather and climaterelated issues of the member countries. NCMRWF imparts training to young researchers as well as the user community from time to time. NCMRWF has also been a partner on every observational campaigns (INDOEX, BOBMEX, LASPEX, ARMEX, etc) undertaken in India to better understand and model the atmospheric processes. SURVEY OF INDIA Survey of India (SOI), the national survey and mapping organisation under the
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Ministry of Science & Technology was set up in 1767. In its assigned role as the National Principal Mapping Agency, Survey of India bears a special responsibility to ensure that the country’s domain is explored and mapped suitably to provide base maps for expeditious and integrated development and ensure that all resources contribute their full measure to the progress, prosperity and security of India. The primary responsibility of SOI is to maintain topographical map coverage on 1:250 K, 1:50K and 1:25 K scales. The topographical map coverage on 1:250 K and 1:50 K scales covering the entire country have been completed and the map sheets are being updated at regular intervals to depict latest spatial information. Surveys on 1:25 K scale are being taken up as a national requirement keeping in view the priorities indicated by the Central/State governments and other user agencies. Besides, being grouped under “Scientific Surveys” in Government of India Business Rule 1971, it has also been called upon extensively to deploy its expertise in the field of geodetic and geophysical surveys, study of seismicity and seismotectonics, glaciology, participation in Indian Scientific Expedition to Antarctica and projects related to digital cartography and digital photogrammetry, etc. to provide basic data to keep pace with Science and Technology Development. SOI has undertaken creation of Digital Cartographic Data Base of Topographical maps on various scales. The digital data is being used by various agencies for planning and GIS applications. It also undertakes large scale surveys for various developmental projects including hydro-electric, irrigation, command area, canal area, cantt. area schemes, etc. The Department is responsible to fix the external boundary of India, their depiction on maps published in the country and also advise on the demarcation of inter-State boundaries. The Survey of India also provides support to neighbouring countries, e.g. Nigeria, Afghanistan, Kenya, Iraq, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe, Indonesia, Bhutan, Mauritius, etc., in the field of survey education, transfer of technology and various other surveying technologies under bilateral arrangements. In the recent time, a Task Force chaired by the Surveyor General of India has prepared a ‘Discussion Document’ on the establishment of a National Geospatial Data Infrastructure which had been endorsed by the workshop on NGDI held at New Delhi during February 2001. Survey of India with its vast storehouse of Geospatial data, will serve as the engine for the NGDI. The creation of NGDI framework will provide the necessary facilities and structure of relationships among the data producers and users that will facilitate data sharing. The enlightened policy to share data on common standards and networks will, in turn, serve as a stimulus for growth. Survey of India in collaboration with sister data producing agencies plans to assume the leadership role in meeting social needs through the NGDI. Survey Training Institute, Hyderabad established under UNDP assistance is a premier institution for training in various disciplines of surveying and mapping to the trainees sponsored by the department, other State/Central Government Organisations and neighbouring countries. It is proposed to modernise the institute by entering into collaboration agreements with institutions of repute abroad like ITC Netherlands. The Great Trigonometrical Survey Triangulation Network of India and adjacent countries was started in the year 1802. Survey of India celebrated 200 Years of the
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‘Great Arc’ – the greatest measurement of the earth ever undertaken, initiated 200 years ago, is considered to be one of the most stupendous works in the history of science. The ‘Great Arc’ exhibition was organised in U.K. in 2003 and pictorial publication and films specially made on Great Arc and the Surveying Traditions of Survey of India were released on this occasion. A new Map Policy has been approved for dissemination of digitised maps to various users. National Atlas and Thematic Mapping Organisation : While Survey of India meets the national needs in cartography, some specialised thematic maps required to meet the needs of the specific users are taken care of by the National Atlas and Thematic Mapping Organisation (NATMO), operating under the Department. It also concentrates its attention in a number of areas to integrate resource maps with other relevant socio- economic data and represent them in spatial forms, useful for developmental planning. NATMO is trying to develop the new technology of reverse printing for NATMO maps on experimental basis. It is also trying to introduce the technique of using metallic colours in map printing. These facilities are also being modernised. AUTONOMOUS
SCIENTIFIC
INSTITUTIONS
The Department of Science and Technology provides grants-in-aid to the following 18 autonomous scientific research institutions engaged in frontier areas of research in basic and applied sciences: (i) Bose Institute, Kolkata is devoted to fundamental and applied research in physical and life sciences; (ii) Agharkar Research Institute, Pune - research in basic and applied aspects in the fields of biological sciences; (iii) Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology, Thiruvananthapuram - developing biomedical engineering and technology; providing and demonstrating high standards of patient care in advanced medical specialities and developing post- graduate training programme of the highest quality in these fields; (iv) Indian Association for the Cultivation of Sciences, Kolkata - studies on solid state physics, material sciences, theoretical physics, spectroscopy, energy research, chemistry including biological chemistry, polymer science, etc.; (v) Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology, Pune - functions as a national centre for basic and applied research in tropical meteorology; (vi) Indian Institute of Astrophysics, Bangalore - research in emerging as well as interdisciplinary areas of astrophysics and heavenly bodies, and development of instruments used in astrophysical studies; (vii) Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research, Bangalore - research in frontier areas of chemistry, physics of materials, computational fluid dynamics, geodynamics, condensed matter theory, animal behaviour, genetics, etc : (viii) Raman Research Institute, Bangalore - research in basic sciences such as astronomy, astrophysics, liquid crystals, etc; (ix) S.N. Bose National Centre for Basic Sciences, Kolkata- promoting advanced studies in selected branches of basic sciences; (x) Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeobotany, Lucknow -research in the area of palaeobotany, its relevance in modern context, (xi) Indian Institute of Geomagnetism, Mumbai observing and understanding some of the physical processes taking place in the innermost crusts of the earth as well as phenomena occurring on the sun and in near earth and interplanetary space; (xii) Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology, Dehradun - basic research in areas of biostratigraphy, petrology and geochemistry, sedimentology, tectonics and environmental geology to understand the geodynamics
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of the Himalayan region; (xiii) International Advanced Research Centre for Powder Metallurgy and New Materials, Hyderabad - the development of high performance materials, and processes; (xiv) Technology Information Forecasting and Assessment Council, New Delhi; (xv) Vigyan Prasar, New Delhi; (xvi) National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories, New Delhi; (xvii) Centre for Liquid Crystal Research, Bangalore and (xviii) Aryabhatta Research Institute of Observational Sciences (ARIES), Nainital. The DST also extends financial and administrative support to the following academies and professional bodies which are engaged in the promotion of S&T in the country through the involvement of scientists and engineers; (i) Indian Academy of Sciences, Bangalore; (ii) Indian National Science Academy, New Delhi; (iii) Indian National Academy of Engineering, New Delhi; (iv) National Academy of Sciences, Allahabad and (v) Indian Science Congress Association, Kolkata.
DEPARTMENT
OF
SCIENTIFIC
AND
INDUSTRIAL
RESEARCH
The Department of Scientific and Industrial Research (DSIR), is a part of the Ministry of Science and Technology with the mandate for indigenous technology promotion, development, utilization and transfer. The primary endeavour of DSIR is to encourage industry to increase their share in country's R&D expenditure, support small and medium industrial units to develop state-of-the art globally competitive technologies of high commercial potential, catalyze faster commercialization of lab-scale R&D, enhance the share of technology intensive export, strengthen industrial consultancy & technology management capabilities and establish user friendly information network to facilitate scientific & industrial research in the country. DSIR implements the Plan scheme "Technology Promotion, Development and Utilization (TPDU) Programme" apart from coordinating the activities of two autonomous bodies, namely Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR)and Consultancy Development Centre (CDC) and two public sector undertakings, National Research Development Corporation (NRDC) and Central Electronics Limited (CEL). TECHNOLOGY PROMOTION, DEVELOPMENT AND UTILIZATION (TPDU) PROGRAMME Programmes and activities under the scheme and industrial R&D; development and commercialization management and export of technologies; promotion facilitation of technology information to support R&D of the scheme are:
centered around promoting of technologies; acquisition, of consultancy capabilities; etc. The specific components
l
Industrial R&D Promotion Programme
l
Technology Development and Demonstration Programme
l
Technopreneur Promotion Programme (TePP)
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Technology Management Programme
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International Technology Transfer Programme
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Consultancy Promotion Programme
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Technology Information Facilitation Programme
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INDUSTRIAL R&D PROMOTION PROGRAMME DSIR is the nodal department for granting recognition to in-house research and development centres. The programme deals with all activities relating to recognition of in-house R&D units in industry and non-commercial scientific and industrial research organisations, fiscal incentives and other mechanisms and initiatives towards supporting and encouraging R&D efforts of industry. Incentives and support measures provided under the scheme contributed a great deal in enhancing the R&D expenditure by recognized in-house R&D units of industry. The fiscal incentives for promotion of industrial R&D were continued during the year. TECHNOLOGY (TDDP)
DEVELOPMENT
AND
DEMONSTRATION
PROGRAMME
The Programme aims at catalyzing and supporting activities relating to technology absorption, adaptation and demonstration including capital goods development, involving industry and R&D organizations. Under the scheme, projects for absorption and upgradation of imported technology as well as development and demonstration of new and improved technologies are supported. While DSIR support has been catalytic and partial, bulk of the financial contribution in such projects have been from the industry. These projects cover products and processes in various important industries such as metallurgy, electrical, electronics, instrumentation, mechanical engineering, earth moving and industrial machinery, chemicals and explosives. TDDP projects have encouraged participation of public and private sectors in technology development efforts. The projects have significantly contributed to building of technological self-reliance in the country. The projects completed have resulted not only in significant technological and commercial returns such as cost reduction, higher quality, improved products and processes as well as foreign exchange savings to the concerned companies, but also helped in building up the R&D capabilities of the industrial units involved. Specific area viz. 'Waste to Wealth' has been identified for concentrated action. THE TECHNOPRENEUR PROMOTION PROGRAMME (TeP P ) The programme aims to tap the vast innovative potential of the citizens of India. The activities under TePP include providing financial support to individual innovators having original ideas and convert them into working models, prototypes, etc. The TePP network has been strengthened with establishment of 28 TePP Out -reach Centers (TOC). It is anticipated that around 100 new projects of independent innovators would be supported under TePP during the year 2009-10 and work on establishing an Institute of Creativity may begin. TECHNOLOGY
MANAGEMENT
PROGRAMME
The programme aims to enhance knowledge and skills in the efficient management and transfer of technology. Its activities effectively supplement other programmes/ activities of the Department in the attainment of technological excellence. Specific programmes have been targeted towards enhancing technology management capability in industry, R&D institutions, academic institutes and other establishments. This is helping the promotion and effective utilization of emerging technology management methodologies, and in bringing about better industry-institute interlinkages through networking of industrial units with different academic institutions and State bodies in various States.
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INTERNATIONAL TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER PROGRAMME The Programme aims to promote international technology transfer and trade including exports of technologies, projects, services and hi-tech products. A variety of activities have been undertaken under the Programme to catalyze technology transfer and trade, involving Indian industries, R&D establishments, institutions and consultancy organisations. These have ranged from reports, compendiums and newsletters on technology export potential, workshops and awareness-cum-training programmes, technology exhibitions, etc. Besides sensitizing the concerned agencies about the significance of technology intensive exports, these initiatives have catalyzed the growth of technology intensive exports from the country. CONSULTANCY PROMOTION PROGRAMME The main objective of Consultancy Promotion Programme is to promote and strengthen consultancy capabilities for domestic use and export requirements. It also aims to develop sector specific consultancy capabilities and provide door step consultancy services to SMEs by setting up consultancy clinics in various SME clusters. TECHNOLOGY INFORMATION FACILITATION PROGRAMME The TPDU Programmes need a strong back up support of information services. Recognizing this, a component on "Technology Information Facilitation Programme (TIFP)" has been included in the TPDU Programmes. The projects under TIFP aim at developing appropriate endogenous information capacities to support R&D activities, production of local content and capture of indigenous knowledge base, promotion of information and knowledge networking thus facilitating flow and sharing of information resources. Lately, the focus has been on content development for traditional knowledge and folk wisdom, clearing house for S&T information, virtual information system and incubation centres for promoting content development. E-GOVERNANCE IN DSIR Under the e-Governance initiative of Government of India, a cell has been created in the Department to implement a comprehensive programme to accelerate e-Governance through information technology at all levels of Government to improve efficiency, transparency and accountability. Under the programme, computers with online connectivity are provided to all the officers for automating various activities. Department's website : www.dsir.gov.in is continuously updated. NATIONAL RESEARCH DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION (NRDC) The Corporation was established in December 1953 as a company, under Section 25 of the Companies Act to commercialise the research and development outputs of publicly funded R&D institutions as well as to promote the growth of indigenous technology. Its main objectives are: commercialisation of laboratory know-how, protecting inventions/technologies through IPR, financing technology development, promotion and commercialisation of inventions, development and commercialisation of rural technology, promotion of export of technology, dissemination of information on technology transfer, etc. NRDC has signed more than 350 technology transfer license agreements in the last 10 years, resulting in premia and royalty earnings of Rs 30 crore. It has a database of
Scientific and Technological Developments
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over 2,000 technologies and it is in contact with more than 1,000 active licensees. It provides value addition to technologies through angel funding/consultancy/market survey/filing patents/basic engineering design package/feasibility reports. It has signed a number of MoUs with African and South East Asian countries for technology co-operation and transfer of technology. It has recently set up a Centre for Demonstration and Promotion of Technologies in Cote d'lvoire. CENTRAL ELECTRONICS LIMITED (CEL) CEL's operations can be broadly grouped into three areas, viz, solar photovoltaics (SPV), strategic electronics and railway electronics. CEL is the pioneer and a leading manufacturer of SPV cells, modules and systems and railway safety signaling equipment. In the field of strategic electronics, CEL is the only indigenous manufacturer of phase control modules, which is a key element of phased array radars. CEL has signed agreements with Mali for supply of solar equipment and with Sudan for solar cell manufacturing line. It has commissioned a facility for manufacture of SPV modules up to 250 Wp. It has developed 40 deflection point multi-section digital axle counter. It obtained type approval of piezo generator for heat fuse 551 from Sweden and subsequently executed an order from Ordnance Factory. Activities proposed by CEL during 2009-10 include: development of solid state block equipment; development of automatic equipment identification system; creation of infrastructure for technology absorption and commercialization of security system; and expansion of manufacturing capacity to produce 30,000 to 40,000 Phase Control Modules (PCMs) per year. CONSULTANCY DEVELOPMENT CENTRE (CDC) The Consultancy Development Centre (CDC) came into being as a registered society in January 1986, and is functioning from its office at India Habitat Centre Complex since May 1994. The CDC was approved as Autonomous institution of Department of Scientific & Industrial Research (DSIR) in December 2004. Over the years, CDC has concentrated mainly on development of human resources, providing computerized data/information services, and strengthening of technological and managerial consultancy capabilities including promoting consultancy exports. CDC maintains a computerized database of consultants and consultancy agencies. To develop human resource capabilities in the area of consultancy, the Centre runs a 2-year Masters Degree Programme in consultancy Management in collaboration with BITS Pilani, CDC is also Secretariat of the Technical Consultancy Development Programme of Asia and the Pacific, (TCDPAP), a programme supported by DSIR for promoting consulting capabilities including consultancy and service exports in the Asia Pacific. Recently, CDC launched e-coaching mode for MS programme. It held discussions on model accreditation grading and ranking system for consultants in India and took new initiatives in the area of safe drinking water. Activities proposed by CDC during 2009-10 include: Establishment of CDC-TCO consortium; Technology Consultancy Centers for CSIR rural technologies; Education/training/capacity building of consultancy capabilities; and course development for Institute of Consultancy Management. COUNCIL OF SCIENTIFIC AND INDUSTRIAL RESEARCH CSIR an ensemble of 37 national laboratories and 39 outreach centers, spread across
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India 2010
the length and breadth of India, plays a very active role in majority of the R&D and technology initiatives taken in India during the last six decades. Its achievements cover a wide science spectrum from aerospace to healthcare to sustainable energy to environment to advanced materials to complex engineering design and the like. It also continues to make impact in global S&T arena through its cutting edge fundamental research covering both high science and innovation. Since its inception, CSIR has been a source of indigenous technologies for industrial competitiveness, S&T base for strategic sector, technology for common mass and science for advancement of knowledge. Its recent programme namely 'CSIR-800' p r e s e n t s a socialistic, yet commercially viable business model linked to the economic prosperity of a large section of the Indian Population. Another programme, initiated by CSIR, the 'Open Source Drug Discovery' (OSDD), has a vision to develop low cost health solutions for the masses by involving volunteer researchers through a global platform. In this forum the best minds can collaborate and collectively endeavor to solve the complex problems associated with discovering novel therapies for neglected tropical diseases like Malaria, Tuberculosis, Leshmaniasis, etc. Contribution to 'Chandrayaan': In October 2008 India launched Chandrayaan-I, India's first scientific mission to the Moon. As many seven CSIR laboratories have contributed in significant way to this prestigious mission. It includes space weather information/alerts, zinc oxide-based microelectromechanical systems acoustic sensor, acoustic testing, wind tunnel tests, designing of various civil structures etc. In the area of Healthcare: One of the major initiatives is launching of OSDD. Modeled on development of 'www' and 'Linux', this programme was launched on September 15, 2008 and so far more than 1300 registered participants are on the portal. To begin with, OSDD seeks to develop low cost molecules for the treatment of tuberculosis, an infectious disease widely prevalent in India. Another significant achievement is the development of Indian Genome Variation Database (IGVDB), which houses Single Nucleotide Polymorphism (SNP) frequency data in over 1000 genes from disease and drug response candidates in population representing the entire genetic diversity of India. CSIR has also developed hydroxypatite-based artificial hip joint implants, a boon for patients, particularly of old age, suffering from broken hips. Even both the hip joints can be replaced simultaneously. Yet another significant achievement in this sector is the commercialization of nano-size synthetic hydroxypatite bone graft for dental surgery. It has also developed an ayurvedic formulation namely 'Prostalyn' for treatment of prostate cancer. CSIR-800: The programme has a mission, that is to increase per capita income by Rs 15.00 per day of the target group which 800 million people of India living in the bottom half of the developmental pyramid. The focus areas are 'affordable health', 'sustainable energy', 'waste to wealth', 'potable water', low-cost housing' and 'empowering masses'. In first of its new endevours, CSIR has launched 'Soleckshaw'. an optimally designed, pedal operated-motor-assisted, zero carbon emission urban transport vehicle. It is expected to have four major societal effects viz. conservation of natural petroleum resources; zero pollution (no exhaust fumes); increased selfemployment for the urban and rural poor at grassroots level; enhanced dignity of human labour and cut down on the drudgery and exhaustion of pulling/peddling traditional rickshaws. To mitigate the housing problems, particularly for disaster
Scientific and Technological Developments
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prone areas, CSIR has developed low-cost instant houses made up of natural fibres and industrial waste. In the area of Sustainable Energy: CSIR has developed India's first push-button type 300 W self-supported Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cell System. Apart from that it has developed solid oxide fuel system also towards its commitment to sustainable energy. Taking forward the concept of 'waste to wealth', CSIR has developed a technology for conversion of bagasse to biofuel which has already been transferred to sugar industry. Augmenting its technology for conversion of jatropha to biodiesel, CSIR has installed ITPD plant in collaboration with Defense Research and Development Organization(DRDO). CSIR has significant contribution in the area of solar energy research also. Technology for production of solar water heater 'Nalsun' has been developed and commercialized. In the area of solar photovoltaics, CSIR has developed materials for dye-sensitized solar cells. Further, CSIR has developed and installed small turbine to produce 5kW power utilizing geothermal energy from a natural geyser in Himachal Pradesh. In addition, CSIR has developed and installed 300 kW and 500 kW wind mills. CSIR has joined hands with Research Institute for Sustainable Energy, a section 25 company, registered under the Companies Act to carry out collaborative research in the area of sustainable energy. In the area of Ecology & Environment: CSIR has developed an eco-friendly and energy-efficient bioleaching process for low-grade uranium ores and installed 2 tonne plant at one of the sites of Uranium Corporation of India Ltd. CSIR has developed bioceramic based composite adsorbent media for defluoridation of wastewater, which shows excellent defluoridation properties as compared to activated alumina. This adsorbent media shows high fluoride uptake capacity and selectivity under the wide range of pH, which is of immense practical importance. CSIR has also set up a bench scale Upflow Anaerobic Sludge Blanket Reactor for thee biological treatment of wastes containing Hexachlorocyclohexane. Based on a two-dimensional hydrodynamic model, CSIR has proposed a storm surge disaster mitigation plan for the group of Andaman Islands. CSIR has come up with a firstever long climate simulation with a global general circulation model with a spatial resolution of 20-km. Another significant contribution of CSIR in this area is patenting a decentralized Secure Landfill System for sludge generated from tannery sector alone with Reinforced Cement Concrete (RCC) structure which has a provision to collect leachate and treat in CETPs and also to accommodate more quantity of sludge with less area. In the area of Biology & Biotechnology: A traditionally strong area of research for CSIR, the laboratories working in this domain contribute through high quality of research output, including basic studies, industrial processes & products. CSIR has made a comparative biochemical analysis of purified protein which suggests that Leishmania actin is an unconventional form of actin that could serve as an alternative target for designing novel anti-leishmanial drugs. CSIR has recently reported discovery of two spermicidal compounds (DSE-36 and DSE-37, disulphide esters of carbothioic acid) with extremely potent spermicidal action that killed 100% human sperm at just 4% of EC 100 of N-9 while remaining practically inert to human cervical cells and Lactobacillus at spermicidal concentration. Another significant contribution is the development of 'FishMap', a unified and centralized resource for storage, retrieval, and display of genomic information of zebrafish. Yet another achievement is construction of Helical nanofibers by CSIR from suitable self-assembling
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pseudopeptide-based molecular building blocks which are suitable templates for fabricating dipeptide-capped gold nanoparticles, indicating a possible use of these nanofibers in the construction of arrays of gold nanoparticles. Recently CSIR has developed a non-recombinant membrane antigen and diagnostic kit thereof for detection of Visceral Leishmaniasis and post Kala-azar dermal leishmaniasis (PKDL). In the area of Chemical Technology: CSIR has a direct impact in the industrial development in the area of chemical technology. It has established 20,000 tpa plant at Digboi Refinery Plant, the oldest refinery of the country, for recovery of value added products from 'tank bottoms'. It has also developed a catalytic process for manufacturing epichlorohydrin from Allyl Chloride and commissioned a 3000 tpa plant for Aditya Birla Group at Rayong, Thailand. Based on CSIR technology, a plant has been established in Chennai for the production of Sulfur of Potash using green method. Continuing its endevour in transferring technology, CSIR has transferred an eco-friendly technology for manufacturing synthetic rutile, titanium feedstock for titanium-di-oxide, from ilmenite. In the area of Earth System Science: In a collaborative effort with Geological Survey of India and Oil and Natural Gas Commission, CSIR has prepared and released Gravity Map series of India-2006. Acquisition and analysis of the data by CSIR led to gain of ~6,40,000 sq km in the eastern segment covering the Bay of Bengal and Andaman regions in Legal Continental Shelf. CSIR also studied lower crustal and mantle xenoliths from the kimberlite clusters combining geothermobarometry, age and petrophysical properties and subsequently mapped 4-D lithospheric of the eastern Dharwar craton. Another significant achievement is delineation of a major conductive zone buried at a depth of 2.0/2.5 km in Puga region related to geothermal reservoir. This has opened up a new front in energy sector in Jammu and Kashmir. Newer techniques have been developed for accurate prediction, undertake surveys and exploration to delineate promising reserves of hydrocarbons covering approx. 40,000 sq km. In the area of Engineering Design and Structure: CSIR has re-engineered the navigational span of Pamban railway bridge from metre gauge to broad gauge. Another achievement is setting up of an excellent tower testing facility at Chennai which ranks among the best in the world for testing towers upto a height of 65 m and a base dimension of 22.5m x 22.5m and cross-arm width up to 36m using electrohydraulic servo system. For carrying out advanced R&D in the area of earthquake engineering CSIR has set up an advanced seismic test facility comprising of a triaxial shake table of capacity 30 tonne, a biaxial shake table of capacity 5 tonne and multi axis pseudo dynamic testing system. Towards its commitment for Society, CSIR has developed low-cost instant house utilizing industrial waste, sisal fibre and natural fibre. These can be assembled and deployed in about half-an-hour should there be an urgent need in times of disaster. In the area of Information: CSIR continued its efforts towards dissemination of science & technology information in the form of three well-circulated popular science magazines, Science Reporter (English monthly), Vigyan Pragati (Hindi monthly) and Science ki Duniya (Urdu quarterly), number of popular science books, and 16 scholarly science journals. In the area of Materials and Engineering: CSIR has developed a special variety of photonic crystal fiber having very high nonlinearity and demonstrated its operation in generating wide band supercontinuum source required for various applications,
Scientific and Technological Developments
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e.g. optical coherence tomography, spectroscopy, metrology etc. CSIR has also made an innovative use of globular/fibrous proteins to treat the implant surfaces at room temperature. The proteinaceous content of mineral coating plays a major role in determining its biocompatibility and bio-resorption. Another significant development is the fabrication of carbon fibre reinforced silicon carbide advanced composite ceramic friction plate for automotive brake and clutch applications. New Millennium Indian Technology Leadership Initiative (NMITLI): NMITLI enjoys an unprecedented brand image and is looked upon as a role model in the domain of public-private-partnership initiatives. Under the scheme two categories of projects viz. (i) Nationally Evolved Projects (NEP), and (ii) Industry Originated Projects (IOP) are developed and supported. Besides, few projects are evolved based on the 'proof of concept' obtained from the earlier/ongoing NMITLI projects. NMITLI has made some significant progress which include developing components of Fuel Cell based on Hydrogen, Aluminum alloy matrix hybrid composite containing silicon and graphite particles, Triple play broadband technology, 500Kw low cast horizontalaxis Wind Turbine, Production of docosahexanoic acid (DHA) from thraustochytridstechnology transferred to industry, Oral herbal formulation for treatment of psoriasis entering phase-III Clinical trials Lysostaphin disorders viz. diabetes, arthritis and hepatic disorders, Five chemotypes and a phytochemical hybrid developed for Withania and Fungal and Yeast promoters developed under Novel Expression System Project. Fractionation of sugarcane bagasse to cellulose, hemi-cellulose and lignin operationalized at pilot scale and technology transferred to Godavari Sugars. Human Resource Development: CSIR is committed to develop and nurture S&T manpower at the national level. It also promotes guides and co-ordinates scientific & industrial research through scientific projects at the national level. Some of the activities are: award of Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Prizes (SSB) and CSIR Young scientist Awards. (YSA); selection of Junior Research Fellows (JRF) through National Eligibility Test (NET); selection of Senior Research Fellows (SRF), SRF Extended Research Associates (RA), Senior Research Associates (SRA) and Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Fellows (SPMF); funding of Extra Mural Research (EMR) schemes at Universities/R&D organizations; visiting Associateship scheme; travel/conference/symposium grants; CSIR Programme on Youth for Leadership in Science (CPYLS). In this particular year CSIR has provided support to approximately 8000 Research Fellows/Associates in different branches of Science & Technology, 122 Emeritus Scientists, 135 Pool Scientists etc. CSIR's Human Resource Development Centre, a central training establishment, has been set-up to focus on the need for human resource development of CSIR system. The Centre continues to offer value added skill enhancement programmes. The training & development activities focus on development of skills required for the organization to remain competitive. Intellectual Property Management: CSIR is spearheading IP movement in the country and is eyeing for top slot in elite group of patent filer worldwide. CSIR has positioned itself from being reactive to proactive IP protection by random patenting to planned patenting and designing patenting portfolios based on business plan with commercial and strategic considerations. It has filed 262 patents abroad and 699 patents in India during 2008-09. Besides, it has portfolio of 2251 patents in India and 2727 patents abroad. CSIR has published 3883 research papers in SCI journals with Average Impact Factor per paper (AVIF) as 2.17.
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ATOMIC
ENERGY
The Department of Atomic Energy (DAE), established on 3 August 1954 is engaged in the development of nuclear power technology, applications of radiation technologies in the fields of agriculture, medicine, industry, and basic research. l
Increasing the share of nuclear power through deployment of indigenous and other proven technologies and also developing fast breeder reactors and thorium reactors with associated fuel cycle facilities;
l
Building and operation of research reactors for production of radioisotopes and carrying out radiation technology applications in the field of medicine, agriculture and industry;
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Developing advanced technologies such as accelerators, lasers etc. and encouraging transfer of technology to industry;
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Support to basic research in nuclear energy and related frontier areas of science, interaction with universities and academic institutions, support to R&D projects having a bearing on DAE's programmes and international co-operation in related areas of research; and
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Contribution to national security.
An integrated group of organizations, the Department comprises five research centres, three Industrial Organisations, five Public Sector Undertakings and three Service Organisations. It has two Boards for promoting and funding extramural research in nuclear and allied fields, and mathematics. It also supports seven institutes of international repute, engaged in research in basic sciences, astronomy, astrophysics, cancer research, education etc. and a society that provides educational facilities to the children of DAE employees. Following is the profile of DAE's achievements and activities under its major programmes. NUCLEAR POWER PROGRAMME DAE has been pursuing the following 3-stage Nuclear Power Programme : l
The first stage comprises setting up of Pressurised Heavy Water Reactors (PHWRs) and associated fuel cycle facilities. PHWRs use natural uranium as fuel and heavy water as moderator and coolant.
l
The second stage envisages setting up of Fast Breeder Reactors (FBRs) backed by reprocessing plants and plutonium-based fuel fabrication plants. Plutonium is produced by irradiation of uranium-238.
l
The third stage is based on the thorium-uranium-233 cycle. Uranium-233 is obtained by irradiation of thorium.
The first stage of Nuclear Power Programme is already in commercial domain. The Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd. (NPCIL), a public sector undertaking of DAE, is responsible for the design, construction and operation of nuclear power reactors. The company operates 17 reactors. (2 Boiling Water Reactors and 15 Pressurised Heavy Water Reactors) with a total capacity of 4120 MWe. NPCIL is also constructing 3 PHWRs and 2 light water reactors that will increase the installed nuclear capacity to 6780 MWe by the year 20 08.
Scientific and Technological Developments
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The Fast Breeder Programme is in the technology demonstration stage. To gain experience in the second stage, the Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research (IGCAR) has been engaged in the design and development of liquid sodium cooled fast breeder reactors. IGCAR has successfully developed the Fast Breeder Reactor (FBR) technology. The operational experience of FBTR of more than two decades and further technology developments have facilitated the design of a 500 MWe Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor (currently under construction of Kalpakkam). A new public sector undertaking Bharatiya Nabhikiya Vidyut Nigam (BHAVINI) of DAE is implementing this project which is expected to add 500 MWe to the Southern grid by the year 2010-11. The third stage of the Nuclear Power Programme is in technology development stage. The ongoing development of 300 MWe Advanced Heavy Water Reactor (AHWR) at BARC aims at developing expertise for thorium utilization and demonstrating advanced safety concepts. Thorium-based systems such as AHWR can be set up on commercial scale only after a large capacity based on fast breeder reactors, is built up.
NUCLEAR
POWER
PROGRAMME
:
STAGE-I
PRESSURISED HEAVY WATER REACTORS For the Indian Nuclear Power Progrmme, that took off in the sixties, PHWR was the reactor of choice for the first stage of the programme. However, to gain operational experience, initially an atomic power station comprising two boiling water reactors (BWR) was set up at Tarapur, Maharashtra. This was a turnkey project of the General Electric of USA. Commissioned in 1969, the station is still in operation. The first two PHWRs, at Rawatbhata, Rajasthan, started commercial production in 1973 and 1981. The first unit (RAPS-1) was built with the help of the Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd. (AECL). However, the second unit was completed with the indigenous research and development endeavour and the support of the Indian industry. This success followed commissioning of the two 220 MWe reactors at Kalpakkam near Chennai, Tamil Nadu, in the years 1984 and 1986. Later, the design of the 220 MWe PHWR was standardized and two reactors of this design were commissioned at Narora, Uttar Pradesh, in 1991 and 1992. The design standardisation has markedly reduced gestation period of new reactors. This technology of PHWR reached commercial maturity with the commissioning of two 220 MWe PHWRs at Kakrapar (Gujarat) in 1993 and 1995. In the year 2000, four state-of-the-art 220 MWe PHWRs, two each at Kaiga (Karnataka) and Rawatbhata (Rajasthan) came online. One more 220 MWe PHWR was commissioned at Kaiga in May 2007. The reactor design of 220 MWe PHWR was successfully scaled up to 540 MWe. Two reactors of this scaled-up design have been successfully commissioned at Tarapur, in the years 2005 and 2006. The gestation period of the reactors has also been reduced drastically. The growing experience of NPCIL in nuclear technology has resulted in improving performence of its nuclear power plants. It has embarked on the design of 700 MWe PHWRs with the same fissile inventory as the 540 MWe reactors. The nuclear power generation has risen from 3000 million units in the year 1981-82 to 17794 million units for the calendar year 2006.
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Ongoing Projects A total capacity of 3160 megawatt is under construction. It comprises three 220 MWe Pressurised Heavy Water Reactors, two at Rawatbhata (RAPP-5&6) and one at Kaiga (Kaiga-2&$), two Pressurised Water Reactors of 1000 MWe each at Kudankulam and one 500 MWe prototype fast breeder reactor (PFBR) at Kalpakkam. New Projects The Government of India has also given, in principle, site approvals for setting up 8 additional nuclear power reactors aggregating 6800 MWe. These will consist of 700 MWe. PHWrs and 1000 MWe Light Water Reactors to be located at Kudankulam (Tamil Nadu), Kakrapar (Gujarat), Rawatbhata (Rajasthan) and Jaitapur (Maharashtra). DAE has an ambitious nuclear power programme that aims at achieving an installed nuclear power capacity of 20,000 MWe by the year 2020, through internal resources and external collaborations. THE NUCLEAR FUEL CYCLE The Nuclear Power Programme has a number of ancillary operations which form the Nuclear Fuel Cycle. The Front-End of this Cycle includes mineral exploration, mining and processing of ore, and fuel fabrication. Reprocessing of spent uranium fuel and management of nuclear waste form part of the Back-End of the Cycle. India has acquired comprehensive capability in PHWR design, construction and operation of associated plants/facilities covering the entire nuclear fuel cycle of the nuclear power programme based on pressurized heavy water reactors. This includes production of heavy water that is used as moderator and coolant in PHWR. The DAE organizations contributing to the Front-End of the Nuclear Fuel Cycle Programme are the Atomic Minerals Directorate for Research and Exploration (AMD), Hyderabad; Uranium Corporation of India Ltd. (UCIL), Jaduguda (Jharkhand); Nuclear Fuel Complex (NFC), Hyderabad; and Heavy Water Board (HWB), Mumbai. BARC and IGCAR administer the Back End of the Cycle. Front End Fuel Cycle The operations under the Front-End Fuel Cycle range from mining, milling and processing of ore, and fabrication of fuel. In addition, heavy water production is also an ancillary programme to the DAE’s PHWR programme. Survey and Exploration The Atomic Minerals Directorate for Exploration and Research (AMD) is engaged in survey, exploration and evaluation of resources of uranium, thorium, niobium, tantalum, beryllium, zirconium, lithium, yttrium and rare earth elements required for the indigenous atomic energy programme of the country. The geological studies related to the selection of nuclear power plant sites and repositories for the disposal of nuclear wastes are carried out by AMD in collaboration with the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd. (NPCIL) Survey and exploration for atomic minerals had commenced in 1949. Over the years, uranium deposits have been located at Jaduguda, Bhatin, Narwapahar, Turamdih (East and South), Banduhuran (Turamdih West), Central Keruadungri, Bagjata, Kanyaluka, Mohuldih and Nandup in Jharkhand; Domiasiat and Wahkyn in Meghalaya; Lambapur - Peddagattu, Koppunuru and Tummalapalle in Andhra
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Pradesh; Gogi in Karnataka and Rohil in Rajasthan. So far, AMD has established 61,000 tonnes of uranium metal. Certain Proterozoic basins, which are the prime targets for unconformity-related high-grade uranium deposits are Andhra Pradesh; Delhi basin (fold belt) in Rajasthan; Bhima and Kaladgi-Badami basins in Karnataka, Chhattisgarh; Indravati and Abujhmar basins in Chhattisgarh; and Gwalior basin in Madhya Pradesh. The Mesozoic and Tertiary basins, which are the targets for large tonnage sandstone type of uranium deposits under exploration, are the Mesozoic Mahadek basin in Meghalaya and Gondwana basin in Madhya Pradesh as well as the Upper Tertiary Siwalik basin in Himachal Pradesh. AMD has also stockpiled adequate resources of columbite-tantalite (niobium & tantalum mineral). A number of beach sand deposits, containing ilmenite, rutile and leucoxene (titanium), zircon (zirconium), monazite (thorium and LREE), sillimanite and garnet have also been established in the East and West coasts in parts of Orissa, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, and Maharashtra, as well as in the inland Teri sand of Tamil Nadu and riverine places of Bihar and West Bengal. At Brahmagiri, Puri district, Orissa, a deposit containing 120 million tonnes of heavy mineral resources has been established. This is the largest single deposit of heavy mineral resources in the country. Besides, heavy mineral resources have also been identified at Narsapur, West Godavari district, Amlapuram, East Godavari district, Andhra Pradesh; Vayakallur-Tutto, Kanyakumari district; Tamil Nadu; and Thotatapalli - Alappuzha, Kollam and Alappuzha districts, Kerala. So far, AMD has identified about 700 million tonnes of beach sand heavy mineral resources. Mining and Ore Processing The exploratory efforts of AMD, made earlier, had led to the opening of four underground uranium mines at Jaduguda, Bhatin, Narwapahar and Turamdih all in Singbhum (East), Jharkhand state. A new open cast mine was also commissioned at Banduhurang in Singbhum in 2007. These mines, being operated by the Uranium Corporation of India Ltd. (UCIL), a public sector undertaking of DAE, have been meeting the needs of the Indian Nuclear Power Programme. To meet the projected demand of the nuclear power programme, UCIL has taken up the work to develop mines at Bagjata (in Jharkhand), Lambapur (Andhra Pradesh) and Domiasiat (Meghalaya). Efforts are being made for exploiting other secondary resources. UCIL also operates a uranium mill for processing of the uranium ores to produce yellow cake which is further sent to NFC for fuel fabrication. In addition, magnetite present in the uranium ore is recovered as a by-product in the uranium process plant. The research and development in the field of ore processing and uranium metal production is done at Trombay. An uranium metal production facility for production of uranium ingot operates at Trombay. Nuclear Fuel Fabrication Nuclear fuel fabrication for power reactors and research reactors is done respectively at the Nuclear Fuel Complex, Hyderabad, and BARC. In the development of new fuels, BARC and IGCAR are engaged.
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The Indian PHWR uses natural uranium-based fuel. A major milestone was achieved with the fabrication of the first fuel element at Trombay in 1959. For industrial scale manufacture of nuclear fuel assemblies and zircaloy structural components for power reactors, the Nuclear Fuel Complex (NFC) was set up in Hyderabad in 1971. NFC, now an ISO 9001 organisation, manufactures zircaloy4 clad natural and depleted uranium oxide and thoria bundles for pressurised heavy water reactors, zircaloy-2 clad enriched uranium oxide fuels for boiling water reactors and stainless steel clad thoria and depleted uranium oxide blanket sub-assemblies for liquid metal-cooled fast breeder reactor. NFC also manufactures zirconium alloy structural components for the above reactors. In addition, NFC produces seamless stainless tubes, hexcans and other structurals for fast reactor core assemblies and special alloy tubes. It also caters to the demand of high quality stainless steel tubes and pipes for critical and strategic applications in nuclear power plants and reprocessing plants in atomic energy. The plants of NFC have been performing very well meeting their annual production targets consecutively for the last six years and some of the plants have even crossed their plant capacities. At BARC a wide variety of fuels have been developed and fabricated on industrial scale for fabrication of indigenous mixed oxide (MOX) fuel assemblies for boiling water reactors at TAPS. BARC has set-up the Advanced Fuel Fabrication Facility (AFFF) at Tarapur. The MOX fuel produced here has given satisfactory performance. Construction of a Zirconim Oxide Plant for enhancing the production capacity of zirconium oxide powder is underway. Titanium half alloy hydraulic tubes are critical components in Light Combat Aircraft. The first batch of these tubes has been produced by NFC for the Aeronautical Development Authority. This development is considered to have a huge economic potential. Heavy Water Production and Upgrading The Heavy Water Board (HWB) of DAE is responsible for building and operating heavy water plants in the country. The Board has seven heavy water plants in the country. Besides meeting domestic needs of heavy water, the board has also exported heavy water. In November 2006, the Board executed the seventh export order of 13 MT of heavy water to South Korea besides entering into a contract with US for the supply of 4400 kg of nuclear grade heavy water. Recognizing the efforts put in by the Board in the field of energy conservation and energy management, the Bureau of Energy Efficiency of the Ministry of Power, assigned to the Board a lead role to carry out energy management and conservation for fertilizer, petroleum and chlor alkali sector industries to achieve the national goal of energy conservation. Through continuing research, BARC had developed heavy water upgrading technology for use on commercial scale. Based on this technology, at present 23 upgrading final enrichment towers are in operation at various sites and some are under construction. Back-End of Nuclear Fuel Cycle The Back-End of the Nuclear Fuel Cycle comprises fuel reprocessing and nuclear waste management.
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Fuel Reprocessing The Indian nuclear power generation programme is based on closed-cycle approach that involves reprocessing of spent fuel and recycle of Plutonium and Uranium-233 for power generation. From the inception of its nuclear power programme, DAE had commenced development of fuel reprocessing technology. It has a Pilot Plant for fuel reprocessing at Trombay and industrial scale plants at Tarapur and Kalpakkam. The plant at Trombay processes spent fuel from research reactors while the other two plants process spent fuel from power reactors. Nuclear Waste Management The radioactive wastes generated at various stages of nuclear fuel cycle are catagorised as low, intermediate and high level wastes. The plants for management of all types of radioactive wastes have been in operation at many nuclear facilities. The high level wastes, generated in very small quantities, are fixed in a glass matrix. Vitrification, a complex technology possessed by a few nations only, has been successfully developed at Trombay. Based on this technology, two Waste Immobilisation Plants (WIPs) have been operating at Tarapur and Trombay. A facility for the immobilisation of waste in a cement matrix has been commissioned at Kalpakkam. BARC has constructed an Advanced Vitrification System at Tarapur for high level waste immobilisation based on Joule Melter Technology. India has become one of the six countries who have developed the Joule Heated Ceramic Mixer (JHCM) and set up such facilities for vitrification of high level waste. Vitrified waste is stored in a specially designed Solid Storage Surveillance Facility (SSSF) for about 30 years prior to its disposal in deep geological formation. The first such facility has been in operation at Tarapur since 1999. R&D Support to Nuclear Power The programmes relating to nuclear power and the nuclear fuel cycle have been built on the multidisciplinary R&D infrastructure of the Department. The research and development relating to PHWR programme encompasses practically all the aspects of design, manufacture, construction, commissioning, operation and maintenance of power plants. Thrust on indigenisation of equipment and components has led to the development of technologies for operation and maintenance of power reactors. The technologies that emerged from the research and development include automation, monitoring, inspection, and repair systems, equipment and gadgets. Special Purpose Machines have been designed, developed and successfully used for carrying out in-situ precision machining and cutting operations for the upgradation/maintenance of reactors. A number of state-of-theart instrumentation and control systems for reactors and heavy water plants have been developed at BARC and IGCAR. The R&D efforts are focused on reducing the unit energy cost through improving plant efficiency as well as plant availability factors, decreasing the project gestation period and improving plant safety. R&D has contributed immensely to plant life management. The strong R&D base has led to a number of successes notably repair of over pressure relief device of RAPS-1, en-masse removal and replacement of coolant channels of RAPS-2; Management of Calandria inlet manifold, End-shield repair; Steam generator hair-pin removal, Development of BARCIS system for in-
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service inspection of coolant channels, and System to relocate garter springs in coolant channels. A number of new technologies, such as servo-manipulators, image processing based alignment system, and others have been developed. From KAPS-2 onwards, improved coolant channel material and modified channel design have been adopted for longer life of coolant channels. At BARC, Liquid Zone Control System (LZCS) in the 540 MWe PhWR consisting of six Liquid Zone Control Assemblies containing fourteen Zone Control Compartments (ZCCs), associated equipment for circulation of liquid absorber and inert cover gas in the ZCC’s and measuring and control devices were designed and installed. Micro computer based Fault tolerant real time Process Control System has been designed and delivered for 540 MWe TAPP-3&4. Robotics is one of the major thrust areas of the R&D programmes at BARC and IGCAR. A five-degree-of-freedom Robot, for deployment in radioactive chemical laboratories, a six-degree-of-freedom Robot and a mobile Robot have been developed at Trombay. At IGCAR, for automation of non destructive evaluation, various devices have been developed. These include a Mobile Scanner (MOBSCAN), a Remotely Operated Power Manipulator (ROPMAN), and a Robot for capping and decapping bottles. Various pieces of equipment developed by BARC helped in improving the safe operating life of coolant channels from seven to more than nine effective full power years. The 2 MW in-pile loop in Dhruva Reactor installed for nuclear fuel studies is a major achievement. A Remotely Operated Hydraulic Trolley & Manipulator (ROHYTAM) developed for handling of nuclear power plant emergencies, successfully completed its test run. To meet the quality needs of the nuclear programme, several non destructive testing techniques and equipment have been developed by BARC and IGCAR. DAE has been promoting technology relating to quality assurance. Over a period, this approach has paid dividends to the nation by upgrading the quality levels of the Indian industry. Electronics & Instrumentation To meet the hi-tech instrumentation needs of the nuclear technology, a strong R&D base was created in electronics and instrumentation, first at TIFR and later at BARC. The knowhow and the products developed at Trombay in the area of electronics have led to the setting up of the Electronics Corporation of India Ltd. (ECIL) at Hyderabad in 1967. The company pioneered the electronics and computer revolution in India. During seventies and eighties, ECIL led the television revolution in the country by bringing out indigenous black & white and colour television sets and also rural rebroadcast systems. ECIL, is now a multi-product and multi-disciplinary organisation providing key technology inputs, system integration and system solutions in the areas of information technology, strategic electronics, communications, control and automation, instrumentation and components. ECIL, through its software expertise, has contributed to automation in the banking sector, control room and dial-100 automation for the police, message switching systems for defence and telecom sectors, management information systems
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for the ports, municipal corporations and market yards and others. The company has provided countrywide SPC telex networks, message switching network and maintenance systems for telephone exchanges, and contributed to the technology solutions, in the areas of command, control, communications, computers & information/intelligence systems. Nuclear and thermal power plants, steel plants and process industries are equipped with ECIL’s control systems developed through in-house R&D. The DAE research centres are also engaged in the development of sophisticated electronic systems, instruments and components for the nuclear power programme and various other applications. NUCLEAR POWER PROGRAMME - STAGE : II FAST REACTOR PROGRAMME The second stage of nuclear power generation envisages setting up of fast breeder reactors (FBRs) backed by reprocessing plants and plutonium-based fuel fabrication plants. These fast breeder systems produce more fuel than what they consume. FBRs can increase fuel utilisation by about sixty times of what is possible with PHWRs. IGCAR started the breeder programme with the setting up of a Fast Breeder Test Reactor (FBTR) at Kalpakkam, Tamil Nadu in October 1985. This reactor, operating with indigenously developed mixed uranium-plutonium carbide fuel has achieved its technology objectives. The reactor operated at a power level of 17.4 MWt and the turbo-generator was connected to the grid, feeding 1.8 million units of electricity. The fuel has reached a burn up of 1,55,000 megawatt day per tonne (MWd/t), that is more than four times the originally designed value. Based on the experience gained with the FBTR, the Bharatiya Nabhikiya Vidyut Nigam Ltd. (BHAVINI-formed in October 2003) is constructing a 500 megawatt (e) Prototype Fast Breeder Reactor (PFBR) at Kalpakkam, Tamil Nadu. It is a pool type reactor using a mixed oxide of uranium and plutonium as fuel, the design and technology of which were developed at IGCAR. The PFBR is expected to go critical in September 2010. The FBR programme is poised to enhance the electricity potential in India through available uranium-metal resources by a factor of about 100. The thrust of the R&D programme at IGCAR is oriented towards the design validation of PFBR in the first instance, and subsequently, the design optimisation for future FBRs, to reduce the cost. Fast Reactor Fuel Fabrication The Mark-I mixed carbide fuel core, with high plutonium content, has been developed for the first time in the world. Fabrication of Mark-II core is progressing at Trombay. A number of PFBR MOX fuel elements for making experimental PFbR subassembly, for irradiation in FBTR, have been fabricated by BARC. Fast Reactor Fuel Reprocessing For reprocessing of FBTR fuel, the lead Mini Cell, henceforth known as Compact Reprocessing facility for Advanced fuels in Lead cells (CORAL) has been
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commissioned at Kalpakkam. It is aimed at establishing the fast reactor reprocessing process flow sheet. For reprocessing of fuel from fast breeders, IGCAR is setting up the Fast Reactor Fuel Reprocessing Plant (FRFRP). A comprehensive procedure has also been evolved at the Centre for the recovery of uranium and plutonium and separation of the radioactive fission products from the spent fuel solutions. Fast Reactor Technology Development Under the technology developement programme, IGCAR is pursuing engineeringrelated research & development such as thermal hydraulic and structural mechanics studies, development of components such as control and safety rod drive mechanism and various test facilities such as Sodium Water Reaction Test Facility and Steam Generator Test Facility. NUCLEAR
POWER
PROGRAMME-STAGE-III
THORIUM BASED REACTORS Thorium utilsation is the long term core objective of the Indian Nuclear Power Programme for providing energy security for the country on a sustainable basis. The third stage of the Indian Nuclear Power Programme is based on the thoriumuranium-233 cycle. A beginning has already been made by introducing thorium, in a limited way, in research reactors and in pressurised heavy water reactors. The research reactor KAMINI operating up to a nominal power of 30kW for neutron radiography of various materials, at Kalpakkam, uses uranium-233 fuel derived from thorium. This fuel is bred, reprocessed and fabricated indigenously. BARC is engaged in developing 300MWe advanced Heavy Water Reactor (AHWR). This endeavour aims at developing expertise for thorium utilization and demonstrating advanced safety concepts. Its reactor physics design is tuned to generate about 75% power from thorium. Being a first of its kind in the world, the AHWR design is being subjected to a rigouous peer review so as to optimize and validate it. Mixed Thoria-Urania and Thoria-Plutonia are the candidate fuels for the AHWR. The fuel pellets have been successfully fabricated by the conventional power metallury route. The design of this reactor incorporates several advanced safety features. The overall physics design including core configuration has been completed. A critical facility for validation of physics calculation pertaining to AHWR core design is being set up at BARC. Design and development of a high temperature reactor system including Compact High Temperature Reactor, Nuclear Power Pack and High Temperature Reactor for Hydrogen Generation, mainly for process heat and non-grid based electricity generation applications, are also continuing at Trombay. A Compact High Temperature Reactor (CHTR), with 100kW thermal power rating, being developed here, will be used for electricity generation in remote places, production of alternative transportation fuel such as hydrogen, and refinenment of low-grade coal etc. For breeding fissile uranium-233 from thorium, development of Accelerator Driven Sub-Critical Systems (ADS) for nuclear reactor is the latest addition to the Indian nuclear programme. ADS can provide a strong technology base for large-
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scale thorium utilization. This endeavour offers promise of incineration of long-lived actinides and fission products, thereby reducing the technical complexities of storage of long-life high-level radioactive wastes. As a first step towards realization of ADS, DAE has launched development of proton injector. To carry out experimental studies on sub-critical assemblies, a 14 MeV neutron generator has also been upgraded with a higher current ion source. For the separation of uranium-233 from irradiated thorium fuel on a plant scale, a uranium-thorium Separation Facility is in operation at Trombay. SAFETY & ENVIRONMENT The safety operations through the entire nuclear fuel cycle, from prospecting and mining of ores to management of waste, encompass all the aspects of safety, viz. radiological safety, industrial safety, occupational health, fire safety and environmental protection. In all the nuclear installations, care is taken to protect operating personnel, public and the environment. An independent body, the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AFRB) monitors safety. The safety standards formulated by AREB are on par with those recommended by the international organisations such as the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP). NPCIL isa member of the World Association of Nuclear Operators (WANO). The Association has conducted peer reviews of the atomic power stations at Kakrapar and Narora. Also, from time to time, Indian experts have participated in peer reviews in a number of countries including USA, Japan and South Korea. As a result of consistent efforts, the nuclear power plants have achieved about 260 reactor years of safe operation. Safety surveillance inspections are regularly carried out and comprehensive Emergency Preparedness and Response Plans to handle postulated emergency scenarios are in action at the DAE facilities. BARC and the laboratories accredited by it conduct countrywide personnel monitoring in about 3000 industrial, medical, research and DAE organisations which benefit over 30,000 radiation workers annually. Environmental radiation monitoring and environmental surveillance are the regular features of the environmental protection programme of DAE. At different sites, the Environment Survey Labs (ESLs) of BARC continuously monitor environment, and collect site-related meteorological data. Sophisticated weather monitoring SODAR systems are operational at Kaiga, Kalpakkam, Tarapur and Trombay. IREMON, a nationwide network of environmental radiation monitoring stations detects radiation releases. Interfaced with global postitioning system, a Compact Aerial Radiation Monitoring System. (CARMS) for estimation of large area contamination using unmanned aerial vehicle, is also in operation at Trombay. DAE is committed to not only preserving the environment but also to its further enrichment. All the operating nuclear power plants and heavy water plants now have the ISO environment certificate. To educate the public living around nuclear power plants, public awareness programmes by DAE organisations are organised on a regular basis.
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Environment Friendly Technologies DAE is a pioneer in conducting comprehensive thermal ecology studies in India. The flue gas conditioning technology developed by Heavy Water Board is now helping to reduce fly ash emission from thermal boilers. The Nisarga-Runa technology developed at BARC converts biodegradable solid waste into useful manure and methane. A number of such plants have been set up at various places. The Sewage Sludge Hygienisation plant (SHRI) at Vadodara continues to provide dried hygienised sludge for use by farmers. The hygienised sludge being pathogen free can be beneficially used as manure in the agricultural fields as it is rich in nutrients required for the soil. Further, it can also be used as a medium for growing soil-useful bacteia like-rhizobium and azetobactor to produce enriched manure that can be used to enhance the crop yields. Large scale field trials of utilizing radiation processed municipal sewage sludge in the agricultural fields have been conducted under the supervision of Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK, Vadodara). The trials conducted showed increase in the yields of many agricultural crops. RADIATION TECHNOLOGIES & APPLICATIONS DAE’s programme relating to radiation technologies and application covers building and operation of research reactors for production of radioisotopes, and other sources of radiation such as accelerators and lasers, and developing and deploying radiation technology applications in the field of medicine, agriculture and industry. Research Reactors The research reactor programme of DAE provided research and ‘development support to the nuclear power programme, produces radioisotopes for use in health care, agriculture, industry and research, and provides manpower training. The research reactors set up by DAE so far, have been Apsara (1mW, Fuel: Enriched Uranium-Aluminium alloy), CIRUS (40MW, Fuel: Natural uranium), Zerlina (zero energy, Natural Uranium), Purnima I-III (Fuel: Plutonium/Uranium-233), Dhruva (100 MW, Fuel: Natural Uranium) at Trombay (Maharashtra), and Kamini (30kW, Fuel : Uranium-233-A1 alloy) and Fast Breeder Test Reactor (40MW, Fuel : Uranium-Plutonium carbide) at Kalpakkam (Tamil Nadu). Of the research reactors, Zerlina was decommissioned in 1984, and Purnima series made way for Kamini. Dhruva, CIRUS and Apsara are used for producing radioisotopes besides their use in research and development relating to nuclear technologies and materials, applied and basic research, and training. KAMINI is used mainly for radiography of various materials, and FBTR is the test bed for the development of fuel, blanket and structural materials for fast breeder reactor programme. The new ventures include the development of a Critical Facility at Trombay for reactor physics experiments relating to AHWR and 540 MWe PHWR, and a pool type 200MWt Multi Purpose Research Reactor. Radioisotope Production & Processing India is a leading producer of radioisotopes in the world. Radioisotopes are produced in the research reactors at Trombay, atomic power reactors at various places in the country, and cyclotron at Kolkata.
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The radioisotopes produced at Trombay and at the nuclear power stations, are processed by BRIT. These products include radiopharma-ceuticals, labelled compounds, radiochemicals, radiobiomolecules, radiosources and a number of devices using radioisotopes. The radioisotope-based products and services are now commercially available through BRIT. Applications of Radioisotopes The radioisotopes produced at Trombay find wide applications in the fields of agriculture and food, medicine and health care, industry, and research. Based on these applications, the following programmes have been established. Nuclear Agriculture The Nuclear Agriculture Programme of DAE focuses on the use of radiation technology for the development of high yielding crop seeds, radiation processing of food items, fertilizer and pesticide-related studies, and other areas. These technologies are benefiting Indian farmers and traders. Crop Improvement BARC, in collaboration with agricultural universities, has been engaged in research and development in the field of crop improvement. The Centre has successfully developed several high yielding crop varieties. Of these 29 varieties have been notified and released for commercial cultivation by the Ministry of Agriculture, Government of India. These include 12 groundnut, 11 pulses, 2 mustard varieties, 2 soybean varieties and one each variety of jute and rice. BARC has successfully developed green manure crop - Sesbania rostrata that is proving highly cost-effective for small farmers. A tissue culture-based protocol for rapid multiplication of some commercial cultivars of banana has been developed here. This technology has been transferred to the Maharashtra State Seeds Corporation. Using micro-propagation technology, BARC has standardised large-scale multiplication of pineapple. Micro propagation protocol has also been standardized in three varieties of sugarcane. The Centre has made good progress in developing hardened plants for Acacia Victoriae - a plant suitable for desert area. Here, several insect pheromones have also been synthesized and techniques for determination of nutrients in soils have been developed. For wider deployment of the technologies developed by its organisations, DAE has set-up an interface with Ministry of Agriculture. Food processing The Department has set-up plants for demonstration of high and low dose applications of radiation. These are Radiation Processing Plant set up by BRIT at Navi Mumbai for high dose radiation processing of spices, and KRUSHAK (Krushi Utpadan Sanrakshan Kendra), set up by BARC at Lasalgaon near Nashik, for low dose applications of radiation for food preservation. This plant processes onion, pulses, rawa and turmeric. The Government of India has approved radiation processing of certain food items both for export and domestic consumption.
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The Radiation Processing Plant at Vashi processed more than 1500 MT of spices and other allied products. The major thrust given to the area of setting up of new radiation processing plants for medical, food-related and allied products, has shown very encouraging results. Considerable progress has been achieved in the setting up of radiation processing plants in private sector. The first radiation processing plant in private sector by M/s. Organic Green Foods Ltd. is operating in Kolkata. Three Gamma Processing Plants have been completed in Sonepat (Harayana), Ambernath (Maharashtra) and Vadodara (Gujarat). Apart from supplying the Cobalt-60 sources for the new plants, BRIT provides requisite technical guidance and facilitation services (from conception to commissioning stage) to enable the entrepreneurs to commission the plants in a time-bound manner. Recently, four more private agencies have signed MOU with BRIT for setting up gamma irradiation plants in different parts of the country. Nearly 300 tonnes of onion from a private entrepreneur were irradiated at BARC’s Krushak plant at Lasalgaon, district Nashik, Maharashtra. In April, 2007, the KRUSHAK Radiation Processing Facility became the first cobalt-60 gamma irradiation facility in the world to be certified by the United States Department of Agriculture-Animal & Plant Heath Inspection Service (USDA-APHIS) for phytonsanitary treatment of mangoes, enabling export of mangoes from India to USA. India exported the first consignment of 720 kg Alfonso and Kesar mangoes to the US. All exporters interested in processing mango for exports to the US need to approach the Agricultural Product Export Development Authority (APEDA) and bring mangoes to the facility only through APEDA-approved orchards and packing houses. Recently, an MoU has been signed between BARC and the National Centre for Electron Beam Food Research, Texas, USA for co-operation in the advancement of electron and X-ray irradiation technologies to promote food preservation, food safety and phytosanitary applications. A 10 MeV/10 kW LINAC for food irradiation has been commissioned at RRCAT. BRIT has also developed an install-and-operate type Irradiator for radiation processing for approval of additional items and other related issues. Research at BARC is focused on radiation processing for preservation of cereals and pulses, fruits and vegetables, meat and meat products and seafood. In meat preservation, a process for preparation of shelf-stable intermediate moisture meat products using gamma radiation has been standardized. The effect of the combinations of radiation, packaging, and low temperatures, extension of shelf-life of a number of fruits and vegtables and coffee beans, are under extensive study. Nuclear Medicine and Heath care Radioisotopes and their formulations find wide applications in diagnosis, therapy and health care. BARC and BRIT are the main centres of this activity. At BARC, Cesium-137 based brachy therapy sources are routinely produced. For treatment of cancer of eye, radiation sources of the size of rice grain, containing
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2-3 milli curie of Iodine-125, have been produced here. This miniature source was tried for the first time for treatment of eye cancer at Sankara Netralaya, Chennai. Another salient development here is the digital medical imaging system based on a Charge Coupled Device (CCD). BARC has successfully developed radiation-processed hydrogel for treating burns, wounds and leprosy; Holmium-166-Hydroxy Apatite (HoHa) and Samarium153-Hydroxy Apatite (SmHa) radiopharmaceuticals for treatment of arthritis, and radiolabelling of phosphonates with Luthinium-177 for intemalised radiotherapy. Tuberculosis is a major health problem in India. For detection of the disease infection, BARC developed a sero-diagnostic test-kit with X-ray imaging using a three dimensional cone-beam tonography which is another important development. BARC’s Radiation Medicine Centre (RMC) in Mumbai is involved in research and development in nuclear medicine and allied sciences. The centre offers diagnostic and therapeutic services using radioisotopes, and promotes human resource development in nuclear medicine. It is a regional referral centre of the World Health Organisation, and the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Radioimmunoassays (RIA) and related procedures are used for the measurements of hormones, enzymes, certain serum proteins, and others. RMC is a major provider of RIA services in the country, to thyroid patients. This centre annually dispenses of 90,000mCi of Technetium based radiopharmaceuticals, and annually carries out 8000 radiodiagnostic investigations and 9000 radioimmunoassays. For the radiodiagnosis needs in the eastern part of the country, the Regional Radiation Medicine Centre (RRMC) of VECC is operating at Kolkata. The Centre carries out nuclear imaging and hormone estimations. BRIT processes and formulates radiosotopes produced in the research reactors Dhruva and Apsara at Trombay and also in the power reactors of NPCIL. These products are supplied to nearly 2000 institutions in the country for applications in agriculture, health care, and supporting research in life sciences and bio sciences. BRIT also manufactures radiation technology based equipment, and provides radiation processing services to medical sector. Annually, BRIT supplies over 43,000 consignments of radioisotopes and allied products, and over 45,000 cold kits for formulation of 99mTc (Technetium) radiopharma ceuticals, and 99Mo and 131 I to nuclear medicine centres and cancer hospitals all over the country. With the help of these radiopharmaceutical products and cold kits, over 3 lakh diagnostic imaging studies are performed annually, and a number of patients are treated for thyroid disorders and thyroid cancer. BRIT is working on the development of Samarium 32P Phosphate colloid injection for the treatment of the disease of joints. With this development, a long-felt need of the medical community for an inexpensive alternative to bone palliation agents will be fulfilled. A new automated remote liquid dispensing system for dispensing radioactive consignments into vials has been developed and deployed in the 99 Mo production plant. Supply of Cs-137 Manual After-Loading Applicators was resumed for the benefit of cancer patients in the country, particularly, those suffering from the cancer of the cervix. Technology for the production of Hydrogel Burn & Injury dressings was transferred to a private sector firm in Hyderabad which is going to launch the product in a big way. Radioimmunoassay (RIA) is aversatile in vitro technique for the measurement of hormones, vitamins, drugs and other substances present in biological fluids.
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Another technique known as immuno-radiometric assay (IRMA) is also used for such estimations. Nearly 10,000 RIA/IRMA kits of different hormones are supplied to about 650 RIA centres in the country. The newly developed T3/T4 magnetic particle based RIA kits have been introduced in the market for thyroid hormone investigations. About 5 lakh patient sample analysis are carried out every year using these radioimmunoassay kits. The RIA Centres of BRIT at Bangalore and Dibrugarh conduct 6000 and 5000 radioimmunoassays annually. BRIT’s regional centres at Bangalore and Delhi process ready-to-use Technetium-99m radiopharmaceuticals for use in hospitals in their regions. Labelled compounds are versatile tools for research and tracers. Important labelled compounds supplied by BRIT include phosphorus-32 and Phosphorus-33 labelled nucleotides, Sulphur-35 labelled amino acids, Carbon-14 labelled compounds, Tritium labelled compounds, and others, and cold kits for biological research/non/ radioactive labelling. BRIT’s biomolecule producing laboratory Jonaki at Hyderabad supplies over a dozen labelled nucleotides and molecular biology kits to user institutions across the country on a regular basis. BRIT produces and supplies sealed radiation sources of Cobalt-60 and Iridium192 to a number of radiotherapy centres in the country, for cancer treatment. To provide a low cost alternative teletherapy unit for the expensive imported teletherapy unit, a Cobalt-50 Teletherapy Machine has been developed at BARC. The first unit of Bhabhatron installed at Advanced Centre for Treatment, Research and Education in Cancer (ACTREC), Navi Mumbai is used regularly for treating cancer patients. An improved model of the Bhabhatron has been installed in a Red Cross Hospital in Nellore, Andhra Pradesh. Radiation Sterilization of Medical Products BRIT has been operating radiation sterilization plant ISOMED, now ISO-9002 accredited, at Trombay. The plant provides radiation sterilization services to several users. This plant processes more than 14000 cubic metres of medical products annually. Over two million Dai (midwifery) kits and delivery packs were radiation sterilized at ISOMED, and distributed for use in rural areas for preventing infection of mothers and helping to minimize infant mortality rate, through rural health programmes funded by WHO. The International Institute of Population Studies, Mumbai, in its study has found that the infant mortality rate has fallen by 25-30% in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh, as a result of distribution of the kits in these areas. Similar to ISOMED, plants are also in operation at the Shriram Centre for Industrial Research, Delhi and Kidwai Memorial Institute of Oncology, Bangalore. A plant for R&D purposes has been in operation at the Defence Research and Development Organisation, Jodhpur, Rajasthan. Radiation Processing Plants in the Private Sector With a new gamma irradiation plant in the private sector having been commissioned in Bangalore under the technical guidance facilitation services provided by BRIT
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there are now five such plants operating. Seven MoUs have been entered into with private agencies for setting up such plants. Industrial applications of Radioisotopes The studies conducted by BARC have immensely contributed to the detection and recharge conditions of ground water bodies. Some of these include evaluation of the groundwater recharge conditions in the Delang-Puri sector of coastal Orissa, determination of the origin of thermal waters in the geothermal areas in Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Himalayas, and establishement of the ancient course of the legendary ‘Saraswati’ river in Western Rajasthan. Major activities relating to hydrology cover evaluation of recharge measures at coastal fresh groundwater system of Thiruvadanai, Tamil Nadu, sustainability of deep groundwaters at Kuttanad, Kerala, detection of fluoride contamination in groundwaters of Karnataka, solution of leakage/seepage problems of a few dams in Kerala and Rajasthan; origin of groundwater along paleo channels in Jaisalmer disrict, Western Rajasthan, and seepage and source of salinity in the Indira Gandhi Nahar Pariyojana Command Area, Hanumangarh, Rajasthan. The studies conducted by BARC on sediment transport at almost all the major ports have resulted in increasing the intervals between desilting campaigns, which saved huge cost of desilting operations. Studies on bed load transport at Kolkata and Karwar ports have helped in port-expansion programmes. A nucleonic suspended sediment concentration gauge developed at Trombay, has proved to be a useful tool of the dredging operation in ports. Using radioisotope tracer techniques, a major study on the dilution and dispersion of the sewage disposed of into sea at the Colaba outfall in Mumbai, was conducted by BARC. BARC’s expertise in gamma scanning is being used by the major petrochemical industries for troubleshooting in process equipment, detecting leaks in buried pipelines, industrial process controls etc. Other noteworthy studies carried out by BARC include detection of leakage points in 350 km long natural gas pipeline of the Gas Authrity of India, and gamma scanning of distillation and degasser columns for Mumbai and Baroda based companies. Using radiotracing techniques, leaks in the heat exchangers of the Indian Oil Corporation’s Panipat Refinery, Haryana and Tamil Nadu Petroproducts Ltd. Chennai, Tamil Nadu were detected. These techniques were also used in the effective management of the oil fields of the Oil and Natural Gas Commission. BARC’s radiotracing expertise is being used by the industrial units in many diverse ways. Gamma scanning is an indispensable non-destructive technique for solving online problems in industieal process columns. Using this technique, BARC has successfully conducted investigations on a depropaniser column of the Reliance Industries Ltd., Hazira, Gujarat, and carried out shielding integrity tests for different DAE facilities. Gamma scanning technology developed at Trombay is used for trouble shooting and process optimization in a number of process industries in the country. This has resulted in minimizing production losses, which could be of the order of several crores of rupees per day for such big units. Automated Gamma scanning system is developed for on-line inspection, troubleshooting and process optimization of industrial process plants, Petrochemical/
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Oil refineries, Heavy Water plants etc. The technique utilizes scanning of process columns up to 70-metres height. Radiochemicals are used as tracers for studying mechanisms of chemical reactions, leakage and flow rate measurements in pipelines and sediment studies. BRIT produces a number of radiochemicals to facilitate such studies. The radiation technology equipment manufactured by BRIT for use in industry include radiography camera for ascertaining internal defects of welding, casting etc., Gamma chamber, a compact self shielded Cobalt-60 research irradiator for irradiating samples, and Blood Irradiator for radiation processing of blood and blood products by gamma rays to eliminate the risk of post transfusion graft versus host disease. BRIT has helped ONGC in its soil exploration efforts by supplying 14Cammonium thiocyanate (500 mCi) and Tritiated Water (75 Ci). NDT centres in the country are the major beneficiaries of BRIT which is the sole supplier of Ir-192 radiography sources in the country. Sealed sources are fabricated, processed and supplied for various industrial applications. BRIT also exported 60 Co source pencils to Vietnam. A large number of Radiography Cameras and Gamma Chambers manufactured by BRIT are already in the use of Indian Industry. Blood irradiator developed at BRIT is used in hospitals and blood banks. Such units have also been installed at the regional centres of BRIT in Bangalore and Delhi. BRIT processes Cobalt-60 at RAPPCOF, Kota, Rajasthan, and manufactures radioisotope based equipment for industrial and other applications. For radiography examination of industrial products, it supplies Iridum-192 sealed sources and remotely operated radiography cameras (ROLI-1) The Board also exports radioisotopes and related equipment to countries such as United Kingdom, Germany, Bangladesh, Egypt, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Syria and Tanzania. Beam Technologies Laser systems and Electron Beam Acceleators are the areas where India is one of the front runners. The DAE’s research organisations viz. Raja Ramanna Centre for Advanced Technology (RRCAT) in Indore, Madhya Pradesh and Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC) in Mumbai, are engaged in the development of applications in the areas of Laser systems, Electron Beam processes and devices, and Plasma devices. Currently a number of equipment based on electron beam technologies are being developed. BARC is working with major cable manufactures to indigenously develop electron beam cross linked cables. In collaboration with Sriram Institute of Chemical Research, New Delhi, BARC developed a special formulation of PVC based material which on radiation cross-linking, leads to a product that can withstand temperature upto 105 deg. Celsius. To induce uniform crosslinking, a rotating multispindle conveyor system was designed at Trombay. The process has been commercialised. BARC has successfully developed a 500 keV, DC Accelerator, housed at BRIT Complex, Vashi, Navi Mumbai. The accelerator has been in regular operation for surface modification studies as well as applications. M/s Reliance India Ltd. is
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using it for crosslinking of plastic sheets and granules. BARC and IIT-Madras, Chennai are pursuing radiation damage studies of materials by using 500keV accelerator beams. To meet the diverse demands of radiation processing of materials, BARC is designing and developing a 3 MeV, 30 kW DC accelerator and a 10 MeV, 10kW RF electron Linac. They are going to be housed at Electron Beam Centre (EBC), Kharghar, Navi Mumbai. A 10 MeV, 10 kW RF electron Linac has been installed and the components of a 3 MeV accelerator are in the advanced stage of fabrication. EBC is planned to serve as a unique and dedicated centre for carrying out research and development in the areas of industrial accelerators and material processing. High Power Pulsed Electron Accelerators High Power pulsed electonic accelerators are used for producing Flash X Rays (FXR) and High Power Microwaves (HPM). These accelerators have many applications in the industry, nuclear power sector and the strategic areas. BARC has been developing two types of accelerator in this category, namely single and repetitive shot types. Kali 200, Kali 1000 and Kali 5000 belong to the single shot and the Linear Induction Accelerator (LIA) to the repetitive type. Kali 200 has been handed over to DRDO, MTRDC Bangalore. Kali 5000 has been commissioned recently and is in use at a microwaves power level of about 2 gigawatt. The Kali-5000 is used for High Power Microwave (HPM) generation and Flash X-Ray experiments. High Power Electron Beam Units for Thermal Processing BARC has developed a number of High Power Electron Beam (EB) machines for evaporation, melting and welding of reactive and refractory metals and their compounds. One 150 kV, 6 kW welder has been supplied to Machine Tool Prototype Factory of Ministry of Defence, Ambernath. This is being used for welding of maraging steel components. At present it is developing one 80 kV, 24 kW welder for welding thick section materials. The centre has recently developed one 30 kV, 80 kW melting unit for melting of reactive and refractory metals. Coating units have been developed for production of hard and corrosion resistant coatings as well as optical coatings on various surfaces. Laser Systems and Applications BARC and RRCAT have developed a variety of lasers that include gas lasers, solid state lasers and semiconductor lasers which find wide applications. The laser based devices that have been developed include a projectile speed-measuring instrument commissioned at the Defence Metallurgical Research Laboratory, Hyderabad, and Surface Profilo-meter for measuring roughness. For measurement of the equationof-state-of-materials, various shock diagnostics systems are being set up at Trombay. Plasma Devices and Systems BARC has developed a large number of atmospheric plasma torches and processing systems. The high power plasma torches (40 - 300 kW) operating in transferred and non-transferred arc mode have been used for cutting, melting, spraying and other high enthalpy applications. A few notable examples are the joint work with Department of Space culminating in establishment of a plasma jet assisted thermal protection materials testing system at Tiruvananthapuram, underwater plasma cutting systems and plasma assisted aerosol generator for BARC. On surface engineering,
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plasma spray systems have been extensively used to develop special purpose thermal barrier, chemical barrier and bioceramic coatings that have drastically improved system performance. Low pressure surface coatings of 1-2 micron have also been developed using microwave plasma. Water Management BARC has developed a number of desalination technologies. These are based on multi-stage flash (MSF) evaporation, reverse osmosis (RO) and low temperature evaporation (LTE). Using these technologies, desalination plants have been developed for providing potable water in rural areas and on ships, and water for industrial uses. To utilize low pressure steam and waste heat from nuclear reactors, BARC is setting up a 6300 cubic metre/day combined MSF-RO Nuclear Desalination Demonstration Plant (NDDP) at Kalpakkam, Tamil Nadu. The plant will utilize seawater, steam and power from Madras Atomic Power Station (MAPS) for achieving cost effective desalination of seawater. The 1800 cubic metre/day desalination unit, based on reverse osmosis (RO) process, has been commissioned. It is now producing potable water from seawater. A small (30 cubic metre/day desalination unit, based on low temperature evaporation technology, and using waste heat of CIRUS, has been set up and commissioned at Trombay. A 30 cubic metre/day brackish water RO plant operates at Satlana village, Jodhpur District, Rajasthan for providing drinking water to the villagers. BARC has recently developed the Vapour Compression (VC) technology for seawater desalination and a 50,000 litres/day VC desalination plant has been installed and commissioned successfully. BARC has also introduced an on-line Domestic Water Purifier that has been brought to the commercial market by several BARC licensees. BASIC
RESEARCH
The research centres of DAE are engaged in basic research in the areas relevant to their programmes. In addition, the autonomous research institutes, supported by grant-in-aid by DAE, are the centres of excellence in basic research that ranges from mathematics to computers, physics to astronomy, and biology to cancers. Mathematics & Computation In the field of mathematics and computation science, TIFR pursues academic programmes in algebra, algebraic geometry, Lie group, egodic theory, number theory, combinatories and topology at Mumbai and applications of mathematics at its Bangalore Centre, the Harish Chandra Research Institute, Allahabad, carries out research in advanced fields of mathematics and theoretical physics including astrophysics, high-energy physics, condensed matter physics and mathematical physics, and the Institute of Mathematical Sciences at Chennai, Tamil Nadu is engaged in research in the fields of Theoretical Physics, Mathematics & Computer Science. In its effort to develop teraflop parallel super-computers with more than 1000 processors, BARC has developed over 15 different models of Anupam series of supercomputers since 1991. So far, 37 supercomputers have been commissioned at leading R&D and educational institutes in the country.
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The Anupam-Ameya supercomputer develo ped by BARC is a 512 CPU cluster and is the largest and fastest in the ANUPAM series. The machine consists of 256 Dual processor Xeon based IU servers interconnected to gigabit Ethernet network. Physics The School of Physics of TIFR is engaged in basic research in various fields of physics. The national Facility for High-Field NMR at TIFR provides state-of-the-art services to researchers. The Institute of Physics, Bhubaneshwar conducts research in condensed matter and high energy, nuclear, atomic and accelerator based physics and other related subjects. One of the main experimental facilities at the Institute is the Ion Beam Accelerator. The research facilities set up here are used by the researchers from within the Institute as well as from other research institutes and universities in India. At the Harish-Chandra Research Institute, the research in physics covers the work on understanding the ground state of open string theories, which possess tachyons. Supergravity solutions with a positive cosmological constant are the other major areas of studies. Seismic Studies BARC monitors seismic activities at Garibidanur in Karnataka, Delhi and Trombay seismic stations. In addition to routine seismic analysis, research is also carried out in surface wave studies, development of analysis software and in other front line areas. Superconductivity The field of superconductivity holds big promise for the future. BARC has completed a test facility to characterize samples of superconducting cables at liquid helium temprerature. At VECC, test facility has already been created and successfully used to characterize superconducting cable and their joints. IGCAR is also working towards the development of SQUID based systems for material technology including nondestructive testing. Astronomy In the field of radiostronomy, a Radiotelescope Array, set up in the Nilgiri Hills near Ootacamund, Tamil Nadu, has been in use for decades. It is used in the studies of distant extragalactic radio-sources and interplanetary objects. At Narayangaon, near Pune, Maharashtra, the Giant Metre Wave Radio-Telescope (GMRT) with 30 gigantic parabolic dishes, has been in operation. Set up by TIFR, the telescope is a frontline research facility in radioastronomy and is the world’s most powerful radiotelescope in its range. GMRT is now a full fledged international observational facility for radioastronomy. A number of national and international users have carried out research in astronomy, on this telescope. Another international class astronomy-research facility GRACE has been set up by BARC at Mount Abu, Rajasthan. It includes TACTIC. (Tera-electron-Volt Atmospheric Cerenkov Telescope with Imaging Camera). This is the first-ever Indian imaging gamma-ray telescope, and is being used for high-sensitivity observations of cosmic gamma ray sources above 1 TeV energy.
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Chemistry BARC provides state-of-the-art services to nuclear power plants, research reactors and heavy water plants, and carriers out research in the frontier areas of chemistry. The Centre also offers specialised analytical chemistry services to various user organizations within DAE and outside. The type of samples analysed cover a wide spectrum of materials such as metals and alloys, organic and organometallic compounds, inorganic compounds, rocks and minerals, nuclear and strategic materials, highpurity materials, environmental and biological materials and others. BARC’s Centre for Compositional Characterization of Materials (CCCM) in Hyderabad provides high quality analytical services to various departmental, governmental and private institutions. Biology At Trombay, the research in bio-sciences is directed towards evolving high yielding food crops, delaying or preventing post-harvest losses by increasing shelf life, developing modalities for low dose cancer radiotherapy and employing molecular and isotope techniques in basic biology for disease diagnosis and finger printing of individuals and population. The National Centre for Biological Sciences of TIFR at Bangalore has been working on research initiatives in the frontline areas of biology. The Saha Institute of Nuclear Physics, Kolkata is engaged in research elucidating the structure function correlation of biomolecules at the cellular and molecular level. RESEARCH EDUCATION LINKAGE DAE supports synergistic interaction amongst the national laboratories and the university systems through a number of mechanisms such as utilsation of DAE’s research facilities through Inter-University Consortium, funding of extra-mural research, grant-in-aid to institutes of national eminence, and others. UGC-DAE Consortium for Scientific Research DAE and the University Grants Commission (UGC) had signed an MoU (Memorandum of understanding) in 1989 for setting up Inter-University Consortium of DAE Facilities (IUC-DAEF) at Indore. The Consortium, now known as UGC-DAE Consortium for Scientific Research, functions under the control of UGC. The scope of co-operation between UGC and DAE has been broadened to include all programmes pursued by DAE in the area of physical, chemical, life and engineering sciences. Academic
Programmes
The research centres of DAE are recognized by universities as the centres for research leading to postgraduate degrees. A number of scientists and engineers are recognized as post-graduate teachers by the respective universities. The employees are encouraged to register and obtain research degrees based on the work done in these research centres. Homi Bhabha National Institute having the status of deemed University, has been instituted in the year 2005 for nurturing the young talents to pursue research activities in nuclear science and technology and allied subjects to meet the future human resource needs of the DAE.
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Funding of Extra-mural Research DAE encourages and promotes scientific research in universities, institutes and laboratories in the areas of relevance to the Department. This is done through the Board of Research in Nuclear Sciences (BRNS) and the National Board for Higher Mathematics (NBHM), both in Mumbai. BRNS is an advisory body of the DAE to recommend financial assistance to universities, academic institutions and national laboratories. It supports high quality R&D projects and lays emphasis on collaboroative programmes amongst DAE organisations and the organisations outside the Department. It also provides financial assistance to organize symposia/conferences/workshops on topics of relevance to DAE programmes. To motivate young scientists to adopt a career of research, BRNS awards projects to them. It has initiated DAE Graduate Fellowship Scheme also. The Board awards Dr. K.S. Krishnan Research Associateships to attract highly talented young scientists and technologists. Its DAE-BRNS Senior Scientist Scheme aims at utilizing the expertise of active retired scientists/engineers who were involved in high quality research in the units of DAE or any National Laboratory or Universites/ Institute, and who, after retirement, are keen to carry out R&D in the field of their choice and of interest to DAE. It offers Homi Bhabha Chair to honour distinguished scientists. BRNS also encourages visiting scientist programmes for promoting active interaction with senior level scientists. BRNS has also introduced ‘‘DAE Science Research Council (DAE-SRC) Award’’ that aims to set up frontier area research units around individuals. During the year 2006-07, the Board approved 90 new research projects. DAE, through the National Board for Higher Mathematics (NBHM) is enganged in promoting excellence in higher mathematics, education and research in the country. NBHM operates schemes such as helping the development of mathematical centres, giving scholarships to research fellows at doctoral and post-doctoral levels, travel assistance to young mathematicians for attending conferences/seminars etc., visiting professorship, assistance for research project/schemes, support to libraries, assistance to conferences, monitoring Mathematics Olympiads, and others. In colloboration with the International Mathematical Union, NBHM initiated schemes for making mathematical literature accessible through electronic-communication. During the year 2006-07, an annual budget of Rs. 12 crore was allocated to the Board. One third of the budget of NBHM is released to the mathematics departments of about 80 universities/institutions towards library support for purchase of books of mathematics. NBHM will be hosting the next International Congress (ICM 2010) in India. Grant-in-Aid to institutions and cancer hos pitals DAE provides grant-in-aid to seven national research institutes engaged in basic and applied research work ranging from natural sciences, mathematics and astronomy to cancer and fusion research. The Department also supports a society which manages education for the children of DAE employees. Growing synergy between these research institutions and the research and development units of DAE has led to several joint projects between the DAE units and the aided Institutions.
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During the financial year 2006-2007, the grant-in-aid of about Rs. 532 crore was provided by DAE to these institutions. DAE extends financial assistance to cancer hospitals located in various parts of the country. The financial support provided in this regard during the year 20062007 was about Rs. 6 crore. The Department, under a Tripartite Agreement with the North-Eastern Council and the Government of Assam, is further strengthening Dr. B. Barooah Cancer Institute, Guwahati, Assam. The hospital is the regional centre for cancer treatment and control in the North-Eastern Region. DAE has also initiated Out-Reach efforts in cancer care programme that include creation of better network between cancer institutions in the country focusing on research and development, training and preparation of protocols for treatment, as well as incentive for indigenisation of radiation-related equipment for cancer treatment. International Research Collaboration Under a co-operation agreement, signed in March 1996, DAE, through its units, is engaged in development and supply of sophisticated components for Large Hadron Collider (LHC), a particle accelerator under construction by European Organisation for Nuclear Research (CERN) at Geneva, Switzerland. Under this collaboration, through development done at RRCAT, delivery of over 7000 precision magnet positioning system (PMPS) jacks and about 2000 superconducting corrector magnets, over 1400 Local Protection Units for the LHC was completed by January 2006. Photo-multiplicity detector arrays have been manufactured at VECC, installed, and commissioned at LHC, CERN, Geneva and Relativistic Heavy lon Collider (RHIC) in the Brokhaven National Laboratory of United States. VECC scientists have also participated in experiments, and joined in collaborative data analysis. RRCAT has also collaborated with CERN on Novel Accelaretor Technologies in the upcoming Compact Linear Collider Test Facility (CTF-3) and super conducting proton LINAC 4 projects at CERN. CERN and BARC have strong collaborative activites which include supply of 1000 numbers of large area silicon strip detectors for use in Compact Muon Solenoid (CMS) at CERN. About 800 detectors have already been delivered. At SINP, 80,000 MANAS chips were fabricated and delivered to CERN. Contributions of DAE and other organisations in India to such activities have eamed the ‘‘Observer’’ status for India at CERN. BARC has supplied and successfully commissioned RF Reasonator Control Electronics for Super-conducting Linac at the Australian National University, Canberra, Australia. In the past, BA RC had participated in an IAEA sponsored international effort for searching of Sr-90 ‘‘orphan sources’’ at Georgia. The Aerial Gamma Spectrometry System (AGSS), developed by BARC, was deployed in the search operations. The technical superiority of this system in detecting the orphan sources and the expertise of BARC staff in locating the same, and training of the staff of Nuclear Radiation and Safety Services (NRSS), Ministry of Environment, Georgia in the operation of the AGSS system, were highly appreciated by both the Government of Georgia and IAEA.
Scientific and Technological Developments
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National Security On May 18, 1974, India had conducted a peaceful underground nuclear experiment at Pokhran in Rajasthan desert. Here after twenty four years, on May 11 and 13, 1998, India successfully conducted five nuclear tests that included a thermonuclear device, a fission device and three sub-kiloton nuclear devices. Material Sciences In the area of material science, the efforts of BARC and IGCAR are directed towards the development of materials for pressure vessels, clad and control elements, multiphase alloys and structural intermetallics, refractory metals and alloys, preparation of radiation sources, ultra high purity metals, and other special applications. Accelerators DAE has established capability in design, construction and operation of accelerators used in nuclear research, isotope production and radiation processing. The Variable Energy Cyclotron (VEC) at Kolkata, 14MV Pelletron Accelerator in Mumbai, and Synchrotron Radiation Sources (SRS) Indus I&II at the Raja Ramanna Centre for Advanced Technology (RRCAT) Indore, and Folded Tandem Ion Accelerator (FOTIA) at Trombay, are the major accelerator facilities in the country. Cyclotrons & Other Accelerators The Variable Energy Cyclotron Centre (VECC) at Kolkata is a national centre for accelerator-based research. The Variable Energy Cyclotron set up here by BARC in 1977, is used for basic research. It also produces radioisotopes for various applications. The Cyclotron is utilzed by over 35 national laboratories and universities. The Electron Cyclotron Resonance (ECR) ion source at VECC is a unique facility for research with heavy ions. An ECR-2 Ion Source is also connected to cyclotron. The heavy ion accelerator programme has succeeded in providing the heavy ion beams beyond 6 MeV/nucleon. So far oxyen, nitrogen, argon, neon, sulphur ion beams have been accelerated successfully. For the studey of exotic nuclei, an indigenously designed and fabricated Isotope Separator-on-Line (SOL) system is also in operation here. Currently, VECC is constructing a K500 Superconducting Cyclotron and a Radioactive Ion Beam (RIB) facility for accelearating radioactive ions. The installation, commissioning, cool down, liquid helium filling, progressive increase of current in the superconducting magnets etc have been accomplished. The maximum current achieved in small coils is 600 amperes and in large coils is 675 amperes. The peak mag netic field achieved is 5.0 Tesla. The magnetic field mapping of particle acceleration zone and analyses of data have been completed. The Cyclotron was planned for re-commissioning from February 2007. An ISOL (Isotope Separator On-Line) post-accelerator type Radioactive Ion Beam facility project is also under development at this centre. The facility will utilize proton and alpha beams from the existing cyclotron accelerator and thick targets to produce short lived radioactive species. These will be ionized in an on-line ion source, mass separted for purity and accelerated to higher energies for accelerator-based physics research. The most important Iandmark of this project so far is the successful development of heavy ion REQ (Radiofrequency Quadrupole) accelerator. This is-the
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first of its kind in India and only a few countries in the world today have this technology. An on-line ECR ion source and on-line isotope separator have been developed, that is working nicely. Significant progress has been made in the research and development of thick target, two-ion-source for the production of high charge state ions, helium jet coupled two stage skimmer system. A special type Linac cavity for acceleration of low energy heavy ions is in the advanced stage of fabrication now. The facility is expected to deliver a few radioactive ion beams from early 2008. Synchrotron and its Utilization In the late 80s, accelerator-related research and development in India got a boost with the setting up of the Raja Ramanna Centre for Advanced Technology (RRCAT). It took up the task of setting up two Synchrotron Radiation Sources (SRS). In the first few years, the injector system in the form of a 20MeV microtron and a booster synchrotron (450-700 MeV) were set up. Then the first ring Indus-1, a 450MeV SRS was put together as a national research facility, in 1998. Current was stored in Indus-I, for the first time, in April 1999. This SRS has since been operating routinely. The work on construction of Indus-2, a 2.5 GeV SRS commenced in the late 90s and the assembly of ring was completed in 2005. The commissioning of this ring, and experiments to store the beam started towards the end of 2005. Indus-2 has now commenced operation and starting with injection of electrons at 550 MeV, a stored current of up to 38 mA was achieved. The beam energy was ramped up to 2.4 GeV. Only about a dozen countries in the world have the capability in designing and construction of complex accelerators like Indus-2. FOTIA For providing light and heavy ion beams for use in basic and applied research in nuclear, atomic and material sciences, BARC had commissioned a Folded Tandem Ion Accelerator (FOTIA) in April 2000 at Trombay. The accelerator is being used for various research and development work. Pelletron The BARC-TIFR Pelletron Accelerator Facility at Mumbai, operating for over a decade, has made an impact internationally, in the field of nuclear research. To further increase the beam energy of Pelletron, a superconducting linear accelerator (LINAC) is being set up. The Phase-I of LINAC is operational now. Other Accelerators Recently, IGCAR has successfully commissioned at Kalpakkam, a 1.7 million-volt Tandetron accelerator, with high current and heavy ion capability. The design of a 30 mA, 10 MeV Proton LINAC has been initiated at BARC. Fusion & Other Plasma Technologies The Institute for Plasma Research (IPR), Ahemdabad operated ADITYA Tokamak for the studies on high temperature magnetically confined plasmas. These studies have important implications on the nature of particle transport in the edge of tokamaks. To address physics and technology issues related to advanced Tokamak configurations, SST-1, one of the world’s first Superconducting Steady State Tokamaks with elongated diverter plasmas and 1000 second operation capability, isbeing set up at IPR. Most of the sub systems of SST-1 have been fabricated, assembled and
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individually tested before final assembly. The basic machire itself is now fully assembled and is going through the pro cess of commissioning. Experts from International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) central team and member countries assessed India’s technical capability and preparedness to participate in the ITER project as full member. At the end of successful negotiations India’s accession to ITER took place on the December 6, 2005 during Negotiator’s meeting at Jeju in South Korea. Also an acceptable package has been allotted to India that includes sub-systems requiring contribution from the Indian heavy industry such as the large cryostat of ITER including erection and commissioning, components for the cooling system, cryolines and components for cryo-distribution system, vacuum vessel shields etc. The Indian package also includes components for high technology systems like Ion Cyclotron heating and Current drive, Electron Cyclotron Start up system, Diagnostic Neutral Beam and some diagnostic systems. It is a matter of pride that the international fusion community has accepted Indian expertise in fusion science and technology at the international standard and shown confidence by accepting India as a member and allocating a demanding package to be delivered. ITER Fusion is the energy source of sun and stars. In fusion, two light nuclei (e.g. deuterium and tritium) combine to form a heavier nucleus, and a large amount of energy is released. For the past 50 years, scientists have been working on the development of fusion technologies to generate energy on earth. Fusion has several attractions as a large-scale energy source. Its basic fuels are abundant and available everywhere and the technology is environment-friendly. Considering the complexity of this technology, Japan, European Union, the then Soviet Union and the United States had established a collaborative project International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER) in 1985 to harness fusion energy. China and South Korea also joined the consortium of parties to the ITER venture. India has had a fusion research programme of its own, since the early eighties. Two tokamaks have been indigenously built at the Institute for Plasma Research (IPR) near Ahmedabad, and a small tokamak has been imported from Toshiba, Japan for the Saha Institute for Nuclear Physics, Kolkata (SINP). Two years ago, the European Union (EU) encouraged India to join ITER and a team from EU visited India for initial discussions in October 2004. This was followed by further interactions at the international level and approvals at home. Finally India was admitted to the ITER negotiations on December 5, 2005 at a meeting held at Jeju, South Korea. The ITER project is an international collaborative research project on an unprecedented scale, which will reproduce the fusion reaction on the earth. ITER is the Latin for ‘‘the way’’. India will contribute equipment worth nearly 500 million US dollars to the experiment and will also participate in its subsequent operation and experiments. India’s contributions to ITER are largely based on the indigenous experience and the expertise available in Indian industry. India will be fabricating the 28 m dia, 26 m tall stainless stee l cryostat, which forms the outer vacuum envelope for ITER. The vacuum vessel shields made of 2%
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boron steel and occ upying space between the two walls will also be designed and fabricated by India. It will also take up the design and fabrication of eight 2.5 mega watt ion cyclotron heating sources, complete with power systems and controls. It will also take up the fabrication of a diagnostic neutral beam system which will give crucial information about the physics of burning plasmas in ITER. India will also be responsible for a number of other diagnostic subsystems. Finally, India will contribute to cryo-distribution and water cooling subsystems. All this equipment will have to be built with ITER quality standards and in a time frame (approximately ten years) determined by the International Team at the host site in Cadarache, France. TECHNOLOGY
TRANSFER
The researd carried out in DAE research centres is generating several spin-off technologies that are transferred to industry for commerical production. These centres also provide various technical services that are benefiting industry. The recent ones transferred from BARC to industry are on-line domestic water purifier, electrolyzing of reactor channel sealing plug jaws, and improved lascan dia gauge, Medical Analyser Software Technology, Digital Medical Imaging System etc. The technology of nisargruna, a biogas plant based on biodegradable waste, has been transferred to about 30 parties. The instrumented pipe inspection gauge is now commercially available to inspect 12-inch oil pipe lines. BARC has also transferred the technology of the indigenously developed Cobalt60 teletherapy unit to private entrepreneurs for commercial production. The Technical Services offered by DAE research centres to industry are related to non-destructive testing, stress measurements, acoustic topography, material characterisation and others. BARC offers complete range of conventional fabrication and machining, specialized design and development expertise, andco-ordinate machining facilities, for developing sophisticated equipment for various applications. The Centre also provides analytical services for determining radioactivity content, in packed drinking water samples and samples for pharmaceutical companies. Human Resource Development In 1957, BARC had started a Training School at Trombay to prepare a select group of young scientists and engineers every year for responsible positions in various institutions and projects of DAE. Since its establishment, over 7000 young men and women from varied disciplines have passed through the portals of the School. They are contributing to all the segments of the nuclear programme. The School admits about 100 Engineering graduates and Science post-graduates annually, mainly in the disciplines of Physics, Chemistry, Biology & Radiobiology and Engineering (Chemical, Mechanical, Electrical, Computer, Electronics and Metallurgy). They go through an integrated course for one year, which exposes them to the multi-disciplinary culture of the Department. There is also an additional entry channel via the DAE Graduate Fellowdhip Scheme (DGFS), which operates in collaboration with six IITs. About 40 graduates are sponsored for MTech in these IITs who join the department after obtaining the qualification. This group also goes through a 4-month induction course at the Training School. The endeavour of the School is to produce an individual in whom there is an integration of a large number of sciences and technologies, that are demanded by any work in atomic energy today.
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Some other courses conducted by various divisions of BARC are : • Radiation Medicine • Medical Radioisotope Techniques • Health Physics • Radiological Physics • Radiation Protection and Safety of Radiation Sources • Radiation Safety in Industrial applications of Radioisotopes and X-rays • Radiography Testing Techniques • Radioactive Waste management • Safety Assessment of Waste Disposal • Radioimmunoassay and its Clinical Application • Chemical Analysis and NDT Techniques • Operation/maintenance and Inspection of Research Reactors • Mutation Breeding of Tropical Crop Plants • Pesticide Residue Analysis To cater to the growing demands of DAE, BARC Training School now has affiliates for various specializations. The BARC Training School thus has associated with it the Training Schools at the Centre for Advanced Technology (CAT), Indore, the Nuclear Fuel Complex-Heavy Water Board (NFC-HWB), Hyderabad and the Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd. (NPCIL) Training School with centres at Tarapur, Rawathaba, Kaiga and Kalpakkam. Each of these training schools prepare the scientists and engineers for specific tasks as follows. • CAT Training School is for research and development in lasers, accelerators, cryogenics, superconductors, material science, power electronics and microwaves. • NPCIL Training School is for training in operation and maintenance of nuclear power plants. INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY PROTECTION To protect the intellectual property created during the process of research and development in the R&D organisations of DAE, an Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) Cell of DAE works as a nodal agency for all the IPR related matters including filing of patents within India and abroad. Cumulatively till date DAE has filed 168 patent applications out of which about 89 patents have been granted and 59 are in force. International Relations India is a designated member of the Board of Governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) since its inception. Besides taking active part in policy management and programme of the Agency, India offers training facilities, fellowships, scientific visits, etc. to foreign scientists and provides the services of its scientists for expert assignments to other countries, both through IAEA and to the countries with which we have entered into bilateral agreements for co-operation in the field of peaceful uses of atomic energy.
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SPACE
PROGRAMME
Despite being a developing economy with its attendant problems, India has effectively developed space technology and has applied it successfully for its rapid development and today is offering a variety of space services globally. During the formative decade of 1960s, space research was conducted by India mainly with the help of sounding rockets. The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) was formed in 1969. Space research activities were provided additional fillip with the formation of the Space Commission and the Department of Space by the government of India in 1972. And, ISRO was brought under the Department of Space in the same year. In the history of the Indian space programme, 70s were the era of Experimentation during which experimental satellite programmes like Aryabhatta, Bhaskara, Rohini and Apple were conducted. The success of those programme, led to era of operationalisation in 80s during which operational satellite programmes like INSAT and IRS came into being. Today, INSAT and IRS are the major programmes of ISRO. For launching its spacecraft indigenously, India is having a robust launch vehicle programme, which has matured to the state of offering launch services to the outside world. Antrix, the commercial arm of the Department of Space, is marketing India’s space services globally. Fruitful co-operation with other space faring nations, international bodies and the developing world is one of the main characteristics of India's space programme. The most significant milestone of the Indian Space Programme during the year 2005-2006 was the successful launch of PSLV-C6. On 5 May 2005, the ninth flight of Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV-C6) from Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) SHAR, Sriharikota successfully placed two satellites - the 1560 kg CARTOSTAR-1 and 42 kg HAMSAT - into a predetermined polar Sun Synchronous Orbit (SSO). Coming after seven launch successes in a row, the success of PSLV-C6 further demonstrated the reliability of PSLV and its capability to place payloads weighing up to 1600 kg satellites into a 600 km high polar SSO. The successful launch of INSAT-4A, the heaviest and most powerful satellite built by India so far, on 22 December 2005 was the other major event of the year 2005-06. INSAT-4A is capable of providing Direct-To-Home (DTM) television broadcasting services. Besides, the setting up of the second cluster of nine Village Resource Centres (VRCs) was an important ongoing initiative of the Department of Space during the year. VRC concept integrates the capabilities of communications and earth observation satellites to provide a variety of information emanating from space systems and other IT tools to address the changing and critical needs of rural communities. INDIAN NATIONAL SATELLITE SYSTEM The Indian National Satellite (INSAT) system is one of the largest domestic communication satellite systems in the Asia-Pacific region. In the 1980s, it initiated a major revolution in India’s communications sector and sustained the same later. The satellites of INSAT system, which are in service today, are INSAT-2E, INSAT-3A, INSAT-3B, INSAT-3C, INSAT-3E, KALPANA-1, GSAT-2, EDUSAT and INSAT-4A, that was launched recently. The system provides a total of about 175 transponders in the C, Extended C and Ku-bands. Being a multipurpose satellite system, INSAT provides services to telecommunications, television broadcasting, weather forecasting, disaster warning and Search and Rescue fields.
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The INSAT system serves many important sectors of the Indian economy. Foremost amongst them is Telecommunications sector wherein INSAT is providing Mobile Satellite Service besides providin g VSAT services. Today, more than 25,000 Very Small Aperture Terminals (VSATs) are in operation. Similarly, Television broadcasting and redistribution have been immensely benefited by INSAT. Thanks to INSAT, more than 900 million people in India have access to TV through about 1400 terrestrial rebroadcast transmitters. In addition to this, social development through exclusive channels for training and developmental education has become possible through INSAT. And, a Telemedicine network to take super specially medical services to the remote and rural population has become a reality. The network now covers 152 hospitals—120 remote rural hospitals and 32 super specialty hospitals in major cities. The launch of EDUSAT, India’s first thermatic satellite dedicated exclusively for educational services, has provided further fillip to the educational services offered by the INSAT system. INSAT system is also providing meteorological services through Very High Resolution Radiometer and CCD cameras on some of its spacecraft. This apart, cyclone monitoring through meteorological imaging and issue of warnings on impending cyclones through disaster warning receivers have been operationalised. For this, 350 receivers have been installed along the east and west coasts of India. INDIAN REMOTE SENSING SATELLITE SYSTEM India has the largest constellation of Remote Sensing Satellites, which are providing services both at the national and global levels. From the Indian Remote Sensing (IRS) Satellites, data is available in a variety of spatial resolutions starting from 360 metres and highest resolution being 2.5 metres. Besides, the state-of-the-art cameras of IRS spacecraft take the pictures of the Earth in several spectral bands. In future, ISRO intends to launch IRS spacecraft with better spatial resolution and capable of imaging day and night. The satellites of IRS system which are in service today are IRS-1C, IRSID, IRS-P3, OCEANSAT-1, Technology Experimental Satellite (TES), RESOURCESAT1, and the recently launched CARTOSAT-1 capable of taking stereo pictures. The upcoming Remote Sensing Satellite are Cartosat-2, RISAT (Radar Imaging Satellite) and Oceansat-2. Imagery sent by IRS spacecraft is being put to a variety of uses in India with agricultural crop acreage and yield estimation being one of the most important uses. Besides, such imagery is being used for ground and surface water harvesting, monitoring of reservoirs and irrigation command areas to optimise water use. Forest survey and management and wasteland identification and recovery are other allied uses. This apart, IRS imagery is also used for mineral prospecting and forecasting of potential fishing zones. With regard to applications in planning and management, IRS data is being used for urban planning, flood prone area identification and the consequent suggestions for mitigation measures. Based on this experience, the concept of Integrated Mission for Sustainable Development has been evolved wherein the spacecraft image data is integrated with the socio-economic data obtained from conventional sources to achieve sustainable development. LAUNCH VEHICLES After successfully testing the first indigenous launch vehicle SLV-3 in 1980, ISRO built the next generation Augmented Satellite Launch Vehicle (ASLV). ISRO’s Launch
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Vehicle Programme had a giant leap with the successful launch of IRS-P2 spacecraft onboard the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) in October 1994. On 18 April 2001, India successfully launched its Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV). Technology development for advanced launch vehicles made good progress with the breakthrough achieved during the year in Supersonic Combustion Ramjet (SCRAMJET) to be employed in Air-Breathing engine. This is an important element in the launch vehicle technology development. Concepts for reusable launch vehicle are also being studied. POLAR SATELLITE LAUNCH VEHICLE The four stage PSLV is capable of launching upto 1,600 kg satellites into a 620 km polar orbit. It has provision to launch payloads from 100 kg micro-satellites or mini or small satellites in different combinations. It can also launch one-ton class payloads into Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO). So far, it has performed nine missions with eight consecutive successes. The latest launch of PSLV (PSLV-C6) was on 5 May 2005 during which the vehicle precisely placed the 1560 kg CARTOSAT-1 and the 42 kg HAMSAT into a 620 km high polar SSO. GEOSYNCHRONOUS SATELLITE LAUNCH VEHICLE The GSLV was successful on its very first test flight. After its successful second flight on 8 May 2003, it was commissioned. This was followed by the success of its third flight on 20 September 2004. The GSLV is capable of launching 2,000 kg class satellites into Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO). The development of Indigenous cryogenic stage to be used as the third stage of GSLV made further progress during the year. The cryogenic engine which forms part of this stage, has already been successfully qualified. GSLV-Mk III, a new version of GSLV and capable of launching spacecraft weighing upto 4 tonnes to GTO is under development. LAUNCH
INFRASTRUCTURE
An elaborate launch infrastructure exists at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) SHAR, Sriharikota Island on the East Coast of India which is about 100 km from Chennai. Sriharikota is located at 13째 North latitude. From here, satellites can be launched into a variety of orbital inclinations starting from 18째 and extending upto 99째. Full-fledged facilities for satellite integration, assembly and launch exist there. Sriharikota also houses a Telemetry, Tracking and Command network for tracking satellites and monitoring them. The newly built Second Launch Pad at SDSC SHAR as a redundancy to the existing launch pad, and to cater to the requirement of GSLVMk III as well as other future launch vehicles, was commissioned on 5 May 2005 with the successful launch of PSLV-C6. SPACE SCIENCE India has a vibrant space science programme covering astronomy, astrophysics, planetary and space science, earth science and theoretical physics. As part of that programme, ground facilities like astronomical observatories, Giant Meter Wave Telescope, Mesosphere-Stratosphere-Troposphere Radar facility, etc., have been built. And, Balloons, sounding rockets and satellite platforms are used for flying scientific instruments. India has participated in many international scientific campaigns like MONEX, INDOEX, GBP, etc. ASTROSAT, a multispectral high-energy astronomical space observation satellite is scheduled to be launched by 2008-09. Chandrayaan-1, the unmanned lunar exploration spacecraft was launched on 22nd October 2008
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from HSAR, Sriharikota. Later the Moon Impact Probe separated from the spacecraft and descended towards the lunar south pole. The estimated cost for the project is Rs. 386 crore. The mission is intended to produce a map of lunar chemical characteristics and three dimensional topography. It carries five ISRO payloads and six payloads from other international agencies including NASA, ESA and the Bulgarian Aerospace Agency, carried free of cost. SPACE-INDUSTRY
CO-OPERATION
One of the important features of the Indian Space Programme since its inception has been the co-operative approach with the Indian industries. The Department of Space (DOS) has established linkages with about 500 industries in small, medium and large-scale sectors, either through procurement contracts, know-how transfers or provision of technical consultancy. Because of its association with the space programme, the space industry is now capable of meeting the challenges in terms of adopting advanced technologies or handling complex manufacturing jobs. INTERFACE WITH ACADEMIC AND R&D INSTITUTIONS The ISRO has an active programme to interact with academic and research institutions all over the country for the benefit of our space programme. In this regard, the Sponsored Research Programme (RESPOND) is an important component of DOS. Under RESPOND, DOS support research and educational activities at universities, individual colleges, and at the Indian Institutes of Technology as well as other research institutions. During the year 2005-2006, 13 projects were successfully completed and 62 new projects were initiated at 42 academic institutions comprising universities, colleges and research institutions. In addition to research projects, DOS supported 73 conferences, symposia, educational and promotional activities in the areas of importance to ISRO, besides providing support to ISROinstitutional chairs at reputed institutions. INTERNATIONAL
CO-OPERATION
From the days of its inception, ISRO has had a very good record of international co-operation. It has Memoranda of Understanding/Agreements with 26 countries/ space agencies. A UN sponsored Centre for Space Science and Technology Education in Asia and the Pacific (CSSTE-AP) set up in India has trained more than 400 personnel of the Asia-pacific region. During the year, CSSTE-AP completed 10 years. In addition, ISRO provides training in space applications to personnel of developing countries through its Sharing of Experience in Space (SHARES) programme. ISRO has launched scientific payloads of other space agencies like Modular Opto-electronic Scanner of DLR, Germany that was flown on IRS-P3 spacecraft and the data is being shared by scientists of DLR, India and the US. It has a co-operative agreement with NASA/NOAA for the reception of meteorological data from INSAT spacecraft by those agencies. Megha-Tropiques is a joint satellite mission of ISRO and French Space Agency CNES for atmospheric studies. The satellite will be built and launched by ISRO and CNES will develop two of the payloads and the third payload jointly with ISRO. At the same time, scientific instruments developed in the United States, Germany, Sweden, UK and Bulgaria will be launched on board India’s Chadrayaan-1 spacecraft. This apart, an Italian scientific instrument will be included onboard India’s OCEANSAT2 satellite. Instruments for astronomical observation jointly developed with Israel and Canada will be flown onboard India’s GSAT-4 and RISAT satellites respectively.
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And, an Indian scientific instrument to study solar physics and solar-terrestrial sciences will be flown onboard Russia’s CORONAS-PHOTON satellite. India has also set up three local User Terminals and a Mission Control Centre for the international COSPAS/SARSAT programme for providing distress alert and position location service. A search and Rescue Transponder is included in INSAT-3A spacecraft. India is a signatory to the International Charter on Disaster Management and is providing remote sensing data for the same. ANTRIX Antrix, the commercial front of the Department of Space, is a single window agency for marketing Indian space capabilities. It is playing a key role in the worldwide availability of IRS data through Geoeye, USA. Antrix also provides IRS data processing equipment. Antrix offers launch services using India’s PSLV. Two German, one Korean and one Belgian satellites have already been successfully launched by PSLV. Through Antrix, Telemetry, Tracking and Command support from the Indian ground stations are offered. Similarly, lease of transponders from INSAT system is possible. In this regard, 11 transponders have already been leased to INTELSAT. Customers for the spacecraft components offered by Antrix include world’s leading spacecraft manufacturers. During the year, an agreement was entered into with EADS Astrium, Paris for the joint manufacture of 2000 kg and 3000 kg class satellite platforms for the telecommunications market. Besides, Antrix won contracts from Europe and Asia for launch services in the highly competitive international markets. After the successful development of a low cost, compact, modular and rugged Automatic Weather Station (AWS) in co-ordination with industry, the technology has been licensed to industry for regular production. Thus, in addition to successfully developing spacecraft and launch vehicle technologies indigenously, India has also been successful in the application of satellite technology to benefit its national economy. At the same time, India has also been sharing space-based information with the international community and providing commercial space services globally.
INDIAN
IT-ITe S
INDUSTRY
The year 2008-09 was marked by unprecedented global economic crisis. In spite of this uncertain global outlook, the Indian Information Technology-Business Process Outsourcing (IT-BPO) industry was able to achieve sustainable growth in the fiscal year 2008-09. The revenue aggregate of IT-BPO industry is expected to grow by over 12 per cent and reach US $ 71.7 billion in 2008-09 as compared to US $ 64 billion in 2007-08. Industry performance was marked by sustained double-digit revenue growth, steady expansion into newer service-lines and increased geographic penetration. The Indian software and services exports including ITES-BPO exports is estimated at US $ 47 billion in 2008-09, as compared to US $ 40.4 billion in 2007-08, an increase of 16.3 per cent. The IT services exports is estimated to be US $ 26.9 billion on 2008-09 as compared to US $ 23.1 billion in 2007-08, showing a growth of 16.5 percent in 2008-09, a year -on-year (Y-o-Y) growth of over 17.4 percent.
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While US & UK remained the largest export markets (accounting for about 60 per cent and 19 percent respectively, in 2007-08), the industry is steadily increasing its exposure to other geographies. Exports to Continental Europe in particular have witnessed steady growth. Over 600 multinational companies are known to be sourcing product development and engineering services from their centres in India. The growing nature of responsibilities and ownership assumed by these India-based resources are helping India evolve into a strategic hub for R&D. The industry has enhanced India's credibility as a business destination by creating a fundamentally new model of global 24X7 service delivery, forging relationship with 75 per cent of the Fortune 500 companies, generating immense savings for customers (savings from global sourcing for customers amounted to an estimated US $ 20 billion to US $ 25 billion in 2008) and promoting a focus on quality (65 per cent of all Capability Maturity Model Level 5 firms are based in India) in addition, the industry has fostered the emergence of a large number of first generation entrepreneurs. With the BPO going strong for the past few years, the Knowledge Process Outsourcing (KPO) - which may be called the highest level of the BPO - is still at a nascent stage of development in the country. This evolution of the market to the KPO will drive trends that will ensure very high-value service. in off shoring. These opportunities in the KPO will help the Indian market climb the global value and knowledge chain. Though the IT-BPO sector is export-driven, the domestic market is also significant. The revenue from the domestic market (IT Services and ITES-BPO) is also expected to grow to about US $ 12.5 billion in the year 2008-09 as compared to US $ 11.7 billion in 2007-08 an anticipated growth of about 6.8 per cent. BPO demand in the domestic market has witnessed noticeable growth over the past few years. The phenomenal growth of the Indian IT Software & Services and ITES-BPO sector has had a perceptible multiplier effect on the Indian economy as a whole. It has created immense opportunities for employment and has contributed to the growth of national income. It has also spawned the mushrooming of several ancillary industries such as transportation, real estate, catering and has created a rising class of young consumers with high disposable incomes, triggered a rise in direct-tax collections and propelled an increase in consumer spending. The total IT Software and Services employment is expected to reach 2.23 million in 2008-09 (excluding employment in hardware sector), as against 2.01 million in 2007-08, a growth of 10.9 per cent YoY. This represents a net addition of 226,000 professionals to the industry employee base in 2008-09. The indirect employment attributed to the sector is estimated to be about 8.0 million. The industry has also set a precedent for talent practices in India. It has created career opportunities for the youth, provided global exposure and offered extensive training and development. Furthermore, the industry has been a front runner in diversity at the workplace (over 30 per cent of employees are women, over 60 per cent of industry players employ differently abled people). The IT-ITeS industry's contribution to the national GDP is estimated to increase from 5.5. percent in 2007-08 to 5.8 per cent in 2008-09.
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MAJOR INITIATIVES IN INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY National e Governance Plan (NeGP) The National e-Governance Plan (NeGP) was formulated by the Department of Information Technology (DIT) and Department of Administrative Reforms & Public Grievances (DAR&PG) keeping in view the priorities of Government's National Common Minimum Programme (NCMP). The NeGP aims to promote e-Governance on a massive scale in areas of concern to the common man. The Nation e-Governance Plan was approved by the Government on 18th May, 2006. The NeGP has been formulated by taking a holistic view towards the entire e-Governance initiative across the country and for giving a thrust to e-Governance activities across various arms of government at the national, state and local government level. The NeGP uses a programme approach, which is guided by a common vision, strategy and approach to objectives. This approach has the added advantage of enabling huge savings in cost, in terms of sharing the core and support infrastructure; it enables interoperability through standards, which would result in the citizen having a seamless view of Government. The programme is overseen at the highest level by the Apex Committee headed by the Union Cabinet Secretary. The NeGP consists of 27 Mission Mode Projects (MMPs), which are currently at different phases like conceptualization, design, implementation and postimplementation. Central MMPs (9)
Integrated MMPs (7)
State MMPs (11)
MCA21
CSC
Land Records (Pre NeGP)
Pensions
e-Courts
Land Records
Income Tax
EDI
Road
Passport and Visa/
India
Immigration
NSDG
Police
Central
e-Biz
Treasuries
e-Procurement
Municipalities
Excise
Banking*
Portal
(NLRMP)
Transport
Agriculture (CCTNS)
MNIC/UID
Commercial
e-Office
Gram
Insurance*
Employment
Taxes
Panchayat Exchange
* These MMPs are private sector initiatives
For the implementation of NeGP, DIT is creating a Common and Support Infrastructure (National/State Wide Area Networks, National/State Data Centres, CSCs and Electronic Service Delivery Gateways) and has made suitable arrangements for monitoring and coordinating the implementation of NeGP under the directions of the relevant competent authorities in this regard. The Department has also evolved/ laid down standards and policy guidelines. It is providing technical and handholding support, undertaking capacity building, R&D, etc., as required for successful implementation of various e-Governance MMPs. State Wide Area Networks (SWAN) The Government has approved the scheme for establishing State Wide Area Networks (SWANs) across the country in 29 States/UTs at a total outlay of Rs. 3,334 crore with Deportment's GIA component of Rs. 2,005 crore over a period of five years. Under the scheme, it is envisaged to provide technical and financial assistance to States for establishing SWANs from State Headquarters up to the Block level with a minimum
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bandwidth capacity of 2 Mbps. SWAN proposals from 33 States/ UTs have been approved so far, with a sanctioned total outlay of Rs. 1964.97 crore from the Department. The SWANs in Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Tamilnadu, Tripura, Delhi, Punjab and Chandigarh have been rolled out. While other States/UTs are in the various stages of implementation. Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab and Tripura have empanelled the Third Party Auditor (TPA) agencies for the monitoring of the performance of the SWAN in their respective States. Common Services Centres (CSCs) The Government has approved a scheme in September 2006 for facilitating establishment of more than 100,000 broadband Internet-enabled Common Services Centres (CSCs) in rural areas of the country, over a period of 4 years. This Scheme has been approved at a total cost of Rs. 5742 crore, and is being implemented as a Public Private Partnership. The CSCs are one of the three infrastructure pillars of the National e-Governance Plan and would serve as the physical front-end for delivering government and private services at the doorstep of the citizen. RFP has been issued by 27 States for setting-up of 1,14,548 CSCs. Of the 27 States, Master Service Agreements (MSAs) have already been signed and work has been awarded for 1,06,126 CSCs by 23 States. Around 43,464 CSCs have been rolledout in 21 States by end of June 2009. Three states (Jharkhand, Haryana and Sikkim) have completed 100% roll-out of the CSCs. The services which would be assessed through these centres include issuance of various certificates relating to birth, death etc., issuance of record of rights as well as private services relating to micro credit, agri-insurance, computer education etc. The issue of connectivity to the CSCs has also been addressed. BSNL will provide connectivity to 41500 CSCs. This initiative is being partly funded by DIT at a cost of Rs. 550 crore. The first installment of R. 150 crore of DIT share has been released and it is expected that these 41500 CSCs would be connected by December 2009. Further connectivity of 2500 CSCs situated in remote areas of NE States and other areas is also being addressed by using VSAT at cost of Rs. 49.88 Cr. The first installment of Rs. 12.50 crore of DIT share has already been released to NIC (the implementing agency). These CSCs are expected to be connected by December 2009. The issue of enabling Service Delivery is being addressed by earmarking funds to the tune of Rs. 400 crore saved out of the funds of the sanctioned plan for CSC Scheme, for establishing State Portals, State Services Gateway and bridging of gaps in Infrastructure. State Data Centres State Data Centre is one of the three core infrastructure components of the National eGovernance Plan (NeGP) of Govt. of India. Under the SDC Scheme, it is proposed to established Data Centres across the 28 States and 7 Union Territories so that a common secure IT infrastructure is created to host state level e-Governance applications/data to enable seamless delivery of Government to Government (G2G), Government to Citizen (G2C) and Government to Business (G2B) services duly supported by State Wide Area Network and Common Service Centres establish at the village level. The scheme for establishing Data Centres across all States/UTs in the country was approved by the Government on 24th January 2008 with a total outlay of Rs. 1623.20 crore towards the capital and operational expenses over a period of 5 years. To facilitate smooth and time-bound implementation, the Department of Information
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Technology, has formulated the policy guidelines including various issues/concerns to be addressed while planning and implementing the Data Centres including roles and responsibilities of different agencies/stakeholders involved. Since the approval of the SDC Scheme by the Government, Department of Information Technology has approved the proposals received from 31 States/UTs at a total outlay of Rs. 1378.00 crore. Capacity Building Scheme The Capacity Building (CB) Scheme, approved by Government in January, 2008 with an outlay of Rs. 313 crore over a period of 3 years envisions establishment of institutional frame work for State Level Strategic decision-making including settingup of State e-Governance Mission Team (SeMTs). SeMT will be a group of people in each State mainly for providing technical and professional support to State level policy and decision-making bodies and to develop specialized skills for e-governance at the State level. CB scheme also involves imparting of specialized training, orientation programme for SeMTs and decision makers (State Legislature and senior bureaucrats), knowledge sharing and bringing in international best practices and strengthening of training institutions in States. All 35 States/UTs have agreed to the terms and conditions of the Scheme. An amount of Rs. 62.90 crore has been released so far to 35 States/UTs by DIT. An amount of Rs. 46.62 crore has been released as ACA component to 28 States. A Capacity Building Management Cell (CBMC) has been set-up in DIT for overall coordination and implementation of Capacity Building Scheme. e-District e-District is a State Mission Mode Project under the National e-Governance Plan. The Project aims to target certain high volume services currently not covered by any MMP under the NeGP and undertake back-end computerization to enable the delivery of these services through Common Service Centres. The implementation strategy of eDistrict would suitably take into account the infrastructure currently being created under NeGP such as the CSCs, SWANs and SDCs The Department has approved 14 Pilot e-District projects covering 35 districts. Significant ground has been covered in Uttar Pradesh, Assam and Bihar. In Uttar Pradesh, pilot project has gone live in 6 districts with 3 services. In Assam and Bihar application development is under progress. National Service Delivery Gateway (NSDG) Centre for Developme nt of Advanced Computing (C-DAC) has built and deployed NSDG (National e-governance Services Delivery Gateway) and NSD (National Services Directory) which is the second Mission Mode Project to have gone live since 14th August 2008. NSDG is the first Gateway built for deployment at Central level. It is a messaging middleware conforming to various e-Governance standards managed by DIT, such as Interoperability Interface Protocol and Specifications (IIP/ IIS) that enable consistent communication and conformance to international standards such as the XML specifications and SOAP. Gateway brings in SA (Service Oriented Architecture) framework for the new as well as existing e-Governance Services. DIT envisages levels, thereby establishing a Gateway Constellation which is an innovation in itself. NSD is the Central Service Directory for coordination of message exchange among these Gateways constituting the Gateway Constellation. NSDG Go Live was inaugur ated on August 14, 2008.
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Other Initiatives With a view to study the best practices in the areas of Land Records, Property Registration and Transport for replication across the country, and initiative for Horizontal Transfer of Best Practices in -e-Government has been taken up. In order to provide all government services through a single window access and comprehensive, accurate and reliable content with multilingual interface, India portal is functional and updating/enhancements are being done regularly. Portal is accessible at http://india.gov.in Various innovative steps like National e-Service Delivery Gateway (NSDG) for providing interoperability framework, Open Technology Centre (OTC) to provide the requisite support to the standardization activity for e-Governance which are currently not covered by any MMP have been taken up and are in the process of implementation. The Department has initiated a comprehensive Awareness campaign using multimodal approach for creating awareness amongst stakeholders for better uptake of e-governance and ensuring wider participation of citizens in the process of governance. Under this initiative, workshops, seminars and publicity campaigns will be held across various States and /UTs. ELECTRONICS HARDWARE MANUFACTURING Electronics Hardware Manufacturing continues to be a thrust area for the Government. The Special Incentive Package Scheme (SIPS) to encourage investments for setting up Semiconductor Fabrication and other micro and nano-technology manufacture industries in India was announced by the Government on 21.3.2007. A set of Guidelines was issued on 14.09.2007. The SIPS Notification as well as Guidelines are available on DIT’s website (http://www.mit.gov.in). The Scheme has received a very encouraging response. Eighteen (18) proposals in all, amounting to a total investment of the order of Rs. 1,60,000 crore over a period of 10 years in the area of Semiconductor fab, TFT-LCD panel and solar photovoltaic have been received under the scheme. In-principle letters have been issued to 12 applicants corresponding to a total investment of Rs. 76,600 crore on 1.6.2009, who have met the basic technical qualification criteria laid down in the Notification for SIPS and taken specified preliminary steps towards project implementation. Information Technology Investment Regions There is felt need to develop infrastructure facilities in tier 2 and tier 3 cities, as there is little scope of building additional commercial space in the five tier 1 cities-New Delhi, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Mumbai and Chennai. In order to address this need, a policy resolution for setting up of Information Technology Investment Regions was notified by the Central Government on 29 May 2008. This transparent and investment friendly policy will help promote investment in IT-ITeS / Electronic Hardware Manufacturing units. The Information Technology (Amendment) Act 2008 The Information Technology Act 2000, a legal framework for transactions carried out electronically was enacted to facilitate e-Commerce, e-Governance and to take care of computer related offences. Over the years, with several new forms of computer crime, misuse and fraud taking place, a need was felt to strengthen legislation pertaining to information security. The Information Technology (Amendment) Act,
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2008 has been published in the Gazette. The Act upgrades the existing legal framework to instil confidence in the users and investors in the area of Information Technology in the country. This Act inter-alia adds provisions to the existing Information Technology Act, 2000 to deal with new forms of cyber terrorism, breach of confidentiality and leakage of data by intermediary and e-commerce frauds. The formulation of Rules under the Act is in the process. Cyber Security Government of India has setup the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) for providing early security warning and effective incident response. It operates on 24 x 7 basis and is actively engaging its users with early warning alerts and advisories. Nationwide efforts are being made to increase cyber security education, awareness and skills in the country. It is aimed at catering to the needs of critical sectors, law enforcement and judiciary and e-governance project owners. Special training programs are being conducted for judicial officers and law enforcement agencies. About a hundred personnel from various Government agencies have been trained at the Carnegie Mellon University, USA as Master trainers that can train many more in the country. National Knowledge Network Government has decided to establish a National Knowledge Network (NKN) with scalable multi gigabit capabilities which will connect 1000 nodes covering the universities, research institutions, libraries, laboratories, hospitals and agricultural institutions across the country. This will also act as a backbone for the e-governance. By facilitating the flow of information and knowledge, the network will address the critical issue of access, create a new paradigm of collaboration and enrich the research efforts in the country. The initial phase of the establishment of NKN has been started by upgrading 15 PoPs of NICNET at 2.5 gbps capacity. Six virtual classrooms over NKV have been established at six IITs. Technology development for Indian languages To enable wide proliferation of ICT in Indian Languages, Technology Development for Indian Languages (TDIL) programme under DIT has taken a major initiative to make available software tools and fonts in 22 constitutionally recognized Indian languages freely to the general public. DIT has released the CDs for sixteen Indian languages viz. Tamil, Hindi, Telugu, Marathi, Urdu, Punjabi, Oriya, Kannada, Assamese, Malayalam, Gujarati, Sanskrit, Bodo, Dogri, Maithili and Nepali for free mass usage. The process of consolidation for remaining six languages is currently underway. Apart from online registration and shipment of CDs, approximately 40 lakh downloads have happened from the website (http://www.ildc.in) NANOTECHNOLOGY The Nanotechnology Initiative Programme of Department of Information Technology was started in 2004 with focus on nano-electronics. The programme has been concentrating on institutional capacity building and infrastructure for Research & Development and human resource development in the area of nano-electronics towards making India a front runner in this revolutionary area. Under this Programme two Centres of Excellence in Nanoelectronics are being setup at IIT Bombay and
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Indian Institute of Science Bangalore at a cost of about Rs. 100 crore. These Centres are concentrating on development of nano-systems for healthcare and environmental monitoring, development of organic and biopolymer devices, GaN devices, acoustic sensors, magnetic materials for LC resonators, ferroelectrics for FRAMs and phase shifters etc. A major project entitled Indian Nanoelectronics Users Programme (INUP) with an outlay of about Rs.25 crore has also been initiated at IIT Bombay and IISc Bangalore too facilitate and support generation of expertise and knowledge in nanoelectronics through participation and utilization by external users of the facilities established at the Nanoelectronics Centres at IISc Bangalore and IIT-Bombay. Centre for Development of Advanced Computing Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC) is the premier R&D organization of the Department for carrying out R&D in IT, Electronics and associated areas. It continues to enhance the competencies built towards R&D in technology drivers of Petaflop computing, shared High Performance Computing (HPC) facilities, grid computing and grand challenge and research applications. For all these, it works in close conjunction with associated communities in academia, research laboratories, and industries. C-DAC commissioned a supercomputing system called PARAM "Yuva"in November 2008. Its Rmax (sustained performance) is 37.80 Teraflops and Rpeak (peak performance) is 54.01 TFs. It ranked 68th in the list of TOP500 supercomputers announced in November 2008 at Supercomputing Conference 'SCO8' held at Austin, Texas, USA. The system is an intermediate milestone of C-DAC's HPC roadmap towards Petaflop computing. PARAM Yuva (with 37.8 TFs Linpack performance) and PAARAM Synergy (with 2.01. TFs Linpack performance) ranked at No. 2 and No. 9 positions respectively among India's Top. Supercomputers' list announced by Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore in HiPC'08 Conference on 18 December,2008 Proof of Concept (PoC) phase of Garuda, a National Grid Computing Initiative was completed successfully and its foundation phase was started. The Foundation phase is an interim step to maintain continuity and consolidation. As part of this phase, a test bed consisting of four HPC clusters has been setup and put in operation. The next phase of Garuda will leverage upon the NKN (National Knowledge Network) connectivity. Indian Grid Certification Authority (IGCA) was inaugurated on January 14, 2009 by Dr. R. Chidambaram, Principal Scientific Advisor to Government of India IGCA will enable all Indian Grids to be securely interconnected to each other and with grids globally. National Resource Centre for Free and Open Source Software (NRCFOSS) at CDAC has released BOSS GNU/Linux CD, which is a localized Indian distribution of GNU/Linux. BOSS GNU/ Linux advanced server has unique features such as Web server, Proxy server, Data base server, Mail Server, Network server, File and Print server, SMS server, LDAP server. BOSS GNU/Linux advanced server is comprised with administration tool such as webmin which is a web based interface, Gadmin, PHP myadmin, PHP LDAP admin, PG admin. Support to BOSS GNU/Linux is available through a network C-DAC centres spread across the country.
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InDG is another initiative of C-DAC targeting specific needs, of the country in the domain of rural and social development. The www.indg.in portal has been developed as a single-window access to information and services, with specific objective of reaching the 'unreached' rural communities of India, especially women and poor. Portal focuses on five key areas, namely Agriculture, Health, e-Governance, Primary Eduction, and Rural Energy. The portal was formally launched by the Honorable President of India on July 4, 2008. National Informatics Centre The National Informatics Centre (NIC) is the nodal S&T organization of the Department of Information Technology, Ministry of Communications and Information Technology for facilitating the process of e-Governance in the country. NIC has scored many firsts in the field of informatics development & networking for decision support in the Central Government Departments, 28 State Governments, one National Capital Territory of Delhi and 6 Union Territories, and about 611 District administrations at sub-state level. It is the only organization in India to provide total informatics support to the Ministries and Departments of the Central, State Governments, District Administrations and other Government bodies. NIC has been instrumental in adopting Information Technology and Communication Technology 'to reach out into India' i.e. by implementing IT applications in social and public administrations. Wide range of services are provided through the NIC's e-governance Network (NICNET) and these include e-mail websites, video-conferencing, geospatial services, e-learning Intra-Gov, etc. NIC has successfully implemented many national level egovernance programmes in various sectors such as Web-enabled systems, Judiciary (e-courts), Accounts Computerization, Rural Information, Panchayati Raj Computerization, Agriculture e-Procurement, Unity Mapping, Geographic information, etc. ICT support all Central Government Ministries, Departments, State Governments and District Administrations. ICT support at block level has been set up through community Information Centre (CICs) in a few states. ICT support and consultancy has also been extended to a few neighboring countries. National Informatics Centre Certifying Authority (NICCA) has been established at NIC HQ under section 21 of the IT Act 2000 for issuance of Digital Signature Certificates (DSC) for e-governance applications. A state-of-the-art Symmetric Key infrastructure for issuance of DL & RC Authority Cards for State Transport Authorities has been Co-hosted and established in the common NICCA infrastructure. Over 1400 DSCs (individual & device) were issued. Registration Authorities (RA) were set up at ECIL & NIC, Orissa and a Sub-CA at NICCA for e-Passport application of Ministry of External Affairs. E-Learning E-Learning is an effective tool for imparting quality and life long education to learners. Department of Information Technology has taken initiatives to promote e-Learning in the country. These initiatives have resulted in development, of inexpensive tools and technologies for management and delivery of digital content. A number of academic institutions/ R&D Labs have been financially supported by DIT to carry out pilot R&D projects in the field of e-Learning. DIT has been providing grant-in-aid for R&D projects in the area of content development, R&D/Technology development projects, Human Resource Development project & Faculty Training to improve literacy
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through distance education using Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Tools (Computers, Multimedia and the Web). DOEACC Society DOEACC Society is an apex body of Department of Information Technology, to carry out human resource development and related activities in the area of Information. Electronics and communication Technology (IECT). The Society has Centres at Agartala, Aizawl, Aurangabad, Calicut, Chandigarh (with 3 branches at Shimla, Lucknow and New Delhi) Gorakhpur, Imphal, Srinagar/Jammu, Kohima/ Chuchuyimlang, Kolkata, Shillong and Tezpur/Guwahati with its Headquarters at New Delhi. It also has two regional centres at Pudukkottai (Tamilnadu) and Patna (Bihar). Two more Centres at Chennai and Gangtok are being set up. DOEACC society is implementing the joint Scheme of DIT & AICTE i.e. DOEACC Scheme for Computer Courses at 'O', 'A', 'B' and 'C' levels. DOEACC Centres are also conducting M.Tech., Diploma Level, MCA, BCA etc. affiliated to State University / Technical Boards. The Certificate course in Computer Concepts (CCC) of DOEACC has got recognition from the State Governments of Gujarat and Maharashtra for entering into Govt. services. Approximately 2.75 lakh candidates have appeared for the CCC examination and more than 1.5 lakh have been certified. Every year approximately 60000 students are getting registered for DOEACC 'O'. 'A' and 'B' level courses. National Internet Exchange of India (NIXI) The National Internet Exchange of India (NIXI) has been established as a not-forprofit Organization under section 25 of the Companies Act 1956 and was registered in July 2003. The National Internet Exchange of India is the neutral meeting point of the Internet Service Providers (ISPs) in the country. Its main purpose is to facilitate exchange of domestic internet traffic between the peering ISP members. This enables more efficient use of international bandwidth, saving foreign exchange. It also improves the Quality of Services for the customers of member ISPs by avoiding multiple international hope and thus reducing latency. The exchange points are presently operational at Mumbai, Delhi (Noida), Chennai, Kolkata, Hyderabad and Ahmedabad. As many as 30 ISPs connected to these nodes exchange an internet traffic of 6.4 gigabyte per second. It manages the IN Registry for the Country Code Top Level Domain Name in the country. Presently, more than 53 Registrars have been accredited to offer IN domain name registration world wide to customers. The registration of.IN domain names has crossed half a million during June 2009.
EARTH
SCIENCES
Recognizing the increasing sensitivities of matters relating to the Earth Science System, Government of India established the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) on 12th July, 2006. The mandate and competence of MoES includes matters relating to Ocean Sciences and Technology, Meteorology, Seismology, Climate Change science and the entire gamut of the earth science system. The structure of the Ministry, besides the central secretariat which is charged with the mandate of policy formation and programme implementation oversight, has an Earth Commission (EC) which comprises of leading scientists, administrators and policy makers who advice the Ministry on overall earth science policy and strategy;
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an Earth Science Organization (ESO) consisting of scientists, administrators, financial advisors and heads of research institutes under MoES, which lay down and steer the annual action plans of the Ministry. Both the EC and ESO are chaired by Secretary, MoES. At the field level the work of the Ministry is supported by the following organizations:l Indian Meteorological Department (IMD); l National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT); l National Centre for Antarctic & Ocean Research (NCAOR); l Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS); l Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM); l Integrated Coastal Marine Area Management (ICMAM); l Centre for Marine Living Resources & Ecology (CMLRE); l National Centre for Seismology, IMD and l National Centre for Medium Weather Range Forecasting.
The details about the Ministry's programme as well as the work of the research centres are given in the following paragraphs. ATMOSPHERIC SCIENCE INFORMATION & SERVICES Cyclone Warnings The extensive coastal belts of India have always been vulnerable to deadly storms that strike in the form of tropical cyclones. To give people of these areas a timely warning of an impending cyclone is of paramount importance and the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) does exactly that. The aim is to minimise the losses of life and property due to tropical cyclones by providing early warnings. About four to six tropical cyclones, all characterized by torrential rain, gales and storm surges and cause heavy loss of human lives and destruction of property, originate in the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea every year. The IMD, besides monitoring and forecasting cyclones, provides relevant data and advice to members of the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) so that economic and social cooperation can be built upon by exchanging ideas between the Pacific Panel (ESCAP) countries like Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and others. The agency acts as a Tropical Cyclone Advisory Centre (TCAC) for international civil aviation as well. At the national level, IMD interacts continuously with the National Disaster Management authority and Ministry of Home Affairs to provide timely information and warnings for emergency support services. As a result, continuous efforts are being made for expanding and strengthening IMD's activities in relation to observing strategies, forecasting techniques, disseminating methods and conducting research related to different aspects of tropical cyclones. All this will ensure and most critical meteorological support through observations, analysis, predictions and warnings to disaster managers and decision makers. Cyclone monitoring With the help of satellite imageries, particularly those from the Indian geostationary satellite, INSAT, IMD keeps a constant watch on the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal for the likely genesis of tropical cyclones. Data from ships and ocean buoys,
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too, make for valuable contribution. As the systems come nearer to the Indian coastline, their subsequent development and movement is thoroughly monitored by a chain of Cyclone Detection Radars set up at various centres to cover the entire coastal belt. The likely movement of the storms is predicted with the help of tracking models and reference to past climatology, which has been built using 125 years of cyclone data. The observational network for cyclone monitoring consists of land-based surface and upper-air stations, observations from Doppler Weather Radars/Cyclone Detection Radars and data from geo-stationary satellites. By virtue of installation of these radars, the loss of lives had been considerably dropped from 20,000 during 1977 to about 1000 in 1996 and further to about 27 in 2005, when the cyclones of similar intensity hit the Indian coast. The forecast delivers information on (i) current location and intensity of the cyclone; (ii) forecasting the intensity, direction and speed of the cyclone; (iii) time and location of landfall and warning to coastal areas likely to be affected by the gale force wind; (iv) estimated height of tidal waves/ storm surge and the part of the coast likely to be affected by tidal waves/storm surge; and (v) likely area to be affected by heavy/very heavy/extremely heavy rainfall. Apart from the synoptic analysis, various climatological, statistical and numerical weather prediction models are used for the above purpose. Warning responsibility centres The Cyclone Forecasting Wing in IMD has a three-tier structure to cater to the needs of the maritime states and other users. There are Cyclone Warning Centres (CWCs) at Visakhapatnam, Ahmedabad and Bhubaneswar that provide cyclone warnings for coastal regions of the maritime states in which they are located. In addition, there are area-based Cyclone Warning Centres (ACWC) at Kolkata, Chennai and Mumbai that not only provide warnings to their respective maritime states but also supervise the advisories of these centres under their jurisdiction. The national and international coordination as well as liaison with the Central Government and other organisations is done by the Cyclone Warning Division located at the IMD Headquarters at New Delhi. The ACWCs / CWCs issue warnings at three hourly intervals to ships in the high seas, and in coastal waters, ports, fishermen, government officials and the general public regarding adverse weather likely to be experienced in their respective areas. During a cyclone warning, bulletins are broadcast through All India Radio (AIR) and electronic and print media. When a radar station tracks the cyclone with confidence, which happens usually about 24 hours before landfall, hourly broadcasts are also made. Warning dissemination channel Cyclone warnings are disseminated through radio, television, print media, telephones, fax, telex, telegrams, police wireless network et all. A specially designed cyclone Warning Dissemination system, which works via the INSAT satellite, provides area specific service even when there is a failure of conventional communication channels. These warnings are issued for general public, officials of Central and State governments responsible for disaster mitigation and relief, industrial and other establishments, railways, aviation, communications and power authorities. These warnings are disseminated in two stages. The first stage is called "Cyclone Alert" that is issued 48 hours in advance of the expected commencement of adverse weather
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over the coastal areas. The second stage is known as "Cyclone Warning" and a warning for this is issued 24 hours in advance. A pre-cyclone warning is instituted prior to cyclone alert and a post-landfall outlook is issued for areas in the interior, which may be affected by the cyclone. The office in New Delhi has been designated as the Regional Specialised Meteorological Centre for Tropical Cyclones. It is one of the five such centres recognised by the WMO under a global system for monitoring tropical cyclones. Skills and capabilities The average operational forecast error of IMD for 24 hours track forecast is about 140 km. Considering the landfall forecast of cyclones, based on the last five years' data, the 12 hour and 24 hour landfall forecast errors are camparable with those of other ocean basins. However, continuous efforts are being made to improve effective dissemination of efficient forecasts. This can be achieved through improved scientific understanding, enhanced observation network and improved modeling technique through collaborative research. Improved telecommunication mechanism, along with coordination with media and disaster management personnel, are given prime importance in this effort. Besides, timely projects are undertaken for improved understanding and prediction through special observations in and around the tropical cyclones and utilising improved modelling techniques. Monsoon Predication Large-scale droughts and floods pose a grave concern for human existence all across the world. In India, few climatic rampages in recent times have adversely affected the country's agricultural production and economy, resulting in immense loss to life and property. But this year was different. The weathermen predicted that monsoon onset over Kerala would take place on May 29 with a model error of 4 days. The monsoon hit Kerala on May 31, just a day earlier than its normal date and hence within the forecast range. Our weathermen had trusted homegrown logic and used an indigenously developed statistical model. Our forewarning capability has, therefore, become an important aspect in gauging our country's progressive stance. Finally, the efforts of over a century to predict the total summer monsoon rainfall have borne fruit, using empirical techniques involving local and global antecedent parameters that correlate with the monsoon. The revamped models permit a forecast in mid-April itself as against the fourth week of May in the case of the earlier model. Besides, the new scheme enables a mid-course correction in July, which could help minimise the impact of a deficient monsoon on agriculture. The linear and nonlinear regression models as well as the neural networkbased models perform reasonably well when the monsoon is close to normal but fail to predict the extremes with useful skill. A case in point is the failure of almost all empirical models in predicting the drought of 2002. Dynamical prediction of the seasonal moods like monsoon, using state-of-the-art facilities based on climate models are currently being tried as a logical alternative to empirical forecasting. Unfortunately, the skill of prediction of the summer precipitation over the Asian monsoon region is currently rather poor for almost all state-of-the-art climate models. This is in part due to inadequate observations over the oceanic regions and largely due to inadequacy of the climate models to represent the complex monsoon climate.
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Agro-meteorological Advisory Services In spite of considerable technological advancement and improved irrigation facilities in recent times, Indian farmers seemed left out by a coordinated mechanism and continued to depend on fluctuating weather conditions for their yields. The Ministry of Earth Sciences has stepped in to fill the vacuum by creating a system that can help farmers take the best advantage of favourable weather conditions and minimise the adverse impact of unfavourable ones. Now the Agromet Advisory Service (AAS), that was earlier operating at the level of 127 agro-climatic zones, has micro-scaled its work by providing district-wise advisories. The change over is significant considering that even within the individual zones, there are considerable variations in weather conditions as well as difference in terms of cropping system, farm operations and soil conditions. The AAS was upgraded in June this year. And thus, an improved service was developed and rendered by the National Centre for Medium Range Weather Forecasting (NCMRWF). Headquartered in New Delhi, the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) generates the necessary weather forecast up to five days using weather agriculture universities, institutes of the Indian Council of Agriculture Research and other such centres. The advisories then get disseminated to the farmers through various media, including private television channels, FM radios and NGOs at the grassroots level, the All India Radio, Doordarshan, newspapers, district agriculture office and the web-sites of IMD and universities. Weather observing system the Ministry has to set up 550 additional automatic weather stations (AWS) and 1,350 automatic rain gauge (ARG) stations in the first phase of its modernisation plan to complement the existing 125 AWS. With this, every district in the country will have at least one AWS and two ARG stations. In addition to this, a network of 55 Doppler Weather Radars has been planned of which 12 are to be commissioned in the first phase. Techniques have been developed to assimilate a large volume of satellite-derived information, including that which will be available from the INSAT3D to be launched next year. Through improvement in observation systems, it will be easier to define the initial conditions to run the numerical weather prediction models, which may lead to further improvement in weather forecast. Weather forecasting system Operational since June 1, 2008, the weather forecasting system has already started issuing quantitative district level forecasts up to five days covering all the 613 districts. The products comprise quantitative forecasts for seven weather parameters like rainfall, maximum and minimum temperatures, wind speed and direction, relative humidity and the amount of clouds. Since no single numerical model at present is reliable enough over the Indian region, IMD is also generating these products using a multi-model ensemble technique whereby forecast outputs from the best set of numerical models available all over the world are assessed with appropriate weightage based on their individual performances. These include: T-254 model of NCMRWF, T-799 model of European Centre for Medium Range Weather Forecasting (ECMWF); United Kingdom Met Office (UKMO), National Centre for Environmental Prediction (NCEP), USA and Japan Meteorological Agency (JMA). The products thus generated get subsequently disseminated to regional meteorological centres and IMD's own centres located in different states of the country. Upon value addition to these
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products, these offices communicate the same to 130 AgroMet Field Units (AMFUs) located within State Agriculture Universities (SAUs) and institutes of the Indian Council of Agriculture Research (ICAR). Advisory service network Based on the above forecast products and the crop information available from districts, the AMFUs prepare district-wise agro-advisories. It involves all stake holders such as State agricultural Universities (SAUs), Indian Council for Agriculture Research (ICAR), Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVK), Department of Agriculture & Cooperation, State Departments of Agriculture/Horticulture/Animal Husbandry/Forestry (up to district level of offices), NGOs and media agencies. This project involves a five-tier structure which includes all the components of service spectrum like meteorological (weather observing and forecasting), agricultural (identifying weather sensitive stress and preparing suitable advisory using weather forecast), extension (two way communication with the user) and information dissemination (media, information technology, telecom) agencies. Advisory dissemination mechanism These weather-based advisories are being disseminated to farmers through the mass media as well as through district level intermediaries. The advisories are communicated through multi-channel dissemination system including All India Radio (AIR), Doordarshan, private television channels, FM radios, print media (newspapers), Internet (web pages of IMD, SAUs), community service centres of Ministry of Information Technology, Cell Phone-SMS, KVKs/ District Agricultural Offices (DAO), Kisan Call Centres and NGOs. A mechanism has also been developed to obtain feedback from the farmers on quality of weather forecast, relevance and content of Agromet advisories and effectiveness of the information dissemination system. The scope, accuracy and outreach of DAAS will continuously be enhanced with time, as and when newer products, technologies and scientific inputs are available in future. Modernization of India Metrological Department: With the rains becoming more and more erratic in India, the India Metrological Department (IMD) is set to modernize its meteorological services through commissioning of various observation systems, their interconnectivity, and processing and efficient real time dissemination system. The entire modernization plan proposed in three phases consists of upgradation and/or procurement of various instruments in the field of communication, observation, forecasting system, cyclone warning, aviation etc. The primary purpose is to ensure that every district has a weather monitoring equipment directly linked to the satellite, for monitoring weather data in real time. Thus this would provide real time data on air temperature, wind speed and direction, atmospheric pressure, relative humidity, rainfall, solar radiation and soil temperature and moisture. During the last south west monsoon, these systems were of great use. For instance, the forecasters could study the movement of depression belts minutely and therefore more accurately weather events were predicted. Since, the system is automated; the recorded data have much higher level of accuracy. They are free from human errors such as inconsistent recordings from remote weather stations with no trained personnel. The world over studies using network of AWS stations have shown marked improvement in local weather forecasts as required for cities, airports and ports. In order to
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implement the project in an exped itious manner, the modernization project has been split into 10 subprojects each having project director and team members. To ensure smooth functioning of the same, well defined enabling as well as overseeing mechanism has also been put in place. A multilingual Web portal for disseminating Agrometeorological advisories for different parts of the country has been created and is being routinely updated from the Agrimet centre of IMD at Pune. The entire operation of IMD is based on collection of data from large number of observatories and processing of collected information to produce deliverables for different segments of society. Schematic diagram given below brings out the relationship:
Data
Data
Collection
Transfer
Data Processing
Weather Products Generation and Dissemination
Observation Stations l Te m p e a t u r e
l Weather Forecast
l Rainfall
l Warning for
l Humidity l Wind
Velocity
l Wind
direction
l Cloud
coverage
l Pressure
Central Receiving Station
(CRC)
Processing of Data Synoptic
Or NWP
Few Stations
severe weather
l Agromet Advisory
l Advisory
l Upper air temperature and wind
for
airlines and airports
velocity
Airport Stations l Visibility
Agromet stations l Soil data l Evaporation data l Internet Satellite image RADARs
Numercial Weather Prediction (NWP) Interactive Voice Response (IVR) Cyclone Warning Dissemination ( C W D )
l TV l IVR l CWDs
The accuracy of forecast/advisory depends on following factors l Number of observation stations and how densely located they are. l Quality of instruments being used for collection of data over ground as well as
from upper air. l How quickly the data reaches CRC from all without any distortion l Whether data transmission is manual or automated l The methodology of processing data, i.e., whether Numerical Weather
Prediction (NWP) Models are being used and the quality of NWP models. l The methodology adopted for dissemination of forecast or advisory l Methodology of getting feedback from users to improve the models
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How quickly new technology is adopted. National Centre for Medium Range Weather Forecasting: Cray X1e and PARAM Padma computer systems were installed and acceptance tests were carried out. Realtime prediction of monsoon rainfall was made in the month of May for 2006 monsoon season. In 2005, an ensemble prediction systems with the T80/L18 model was implemented. The latest version of NCEP Regional Spectral Model (RSM97) was installed and experimentally run nesting with T80 global spectral model. Extended Range Monsoon Predictions were provided to IMD jointly with SAC, Ahmedabad using 10 ensemble members. The Weather Research Forecast (WRF) model with 30 km horizontal resolution and 31 levels in the vertical was installed. A set of Twentyfour (24) new Agromet Advisory Units was opened enhancing the all India network of AAS units to 107. In 2004, the centre started functioning from the new campus located in Noida and necessary computing facilities were established without affecting the operations. A Meso-scale Eta model at 10 km resolution was installed and tested in Linux environment to facilitate input with better lead time to Wave Watch Model to forecast ocean state wind. The 3 DVAR assimilation system was successfully installed and tested to enable provision of better initial conditions for operational MM5/WRF model. Daily forecasts with a temporal range of 4 days were issued to 82 Agromet Advisory Units twice a week. All India weekly weather forecasts were supplied to crop weather watch group of the Ministry of Agriculture on every Monday. Medium range customized forecast were provided to many user sectors; ISRO for space vehicle launch, defense for Everest and other expeditions, to agencies involved in water resources management, to power generation and transport sectors. Experimental seasonal forecast during monsoon 2006 and 2007 were generated and provided to IMD, DST and MoES. NCMRWE contributed towards capability building in generation, use and interpretation of NWP products. Dedicated Weather Channel: Recognizing the importance of day-to-day weather information for the development of the country in various centres namely Aviation, Tourism, Defence, Transport, Power, Sports and other socio-economic events, the Ministry has decided to launch a state-of-the-art weather channel for providing the information on 24x7 basis. The various expertise available in the research, observations, modeling and communication would form an integral part of the endeavour. Ocean Science and Services This mission primarily comprises of conducting basic research, Operational generation and dissemination products/services, deployment of observational network, Development of Ocean models etc., The Ministry has a comprehensive ocean observation programme for acquiring, in-situ data from the seas around India through surface drifting buoys, current meter arrays, expendable bathythermographs, and tide gauges. The International ARGO Project envisaged deployment of 3000 ARGO Floats in the global ocean at a spacing of 300 sq. km. India has so far deployed 168 floats in the Indian Ocean. Out of there, about 71 floats are active as on date. Besides, over 618 active floats deployed by other countries including India in the Indian Ocean are active. All the data acquired by the floats are available at INCOIS, by virtue of India's active participation. A wide range of user oriented data products being generated from the argo data are made available through INCOIS Ocean portal for effective utilization.
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The Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS), established at Hyderabad in February 1999, is a knowledge and information technology enterprise for the oceanic realm. INCOIS has been responsible for providing a wide range of coastal and ocean information advisory services. The Ministry of Earth Sciences had formulated a programme to provide the fishing community with credible advisories on Potential Fishing Zones (PFZ). The concerted efforts of scientists from ocean, space and fishery sciences in collaboration with the maritime states have resulted in the timely and reliable service of Potential Fishing Zone (PFZ) advisories. The integrated PFZ advisories generated using both the Sea Surface Temperature (SST) and Chlorophyll based on the features such as oceanic fronts, meandering patterns, eddies, rings, up-welling areas that are proven to be prospective sites for fish accumulation. The integrated PFZ advisories prepared in local languages and local measurement units were disseminated to over 225 nodes, thrice a week (i.e. Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday) during non-ban and cloud free days, through innovative and novel initiatives such as Electronic Display Boards (20 o operational currently) and Information Kiosks at the fishing harbors, radio, print media, emails and web sites supplementing fax and telephone. This is the only short-term forecast available to the fishing community of the country. Besides, frequent and intense interactions at the fishing harbors between scientists and fishing community ensured better awareness and effective use of these advisories. Parallel affirmation and feedback are integral to this mission for which necessary institutional mechanism is in place. It has been observed, from the data collected from 295 Gill netters and 400 Ring Seiners off the Kerala coast, that the search time has been reduced by 30 to 70 per cent for pelagic fish due to the usage of these advisories and resulted in a saving of Rs. 1,50-6.00 Lakh per vessel per year. This is an excellent example of providing the benefits of science to society. INCOIS is providing Ocean State forecast to over sixty registered users besides sending the information through its website for coastal and offshore developmental activities. INCOIS has also established ARGO data centre for archival and dissemination of all the data collected from the Argo floats deployed in the Indian Ocean. A set of 12 Argo data products is also being made available in near real time through INCOIS website. IOGOOS was formally established on November 5, 2002. 19 organisations from 10 countries have become Members of IOGOOS and agreed to collaborate and work together for the implementation of GOOS in the Indian Ocean and for promoting activities of common interest for the development of operational oceanography in the Indian Ocean region. Ocean Technology National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT), Chennai, an autonomous body of this Ministry of Earth Sciences (MOES) was established to serve as the technical arm of DOD, through a pool of highly trained manpower by taking up technology development and demonstration projects in major areas viz., Ocean Energy, Deep Sea Technology and Ocean Mining, Coastal and Environmental Engineering, and Marine Instrumentation. NIOT has been working towards development of a wide range of technology for harnessing the vast ocean resources in sustainable way and to develop instruments for exploring the ocean science. One of the activities is
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development of technology for producing fresh water out of seawater using the concept of low temperature thermal desalination (LTTD). The LTTD is a process by which fresh water is produced by flashing warm surface seawater under low vacuum conditions and condensing this vapour using deep-sea cold water. Though the process of LTTD is fairly well understood, the challenge lies in drawing the cold seawater using long pipes. Fresh water is an essential requirement of mankind for drinking, agriculture and Industrial purpose and is amongst one of the most important input for man's survival. The rapid increase of world's population and nonuniform distribution of potable water has forced mankind to develop new techniques to generate potable water. Fresh water rivers, lakes and other natural sources are not able to meet the over growing demand of potable water forcing the scientists to look towards the sea to fulfill the need. Sea water is available in abundance; however, its conversion to fresh water is limited and restricted due to high cost of conversion. The salt content in the sea water is very high making it unfit for human consumption and industrial use. Various processes are being developed to reduce the salinity of sea water so as to make it fit for human consumption and use. The most popular processes presently being used are distillation, reverse osmosis and electro dialysis. The selection of the right process depends upon the initial capital investment, plant capital, operation and maintenance cost etc. Scientists all over the world are constantly working on developing economical process so as to generate fresh water. Current endeavours Considering the requirement of fresh water for both island territories and coastal mainland of India, two types of desalination plants have been developed - land Based Plant and Offshore plant. The land based plant is suitable for Lakshadweep islands while the offshore plants suitable for mainland India. The islands of the Lakshadweep are very small with no fresh water bodies such as ponds, lakes and rivers. The major source is mainly rainfall that occurs during the monsoon. The borewells are often contaminated with sea water. Thus an efficient desalination technique such as LTTD is one of the potential alternatives to the islanders. Land based Plants: A land based plant of one lakh liter per day capacity was installed in Kavaratti in May 2005. This LTTD desalination plant was developed indigenously by National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT), which was commissioned at Kavaratti in May 2005. Since then, the plant has been working continuously without any interruption and contributing significantly to the needs of the Kavartti population. This has improved the quality of life of the population in Kavaratti. To date, this plant has produced over nine crore litres of water and the production often exceeds the designed capacity. On March 3, 2006, the Low Temperature Thermal desalination Plant (LTTD) at Kavaratti was successfully handed over to the administration of Lakshadweep for operation, maintenance and supply of drinking water to the people of the island. Now, due to the safe and unpolluted drinking water which is being supplied by the Desalination Plant in Kavaratti, the waterborne diseases, especially in children, have come down to less than 10 per cent. Besides, the cold water being brought from a depth of 350m to the surface is nutrient-rich, and Kavaratti Island is evolving into a new marine ecosystem with the coastal line bursting with ornamental
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fish. This would be a big boon for tourism industry of the island. Based on all these benefits to the society, the Lakshadweep administration plans to have more desalination plants in each of the islands. Currently three more plants are being setup at Minicoy, Agatti and Androth which are expected to be completed by December 2009. A land based plant was set-up at North Chennai Thermal Power Station in Chennai in May 2009. Apart from producing distilled mineral quality water or potable water, such use of LTTD provides an environmentally clean way to dissipate waste heat from the power plant. Off shore Plant: In April 2007, a 10 lakh liter per day capacity plant indigenously designed and developed was commissioned on a barge, about 40 kms off Chennai. This Offshore demonstration plant was successfully run continuously for a period of serval weeks. This was the first ever offshore LTTD plant with a single point mooring in 1000 meter water depth and lay cold water pipe vertically suspended below the vessel. Currently an offshore plant of 10 million liter capacity per day is being designed. Implementation Status Currently the detailed design of the plant is being carried out for further analysis. The Ministry is also exploring the possible public private partnership for operation and maintenance of the Plant after the commissioning. A project proposal is being prepared for seeking the approval of the Government for implementation along with industry participation. NIOT is in the process of finalising a Detailed Project Report. In the case of Renewable energy sector like solar and wind energy generation, there are good incentives from the Government for promoting and nurturing new technologies. Such incentives could be considered for Low Temperature Thermal Deslination (LTTD) based desalination projects, since they are environment friendly and consume less power (less carbon emission) compared to alternate desalination technologies. Mining the Ocean: India is the first country to be accorded status of a Pioneer Investor in 1987 and was allocated an exclusive area in the Central Indian Ocean by UN for exploration and utilization of resources. India is seeking to mine polymetallic nodules from the Indian Ocean bed found at a depth of about 6000 metre. Indian scientists in collaboration with Russian scientists have developed and tested an instrument to measure sea bed soil properties in-situ, at a depth of 5200 metre. Also, a project for the development of a Remotely Operable Vehicle (ROV) to operate at a depth of 6000 metre has been taken up in collaboration with Russia. A prototype system has been developed and tested successfully at a depth of over 200 metre. The complete hardware and software for the instrumentation and control system was developed by Indian scientists. This places India among the handful of nations that have capacity for deep sea mining. Technology for deep sea mining: NIOT, the technical arm of the Ministry of Earth Sciences has taken up this challenging area of developing technologies for harnessing ocean resources. In-situ soil property measurement system: As part of the Manganese Nodule mining programme, the next phase is to design a crawler for 6000 m operation. The challenges at 6000 m are high pressure of 600 bar, extremely soft sea bed and the varied topography of the ocean floor. In order to design a crawler capable of locomotion in the soft sea bed, it is essential that the sea bed property is to be measured in-situ which will provide undisturbed ground truth. This prompted the scientists to develop
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an instrument to measure the soil property in-situ. An instrument has been developed jointly with Sevmorgeo, Russia to measure the soil property in-situ, at a depth of 6000m. This is the first time an instrument for in-situ soil property measurement has been developed and tested at a depth of 5200m successfully by Indian Scientists. India got elected as Member of the Legal and Technical Commission of the International Seabed Authority (ISA) for a period of 5 years beginning from 2007. Geosphere and Seismological Disaster: Early Tsunami Warning System: On October 15, 2007, the Minister for Science, Technology and Earth Sciences, Shri. Kapil Sibal inaugurated the National Tsunami Early Warning System that has been set up at the Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS), Hyderabad. In the aftermath of the Great Sumatra earthquake of 26th December, 2004, Government of India has set up an Early Warning System for Tsunamis in the Indian Ocean region at Indian National Centre for Ocean Information Services (INCOIS), Hyderabad, which is operating on a 24x7 basis. The system provides advance warnings of Tsumanis likely to affect the coastal areas of the Country. As part of the Early Warning System for Tsunamis, a Real Time Seismic Monitoring Network (RTSMN) is set up by India Meteorological Department (IMD). The network is designed to monitor and report, in least possible time, the occurrence of earthquakes capable of generating Tsunamis in Indian Ocean region. The data from the seismic field stations is transmitted simultaneously in real time through V-SAT communication facilities to the Central Receiving Stations (CRSs) located at IMD at New Delhi and INCOIS, Hyderabad for processing and interpretation. The CRSs are equipped with state-ofthe art computing hardware, communication, data processing, visualization and dissemination facilities. The earthquake information shall be disseminated through various communication channels to all concerned user agencies in a fully automated mode. The Warning System has been established by MoES as the nodal ministry in collaboration with Department of Science and Technology (DST), Department of Space (DOS) and the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR). Tsunamigenic zones that threaten the Indian Coast have been identified by considering the historical Tsunamis, earthquakes, their magnitudes, location of the area relative to a fault, and also by tsunami modelling. The Indian Tsunami Early Warning System comprises a real-time network of seismic stations, Bottom Pressure Recorders (BPR) and tide gauges to detect tsunamigenic earthquakes and to monitor tsunamis. The Early Warning Centre receives real-time Seismic data from the national seismic network of the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) and other International seismic networks. The system detects all earthquake events of more than 6 Magnitude occurring in the Indian Ocean in the less than 20 minutes of occurrence. BPRs installed in the Deep Ocean are the key sensors to confirm the triggering of a Tsunami. The National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT) has installed 4 BPRs in the Bay of Bengal and the 2 BPRs in Arabian Sea. In addition, NIOT and survey of India (SOI) have installed 30 Tide Gauges to monitor the progress of Tsunami waves. Integrated Coastal and Marine Area Management (ICMAM) had customised and ran the Tsunamic Model for 5 historical earthquakes and the predicted
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inundation areas. The inundated areas are being overlaid on cadastral level maps of 1:5000 scale. These community-level inundation maps are extremely useful for assessing the population and infrastructure at risk. High-resolution Coastal Topography data required for modelling is generated by the National Remote Sensing Agency (NRSA) using ALTM and Cartosat Data. INCOIS has also generated a large database of model scenarios for different earthquakes that are being used for operational tsunami early warning. Communication of real-time data from seismic stations, tide gauges and BPR's to the early warning centre is very critical for generating timely tsunami warnings. A host of communication methods are employed for timely reception of data from the sensors as well as for dissemination of alerts. Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has made an end-to-end communication plan using INSAT. A high level of redundancy is being built into the communication system to avoid single point failures. A state-of-the-art early warning centre is established at INCOIS with all the necessary computational and communication infrastructure that enables reception of real-time data from all the sensors, analysis of the data, generation and dissemination of tsunami advisories following a Standard Operating Procedure. The National Early Warning Centre generates and disseminates timely advisories to the Control Room of the Ministry of Home Affairs for further dissemination to the Public. For the dissemination of alerts to MHA a satellite-based virtual private network for disaster management support (VPN DMS) has been established. This network enables early warning centre to disseminate warnings to the MHA, as well as to the State Emergency Operations Centres. In addition, Messages would be sent to authorised officials. In case of confirmed warnings, the National Early Warning Centre is being equipped with necessary facilities to disseminate the advisories directly to the administrators, media and public. A Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) was developed for generation and dissemination of tsunami advisories on 24X7 basis. The efficiency of the end-to-end system was proved during the large under-sea earthquake of 8.4 that occurred on September 12, 2007 in the Indian Ocean. During April, 2008 the 5th IOC Coordination Group on Indian Ocean Tsunami Warning system (IOTWS) set up by UNESCO has endorsed the responsibility as Regional Tsunami Warning System for the Indian Ocean. Seismology Centre: The Seismic network needs to be increased in density to be able to capture earthquakes of lower magnitude, which are required for precursor studies, and more detailed zoning of vulnerability. In addition it must be connected by telemetry to reduce the time lag of occurrence and detection. Such a system will be especially required for Tsunamgenic earthquake detction. A set of to broadband Service Observational Network in the pennisular India were upgraded. Towards this, an Earthquake. Risk Evaluation Centre was created in New Delhi to evaluate seismic hazards at a very high resolution so that its engineering applications were possible. Microzonation Studies of Selected Urban Centres: Microzonation is a multidisciplinary and multi-institutional effort, which has direct application in Disaster Mitigation & Management, Urban Development, Planning, Design & Construction, and Risk Assessment to existing life & property, Defense Installations, Heavy Industry and Public Utilities & Services etc. During the last few years efforts have been made to
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take up microzonation studies for Delhi, Guwahati, Sikkim and Bangalore. While the microzonation of Guwahati and Sikkim has already been completed on 1:25000 scale, the work related to Delhi on 1:50,000 scale has been completed and the maps are being further refined on 1:10000 scale. Bangalore microzonation is also progressing well. All these studies are now being coordinated by Ministry of Earth Sciences. CRYOSPHERE AND POLAR SCIENCE Antarctic Treaty-India's 3rd Research Base at Antarctica India was privileged to host the 30th Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting (ATCM) in May 2007 for the first time ever since India joined the Antarctic Treaty in 1983 and was granted the consultative status. Amongst other significant outcomes of this meeting, was the ATCM's acceptance of the Indian proposal for a new Indian Research Base at the Larsemann Hills, East Antarctica, which paved way for India to proceed with final design of the 3rd station and its construction at the larsemann Hills, Antarctia. The ATCM has adopted two important Resolutions regarding tourism - one concerning ship-based tourism in Antarctic Treaty Area, and the second associated with the issue related to permanent land based infrastructures for tourism in Antarctica with a condition that Parties should discourage or decline to authorize tour operators that use vessels carrying more than 500 passengers from making any landings in Antarctica in addition to regulating the numbers of vessels and visitors landings at any one time at a site, to one and hundred respectively. Ice-core laboratory: The establishment of National Centre for Antarctic and Ocean Research (NCAOR) at Goa as an exclusive polar research laboratory by the Ministry is a reflection of India's sustained and far-fetched interests in Antarctic science and protection of its environment. The Centre has been designated as the focal coordinating agency for the Indian Antarctic program and is responsible for maintaining the Indian permanent station, 'Maitri' in Antarctica. The Centre has helped to consolidate and focus our scientific activities in the domain of polar sciences and also aims to conduct in-house R&D activities in exclusive areas if ice-ocean - atmosphere interaction & climate modeling, global change & Antarctica, Palaeo-climate & palaeo-environent and southern ocean oceanography. The ice-core laboratory complex is now operational at the Centre. It will serve as repository of cores both from the Antarctica and the Himalayas. This is being used to infer past climate and environmental changes and will help the scientists to refine the climate models. An Earth Station has been set up at Maitri with a connectivity of 2mbps line for communication with mainland, India. Expedition to Arctic: India already has a strong presence in the Antarctica for the past 27 years. However, despite the scientific and logistics expertise gained by the country over the years in Antarctica, a wide gap exists in our knowledge of the Arctic, hindering a much-needed bi-hemispherical approach to polar sciences. The Arctic Ocean and the surrounding regions are one of the most important areas that not only govern the earth's climate but have also faithfully recorded its past climatic history. The region is also an excellent harbinger of future change, because the signals or clues that signify climate change are much stronger in the Arctic than elsewhere
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on the planet. This region has always been significant to the Indian subcontinent due to probable tele-connection between the northern polar region and Indian monsoon intensity, which is critical for our agriculture output and economy. However, the exact mechanism by which this tele-connection exists is still open to debate and is a topic of the ongoing research. In quest for knowledge and pursuit of science, India has recently embarked upon Arctic research by launching first ever scientific expedition to this region under the leadership of Shri Rasik Ravindra, Director, NCAOR, Goa in the first week of August 2007 using the international researchfacility at Ny-Alesund in Sptilsbergen island of Norway. The five member interdisciplinary and inter-institutional team of scientists of the first Arctic Expedition drawn from NCAOR, Goa; CCMB, Hyderabed; IITM, Pune and Lucknow University; has initiated three projects on Atmospheric Studies, Arctic Microbes and Earth Sciences. In the second phase four more projects have been initiated in the early spring this year with the launch of winter expedition on 29th February, 2008. The name of the Indian Arctic Station is Himadri set up at the base camp in Norway. ORV Sagar Kanya: The Vessel underwent a major dry-docking now equipped with a new DP System and up-gradation of generators, bow thruster power management system, and a state-of-the-art Multibeam Swath Bathymetric System. Besides, undertaking over 10 cruises for over a period of 140 days at sea, an "Integrated Campaign for Aerosol, Gases & Radiation Budget (ICARB)" under ISRO-GBP for observations over Bay of Bengal and Arabian Sea was successfully completed through a cruise of more than 50 days with the participation of 29 Scientists/Technical personnel carried out various sample/data collections. For the first time, ORV Sagar Kanya undertook a survey over approximately 600 lines kms. covering 92. sq. kms. for recovery of failed GSLV engine. Three step-on engines S3, S2 and S1 were recovered and many parts of the S4 stage engine/core vehicle were collected from sea bottom. Around 550 diving operations were done along 94 target points. The recovery of GSLV Subsystems from sea is second such attempt in Space history after recovery of Ariane by Europeans Space Agency in 1996. NON-LIVING RESOURCES Polymetallic Nodule Programme: India is the first country to have received the status of Pioneer Investor in 1987 and was allocated an exclusive area in Central Indian Ocean Basin by UN for exploration and utilization of nodules. India is presently having an area of 75,000 square km, located about 1600 Nm away from her southern tip. India is one among the top 8-countries/ contractors and is implementing a longterm programme on exploration and utilization of Polymetallic Nodules. As part of the Manganese Nodule mining progrmme, a crawler, in-situ tester and remotely operable Vehicle were designed, developed and tested at depths of 410m, 520m and 205m respectively. For extraction of metals, 3 primary process routes were tested on the semi-continuous demonstration pilot plant set up at Hindustan Zinc Limited with successful extraction of Copper, Nickel and Cobalt from Polymetalic Nodules. Indian Continental Shelf Program: This is a major multi-institutional national endeavor that seeks to establish the outer limits of the country's continental shelf. Following India's ratification of the convention in June 1995, it was mandatory for
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the country to lodge her claims for an extended shelf latest by May 2009. The Indian endeavors towards this national goal were being spearheaded by the National Centre for Antarctic and Ocean Research (NCAOR). Underpinning our endeavours has been a comprehensive multi institutional marine geophysical data acquisition programme which commenced on the 17th July 2002. Spread over 385 days of fairweather period, over 31, 000 km of seismic reflection gravity and magnetic data were collected from the project area. In addition, for the first time in the country, 90 state-ofthe-art Ocean Bottom Seismometers (OBS) were successfully deployed along several seismic transects to constrain the velocities from the reflection data as well as to develop a crustal model of the area. The post-processing and interpretation of the data has been undertaken by three of the leading National Institutes, viz, NCAOR, NGRI and NIO. The documentation as per the provisions of UNCLOS is currently in progress. In June 2007, India got elected as a member on the commission. During the year the Ministry had undertaken a bilateral programme to conduct geophysical survey as required by the CLCS for the Myanmar. A workshop has already been organized at NCAOR, Goa to the Scientists of Myanmar for providing hand on training on the analysis of geophysical data. A total of 2759 kms has been surveyed for collection of geophysical data in the EEZ of Myanmar. Gas Hydrates: Considering the vast potential of various resources including the gas hydrates in the EEZ of India, a comprehensive bathymetric survey of EEZ was also taken up during the period. Towards exploration of gas hydrates, some of the scientific aspects of Gas hydrates have been address and an Indo-Russian Gas hydrate centre was established to address the technological aspects. COASTAL AND MARINE ECOSYSTEM Marine Living Resources: A dedicated programme was launched for systematic scientific assessment of living resources in the seas around India through a network of Fishery Research and other Organizations. This programme is being coordinated by Centre for Marine Living Resources and Ecology (CMLRE), Kochi. Towards development of drugs from the marine organisms, a considerable progress has been made over a couple of decades. Clinical test of two compounds (antidiabetic, antidyslipidemic) derived from marine organisms are in the advanced stage of drug development. Besides, some lead compounds found to be having potential activities such as antibiotic, antiviral, antileukemic have also been taken for toxicity and clinical trials. The Ministry has a well defined Ocean Awareness programme for promotion of Ocean Science and to reach out the society. Lobster Fattening Technology: National Institute of Ocean Technology, Chennai, successfully developed and disseminated the viable technology for fattening lobsters and mud crabs in cages to select beneficiaries in Gulf of Mannar in Tamil Nadu and Andaman Islands, on an experimental basis. There has been a substantial improvement in earnings of coastal fishermen due to implementation of this scheme. The technology for seaweed culture will be extended to 100 women beneficiaries in Gulf of Mannar region, 25 women beneficiaries each for lobster fattening in Gulf of Mannar and crab fattening in Andaman & Nicobar Islands. Besides, NIOT has also deployed a set of 28 Fish Aggregating Devices in the Arabian Sea for the benefit of fishing community in the Lakshadweep islands.
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Integrated Coastal and Marine Area Management (ICMAM) The Integrated Coastal and Marine Area Management (ICMAM) programme initiated in 1998 aims to facilitate use of scientific tools and techniques in addressing the coastal problems like erosion, pollution and habitat degradation. It has demonstrated application of remote sensing and GIS in the assessment of status of health of mangroves, coral reefs and other biologically important areas and also their integrated management. Use of mathematical modeling in assessing the coastal erosion and development of remedial solutions has been demonstrated at Ennore (TN), Panathura and Kayamkulam (Kerala) and Mangalore (Karnataka). Projects of similar nature are being undertaken at Gopalpur (Orissa), North Kanara coast and at selected locations in Kerala. A major initiative of ecosystem modeling of coastal ecosystems especially at Kochi backwaters, Chika lake and Sundarbans has been taken up. As an aid to the pollution control activities, mathematical modeling techniques have been used to estimate waste assimilation capacity of sewage at Ennore Tamilnadu, Tapi (Gujarat) and Hooghly (W.Bengal). Further, seawater quality criteria have been developed for mercury, copper and cadmium using modern ecotoxicological experiments and determination of such values is in progress for other major pollutants. Coastal Ocean Monitoring and Prediction System A major long-term programme to assess the health of marine environment has been operational since 1990. Levels of chemical elements indicting the contamination of seawater due to disposal of untreated sewage and industrial wastes both from point and non-point sources are being determined at 76 locations along the coastline of the country. It has been found that the sea beyond 5 km is clean. Thee major pollutant along the coastal water is the untreated sewage as indicated by moderate to high numbers of pathogenic bacteria at all the 76 locations in the sea. The coastal waters of Mumbai, fishing harbour at Veraval, nearshore water of Veli in Kerala are severely polluted. Moderate levels of pollution also notice at Hazira, Kochi, Cuddalore, Tuticorin, Ennore, Vishakapatnam, Puri and Sandheads (W.Bengal). The seawater is free from contamination of pesticide residues such as DDT and HCH. Ocean Research Vessels Recognizing the necessity of research vessels for conducting Marine Scientific Research, the Department acquired two state-of-the-art Research Vessels viz., (ORV) Sagar Kanya and FORV Sagar Sampada in 1983 and 1984 respectively. These Research Vessels are equipped with advanced scientific instruments to conduct multidisciplinary research and contributed in a major manner to the advancement of oceanographic and atmospheric research in India, for nearly two decades. So far Sagar Kanya and Sagar Sampada conducted over 230 and 247 cruises respectively in the Indian Ocean including the Southern ocean for the exploration and exploitation of living and non-living resources including Antarctic Krill resources. During 1998, two Coastal Research Vessels viz., Sagar Poorvi, and Sagar Pachimi were acquired to specifically monitor coastal pollution aspects. In 2006, a Buoy Tender Vessel "Sagar Manjusha" was commissioned to cater to the needs of ocean observation systems. To harness various non-living resources in a sustainable way, a suitable platform like Technology Demonstration Vessel (TDV) is essential. In 2005, a new programme on acquistition of new multipurpose vessel for Technology was taken
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up. The detailed design of a new Technology Demonstration vessel with the following features was completed by the end of 2006. In a record time, the construction of vessel Sagar Nidhi had been completed which was launched in June 2007 by Minister for Sceience and Technology. The vessel equipped with the state-of-the art facility, was delivered on 10th December 2007. This new facility will also cater to shallow water survey, and act as a supply and support platform for the various coastal and deep ocean activities planned by the Ministry. This vessel will serve as a platform for the programmes envisaged in the XI Plan and also serve as a utility science vessel which will augment the capacity needs of the marine living and non-living resources programme of the Department. The NIOT would be the nodal agency to implement this programme and to operate and maintain the vessel. This vessel was dedicated to the nation in the presence of Minister for Earth Sciences and the Minister for Shipping on 3.3.2008. This vessel is capable of conducting multi-disciplinary studies in the sea continuously for 45 days with 30 Scientists onboard. This is an ice class vessel of 5050 tones, equipped with state-of-the art facilities for launching and testing various Marine equipment including ROV, AUV and Manned Submersible. Climate Change Studies The Ministry has taken up a programme to set up a dedicated centre at Pune to address various scientific issues relating to climate change including impacts on sectors like health, agriculture and water. With the mandate to explore and assess targeted science-facets of climate change that are of high relevance for the Indian region, along with their global linkages through the creation of a research infrastructure to be coordinated by an exclusive program on climate change science, integrate existing research groups and develop new groups through the development of institutional research network, developing collaborative linkages with international institutions and research groups to enhance research capabilities, coordinate systematic observation program for climate change related parameters including fluxes, over Indian region and ocean in the neighbourhood. In tune with the mandate of basic research for advancing the prediction of tropical weather and monsoon climate, the Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology (IITM) has made fundamental and noteworthy contributions during the past three years in areas of monsoon prediction, monsoon variability, climate change and climate variability, atomospheric chemistry modelling and air quality measurements. Some of the most important contributions are noted here. (a) IITM has been playing a leading role in the development of empirical models for long-range prediction of seasonal mean monsoon rainfall and has taken major initiative in prediction of seasonal mean Indian summer monsoon rainfall and its variability by using atmospheric model as well as by developing an Intermediate atmosphere-ocean coupled model. (b) Also, for the first time in the country, projections of Indian summer monsoon under different climate change scenarios have been made through downscaling with the latest version of Hadley Centre Regional Climate Model. The scenario data products have been distributed to several impact assessment groups in the country. (c) The first evidence of a significant rising trend in the frequency and intensity of heavy rain events; and decreasing trend in the frequency of light to moderate rain events over central India in the monsoon season during 1951-2000 has been produced and its connection with global warming has been projected. (d)
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Discovered a coupled feedback between the tropical Indian Ocean circulation and the southwest monsoon winds, on sub-seasonal / intra-seasonal time-scales, which is pivotal in forcing long-lasting breaks in the monsoon rainfall over India and occurrence of droughts over the subcontinent. (e) Lidar Group Scientists at IITM developed an Excimer laser based DIAL (Differential Absorption Lidar) technique for Vertical Profiling of Ozone up to stratospheric altitudes at the Institute and measurements of Vertical profile of Ozone were made at Pune for the first time in the Country. (f) A new insight on why all EI Ninos are not associated with monsoon droughts has been unraveled. The EI Nino events with the warmest sea surface temperature (SST) anomalies in the central equatorial Pacific are more effective in focusing drought producing subsidence over India than events with the warmest SST in the eastern equatorial Pacific. BIOTECHNOLOGY Biotechnology is a set of rapidly emerging and far-reaching new technologies with great promise in areas of sustainable food production, nutrition security, health care and environmental sustainability. Biotechnology is globally recognized as a rapidly emerging, complex and far reaching new technology. Biotechnology can, over the next two decades, deliver the next wave of technological change that can be as radical and pervasive as that brought about by IT. During the last five years, biotechnology industry has been growing at a rate of 40% and in 2005-06 exceeded US$ 1.5 billion in turnover. Though the growth was achieved mainly through leadership in biogenerics and contract manufacturing, research leading to innovative product development did not lag behind. The social impact of such growth is evident from India assuming a dominant place in vaccine exports, diagnostics, transgenics (BtCotton) and a number of biotherapeutics. There is a projection of an annual turnover of US $ 10 billion for India by 2010 and a speculated about 25% annual growth rate between 2010 and 2015. During the year 2006-07, the impetus had been on programmes of national relevance with special emphasis on strengthening of infrastructure, creation of centres of excellence, capacity building and developing mission mode programmes and public-private partnerships. Over 450 R&D projects have been supported during the year with approximately 200 universities and research laboratories being provided the necessary support in terms of both capacity building and infrastructure strengthening. In the area of health care, new vaccines and diagnostics have been indigenously developed and are under clinical trials. A major initiative has been taken to develop stem cell research in the country and 6 centres have received programme support. A road map has been formulated and city clusters established to forge interdisciplinary collaboration, crucial to this sector. Cutting edge research in areas of tissue engineering, bio-medical devices, biomaterials, nanobiotechnology and RNAI is begin supported. A special initiative for devices and formulation required for a national programme on maternal, neonatal and child health has been initiated. In the area of agriculture biotechnology the focus is on nutritional enhancement, increased productivity and development of crops resistant to biotec and abiotic stresses. Establishing Centres of Excellence has received special attention during the current year to achieve re-engineering of certain institutes for greater innovation and focus. The societal development programme has received special attention and benefited more than 20,000 SC/ST people, women and rural population during the year. The efforts were focused to create circumstances for
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increasing access of common people to new technologies and products and promoting the mass use of these technologies for health care, nutritional security, employment generation and environmental well being. Rapid responses are required to meet these challenges. A major success during the current year has been the launch of public/ private partnership scheme-Small Business Innovation Research Initiative (SBIRI), which promotes highly innovative early stage, pre proof-of-concept and late stage development research emphasizing important national needs. During the year, the Autonomous Institutes have concentrated on technology and product development besides basic science. New International Collaborations have been forged with Denmark, Netherlands, US, Finland, UK, etc. Several of these are dedicated to tailored agricultural and vaccine and diagnostics technologies for regional/local needs. HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT Presently, 63 Post Graduate teaching programmes in various areas of biotechnology namely General Biotechnology, Agricultural Biotechnology, Animal Sciences, Medical Sciences, Marine Sciences, Neurosciences, Industrial Biotechnology, Molecular and Human Genetics, Environmental Biotechnology and Pharmaceutical Biotechnology. M. Tech Biochemical Engineering and Biotechnology, in addition to seven Post Graduate diploma in bio-safety & regulations, animal cell culture etc. are being supported all over the country. Around 1000 students are admitted for these courses through an All India Common Entrance Examination. There is a provision to give industrial exposure to PG students for six months with an aim to bridge gap between skilled set of students produced by universities and requirements of the industry, under Biotech Industrial Training Programme (BITP). The Department started JRF programme from 2004. 100 JRFs are selected through Biotechnology Eligibility Test (BET) conducted by University of Pune and fellowships are provided initially for a period of 3 years which may be extended up to five years. The programme is also being extended to students with Medical and Engineering background. Post Doctoral Fellowship (PDFs) are given to 100 fellows each year and selection is done by IISc. Bangalore. There is provision for upgrading skills of mid-career scientists, faculty involved in undergraduate and post graduate teaching by participation in short term training courses in leading institutions in the country and specialized training in overseas laboratories. BIOTECH FACILITIES AND PROGRAMME SUPPORT Six Centres of Excellence have been supported so far in the areas of genetics and genomics of silkmoths; co-ordinated research on tuberculosis, design of novel inhibitors against infectious disease agents, high-throughput allele determination for molecular breeding of crops and for developing high throughput molecular approaches for rice breeding. In addition, eleven proposals have been supported so far in Programme Support mode in the areas of therapeutic proteins, novel yeasts, abiotic and biotic stress tolerance in crop plants; cancer biology and therapeutics, nutrition genomics, human genetic disorders, micronutrient deficiencies, immunotherapy of cancer and leishmaniasis, translational research on transgenic rice and diagnositics for neglected infectious diseases.
Scientific and Technological Developments AGRICULTURAL
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BIOTECHNOLOGY-CROPS
In a project to identify, map and transfer desirable alleles at QTLs for yield and yield components and stability and also to generate QTL bear isogenic lines of rice, and agronomic evaluation of BC2F4 Near Isogenic Introgressions lines (NIILs) as many as 200 BC2F5 progenies were evaluated for the second consecutive year during summer 2006 in multi-location trials. A new triticate line involving Himalayan rye and indigenous wheat genotypes has been synthesized to be further utilized as a diverse source for obtaining certain important wheat-rye translocations. In project on functional genomics of rice aiming at discovery and functional validation of genes, novel genes conferring bacterial blight (BLB) resistance have been discovered in accessions of wild species like O. longistarminata. O. nivara, O. glaberrima and O. barthii; land race accession Ac32753 and a few mutant lines of IR64. Gall midge resistance genes Gm 1 and Gm4 are being fine mapped to within 10cM of 2 MB region of the genome. In the network project on programme on development of Salinity and dehydration stress tolerance in rice, a gene encoding fructose 1, 6 bisphosphate was cloned to full length from Portresia (PCFR) and this enzyme was found to be active in the presence of NaCl. In the project on multi-site Evaluation of Transgenic Mustard (DMH-11) based on barnase-barstar system, the National Research Centre of Rapeseed-Mustard, Bharatpur conducted these trials along with four checks, viz. CMS based hybrid (DMH-1), National Checks (Varuna and Kranti) and a zonal check, at 10 locations during the year 2006. It was observed that higher yield of DMH11 over the best check variety was recorded in 6 out of 9 locations. In the project on development of Transgenics Cotton for Resistance to Insect Pests, around 300 independent transgenics lines in cotton (Coker 310-FR) carrying the cry 1Ac gene for attaining resistance to Helicoverpa armigera developed. In most of the transgenics the cry1Ac gene is under the control of the double enhancer CaMV 35S promote r . Improvements have also been made in the transformation protocol of cotton which allows the use of Imidazolinone as a selection agent instead of kanamycin by using a double mutant acetolactate synthase gene as marker. BIOFERTILISERS With growing environmental concerns, the sole dependance on chemical inputsbased agriculture is being replaced by integrated approach involving conjunctive use of both organic and inorganic sources. In this context, biofertilizers have been well accepted as an economical, cost effective, renewable and safe organic source of plant nutrients to sustain crop productivity. Moreover, with recent focus on organic/ bio-dynamic farming, the demand of biofertilizers is likely to grow at a much faster rate than before. At this juncture, we must realize that microbial inoculants are 'ecological inputs', whose effects are 'subtle and not dramatic' like chemical inputs. Hence, inoculation with good quality inoculants is a must and should be treated as an insurance against failure of nodulation. The shelf life both in the store and transit needs to be improved with due consideration to various 'abiotic' stresses. The qualityoriented production and marketing network will certainly make biofertilizers a viable enterprise for ultimate customer satisfaction. Keeping these in view, programmes on development of liquid biofertilizers and biofertilizers-based Integrated Nutrient management packages for plantation crops and medicinal plants have been generated.
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BIOPESTICIDES AND CROP MANAGEMENT The programme is directed towards the management of pests, diseases and weeds of economically important crops as well as development of commercially viable mass production technologies. A number of potent and cost effective methods of biological pest control were successfully developed. Formulations were prepared and tested successfully against viral and fungal infections of various crops. Genetic improvement of various species of entomopathogenic nematodes for enhanced efficacy and tolerance to environment, e.g. temperature etc. was achieved and found to be effective against insect pest of pigeon pea, rice stem borer, gram pod borer, cardamom root grub, sucking pests of cotton etc. Conservation and augmentation of two predators, viz. Dipha aphidivora and Microuns igorotus was achieved, which suppressed sugarcane wooly aphid populations. Pheromones were found to be quite effective against various species of bollworm, viz. pomegranate fruit borer and sucking moths of sweet orange. Pheromones dispensers, suitable for Indian conditions were also developed. Insecticidal toxin genes of various plant species and various novel bacterial strains is being done to develop a potent biopesticides formulation. The multicentric programme on the management of Parthenium launch to control the weed and for its possible economic potential is progressing well. At the initiative of DBT, guidelines for registration of biopesticides have been simplified and streamlined. In order to promote and facilitate the commercialization of biopesticides, 10 biopesticides have been taken up for generation of toxicological data, both for primary cultures as well as for their formulations. A comprehensive website on "Bio-pesticides" has been developed which highlights the achievements made in major programmes supported by the Department on biological control of pests, disease and wee ds. NATIONAL BIORESOURCE DEVELOPMENT BOARD Programmes under the Board continued in the area of Biodiversity Characterization and Inventorization, Bioprospecting, improvement and utilization of resources and Capacity Building. A web portal Indian Bioresource Information Network (IBIN) has been launched as a single window access to spatial and non-spatial data. This unique effort is the first of its kind which overlays all spatial information with ground level species information, the address to providing details of the genetic level studies being conducted. IBIN site was also launched by the Hon'ble Minister. Study on Mapping and Quantitative Assessment of Plant Resources continued for Eastern Himalayan Region, Western Ghats and Eastern Ghats. The country's first Butterfly Park at Bannerghatta Biological Park, Bangalore was inaugurated on 25th November 2006 by the these Hon'ble Minister Science & Technology and Earth Sciences, Shri Kapil Sibal. The Park houses more than 2000 butterflies at any given time representing 42 species. The uniqueness lies in the research activities continuing specially for rearing technologies, DNA Barcoding etc. A major initiative during the year has been the launch of a Network programme on "Zingibers" and "Honey bee resources". Under the Zingiber network, programmes have been supported on biochemical and molecular characterization in relation to commercially useful traits, prospecting for selected secondary metabolites and domestication of some underutilized species of ornamental value. Under the Tea Research Network, a major new initiative has been taken on generation and analysis of Expressed Sequence Tag (EST) and also integrated genetic linkage map and marker assisted selection. A network programme has been launched for the Indian Coffee Genome Research under which CDNA libraries and ESTs are being developed. Under
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the Sugarcane Genomics a major achievement has been the development of PCR based diagnostic kits for red rot and smut diseases which is presently undergoing validation. Under the Bamboo Demonstration programme nearly 380-ha has been planted with tissue culture material. In addition R&D programmes have also been supported for developing and standardizing tissue culture protocols for other priority bamboo species. Under the Capacity Building Programmes, during this year 21 Vacation training programmes were organized in different parts of the country benefiting about 600 children on sustainable utilization of bioresources. A Bioresources Nature's trail has been established at Kerala Forest Research Institute (KFRI) sub-centre at Nilambur in an area of 5ha. MEDICINAL AND AROMATIC PLANTS Four gene banks have been further strengthened with respect to collection, conservation and characterization of more number of germplasm accessions. A rapid and highly reproducible protocol for in vitro propagation of Picrorhiza scrophulariflora has been developed. High yielding lines of Nothapodytes nimmoniana with more than 1% camplothecin were identified from Western Ghats. Evaluation of the performance of elite tissue culture plantlets vis-a-vis stem cuttings of vanilla (Vanilla planifolia ) in farmers' field over an area of 20 ha. in Tripura state has been initiated. Cell-cultures of Commiphora wightii were grown in 2 litre stirred tank and 6-litre airlift bioreactor for guggulsterone production. A network project on development of standardized herbal product for bovine mastitis has been initiated. Purified pectic polysaccharide from Aegle marmelos have shown significant in vivo anti-leishmanial activity. Root extract of clitorea ternatea and taraxerol showed significant inhibition of acetyl cholinesterase activity and cognitive enhancing property. RAPD and minisatellite profiles of the sandalwood (Santalum album) populations of the southern regions of India have been generated. Work on cloning and characterization of regulatory elements of genes involved in picrosides biosynthesis in Picrorhiza kurrooa has been initiated. The full length 4, 11-diene synthase gene involved in sesquiterpene biosynthesis regulation in Artemisia annua has been cloned. Four genes of isoquinoline alkaloid biosynthetic pathway in Papaver somniferum have also been cloned. PLANT
BIOTECHNOLOGY
Support continued during the year for research and development projects on forestry, horticulture and plantation crops. The thrust of the activities was on plant tissue culture for mass multiplication of desired planting material, use of molecular markets for characterization of genetic diversity and superior accessions with reference to identified desirable traits, molecular biology tools for production of improved varieties through transgenic and molecular breeding approaches. Projects in the area of horticulture crops focused mainly on production of disease free quality planting material, improvement of crops, with specific reference to extended shelf-life and genetic characterization studies. Potato, onion, brinjal and okra have been identified and programmes have been supported. Under the National Mission on bamboo, demonstration programmes have been supported in different states with a target to complete 1000 ha by next year. Project to study the signal transaction cascade events for both biotic and abiotic stress, hormones, light, etc. were supported. An International Solanaceae Genome initiative was launched. Both structural and functional genomics studies are being supported. Public Private model has been worked out an d projects in the area of Biofuels are being supported to the industry.
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New programmes were initiated in the area of animal nutrition and development of newer animal vaccines. Standards were developed for estimation of mycotoxins in animal feed and distributed to various laboratories for routine analysis. A novel and potent anthrax vaccine which includes mutants of legal factor and edema factor was developed which provides better efficacy in vivo. An attenuated buffalo pox virus vaccine was developed and its field trial is underway. Vaccines for Rabies, Clostridium, Hemorrhagic septicaemia, Foot and Mouth disease. Bovine brucellosis, Bovine tuberculosis etc. are in various stages of development. Phage display technique was used as an alternative to hybridoma to produce mono specific antibodies against recombinant gag antigen of Bovine Immunodeficiency Virus. Diagnostics for paste des petits virus and buffalopox virus were developed and validated successfully. A RT-PCR assay was standardized for specific detection of Border disease virus and a nested PCR was also developed for differentiation of Border disease virus. Bovine viral diarrhoea virus 1 and 2. Multicentric programme on Buffalo Genomics was implemented with focus on identification of genes of economic importance. Structural and functional aspects of 3D scaffold of bovine origin for cardio mycocyte culture are being studied. Effects are also on to develop biomaterial of bovine origin for reconstruction surgery in animals. AQUACULTURE & MARINE BIOTECHNOLOGY Programme on biosurfactants, exploration of marine enzymes, bioactive molecules, reproductive biology and cell cycling, plasmid immune response, neuro-peptide synthesis, bioreactors, vaccine development for fish, bacteriophage therapy in improvement of shrimp larvae, oligonucleotide probe for monitoring vibrio counts in hatcheries, genetic characterization of marine organisms, organ development, cell lines from seabass, shrimp genomics and fish nutrition are being implemented. Biosurfactants were screened using marine Acinetobacter genospecies. A prototype for raceway based shrimp production technology was utilized for nursery rearing of shrimp. Studies on occurrence of human pathogenic viruses in coastal marine waters were carried out. Marine cyanobacteria and chlorella species were studied for over expression of superoxide dismutase enzyme useful for bioremediation and salt tolerance. Bioactive molecules were explored for antibacterial, antiviral and anticancer agents. Role of bacterial plasmid gene was studied in pathogenesis of Epizootic Ulcerative Syndrome and its virulence. Applications with the use of phytase were explored from yeast as an alternate fish feed supplement. Neuro-peptides synthesis was explored from Indian cone snails and conus peptide sequence was worked out. A bioreactor was under development for microbial based treatment system for seafood industrial discharge. Vaccine development for fish for Aeromonas showed promising leads. Bacteriophage therapy in improvement of shrimp larvae was pursued as an alternative to antibiotics in aquaculture. Oligonucleotide probe for monitoring vibrio counts in hatcheries were designed. Organ development and differentation were studied using perivitelline fluid of Indian Horse Shoe Crab. SERIBIOTECNOLOGY Screening of silkworm germplasm for baculovirus resistance in silkworm (Bomby mori) has resulted in identification of three each of bivoltine and multivoltine strains under a network project. Microsatellite analysis carried out in muga silkworm (Antheraea assama) populations indicate genetic variability in hill populations as compared to plain area populations. A Bombyx mori gene that code for antiviral
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protein has been partially characterized. A collaborative project has been initiated on epidemiology, spatial and temporal dynamics of diseases of muga silkworm. Under the Indian initiative on International Consortium on Lepidopteran Genome Project, functional annotation of unique putative genes of muga silkworm has been carried out. A total of 67 mulberry accessions have been conserved in vitro and 238 accessions have been successfully cryopreserved. Field evaluation of mulberry trangenics (with HVA-1 gene) for abiotic stress tolerance has been initiated. A few epicuticular wax related gene fragments having homology with Arabidopsis have been cloned from mulberry. Under a network project, screening of mulberry germplasm for disease response to powder mildew, tukra and nematode has been completed. A new programme on biotechnology in tasar sericulture has been recently initiated in collaboration with Central Silk Board. BASIC RESEARCH IN MODERN BIOLOGY Fifty-Two R&D projects having fundamental questions were supported to provide new vistas to the knowledge required for understanding the intricacies involved in applied research. Research highlights include: promising results for improvement of the oral bio-availability of cyclosporine and reduction of nephrotoxicity associated with the commercial formulation at NIPER, Mohali; Studies carried out at Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences and Technology, Trivandrum, using an in vitro cell culture model to evaluate the response of adult rat cardiac fibroblasts to hypoxia; IISc Bangaluru revealed that UdgB plays a significant role in mycobacteria; Scientists at IMTech., Chandigarh showed that phoP Promoter activity is negatively autoregulated by PhoP through sequence-specific interaction(s) involving 3 direct repeat subunits with a 9-bp consensus binding sequence. Studies carried out at IISc, Bangaluru indicated that both MBP and Pre MBP are more prone to aggregation under crowded conditions with preMBP showing a greater extent of aggregation; Scientists at School of Life Sciences, JNU studied delineation methods to explore the physiological role of SMARCAL 1; Scientist at IISc., Bangalore revealed that the stabilizing contacts in the folded conformations of glycodelins are different; Scientists at CDRI, Lucknow used NMR spectroscopy to solve structure of Mycobacterium tuberculosis, Escherichia coli, and Homo sapiens peptidyl-TRNA hydrolase. A structural model based on E. coli Pth crystal structure, was generated; Crystallographic analysis of PfFbZ of Plasmodium falciparum carried out at IISc., Bangalore revealed new strategies in the design of novel antimalarials; Studies done at JNU, New Delhi suggested that D. discoideum under oxidative stress exhibits PARP mediated casepase independent paraptotic cell death; Oxidative stress induced DNA damage in ICSI being investigated at IIT Kharagpur revealed a positive correlation between ROS and sperm morphology and its DNA damage; Scientists at ICGEB, New Delhi characterized CIPK protein and showed that the protein contains autophosphorylation activity; Scientists at IIT, Kharagpur attempted to make folate-nanoparticle conjugate by grafting folic acid through some biocompatible nonpolymeric coupling agent and Scientists at University of Madras, Chennai are using biophysical techniques, chiefly X-ray crystallography, but also computer modelling, UV spectroscopy and gel mobility, to study the structures of DNA junctions, such as three way and four-way junctions, as well as unusual DNA packing modes that lead to novel microstructures. MEDICAL
BIOTECHNOL O G Y
Concerted efforts have been made towards development of vaccines and diagnostics for the major infectious and non-infectious diseases specially in the areas of
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tuberculosis, avian influenza, Chikungunya, rotavirus, typhoid, malaria and HPV. New DBT-ICMR collaborative efforts has been initiated on HIV/AIDs and Microbicides research. About 20 projects have been implemented under this joint effort. Brain storming sessions were organized on future R&D efforts on avian influenza, Chikungunya and other infectious diseases. Emphasis was also laid on setting up virus research network projects. Typhoid vaccine development technology was transferred to an industry for further cGMP grade production, pre-clinical and clinical studies. A rapid diagnostics test system for filariasis (Signal MF) developed by Anna University, Chennai has been commercially launched. Efforts have been initiated to study molecular evolution and for the development of cost effective and easily upscalable multivalent vaccine for avian influenza (H5N1). Studies on development of a lentivirus based high efficiency gene transfer vector has culminated towards development of indigenous gene transfer vector with novel features of versatile multiple cloning site with expended cloning capabilities. An agreement has been signed between DBT and IAVI to pursue the biomedical research programme towards vaccine development of HIV/AIDS, and collaborative programme Neutralizing Antibody Consortium is going to be initiated soon. Follow up actions have been initiated on the leads available towards development of newer diagnostic systems, better therapeutics, RNAI and newer vaccines. STEM CELL Stem cell biology is a promising and emerging field of the life sciences. The potential of stem cell technology to develop therapy for many untreatable diseases through cellular replacement or tissue engineering is widely recognized. Keeping in view its potential therapeutic applications, both basic and translational research are being promoted by the Department in various institutions, hospitals and the industry. Till date, more than 55 programmes have been identified and supported on various aspects of stem cell research. These include generation of human embryonic stem cell lines, differentiation of pancreatic progenitor cells to insulin secreting cells, isolation of multipotential adult progenitor cells from bone marrow and their clonal expansion, use of banana lectins for stem cell preservation, hematopoitic stem cells (HSC) for haplo-identical HSC transplantation, use of limbal stem cells for ocular surface disorders, isolation and characterization of mesenchymal and liver stem cells, in vitro differentiation of human embryonic stem cells to neural and non-neural lineages, cardiac stem cells, embryonic stem cells etc. Disease specific brainstorming sessions have been organized in the area of cardiac, stroke, limb ischemia and orthopaedic to explore the potential applications of stem cells in these areas. "CMC-DBT Centre for Stem Cell Research" has been established at CMC, Vellore to carry out basic and translational research. Multicentric clinical study has been implemented on acute myocardial infarction and pilot study has been initiated on acute ischaemic stroke to determine safety and efficacy of bone marrow mononuclear cells. Stem cell research facilities including clean rooms to handle stem cells have been created at PGIMER, Chandigarh, SGPGIMS, Lucknow, KEM Mumbai and LVPEI, Hyderabad. A training centre to provide training for embryonic and adult stem cells has been supported jointly at NCBS & JNCSAR, Bangalore. Current Good Manufacturing Practices (cGMP) workshop/training course was also organized. A number of scientists and clinicians were invited to participate in the training course.
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In order to formulate road map in the area of stem cell research, a series of disease specific meetings were organized. Based on the consensus, road map for stem cell research has been categorized into basic research, translational research; human resource development; creation of infrastructure facilities; establishment of Centre of Excellence, institutions, creation of basic research units in medical institutions, good animal models for the diseases, etc. The Department of Biotechnology under Ministry of Science and Technology and Indian Council of Medical Research have jointly formulated draft guidelines for stem cell research. BIOENGINEERING Bioengineering has been identified as a potential area of research by the Department. In order to identify priority areas, create road map, strengthen R&D activities and infrastructure for bioengineering research in the country, the Department organized a number of brainstorming meetings. The key areas identified are: tissue engineering, biomaterials for therapeutics, medical devices, bioinstrumentation and biosensors. A number of workshops were organized in the identified areas. Brainstorming meetings were also organized on "Devices and equipment for maternal, new born and child health care" and "Indigenous production of surfactants for the treatment of premature babies". It was felt tht there is a need to initiate mission mode programmes at institutions having adequate facilities in collaboration with the industry; to strengthen R&D activities for the development of biomaterials especially for drug delivery, cellular/molecular imaging technology; disposable biosensors at low cost for rapid diagnosis of diseases, MEMS biosensor using multi-parameter approach; fabrication of medical devices and bio-instruments, development of implants, etc. As an outcome, several network groups of clinicians and basic researchers have been formed. Multicentric projects have been generated and implemented in the key areas of bioengineering. A separate task force has been constituted to consider projects in this area. HUMAN GENETICS AND GENOME ANALYSIS The Human Genetics & Genome Analysis programe which is under implementation since 1990-91 has established major infrastructure to pursue post genomic research activities in the country and also to keep pace with international efforts to exploit the available human, animal and microbial genomics available in public domain. A total of 21 genetic diagnosis-cum-counselling units established since 1991-92 provide continuous patients services in the country to affected families to reduce common genetic disorder/disease burden. So far more than one lakh families got benefited from these units and saved foreign exchange by providing diagnostic services in the country. In order to develop trained manpower in the area, the Government established four training centres (CMC, Vellore, AIIMS, New Delhi, IIH, Mumbai, and SGPGIMS, Lucknow) to train clinician scientists and technicians working at various medical colleges/institutions. Several projects in the area of human genetics, human genome diversity, functional, structural, microbial, biocomputing, pharmacogenomics, and clinical proteomics were implemented involving a large number of clinicians, molecular geneticists and anthropologists. A strategy plan/roadmap document for the 11th Plan was prepared to initiate major programmes in human genetics and genomic network projects including genetic education in the country.
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Environmental Biotechnology Division, Department of Biotechnology has organized four Brainstorming Sessions on Environmental Metagemomics at New Delhi, Environmental Biotechnology at Nagpur, Biodiversity Conservation at Shillong and Thiruvananthapuram for identification of the thrust areas to the considered for research in the XIth Five Year Plan as well as for generation of focused, multi institutional network projects wherever it is required. Efforts are being made to provide the biotechnological solutions to the industries for abatement of pollutions with value added products from waste and conservation of endangered, threatened plant/animal species. A joint programme with NTPC is planned to formulate programme on carbon sequestration using biotechnological tools. R&D leads in some of the projects like Hydrogen (bio energy) from waste, industrial waste water treatment of highly polluting industries like Petroleum installations/refineries, pulp and paper industries, textile/dye industries and poultry waste are being taken up for joint ventures with user industries for demonstration of the technologies developed at laboratory scale. MISSION MODE PROGRAMME ON BIOFUELS AND BIOENERGY The Department of Biotechnology has launched a mission programme on biofuel from biomass. The thrust is on developing ethanol using lingocellulosie waste as a raw material, identifying recombinant microbial strains for enhanced ethanol recovery, producing high quality raw material for biodiesel production and developing enzymatic transesterfication process for conversion of oil to Biodiesel. Under a micromission on production of quality planting material of Jatropha curcas, for the first time a systematic scientific survey, characterization and collection of superior accessions from across the country has been taken up. More than 100 accessions have been collected and characterized. Nurseries have been established at 12 locations to provide quality planting material. Programme has also been initiated on using Lignocellulosic materials as they are cheap renewable resources, available in large quantities in our country and would sustain the supply of raw material for ethanol production. The economic viability of the process depends on efficient conversion of cellulose and hemicellulose to soluble sugars, which can be achieved by bringing down the cost of existing enzyme production by 2.0 fold. Under the Bioethanol programme, recombinant microorganisms have been identified, which are thermo tolerant and help in enhanced ethanol recovery, enzymatic pretreatment processes for lignocellulosic degradation are also going on. Efforts are continuing for scale-up of these technologies to make them commercially viable. Under micromission programme more than 1000 superior accessions of Jatropha have been identified and 820 samples have been analysed for oil content and free fatty acids. Besides, germplasm characterization has also been taken up and 48 accessions have been analysed so far. BIOTECHNOLOGY FOR SOCIETAL DEVELOPMENT Demonstration and training programmes on proven and field-tested technologies were continued. The projects implemented could help in increasing the skills and income of SC/ST people, rural folk and women through product and process development and employment generation and improvement of their health status. More than 1,16,000 people have been benefited through around 135 ongoing projects
Scientific and Technological Developments on cultivation of aromatic and plant pests and diseases, vermicomposting, biofertilizers, etc. This year 20 new proposals
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medicinal plants, mushroom, biological control of solid waste management, vermiculture and aquaculture, guail farming and human health care were funded.
FOOD AND NUTRITION BIOTECHNOLOGY During the year, the main emphasis was on development and use of nutraceuticals and probiotics for holistic health. The Department after indepth consultation with national and Canadian experts has worked out the logistics to establish a National Agri-Food Biotechnology Institute (NABI), and the Bioprocessing Unit (BPU) as autonomous institutions under the Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Ministry of Science & Technology. Both NABI and BPU are planned to come up along with an Agri-food Park designed to house start-up companies. All these three - NABI, BPU, and the Park - will form the Agri-food Cluster at Mohali, Punjab. Further, taking into account the demand of trained manpower in the area of food and nutritional sciences, the Department took the initiative for seeking letters of intent for creation and/or remodelling of Departments for an integrated Master's and Doctorate programme in Nutritional Science or Food Science & Technology. LARGE CARDAMOM PRODUCT PLAN Field evaluation of the performance of tissue culture-raised large cardamom vis-a-vis open pollinated seedlings continued on farmers' field in Uttarakhand state. About 34.45 ha area has been field planted during 2006 season using open-pollinated seedlings and tissue culture plantlets. Four training programmes for project personnel and farmers on cultivation and management of large cardamom have been organized. MICROBIAL AND INDUSTRIAL BIOTECHNOLOGY The technologies for production and application of various enzymes having industrial importance such as keratinase, pullulanases, cellulase, lactase, protease etc. have been developed. Emphasis has also been given on production of enzymes like hydrolase, L-asparaginase, phytase, chitinase etc. and medicinally important fungal products such as fumagillin, lovosatin and ezetimibe. The new projects relevant to health sector are focused on development of a novel vesicular drug delivery system for psoriasis and biochip based diagnostics for detection of genetic diseases. Projects on hyper production of dyes/pigments from selected lower fungi for application in textile dyeing industry, development of membrane bioreactor for the synthesis of structured lipids, preparation of an amperometric biosensor for determination of triglycerides, development of immunidiagnostic kit for the detection of Karnal bunt in wheat lots, production of wine from mango, and design and optimization of a circulating fluidized bed biomass gasifier have been implemented. Thrust areas have been identified for implementation as net work programmes/mission mode projects for implementation during the 11th Plan. Besides the identified thrust areas, proposals with novel/innovative ideas for product related discovery science and product development were invited from prospective investigators through a Call for Proposals. SMALL BUSINESS INNOVATION RESEARCH INITIATIVE (SBIRI) FOR PUBLIC PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP The department initiated the scheme "Small Business Innovation Research Initiative (SBIRI)" in September, 2005 to bring biotech industry at the forefront of technological
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revolution. The programme aims to build and capture a leadership position for India among the topmost countries of the world in biotech sector. The SBIRI scheme operates in two phases. Under Phase-I highly innovative, early stage, pre-proof-of-concept research is supported, while under Phase-II, the funding is provided for late development and commercialization of innovative research leads. The proposals that address important national needs are given preference. This scheme marks a new phase in public-private-partnerships in a way that combines the strengths of the public sector with creativity and efficiency of the private sector. Effective linkages between the industry and academia are forged for up-scaling and validation of laboratory research to facilitiate commercialization. The SBIRI scheme reaches out to entrepreneurs at the grass-root level and supports pre-proof-of-concept & innovative research leading to commercialization. The scheme has been advertised five times since September, 2005. The department has received good response from the private industry. The proposals received are in the broad areas of health care; agriculture & allied areas; industrial product & process development; and environmental biotechnology. Under the health sector, the major thrust is on the development of therapeutics and drug designing while other areas like diagnostics, development of bioinstrumentation have utility in the medical sector. The R&D in other health related areas and clinical research are also covered by the private sector. In the agri-sector, the focus is on development of transgenics. For close monitoring and review of the projects a two-tier mechanism is envisaged. At the first level, a Project Monitoring Committee (PMC) comprising of 23 experts would review the progress on a periodical basis. The SBIRI initiative marks an important milestone and augurs well for the development of the Biotech Sector in India. The scheme has been well received and appreciated at different fora. BIOSAFETY ISSUES Under Biosafety programme main emphasis has been given to facilitate and implement biosafety procedures and guidelines for ensuring safety from the use of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) and products thereof in research and application to the users as well as to the environment. The institutions and industries involved in recombinant DNA work are carrying out their activities with the approval from Institutional Biosafety Committees (IBSCs), Monitoring-cum-Evaluation Committee (MEC) and Review Committee on Genetic Manipulation (RCGM) and other institutional structures. The Department had reconstituted the Review Committee on Genetic Manipulation (RCGM) to monitor the safety related aspects in respect of ongoing r-DNA projects & activities involving Genetically Engineered Organisms/ Hazardous organisms and controlled field experiments of transgenic crops, in compliance with the Rules-1989 of Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 (EPA-1986). The RCGM was actively involved in clearing and guiding public and private institutions in the development of transgenic crops and rDNA therapeutics. Apart from considering the applications submitted by various organizations involved in the rDNA technology, RCGM has taken several policy decisions such as standardization of protocol for conduct of multi-location field trials, data collection parameters, nomenclature of transgenic crop/gene/event, and new monitoring mechanism for Bt. cotton. In the area of recombinant pharma sector, the Department actively participated in finalization of report for the Task Force on "Recombinant
Scientific and Technological Developments
955
Pharma Sector" constituted by the Ministry of Environment & Forests. The recommendations of the Department on protocols for different kind of r-DNA pharma products based on indigenous development and marketing, import and marketing, purified materials from Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) as products for commercialization and GMOs as products were included in the final report. The Department had actively provided inputs on rationalization of biosafety regulatory procedures on transgenic crops and recombinant DNA therapeutics to several committees set up by Government of India M/s Bitoech Consortium India Ltd. New Delhi has been supported by the Department to organize workshops on National Consultation on Biosafety aspects related to Genetically Modified Organisms' to apprise the members of the IBSCs on biosafety Rules, Regulations & Procedures. For making available transgenic crops and recombinant DNA therapeutics to the society at the earliest and at the same time not compromising on the safety of the products, the rationalized Biosafety guidelines and procedures were followed. A dedicated dynamic & interactive website on Biosafety reflecting National and International Guidelines, National Rules & Procedures with dynamic interaction with Institutional Biosafety Committees (IBSC) has been developed and launched. Another website on "Indian GMO Research Information System (IGMORIS)" aimed to provide information on research work going on in Indian laboratories, has also been launched. A handbook for members of IBSCs was prepared by the Department and distributed to all IBSCs. The Department had played an active role for the environmental release of four Bt. Cotton events expressing cry1Ac (Mon 531 event); cry1Ac & cry2Ab (Mon 15985 event) and GFM cry1A and cry1Ac (event No. 1) genes by different seed companies/industries based on the recommendations of Review Committee on Genetic Manipulation (RCGM) and Monitoring-cum-Evaluation Committee (MEC). About 320 IBSCs have been constituted so far at various public funded institutions, universities, private R&D institutions and industries. Keeping in view the recent Orders of the Hon. Supreme Court, the Department has been making efforts to ensure that the conditions laid out in the Orders are adhered to, while taking any decision on the applications for various research field trials. BIOINFORMATICS The BTIS net programme of this Department has today developed into an extensive nationwide Network covering over 120 institutions, spread geographically all over the country. The Network is engaged in providing support to Biotechnology research, creating human resources in Bioinformatics and carrying out research in different areas of Bioinformatics. Scientists of this network have published more than 1000 bioinformatics research papers in peer reviewed journals in last five years and helped in publishing more than 3000 research papers in biology and biotechnology. Fiftytwo Bioinformatics facilities (BIF) were established towards introducing innovation in Biology Teaching through Bioinformatics (BTBI). These facilities will be a centralized resource of individual institutions to support bioinformatics tools and resources for the enhancement of learning capabilities in Biology and Biotechnology. Initiated focused multi-institutional consortium projects in Bioinformatics to address specific problems through bioinformatics approach. Bioinformatics and experimental biology collaborative projects are being considered so as to improve the contribution of bioinformatics in wet lab biotechnology research. The Centres of Excellence in Bioinformatics such as JNU and University of Pune have upgraded their Diploma courses in bioinformatics to M. Tech in Computational and Systems
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India 2010
Biology and M.Sc. in Bioinformatics, respectively. A national level Bioinformatics Certification (BINC) Examination was initiated this year to recognize the quality of human resources available in the country in Bioinformatics. An unprecedented success made in organising the 5th International Conference on Bioinformatics (InCoB2006) in India. Over 1,000 registrants for this conference with 400 posters, 20 papers were published in BMC Bioinformatics with Impact Factor 4.96 and others in J BioScience. The 2nd ASIAN-INDIA workshop on Bioinformatics was also conducted in this year for the benefit of 30 ASEAN country scientists including scientists from India. BIOTECHNOLOGY PARKS AND INCUBATORS The Biotech Parks and Bitoech Incubation Centres provide an excellent template for the promotion of Biotech start -up companies and the promotion of Public Private Partnership. The Biotechnology Park at Lucknow set up on 8 acres land provided by the Department of Science and Technology, Government of Uttar Pradesh is now operational and is emerging as a good model. A Bio-Business Block set up at the Biotech Park world be housing Business Support facilities, Bioinformatics Unit, Conference/Training Room and Cafeteria. The Tissue Culture Unit has the capacity to produce 10000 to 100000 plants/batch. The Biofertilizer unit has facilities for production of bacterial fertilizers. The central support facility will have the facilities for analysis and quality testing of the products. An ancillary service block has been built for air conditioning system, high and low-tension panel, diesel set generator and a boiler room. The extraction block will have system for extraction of phytochemical/lead molecules from high value medicinal plants. The diagnostic facility established by the Industry will manufacture and market the diagnostics kits. Distillation and vermicomposting units have been completed. One TPD oil expeller has been installed for extraction of oil from Jatropha seeds at the site of distillation unit. The Biotech Park and incubator facility at Shapoorji Pallonji Bitoech Park, Genome Valley, Hyderabad has been mainly designed for development and scaleup of bio-processes and technologies. Current Good Manufacturing Practices (cGMP) compliance for Pilot plant facilities, required for quality manufacturing and for minimizing or eliminating contamination will be available. A Pre-Biotechnology Incubator (BTIC) Process Generator (PBPG), component of the BTIC was set up at IICT, Hyderabad to act as an intermediate and front-end facility to provide lab and bench scale process technologies for biotech processes. A Biotechnology Incubation Centre (BTIC) in Kerala is being established at Kalamassery, Ernakulum Dist., Kochi to promote small entrepreneurs and units for knowledge of traditional medicine, herbs and plant varieties, spices etc. This would help in modernizing production technologies, quality assurance or raw materials and products. The incubator facility would accelerate commercialization of new technologies, support new ventures in biotechnology and provide appropriate linkages to entrepreneurs. Initiatives are underway in Himachal Pradesh to set up a Biotech Park. The Biotech Park initiative at Bangalore, Karnataka is being pursued for the promotion of Public Private Partnership. The Biotech Park at Karnataka will be structured into three components viz. Institutional & Research & Development Block, Biotech Incubation Centre and Common Instrumentation Facility; and Biotechnology Industries Cluster comprising independent private industry units. The Karnataka Biotechnology and Information Technology Services (KBITS) is the implementing agency and they have identified a few Public Private Partners for the Biotech Park.
Scientific and Technological Developments INTERNATIONAL
957
COLLABORATION
International collaborations in biotechnology are an important vehicle for expanding the knowledge base and developing of expertise which would leverage the growth of research and development in the country. There is a renewed interest in collaboration with India amongst the developed countries. Good progress has been made following the MoU which were signed with Denmark and Finland and joint projects have been funded. Joint projects have also been funded with The Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council BBSRC, UK. In new collaborations the Department signed two memoranda with Agriculture and Agri-Food, Canada and the National Research Centre Canada respectively. The ongoing bilateral agreements and collaborations have also been significant, with joint projects being funded with Germany, Norway and USA. Bilateral interactions have been initiated with Sweden, Ukraine and EU. The multialteral collaboration including co-operation amongst SAARC countries were pursued. AUTONOMOUS INSTITUTIONS AND PUBLIC SECTOR UNDERTAKINGS National Institute of Immunology, New Delhi The Institute continues to make inroads into basic research related to the immune system with a commitment that the knowledge gained would contribute to newer and more effective ways of addressing the health needs of the country. During the year more than 50 peer reviewed manuscripts and 5 reviews have been published. There is about 25% increase in the number of original peer-reviewed publications over the last year especially in high impact journals that include: Nature Immunology, Immunity, EMBO Journal, Journal of Clinical Cancer, Cell Death and Differentiation, Journal of Biological Chemistry and European Journal of Immunology etc. The Institute continued with the concept of 'end-to-end' research in the biosciences and have signed MoU with Astra Zeneca India. Bangalore, and Cadila Pharmaceuticals, Ahmedabad on a technology related to novel molecules that inhibit Mycobacterial Fad D proteins and can have the potential as anti-mycobacterial drugs. NATIONAL CENTRE FOR CELL SCIENCE, PUNE The Centre has emphasis on R&D activities in the areas of cell biology including stem cell biology, signal transduction, cancer biology, diabetes, infection and immunity and chromatin architecture and gene regulation. The national cell repository supplied 1154 cell lines to 128 scientific institutions in India. Training and teaching programmes were also conducted. In the cell biology research, for the first time a nuclear pore protein has been found to be associated with interphase microtubules. A protein molecule from perivitelline fluid of India horse shoe crab has shown cardiac promoting activity. In stem cell research, arachidonic acid omega 6) and its metabolites found to reduce appotosis in CD34+cells. The differentiation of mouse embryonic stem cells into dopaminergic neurons has been achieved. In diabetes research, chick pancreatic B islets have been found to be an excellent screening model for physiological and pharmacological studies. In cancer biology area, a distinctive nuclearmitochondrial mutational profile and varying stem cell dynamics have been identified which seem to be associated with tumorigenesis. As a potential therapeutic anticholesterol agent, methgl-B-cycolodexterin in combination with other cytotoxic drugs towards reduction of drug dosage is being evaluated. Studies on signal transduction revealed that cox-2 is a potential agent for prostate tumor suppression. In infection and immunity studies, selenophosphate synthetase gene has been cloned and
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characterized. Successfully isolated and characterized dendritic cell types 1&2 Genome sequencing of poxviruses and herpesvirus showed that members of these families encode structural homologs of human regulators of the complement activation to mask themselves against the hosts complement attack. Studies on HIV biology indicate that Hsp40 as a crucial player in Nef mediated enhancement of HIV gene expression and replication. Leads from chromatin architecture and gene regulation studies on HIV have advanced the knowledge on mechanism of global gene regulation. During the reporting period, 46 scientific papers were published in high impact factor journals and 7 patent applications have been filed. CENTRE FOR HYDERABAD
DNA
FINGERPRINTING
AND
DIAGNOSTICS
(CDFD),
The Centre for DNA Fingerprinting and Diagnostics (CDFD) is an autonomous organization funded by the Department of biotechnology, Ministry of Science and Technology, Government of India. CDFD has been providing services for DNA fingerprinting, diagnostics, new born screening and bioinformatics based modern high-technology DNA-based methods, of direct benefit to the public, as well as in performing fundamental research of international standards in frontier areas of biological science. CDFD is providing DNA fingerprinting services to various Government & Law Enforcement Agencies and signed MoUs with State/Central Frorensic Science laboratories to popularize this technology for the benefit of the society. There are presently fifteen groups working on diverse research areas related to genetics, molecular and cell biology, cancer biology, pathogen biology, HIV biology, Immunology, etc. CDFD also has a Sun Microsystem's Centre of Excellence in Medical Bioinformatics. Based on novel technology developed by the Centre, a new joint activity has been initiated this year at the CDFD as "APEDA-CDFD Centre for Basmati DNA Analysis" with funding through APEDA (Agricultural and Processed Food products Export Development Authority). The Centre will test and certify export consignments of basmati rice for their purity, and is expected to contribute in increasing the value and quality of such exports from the country. The major thrust areas of research in the Centre continue to be studies on infectious disease pathogens including M. tuberculosis, H. pylori, HIV, and HPV, silkmoth genetics and genomics, computational biology and bioinformatics; and fundamental studies on transcription and signal transduction. Transgenic silkworms have been created that are resistant to baculovirus, causative agent for destroying the worms, by using RNAI technology. Important results in K-Ras signaling pathways in cancer epithelial cells have been obtained and a novel and convenient tool for Human Papilloma Virus detection has also been developed. NATIONAL BRAIN RESEARCH CENTRE (NBRC), MANESAR, HARYANA The National Brain Research Centre was established to create a Centre of Excellence in Brain Research with state of art facility in the country to consolidate, network and undertake basic research of high caliber in neuroscience and also to generate highly trained human resources. The mandate of the centre is also to have established linkages with national and international organizations involved in neuroscience research. So far the centre through its networking centres established 47 neuroscience groups/institutions in the country to promote multi-disciplinary research and providing the facilities of a digital library. The Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (IMRI) facility of the centre was made operational on 29th September, 2006.
Scientific and Technological Developments
959
As a deemed university, NBRC is continuing its M.Sc. Ph.D. programmes for research fellows. NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR PLANT GENOME RESEARCH (NCPGR), NEW DELHI The National Institute for Plant Genome Research (NIPGR), New Delhi (previously a National Centre) is engaged in plant genomic research with focus on structural genomics and functional with application genomics. It is working on Genomics of certain crops and manipulation of genes/genomes to breed improved varieties of food and industrial crops such as Chickpea, Catharanthus, Potato, Tomato, Lathyrus, Rice, Sweet Potato and Cassava. Besides working on nutritional aspects, improvement in self-life of vegetables and fruits, development of resistance/tolerance against diseases and abiotic stresses, the Centre is actively engaged on programmes related to enhanced production of medicinal alkaloids from Catharanthus plant. The Institute is also making a significant contribution towards scientific manpower development in advanced areas of plant molecular biology, genomics and genetic transformation. INSTITUTE IMPHAL
OF
BIORESOURCES
AND
SUSTAINABLE
DEVELOPMENT,
The research programmes of the institute have continued towards bioresource development and their sustainable use through biotechnological interventions for the socio-economic growth of the North-East region. A digitized database of bioresources of North-East region has been further updated with an addition of 1,619 records from primary and secondary sources amounting to a total of 4085 records. Work on the database on micro-organisms with special reference to cyanobacteria available in Manipur has been initiated. A Distributed Information Sub-Centre (SubDIC) under the Bioinformatics Network has been set up at the institute. In vitro multiplication and hardening of tissue culture plantlets of Kaemferia galanga is in progress. Hybridization of two rare vandaceous orchids- Aerides vandarium and Vanda coerulea achieved. Genetic differentiation of tree bean (Parkia timoriana) cultivars grown in Manipur were analyzed. About 10 lakhs of spawn and 20,000 fingerlings of Osteobrama belangeri (Pengba)-an endemic high value fish wer supplied to the farmers. Three training programmes on the use of tools and techniques for bioresource development and utilization were organized. Culturable seeds of Osteobrama belangeri (Pengba) were produced in a Training-cum-demonstration programme of the institute and about 10 lakh spawns and 20,000 fingerlings were distributed free of cost to selected fish farmers and entrepreneurs of Manipur as starting material for popularization of this fish in the region. INSTITUTE OF LIFE SCIENCES, BHUBANESHWAR A septuplet PCR assay was developed for rapid identification of species-specific virulent and e-positive strains of V. cholera and one hundred strains of V. cholerae O1 wer tested to document the validity of assay. A multiplex PCR assay to detect a fluviatilis sibling species developed during the course of the year will be used to understand feeding habits (Anthropophilic index) and sporozoite carrying capacity of these vectors. Studies on bio-prospecting were continued with a view to tapping the vast potential of thermopiles. A diverse group of bacteria belonging to the genera Thiomonas, Comamonas and Chromobacterium were isolated from previously unexplored hot springs. A chemolithoheterotrophic, thiosulfate oxidizing, gram negativebacterium (designated strain S10) was isolated and identified. 16S DNA
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India 2010
sequence data and the total fatty acid analysis suggested it to be a new species of genus Thimonas for which the name Thiomonas bhubaneswarensis has been proposed. During the year, three workshops on training was organized on DNA technologies, functional genomics and proteomics research and studies of abiotic stress responses and stress inducible genes. Ten publications have been brought out in November 2006 with an average impact factor of 3.02. Six additional non technical posts were also sanctioned during the year. The construction activities for the new research building, animal house and research scholar's hostel have been initiated and the contract awarded to M/s RITES Ltd. PUBLIC
SECTOR
UNDERTAKINGS
There are two public sector undertaking s i.e. Bharat Immunologicals & Biologicals Corporation Limited, (BIBCOL) and Indian Vaccines Corporation Limited (IVCOL). The BIBCOL located at Bulandshahar manufactures Oral Polio Vaccine being used in the National Immunization Programme. The IVCOL was established as a joint venture company. Efforts are being made to revive it with new products mix and financial pattern. INTERNATIONAL CENTRE FOR GENETIC BIOTECHNOLGOY (ICGEB), NEW DELHI
ENGINEERING
AND
ICGEB continued its research efforts in identified areas of human health, agriculture and product development. A high through-put microtiter assay based on the heme detoxification pathway of Plasmodium has been developed for screening chemical combinatorial libraries and crude extracts of marine organisms. Several bioactive proteins from the secretome of insect pathogenic bacterium, Xanthomonas nematophila have been identified. A HCV test based on designer diagnostic HCV multi-epitope protein developed by the centre has been marketed in India. Three workshops were organized in the field of malaria, virology and plant transformation. An International symposium on tuberculosis research was also organized. Two patents have been filed.
Transport
961
26 Transport A well-knit and co-ordinated system of transport plays an important role in the sustained economic growth of a country. The present transport system of the country comprises several modes of transport including rail, road, coastal shipping, air transport, etc. Transport has recorded a substantial growth over the years both in spread of network and in output of the system. The Ministry of Shipping, Ministry of Road Transport and Highways is responsible for the formation and implementation of policies and programmes for the development of various modes of transport save the railways and the civil aviation.
RAILWAYS The Railways in India provide the principal mode of transportation for freight and passengers. It brings together people from the farthest corners of the country and makes possible the conduct of business, sightseeing, pilgrimage and education. The Indian Railways have been a great integrating force during the last more than 155 years. It has bound the economic life of the country and helped in accelerating the development of industry and agriculture. From a very modest beginning in 1853, when the first train steamed off from Mumbai to Thane, a distance of 34 kilometres Indian Railways have grown into a vast network of 7,025 stations spread over a route length of 63,273 kilometres with a fleet of 8,330 locomotives, 47,375 passenger service vehicles, 6,180 other coaching vehicles and 2,04,034 wagons as on 31st March, 2008. The growth of Indian Railways in the 155 years of its existence is thus phenomenal. It has played a vital role in the economic, industrial and social development of the country. The network runs multigauge operations extending over 63,273 route kilometres. The gauge-wise route and track lengths of the system as on 31st March, 2008 are as under: Gauge
Route Km
Broad
Gauge
(1.676
mm)
Metre
Gauge
(1.000
mm)
Narrow
Track
Km
Total Track Km
51,082
72,538
96,851
9,442
9,869
11,676
2,749
2,751
3,072
63,273
85,158
1,11,599
Gauge
(762 mm and 610mm) Total:
Running
About 28 per cent of the route kilometre, 41 per cent of running track kilometre and 42 per cent of total track kilometre is electrified. The network is divided into 16 Zones. Divisions are the basic operating units. The 16 zones and their respective headquarters are given below:
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Zonal
Railways
Headquarters
Central
Mumbai
Eastern
Kolkata
Northern
New
North-Eastern
Gorakhpur
North-East
Maligaon
Frontier
CST
Delhi
(Guwahati)
Southern
Chennai
South
Secunderabad
Central
South-Eastern
Kolkata
Western
Church
East Central Railway
Gate,
Hajipur
East Coast Railway
Bhubaneshwar
North Central Railway
Allahabad
North-Western
Jaipur
South-East
Railway
Central
South-Western
Railway
Railway
West Central Railway
Mumbai
Bilaspur Hubli Jabalpur
Co-operation between public and Railway administration is secured through various committees including Zonal Railway Users’ Consultative Committees and Divisional Railway Users’ Consultative Committees. The rolling stock fleet of Indian Railways in services as on 31st March 2008 comprised 44 Steam, 4,843 diesel and 3,443 electric locomotives. Currently, the Railways are in the process of inducting new designs of fuel-efficient locomotives of higher horse power, high-speed coaches and modern bogies for freight traffic. Modern signalling like panel inter-locking, route relay inter-locking, centralized traffic control, automatic signalling and multiaspect colour light signalling are being progressively introduced. The Indian Railways have made impressive progress regarding indigenous production of rolling stock and variety of other equipment over the years and is now self-sufficient in most of the items. The main objectives of railways planning have been to develop the transport infrastructure to carry the projected quantum of traffic and meet the developmental needs of the economy. Since the inception of the planned era in 1950-51, Indian Railways have implemented nine five-year plans, apart from annual plans in some years. During the Plans, emphasis was laid on a comprehensive programme of system modernization. With capacity being stretched to the full, investment of cost-effective technological changes become inescapable in order to meet the ever-increasing demand for rail transport. Along with the major thrust directed towards rehabilitation of assets, technological changes and upgradation of standards were initiated in important areas of tracks, locomotives, passenger coaches, wagon bogie designs, signaling and telecommunication. PUBLIC UNDERTAKINGS There are eleven public undertakings under the administrative control of the Ministry of Railways, viz. (i) Rail India Technical & Economic Services Limited (RITES);
Transport
963
(ii) Indian Railway Construction (IRCON) International Limited; (iii) Indian Railway Finance Corporation Limited (IRFC); (iv) Container Corporation of India Limited (CONCOR); (v) Konkan Railway Corporation Limited (KRCL). (vi) Indian Railway Catering & Tourism Corporation Ltd. (IRCTC); (vii) Railtel Corporation of India Ltd. (Rail Tel); (viii) Mumbai Rail Vikas Nigam Ltd. (MRVNL); (ix) Rail Vikas Nigam Ltd. (RVNL); and (x) Dedicated Freight Corridor Corporation of India Limited (DFCCIL) & Bharat Wagon and Engineering Co. Ltd. (BWFL). The Centre for Railway Information System (CRIS) was set up as a registered society to design and implement various railway computerization projects. ROLLING STOCK Over the years, Indian Railways has not only achieved self-sufficiency in production of rolling stock in the country but also supplied rolling stock to other countries and non-railway customers. In order to keep pace with the technology change, Indian Railways has entered into an agreement with M/s. General Motors, USA for transfer of technology for manufacture of 4000 HP, state-of-the-art AC-DC microprocessor controlled, fuel efficient locomotives at Diesel Locomotives Works (DLW), Varanasi and with M/s. ABB for manufacture of 6000 HP, 3 phase electric locomotives at Chittaranjan Locomotive Works (CLW), Chittaranjan. In 2008-2009, DLW achieved an all time high outrun of 257 locomotives including export of one locomotives to Mozambique, 17 locomotives to Non-Railway customers. CLW manufactured 220 electric locomotives during the year. Indian Railways has started manufacturing of LHB designed high-speed light weight coaches at Rail Coach Factory (RCF), Kapurthala. During 2007-2008, RCF manufactured 1,480 coaches including 46 coaches for Non-Railway customers/ exports. Integral Coach Factory, (ICF), Perumbur, Chennai manufactured 1,291 coaches during 2007-2008 including 40 coaches for Non-Railway customers/exports. Rail Wheel Factory (RWF), Bangalore manufactured 14,7007 wheels, 52,870 axles and 40,509 wheel sets during 2007-2008. RESEARCH & DEVELOPMENT The Research, Design and Standards Organization (RDSO) at Lucknow is the R&D wing of Indian Railways. It functions as a consultant to the Indian Railways in technical matters. It also provides consultancy to other organizations connected with railway manufacture and design. RAILWAY FINANCE Since 1924-25, railway finances remain separated from general revenues. They have their own funds and accounts and the Railway Budget is presented separately to Parliament. However, the Railways contribute to the general revenue a dividend on the capital invested. Quantum of contribution is reviewed periodically by a Parliamentary Convention Committee. PASSENGER TRAFFIC Passengers originating had risen from 1,284 million in 1950-51 to 6,524 million in 2007-2008 and passenger kilometre from 66.52 billion in 1950-51 to 770 billion in 2007-2008. Despite constraint of resources, the Railways have been able to cope with increasing demand of passenger traffic. Railways are the premier mode of passenger transport both for long distance and suburban traffic.
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India 2010
FREIGHT TRAFFIC Rapid progress in industrial and agricultural sectors has generated a higher level of demand for rail transport, particularly in core sectors like coal, iron and steel, ores, petroleum products and essential commodities such as food grains, fertilizers, cement, sugar, salt, edible oils etc. Revenue freight traffic increased from 73.2 million tonnes in 1950-51 to 793.89 million tonnes in 2007-08. Transport effort measured in terms of net tonne kilometres (NTkm) increased from 38 billion in 1950-51 to 581 billion in 2007-2008. Some of the measures taken for improvement are: (i) line capacity augmentation on certain critical sectors and modernization of signalling system; (ii) measures such as unit train operation for bulk commodities like coal; (iii) increase in roller-bearing equipped wagons; (iv) increase in trailing loads to 4,500 tonnes; (v) operation 'UNI-GAUGE’ on Indian Railways; (vi) strengthening the track structure by providing heavier and stronger rails and concrete sleepers; and (vii) production of prototype electric locomotive of 5000 HP for freight operation by Chittaranjan Locomotive Works.
ROADS India has one of the largest road networks in the world, aggregating to about 33 lakh kilometres at present. The country’s road network consists of National Highways, State Highways, major / other district roads and village/rural roads. Though the National Highways, which is the responsibility of the Central Government, has about 70,548 km length and comprises only 2 per cent of the total length of roads, carries over 40 per cent of the total traffic across the length and breadth of the country. National State
Highways/Expressways
Highways
Major and Other District Roads Rural
Roads
70,548
km
128000
km
470000
km
2650000
km
The National Highways have further been classified depending upon the carriageway width of the Highway. Generally, a lane has a width of 3.75 m in case of single lane and 3.5 m per lane in case of multilane National Highways. The break-up of National Highways in terms of width is as under: Single Lane Double/Intermediate
30% Lane
Four Lane/Six lane/Eight Lane
53% 17%
Freight movement by Road Transport has been increased from 6 BTK (Billion Tonne km) in 1951 to 658.9 BTK in 2005-06 and passenger movement by road has risen from 23 BPK (Billion Passenger km) to 4251.7 BPK during the same period. The vehicle population has grown from 0.3 million in 1951 to 89.6 million in year 200506, marking about 300-fold increase. During the same period, the road network has expanded from 0.4 million km to 3.3 million km, i.e. an eight fold increase. The Eleventh Plan budgetary support for Central sector roads is Rs. 72,530 crore at 2006-07 prices (Rs 82,032.97 crore at current price). In addition, the sector is expected to generate IEBR amounting to Rs. 34,829 crore and private sector investment of Rs. 86,792 crore during this period. The amount provided during the 11th Plan at
Transport
965
the BE stage is in the year 2007-08 was Rs. 14,530 crore including Rs. 2090 crore IEBR, in year 2008-09 Rs . 17,370 crore including Rs. 4100 crore in IEBR and for the year 2009-10 is Rs. 19,698 crore including Rs 5,000 crore IEBR. The expenditure for the period 2007-08 and in 2008-09 was Rs. 14,429.92 crore and Rs 16,821.23 crore respectively. NATIONAL HIGHWAYS The Central Government is responsible for development and maintenance of the National Highways system. The total length of the network, as of today, is 70,548 km. The Ministry is carrying out development and maintenance work of National Highways through three agencies, viz. National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), State Public Works Departments (PWDs) and Border Road Organisation (BRO). In order to give boost to the economic development of the country, the Government has embarked upon a massive National Highways Development Project (NHDP) in the country. The NHDP is the largest highway project ever undertaken in the country. The NHDP is being implemented by National Highways Authority of India (NHAI). NHDP Phase I& II: The Phase I & Phase II of NHDP comprises (i) Golden Quadrilateral (GQ), i.e. National Highways connecting four metropolitan cities -- Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai & Kolkata having an aggregate length of 5,846 km., (ii) North-South & EastWest Corridor (NS-EW) which comprises 4-laning of 7,142 km of National Highways connecting North-South corridor from Srinagar to Kanyakumari with Cochin-Salem spur and East-West corridor from Silchar to Porbandar, (iii) 380 Km length of National Highways are proposed to be upgraded to 4-lane standards for providing connectivity to 12 major ports of the country to NHDP, and (iv) Upgradation of 962 km of other important National Highways. The total estimated cost of the NHDP Phase I & II having a total length of 14,145 km is about Rs.80,626 crore. NHDP Phase-III: NHDP Phase-III involves 4/6 laning of 12,109 km of NH having high-density corridor connecting State capitals, important tourist places, economically important areas etc. on PPP basis at an estimated cost of Rs. 80,626 crore. NHDP Phase-IV: Phase IV of NHDP comprising 2-laning with paved shoulders of 20,000 kms of National Highway. The Government has approved the upgradation/ strengthening of 5,000 KM of single/intermediate/two lane National Highways to two lane with paved shoulders under NHDP Phase-IV A on BOT (Toll) and BOT (Annuity) basis at an estimated cost of Rs. 6950.00 crore. NHDP Phase-V: Phase V of NHDP comprising six laning of 6,500 km of existing 4 lane highways on Design Build Finance & Operate (DBFO) basis at estimated cost of Rs. 41,210 crore. This includes 5,700 km of GQ and 1800 kms at other selected stretches. NHDP Phase-VI: Phase VI envisages development of 1,000 km fully access controlled expressways under Public Private Partnership (PPP) model following Design-BuildFinance-Operate (DBFO) approach at an estimated cost of Rs. 16,680 crore. NHDP Phase-VII: Phase VII envisages construction of stand alone Ring Roads, Bypasses, Grade Separators, Flyovers, elevated roads, tunnels, road over bridges, underpasses, service road etc on BOT (Toll) mode at an estimated cost of Rs. 16,680 Crores.
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National Highways Development Projects - Achievements The overall progress of NHDP as on June 30, 2009 is as under : NHDP
Total
Completed
Component
Length (km)
Four Lane (km)
GQ
5846
5729
117
15
-
7142
3762
2648
125
732
380
235
139
7
6
NS-EW Port Other
connectivity
Under implementation Length (km)
No. of contracts
Balance for award of civil works
NHs
962
821
121
13
20
NHDP
窶的II
12109
890
2037
34
9181
NHDP
窶天
6500
130
904
8
5466
700
-
19
1
681
33,639
11,567
5,985
203
16,086
NHDP-VII Total
Special Accelerated Road Development Programme for North-East Region (SARDPNE) This programme has been framed with the objective to upgrade NHs connecting State Capitals to 2/4 lane, to provide connectivity of 58 District Headquarter towns of NER by at least 2 lane road, improving road connectivity to remote places and places of strategic importance in NE region. The programme envisages improvement of about 9,760 km (5,104 km of NHs and about 4,656 km of State roads and roads of Strategic Importance). The programme has been divided into 3 parts, Phase 'A' covering 2616 km length of road, Phase 'B' covering 4825 km and Arunachal Pradesh Package of Roads and Highways covering 2319 kms. Phase 'A' of SARDP-NE and Arunachal Pradesh Package of Roads and Highways has been approved by the Cabinet for implementation and Phase 'B' has been approved for DPR preparation only. This will also ensure the connectivity of all District Headquarters, which are still not connected to the NHs in the eighth NE States. Up till June 30th 2009, estimates amounting to Rs 3406 crore have been approved for improvement of 1058 km length of roads under SARDP-NE. OUt of 1058 km length approved by the Ministry, 450 km has been completed at an expenditure of Rs. 1,796 crore. SARDP-NE includes the projects on the PPP mode and the projects with 1315 km length has been identified on the BOT (Annuity) mode, under Phase 'A' and Arunachal Pradesh Package of Roads and Highways at a tentative cost of about Rs 11,550 crore. Against 1315 km length identified under BOT (annuity), feasibility report for 2 road projects aggregating to 718 km length has been finalized and RFP issued to the prequalified bidders. The note for CCI for these projects is being submitted to Cabinet Secretariat. Public-Private Partnership Traditionally, the road projects were financed only out of the budgetary grants and were controlled/supervised by the Government. The road sector has attracted very limited private sector participation in the past. While the traffic has been constantly increasing at a rapid pace, the traditional system of financing road projects through budgetary allocation has proved to be inadequate. It was in this context that the necessity for exploring the innovative means of financing the highly capital intensive road projects was felt.
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The beginning of a significant private sector participation in road projects was made with the launching of India’s largest road project - National Highways Development Project (NHDP). To encourage private sector participation, several initiatives have been taken by the government; which include-
v v
Declaration of the road sector as an industry.
v
100% tax exemption in any consecutive 10 years out of the first 20 years of a project.
v
Provision of encumbrance free site for work, i.e. the Government shall meet all expenses relating to land and other pre-construction activities.
v v v v
Foreign Direct Investment up to 100% in road sector.
Provision of capital subsidy up to 40% of the project cost to make projects commercially viable.
Easier external commercial borrowing norms. Higher concession period, (up to 30 years). Right to collect and retain toll.
Projects undertaken by the Ministry under Public/Private Partnership BOT (Toll) Scheme l
In a BOT project, the concessionaire (private sector) is required to meet the upfront cost and the expenditure on annual maintenance. The concessionaire recovers the entire upfront cost along with the interest and a return on investment out of the future toll collection.
l
BOT (Toll) Scheme : As on April 2009 ; 94 projects have been taken up valued about Rs. 38168.04 crore Build Operate and Transfer (BOT) basis (Toll based projects). Out of this, 43 projects have been completed and 51 projects are under progress.
BOT (Annuity ) Scheme l
In an Annuity project, the concessionaire (private sector) is required to meet the entire upfront cost (no grant is paid by the client) and the expenditure on annual maintenance. The concessionaire recovers the entire investment and a predetermined cost of return, out of the annuities payable by the client. The tolling is done by the client.
l
BOT (Annuity ) Scheme: As on April 2009 ; 25 projects valued about Rs. 9411.88 crore with a length of about 1376 km have been taken on Annuity basis and out of this 9 projects have been completed.
Central Road Fund The Central Government has created a dedicated fund, called Central Road Fund from collection of cess from petrol & diesel. Presently, Rs. 2/- per litre is collected as cess on petrol and High Speed Diesel (HSD) Oil. The fund is distributed for development and maintenance of National Highways, State Roads, Rural Roads and for provision of road overbridges/under bridges and other safety features at unmanned Railway Crossings as provided in Central Road Fund Act, 2000. Present Loss of Rs. 2.00 is bring distributes in the following manner Rs. 1.50 is being allocated in the following manner.
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(I)
50% of the cess on high speed diesel (HSD) oil for development of rural roads.
(II)
50% of cess on HSD and the entire cess collected on petrol are allocated thereafter as follows:
(III)
a)
An amount equal to 57.5% of such sum for the development and maintenance of National Highways;
b)
An amount equal to 12.5% for construction of road under or over bridges and safety works at unmanned railway crossing; and
c)
An amount equal to 30% on development and maintenance of State Roads. Out of this amount, 10% shall be kept as reserved by the Central Govt. for allocation to States for implementation of State Road Schemes of InterState Connectivity and Economic Importance to be approved by the Central Government.
Balance cess of Rs. 0.5 per litre is entirely allocated for development and maintenance of National Highways.
An allocation of Rs.16,680 Crore has been made under the CRF for 2009-10 with the following break-up: 1
National
Highways
Rs. 8578.45 Cr.
2
Rural
3
Railways
4
Grant to State Governments and UTs for State roads
5
Grant to States & UTs for Roads of Inter-State
Roads
Connectivity
Rs. 4843.13 Cr. Rs. 958.36 Cr
and
Economic
Rs. 2070.06 Cr. Rs. 230.00 Cr.
Importance
TOTAL
Rs. 16,680 Cr.
State Sector Roads Since the State Highways and Major District and Rural Roads are under the responsibility of respective State Governments, these are developed & maintained by various agencies in State and Union Territories. However, the funds are also being provided from the Central Road Fund (CRF) by the Union Government for the development of State Roads under the following schemes: Improvement of State Roads from the CRF The funds from the CRF are provided for improvement of State Roads other than rural roads. During the year 2008-09, 1313 proposals amounting to Rs.5126 crore have been sanctioned for improvement of State Roads under CRF. An amount of Rs. 2070.06 crore has been allocated for the year 2009-10 for improvement of State Roads under CRF. Economic Importance & Inter State Connectivity Scheme To promote inter-state facilities and also to assist the State Governments in their economic development through construction of road bridges of Inter-state and Economic Importance, Central Government provides 100% grant for inter-state connectivity projects and 50% grant for projects of economic importance. This fund is also provided from the CRF.
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During the year 2008-09, 20 proposals amounting to Rs.162.37 crore with central share of Rs. 81.19 crore under EI scheme and 27 proposals amounting to Rs. 303.20 crore under ISC scheme have been accorded in-principle approval by the Ministry. An amount of Rs. 230.00 crore (Rs. 213.97 crore for the States and Rs 16.03 crore for UTs) is earmarked under this scheme for the year 2009-10. Research and Development in Road Development The main thrust of research and development (R&D) in the roads sector is to build a sustainable road infrastructure comparable to the best roads in the world. The various components of this strategy are improvement in design, modernization of construction techniques, introduction of improved material conforming to latest trends, evolving better and appropriate specifications, encouraging development and use of new technologies etc. The dissemination of these matters is done through the publication of new guidelines, code of practices, instructions/circulars, compilation of state-ofthe-art reports and seminars/presentations etc. The research schemes sponsored by the Department are generally ‘applied’ in nature, which, once completed, would enable them to be adopted by user agencies/departments in their work in the field. The areas covered are roads, road transport, bridges, traffic and transportation techniques etc. The Department takes the help of various research institutions, academic institutions and universities to implement the schemes. An outlay of Rs 850.00 lakhs has been provided for R&D in 2008-09. Some of the ongoing major schemes are as follows: Roads l
R&D Studies on performance evaluation of rigid pavements on high density traffic corridors using instrumentation supported by laboratory tests.
l
Investigation on field performance of bituminous mixes with modified binders;
l
Testing of Pavement using seismic waves.
l
Preparation of manual on the construction of the composite pavement.
l
Guidelines for Soil Nailing Technique on Highway Engineering.
Bridges l
Creation of Complete range of independent testing facilities for Expansion joints at CRRI.
l
Development of an expert system for distress diagnostic of concrete bridge (Fuzzy based).
l
Development of standard drawings for composite bridge (with steel girders).
l
Development of Explanatory commentary on standard specifications and code of practice for Road Bridges section VI composite constructions limit state Design (First Revision).
Traffic & Transportation l
Development of GIS based National Highways information system.
BORDER ROADS ORGANISATION Introduction The Border Roads Organization (BRO) was conceived and raised in the year 1960 by Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, the great visionary and the first Prime Ministry of India. This was done with the aim of coordinating the speedy development of network of
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roads in the North and the North Eastern border regions of the country. BRO is regarded as a symbol of nation-building, national integration and an inseparable component in maintaining the security and integrity of the country. The executive arm of the BRO, the General Reserve Engineer Force, popularly known by its actionem GREF, is a combined force that is a blend of members of the Army and GREF. The Organization, conceived as a road building agency for the Himalayan region in the early sixties, has, over the years, spread its wings and diversified into a large spectrum of construction and development works comprising airfields, building projects, defence works and tunneling and has endeared itself to the people. With the humble beginning of two projects in 1960, one in east (Vartak) and the other in north named Beacon, today, there are 15 Chief Engineer Projects spread in the length and breadth of the country. Achievements since inception l
BRO has earned the reputation of the only road construction agency in the country to construct and maintain roads in difficult and inhospitable terrain and climate. The people of the border areas have immense faith in BRO towards maintenance of lifelines of Sikkim, Bhutan, Arunachal Pradesh, Mizoram, Manipur, Nagaland, Tripura, Meghalaya, Jammu & Kashmir, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh and Andaman & Nicobar Islands.
l
BRO has constructed 46780 km of roads in difficult and remote areas of the country. This includes new construction, improvement from single lane to double lane and roads for coal fields of Bihar, Jharkhand and Orissa. BRO, had over the years, bridged river gaps of the hilly regions of North & North East with equipment bridges (Bailey, Bailey Suspension, Hamilton and Inglis bridges). These are being replaced with major/minor permanent bridges. BRO has replaced 29302 m of temporary bridges with permanent bridges.
Achievements in the year 2008-09 l
The BRO was entrusted with the prestigious work of construction of the 215 km long road Delaram-Zaranj in Afghanistan by Government of India. Incidentally, this is the first tarmac road in Nimroz Province of Afghanistan. The execution team of the BRO, comprising of approximately 700 personnel (300 BRO & 400 ITBP) was deployed in Afghanistan for this work and the task has been successfully completed on 17 th July, 2008. IT was inaugurated and dedicated to the people of Afghanistan by Hon'ble External Minister Mr Pranab Mukherjee.
l
BRO has constructed RCC cut and cover tunnel (120m) and allied works for Rs 1172.25 lakh, for Sonapur landslide located at km 141.74 on road ShillongJowai-Badarpur-Churaibari (NH-44), the only line of communication for the States of Tripura, Mizoram, part of Manipur, Assam and Meghalaya. Works on the tunnel have been completed and it has been dedicated to nation by Hon'ble Raksha Rajya Mantri Dr MM Pallam Raju on 29th September, 2008.
l
The work on construction of a 8.8 km long Rohtang tunnel is in an advanced stage of tendering action. Tenders have been received which are in the final stage of acceptance. The total cost of the project is likely to be approximately Rs 2000 crore with proposed date of completion as 2014.
l
Four laning of NH-1A from Vijaypur to Kunjwani (17.2 km) under PM's National Highway Development Programme of 'North-South Corridor' has been completed except two bridges and one underpass.
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l
Completion of the 637.60 m long Noadhing bridge on NH-52 in Arunachal Pradesh, the longest bridge constructed so far by the BRO.
l
Construction of a 480 m long 8 spans PSC box girder bridge (Siku bridge) on road Ranaghat-Mabo-Dambuk on NH-52 at km 561.03 by using departmental resources without involvement of contractors.
l
Rehabilitation of the runway along with other auxiliary works like construction of aprons, ATC buildings and other facilities in Tajikistan in a record time of 10 months at a cost of Rs. 50 crore.
l
Construction and maintenance of 160km long Tamu - Kalemyo - Kalewa road in Myanmar.
l
Construction and maintenance of roads in Bhutan apart from construction of an International Airport at Paro in Bhutan at an altitude of 2300 m in 1968 and subsequent strengthening and extension of the same in 2007-08.
l
Planning Commission has entrusted eight roads in Nagaland, one road in Manipur, one road in Tripura and improvement of roads and bridges on 18 roads in backward districts of Bodoland Autonomous Council (BAC) area of Assam, having a length of 703 km with approximate cost of Rs. 460 crore. Subsequently, these roads have been funded by Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region under NLCPR programme. BRO has completed most of these roads and handed them over to respective State PWDs. Presently, only three roads in Nagaland, one road each in Manipur and Tripura and nine bridges in BAC area of Assam are in progress. Work on two additional roads in Manipur is under progress through NEC funding.
SHIPPING Shipping plays an important role in the transport sector of India’s economy. Approximately, 90 per cent of the country’s trade by volume (70 per cent in terms of value) is moved by sea. India has the largest merchant shipping fleet among the developing countries and ranks 20th amongst the countries with the largest cargo carrying fleet with 8.83 million GT as on 01.06.2008 and the average of the fleet being 18 years. Indian maritime sector facilitates not only transportation of national and international cargo but also provides a variety of other services such as cargo handling services, shipbuilding and ship repairing, freight forwarding, lighthouse facilities and training of marine personnel, etc. The salient features of India’s shipping policy are the promotion of national shipping to increase self-reliance in the carriage of the country’s overseas trade and protection of stakeholders’ interest in EXIM trade. India’s national flag-ships provide an essential means of transport for crude oil and petroleum product imports. National shipping makes significant contribution to the foreign exchange earnings of the country. INDIAN FLEET Indian shipping tonnage, which was only 1.92 lakh GT on the eve of independence, now stands at 8.83 million GT and 14.85 million DWI consisting of 872 vessels (282 overseas vessels with 7.89 million Gt and 13.55 million DWT and 590 coastal vessels with 0.5 million GT and 0.99 million DWT). There has been an increase of 1.89 per cent million GT in the tonnage during the last four years due to various facilitative
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measures adopted by the Govt. espe cially introduction of toungsted for Shipping Industry from the year 2004-05. The total quantity of cargo handled at various Indian ports during the year 2006-07 was to the tune 464 M.T. as against 424 MT in 2005-06. It is reported that the share of overseas cargo carried by Indian Flag vessels varied in respect of different categories of cargo. The diversion Cargo carried by Indian flat during the year 200607 was around 12.2% comprising mainly of coal, crude oil and petroleum products. The share of Indian Flag vessels in carrying grouped cargo was 3.6%, dry bulk 6.3% and petroleum products, 24.7% respectively during 2006-07. Coastal Shipping : Coastal shipping is an energy-efficient, environment-friendly and economical mode of transport in the Indian transport network and a crucial component for the development of domestic industry and trade. India, with her 7,517 km long coastline studded with 13 major ports and 200 non-major ports provides congenial and favorable conditions for the development of this alternate mode of transport. India’s Coastal Shipping Tonnage as on 1st June 2008 was 590 vessels with 947734 GRT and 991378 DWT. Action plan for the development of coastal shipping is already on the anvil with the Central Government. With a view to promote coastal shipping and sailing vessel industry, the home trade vessels and sailing vessels have been exempted from the payment of lighthouse dues under the provisions of the Lighthouse Act, 1927. Meanwhile, a study has already been completed by the Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) to assess the potential of coastal shipping and the role of minor ports keeping in view the feasibility of routes and the supporting environment needed for its development. Efforts are being made to develop minor ports, which would, in turn, develop coastal shipping. Aids to Navigation : Since Independence, India has made rapid growth in aids to Marine Navigation. From 17 Lighthouses prior to Independence, the present strength of aids to Navigation consists of 171 Lighthouses, one Lightship, one Loran-C Chain Stations, 59 Racons, 21 Deep Sea Lighted Buoys 01 wreck making and 22 installations under Differential Global Positioning System (DGPS). To cater to the needs of light stations in the islands and for maintaining the buoys, the Directorate General of Lighthouses and Lightships is maintaining three launches, one mechanised boat and two large ocean going vessels, M.V. Sagardeep-II and M.V. Pradeep. A major scheme titled Coastal Vessel Traffic Service in the Gulf of Kachch was sanctioned in January 2002 at an estimated cost of Rs 165 crore is likely to be completed by 2008 and will provide efficient navigational server in the Gulf. In the 11th five year plan, 12 new light houses, one national Automatic identification system (AIS) network one proposed to be set up. To improve upon the efficiency local lights, CALL no approved for tracking over of 21 local lighthouses from the maritime states. Maritime Training : The Director General of Shipping is responsible for creation of the trained manpower required for the merchant navy fleet of the country. This national obligation is being met through the Government training institutes and a number of other approved training institutes in the private sector. The importance of organised training was recognised in the year 1927 when the Training Ship “Dufferin” was established. Since then many highly skilled Indian seafarers have been trained in India who have earned commendable reputation at home and abroad.
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The four training institutes, which were established by the Government are : 1.
Training Ship 'Chanakya'; which conducts (i) Three years B.Sc. degree course in Nautical Sciences under the University of Mumbai, (ii) Pre-Sea training course for Deck Cadets.
2.
Marine Engineering and Research Institute (MERI), Kolkata; which conducts four-years degree course in Marine Engineering under Jadavpur University.
3.
Marine Engineering & Research Institute (MERI), Mumbai; conducts (i) oneyear Training Marine Engineering course for graduate Mechanical Engineers and (ii) Three-year B.Sc. degree course in Martime Sciences (polyvalent degree) under the University of Mumbai.
4.
LBS College of Advance Maritime Studies & Research, Mumbai, conducts almost 46 post-sea training courses for serving Marine Officers.
In addition to the above, there are about 124 training institutes in the private sector approved by the Director General of Shipping, imparting pre-sea and post-sea training in various disciplines. In the wake of coming into force of the STCW 95 and the Regulations thereunder stipulated by the International Maritime Organisation in 1997, the maritime training in India has undergone a sea change. New courses are being introduced. In order to meet the competition prevailing elsewhere in the world, the training requires to satisfy the international standards stipulated under STCW 95. With this in view, the Government as a first step towards the formation of a Maritime University has formed the Indian Institute of Maritime Studies registered under the Societies’ Registration Act, 1860 and has brought all the four Government Training Institutes under its control. The Government have introduced an Indians Maritime University bill, 2008 in Lok Sabha on 13.3.2007. The Bill envisages that the headquarter of the University shall be at Chennai with its campus at Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Visakhapatnam and such other places within its jurisdiction as it may deem fit. SHIPPING CORPORATION OF INDIA LIMITED The Shipping Corporation of India Ltd (SCI) was formed on 2nd October 1961. The present authorised capital of the Company is Rs 450 crore and paid up capital is Rs 282.30 crore. The status of SCI has been changed from a private limited company to Public limited from 18 September 1992. The SCI was conferred ‘Mini Ratna’ status by the Government of India on 24 February 2000. At present, the Government is holding 80.12 per cent of the share capital and the balance is held by financial institutions, public and others (NRIs, Corporate Bodies, etc.). SCI has been signing Memorandum of Understanding with the Ministry of Shipping and has received "Excellent" rating consistently for 16 years, up to the year 2006-2007. The SCI signed the MOU for the financial year 2008-2009 with the Ministry of Shipping, Road Transport & Highways, Government of India on 27 March 2008. As on 01.06.2008, the share of SCI in total Indian tonnage in terms of GT is around 31% and in DWT terms 32%. Presently, the SCI's fleet stands at 79 vessels aggregating about 2.7 Million GT (4.8 Million DWT) comprising of Cellular Container Vessels, Crude Oil Tankers (including a Combination Carrier), Product Tankers, Bulk Carriers, LPG/Ammonia Carriers, Phosphoric Acid Carriers, Passenger-Cum-Cargo Vessels and Offshore Supply Vessels. The SCI provides Liner and Passengers Services, Bulk Carrier and Tanker Services, Offshore Services and Specialised Services. Additionally, the SCI also mans and manages 53 vessels aggregating to 0.12 Million
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GT (0.06 Million DWT) on behalf of various Government Departments and other Organisations comprising Passenger-cum-cargo vessels, Bunkers barge, Research Vessels, Offshore Supply Vessels (OSVs), Seismic Survey Vessel, Well Stimulation vessel, Diving Support vessels, Geotechnical vessel and Multipurpose Support Vessels (MSVs). The highly diversified fleet of the SCI includes modern and fuel-efficient ships giving it a qualitative status as also a distinct competitive edge over other fleet owners. The SCI has maintained a consistent track record of profitability and dividend. The turnover for the financial year 2006-07 was Rs. 4,210.00 crore and the net profit after tax was Rs. 1,015 crore and it has paid a divided of 85%. The SCI's Turnover for the financial year 2007-2008 is Rs. 4,084 Crore and the Net Profit after Tax is Rs. 814 Crore and it has paid an interim Dividend of 45% for the year 2007-08. The SCI is a pioneer in India with regard to : a) STS operations for crude, POL and dry bulk cargoes, (b) Cryogenic operations (LNG/LPG), (c) Joint Ventures and other type of collaborations in shipping, and d) shipping consultancy services. The training of personnel acquired a new dimension with the setting up of a Maritime Training Institute (MTI) at Powai, Mumbai. The MTI has extensive modern training facilities so as to ensure that the skill and expertise of the SCI personnel is at international levels. Since June 1988, all the SCI in-house courses are being conducted at the MTI. It is recognised as a branch of the World Maritime University Malmo (Sweden) for conducting International Maritime Organisation (IMO) seminars and short specialised courses in India for the countries of South East Asia and Pacific region. MTI is also recognised as an UNCTAD training centre for shipping management courses. MTI has been awarded the coveted Golden Peacock Award for excellence in Training. th
On 8 March, 2007, SCI was awarded MOU Excellence Certificate for the year 2004-05 and 2005-06 by the Government of India, Ministry of Heavy Industry and Public Enterprises, Department of Public Enterprises. SCI was the winner of the best international solution award and the third annual HSBC global payments and cash th management partnership award, which was posted in Bangaluru on 5 Nov. 2007. The SCI won the "Shipowner/operator of the year 2007" at the seatrade middle east and Indian sub-continental award 2007, held in Dubai in November, 2007 SCI also won the "Shipowner of the year 2007" at Lloyds list Middle East and Indian subcontinental award, held in Mumbai in November, 2007. Liquiefied Natural Gas (Joint Ventures) : LNG has been identified as the future fuel for India's power plants and as a feedstock for Chemical/Petrochemical industry. SCI has identified carriage of Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) as one of its thrust and growth area and has its presence in the Petronet LNG project. India LNG Transport Company No. 1 & 2 Ltd. : These two Joint Venture companies formed at Malta are promoted by the SCI and three Japanese companies viz M/s. Mitsui O.S.K. Lines Limited (MOL), M/s. Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha Limited (NYK Lines) and M/s. Kawasaki Kisen Kaisha Limited (K Lines) and M/s. Qatar Shipping Company (Q Ships), Qatar. The two JVCs own and operate the two LNG tankers viz SS Disha and SS Raahi respectively until 31.3.2008, both tankers operated without any off-hires and have carried about 157 cargoes and 120 cargos of LNG each from the inception of the two JVCS, totalling to 18.16 million metric tonnes of LNG.
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India LNG Transport Company No. 3 Ltd. : The JVC also formed at Malta is promoted by the SCI and the above mentioned three Japanese companies (Viz MOL, NYK lines, K Lines), M./s. Qatar Gas Transport Company Limited (QGTC) and M/s. Petronet LNG Limited (PLL) to construct, own and operate one LNG Tanker of about 155.000 cbm, chartered under a long-term Time Charter Agreement for 25 years. The tanker is currently under construction and will be delivered in September, 2009. It would be deployed for supplying additional 2.5 million tones of LNG to the Dehaj terminal of PLL, which is being expanded. Irano Hind Shipping Company (IHSC) : SCI has another Joint Venture in Iran, viz Irano Hind Shipping Company, which continues to operate successfully for over 3 decades. The Joint Venture between SCI & Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines (IRISIL) was established at Tehran, in March 1975. The Joint Venture Company continues to perform satisfactorily and during the Iraninan year 1385 (from 21.03.2006 to 20.03.2007) earned a Net Profit after Tax of Iranian Rials 33.336 Billion (US$ 3.683 Million). The aggregate professional Net Profit after Tax of the Joint Venture and its Subsidiaries for the year ended 20.03.2007, stood at US$ 18.102 Million. The fleet owned by the Joint Venture together with its Subsidiaries, as at the end of the financial year, stood at 6 ships of about 0.494 Million DWT. Sethusamudram Ship Channel Project : The Government of India through the Ministry of Shipping decided to set up a "Special Purpose Vehicle" (SPV) in the name and style "Sethusamudram Corporation Limited" (SCL) to raise finance and to undertake such other activities as may be necessary to facilitate creation and operation of a navigable channel from Gulf of Mannar to Bay of Bengal through Palk Bay (Sethusamudram Ship Channel). As per the Government directive, this Project is to be funded by way of equity contributions from various PSUs including SCI. Pursuant to the Government directive; SCI Board decided to participate in the project with a capital investment upto Rs. 50.00 crores. The SCI's total contribution towards equity in SCL as on 22.5.2008 is Rs. 50.00 crores. The Right to Information Act, 2005 : With a coming into effect of the Right to Information Act on 12.10.2005, SCI has complied with the provisions of the Act and has placed the "Information Request Form" along with a 'List' showing names of Public Information Officers and Assistant Public Information Officers on its website. COCHIN SHIPYARD LIMITED Situated in the western coast of India in the city of Cochin, State of Kerala, Cochin Shipyard is the largest shipyard in the country. Incorporated in the year 1972, Cochin Shipyard can build ships upto 1,10,000 DWT and repair ships upto 1,25,000 DWT. The yard has built varied types of ships including tankers, bulk carriers, port crafts, offshore vessels and passenger vessels. The orders executed by CSL in recent past include bulk carriers for M/s Clipper Group, Bahamas, firefighting tugs for M/s ATCO, Saudi Arabia and Platform Supply vessels for M/s Deep Sea Supplies, Norway. The yard's order book position as on 01.07.2008 incudes 16 Nos. Platform Supply Vessels for Shipping Companies of Norway, Cyprus, USA and Netherlands and four Nos. Anchor Handling tugs for Shipping Companies of Cyprus. Nominated for the construction of indigenous Aircraft Carrier for the Indian Navy, the yard has undertaken substantial upgradation of facilities with the addition of a 300 T Gantry crane, additional bay, Marine Coa ting Shop, Movable Outfit Shop. etc. The yard is also a leading ship-repairer of the country and has repaired more than 1200 ships of all types. These include upgradation of vessels belonging to ONGC, periodical lay
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up repairs and life extension of ships of Navy and Coast Guard. The yard had been consistently achieving profits for the last several years. GARDEN REACH SHIPBUILDERS & ENGINEERS LTD, KOLKATA The Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers Limited was incorporated as a joint stock company in 1934, under the name M/s Garden Reach Workshop Limited (GRW). The Government of India acquired the company in 1960. It was renamed as ‘‘Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers Limited (GRSE)’’ on 01 January 1977. Since then, it has grown and diversified its activities and is now a multiunit shipyard with a Shipbuilding Division and an Engineering and Engine Division. The company builds and repairs warships and auxiliary vessels for the Navy and the Coast Guard. Its present product range includes Corvettes, frigates, fleet tankers, patrol-vessels, fast attack craft, high technology ship borne equipment, portable bailey type steel bridges, turbine pumps for the agricultural sector, Marine Sewage Treatment Plants, Diesel Engines etc. ‘‘Mini-Ratna Status Category-I’’ was conferred on GRSE on 5 September 2006. GRSE’S significant
achievements during FY 2006-07 have been:
(i)
One Landing Ship Tank (Large), INS Shardul and two Fast Attack Craft, INS Batti Malv & INS Baratang, have been delivered to the Indian Navy.
(ii)
GRSE bagged orders for 10 Nos. Waterjet FACs from Indian Navy and 2 Nos. each of 65 Pax & 100 Pax Boats from Andaman & Nicobar Islands Administration.
(iii)
The company has acquired Rajabagan Dockyard with effect from 01 July 2006 from Central Inland Water Transport Corporation Ltd. (A Company under Ministry of Surface Transport).
(iv)
Raksha Mantri’s ‘‘Award for Excellence’’ was presented to GRSE for design efforts for FY 2005-06 in respect of Waterjet FACs.
(v)
Engineering Division obtained the ‘Patent Rights’ on 09 February 2007 for designing and developing the ‘‘Double Lane Modular Steel Bridge’’ effective from 16 January 2003.
In order to reduce the ‘build period’ of ships for faster delivery, GRSE has embarked on a Modernisation Plan to the tune of Rs 402 crore in phases. The Modernisation Plan is being jointly funded by GRSE and Navy/MOD against the ASW(C) project under progress in GRSE. GRSE’s contribution being Rs 184 crore. The overall effect of the modernisation will lead to enhancement of shipbuilding capacity, offer greater flexibility to adopt modern/modular build strategies, provide a framework for significant productivity improvement, with more out-fitting at launching stage and effective connectivity-cum-integration of facilities. The modernisation is expected to be completed in 2010. HINDUSTAN SHIPYARD LIMITED, VISAKHAPATNAM Hindustan Shipyard Limited (HSL), Visakhapatnam was set up in 1941 in the private sector and was taken over by the Government in 1952. In 1962, the shipyard became a central public sector enterprise. The shipbuilding capacity of the yard is 3.5 pioneer class vessels of 21,500 DWT each. The maximum size of the vessel that could be built is 50,000 DWT. The yard has slipways, covered building dock, wet basin and outfit jetty. HSL is the first shipbuilding yard in the country which was awarded ISO:9001 certification by Lloyds Register of Quality Assurance, London for international
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standard of quality assurance. For ship repairs, the yard has facilities such as modern dry dock, wet basin, repair shops, etc., and it can undertake repairs of submarine, tankers and ships up to 70,000 DWT. HSL has an exclusive offshore platform construction yard capable of constructing two platforms per annum. Other infrastructure facilities include engineering shops, cranes and load-out facilities. The order book of HSL has increased from about 37,195 DWT to 3,13,255 DWT during the last 3 years. Following is the present order book of HSL:l
2 nos. 150 Passenger vessels for Andaman & Nicobar Administration.
l
1 no. Pollution. Control Vessel for Visakhapatnam Port Trust (VPT).
l
1 no. 30,000 DWT Bulk carriers for M/s. Goodearth Maritime Ltd.
l
6 nos. 53,000 DWT Bulk carrier for M/s. Goodearth Maritime Ltd.
l
5 no. Inshore Petrol Vessels (IPV) for Indian Coast Guard.
l
1 no. 32 Ton Bollard pull tug for New Managalore Port Trust (NMPT)
l
Modernization & Refit of 877 EKM Submarine "INS Sindhukirit" for Indian Navy. The value of the above orders (on hand) is Rs. 1599.76 crs. (Approx.)
HSL has plan to further consolidate the production and achieve 4 to 5 ships (of 21,500 DWT each) per annum and productivity at 35-40 Mhrs./DWT and sustain and further grow in the shipbuilding activity. The yard has plans to continue the retrofitting/repair of submarines to Indian Navy and achieve a repair turnover of Rs. 120 to Rs. 150 crores/annum. By improving further the technology and infrastructure, the HSL will make its presence in global market and become a world-class shipyard. HOOGHLY DOCK AND PORT ENGINEERS LIMITED, KOLKATA Hooghly Dock and Port Engineers Limited (HDPEL), Kolkata became a Central Public Sector Undertaking in 1984. The Company has two working units in Howrah District of West Bengal, one at Salkia and another at Nazirgunge. The installed capacity in shipbuilding is 1,100 tonnes per annum and in ship repairs 125 ships per annum. Apart from a dry dock and a jetty, it has six shipways. The yard is capable of constructing various types of ships (including passenger ships) and other vessels such as dredgers, tugs, floating dry docks, fishing trawlers, supply-cum-support vessels, multi-purpose harbour vessels, lighthouse tender vessels, barges, mooring launches, etc., and undertaking repairs of different types of vessels. HDPEL at present has orders worth Rs. 201.00 crores for shipbuilding and Rs. 2.60 crore for Ship-repairing. The Shipbuilding orders include 6 no. of Workboats for IWAI besides 1 no. of Hydraulic Surface Dredger, 2 nos. of Self loading Cargo Vessels, 1 no. of floating Dry Dock. HDPEL has secured order for construction of 4 nos. 1000 T Fuel Barges with an option for construction of 2 more Barges from Indian Navy.
PORTS The coastline of India is dotted with 12 Major Ports and about 200 Non-major Ports. The Major Ports are under the purview of the central while the Non-major Ports come under the jurisdiction of the respective State Governments. The 12 Major Ports (including the Port of Ennore which is a corporate port set up under the Indian Companies Act, 1956) are evenly spread out on the Eastern and Western coast. The ports of Kolkata, Paradip, Visakhapatnam. Chennai, Ennore and Tuticorin are on the Eastern coast of India while the ports of Cochin, New Managalore,
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Mormugao, Mumbai, Jawaharlal Nehru at Jhavasheva and Kandla are on the Western Coast. The capacity of major ports has increased from 20 Million Tonnes per annum (MTPA) 1951 to 504.75 MTPA as on 31st March, 2007. At the beginning of the 10th Plan, the capacity of the major ports was 343.95 MTPA which has increased to 504.75 MTPA at the end of the 10th Plan (i.e. as on 31st March, 2007) thereby achieving the capacity addition 160.80 MTPA. In all the years of 10th five year plan the capacity at the major ports exceeded the traffic handled. The non-major ports handled a traffic of 185.54 MT in 2006-07 and had a capacity of 228 MTPA at the end of 2006-07. The total traffic handled at the Major Ports has increased from 313.55 MT at the beginning of the 10th Five Year Plan to 519.67 MT in 2007-08 out of which the container traffic was 73.48 MT. The container traffic in the major ports has increased from 61.98 MT in 2005-06 to 78.87 MT is 2007-08. In order to improve efficiency productivity and quality of services as well as to bring in competitiveness in port services, the port sector has been thrown open to private sector participation. The Major Port Trust Act, 1963 permits private sector participation in major ports invites Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) upto 100% under the automatic route is permitted for construction and maintenance of ports and harbours. Private sector participation has been allowed in a variety of ports services which includes construction and operation of terminals/berhs, warehousing/storage facility, dry docking and ship repair facilities. Till date 17 private sector projects involving an investment of Rs. 4927 crores has been operationalised which involves capacity addition of 99.30 MTPA. 8 projects are under various stages of evaluation and implementation which involves an investment of Rs. 5181 crores and capacity addition of 75.40 MTPA. INLAND WATER TRANSPORT India has about 14,500 km of navigable waterways which comprise rivers, canals, backwaters, creeks, etc. About 50 million tonnes of cargo corresponding to 2.82 billion tonne km was transported in 2005-06 by Inland Water Transport (IWT). Its operations are currently restricted to a few stretches in the Ganga-Bhagirathi-Hooghly Rivers, the Brahmaputra, the Barak River, the rivers in Goa, the backwaters in Kerala, inland waters in Mumbai and the deltaic regions of the Godavari-Krishna rivers. Besides the organised operations by mechanised vessels, country boats of various capacities also operate in various rivers and canals. Data of cargo and passenger movement in unorganised sector (i.e. by country boats, etc.) has not been compiled (for which efforts are on) but it is a fact that substantial quantum of cargo and passengers are transported in the unorganised sector as well. Considering the inherent advantages of this mode in terms of fuel efficiency, environment friendliness and cost effectiveness, the Govt. of India is trying to develop this mode to make it an effect supplementary mode of transportation vis-a-vis rail and road modes. Inland Waterways Authority of India : The Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) came into existence on 27 October 1986 for development and regulation of inland waterways for shipping and navigation. The Authority primarily undertakes projects for development and maintenance of IWT infrastructure on national waterways through grant received from Ministry of Shipping, Road Transport and Highways. The head office of the Authority is located at Noida. The Authority also
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has its regional offices at Patna, Kolkata, Guwahati and Kochi and sub-offices at Allahabad, Varanasi, Bhagalpur, Farakka and Kollam. National Waterways : The Ganga between Allahabad – Haldia (1620 km) the SadiyaDhubri stretch of river Brahmaputra (891 km) and the Kollam-Kottapuram stretch of West Coast Canal along with Champakara and Udyogmandal Canals (205 km) in Kerala have so far been declared as National Waterways and are being developed for navigation by IWAI. Bills for declaration of 3 more waterways viz. Talcher-Darmra stretch of canals; Kakainada-Puducherry stretch of canals etc. and the Barak River as National Waterways have already been introduced in the Parliament. Centrally Sponsored Scheme : For overall development of IWT sector in the country it is necessary that national waterways as well as other waterways are developed side by side. A large number of smaller rivers from tributaries of National Waterways rivers if developed with IWT infrastructure, many of these smaller rivers can become suitable for navigation by smaller/medium size inland vessels and can act as feeder routes to the main waterways. While the development and regulation of National Waterways is the responsibility of Central Govt./IWAI, the respective State Governments should develop other waterways. However, due to fund constraint, it has not been possible for the States to provide adequate funds for IWT development. Therefore, to encourage the States for IWT development, there was a Centrally Sponsored Scheme (CSS) for IWT sector. Under the CSS, 100 per cent grant is provided for the projects of North-Eastern States including Sikkim and 90 per cent grant to other States. The Planning Commission has discontinued the scheme for areas other than North East Region from the year 2007-08. The scheme has been continued for the North-Eastern regional and classified as a Central Sector Scheme. Inland Vessel Building Subsidy Scheme : In order to reduce the capital burden on the IWT operators, and to enhance their profitability, an inland vessel building subsidy scheme has been introduced under which 30 per cent cost of an inland vessel is subsidized by the Central Government. This is applicable to both cargo and passenger inland vessels meant for operation in National Waterways, Sunderbans waterways st and Indo-Bangladesh Protocol routes. The scheme has ended 31 2007. However, efforts are being made to extend this scheme for another two years beyond 31st March 2007. Protocol on Inland Water Transit and Trade : An Inland Water Transit and Trade protocol exists between India and Bangladesh under which inland vessels of one country can transit through the specified routes of the other country. The existing protocol routes are : (i) Kolkata-Pandu-Kolkata, (ii) Kolkata-Karimganj-Kolkata, (iii) Rajshahi-Dhulian-Rajshahi and (iv) Pandu-Karimganj-Pandu. For inter-country trade, four ports of call have been designated in each country namely, Haldia, Kolkata, Pandu and Karimganj in India and Narayanganj, Khulna, Mongla and Sirajganj in Bangladesh. With a view to providing an impetus for development for inland water transport mode, the Government of India had approved an Inland Water Transport Policy which includes fiscal concessions, and policy guidelines for rapid development of the mode and to encourage private sector participation in development of infrastructure and ownership and operation of inland vessels. For exploring possibility of joint ventures and BOT projects in IWT sector, interactions were held with many interested firms and thereafter, some priority projects
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having potential of Joint Venture projects were short-listed. For some of these projects, bids were invited by IWAI. This initiative of IWAI has succeeds in attracting some private player to IWT sector and four Memorandum of Understanding (MOU)'s have been signed between IWAI and respective successful bidders for setting up and management of jetties at Bandel, Kolaghat and Budge-Budge in West Bengal and for acquision, operation and management of barges on O-D pairs of Kolkata-Mongla, Kolkata-Dhubri and Kolkata-Pandu. 3 Joint Venture Companies have already been th incorporated and the 4 is being incorporated to execute the aforesaid projects. National Inland Navigation Institute : An institute of national importance, viz. National Inland Navigation Institute (NINI), Patna, became functional from February 2004. This is the first institute of its kind in the country. About 300 trainees have successfully completed the vessel crew training course from this Institute so far. Central Inland Water Transport Corporation (CIWTC) : The Central Inland Water Transport Corporation (CIWTC) with its headquarters at Kolkata was set up as a public undertaking in May 1967. The CIWTC is mainly engaged in transportation of goods by inland waterways in the Ganga-Bhagirathi-Hooghly, Sunderbans and Brahmaputra rivers. They are operating regular cargo services between Kolkata and Pandu (near Guwahati), between Kolkata and Karimganj (Assam), KolkataBangladesh and between Haldia and Patna. The Government has decided to disinvest the corporation and the process for disinvest has been initiated.
CIVIL
AVIATION
The Ministry of Civil Aviation is responsible for the formulation of national policies and programmes for develo pment and regulation of civil aviation and for devising and implementing schemes for orderly growth and expansion of civil air transport. Its functions also extend to overseeing the provision of airport facilities, air traffic services, carriage of passengers and goods by air, safeguarding civil aviation operations, regulation of air transport services, licensing of aerodromes, air carriers, pilots and aircraft maintenance engineers. The Ministry also administratively controls the institution of Commission of Railway Safety, which is responsible for the safety in rail travel and operations in terms of the provisions of the Railways Act. India has been a member of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) and is also on the Council of ICAO since its inception. The civil aviation sector has three main functional divisions --regulatory, infrastructural and operational. The civil aviation sector in India has seen an unprecedented growth in the recent years. As on date there are a large number of companies providing passenger transport and cargo handling services in the country. The Air Transport Companies are both in the public sector and in the private sector. In the public sector, there are National Aviation company of India Limited (Air India), and its Subsidiaries viz. Alliance Air, Air India Charters Ltd, (Air India Express) etc. Apart from Air India, Indian Airlines, Alliance Air and Air India Charters Ltd., there are at present seven private scheduled operators (as on 15.0.2009), viz. Jet Airways (India) Ltd., Jetlite Airlines, Go Airlines (India) Pvt. Ltd., Kingfisher Airlines, Spicejet Ltd., Paramount Airways Pvt. Ltd., and Inter Globe Aviation Ltd. (IndiGO) operating on the domestic sector providing a wide choice of flights and connectivity to various parts of India. Besides above, a new category of Scheduled airlines i.e. Scheduled Air Transport (Regional) services has been introduced to enhance connectivity to smaller cities and
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within a region MDLR airlines is operating as regional scheduled airlines in Northern Region. Two cargo airlines viz. Blue Dart Aviation Pvt. Ltd. And Decan Cargo & Express Logistics (Pvt.) Ltd. are also operating scheduled cargo services in the country. During the calendar year 2008, a total number of 5,22,603 flights (domestic only) were operated by the domestic scheduled operators carrying a total number of 40.848 million passengers (scheduled). In addition to the above mentioned scheduled airlines, there are at present 122 companies as on (15.09.09) holding non-scheduled operator's permit. While NACIL (A) provides international services NACIL (I) provides domestic services as well as services to neighbouring countries in South East Asia & Middle East. The Air India Charter also operate to the Middle East countries in the name Air India Express. the private scheduled airlines Jet Airways and Kingfisher airlines are also operating on various international sectors. Pawan Hans Helicopters Ltd., a public sector company, holding non scheduled operator's permit, is engaged in providing helicopter services to ONGC for its offshore operations and its services are also used by various state governments especially in North-Eastern region to provide connectivity to inaccessible areas and difficult terrians. TOURIST CHARTER FLIGHTS ITP tourist charter guidelines have been further liberalized vide Aeronautical Information Circular no. 12/2008. A total of 686 charter flights operated to India from January to December, 2008 bringing in 1,50,2342 foreign tourists. AIR SERVICES India has bilateral Air Services Agreements with 104 countries. Recently, New Air Services, Agreements have been signed / initialed with Mexico, Chile and Bosnia & Herzigovina. India is also in the process of modernizing and updating the existing ASAs with foreign countries based on the ICAO template. In this process revised ASAs has been initialed/signed with Iran, South Africa, UAE and Maldives. To bring the existing Air Services Agreement between India and the respective Member States of the EC in tune with the provisions of the European Community law, th a horizontal Agreement was signed between India and EC on 28 September, 2008 LIBERALIZATION OF AIR SERVICES In accordance with the policy of liberalization in the civil aviation sector and with a view to attract more foreign passengers, the Government continued its approach during 2008 also in the matter of grant of traffic rights under bilateral agreements with various foreign countries. In order to enable greater connectivity to / from India, traffic rights have been enhanced / bilateral provisions amended with various countries during 2008 viz. Mexico. Saudi Araba, Netherlands, Qatar, Iran, Japan, Bhutan, Azerbaijan and Turkey etc. CAPE TOWN CONVENTION The Cape Town Convention has been acceded by the Government of India and it has come into force w.e.f. 1.7.2008. The principal objective of the Convention/Protocol is the efficient financing of mobile equipment. It is designed to establish an international legal regime for categories of high value and uniquely indentifiable mobile equipments.
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The economic benefits of the Capt Town Convention are significant. It is likely to reduce the risk applicable to asset-based financing and leasing transactions by establishing an international legal framework, backed by treaty relations and, where necessary, implementing domestic laws. MONETREAL
CONVENTION
India has acceded to the Montreal Convention on 1st May, 2009. Accession to this Convention shall facilitate higher compensation and fifth State jurisdiction to international air passengers to/from India. IBSA - FIVE YEAR ACTION PLAN India-Brazil - South Africa (IBSA) Five Year Plan on the improvement and development of civil aviation sector through technical cooperation among the three sides was signed on 15th October, 2008 in New Delhi during the 3rd IBSA Summit. DIRECTORATE GENERAL OF CIVIL AVIATION The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) is the regulatory body in the field of civil aviation. It is responsible for:l
Regulation of air transport services to/from and within India in accordance with the provisions of the Aircraft Rules, 1937;
l
Licensing of pilots, aircraft maintenance engineers and monitoring of flight crew standards;
l
Registration of civil aircraft;
l
Laying down airworthiness requirements for civil aircraft registered in India and grant of certificate of airworthiness to such aircraft;
l
Coordination of the work relating to International Civil Aviation Organization;
l
Investigation of minor air accidents and incidents and rendering technical assistance to the Courts / Committees of Inquiry appointed by the Government;
l
Supervision of Training activities of Flying/Gliding Clubs'
l
Licensing of aerodromes and air carriers;
l
Safety oversight and surveillance of air carriers and aerodromes;
l
Rendering advice to Government on matters pertaining to air transport including bilateral air services agreements with foreign countries;
l
Processing amendments to the Aircraft Act, 1934 and the Aircraft Rules 1937, and other Acts relating to aviation, with a view to implementing in India the provisions of the Chicago convention and annexes thereto and other international conventions relating to aviation;
l
Type certification of aircraft.
BUREAU OF CIVIL AVIATION SECURITY The Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) was initially set up as a Cell in the DGCA in January 1978 on the recommendation of the Pande Committee constituted in the wake of the hijacking of an Indian Airlines flight ton 10th September, 1976. The role of the Cell was to coordinate, monitor, inspect and train personnel in Civil Aviation Security matters. It was reorganized into an independent Department on 1st April, 1987 under the Ministry of Civil Aviation following the Kanishka Tragedy in June 1985.
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The main responsibility of BCAS is to lay down standards and measures in respect of security of civil flights at international and domestic airports in India and Indian aircraft operators at foreign airports. It is the regulator for civil aviation security in the country and is responsible for laying down the standards for pre-embarkation security and anti-sabotage measures in respect of civil flights and ensuring their compliance through regular Inspections and Security Audits. The aim of BCAS is to safeguard Civil Aviation operations against acts of unlawful interference and it is the regulatory authority for discharging all relevant national and international obligations in respect of training of personnel in aviation security responsibilities which include, interalia, planning and co-ordination of all aviation security related activities, operational emergencies and crisis management. The Commissioner of Security (CA), BCAS is the "Appropriate Authority" to ensure development, maintenance, updating and implementation of National Aviation Security Programme for India and fulfill all international obligations in this context. The BCAS has its headquarters in New Delhi and 4 Regional Offices located at Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai airports, each under a Deputy Commissioner of Security (CA), regulating, monitoring and conjecturing regular security Inspections and audits of the airports in Northern, Eastern, Western and Sourthern region, respectively. A proposal for restructuring/strengthening the BCAS has since been approved by the Government of India which involves establishing of four additional Regional offices at Amritsar, Guwahati, Hyderabad & Ahmedabad, each headed by a Deputy Commissioner of Security. The four existing Regional Offices at the Metros viz. Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai & Kolkata will be upgraded and headed by an officer of the level of Senior Deputy Commissioner of Security. Besides this 69 additional posts have been created at various levels to strengthen the existing infrastructure. Further, it is also proposed to create one post of Joint Commissioner of Security (CA) of the rank of Inspector General of Police to strengthen the senior management level at the BCAs Headquarters. The BCAS has four Bomb Detection and Disposal Squads (BDDS) positioned at International Airports of Delhi. Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai with latest sophisticated equipment like Robot, Real Time Viewing System (RTVS), Electronic Stethoscope, Explosive Detector, etc. The BODS units at the four metros are complemented by a dog squad dedicated to the concerned airports. A dog squad has been deployed by BCAS at Srinagar airport also. These squads are used to safety handle sophisticated Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) and other explosives and assist local police in explosive investigations from time to time. INDIRA GANDHI RASHTRIYA URAN AKADEMI The Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Uran Akademi located at Fursatganj (UP) is an Autonomous Body under Government of India, Ministry of Civil Aviation. The Akademi has been established to train pilots too achieve higher standards in Flying and Ground training. The Akademi is equipped with modern and sophisticated Trainer Aircraft, Fight Simulators, Computer-Based Training System (CBT), own ATC, runway with modern Navigational and Landing Aids like DVOR/DME & ILS and own Airspace. It has various Audio-Visual Training Aids and other facilities for imparting effective Flying and Ground Training by the most Qualified Personnel. Flying Training is conducted on Trinidad TB-20 Single Engine and King Air C-90 A
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Twin - Engine Turbo-Prop executive Class Aircraft, fitted with Modern Instruments and Avionics. Ab-initio to Commercial Pilots Lincence (CPL), PPL to CPL Courses with Multi-Engine Aircraft Endorsement and Instrument Rating are conducted on a Regular Basis. Opportunity is also provided to the students to pursue B.Sc. (Aviation) Degree from GSJM University, Kanpur currently with CPL. The Akademi has trained 561 upto 03/03/2009, Fixed Wing Pilots and 20 Rotary Wing Plots of Indian and Foreign Origin till now. Refresher Training to 327 Flight Instructors from various Flying Clubs / Training Institutes of the country has also been imparted. It has trained 182 Non-Institutional Pilots on Multi-Engine Endorsement. The following modernization of facilities have been accomplished in IGRUA:(a)
The capacity of the Akademi has been increased to train 100 Cadets a year compared to the previous capacity of 40 per year.
(b)
14 More Basic Training and 02 Twin Engine Aircraft have also been indicted;
(c)
Re-carpeting of Runway, Grading of basic strip and drainage improvement, extension of apron and taxi track, construction of an additional 3rd hangar for housing the aircraft have been completed;
(d)
The hostel accommodation has been enhanced to 144 students including 40 girls students;
(e)
The residential accommodation for operational staff has also been increased by the construction of 12 more dwelling units;
(f)
Upgradation of Central AC Plant and Sewerage Pump and augmentation of water supply by digging of an additional bore-well has been completed.
COMMISSION OF RAILWAY SAFETY The Commission of Railway Safety deals with matters pertaining to safety in rail travel and operation, and for this purpose performs statutory functions as laid down in the Railways Act, 1989 and the rules framed thereunder. Formerly called the Railway Inspectorate, it functioned under the control of the Railway Board to secure its independence from the authority administering the Railways. This separation was carried out pursuant to the recommendations of a committee called the ‘Pacific Locomotive Committee’, which was endorsed by the Central Legislature. After its separation, the Inspectorate was attached to the Air Wing and placed under Department of Communications. It came under the administrative control of the Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation in May 1967, subsequently redesignated as the Ministry of Civil Aviation. The main task of the Commission is to direct, advise and caution the railway executive through its inspectional, investigatory and advisory functions and thereby assist them in ensuring that all stipulated measures are taken in regard to the soundness of rail construction and safety in train operation. The Commission is headed by the Chief Commissioner of Railway Safety who is also the Principal Technical Adviser to the Government of India in all matters concerning it. The headquarters of the Commission is located at Lucknow. The Chief Commissioner directs the technical activities of the Commission and issues instruction for the guidance of Commissioners of Railway Safety in respect of holding statutory inquiries into serious railway accidents, inspection of new lines including
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electrification of existing lines prior to their opening for public carriage of passengers and sanction for running of new locomotives/rolling stock. The Commission has 9 circle offices, viz. two with headquarters at Mumbai, 3 with headquarters at Kolkata and one each with headquarters at Bangaluru, New Delhi, Lucknow and Secunderabad. Each circle office is under the charge of a Commissioner. In a major development, Government of India has decided to use institution of Commission of Railway Safety for safety certification of upcoming metro rail systems to ensure uniformity in safety standard. AIRPORTS AUTHORITY OF INDIA st
Airports Authority of India (AAI) was constituted on 1 April, 1995 by merging erstwhile National Airports Authority (NAA) and International Airports Authority of India (IAAI). The integration of NAA and IAAI was aimed to derive the synergy of merger and build a new organization to take up upcoming challenges in competitive environment. Civil aviation, world over, has gone a sea change and the Airports Authority of India (AAI) is ready to meet these challenges both at national and international levels. The Eleventh Five Year plan has been prepared and growth targets set for various economic parameters contributing to growth, of civil aviation are encouraging. AAI maintains and operates 127 airports including civil enclave at Defence airfields for commercial Airlines operations. The International Airports at Delhi and Mumbai have been leased to Joint Venture Companies on 03.05.2006 for modernization etc. as part of the Restructuring being undertaken by the Government for these two International Airports. Greenfield airport developed at Shamshabad near Hyderabad has become operational with effect from 23.3.2008. Similarly, the Greenfield airport developed at Devanahalli near Bangaluru has become operational with effect from 24.5. 2008. AAI provides CNS/ATM services at all the airports in the country which include Indian airspace measuring over 2.8 million square nautical miles. During the year 2008-09, AAI handled 13.06 lakh aircraft movements (10.40 lakhs domestic and 2.70 lakh international); 108.88 million passengers (77.30 million domestic and 31.58 million international) and 16.97 lakh metric tonnes of air cargo (5.48 lakh metric tonnes domestic and 11.49 lakh metric tonnes international). TRAINING AAI imparts training at its own Civil Aviation Training College, Allahabad on various operational areas like Air Traffic Control, Radars, Communication, etc. It maintains the National Institute of Aviation Management and Research (NIAMAR) at Delhi for imparting various aviation management training programmes and refresher courses. In addition there is a Fire Service Training School at Narayanpur near Kolkata and the Fire Training Centre at New Delhi for imparting training and conducting refresher courses on fire fighting rescue services. GAGAN PROJECT GPS Aided Geo Augmented Navigation ‘‘Gagan’’ is an augmentation system to enhance the accuracy and integrity of GPS signals to meet precision approach requirements in Civil Aviation and is being implemented jointly by AAI and ISRO in three phases. Technology Demonstration System will be upgraded to a full operational capability system in the second and third phase. GSAT IV being fabricated by ISRO will carry GAGAN payload. The footprint of this satellite will cover a vast geographical
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area from Africa to Australia and hence would facilitate expansion of the service area of ‘‘Gagan’’ far beyond Indian airspace. When implemented this would replace most of the ground-based navigational aids and it would be possible to provide precision approach and landing guidance up to category I to aircraft hitherto not available due to terrain conditions precluding the provision of Instrument Landing System. The Technology Demonstration System Phase of the Project has been successfully completed and action has been initiated for Final Operation Phase. (FOP) DEVELOPMENT OF NON-METRO AIRPORTS BY AAI In order to meet the growing demand for infrastructure at the airports, AAI has decided to modernize and develop 35 non-metro Airports by providing world class infrastructure facilities at these airports. The 35 non-Metro airports identified are Ahmedabad, Amritsar, Guwahati, Jaipur, Udaipur, Trivandrum, Lucknow, Goa, Madurai, Mangalore, Agatti, Aurangabad, Khajuraho, Rajkot, Vadodara, Bhopal, Indore, Nagpur, Visakhapatanam, Trichy, Bhubaneswar, Coimbatore, Patna, Port Blair, Varanasi, Agartala, Dehradun, Imphal, Ranchi, Rajpur, Agra, Chandigarh, Dimapur, Jammu and Pune. These non-Metro Airports are being developed to world class standards which include features such as modular design, structured steel and toughened glass glazing, modern flooring, high ceiling with vertical air conditioning system, modern passenger boarding bridges with glass wall, walk ways, conveyor belts, escalators, elevators, improved signages, intelligent terminals was Integrated building management system and Common User Terminal Equipment (CUTE). The development works for Terminal Buildings and Airside have already been undertaken / in the process of award except in cases where land issues are involved. These works will be completed in phases by March, 2010. As regards City Side Development at selected non-Metro Airports, this is being done with private sector participation. The process is under finalization for Amritsar and Udaipur airport and thereafter will be extended to other airports. RESTRUCTURING OF DELHI AND MUMBAI AIRPORTS Indira Gandhi International Airport, Delhi Delhi International Airport Private Limited (DIAL) have entered with AAI an Operation, Management Development Agreement (OMDA). In accordance with OMDA, DIAL has agreed to undertake the functions of operating, maintaining, developing, designing, constructing, upgrading, modernizing, financing and managing the Indira Gandhi International Airport (Airport), Delhi as per the terms and conditions referred therein. The Shareholding pattern of DIAL is as under: l
State Promoter: Airports Authority of India 26%;
l
Private Promoter: GMR Infrastructure Limited led by GMR Group (including foreigners) 74%;
Apart from OMDA, DIAL also entered a Land Lease Agreement and CNS-ATM Agreement with AAI and a State Support Agreement and a State Government Support Agreement with Government of India and Government of Delhi respectively. The term of concession granted to DIAL, as per OMDA, is for 30 years with a right of extension for another 30 years. Communication, navigation & surveillance and air traffic management will be provided by AAI.
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DIAL shall, in consideration for the grant of Concession by AAI, pay to AAI an annual fee for each year during the term of OMDA @ 45.00% of revenue of DIAL. Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport, Mumbai Mumbai International Airport Private Limited (MIAL) have entered with AAI an Operation, Management Development Agreement (OMDA). In accordance with OMDA, MIAL has agreed to undertake the functions of operating, maintaining, developing, designing, constructing, upgrading, modernizing, financing and managing the CSI International Airport (Airport) in accordance with the terms and conditions referred therein. l
State Promoter: Airports Authority of India 26%;
l
Private Promoter: GMR Infrastructure Limited led by GMR Group (including foreigners) 74%;
Apart from OMDA, MIAL also entered a Land Lease Agreement and CNS-ATM Agreement with AAI and a State Support Agreement and a State Government Support Agreement with Government of India and Government of Maharashtra respectively. The term of concession granted to MIAL, as per OMDA, is for 30 years with a right of extension to another 30 years. Communication, navigation & surveillance and air traffic management will be provided by AAI. MIAL shall, in consideration for the grant of Concession by AAI, pay to AAI an annual fee for each year during the term of OMDA @ 38.7% of revenue of MIAL. GREENFIELD AIRPORTS Bangaluru International Airport : Bangaluru Airport Limited (BIAL), was established with the participation of Karnataka State Industrial Investment and Development Corporation Limited, the Airports Authority of India, Siemens Project Ventures GmbH, Flughafen Zurich AG and Larsen & Toubro Limited, as shareholders, for the development, design, financing, construction, completion, maintenance, operation and management of a Greenfield airport at Dewanahalli (Airport), near Bangaluru in the State of Karnataka as a Public Private Participation venture. The Shareholding pattern of BIAL is as under: State Promoter l
Karnataka State Industrial Investment and Development Corporation Limited
13%;
l
Airports Authority of India
13%
Private Promoter l
Siemens Project Ventures GmbH
40%
l
Flughafen Zuerich AG
17%
l
Larsen & Toubro Limited
17%
BIAL have entered into a Concession Agreement with Government of India and State Support and Land Lease Agreements with Government of Karnataka apart from CNS agreement with AAI. The term of concession granted to BIAL, as per Concession Agreement, is for 30 years with an option for extension of another 30 years.
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BIAL shall, in consideration for the grant of Concession by Government of India, pay to Government of India a fee amounting to four per cent (4%) of gross revenue annually. The Airport has been opened for commercial operation on 24
th
May 2008.
Hyderabad International Airport (Rajiv Gandhi International Airport) : GMR Hyderabad International Airport Limited (GHIAL) was established with the participation of Government of Andhra Pradesh, Airports Authority of India, GMR Group and Malaysia Airports Holdings Berhad (MAHB), as shareholders, for the development, design, financing, construction, completion, maintenance, operation and management of a Greenfield airport at Shamshabad (Airport), near Hyderabad in the State of Andhra Pradesh as a Public Private Participation venture. State Promoter l
Government of Andhra Pradesh
13%;
l
Airports Authority of India
13%
Private Promoter l
GMR Group
63%
l
MAHB
11%
GHIAL have entered into a Concession Agreement with Government of India and State Support and Land Lease Agreements with Government of Andhra Pradesh apart from CNS agreement with AAI. The term of concession granted to GHIAL, as per Concession Agreement, is for 30 years with an option for extension of another 30 years. GHIAL shall, in consideration for the grant of Concession by Government of India, pay to Government of India a fee amounting to four per cent (4%) of gross revenue annually. The Airport has been opened for commercial operation on 23rd March 2008. FLYING TRAINING SCHOOL AT GONDIA It has been decided to establish a premier pilot Training Institute at Gondia, Maharashtra to augment the ongoing efforts of flying training schools for increasing the number of qualified and well trained pilots, to tackle the huge demand for pilots in the industry. The new Flying Training School is being established with Joint Venture Partnership (JVP). M/S. CAE of Canada who has been selected through global bidding. AAI would have an equity participation of 49% which can be shared amongst the other aviation related PSUs and the JVP will have 51% equity. The Agreements in this regard have been signed between AAI and JVP for formation of JVC. The National Flying Training Institute (NFTI) is likely to be operational by end of this year. NATIONAL AVIATION COMPANY OF INDIA LTD. (AIR INDIA) Air India and Indian merger attained its official status on the formation of National Aviation Company of India Ltd. (Air India) on 27th August 2007. Post merger the new entity is known as Air India while its mascot is retained as 'Maharajah'. The new company has the following subsidiaries under its control:
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Name of Subsidiary Company
Authorised
capital
(Rs. in Crores) Hotel Corporation of India (HCI)
41.00
Paid up capital (Rs. in Crores) 40.60
Air India Charters Ltd. (Air India Express)
30.00
30.00
100.00
00.05
Air India Engineering Services Ltd
10.00
00.05
Vayudoot
50.00
36.42
05.00
02.25
100.00
00.05
Air India Air Transport Services Ltd
Ltd
Airlines Allied Services Ltd. (Alliane
Air)
IAL Airport Services Ltd.
HCI : The Hotel Corporation of India Limited (HCI) is a Public Limited Company wholly owned by Air India Limited and was incorporated on July 8, 1971 under the Companies Act, 1956 when Air India decided to enter the Hotel Industry in keeping with the then prevalent trend among world airlines. The objective was to offer to the passengers a better product, both at the International Airport and at other places of tourist interest, thereby also increasing tourism to India. However, in 2002-03, three properties of HCL, viz, Indo-Hokke Hotel Limited (Centaur Hotel, Rajgir), Centaur Hotel, Juhu Beach and Centaur Hotel, Mumbai airport were sold off. The remaining units of HCI are Centaur Hotel, Delhi Airport, Centaur Hotel Lakeview, Srinagar and Flight Kitchens at Delhi and Mumbai. AIR India Express : Air India Express has a fleet of seven leased and six owned B737800 aircrafts. Commencing with 26 Kerla/Gulf flights, Air India Express operations have grown and new routes have been added to the network. Currently, 57 international flights are operated on different routes. In addition, Air India Express operated five weekly flights on the Chennai / Kuala Lumpur Sector on Behalf of Air India. Effective 11 January 2007. Air India flights between India and Bahrain / Doha are being operated by Air India express will operate approximately 130 flights per week. New cities such as Tiruchirapally, Jaipur, Lucknow, Hyderabad and Kolkata are likely to be added to the network. In addition, frequencies on some of the existing routes may be increased in response to market requirements. ALLIANCE AIR : Historically Alliance Air was set up on 15.4.1996 as a separate company envisioned to function as profit centre of erstwhile Indian Airlines Limited to effectively utilize the Boeing 737 aircraft fleet and to improve productivity and profitability of India Airlines Ltd. At present, Alliance Air has taken a lease 4 ATR-42 aircraft and commenced scheduled operations in the North-East Region with effect from 2.1.2003. These aircraft have been deployed exclusively in the North-East Region in terms of MOU with the North-Eastern Council. In return, a budgetary support of Rs. 175 crores is being provided over a period of five years (annual budget of Rs. 25 crores) by the NEC during the 10th Five Year Plan. Throughout the period of the MOU, North-Eastern Council is required to facilitate Alliance Air in obtaining concessions on ATF, Landing RNFC rates, etc. whenever available. The MOU is effective from the financial year 2002-03 for a period of five years, which has now been extended for another one year i.e. December 2008. Besides the ATR aircraft, Alliance Air operates B 737-200 aircrafts on various regional/trunk routes.
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India 2010
As on 31st July 2009, the total operat ional fleet strength of Air India is 136 of which 92 are owned and 43 leased. As a part of fleet augmentation, an order for the purchase of 111 new aircraft (50 for erstwhile Air India, 18 for Air India Express and 43 for erstwhile Indian) has been placed by Air India. As a part of improvement of the infrastructure, Air India is in the process of creation of bases for new aircraft as under: l
Base for short range aircraft at Thiruvananthapuram
l
Additional base at Delhi
l
A new base at Kolkata for A319 aircraft
l
A new hangar with Annex to accommodate brand new B777 & B787 aircraft
With the growing increase in the usage of the web, Air India Offers its passengers the facility of making bookings and purchasing the tickets through the internet. Currently around 90% of the domestic tickets issued are e-tickets. For round the clock access to Air India reservations, a toll free number has been arranged to enable passengers to get the services of booking of seats / obtaining information regarding flight arrivals / departures etc Further, Call Centres have also been established at Mumbai, Delhi and Bangaluru to cater to the needs of the passengers. In appreciation of the services of Air India, the following awards have been received by NACIL during 2008 and 2009. l
Galileo Express Travel World Award for the best international west bound airline.
l
Galileo Express Travel Award - 2008 for the best short haul international airline.
l
Cargo Airline of the Year 2009
Air India has entered into joint ventures with Singapore Airline Terminal Services (SATS) for cargo handling at Bangaluru and ground handling at Hyderabad international airports. M/s. Boeing has signed MOU with Government of Maharashtra for setting up one Maintenance Repair & Overhaul (MRO) facility at Nagpur at an estimated cost of US$ 100 Million. Air India has plans to partner CIAL in setting up one MRO facility near Kochi airport. Erstwhile Air India (NACIL-A) has been registered by IATA as an IOSA Compliant Carrier. Air India has been invited to join Star Alliance (the leading global airline alliance of 21 top international carrier. Air India has been invited to join Star Alliance (the leading global airline alliance of 21 top international carriers). This will enable NACIL passengers to enjoy benefit, which includes seamless transfers while travelling across the world, choice of flights under code sharing arrangements and access to international lounges worldwide. Currently, the Star Alliance offers a network containing 912 destinations covering 159 countries. Air India has also signed an MOU with GE in February 2007 to help the airline achieve the goal of becoming an environmentally sustainable airline with proper
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991
environment programs and practices. GE would also partner NACIL to convert its headquarters into a green building through eco-friendly technologies. Air India is also in the process of setting up 3 Automatic Test Equipment (ATE) stations at Mumbai for testing/repair/maintenance/certification of avionic components installed B777 and B787 aircraft. During the year 2008, a total of 446 Haj Charter flights were operated carrying approximately 1.24 lakh pilgrims of which 262 flights were operated by Air India carrying approximately 64,000 passengers. PAWAN HANS HELICOPTERS LIMITED (PHHL) Pawan Hans Helicopters Ltd. (PHHL) an ISO 9001:2000 certified company, is one of India’s leading helicopter companies and is known for its reliable helicopter operations. The company was incorporated in 1985 with the objective of providing helicopter services to the petroleum sector, linking inaccessible areas of the country and operating charters for promotion of tourism. The Company at present has a fleet of 36 helicopters comprising SA-365N Dauphin, Dauphin AS365N3, Bell 206 L4, Bell 407 and MI-172 Helicopters. The Company has achieved flying of more than 4 lakh hours and 15 lakh landings on its fleet since its formation. The Company has achieved 26, 732 Revenue Hours and Rs. 311 crores Sales Revenue during the Financial Year 2008-09. Pawan Hans is a leader in providing offshore helicopter support in India. Its helicopters fly under a variety of conditions for carrying out ONGC tasks at Bombay High. The Company has a strong presence in the North-East having its helicopters deployed in the States of Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Sikkim and Tripura. Regular passenger services are being run under the aegis of these State Governments. A helicopter has also been provided to Ministry of Home Affairs in the North-East for VIP transportation. PHHL runs the helicopter services from Agustmuni and Phata to the Holy shrine of Kedarnath in the months of May-June and September-October every year. The Company has also deployed two Bell 407 helicopters for operations at Katra (for Mata Vaishno Devi) from April 2008 onwards. The company has provided helicopters to Andaman & Nicobar Islands and Lakshadweep Islands for inter-island helicopter services. It also meets the requirements of Government of Punjab (VIP transportation) and PSUs such as GAIL for pipelines surveillance. Pawan Hans is the largest helicopter Company in India and its operating and maintenance standards are of a high order with in-house workshops and maintenance facilities. COMMISSION OF RAILWAY SAFETY The Commission of Railway Safety deals with matters pertaining to safety in rail travel and operation, and for this purpose performs statutory functions as laid down in the Railways Act, 1989 and the rules framed thereunder. Formerly called the Railway Inspectorate, it functioned under the control of the Railway Board till May 1941 when the Inspectorate was separated from the control of Railway Board to secure its independence from the authority administering the Railways. This separation was carried out pursuant to the recommendations of a Committee called
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India 2010
the ‘Pacific Locomotive Committee’, which was endorsed by the Central Legislature. After its separation, the Inspectorate was attached to the Air Wing and placed under Department of Communications. It came under the administrative control of the Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation in May 1967, presently the Ministry of Civil Aviation. The main task of the Commission is to direct, advise and caution the railway executive through its inspectional, investigatory and advisory functions and thereby assist them in ensuring that all stipulated measures are taken in regard to the soundness of rail construction and safety in train operation. The Commission is headed by the Chief Commissioner of Railway Safety who is also the Principal Technical Adviser to the Government of India in all matters pertaining to rail safety. The headquarters of the Commission are located at Lucknow. The Chief Commissioner directs the technical activities of the Commission and issues instruction for the guidance of Commissioners of Railway Safety in respect of holding statutory inquiries into serious railway accidents, inspection of new lines including electrification of existing lines prior to their opening for public carriage of passengers and sanction for running of new locomotives/rolling stock. The Commission has 9 circle offices, viz. two with headquarters at Mumbai, three with headquarters at Kolkata and one each with headquarters at Bangaluru, New Delhi, Lucknow and Secunderabad. Each circle office is under the charge of a Commissioner. In a major development, Government of India has decided to use institution of Commission of Railway Safety for safety certification of upcoming metro rail systems to ensure uniformity in safety standard.
TOURISM Tourism has emerged as an instrument for employment generation, poverty alleviation and sustainable human development. During 2003-2004, direct employment in the tourism sector was estimated to be 21.54 million. Tourism also promotes national integration and international understanding and gives support to local handicrafts and cultural activities. Tourism in India has grown substantially over the last three decades. Foreign tourist arrivals in India recorded an increase of 13.2 per cent during the year 2005 as compared to the year 2004. India’s share in the world tourism market during the year 2005 was 0.49 per cent, as against 0.44 per cent in 2004. Foreign exchange earnings during the year 2005 were Rs. 25,172 crore as against Rs.21,828 crore in 2004. Domestic tourism plays a vital role in achieving the national objectives of promoting social and cultural cohesion and national integration. Its contribution to generation of employment is very high. With the increase in income levels and emergence of a powerful middle class, the potential for domestic tourism has grown substantially during the last few years. During the year 2004, about 366 million domestic tourist visits were made and for the year 2005 it was estimated at 382 million visits. ORGANISATION The organisations involved in the development of tourism at the Centre are Ministry of Tourism, Indian Institute of Tourism and Travel Management, National Council for Hotel Management and Catering Technology, India Tourism Development Corporation Limited, Indian Institute of Sk iing and Mountaineering and National Institute of Water Sports.
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993
The Ministry of Tourism is responsible for formulation and implementation of policies and programmes for the development of tourism within the country and for attracting foreign tourists to India by way of developing tourism infrastructure, publicity and promotion, dissemination of information, co-ordination and supervision of activities of various segments of industry such as hotels, travel agencies, tour operators, etc. There are 20 field offices of the Ministry of Tourism in India and 13 in other countries to undertake both developmental and promotional activities. While the overseas offices are in constant contact with tourists, travel intermediaries and media to promote tourism in India, the field offices in India provide facilitation services to tourists and co-ordinate with the State Governments on tourism infrastructural development. The main objectives of the overseas tourist offices are to position India in the tourism generating markets as a preferred tourism destination, to promote various Indian tourism products vis-à-vis competition faced from various destinations and to increase India’s share of the global tourism market. These objectives are met through an integrated marketing strategy and synergised promotional activities undertaken in association with the Travel Trade and State Governments. INDIA TOURISM DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION LIMITED India Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC) came into existence in October 1966 with the objective of developing and expanding tourism infrastructure in the country and thereby promoting India as a tourist destination. Working on the philosophy of public sector, ITDC succeeded in achieving its objectives by promoting the largest hotel chain in India and providing all tourist services, i.e. Accommodation, Catering, Transport, in-house Travel Agency, Duty Free Shopping, Entertainment, Publicity, Consultancy, etc., under a single window. It also offers consultancy services from concept to commissioning in the tourism field both for private as well as public sector. In pursuance of the disinvestment policy of the Government, 18 hotels have been disinvested. Keeping in view the changed scenario, the Corporation has suitably been restructured so that it continues to fulfil its original mandate for tourism development in the country. Besides consolidating and expanding its existing business areas, ITDC has made diversification into new avenues/innovative services like full-fledged Money Changer Services and Western Union Money Transfer, Training Consultancy in hospitality sector, event management and consultancy and execution of tourism and engineering projects. ITDC has been a pioneering tourism organisation which provides all the tourist services/facilities under one roof. ITDC’s present network consists of 8 Ashok Group Hotels, 7 Joint Venture Hotels including one under construction, two Restaurants (including one Airport Restaurant), 13 Transport Units, 1 Tourist Service Station, 37 Duty Free Shops at International as well as Domestic Custom Airports, 1 Tax Free outlet, 1 Sound & Light Show and 4 Catering Outlets. Besides, ITDC is also managing a Hotel at Bharatpur and a Tourist Complex at Kosi and a SEL show at Sabarmati, Ahmedabad owned by the Department of Tourism. The Ashok International Trade Division of ITDC offers world class duty free shopping facilities to international travellers at its 38 outlets, earning crucial foreign exchange for the country and showcasing Indian products to the world.
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India 2010
The Ashok Travels and Tours (ATT) handles work relating to Domestic/ International ticketing, hotel booking and tour packages, car and coach rentals, money changing services, money transfer services, overseas insurance and organising exhibitions. The Ashok Reservation and Marketing Services (ARMS) Division of ITDC, which is mainly responsible for marketing of Ashok Group of Hotels, participated in national/international events like ITB Berlin to ensure direct interaction with Foreign Tour Operators to promote various services of ITDC. The Ashok Institute of Hospitality & Tourism Management (AIH&TM) of ITDC has been associated with the pioneering efforts in human resource development for more than three decades. Awarded the ISO-9001-2000 Certification, the institute conducts 18 months Craft/Certificate courses in the field of Culinary Skill Development, besides providing training to management trainees/apprentices and organising Executive Development programmes for the officials of ITDC. Under an MOU signed with the prestigious Kurukshetra University, the AIH&TM started 4year Bachelor’s Degree Course in International Hospitality Business Management from August 2004. HOTEL MANAGEMENT AND FOOD CRAFT INSTITUTES The Ministry of Tourism has accorded high priority to the development of manpower to meet the growing needs of Hotels, Restaurants and other Hospitality-based Industries. For this purpose, 21 Institutes of Hotel Management and Catering Technology and 10 Food Craft Institutes (3 of these are now also State IHMS) have been set up in the country. In addition to the above, four more Institutes of Hotel Management are in the pipeline at Uttaranchal (Dehradun), Jharkhand (Jamshedpur), Chhattisgarh (Raipur) and Haryana (Kurukshetra). These Institutes conduct Degree courses in the field of Hotel Management, Catering Technology and Applied Nutrition and Craft Courses in Food and Beverage Services, Accommodation Operations, Dietetics and Hospital Food Service, Food Production and Patisserie, House Keeping, Front Office, etc. IHM’s Mumbai, Bangalore and Pusa (New Delhi) have started 2 Years M.Sc Hospitality courses also. Food Craft Institutes conduct Craft Courses for duration ranging from six months to one year for operational staff. All these training Institutes are affiliated to the National Council for Hotel Management Catering Technology and Applied Nutrition (NCHMCT) at apex level which regulates academics for all these Institutes. INDIAN INSTITUTE OF TOURISM AND TRAVEL MANAGEMENT The Indian Institute of Tourism and Travel Management (IITTM) located in Gwalior is an autonomous body set up to provide education in Tourism and Travel Management and to meet the demands of professionally trained people in the tourism industry. The Institute offers Bachelor degree in Tourism Management, MBA and Post-Graduate Diploma in Tourism Management courses. The Institute also organizes Executive Development Programmes, seminars and workshops related to tourism and travel management. Capacity Building for Service Providers (CBSP) : In the year 2002, the Ministry launched a programme called CBSP to train the persons engaged in small hotels, dhabas, eating joints, restaurants, etc., and also handling tourists like Immigration
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995
staff, airport staff, security/Police personnel, guides, taxi operators, bus drivers, etc. The objective was to provide short term training to improve their etiquette, behaviour and attitude towards tourists. The scope of this scheme has been further enlarged and the training programmes of 3/6 months duration have been added for skill development of existing as well as fresh service providers. Under this scheme, a new programme called 'Project Priyadarshini’ was also launched in 2005 aimed at imparting training to women in taxi driving/operation, entrepreneurship like setting up souvenir kiosks, etc, to adopt tourism as their profession. National Institute of Water Sports, Goa : The Ministry of Tourism set up the National Institute of Water Sports (NIWS) as training cum resource centre for the Water Sports Tourism Industry at Goa. The NIWS conducts and facilitates courses in various activities like sailing, scuba diving, skiing, etc. The Institute also acts as a nodal centre for water sports-oriented tourism activities in the country. HOTEL
ACCOMMODATION
The hotel sector forms one of the most important segments of the tourism industry with high potential for employment generation and foreign exchange earnings. To give impetus to this sector, the government provides concessions under EXIM Policy and other incentives. The Industrial Policy has now placed hotels and tourism related activities as a priority industry. Foreign investment and collaborations are now facilitated under the new economic policy. Automatic approval is available for foreign direct investment upto 100 per cent in Hotel and Tourism sector. CLASSIFICATION OF HOTELS UNDER THE STAR SYSTEM The Depa rtment of Tourism classifies functioning hotels under the star system into various categories from one to five-star deluxe, and Heritage (Heritage, Classic, Grand and Heritage Renaissance) and Apartment Hotels from three star to five-star deluxe, Time Share Resorts from three star to five-star and Guest Houses. The Department also reclassifies these hotels after every five years to ensure that requisite standards are maintained by them. The Hotels and Restaurants Approval and Classification Committee (HRACC) set up for the purpose has representatives drawn from Central Government, State Government and hotel and travel industry associations. HERITAGE HOTELS A Special category for classification of heritage hotels has been introduced to cover functioning hotels in palaces, havelies, castles, forts and residences built prior to 1950. As the traditional structure reflects the ambience and lifestyle of the bygone era and is immensely popular with the tourists, the scheme is aimed to bring such properties into the approved sector and this ensures that such properties, landmarks of India’s heritage are not lost due to decay and disuse. TRAVEL TRADE The Department of Tourism has a scheme of approving Travel Agents, Tour Operators, Adventure Tour Operators and Tourist Transport Operators. During 2005, keeping in view the spurt in Domestic Tourism, a new category for the recognition of Domestic Tour Operators has been introduced. The aims and objectives of this schemes are to
996
India 2010
encourage quality, standard and service in these categories so as to promote tourism in India. The Travel Trade Division also interacts with the travel trade associations like Travel Agents Association of India (TAAI), Indian Association of Tour Operators (IATO), Indian Tourist Transport Operators Associations, (ITTA), etc., and other agencies like India Convention Promotion Bureau, Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA), etc. The Travel Trade Division also deals with all matters pertaining to the regulation and training of tourist guides at Regional level and also co-ordinates with other Ministries such as Civil Aviation, Culture, Railways, Surface Transport, External Affairs and Home Affairs on various issues to improve the facilities for the tourists visiting various destinations in India. CELEBRATION OF VARIOUS TOURISM EVENTS A number of events and road shows have been organised during 2005-06 for spreading awareness about India Tourism in domestic and international tourism market to attract more tourists to India. The major events organised by the Ministry in collaboration with various State Tourism Departments are: Golf open tournament, Srinagar; Sindhu Darshan at Leh; Heritage Festival, New Delhi; All India Crafts Mela, Hyderabad; Heritage International Festival, Jaipur; India International Boat Show, Kochi; Paragliding Show and Tourism Conclave in Himachal Pradesh; Mega Folk Festival “Virasat” in Dehradun; Prithivi 05-Global Eco-Meet, Kochi; Domestic and International Photo Exhibition “A Confluence of Cultures” and Essay and Photographic competition on “What Tourism Means To Me” on World Tourism Day on 27 September (every year); India National Tourism Day on 17 March 2006; Designer’s Night Bazar, Surajkund Crafts Mela, Haryana; 3 Global Interline Golf Championship, Photo Exhibition, Eco-Tourism Marketing Meet; Mussorie (Uttarakhand), WTTC, Himalayan Run and Trek and Photo Exhibition on Hindu, Buddhist and Islamic monuments of Kashmir. The Ministry of Tourism also participated in various travel and tourism events, trade fairs and exhibitions in India and abroad. The important fairs and exhibitions are Tourism Travel Fair in New Delhi, Mumbai, Bangaluru, Chennai and SATTE (South Asia Tourism and Travel Expo), New Delhi. India Tourism offices located in 20 cities in India also participated at local important fairs. The Ministry of Tourism participated in several overseas travel and tourism trade fairs, notably World Travel Market, London; ITB (International Tourism Bourse), Berlin; Arabian Travel Market (ATM), Dubai; EIBTM, Spain; IMEX, Frankfurt; Pata Travel Mart, Malaysia; FITUR, Spain; and World Travel Fair, Shanghai. India Tourism offices located in 13 overseas cities also participated in various travel and tourism fairs. National Tourism Policy 2002 : A National Tourism Policy-2002 was announced by the Government with, inter-alia attempts to position India as a global brand to take advantage of the burgeoning global travel and trade and the vast untapped potential of India as a destination. Tourism in 10 th Five Year Plan : In order to further accelerate the development of tourism in the country, the thrusts during the 10 th Five Year Plan has been to : i) Position tourism as a major engine of economic growth; ii) Harness the direct and multiplier effects of tourism for employment generation and economic development; (iii) and provide impetus to rural tourism; iv) Provide a major thrust to domestic
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997
tourism which will act as a spring board for growth and expansion of international tourism; v) Position India as a global brand to take advantage of the burgeoning global travel and trade and the vast untapped potential of India as a destination; vi) Acknowledge the critical role of private sector with government working as an active facilitator and catalyst; vii) Create and develop integrated tourism circuits based on India’s unique civilisation, heritage and culture in partnership with states, private sector and other agencies; viii) Ensure that the tourist to India gets physically invigorated, mentally rejuvenated, culturally enriched, spiritually elevated and “feels India within him�.
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27 Water Resources WATER RESOURCES T H E Ministry of Water Resources lays down policies and programmes for development and regulation of the country’s water resources. It covers sectoral planning, coordination, policy guidelines, technical examination and technoeconomic appraisal of the projects, providing central assistance to specific projects, facilitation of external assistance and assistance in the resolution of inter-state water disputes, policy formulation, planning and guidance in respect of major, medium & minor irrigation, command area development, flood management and development of ground water resources etc. The National Water Policy, 2002 lays emphasis on integrated water resources development and management for optimal and sustainable utilization of the available surface and ground water; creation of well-developed information system; water conservation and demand management; quantity and quality aspects as well as environmental considerations; involvement of beneficiaries and stakeholders in the project planning and participatory approach in water resources management, training and research, resettlement & rehabilitation aspects of project affected persons. The Policy also encourages Private Sector Participation in planning, development and management of water resources projects for diverse uses, wherever feasible with a view to introducing innovative ideas, generating financial resources and introducing corporate management and improving service efficiency and accountability to users. WATER RESOURCES POTENTIAL The average annual water availability of the country is assessed as 1869 billion cubic metres (BCM). Of this, total utilizable water resource is assessed as 1123 BCM, out of which 690 BCM is surface water and 433 BCM replenishable ground water resources. IRRIGATION
POTENTIAL
Expansion of irrigation facilities, alongwith consolidation of the existing systems, has been the main part of the strategy for increasing production of food grains. With sustained and systematic development of irrigation, the irrigation potential through major, medium and minor irrigation projects has increased from 22.6 million hectares (mha) in 1951, when the process of planning began in India, to about 102.77 mha at the end Xth Plan. Creation of irrigation potential of 104.4 mha has been reported during 2007-08. Plan-wise irrigation potential created and utilised through major, medium and minor irrigation projects in the country is indicated below:TABLE 26.1 : PLANWISE POSITION OF IRRIGATION POTENTIAL CREATED AND UTILISED Plan
Period
Potential (cumulative) (Mha)
Pre-Plan
period
created
Potential (cumulative) utilised
(Mha)
22.60
22.60
First Plan (1951-56)
26.26
25.04
Second
29.08
27.80
Plan
(1956-61)
Water Resources
999
Third Plan (1961-66)
33.57
32.17
Annual
37.10
35.75
Fourth Plan (1969-74)
44.20
41.89
Fifth Plan (1974-78)
52.02
48.46
Annual
Plans
Plans
(1966-69)
56.61
52.64
Sixth Plan (1980-85)
(1978-80)
65.22
58.82
Seventh
Plan
76.44
68.59
Annual
Plans
(1985-90)
81.09
72.85
Eighth Plan (1992-97)
86.26
77.21
Ninth
(1997-2002)
93.95
81.00
Tenth Plan (2002-2007)
102.77
87.23
Plan
(1990-92)
MAJOR AND MEDIUM IRRIGATION PROJECTS Irrigation projects with a Culturable Command Area (CCA) between 2,000 and 10,000 hectares are classified as medium projects and those with CCA of more than 10,000 hectares as major projects. The expenditure incurred on major and medium projects and the irrigation potential created during various plan periods is indicated below:TABLE 26.2 : MAJOR AND MEDIUM IRRIGATION PROJECTS (EXPENDITURE INCURRED AND POTENTIAL CREATED) Period
Outlay/
Potential
Cumulative
expenditure
created
(mha)
(Rs crore)
(mha)
-
9.70
9.70
First Plan (1951-56)
376
2.50
12.20
Second
380
2.13
14.33
576
2.24
16.57
Pre-Plan
period
Plan
(1956-61)
Third Plan (1961-66) Annual
430
1.53
18.10
Fourth Plan (1969-74)
Plans
1,242
2.60
20.70
Fifth Plan (1974-78)
2,516
4.02
24.72
Annual
2,079
1.89
26.61
Sixth Plan (1980-85)
7,369
1.09
27.70
Seventh
Plan
11,107
2.22
29.92
Annual
Plans
5,459
0.82
30.74
21,072
2.22
32.95
Plans
(1966-69)
(1978-80)
(1985-90) (1990-92)
Eighth Plan (1992-97) Plan
(1997-2002)
42,289
4.10
37.06
Tenth Plan
Ninth
(2002-2007)
71,213
5.30*
42.35
ACCELERATED IRRIGATION BENEFITS PROGRAMME (AIBP) The Accelerated Irrigation Benefit Programme (AIBP) was launched during 19961997 to give loan assistance to the States to help them complete some of the incomplete major/medium irrigation projects which were at an advanced stage of completion
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and to create additional irrigation potential in the country. The Surface Minor Irrigation Schemes of North-Eastern States, Hilly States of Sikkim, Uttranchal, Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Koraput, Bolangir and Kalahandi Districts of Orossa have also been provided Central Loan Assistance (CLA) under this programme since 1999-2000. Grant component has been introduced in the programme from April 2004 like other Central Sector Schemes. As per the existing AIBP criteria effective from December 2006, grant amounting to 25% of the project cost for major and medium irrigation projects in non-special category States and 90% grant of the project cost for major/medium/minor irrigation projects in special category States ( including Koraput, Bolangir and Kalahandi Districts of Orossa) are provided to the selected projects. The minor irrigation schemes in non-special category States falling in drought prone/tribal areas are treated at par with special category States and are provided 90% grant of the project cost. Major and medium projects providing irrigation benefits to drought prone/tribal area and flood prone area are also eligible for 90% grant of the project cost. The State Governments have been provided an amount of about Rs. 36,534 crores as CLA/Grant under AIBP since inception of this programme till 07.07.2009 for 268 major/medium irrigation projects and 9,908 Surface Minor Irrigation Schemes. After commencement of this programme, 109 major/medium projects and 6,584 Surface MI Schemes have been reported to be completed so far. An additional irrigation potential of 5.44 million hectare has been created through major/ medium irrigation projects and an irrigation potential of 0.45 million hectare has been created through Surface MI Schemes up to March 2009. Initial budget allocation for AIBP for the year 2008-09 was of Rs. 4,300 crores. Under PM’s stimulus package, an additional allocation of Rs. 2300 crores was provided for AIBP. Thus, total allocation was of Rs. 6,600 crores. Against this allocation, the actual expenditure during the year was about Rs.7,598 crores. For the year 2009-10, budget allocation is Rs.8,000 crores. As per the existing AIBP guidelines, projects benefiting drought prone/tribal area, project included in the Prime Minister’s Relief Package for Agrarian Distress Districts of Maharashtra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Kerala and projects in the States having irrigation development below national average could be included in AIBP of the 65 major/medium projects initially included in the Prime Minister’s Relief Package for Agrarian Distressed Districts of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Maharashtra, so far 38 projects have been funded under AIBP. The grant released so far for these projects is about Rs.4,369 crores. HYDROLOGY
PROJECT
Hydrology Project Phase-II has been taken up with the assistance of International Bank of Reconstruction and Development (IBRD). Agreement for the Hydrology Project–II between the IBRD (World Bank) and Government of India was signed on 19.01.2006. The project has become effective from 5th April 2006. The duration of the project is six years and is estimated to cost Rs. 631.83 crore supported with a loan of 104.98 Million US$ from IBRD. The Ministry of Water Resources is the nodal agency for implementation of the project. A Project Coordination Secretariat has been established in the Ministry for this purpose. The objectives of the project are to extend and promote the sustained and effective use of Hydrological Information System (HIS) by all potential users concerned with water resources planning and management, both in public and private sectors, thereby
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contributing to improved productivity and cost effectiveness of water related investments. The project is being implemented in 13 States viz. Andhra Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Orissa, Tamil Nadu, Goa, Punjab, Puducherry and Himachal Pradesh and eight central agencies viz. Central Water Commission (CWC), Central Ground Water Board (CGWB), India Meteorological Department (IMD), National Institute of Hydrology (NIH), Central Water and Power Research Station (CWPRS), Ministry of Water Resources (MoWR), Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) and Bhakhra Beas Management Board (BBMB). The project is being monitored by a National Level Steering Committee (NLSC) headed by the Secretary, Ministry of Water Resources with State Secretaries/Principal Secretaries of the concerned Departments as Members. At the State level also Steering Committees have been formed and Project Coordinators have been appointed. During the year 2008, three key consultants have been appointed for Technical Assistance and Management Consultancy (TAMC), Decision Support System for Planning and Management of Water Resources (DSS-Planning) and Decision Support Consultancy for Real Time Operation of the Bhakhra and Beas System of Reservoirs (DSS-RT). The basins for DSS (P) studies have been identified in each State and necessary data is being collected and provided to DSS (P) consultants. 18 proposals of surface water and ground water domain for Purpose Driven Studies (PDS) have been finalised to be carried out by the participating agencies. WATER QUALITY ASSESSMENT AUTHORITY In view of the multiplicity of agencies involved in water management in the country, the Ministry of Environment & Forests, issued an Extraordinary Notification on 22 nd June 2001 constituting the “Water Quality Assessment Authority� with effect from 29 th May 2001. The Secretariat of the WQAA is in the Ministry of Water Resources. The Water Quality Review Committees have been constituted in the States with an objective to improve coordination amongst the Central and State agencies, review/assess schemes launched/to be launched to improve quality of water resources, review water quality data analysis and interpretation in order to identify problem areas and developing action plans for improving quality on a sustainable basis, identify hot spots for surveillance monitoring and to look into other specific miscellaneous issues related to water quality arising from time to time. Based on the recommendations of the Expert Committee and Task Force, a Gazette Notification on the Uniform Monitoring Protocol for adoption by all the water qualitymonitoring agencies has been issued in June 2005. A Working Group has also been constituted by WQAA to deal with issues relating to minimum flows in riverine systems. The draft report of the Working Group was discussed in the 6th Meeting of the WQAA held on 23.05.2008, wherein it was decided that the Group needs to carry out some more studies and to take into consideration any court directions, which are in force and where its non implementation would create legal problems. In accordance with the decisions of WQAA, the Water Quality Monitoring Committee (WQMC) was also constituted to assist the WQAA in its functions. Ten meetings of the WQMC have been held so far, the last meeting was held on 10.08.2007.
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The status of progress made by WQAA and WQMC was discussed in the 6th meeting. For preparation of Water Quality Management Plans by various State governments, the guidelines were finalized/ approved during the 6th meeting of WQAA. In order to make State Water Quality Review Committees more effective and to establish co-ordination among various agencies in the field of water quality monitoring, one workshop at national level and four workshops at regional level have been organized. A national level workshop on development of Water Quality Management Plan (WQMP) for State Water Quality Review Committees (WQRCs) was organized by the CPCB. COMMAND AREA DEVELOPMENT & WATER MANAGEMENT PROGRAMME The Centrally sponsored Command Area Development (CAD) Programme was launched in 1974-75 with the main objectives of improving the utilization of created irrigation potential and optimizing agriculture production and productivity from irrigated agriculture through a multi-disciplinary team under an Area Development Authority. Initially, 60 major and medium irrigation projects were taken up under the CAD Programme, covering a Culturable Command Area (CCA) of about 15.00 million hectare. From 1974-75 till now 314 projects with a CCA of 28.95 Million ha have been included under the programme. After inclusion of new projects, deletion of completed projects and clubbing of some projects, there are now 136 projects under implementation. The programme was restructured and renamed as Command Area Development & Water Management (CADWM) Programme w.e.f. 1-4-2004. The scheme is now being implemented as a State sector scheme during the XI Five Year Plan (2008-09 to 2011-12). The National Water Policy, 2002 stresses on participatory approach in water resources management. It has been recognized that participation of beneficiaries in water resource management will help considerably in proper upkeep of irrigation system and optimal utilization of irrigation water. The participation of farmers in the management of irrigation would promote responsibility for operation and maintenance and collection of water charges from the areas under the jurisdiction of Water Users’ Association (WUAs). A one-time functional grant is provided to the registered WUAs under the programme. Minimum contribution of 10 per cent for beneficiaries has been made mandatory in the cost of construction of field channels, full package OFD works, reclamation of water logged areas and one time functional grant to WUAs. The evaluation made in the past has revealed that the CAD Programme made positive impact on various important indicators, like increase in the irrigated area, productivity and production, irrigation efficiency etc. Despite efforts for efficient irrigation water management, the problem of water logging has surfaced in many irrigated commands. Under the component on reclamation of water logged areas, 482 schemes of nine States, namely, Bihar, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Orissa and Uttar Pradesh have been approved for reclamation of 63,566 ha. of water logged area. Out of this, an area of about 50,249 ha. has been reported to be reclaimed by these States up to March 2009. REPAIR, RENOVATION & RESTORATION (RRR) OF WATER BODIES The Government of India sanctioned a Pilot Scheme for “National Project for Repair, Renovation & Restoration (RRR) of Water Bodies directly linked to Agriculture” in
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January 2005 with an estimated cost of Rs.300 crore to be shared by Centre and State in the ratio of 3:1 proposed to be implemented during the remaining period of Xth Plan. The scheme was approved for 26 districts in 15 States, namely, Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Himachal Pradesh, J&K, Gujarat, Kerala and Maharashtra at an estimated cost of Rs. 299.92 crore (Rs. 224.94 crore Central share and Rs. 74.98 crore as State share). Against Central share of Rs. 224.94 crore, an amount of Rs. 197.30 crore has been released to the States. These projects cover 1,098 water bodies with total original Culturable Command Area (CCA) of 1.72 lakh hectares. The spillover activities of the Pilot Scheme of RRR of Water Bodies are being continued during the year 2009-2010. Physical works for restoration of 955 water bodies has been completed in the States by June 2009. With a view to expand the scheme of repair, renovation and restoration of water bodies, Government of India approved two schemes for RRR of water bodies (i) one with external assistance at a cost of Rs. 6,000 crore and (ii) the other one with domestic support at a cost of Rs. 4,000 crore. The expansion of the programme envisages improvement of water bodies, improvement of catchments areas of tank commands, increase in storage capacity of water bodies, ground water recharge, improvement in agriculture and increased availability of drinking water. Under the scheme covered by external assistance, States may take up projects for funding wherein 75% loan is taken from the World Bank and is passed on to the concerned States on back to back basis and is to be repaid by the States. The balance 25% is taken as liability of Government of India and passed on as Additional Central Assistance (100% grant) to the States for the projects. Domestic support funding is also in the ratio of 25:75 (Centre: State) for non-special category States and in the ratio of 90:10 for special category States (North East States including Sikkim, Hiimachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, J&K and undivided Koraput, Bolangir and Kalahandi (KBK) districts of Orrisa), drought prone/naxal affected/tribal areas. Under the scheme of RRR of water bodies with external assistance, the World Bank Loan Agreement has been signed with Tamil Nadu for assistance of US $ 485 million to restore 5,763 water bodies having CCA of 4 lakh hectares, with Andhra Pradesh for assistance of US $ 189 million for restoration of 3000 water bodies with a CCA of 2.5 lakh hectares, with Karnataka Govt. for assistance of US $ 64 million for restoration of 1,225 water bodies having a CCA of 0.52 lakh hectare. The Orissa project has also been signed for assistance of US $ 112 million for restoration of 900 water bodies with CCA of 1.2 lakh hectares. FLOOD
MANAGEMENT
Out of the country’s total geographical area of 329 million hactares about 45 million hactares is flood prone. Till March 2007, an area of 18.22 m ha has been provided with protection against floods by way of construction of embankments, drainage channels, town protection works and providing raised platforms. The Union Government is providing Central assistance to the flood prone States to take up some of the critical works. The Central Government is also providing Central assistance to the border and North Eastern States for taking up certain priority works. The Government of India has launched a “Flood Management Programme” as a State sector scheme, to provide Central assistance to the States during XI plan for
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taking up flood control, river management, drainage development, flood proofing and anti-sea erosion works. A network of Flood Forecasting and Warning System has been established by the Central Water Commission in State river basins and flood forecasts are being issued through 175 stations, out of which 147 are river level forecasting stations and 28 are inflow forecasting stations spread over 9 major river basins. During the flood season 2008-09, 6,675 flood forecasts (with 97% accuracy) were issued to the state Government/local administration in order to take timely action to save live stocks and public properties. Forecasts about (i) water levels likely to be attained in rivers as a result of floods and (ii) volume of inflow into reservoirs, are formulated and disseminated to various administrative authorities of Central Government, State Government and District Administration, media and other users on the basis of time data. RIVER WATER DISPUTES As per the Inter-State River Water Disputes Act, 1956 (ISRWD Act, 1956) when the water dispute arises among two or more State Governments, the Central Government receives a request under Section 3 of the Act from any of the basin States with regard to existence of water dispute. The details of such inter-State water disputes under ISRWD Act, 1956 are indicated belo w:Sl.No.
River(s)
States
Date of
Date of
Constitution of Tribunal
Award
1.
Krishna
Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka
April
1969
May
1976
2.
Godavari
Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh and Orissa
April
1969
July
1980
3.
Narmada
Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra
October
4.
Cauvery
Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Union Territory of Puducherry
June
5.
Krishna
Maharashtra, Andhra and Karnataka
April
6.
Model/ Mandovi/ Mahadayi/
Goa, Karnataka and Maharashtra
Under Constitution
7.
Vansadhara
Andhra Pradesh & Orissa
Under
Pradesh
1969
1990
2004
December 1979 Report u/s 5(2) received. 5.2.2007 Report u/s 5(2) pending -
Const.
In accordance with the said Act, the Central Government is required to refer a dispute to a Tribunal after it is satisfied that the dispute cannot be settled through negotiations. Accordingly, the water disputes, related to Cauvery and Krishna were referred to the Tribunals for adjudication in 1990 and 2004 respectively. The Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal (CWDT) passed an interim order on 25th June, 1991 and further clarificatory orders on the interim order in April 1992 and December 1995. CWDT submitted its report and decision under Section 5(2) of the
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ISRWD Act, 1956 on 5.2.2007. With submission of report and decision under Section 5(2) of the Act, Central Government and the State Governments have sought explanation and guidance from the Tribunal under Section 5(3) of the Act. The matter is under consideration of the Tribunal. Further, party States have also filed SLPs in the Hon’ble Supreme Court against the decision dated 5.2.2007 of the Tribunal and the matter is subjudice at present. The Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal (KWDT) passed orders on June 9, 2006 on the Interim Relief Application filed by the party States of Maharashtra, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh declining to give interim relief as sought in the application and at the same time indicating certain norms with a view to facilitate adjudication of the dispute before the Tribunal. Subsequently, State of Andhra Pradesh filed Interlocutory Application under Section 5(3) of the ISRWD Act, 1956 seeking further explanation/ guidance on the Order of the Tribunal of June 9, 2006 which is pending. The Tribunal in its hearing held in September and October 2006 has framed 29 issues for adjudication of the dispute before it. Further hearings of the Tribunal are continuing. In respect of Mahadayi/Mandovi and Vansadhara water disputes, the requests were received from States of Goa and Orissa in July 2002 and February 2006. In respect of Mahadayi water dispute, a view has emerged in the Ministry that the dispute cannot be settled through negotiations and action has been initiated for establishment of a Tribunal. In respect of Vansadhara river water dispute, establishment of a Tribunal is in advanced stage of implementation. Ravi & Beas Waters Tribunal (RBWT) set up in 1986 in pursuance of paragraphs 9.1 & 9.2 of Punjab Settlement (Rajiv-Longowal Accord, 1985) inter-alia to adjudicate the claims of Punjab and Haryana in Ravi-Beas waters, submitted its report on 30 t h January 1987. The Tribunal is to submit its further report to the Government on the references made by the party States and the Central Government seeking further guidance on its report. The hearings of the Tribunal have now become dependent on the outcome of a Presidential reference made on 22.07.2004 before the Hon’ble Supreme Court on Punjab Termination of Agreements Act, 2004. Sutlej Yamuna Link (SYL) Canal envisages delivering Haryana’s share of RaviBeas waters. In the matter of non-completion of SYL Canal in Punjab portion, the Hon’ble Supreme Court in a judgment of 4th June 2004, had directed the Central Government to carry out its action plan for completion of the canal. Central Government took necessary action. However, Punjab legislature on 12 th July 2004 enacted Punjab Termination of Agreements Act, 2004 terminating all agreements relating to Ravi-Beas Waters and obligations thereunder. A Presidential reference in the matter of the above Act was filed before the Hon’ble Supreme Court on 22.07.2004, outcome of which is awaited. GROUND WATER DEVELOPMENT IN THE COUNTRY The total annual replenishable ground water resources of the country have been assessed as 433 billion cubic meter (BCM). Existing gross ground water draft as on March 2004 for all uses is 231 BCM per year. The stage of ground water development is about 58%. The development of ground water in different areas of the country has not been uniform. Highly intensive development of ground water in certain areas in the country has resulted in over exploitation leading to decline in the levels of ground water and sea water intrusion in coastal areas. There is a continuous increase in dark and over-exploited areas in the country.
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As per the latest assessment of ground water resources carried out jointly by the Central Ground Water Board (CGWB) and the States, the assessment units are categorized as ‘over exploited’/‘critical’ and ‘semi-critical’ based on the stage of ground water development and the long-term water level declining trend during the past decade (1995-2004). Out of 5,723 assessment units (Blocks/Mandals/Talukas) in the country, 839 units in various States have been categorized as ‘over exploited’, i.e., the annual ground water extraction exceeds the annual replenishable resource. In addition, 226 units are ‘critical’, i.e., the stage of ground water development is above 90 per cent and less than 100 per cent of annual replenishable resource with significant decline in long term water level trend in both pre-monsoon and postmonsoon period. There are 550 semi-critical units, where the stage of ground water development is more than 70 per cent. List of these areas has been circulated to the State Pollution Control Boards and the Ministry of Environment and Forests which refer the new industries/projects falling in these areas to the Central Ground Water Authority (CGWA) for obtaining clearance for ground water withdrawal. The CGWA has so far notified 43 over-exploited areas in the country for regulation of ground water development and management. For enforcement of the regulatory directions issued under Section 5 of Environment (Protection) Act, 1986, concerned Deputy Commissioners/District Magistrates have been authorized to take necessary action in case of violation of directives of CGWA in the notified areas. For more effective regulation of ground water development and management, Advisory Committees under the Chairmanship of District Collector/Deputy Commissioners with members drawn from various organizations have been constituted which will render advice in matters pertaining to regulation of ground water development and management. The CGWA have also notified 65 over-exploited areas in various States, for registration of ground water abstraction structures, which showed a very steep decline in ground water levels and which required action for regulation. The CGWA has issued directions to the Chief Secretaries of all States having over-exploited blocks to take all necessary measures to promote/adopt artificial recharge to ground water/ rain water harvesting. The CGWA has also decided to notify more over-exploited areas in the country in compliance of its mandate following the provisions under rule 4 of the Environment (Protection) Rules, 1986. ARTIFICIAL RECHARGE OF GROUND WATER ADVISORY COUNCIL Artificial Recharge of Ground Water Advisory Council has been constituted by the Government in the year, 2006 under the Chairmanship of Hon’ble Minister of Water Resources. Main objective of the Advisory Council is to popularise the concept of artificial recharge of ground water among various stakeholders. The Advisory Council comprises of Members from the concerned Central Ministries/Departments, representatives of State Governments, Public Undertakings, financial institutions, representative of industries and renowned subject experts/farmers/NGOs. 1st meeting of Advisory Council was held in July 2006 and the second in September 2007. As per the recommendation of the Council, various action have been initiated which include:-
v
Organization of National Ground Water Congress.
v
Declaration of year 2007 as the ‘Water Year’.
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v
Implementation of 5,000 Farmers Participatory Action Research Programme (FPARP) in 25 States/UTs of the Country.
v
Institution of Ground Water Augmentation Awards & National Water Award to encourage the Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs)/Gram Panchayats/Urban Local Bodies/Institutions/Corporate Sector and Individuals.
v
Report on “more crop and income per drop of water” was prepared and follow up action on recommendation initiated.
v
Preparation of a policy on use of water for industries is under finalization in MoWR.
FARMERS PARTICIPATORY ACTION RESEARCH PROGRAMME (FPARPS)
l
During the inaugural address at the first meeting of the Artificial Recharge of Ground Water Advisory Council held on 22 nd July 2006 New Delhi, Hon’ble Prime Minister emphasized that “we have to minimize our water use, invest in science and technology to ensure that we can grow crops which use less water. In other words, find ways of valuing the crop per drop”.
l
To implement the suggestion of the Hon’ble Prime Minister, the Council approved the “More Crop and Income per Drop of Water” report for implementation through Farmers Participatory Action Research Programme (FPARP) in the country.
l
The Ministry of Water Resources has sanctioned 5,000 demonstrations under FPARPs in two to three crop seasons through 60 identified institutes which include agricultural universities, ICAR research institutes, ICRISAT and WALMIS etc. in 25 States/UTs in the country, at a cost of about Rs. 24 crores with the objective of demonstrating the technologies available to the farmers for increasing productivity and profitability of agriculture through generating synergy among water, crops and their varieties, agronomic practices, soil nutrients and implements.
l
Each programme covers a minimum of one hectare and is being implemented in a participatory mode, with the farm family having a sense of ownership of the programme.
l
More than 14,500 farmers are participating in these programmes. Till Rabi season, 2009, 4127 demonstrations (as on 30.06.2009) have been completed and 528 demonstrations are under progress.
l
The performance of the programme is being monitored by the field formations of CWC & CGWB.
GROUND WATER AUGMENTATION AWARDS & NATIONAL WATER AWARD
l
The Ministry of Water Resources instituted Bhoomijal Samvardhan Puraskars (Ground Water Augmentation Awards) including one National Water Award in the year 2007.
l
The awards aim to encourage the Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs)/ Gram Panchayats/Urban Local Bodies (for population up to 1 lakh)/ institutions/corporate sector and individuals for adopting innovative practices of ground water augmentation by rainwater harvesting and artificial recharge,
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India 2010 promoting water use efficiency, re-cycling and re-use of water and creating awareness through peoples participation in the targeted areas for sustainability of ground water resources.
l
There are 21 Ground Water Augmentation Awards (Bhoomijal Samvardhan Puraskars) for all categories taken together. Each award consists of a cash award of Rs. 1 lakh and a plaque with citation.
l
There will be one National Water Award amongst 21 award winners for best innovative practices of water conservation etc. which consists of a cash award of Rs. 10 lakh and a plaque with citation.
l
For the year 2007, Her Excellency, the President of India gave away the National Water Award to Hiware Bazar Gram Panchayat, Ahmednagar district, Maharashtra and Bhoomijal Samvardhan Puraskars to 14 Gram Panchayats/ NGOs/Local Bodies.
l
The detailed guidelines of the awards are available on the website of the Ministry of Water Resources at http://mowr.gov.in/ under Guidelines–National Water Award.
l
The nominations for Award/Puraskars as forwarded/recommended by the Nodal Department of the States/UTs are shortlisted by a Selection Committee (Jury) which comprises of a Chairperson and four expert Members.
l
For the year, 2008, these awards are proposed to be given during Valedictory Session of the National Ground Water Congress, 2009.
SCHEME ON ARTIFICIAL RECHARGE TO GROUND WATER THROUGH DUGWELLS
l
The Government has sanctioned a State Sector Scheme of ‘Artificial Recharge of Ground Water Through Dugwells’ during XI Plan amounting to Rs. 1798.71 crore for implementation in seven States namely - Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and Tamilnadu. The scheme covers 146 districts comprising 1180 over-exploited, critical and semicritical blocks in the these States.
l
The scheme envisages installation of 4.45 million ground water recharge structures in the existing irrigation wells of the farmers to facilitate large scale ground water recharge in the area, of which 2.72 million are owned by the small and marginal farmers and 1.73 million owned by other farmers. Average cost of recharge per well is Rs. 4000, which varies from Rs. 3600 in Maharashtra to Rs. 5700 in Andhra Pradesh. In order to encourage the farmers for participation in the scheme, provision has been made in the scheme for subsidy to the beneficiary farmers to the extent of 100% for the ‘marginal’ and ‘small farmers’ and 50% for ‘other’ category of farmers.
l
The recharge processes through implementation of scheme is expected interalia lead to improvement in water quality, sustainability of drinking water supplies & socio-economic conditions of the population of the affected areas. The outcome of the scheme would be evaluated through concurrent impact assessment studies by an independent agency.
l
An amount of Rs. 1499.27 has been released by the Ministry of Finance (MoF) to NABARD to be provided as subsidy to beneficiary farmers. The Ministry of
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Water Resources (MOWR) is the Nodal Ministry for the purpose of monitoring the progress of the scheme at national level and to take measures for experience sharing among all stakeholders, knowledge transfer and awareness. A National Level Programme Monitoring Committee (NPMC) has been constituted in the Ministry for the purpose. The regional offices of CGWB would provide necessary technical assistance to the States and the implementing agencies.
l
In order to implement the scheme, the States have constituted the State level th Steering Committees and identified Nodal Departments. As on 30 June, 2009, funds amounting to Rs. 173.961 crore including Rs. 156.961 crore as subsidy to the beneficiaries and 17 crore for Information, Education and Communication (IEC)/capacity building activities have been released to the concerned States. The funds could not be released to the State of Andhra Pradesh, as the implementing agency is yet to be identified by the State Government. State-wise details of funds released are given below: (Rs. in crore)
(As on 30.06.2009) Sl.
State
Fund
No.
Released
as subsidy to Farmers
1
Andhra
Pradesh
2 3 4
Madhya
5 6 7
Tamil
Fund
released
to States for IEC
Total fund released
activities
0.00
0.00
0.00
Gujarat
39.854
3.25
43.104
Karnataka
13.510
2.00
15.210
0.000
2.00
2.000
Maharashtra
9.324
2.00
11.324
Rajasthan
3.405
2.00
5.405
Pradesh
Nadu
Total
90.868
5.75
96.618
156.961
17.00
173.961
NATIONAL WATER RESOURCES COUNCIL National Water Resources Council was set up by the Government of India in March 1983. The Prime Minister is the Chairman, Union Minister of Water Resources is the Vice-Chairman, and Minister of State for Water Resources, concerned Union Ministers/ Ministers of State, Chief Ministers of all States & Lieutenant Governors/ Administrators of the Union Territories are the Members. Secretary, Ministry of Water Resources is the Secretary of the Council. NATIONAL WATER BOARD The Government of India constituted a National Water Board in September, 1990 under the Chairmanship of Secretary, Ministry of Water Resources to review the progress achieved in implementation of the National Water Policy and to report the progress to the National Water Resources Council from time to time. The Secretaries of Union Ministries of Agriculture, Rural Development, Urban Development, Surface Transport, Environment & Forests, Planning and Science & Technology, Chairman, Central Water Commission, Chief Secretaries of all States/Union Territories are its Members and Member (Water Planning & Projects), Central Water Commission is the Member Secretary. The 10 th meeting of National Water Board was held on 18 th September 2009.
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COOPERATION
(A) INDIA-NEPAL COOPERATION The Union Government is having continuous dialogue with the Government of Nepal at various levels for cooperation in the field of water resources development. A Treaty on Integrated Development of Mahakali River had been signed between the Government of India and Government of Nepal in February 1996; which came into force in June 1997. Pancheshwar Multipurpose Project on river Mahakali (known as river Sarda in India), is the centerpiece of Mahakali Treaty. India-Nepal Joint Group of Experts (JGE) has been overseeing the physical and financial progress with respect to finalization of Joint Detailed Project Report of Pancheshwar Multipurpose Project. All related field investigations have been completed and Detailed Project Report is to be finalized after resolving the pending issues; which are under discussion with Nepal. The project will have power and irrigation benefits besides incidental benefits of flood moderation. During the 3rd meeting of India-Nepal Joint Committee on Water Resources (JCWR) held from 29.09.08 to 01-10-08 at Kathmandu (Nepal), it was decided to set up Pancheshwar Development Authority (PDA) at the earliest for the development, execution and operation of Pancheshwar Multipurpose Project. During the 4th meeting of JCWR held on 12-13 March 2009 at New Delhi, draft Terms of Reference (TOR) of PDA were also discussed and it was agreed to discuss and finalize it in the next meeting of JCWR. Agreement has also been reached with Nepal to take up joint field investigations, studies and preparation of Detailed Project Report of Sapta Kosi High Dam Multipurpose Project and Sun Kosi Storage-cum-Diversion Scheme. A Joint Project Office was opened in August 2004 in Nepal for undertaking the above work. It was to complete the investigation works by February, 2007. However, because of the prevailing situation in Nepal, the field investigations have been delayed. The field works at Kosi High Dam site in Nepal, are suspended since May, 2007 due to security reasons. D u r i n g t h e 3rd meeting of JCWR held at Kathmandu on 29 th September – 1st October 2008, Nepalese side assured the Committee that security to the officers and staffs at the investigation work sites would be ensured. After the 3rd meeting of JCWR, the tenure of JPO-SKSKI was extended to June 2010 to complete the field investigations and preparation of DPR. During the 4th meeting of JCWR held on 12-13 March 2009 at New Delhi, the Indian side reiterated its request to the Nepalese side to provide security at all sites, so that the investigations may be resumed immediately to complete the works by June 2010. Nepalese side conveyed that Government of Nepal was making all possible efforts to ensure that the work would resume at the earliest at Sapta Kosi Project area. In order to rationalize the number of technical committees and to put in place an effective joint mechanism, a three tier mechanism comprising of (i) Joint Ministerial Level Commission on Water Resources (JMCWR) at the level of Ministers of Water Resources of India and Nepal, (ii) existing JCWR at the level of Secretaries (WR) of India and Nepal and (iii) Joint Standing Technical Committee (JSTC) at the level of Chairman, Ganga Flood Control Commission, Patna was agreed to, in the 3rd meeting of JCWR, held from 29 th September 2008 to 1st October 2008 at Kathmandu (Nepal). During the 4th meeting of JCWR, Terms of Reference of JMCWR was finalized.
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(B) INDIA-BHUTAN COOPERATION A scheme titled “Comprehensive Scheme for Establishment of Hydro-meteorological and Flood Forecasting Network on Rivers Common to India and Bhutan” is in operation. The network consists of 35 hydro-meteorological/meteorological stations located in Bhutan and being maintained by the Royal Government of Bhutan with funding from India. The data received from these stations are utilized in India by the Central Water Commission for formulating flood forecasts. A Joint Expert Team (JET) consisting of officials from the Government of India and Royal Government of Bhutan continuously reviews the progress and other requirements of the scheme. The matter relating to problem of floods created by the rivers originating from Bhutan and coming to India was taken up with the Royal Government of Bhutan. A Joint Group of Experts (JGE) on Flood Management has been constituted between India and Bhutan to discuss and assess the probable causes and effects of the recurring floods and erosion in the southern foothills of Bhutan and adjoining plains in India and recommend appropriate and mutually acceptable remedial measures to both Governments. The first meeting of JGE was held in Bhutan from 1st t o 5th November 2004. The JGE had series of discussions and also made field visits to some of the affected areas which included the sites prone to landslides and dolomite mining areas. Based on the discussions, the JGE felt that a more detailed technical examination is required and accordingly a Joint Technical Team (JTT) under the Chairmanship of Member (PID), North Bengal Flood Control Commission was constituted. JTT held its first meeting in April 2005. The JTT studied some sources of sediment load, nature of slides and suggested further studies and preparation of maps to be taken up for deciding remedial measures to be recommended by the JTT. Preliminary report (January 2006) of Joint Technical Team was received in MoWR during February 2006. Further, as per the decision taken in the first meeting of JGE, a five members Indian team visited Tsatichu lake in Eastern Bhutan (which was formed due to massive landslide occurred on the right bank of river Tsatichhu on 10 th September 2003) alongwith the officials of Royal Govt. of Bhutan between 18 th and 23 rd December 2006. During the joint visit, it was observed that the quantity of water in the lake at present was very small and the threat of flood to downstream areas, including Indian Territory negligible, however, it was recommended that there was a need to monitor any future developments like further landslides leading to blockade of outlet and the level of water in the lake should be monitored, specially during monsoon. Second meeting of JGE was held on February 26-27, 2008 at New Delhi. During the meeting, preliminary report (January 2006) of Joint Technical Team, report of Joint visit (December 2006) by India – Bhutan Experts Team to Tsatichu Lake in Bhutan and Permission of Royal Government of Bhutan for construction of bullheads on river Manas near Mathanguri were discussed. During the second meeting of JGE, the JTT has been reconstituted and in the modified ToR of the reconstituted JTT, some rivers/streams flowing from Bhutan into Assam to be identified by JTT based on the field visit have also been included for studies/recommendations for remedial measures. Further, during the second meeting of JGE, it has been decided to undertake another joint visit by India and Bhutan Experts Teams to the landslide dam site in 2008.
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MEA vide their letter dated 10.04.2008 have conveyed approval of the concerned authorities of Royal Government of Bhutan for construction of the said deflectors. In pursuance of MEA letter dated 10.04.2008, the permission of Royal Government of Bhutan has been conveyed to the Secretary, Water Resources Deptt., Govt. of Assam with a request to approach the local administration of Panbang block of Zhemgang District of Bhutan to undertake the construction of the deflectors vide MoWR letter dated 22.04.2008. (C) INDIA-BANGLADESH COOPERATION An Indo-Bangladesh Joint Rivers Commission (JRC) is functioning since 1972 with a view to maintain liaison in order to ensure the most effective joint effort in maximizing the benefits from common river systems which is headed by Water Resource Ministers of both the countries. A Treaty was signed by the Prime Ministers of India and Bangladesh on 12th December 1996 for the sharing of Ganga/Ganges waters. The Treaty shall remain in force for a period of thirty years to be renewable by mutual consent. A Joint Committee has been set up for implementing, joint inspections and monitoring of the sharing arrangements at Farakka in India and at Hardinge Bridge in Bangladesh for the dry season (Jan to May) every year. The 36 th meeting of the Indo-Bangladesh JRC was held at Dhaka from 19 –21 st September 2005 wherein various matters pertaining to cooperation in water resources sector with Bangladesh, including Tipaimukh Dam Project, interlinking of rivers, sharing of waters of common rivers, bank protection works, flood forecasting etc. were discussed. As per the decision taken during 36th meeting of JRC, the Hon’ble Ministers of Water Resources of India and Bangladesh along with their delegations undertook visit from 14th to 21st September 2006 to the sites of river banks protections, minor lift irrigation and drinking water schemes along the concerned common/ border rivers including a stretch of river Ichhamati, where river forms boundary between India and Bangladesh to assess the situation on the ground. During field visit and discussions, there was understanding between both sides and differences were narrowed down. There was also better appreciation and greater clarity on the issues involved. However, as some more technical details were required, agreement could not be reached. th
The Indo-Bangladesh Joint Rivers Commission (JRC) recognized that the long term sharing of waters of river Feni should also be examined along with Teesta and other six common rivers already agreed to. It was reiterated that priority should be given to sharing of water of river Teesta. The JRC also recognized that lean season flow in Teasta will not meet the needs of both the counties and hence any sharing formula of the lean season flow should be based on shared sacrifice. It was decided that further discussions on the matter will be made in the next meeting of JRC which is proposed to be held in India in due course. A new chapter in the Indo-Bangladesh relations opened up with signing of a Treaty by the Prime Minister of India and Bangladesh on 12th December 1996, on the sharing of Ganga/Ganges waters at Farakka during the lean season. As per the Treaty, the Ganges water is distributed at Farakka (which is the last control point on river Ganga in India) during lean period, from 1st January to 31 st May every year on 10 daily basis in as per the formula provided in the Treaty. The validity of treaty is 30 years. Though there is provision of review of Treaty after 5 years, no party has asked for its review so far. The sharing of water as per the Treaty is monitored by a
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Joint Committee comprising the members of Joint River Commission from Bangladesh and India. Three meetings of the Joint Committee are held every year. The Treaty is being implemented to the satisfaction of both the countries since 1997. India is providing the flood data of Farakka for Ganga (from 15 th June to 15 October) and the Flood data of Pandu, Goal Para and Dhubri for Brahmaputra and of Silchar for Barak during monsoon period (from 15 th May to 15 th October) to Bangladesh for use of their flood forecasting and warning arrangements, besides the data of river Teesta, Manu, Gumti, Jaladhaka and Torsa etc. is also provided. The transmission of flood forecasting information from India during the monsoon, which is being supplied free of cost has enabled the civil and military authorities in Bangladesh to shift the population affected by flood to safer places. th
(D) INDIA-CHINA COOPERATION In the year 2002, the Government of India had entered into an MoU with China for provision of hydrological information on Yaluzangbu/Brahmaputra river in flood season by China to India. In accordance with the provisions contained in the MoU, the Chinese side is providing hydrological information (Water level, discharge and rainfall) in respect of three stations, namely Nugesha, Yangcun and Nuxia located on river Yaluzangbu/ Brahmaputra from 1st June to 15th October every year, which is utilized in the formulation of flood forecasts by the Central Water Commission. This MoU expired in 2007. A new Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on hydrological information of the Brahmaputra/Yaluzangbu River in flood season by China to India with a validity of five years has been signed with China on 05.06.08 during the visit of Hon’ble External Affairs Minister of India to Beijing from June 4-7, 2008. Another Memorandum of Understanding has been signed during the visit of the Chinese Premier to India in April 2005 for supply of hydrological information in respect of Sutlej (Langquin zangbu), in flood season. Chinese side is providing hydrological information in respect of their Tsada station on river Sutlej (Langquin zangbu) from the monsoon of 2007. The Hon’ble President of the People’s Republic of China, paid a state visit to the Republic of India from 20 to 23 November,2006. During the visit, it was agreed to set up an expert level mechanism to discuss interaction and co-operation on provision of flood season hydrological data, emergency management and other issues regarding trans-border rivers as agreed between them. Accordingly, the two sides have set up the Joint Expert Level Mechanism. The Expert Group from Indian side is led by the Commissioner, Ministry of Water Resources, while in China, it is led by Director, International Economic and Technical Cooperation and Exchange Center, Ministry of Water Resources, People’s Republic of China. The first meeting of the Joint Expert Level Mechanism was held on 19-21 September 2007 at Beijing, wherein the issues related to bilateral co-operation on exchange of hydrological information between the two countries were discussed. The 2nd meeting of Expert Level Mechanism (ELM) on Trans-Border Rivers was held at New Delhi from 10-12th April 2008. During the meeting, work regulations of the Expert Level Mechanism were agreed and signed by the two sides. It has been agreed that the Expert Level Mechanism shall meet once a year, alternatively in China and India.
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The third meetin g of Expert Level Mechanism(ELM) was held at Beijing from 21 st to 25 th April 2009 which helped in understanding of each other’s position for smooth transmission of flood season hydrological data . INDUS WATER TREATY, 1960 Under the Indus Water Treaty, 1960, India and Pakistan have created two permanent posts of Commissioner for Indus Waters, one each in India and Pakistan, who are the representatives of the respective Governments for all matters arising out of the treaty and serve as the regular channel of communication with regard to implementation of the Treaty. The two Commissioners together form the Permanent Indus Commission (PIC). The PIC holds periodical meetings and also undertakes tours of inspection to projects/works in India and Pakistan. By way of implementation of the Treaty, the PIC held its 102 nd meeting, to exclusively discuss the issues raised by Pakistan on Baglihar Hydroelectric Project, at New Delhi. The Commission also held its 103 r d meeting in New Delhi in which issues of initial filling of Baglihar Hydroelectric Project, Kishenganga Hydroelectric Project were also discussed. In the spirit of cooperation, three tours viz. 108th, 109 th & 110 th tour of Inspection were undertaken by PIC to visit Neelum Valley in Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK), Baglihar HydroElectric Project (J&K) in India and Merala Headworks in Pakistan. As a gesture of goodwill, flood data of the rivers Chenab, Ravi, Sutlej and Tawi is being communicated to Pakistan during the period from 01.07.09 to 10.10.09 for undertaking advance flood warning measures. Keeping in view the national importance, in the year, 2008, the proposed Bursar Hydroelectric Project, Gyspa Hydroelectric Project, Ujh Multipurpose Project and Second Ravi-Beas Link Project besides Shahpurkandi Dam Project were included, in the list of National Projects to enable more effective utilization of the water resources potential available under the Treaty. Pursuant to this, efforts to identify suitable sites/ prepare DPRs are on going.
CENTRAL
ORGANISATIONS
(A) CENTRAL WATER COMMISSION The Central Water Commission (CWC) is a premier technical organisation in the country in the field of water resources since 1945. The Commission is entrusted with the responsibilities of initiating, co-ordinating and furthering schemes for control, conservation and utilisation of water resources throughout the country in consultation with the State governments concerned for purposes of flood control, irrigation, drinking water supply and hydro power development. CWC also undertakes investigation, construction and execution of any such schemes as required. The CWC is headed by a Chairman, who also holds the status of Ex-officio Secretary to the Government of India. It has three technical wings, namely, (i) Design and Research, (ii) Water Planning and Projects and (iii) River Management. Each of the wings is headed by an engineering officer designated as Member, with the Exofficio status of an Additional Secretary to the Government of India. The wings consist of organisations headed by Chief Engineers, with Directorates under them, each headed by a Director/Superintending Engineer. There are 32 organisations and 147 Directorates/ Circles under the CWC. There are thirteen regional organisations of CWC which are functioning from Bangaluru, Bhopal, Bhubaneswar, Chandigarh, Coimbatore, Delhi, Hyderabad,
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Lucknow, Nagpur, Patna, Shillong, Silliguri and Gandhi Nagar, each headed by a Chief Engineer. These organisations closely interact with the States and are entrusted with the monitoring of medium and major projects, command area development, Rehabilitation and Renovation of water bodies, minor irrigation and other water management activities, appraisal of medium projects, flood forecasting and hydrological observations. BROAD FUNCTIONS OF CWC
l
To undertake surveys and investigations, prepare designs and schemes for the development of river valleys for hydro power generation, irrigation by gravity flow or lift, flood management, environmental management, rehabilitation and resettlement, soil conservation, anti-water logging measures, reclamation of alkaline and saline soils, drainage and for drinking water supply;
l
To advise and assist the State Governments in the investigation, surveys and preparation of river valley and hydro-power development schemes;
l
To undertake construction work of any river valley development scheme on behalf of the Government of India or State Government concerned;
l
To collect, co-ordinate the collection of, publish and analyse the data relating to rainfall, runoff and temperature, silting of reservoirs, behaviour of hydraulic structures and environmental aspects etc.
l
To collect, maintain and publish statistical data relating to water resources and to act as the Central Bureau of Information relating to water resources;
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To initiate morphological studies to visualise river behaviour, bank erosion/ coastal erosion problems;
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To advise the Government of India and the concerned State Governments on the basin-wise development of water resources;
l
To advise the Government of India with regard to all matters relating to the Inter-State water disputes;
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To initiate studies on socio-agro-economic and ecological aspects of irrigation projects for the sustained development of irrigation.
(B) CENTRAL SOIL AND MATERIAL RESEARCH STATION The Central Soil & Materials Research Station (CSMRS), New Delhi is a premier organization in the field of geo-mechanics, construction materials and allied fields specifically in respect of water resources projects. The mandate of CSMRS is basic and applied research followed by consultancy and dissemination. Further, this Research Station provides technical assistance to the Departments of Central and State Governments, Public Sector Undertakings and other agencies in India and abroad, covering areas such as soil mechanics and foundation engineering including soil dynamics, geotextiles, soil chemistry and rockfill technology, concrete technology, drilling technology for sub-surface characterisation and construction materials , rock mechanics including instrumentation, engineering geophysics and numerical modelling, concrete chemistry, electronics and information technology. CSMRS has recently established Instrumentation Demonstration Centre and Numerical Modeling Unit with state-of-art equipments and softwares. It has successfully undertaken investigation on most 2000 projects in the last two and half decades and disseminated
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knowledge to several engineers and scientist working in both governmental and non-governmental organizations.
SUBORDINATE (A)
ORGANIZATIONS
CENTRAL WATER AND POWER RESEARCH STATION
The Central Water and Power Research Station (CWPRS), Khadakwasla, Pune, is the centre of excellence in hydraulic research at the national level. From its inception in 1916 as an agency dealing with the twin problems of irrigation and drainage, CWPRS is an institution of international standing in hydraulic research. The mandate of the institution encompasses undertaking specific research studies supported by necessary basic research. Comprehensive R&D support is offered to a variety of projects dealing with water resources, power and water-borne transport. Consultancy and advisory services are rendered to a variety of clients of the institution within the sphere of its activities. Disseminating expertise and research findings amongst hydraulic fraternity and promoting hydraulic research activities at other institutions by imparting training to their research manpower are also undertaken. As the regional laboratory of the Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) since 1971, CWPRS has contributed in many projects in the neighborhood as well as countries in the Middle East and Africa. . The major disciplines/laboratories of CWPRS are: River Engineering, Reservoir and Appurtenant Structures, Coastal and Offshore Engineering, Ship Hydrodynamics, Hydraulic Machinery, Earth Sciences, Mathematical Modelling, Foundation & Structures and Instrumentation & Control Engineering. About 50 Divisions - well equipped with state-of-the-art equipment, software and other high quality infrastructure – are engaged in hydraulic research at the institution within the ambit of the disciplines/laboratories mentioned above. The institution, with an interdisciplinary approach in all its activities, represents unique services available to the country and the ESCAP region. (B)
CENTRAL GROUND WATER BOARD
Central Ground Water Board (CGWB), a subordinate office of the Ministry of Water Resources, Government of India, is the national apex agency entrusted with the responsibilities of providing scientific inputs for management, exploration, monitoring, assessment, augmentation and regulation of ground water resources of the country. Central Ground Water Board was established in 1970 by renaming the Exploratory Tubewells Organization under the Ministry of Agriculture, Government of India. It was merged with the Ground Water Wing of the Geological Survey of India during 1972. Central Ground Water Board is a multi-disciplinary scientific organization consisting of Hydrogeologists, Geophysicists, Chemists, Hydrologists, Hydrometeorologists and Engineers and has its headquarters at BHUJAL BHAWAN, NH 4, Faridabad, Haryana. It is headed by the Chairman and has four main wings, namely (i) Sustainable Management & Liaison (SML), (ii) Survey, Assessment & Monitoring (SAM), (iii) Exploratory Drilling & Materials Management (ED&MM) and (iv) Training and Technology Transfer (T&TT). Each wing is headed by a Member. The administrative & financial matters of the Board are being dealt with by the Director (Administration) and Finance & Accounts Officer (FAO) respectively. The Board has 18 regional offices, each headed by a Regional Director, supported by 17 Engineering
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Divisions and 11 State Unit Offices for undertaking various field activities. The Rajiv Gandhi National Ground Water Training & Research Institute (RGNGT&RI), which coordinates the capacity building activities of the Board functions from the CGWB headquarters, Faridabad at present. Various activities related to regulation of ground water development in the country are being looked after by the Central Ground Water Authority (CGWA), constituted under the Environmental (Protection) Act, 1986. Major activities being taken up by Central Ground Water Board include macrolevel ground water management studies, exploratory drilling programme, monitoring of ground water levels and water quality through a network of ground water observation wells, comprising both large diameter open wells and purpose-built bore/tube wells (piezometers), implementation of demonstrative schemes for artificial recharge and rainwater harvesting for recharge augmentation. Periodic assessment of replenishable ground water resources of the country is carried out by the Board jointly with the concerned State Government agencies. Geophysical studies, remote sensing & GIS studies and ground water modeling studies are taken up to supplement these activities. The Board also takes up special studies on various aspects of ground water sector such as ground water depletion, sea water ingress, ground water contamination, conjunctive use of surface & ground water, water balance etc. It also organizes various capacity building activities for its personnel as well as Central/ State Government organizations engaged in various activities in ground water sector as well as mass awareness campaigns on the importance of water conservation and judicious ground water management. The data generated from various studies taken up by CGWB provide a scientific base for water resource planning by the stakeholders. Besides advising the States and other user agencies on planning and management of ground water resources, Central Ground Water Board also provides technical knowhow for scientific ground water exploration, development and management to various stakeholders. The Board regularly publishes scientific reports based on the data generated through various investigations for dissemination to the stakeholders. These include State and District hydrogeological reports, ground water year books and Atlases, ground water user maps and guides/manuals/pamphlets on various aspects of ground water management. CENTRAL GROUND WATER AUTHORITY (CGWA) Central Ground Water Authority (CGWA) has been constituted under Section 3(3) of Environment (Protection) Act of 1986 vide Ministry of Environment & Forests’ notification dated 14.1.1997 and reconstituted under MOEF notification dated 6.11.2000. Central Ground Water Authority (CGWA) was constituted under subsection (3) of Section 3 of the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986 for the purposes of regulation and control of ground water development and management in the country. The Authority is engaged in various activities related to regulation of ground water development to ensure its long-term sustainability. The CGWA is regulating withdrawal of ground water by industries/projects in over-exploited, semi-critical and critical blocks/talukas/mandals/districts through clearance of such proposals. The CGWA also conducts mass awareness and water management training programmes throughout the country as proactive measures to create awareness and capacity building in ground water management. It has also initiated action to promote roof top rainwater harvesting in the country. It has also issued directions to Chief Secretaries of all States having over-
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exploited blocks to take all necessary measures to promote/adopt artificial recharge of ground water/rain water harvesting. Various actions initiated by the CGWA for regulation and control of ground water resources in the country include issuance of directions to Group Housing Societies, Institutes, Hotels, Industries, Farm Houses, etc. in the notified areas of Delhi, Faridabad, Gurgaon and Ghaziabad and other areas of NCT Delhi where ground water table is below 8 metres from ground surface, to adopt roof top rain water harvesting system. DECENTRALIZATION OF POWERS AND FUNCTIONS OF CGWA As part of streamlining the regulatory function of Central Ground Water Authority (CGWA), District Magistrates have been appointed as authorized officers for grant of permission for extraction of ground water for drinking/domestic uses in 36 out of 43 blocks/talukas notified by CGWA in 10 States for ground water regulation. They have been advised to process the request for grant of permission for extraction of ground water for drinking/domestic purposes in notified areas as per guidelines issued by CGWA.� (C)
FARAKKA BARRAGE PROJECT
The Farakka Barrage Project was constructed for preservation and maintenance of Kolkata Port by improving the regime and navigability of the Bhagirathi-Hoogly river system. The river Bhagirathi, the feeder canal and navigation lock at Farakka form part of the Haldia-Allahabad Inland Waterway. The Principal components of the project are: (a) 2,245 metre long barrage across the Ganga with a rail-cum-road bridge necessary river training works, and a head regulator on the right side, (b) 213 metre long barrage across the river Bhagirathi at Jangipur, (c) Feeder canal of 1113 cubic metres per second (40,000 cubic feet per second) carrying capacity and 38.38 km long, taking off from the head regulator on the right of the Farakka Barrage, and (d) navigation works such as locks, lock channels, shelter basins, navigation lights and other infrastructure. Farakka Barrage Project authority also undertakes emergent anti erosion works since 2005 along the bank of the river Ganga in some of the critical reaches between Rajmahal and Jalangi. (D)
SARDAR SAROVAR CONSTRUCTION ADVISORY COMMITTEE
The Sardar Sarovar Construction Advisory Committee (SSCAC) located, at Vadodara, was constituted in 1980 as per the directive of the Narmada Water Disputes Tribunal (NWDT), for scrutiny of estimates, technical features, design and to monitor the progress of the construction activity to ensure efficient, economical and timely execution of Unit-I (Dam and Appurtenant works) and Unit – III (Hydro-Power Complex) of the Sardar Sarovar Project (SSP). The Secretary, Ministry of Water Resources, is the Chairman of the Committee. Representatives from the departments like Irrigation, Power, Revenue, Welfare etc. concerned with the construction of the project of the four party States along with their counterparts from the Government of India and the Narmada Control Authority are Members of the Committee. (e)
BANSAGAR CONTROL BOARD
The Bansagar Control Board was constituted by the Central Government in consultation with the Governments of Madhya Pradesh, Bihar and Uttar Pradesh
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with a view to ensure efficient, economical and early execution of the Bansagar Dam on Sone river, including all connected works in Madhya Pradesh but excluding the canal systems. The headquarter of the Board is at Rewa (M.P.). The Union Minister of Water Resources is the Chairman of the Board. The day-to-day activities of the Board are managed by an Executive Committee of the Board under the Chairmanship of Chairman, Central Water Commission. Funds for the project are provided by the beneficiary States of Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar in the ratio of 2:1:1. The revised estimated cost of the Dam Project is Rs.1,054.96 crore (at 1998 price level). All the Non Over Flow (NOF) blocks and both the key blocks on either sides have been completed up to top elevation RL 347.00m. All spillway blocks have been raised to crest level (EL 326.40m) in June 2000. All the construction sluices have been plugged. Spillway bridge and piers of the dam had been fully completed. The Left and Right rock fill dam have been completed. All the six saddle dams have been fully completed. All the 18 Nos. Radial Crest Gates have been erected and made operational. (F)
GANGA FLOOD CONTROL COMMISSION
Ganga Flood Control Commission with its headquarters at Patna, was established in 1972. It serves as the Secretariat and executive limb of Ganga Flood Control Board which is headed by Union Minister for Water Resources and has as it members, the Union Minister for Finance, Railways, Surface Transport and Agriculture or their representatives, Union Minister of State for Water Resources, the Chief Ministers of the basin States or their representatives and Member, Planning Commission. The Commission is headed by a Chairman who is assisted by two full-time Members. Main functions of the Commission include - preparation and updating of a comprehensive plan for flood management, techno-economic appraisal of flood management schemes, assessment of adequacy of waterways under road and rail bridges, monitoring and performance evaluation of flood management schemes, and participation in international and national committees set up by the Government of India on Ganga basin States pertaining to the subject of flood management. (G)
UPPER YAMUNA RIVER BOARD
A Memorandum of Undertaking (MoU) was signed by the Chief Ministers of Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and National Capital Territory of Delhi on 12th May 1994 regarding allocation of utilizable surface flow of Yamuna up to Okhla among the co-basin States. As per the provision in the MoU, the Upper Yamuna River Board (UYRB) with its headquarters in the National Capital Region was constituted. Upper Yamuna Review Committee (UYRC) was also constituted, for supervising the working of the UYRB to ensure implementation of the MoU regarding allocation of surface flow of Yamuna and to issue directions, as deemed necessary, for proper development. Uttarakhand has also been made Member of Upper Yamuna River Board and Upper Yamuna Review Committee subsequently. In the UYRC meeting and a special meeting held by the Hon’ble Minister (WR) on 12.04.06 and 20.12.06 respectively, an important issue in the early implementation of storage dams viz. Renuka, Kishau & Lakhwar Vyasi in Upper Yamuna Basin, was discussed. The co-basin States held differing views on the sharing of benefit and cost of these projects. In a meeting taken by Chairman, UYRB on 11 th February 2008 and other subsequent meetings in Planning Commission and Central Water Commission also, divergent views were expressed by the basis States. It was, however, decided to
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assign priority to construct these projects and further discussion on evolving the formula for sharing of costs and benefits would continue. Government of India has included aforesaid three storage projects as National Projects, for which central assistance to be provided would be 90% of the project cost of irrigation and drinking water components of the project, as grant. The projects would be eligible for the central grant after techno-economic clearance of the Detailed Project Report by the Advisory Committee of the Ministry of Water Resources on Irrigation, Flood Control & Multipurpose Projects and investment clearance by the Planning Commission. During the 34 th meeting of UYRB held on 30.12.08, the issues affecting early implementation of the projects were further discussed in an endeavour to ascertain the views of all co-basin States on sharing of cost and benefits of the three storage projects and resolve the issues. 3rd Steering Committee Meeting was held on 20.07.2009 in which the issues were discussed and some directions have been given towards early implementation of the three storage projects.
PUBLIC
SECTOR
UNDERTAKINGS
(A) WATER AND POWER CONSULTANCY SERVICES LTD (WAPCOS) INTRODUCTION WAPCOS Limited is a “MINI RATNA” Public Sector Enterprise under the aegis of the Union Ministry of Water Resources. Incorporated on June 26 th , 1969 under the Companies Act. 1956, WAPCOS has been providing consultancy services in all facets of water resources, power and infrastructure sectors in India and abroad. FIELDS OF SPECIALISATION Main fields of specialization of the company cover Irrigation and Drainage, Flood Control and Land Reclamation, River Management, Dams, Reservoir Engineering and Barrages, Integrated Agriculture Development, Watershed Management, Hydropower and Thermal Power Generation, Power Transmission and Distribution, Rural Electrification, Ground Water Exploration, Minor Irrigation, Water Supply and Sanitation (Rural and Urban), Environmental Engineering including Environmental Impact Assessment and Environmental Audit, Ports and Harbours and Inland Waterways, Rain Water Harvesting; Survey & Investigations, Human Resource Management, System Studies and Information Technology. WAPCOS has also been venturing into newer fields such as Software Development, City Development Plans, Financial Management System, Technical Education, Quality Control and Construction Supervision, Roads & Bridges. The Company has recently amended its Articles of Association to provide concept to commissioning services for developmental projects in India and abroad. RANGE OF CONSULTANCY SERVICES WAPCOS’ spectrum of services covers a wide range of activities e.g. pre-feasibility studies, feasibility studies, simulation studies, diagnostic studies, socio-economic studies, master plans and regional development plans, field investigations, detailed engineering including designs, detailed specifications, tendering process, contract and construction management, commissioning and testing, operation & maintenance, quality assurance & management, software development and human resource development.
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FINANCIAL STATUS WAPCOS has on date an authorized capital of Rs.200 lakh (Paid up Capital i.e. initial investment of Government Rs.30 lakh and issue of Bonus Shares Rs.170 lakh). PERFORMANCE DURING THE YEAR 2008-09 In the year 2008-09, the company has achieved a turnover of Rs. 20507 lakh and secured new business worth Rs. 25246 lakh. In the year 2008-09, WAPCOS attained a unique score of 1.0, which is the highest achievable score as per evaluation criteria of the MoU system of Department of Public Enterprises, Govt. of India. WAPCOS has paid a dividend of 175% of its paid-up capital for the year 2008-09, which is the highest ever since inception of the Company. REGISTRATION WITH INTERNATIONAL ORGANISATIONS AND OPERATIONS ABROAD WAPCOS have successfully completed/on-going consultancy assignments abroad in 40 countries and is registered with various international funding agencies for participating in the funded projects like World Bank/International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, African Development Bank, Asian Development Bank, Food and Agriculture Organization, International Fund for Agricultural Development, United Nations Development Program, World Health Organization, West African Development Bank, Indian Technical and Economic Cooperation (ITEC) Programme, Overseas Economic Cooperation Fund, Japan Bank for International Cooperation(JBIC) etc. Apart from India, WAPCOS is currently engaged in providing consultancy services in Afghanistan, Bhutan, Cambodia, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Laos, Lesotho, Mozambique, Rwanda, Sudan, Swaziland, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe. (B)
NATIONAL PROJECTS CONSTRUCTION CORPORATION LIMITED
National Projects Construction Corporation Limited (NPCC), a Government of India Enterprise under the aegis of Ministry of Water Resources, was incorporated in 1957 with the objective to carry out infrastructure works and other related activities for development of the nation. NPCC has executed varied nature of projects like Housing, Institutional Buildings, Commercial Complexes, Industrial Projects, Roads & Highways, Bridges and Flyovers, Silos, Irrigation & River Valley Projects, Dams & Barrages, Hydel and Thermal Power Projects etc. in India & abroad. NPCC is an ISO 9001-2000 certified public sector company and some of the important projects executed/under execution by NPCC are listed below:1.
Construction of Parli & Paras Thermal Power Projects in Maharastra.
2.
Engineering College at Ramgarh/Polytechnic College at Pakur Bahragora, Bhaga and Gola in Jharkhand.
3.
Lab. & Administrative Building for Desert Medical Research Centre (DMRC) at Jodhpur /Auditorium for Patel Chest institute at Delhi.
4.
Gagan River Protection Works at Moradabad in Uttar Pradesh.
5.
Construction of Flyover at Noida in Uttar Pradesh.
6.
Grain Silos Projects in Iraq.
7.
Chukha Hydel Projects, Bhutan.
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8.
Nahar–Saad Canal Project, Iraq.
9.
Construction of Vishakhapatnam Steel Plant Modernization of Rourkela Steel Plant in Orissa.
10.
Assam Rifles Buildings works in all States of North-East.
11.
Construction of Maneribhali Hydro–Electric Project, Uttrakhand.
12.
Jobat Dam in Madhya Pradesh.
13.
Gerua Bridge in Bihar.
14.
Construction of PMGSY Roads in Bihar , Jharkhand & Uttar Pradesh.
15.
Indo–Bangladesh Border fencing & Road works in Tripura, Mizoram, Assam & Meghalaya.
16.
Construction of Indo Tibbatan Border Road in Laddakh in J&K.
OTHER (A)
in
Andhra
Pradesh/
ORGANISATIONS
NARMADA CONTROL AUTHORITY
The Central Government framed the Narmada Water Scheme, which, among other things, constituted Narmada Control Authority and a Review Committee in 1980 for implementation of the decisions and directions of the Narmada Water Disputes Tribunal. The Narmada Control Authority, a high powered inter-action body, is headed by the Secretary, Ministry of Water Resources as the Chairman with Secretaries of the Union Ministries of Power, Environment & Forests, Social Justice & Empowerment, Tribal Affairs, Chief Secretaries of the four party States, one Executive Member and the three full time Members appointed by the Central Government and four part-time Members in-charge of department of Irrigation/Power/State Electricity Boards appointed by the party States. The Review Committee of Narmada Control Authority (RCNCA) headed by the Union Minister of Water Resources comprises of Union Minister for Environment & Forests and Chief Ministers of the party States as Members. The Secretary, Ministry of Water Resources, is the convener of the RCNCA. It may suo-moto, on the application of any party state or Secretary to the Government of India, Ministry of Environment & Forests, review any decision of the Authority. As per the decision taken by the NCA in its meeting on 8th March, 2006 for according permission to raise the height of the Sardar Sarovar Dam, the Elevation of Block No. 22 to 50 have been subsequently raised to Elevation Level (EL) 121.92 metre. The Government of Gujarat has completed the raising of Sardar Sarovar Dam Spillway blocks upto EL 121.92 m. The construction of main canal carrying water from Sardar Sarovar Dam upto Rajasthan border is completed upto 357 km length out of its total length of 458 kms in Gujarat. Completion of works in 357 km to 458 km of Canal Phase-II(B) and two major structures falling within 263 km to 357 km of Canal Phase-II (c) are in progress as on 31-3-2009. Narmada Water has reached Rajasthan on 8.3.2008 by completing one monoliths of major canal siphon works and bye-pass arrangement at khari canal siphon. Partial irrigation benefits are being realized by releasing Narmada water from the Sardar Sarovar Dam since it has been raised upto EL 121.92 m. Government of Gujarat has developed 5.41 lakh ha. of command area and Rajasthan has also developed 40,000 ha initially to utilize Narmada Waters which was reached through Narmada Main Canal with effect from
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March 2008. Drinking water supply has also started in 8215 villages and 135 urban centres including the whole of Saurashtra and fully covered of Kutchch region. All the 6 units of River Bed Power House and 5 units of Canal Head Power House have been commissioned successfully and are in operational condition. The total hydropower generated from the generating units already installed is 2317.67 million units during the year 2008-09. These energy benefits are shared by the party States as per the provisions of NWDT Award. (B)
BETWA RIVER BOARD
The Betwa River Board was constituted by the Ministry of Water Resources for efficient, economical and early execution of the Rajghat Dam Project, a joint venture of Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. The headquarter of the Board is at Jhansi (U.P.). The Union Minister for Water Resources is the Chairman of the Board. The activities of the Board are managed by the Executive Committee of the Board under the Chairmanship of Chairman, Central Water Commission. The funds for construction of the Rajghat Dam, Power House Projects and for meeting the expenses of the Office of the Board are borne by the States of Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh in equal proportion. The Rajghat Dam and Rajghat Hydro Electric Projects are inter-State projects of Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. The estimated cost of the Rajghat Dam is Rs.300.60 crore (at 2000 price level) and that of the Power House Rs.139.74 crore (at 1997 price level). The Rajghat Dam is almost complete. All the three units of Rajghat Hydro-Electric Project have been synchronized during 1999 and the power generation is continuing in all units since then. (C)
TUNGABHADRA BOARD
The Tungabhadra Board was constituted for the completion operation and maintenance of the Tungabhadra Project. The Board is responsible for the common portion of the Tungabhadra Project. The Krishna Water Disputes Tribunal has made specific provision in the Award for the use of Tungabhadra water by the States of Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. The responsibility for carrying out this specific provision relating to the use of Tungabhadra waters has been entrusted to the Tungabhadra Board by the Tribunal. The Board is regulating the water for irrigation, hydropower generation and other uses on the right bank. The Board consists of a Chairman appointed by the Government of India, one Member from Government of India and two Members from concerned States each representing Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka. An officer of the Central Government appointed as the Secretary of the Board is the Chief Executive of the Board. Funds for the functioning of the Board are provided by the two State Governments. The working table for canal-wise distribution of water to the States is prepared every year by the Tungabhadra Board in consultation with the State Governments and is reviewed from time to time during the water year. The regulation of water is carried out in accordance with the agreed working table. The power generated is shared between the States of Karnataka an d Andhra Pradesh in the ratio of 20:80. (D)
NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF HYDROLOGY
The National Institute of Hydrology (NIH), functioning since 1978, has its headquarters at Roorkee (Uttarakhand). To carry out field related research, the NIH
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has four regional centers located at Belgaum, Jammu, Kakinada and Sagar and two centers for flood management studies at Guwahati and Patna. The objectives of the Institute are: (a) to undertake, aid, promote and coordinate basic, applied and strategic research on all aspects of hydrology, contributing to sustainable water resources development in the country; (b) to act as a repository of knowledge and information, and dissemination of the same in the country; (c) to act as a center of excellence for transfer of technology, human resources development and institutional development in specialized areas of hydrology; (d) to conduct user defined, demand-driven research through consultancy in the field of hydrology and (e) to cooperate and collaborate with relevant national and international organizations in achieving the above objectives. To fulfill these objectives, the Institute has established world class laboratories in the area of nuclear applications of hydrology, water quality laboratory and remote sensing and GSI application laboratory. The Institute is presently focusing studies and R&D on the following thrust areas; hydrology of extremes, impact of land use changes on water resources, ground water modeling and management, sustainable water systems management, surface water modeling and regional hydrology and environmental hydrology. The Institute is involved in a number of nationally important water resources projects including World Bank funded Hydrology Project. The NIH is also hosting the Secretariat of INCOH, which is also the nodal agency in India for the International Hydrology Programme of UNESCO. The Institute is participating under institutional strengthening and Vertical Extension Component of the Hydrology Project Phase II (HP-II) besides, acting as the nodal agency for the implementation of DSS (Planning) for Integrated Water Resources Development and Management. (E)
BRAHMAPUTRA BOARD
The Brahmaputra Board was constituted in December, 1981 for planning and implementation of measures for the management of floods and bank erosion in the Brahmaputra and Barak Valley. The major activities of the Board are preparation of Master Plans, preparation of detailed project report of multipurpose projects, drainage development schemes and anti-erosion schemes in the valley apart from execution of schemes/projects in the North Eastern Region. The Board has already completed five Project Reports in the North Eastern Region. The Board has completed 41 Master Plans which have been approved by the Government of India and have been sent to the States for implementation. Another 3 Master Plans have also been completed and approved by the Board. Remaining 13 nos. are under various stages of preparation by Brahmaputra Board. The Board has also taken up execution of anti-erosion measures for avulsion of Brahmaputra at Dholla Hatighuli, protection of Majuli Island in Assam, anti-erosion works of Nagrijuli, Rangia town and Mukamua/Borbhag area from flood and erosion of Puthimari river, Assam. Few drainage development schemes in this region viz. Harang, Borbhag, Amjur, Singla, Jangrai, Jakaichuk & East of Barpeta have also been taken up. (F)
NATIONAL WATER DEVELOPMENT AGENCY
The Ministry of Water Resources had formulated a National Perspective Plan(NPP) in August, 1980 for Water Resources Development by transferring water from water
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surplus basins to water deficit basins/regions by Interlinking of Rivers. The NPP has two main components, i.e. the Himalayan Rivers Development Component and the Peninsular Rivers Development Component. The NPP envisages additional irrigation benefits of 35 million hectare, i.e., 25 million hectare from surplus water and 10 million hectare by increased use of ground water which will be over and above the ultimate irrigation potential of about 140 million hectare from major, medium and minor irrigation projects and 34 million KW of hydropower, apart from the benefits of flood control, navigation, water supply, fisheries, salinity, pollution control, etc. The Himalayan Component of inter-basin water transfer proposals envisages benefits directly to the States of Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Assam, West Bengal, Bihar, Jharkhand and Orissa and enrich the Peninsular Component from the surplus waters of Brahmaputra. The Peninsular Component envisages benefit to the States of Andhra Pradesh, Orissa, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Maharashtra and Gujarat. The National Water Development Agency (NWDA) was set up as a Society in 1982 to carry out surveys and investigations and to prepare feasibility reports of the links under the NPP. The NWDA carried out water balance studies of 137 basins/ sub-basins and at 71 identified diversion points and topo-sheet studies of 74 identified storages and 37 link alignments under NPP. NWDA has, after carrying out aforesaid detailed studies, identified 30 links, comprising of 16 links under Peninsular Components and 14 links under Himalayan Components for preparation of Feasibility Reports for effecting transfer of water. NWDA has completed feasibility reports of 16(14 under Peninsular and Indian portion of 2 under Himalayan component) water transfer links. Five links under Himalayan Component involve international dimensions; therefore, target for completion of feasibility report of such links cannot be given. One link under peninsular component falls entirely in Karnataka; as such concurrence of Karnataka is required. Feasibility Reports of remaining links are under progress. In December 2002, MoWR with the approval of Hon’ble Prime Minister of India has set up a Task Force on Interlinking of Rivers (TF-ILR) to suggest modalities for arriving at speedy consensus amongst the States for sharing and transfer of surplus water to deficit areas, providing guidance on norms of appraisal of individual projects in respect of economic viability, socio-economic impacts, environmental impacts and preparation of resettlement plans. Task Force had submitted two Action Plans outlining the time schedules for the completion of the feasibility studies, detailed project report, estimated cost, implementation schedule, concrete benefits and advantages of the project, etc. and possible approaches for funding, cost recovery and execution of ILR programme. The National Common Minimum Programme (NCMP) of the UPA Government envisaged that the Government would make a comprehensive assessment of the feasibility of linking the rivers of the country starting with the southern rivers in a fully consultative manner. After comprehensive assessment of feasibility of Interlinking of Rivers in the country, the Government decided that the Task Force on Interlinking of Rivers, which has submitted Action Plans I & II and completed its mandated task may be wound up. Accordingly, the Task Force was set up in December, 2004. A Special Cell working under Ministry of Water Resources, will look after the residual routine work of Task Force. Further, the Environmentalists,
Government of India has constituted a Committee Social Scientists and other experts on ILR Project
of in
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December 2004 to advise Government on Enviro nmental, Social issues, etc., and to involve them in the consultation process. The committee has held five meetings so far. The implementation of the inter-basin water transfer link schemes can be taken up in a phased manner depending on the priorities of the Government and availability of funds. But before this, certain other steps, viz., negotiations and agreements amongst the States involved in inter-basin transfer, preparation of Detailed Project Reports (DPRs), Techno-economic appraisal of DPRs and investment clearance of the schemes, funding arrangements and fixing of agencies for execution, etc., would be necessary. The links namely (i) Ken-Betwa link; (ii) Parbati-Kalisindh-Chambal link; (iii) Godavari(Polavaram) – Krishna(Vijayawada) link; (iv) Damanganga-Pinjal link; and (v) Par-Tapi-Narmada Link have been identified as priority links for consensus building amongst concerned State for taking up preparation of Detailed Project Report (DPR). The status of consensus among States on these links is given as under: KEN-BETWA LINK A tripartite MoU was signed between the Union Minister of Water Resources, Chief Ministers of Government of Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh on 25th August 2005 in the presence of Dr. Manmohan Singh, Hon’ble Prime Minister of India for preparation of DPR of Ken-Betwa link by Central Government. The works for preparation of DPR have been started by NWDA, by end of December 2008. PARBATI-KALISINDH-CHAMBAL
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Government of Madhya Pradesh & Rajasthan have agreed in principle for preparation of DPR of Parbati-Kalisindh-Chambal link and informed that MoU in this regard is under consideration and shall be submitted to the Central Government shortly. PAR-TAPI- NARMADA LINK AND DAMANGANGA – PINJAL LINK The draft MoU for taking up their DPRs was sent to the concerned states of Gujarat and Maharashtra for their concurrence during April, 2007. The concurrence of the two states has been received. Further action for signing the MOU in this regard is being taken. GODAVARI (POLAVARAM) – KRISHNA (VIJAYWADA) LINK This link is being discussed with the concerned States in ‘Consensus Group’. RIVER SYSTEM The river systems of India can be classified into four groups viz., (i) Himalayan rivers, (ii) Deccan rivers, (iii) Coastal rivers and (iv) Rivers of the inland drainage basin. The Himalayan rivers are formed by melting snow and glaciers and therefore, continuously flow throughout the year. During the monsoon months, Himalayas receive very heavy rainfall and rivers swell, causing frequent floods. The Deccan rivers on the other hand are rainfed and therefore temporal. Many of these are nonperennial. The Coastal streams, especially on the West Coast are short in length and have limited catchment areas. Most of them are non-perennial. The streams of the inland drainage basin of western Rajasthan are few and far apart. Most of them are of an ephemeral character. The main Himalayan river systems are those of the Indus and the GangaBrahmaputra-Meghna system. The Indus, which is one of the great rivers of the
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world, rises near Mansarovar in Tibet and flows through India and thereafter through Pakistan and finally falls in the Arabian Sea near Karachi. Its important tributaries flowing in Indian Territory are the Sutlej (originating in Tibet), the Beas, the Ravi, the Chenab and the Jhelum. The Ganga-Brahmaputra-Meghna is another important system of which the principal sub-basins are those of Bhagirathi and the Alaknanda, which join at Dev Prayag to form the Ganga. It traverses through Uttaranchal, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and West Bengal. Below Rajmahal hills, the Bhagirathi, which used to be the main course in the past, takes off, while the Padma continues eastward and enters Bangladesh. The Yamuna, the Ramganga, the Ghaghra, the Gandak, the Kosi, the Mahananda and the Sone are the important tributaries of the Ganga. The Chambal and the Betwa are the important sub-tributaries, which join Yamuna before it meets the Ganga. The Padma and the Brahmaputra join inside Bangladesh and continue to flow as the Padma or Ganga. The Brahmaputra rises in Tibet, where it is known as Tsangpo and runs a long distance till it crosses over into India in Arunachal Pradesh under the name of Dihang. Near Passighat, the Debang and Lohit join the river Brahmaputra and the combined river runs all along the Assam in a narrow valley. It crosses into Bangladesh downstream of Dhubri. The principal tributaries of Brahmaputra in India are the Subansiri, the Jia Bhareli, the Dhansiri, the Puthimari, the Pagladiya and the Manas. The Brahmaputra in Bangladesh receives the flow of the Teesta, etc., and finally falls into the Ganga. The Barak river, the Head stream of the Meghna, rises in the hills in Manipur. The important tributaries of the river are the Makku, the Trang, the Tuivai, the Jiri, the Sonai, the Rukni, the Katakhal, the Dhaleswari, the Langachini, the Maduva and the Jaitnga. The Barak continues in Bangladesh till the combined Ganga-Brahmaputra join it near Bhairab Bazar. In the Deccan region, most of the major river systems flowing generally in east direction fall into the Bay of Bengal. The major east flowing rivers are the Godavari, the Krishna, the Cauvery, the Mahanadi etc. the Narmada and the Tapti are major West flowing rivers. The Godavari in the southern Peninsula is the second largest river basin covering 10 per cent of the area of India. Next to it is the Krishna basin in the region, while the Mahanadi is the third largest basin. The basin of the Narmada in the uplands of the Deccan, flowing to the Arabian Sea, and of the Kaveri in the south, falling into the Bay of Bengal are about the same size, though with different character and shape. There are numerous coastal rivers, which are comparatively small. While only handful of such rivers drain into the sea near the delta of east cost, there are as many as 600 such rivers on the West Coast. A few rivers in Rajasthan do not drain into the sea. They drain into the salt lakes and get lost in the sand with no outlet to sea. Besides these, there are the desert rivers, which flow for some distance and are lost in the desert. These are the Luni, the Machhu, the Rupen, the Saraswati, the Banas, the Ghaggar and others. The entire country has been divided into twenty river basins/group of river basins comprising twelve major basins and eight composite river basins. The twelve major river basins are (1) Indus, (2) Ganga-Brahmaputra-Meghna, (3) Godavari, (4) Krishna, (5) Cauvery, (6) Mahanadi, (7) Pennar, (8) Brahmani-Baitarani, (9) Sabarmati, (10) Mahi, (11) Narmada and (12) Tapi. Each of these basins has a drainage area exceeding 20,000 sq. km.
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The eight composite river basins combining suitably together all the other remaining medium (drainage area of 2,000 to 20,000 sq.km) and small river systems (drainage area less than 2000 sq.km) for the purpose of planning and management are: (1) Subernarekha - combining Subernarekha and other small rivers between Subernarekha and Baitarani, (2) East flowing rivers between Mahanadi and Pennar; (3) East flowing rivers between Pennar and Kanyakumari; (4) Area of Inland Drainage in Rajasthan Desert; (5) West flowing rivers of Kutch and Saurashtra including Luni; (6) West flowing rivers from Tapi to Tadri; (7) West flowing rivers from Tadri to Kanyakumari and (8) Minor rivers draining into Myanmar (Burma) and Bangladesh.
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28 Welfare THE Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment is committed towards educational development, economic empowerment and social empowerment of persons belonging to Scheduled Castes, Other Backward Classes, rehabilitation of persons with disabilities, victims of drug abuse, aged etc.
CONSTITUTIONAL MEASURES NATIONAL COMMISSION FOR SCHEDULED CASTES The National Commission for Scheduled Castes, a Constitutional body monitors the safeguards provided for Scheduled Castes and also reviews issues concerning their welfare. The Commission has wide powers to protect, safeguard and promote the interests of the SCs. The Commission has been conferred powers of a civil court trying a suit, to summon and enforce the attendance of any persons from any part of India and examining on oath, receiving evidence on affidavits. The Commissioner submitted its first report on 17-7-2006. NATIONAL COMMISSION FOR SAFAI KARMACHARIS The National Commission for Safai Karmacharis, a statutory body has, inter-alia, been empowered to investigate into specific grievances as well as matters relating to implementation of programmes and schemes for welfare of Safai Karmacharis. PROTECTION OF CIVIL RIGHTS ACT, 1955 AND SCHEDULED CASTES AND SCHEDULED TRIBES (PREVENTION OF ATROCITIES) ACT, 1989 Protection of Civil Rights Act, 1955 provides for preventing any person on grounds of untouchability, from enjoying the rights accruing on account of abolition of untouchability. Provisions for legal aid to Scheduled Castes in cases relating to untouchability have been made by 22 States/Union Territories. Special Cells have been set up in 21 States for initiating and exercising supervision over prosecution for contravention of provisions of the PCR Act. 22 special Mobile Courts have been set up in Andhra Pradesh for expeditious disposal of such cases. Necessary guidelines and instructions are issued to States from time to time for effective implementation of the provisions of the PCR Act. The Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, specifies offences, which are considered as atrocities, and provides for deterrent punishments for commission of the same. Comprehensive Rules were also framed under the SCs and STs (POA) Act in 1995, which among other things provided for relief and rehabilitation of the affected people. It also envisages preventive measures, and State have to evolve schemes, among and Union Territories except Arunachal Pradesh and Nagaland have specified special courts for trial of offences under this Act. 137 Exclusive Special courts have also been set up in Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Tamilnadu and Uttar Pradesh, 11 States (Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Orissa, Tamilnadu and Uttarakhand) have been identified atrocity prone areas. Under the Centrally sponsored scheme for implementation of both the Act, State Governments are funded on 50:50 basis and Union Territories are given cent
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percent central assistance. During the year 2006-07 Rs. 36.44 crore were released to States/UTs. A Committee under the Chairpersonship of the Hon'ble Minister of Social Justice & Empowerment has been constituted for effective coordination to devise ways and means to curb offences of untouchability and atrocities against SCs and STs and their effective administration/implementation. The first meeting of the Committee was held on 18.09.2006 at New Delhi and the second meeting was also held on 15.01.2007 at Jaipur. The Inter-State Council Meeting was held on 9th December 2006 exclusively on the subject 'Offences of untouchability against Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes'. This meeting was chaired by the Hon'ble Prime Minister and attended by the Chief Ministers and other senior officials. As a follow up the Hon'ble Minister (SJ&E) had addressed a d.o. letter dated 24.4.2007 to all chief Ministers of States to ensure that the year 2007-08 turns out to be an untouchability and atrocity free year. The Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment has launched National Awards to be given to Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) or individual Human Rights Activists who have done outstanding fieldwork in the area of eradicating untouchability and in combating offences of atrocities under the Protection of Civil Rights Act, 1955 and the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989. There will be four awards every year. Award to individual activist shall carry an amount of Rs. 2.00 lakhs and Rs. 5.00 lakhs to an Institution. The Award will be given to outstanding NGOs or Human Rights Activists in each of the four regions of the country namely North, South, East and West for rendering yeomen services in the said fields. The award may be shared by more than one recipient or organization. The Award was instituted in 2006 and is given annually. The date of receipt of the nominations for the award is 31st October of the respective year. Modalities and other details of the Scheme are available at the website of the Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment. EDUCATIONAL DEVELOPMENT Pre-Matric Scholarships for Children of those engaged in Unclean Occupation : Under the Scheme, the Children of families engaged in unclean occupations such as scavenging, flaying and tanning are assisted to pursue education upto matriculation level. The scholarship is provided through State Governments and Union Territory Administrations. Central assistance is provided to the State Governments on 50:50 basis and to the Union Territory Administration on 100 per cent basis over and above their committed liability. Students amongst target groups with disabilities are also assisted. There is no income ceiling prescribed under the scheme. The scheme provides scholarship of Rs. 40 per month in classes I to V, Rs. 60 per month in classes VI to VIII and Rs. 75 per month in classes IX to X in respect of day scholar; for hostelers Rs. 300 per month in classes III to VIII and Rs. 375 per month in classes IX to X. The duration of scholarship in an academic year is ten months. The Day Scholars and hostellers are eligible for ad-hoc grant of Rs. 550 and Rs. 600 per students gap annum respectively. During 2006-07 Rs. 20.25 crores has been released to States/UTs for covering about 6.54 lakh students. Post-Matric Scholarships for SC Students : Under the scheme, financial assistance is provided to Scheduled Caste students for pursuing studies beyond matriculation
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in recognised institutions. The assistance include maintenance allowance for various categories of courses, reimbursement of compulsory non-refundable fee charged by the institutions and other allowance such as study tour charges, thesis typing/ printing charges and book grant, revisions of income ceiling to Rs. one lakh per annum for eligibility Scholarship is disbursed through respective State Governments and UT Administrations. The scheme provides for 100 per Central assistance to the State. Governments and UT Administrations over and above the perspective committed liability of the States/UTs. The committed liability of the North Eastern States has, however, been dispensed with. During the year 2006-07 an amount of Rs. 526 crores has been released to the States/UTs for covering over estimated 29.58 lakh students. Rajiv Gandhi National Fellowship Scheme : A new Scheme named Rajiv Gandhi National Fellowship (RGNF) for Scheduled Caste Students has been introduced during the current financial year 2005-06. Fellowships, in the form of financial assistance, are to be provided to students belonging to Scheduled Castes to pursue higher studies leading to award of M.Phil and Ph.D. degree. A student, belonging to Scheduled Caste registered in a regular and full time M.Phil/Ph. D course in a University/ Academic institution will be eligible for the fellowship. The fellowships will be on the same scale as that of the University Grants Commission (UGC) Junior Research Fellowships. In total, 1333 fellowships each year are to be awarded initially during 2005-06 and 2006-07. The scheme is being implemented through the University Grants Commission. An amount of Rs. 34.18 crores was released to UGC during 2006-07 under the scheme. National Overseas Scholarship and Passage Grants for Higher Education : Under this scheme assistance is provided to meritorious students for pursuing higher studies of Masters level courses, Ph.D and Post Doctoral research Programmes abroad in specified fields like Engineering, Technology and Science only. Rate of maintenance allowance was enhanced to US$ 8,200 or Pounds Sterling 5,200 per annum per candidate. The contingency allowance for books, essential apparatus, study tour charges, typing and binding of thesis, etc. was also revised to US $ 550 or Pound Sterling 400 per annum for candidates in U.K. the scheme provides for air passage, visa fee, equipment allowance, incidental expenses charged by the institution as per actual and insurance premia, etc. The awardees were permitted to undertake research/ teaching assistantship. Financial assistance under the scheme is provided for a maximum period of four years for Ph.D. research, for 3 years for Master’s Programme. Students whose family income exceeds Rs. 18,000 per month are not eligible for assistance and only one child of the same parents/guardians is eligible to get benefit under the scheme. The prospective awardees should not be more than 35 years of age. During 2006-07, Rs. 1.05 crores was disbursed to 20 students that include 17 SCs, two students from de-notified nomadic and semi-nomadic tribe and one student from landless agricultural labourers and traditional artisans. Upgradation of Merit for SC Students : The main objective of the scheme is to upgrade the merit of Scheduled Caste students by providing them with facilities for all-round development through education in residential schools. The scheme provides for 100 per cent Central assistance to States/UTs for arrangement of remedial and special coaching for SC students studying in class IX to XII. Financial assistance is provided to students as package grant of Rs. 15,000 per year per student, out of which Rs. 5,000 is for boarding and lodging, Rs. 1,000 for pocket expenses, Rs. 2,000 for books and
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stationery and Rs. 7,000 as an honorarium to Principals/experts involved in providing the remedial/special coaching. SC students with disability enjoy additional benefits. During the year 2006-07 Rs. 3.00 crores were released to the States/UTs. Coaching and Allied Scheme for Weaker Sections including SCs, OBCs and Minorities : The scheme aimed to equip aspiring students for preparing them for various competitive exams. Aspiring students take their guidance and coaching from the centers run by State Governments/UTs, Universities and NGOs. These centres are extended Central assistance to provide coaching to students. During 2006-07, Rs. 3.91 crores was released to the implementing agencies in pre-revised schemes. Hostels for Scheduled Caste Boys and Girls : The objective of the Scheme is to provide hostel facilities to SC Boys and Girls studying in middle schools, higher secondary schools, colleges and Universities. The financial assistance is provided for construction of hostels. The maintenance of hostel, boarding and lodging of students, however, rest with the respective States/UTs. The Scheme provides for release of Central Assistance to State Govts. on 50:50 matching share basis and 100% to UTs and also 90% to Central Universities. Other Universities can also get Central Assistance upto 45% and the remaining amount has to be provided by their respective States (45%) and themselves 10%. The NGOs also get assistance on the basis of 45:45:10 through their States/UTs for extension of their existing hostels. During the year 2006-07 Rs. 25.23 crores was released for construction of 109 boys hostel and Rs. 28.811 crore for construction of 204 girls hostels. DR. AMBEDKAR FOUNDATION The main objective of the Foundation is to propagate the ideology and message of Baba Saheb Dr. B.R. Ambedkar among the masses in India as well as abroad. The following were achievements under different schemes during the year. A sum of Rs. 6.25 lakhs was released for benefiting 25 persons under Dr. Ambedkar Medical Scheme. A sum of Rs. 58.39 lakhs were released for maintenance of Dr. Ambedkar Chairs in Universities/Institutions for research for the year 2006-07. The Foundation also published collected works in Tamil and Urdu under Samajik Samta Kendra Yojana. ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT Special Central Assistance to Scheduled Castes Sub Plan (SCSP) : Under Special Central Assistance (SCA) to Scheduled Castes Sub Plan (SCSP) (earlier known as SCP), cent percent assistance is provided to State and Union territories as an additive to their Special Component Plans. The assistance would be used to give an added thrust to the development programmes for SC persons living below poverty line. During the year 2006-07 Rs. 459.15 crores was released to States/UTs. National Scheduled Castes Finance and Development Corporation : The National Scheduled Castes Finance and Development Corporation (NSFDC) provides concessional finance for employment generation to the persons belonging to the Scheduled Castes living below double the poverty line (i.e. Rs. 40,000 p.a. in rural areas and Rs. 55,000 p.a. in urban areas), skill development through training, entrepreneurial development and innovative projects. The Corporation is also implementing ‘Mahila Samridhi Yojana’ The Corporation has assisted 53,315 beneficiaries during the year 2005-06.
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National Safai Karamcharis Finance and Development Corporation : National Safai Karamcharis Finance and Development Corporation (NSKFDC) extends concessional finance assistance to the Safai Karamcharies beneficiaries for establishments ‘Mahila Samridhi Yojana’. The Corporation has assisted 77,970 beneficiaries during 2006-07. State Scheduled Castes Development Corporation : State Scheduled Castes Development Corporation (SCDCs) are functioning in 26 States/Union Territories. The Central Government contributes 49 per cent to the authorised share capital of the SCDC’s against the 51 per cent contributed by the State Government. During the year 2005-06 Rs. 16,902 lakhs was released as Government of India’s contribution to benefit anticipated 77,970 beneficiaries. Scheme for Rehabilitation of Manual Scavengers : A new Self Employment Scheme for Rehabilitation, of Manual Scavengers (SRMS) was launched from January 2007 for rehabilitation of scavengers and their dependents by March, 2009 with total expenditure of Rs. 735.60 crores. The Central Government has released Rs. 56.00 crores during 2006-07 to NSKFDC as Grant in aid for implementation of the scheme. Voluntary Organisations Working for Scheduled Castes : The objective of the scheme is to utilise the services of capable and reliable voluntary organisations in the process of social-economic development of scheduled casts. Under this scheme, grant-in-aid is given to the voluntary organisations to the extent of 90 per cent of each project cost for activities such as general/technical/vocational education including preschool education, medical centers, dispensaries and income generating activities.
DEVELOPMENT OF SCHEDULED TRIBES The tribal people of India, who come under the category of ‘Scheduled Tribes’ (STs) in terms of the provisions of the Constitution of India, number 8.43 crore--constituting 8.2 per cent of the population of the country (Census 2001). Scheduled Areas and Tribal Areas : Scheduled Tribes live in contiguous areas unlike other communities. It is, therefore, much simpler to have an area-approach for development activities and also regulatory provisions to protect their interests. In order to protect the interests of Scheduled Tribes with regard to land alienation and other social factors, provisions of ‘‘Fifth Schedule and" ‘‘Sixth Schedule" have been enshrined in the Constitution. The Fifth Schedule under Article 244(1) of Constitution defines ‘‘Scheduled Areas" as such areas as the President may by Order declare to be Scheduled Areas after consultation with the Governor of the State. The Sixth Schedule under Article 244 (2) of the Constitution relates to those areas in the States of Assam, Mehalaya, Tripura and Mizoram which are declared as ‘‘Tribal Areas"and provides for District Councils and/or Regional Councils for such Areas. These Councils have been conferred with wide ranging legislative, judicial and executive powers. The Fifth Schedule Areas : The criteria for declaring any area as a ‘‘Scheduled Area" under the Fifth Schedule are : (a) Preponderance of tribal population, (b) Compactness and reasonable size of the area, (c) A viable administrative entity such as a district, block or taluk, and (d) Economic backwardness of the area as compared to neighbouring areas.
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The specification of ‘‘Scheduled Areas’’ in relation to a State is by a notified Order of the President, after consultation with the State Governments concerned. The same applies for altering, increasing, decreasing, incorporating new areas, or rescinding any Orders relating to ‘‘Scheduled Areas’’. The advantages of Scheduled Areas are that : (a) The Governor of a state, which has Scheduled Areas, is empowered to make regulations in respect of the following: (i) Prohibit or restrict transfer of land from tribal people; (ii) Regulate the business of money lending to the members of Scheduled Tribes. In making any such regulation, the Governor may repeal or amend any Act of Parliament or of the Legislature of the State, which is applicable to the area in question. (b) The Governor may be public notification direct that any particular Act of Parliament or of the Legislature of the State, shall not apply to a Scheduled Area or any part thereof in the State or shall apply to such area subject to such exceptions and modifications as he may specify. (c) The Governor of a State having Scheduled Areas therein, shall annually, or whenever so required by the President of India, make a report to the President regarding the administration of the Scheduled Areas in that State and the executive power of the Union shall extend to the giving of directions to the State as to the administration of the said area. (d) Tribes Advisory Council (TAC) shall be established in States having Scheduled Areas. The role of TAC is to advise the State Government on matters pertaining to the welfare and advancement of the Scheduled Tribes in the State as may be referred to it by the Governor. The TAC will consist of not more than twenty members of whom about 3/4 are from ST-MLAs. (The TAC may also be established in any State having Scheduled Tribes but not Scheduled Areas on the direction of the President of India. (e) The Provisions of the Panchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act, 1996 (PESA), vide which the provisions of Panchayats, contained in Part IX of the Constitution, were extended to Scheduled Areas, also contain special provisions for the benefit of Scheduled Tribes. The Sixth Schedule - Tribal Areas : The Sixth Schedule under Article 244 of the Constitution identifies Autonomous districts in the Tribal Areas in the states of Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram. It also makes provisions for recognition of Autonomous Regions within these Autonomous Districts. These have been specified in Parts I, II, IIA & III of the table appended to paragraph 20 of the Sixth Schedule. In other words, areas where provisions of Sixth Schedule are applicable are known as Tribal Areas. The State-wise details of Tribal Areas are as under :Part-I
Part II
Assam
Meghalaya
1.
The North Cachar Hills District
2.
The Karbi-Anglong District
3.
The Bodo Land Territorial Area Districts
1.
Khasi Hills District
2.
Jaintia Hills District
3.
The Garo Hills District
Part IIA
Tripura
Tripura Tribal Areas District
Part III
Mizoram
1.
The Chakma District
2.
The Mara District
3.
The Lai District
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1035
The administration of Autonomous Districts and Autonomous Regions is done through District Councils/Regional Councils. These Councils are elected bodies and have powers of legislation, administration of justice apart from executive, developmental and financial responsibilities. The District or Regional Councils are empowered to make rules with the approval of the Governor with regard to matters like establishment, construction or management of primary schools, dispensaries, markets, cattle ponds, ferries, fisheries, roads, road transport and waterways in the district. The Autonomous Councils of the North Cachar Hills and Karbi Anglong have been granted additional powers to make laws with respect to other matters like secondary education, agriculture, social security and social insurance, public health and sanitation, minor irrigation, etc. The Councils have also been conferred powers under the Civil Procedure Code and Criminal Procedure Code for trial of certain suits and offences, as also the powers of a revenue authority for their area for collection of revenue and taxes and other powers for the regulation and management of natural resources. PROCEDURE FOR DECLARATION AS ST The term Scheduled Tribes is defined in the Constitution of India under Article 366(25) as such tribes or tribal communities or parts of groups within such tribes or tribal communities as are deemed under Article 342 to be Scheduled Tribes for the purposes of this Constitution. Article 342 prescribes the procedure to be followed in the matter of specification of Scheduled Tribes. In terms of Article 342(1), the President may, with respect to any State or Union Territory, and where it is State, after consultation with the Governor thereof, notify tribes or tribal communities or parts thereof as Scheduled Tribes. This confers on the tribe or part of it a Constitutional status invoking the safeguards provided for in the Constitution, to these communities in their respective States/UTs. Thus, in terms of Article 342(1), only those communities who have been declared as such by the President through an initial public notification will be considered as Scheduled Tribes. Any further amendment in the list is to be done through an Act of Parliament (Article 342(2)). Parliament may, by law, include in or exclude from the list of Scheduled Tribes, any tribe or tribal community or parts of thereof. The list of Scheduled Tribes is State-specific. In other words, a community declared as Scheduled Tribe in one State need not be so in another State. SCHEDULING AND DE-SCHEDULING OF TRIBES Thus, the first specification of Scheduled Tribes in relation to a particular State/ Union Territory is by a notified order of the President, after consultation with the State Governments concerned. The above Article also provides for listing of Scheduled Tribes State-wise/UT-wise and not on an all-India basis. The criteria generally adopted for specification of a community as a Scheduled Tribe are : (a) indications of primitive traits; (b) distinctive culture; (c) shyness of contact with the community at large; (d) geographical isolation i.e. backwardness. These are not spelt out in the Constitution but have become well established. They take into account the definitions in the 1931 Census, the reports of the first Backward Classes Commission (Kalelkar) 1955, the Advisory Committee on Revision of SC/ ST lists (Lokur Committee) 1965 and the Joint Committee of Parliament on the
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Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Orders (Amendment) Bill, 1967 (Chanda Committee) 1969. There are over 700 tribes (with many of them overlapping in more than one State) as notified under Article 342 of the Constitution of India, spread over different States and Union Territories of the country. It is worth noting that no community has been specified as a Scheduled tribe in relation to the States of Haryana and Punjab and the Union Territories of Chandigarh, Delhi and Puducherry. ASCERTAINING ST STATUS OF INDIVIDUALS General Where a person claims to belong to a Scheduled tribe by birth, it should be verified: (a) that the person and his parents actually belong to the community claimed; (b) that the community is included in the Presidential Order specifying the Scheduled Tribes in relation to the concerned State; (c) that the person belongs to that State and the area within that State in respect of which the community has been scheduled; (d) he may profess any religion; (e) that he or his parents/grandparents, etc., should be permanent resident of the State/UT on the date of notification of the Presidential Order applicable in his case; (f) a person who is temporarily away from his permanent place of residence at the time of the notification of the Presidential Order--applicable in his case, say for example to earn a living or seek education, etc. can also be regarded as a Scheduled Tribe, if his tribe has been specified in that order in relation to his home State/Union Territory; (g) but he cannot be treated as such in relation to the place of his temporary residence notwithstanding the fact that the name of his tribe has been scheduled in respect of that State where he is temporarily settled, in any Presidential Order; (h) in the case of persons born after the date of notification of the relevant Presidential Order, the place of residence for the purpose of acquiring Scheduled Tribe status, is the place of permanent abode of their parents at the time of the notification of the Presidential Order under which they claim to belong to such a tribe. This does not apply to the STs of the Lakhadweep Islands for whom there is a requirement of being born in the U.T. in order to be eligible for ST status. Scheduled Tribe claims on migration i)
Where a person migrates from the portion of the State in which his/her community is scheduled, to another part of the same State in respect of which his/her community is not scheduled, the person will continue tobe deemed to be a member of the Scheduled Tribe, in relation to that State
ii)
Where a person migrates from one State to another, he can claim to belong to a Scheduled Tribe only in relation to the State to which he originally belonged and not in respect of the State to which he has migrated.
Scheduled Tribe claims through marriages The guiding principle is that no person who is not a Scheduled Tribe by birth will be deemed to be a member of Scheduled Tribe merely because he or she has married a person belonging to a Scheduled Tribe. Similarly a person who is a member of a Scheduled Tribe will continue to be a member of that Scheduled Tribe, even after his or her marriage with a person who does not belong to a Scheduled Tribe.
Welfare
1037
Issue of Scheduled Tribe certificates The candidates belonging to Scheduled Tribes may get Scheduled Tribe certificates, in the prescribed form, from any one of the following authorities: (1) District Magistrate/Additional District Magistrate/Collector/Deputy Commissioner/ Additional Deputy Commissioner/Deputy Collector/1st Class Stipendiary Magistrate/City Magistrate/Sub Divisional Magistrate/Taluka Magistrate/Executive Magistrate/Extra Assistant Commissioner [not below the rank of 1st Class Stipendiary Magistrate]. (2) Chief Presidency Magistrate/Additional Chief Presidency Magistrate/Presidency Magistrate. (3) Revenue Officers not below the rank of Tehsildar. (4) Sub-Divisional Officer of the Area where the candidate and/or his family normally resides. (5) Administrator/Secretary to the Administrator/ Development Officer [Lakshadweep Islands]. Punishments for officials issuing Scheduled Tribe Certificates without proper verification Action is to be taken under the relevant provisions of the Indian Penal Code if any official is found to have issued a Scheduled tribe certificate carelessly and without proper verification. This will be in addition to other action to which they are liable under the appropriate disciplinary rules applicable to them. Liberalization of procedure for issue of Scheduled Tribe certificates to migrants from other States/Union Territories. Persons belonging to a Scheduled Tribe who have migrated from one State to another for the purpose of employment, education etc. experience great difficulty in obtaining ST certificates from the State from which they have migrated. In order to remove this difficulty, it has been decided that the prescribed authority of a State Government/ Union Territory Administration may issue a Scheduled Tribe certificate to a person who migrated from another state, on the production of the genuine certificate issued to his father/mother by the prescribed authority of the State of the father/mother’s origin except where the prescribed authority feels that a detailed enquiry is necessary through the state of origin before issue of the certificate. The certificate will be issued irrespective of whether the tribe in question is scheduled or not in relation to the State/Union Territory to which the person has migrated to. Procedure for inclusion in or exclusion from the list of Scheduled Tribes In June 1999, the Government approved modalities for deciding claims for inclusion in, or exclusion from, the lists of Scheduled Tribes. According to these approved guidelines, only those claims that have been agreed to by the concerned State Government, the Registrar General of India and the National Commission for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes will be taken up for consideration. Whenever representations are received in the Ministry for inclusion of any community in the list of Scheduled Tribes of a State/UT, the Ministry forwards that representation to the concerned State Government/UT Administration for recommendation as required under Article 342 of the Constitution. If the concerned State Government recommends the proposal, then the same is sent to the Registrar General of India (RGI). If RGI is satisfied with recommendation of the State Government and recommends the proposal to the Central Government, the Government refers the proposal to the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes for their recommendation. If the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes also recommends the case, the
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matter is processed for the decision of the cabinet after consulting the concerned administrative Ministries. Thereafter the matter is put up before the Parliament in the form of a Bill to amend the Presidential Order. GENERAL STATISTICS According to the 2001 Census, the population of Scheduled Tribes in the country was 8.43 crore - i.e., constituting 8.2 per cent of the total population of the country. DEMOGRAPHIC STATISTICS : 2001 CENSUS S. No. India/State
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33
Mizoram Lakshadweep Nagaland Meghalaya Arunachal Pradesh Dadra and Nagar Haveli Manipur Chhattisgarh Tripura Jharkhand Orissa Sikkim Madhya Pradesh Gujarat Rajasthan Assam J&K Maharashtra Daman and Diu Andaman and Nicobar Andhra Pradesh Karnataka West Bengal Himachal Pradesh Uttarakhand Kerala Tamilnadu Bihar Uttar Pradesh Goa Haryana Punjab Chandigarh
34
Delhi
35
Puducherry India
Total population
ST Population
888,573 60,650 1,990,036 2,318,822 1,097,968 220,490 2,166,788 20,833,803 3,199,203 26,945,829 36,804,660 540,851 60,348,023 50,671,017 56,507,188 26,655,528 10,143,700 96,878,627 158,204 356,152 76,210,007 52,850,562 80,176,197 6,077,900 8,489,349 31,841,374 62,405,679 82,998,509 166,197,921 1,347,668 21,144,564 24,358,999 900,635
839,310 57,321 1,774,026 1,992,862 705,158 137,225 741,141 6,616,596 993,426 7,087,068 8,145,081 111,405 12,233,474 7,481,160 7,097,706 3,308,570 1,105,979 8,577,276 13,997 29,469 5,024,104 3,463,986 4,406,794 244,587 256,129 364,189 651,321 758,351 107,963 566 0 0 0
Percentage of STs to total population in the State 94.5 94.5 89.1 85.9 64.2 62.2 34.2 31.8 31.1 26.3 22.1 20.6 20.3 14.8 12.6 12.4 10.9 8.9 8.8 8.3 6.6 6.6 5.5 4.0 3.0 1.1 1.0 0.9 0.1 0 0 0 0
13,850,507
0
0
974,345
0
0
1,028,610,328
84,326,240
8.2
Welfare
1039
The tribal population are normally seen to be living in the following three categories of locations: 1. 2.
3.
North-Eastern
Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya,
Region (NER)
Mizoram, Nagaland, Tripura and Sikkim
Central Tribal
Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh,
Belt (CTB)
Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh, Orissa, Bihar, Jharkhand West Bengal, Dadra and Nagar Haveli, and Daman and Diu
Other States/
Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Karnataka,
UTs
J and K, Tamilnadu, Kerala, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and Lakshadweep.
The Tribal communities live in about 15 per cent of the country’s area, in varying ecological and geo-climatic conditions, plains, forests, hills and inaccessible areas. Tribal groups are at different stages of social, economic and educational development. They have their presence in the States and Union Territories except Haryana, Punjab, Chandigarh, Delhi and Puducherry. The predominant tribal-populated States of the country (i.e., those with tribal population of more than 50 per cent of the total population of the State are: Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Union territories of Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Lakshadweep. If a comparison is made amongst ST population alone, more than half the ST population of the country is concentrated in the States of Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra, Orissa, Jharkhand and Gujarat. The largest number of tribes (i.e. 62) are in the State of Orissa. The next major concentration is in the North-Eastern States. Primitive Tribal Groups (PTGs) : While some tribal communities have adopted a mainstream way of life at one of the spectrum, there are 75 Primitive Tribal Groups (PTGs) in 17 States and Union Territories of Andaman and Nicobar Islands, who are characterized by:- (a) a pre-agriculture level of technology, (b) a stagnant or declining population, (c) extremely low literacy, and (d) a subsistence level of economy. Their total population as per the 1991 census was about 24.12 lakh. Most of these groups are small in number, have attained various levels of social and economic progress and generally live in remote habitat, with poor administrative and infrastructure back up. Population Profile: Many indicators in respect of Scheduled Tribes like their demography, sex-ratio, education, livelihood profile, health profile have been compiled periodically through the Census operations or by the National Sample Survey Organisation (NSSO) or the Central Statistical Organisation (CSO). The population of Scheduled Tribes has been on the increase since 1961. The census reveals that the tribal population had grown at the rate of 24.45 per cent during the period 1991-2001. The decadal population growth between the Census Year 1981 to 1991 in respect of the tribal population had been higher (31.64 per cent) than that for the overall population (23.51 per cent). However during census years 1991 to 2001 it had been 24.45 per cent against the growth rate of 22.66 per cent for the entire population. As compared to the sex ratio for the overall population (933 females per 1000 male), the sex ratio among Scheduled Tribes is more favourable, at 978 females per 1,000 males (2001 census).
1040
India 2010
Literacy: The literacy rate for overall population has increased from 52.2 per cent to 65.38 per cent between 1991 to 2001. In case of Scheduled Tribes the increase in literacy has been from 29.62 per cent to 47.10 per cent. The literacy rate among tribals (47.10 per cent) is however far below the overall literacy in the country (64.8 per cent). The female literacy rate among tribals during the period 1991 to 2001 increased from 18.2 per cent to 34.8 per cent which is lower by approximately 20 per cent as compared to literacy rate of the females of the general population. However, the significant point is the increase in the total as well as the female literacy among tribals. These disparities are compounded by higher dropout rates in formal education, resulting in a disproportionately low representation in higher education. Job profile: According to the 1991 Census figures, 42.02 per cent of the ST population were main workers, of whom 54.50 per cent were cultivators and 36.09 per cent agricultural labourers. Thus, about 82 per cent of the main workers from these communities were engaged in primary sector activities. Indicators of Backwardness: Not surprisingly, the cumulative effect has been that the proportion of Scheduled Tribes below the poverty line is substantially higher than the national average. A majority of Scheduled Tribes continue to live below the poverty line, have poor literacy rates, suffer from malnutrition and diseases and are vulnerable to displacement. The Central Government and the State Governments have been implementing schemes/programmes for the upliftment of STs like reservation in Services, Tribal Sub-Plans, Central Schemes, Centrally Sponsored Schemes, etc. However, a lot more is required to be done to achieve the desired development goals for STs. DEVELOPMENT OF STs We have seen that the HDI (Human Development Indices) of tribal population is quite low as compared to the rest of the population. This is mainly because they live in clusters generally in far flung areas, which are remote or in the vicinity of forests. The development programmes meant for the general public often elude the tribal population for the reasons of inaccessibility and difficult terrain. Nevertheless the Government of India and the State Governments have taken a number of measures over the years to improve the conditions of STs and for their development. But a lot more needs to be done. This emphasis on development of STs is quite visible in the Agenda Items of the National Common Minimum Programme (NCMP) adopted by the Central Government in May 2004. TRIBAL SUB-PLAN (TSP) Upgradation of administration through the innovative strategy of the Tribal SubPlan (TSP) for STs was launched at the beginning of the 5th Five Year Plan in 1974-75, covering 21 States and 2 U.T.S., where Scheduled Tribes constitute a sizeable population. This special strategy was expected to ensure that all the general development sectors, both at the Central and State levels, earmark funds for STs in proportion to their population so that adequate benefits from all the concerned sectors flow to this disadvantaged group. Thus the TSP strategy seeks to ensure adequate flow of funds for tribal development not only under every State Plan funds, but also from all the Central Ministries/Departments. TSP is a part of the overall plan of a State/UT or a Central Ministry/Department, and is therefore called a Sub-Plan.
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1041
The TSP to promote development activities through legal and administrative support. The TSP strategy is being implemented through 195 Integrated Tribal Development Projects (ITDPs)/Integrated Tribal Development Agencies (ITDAs), 259 Modified Area Development Approach (MADA) and 82 Clusters. The benefits of the Tribal Sub-Plan are also extended to the scattered tribal population. The TSP is financed by four sources namely, flow from Centrally Sponsored Schemes. Special Central Assistance, State Plan, and Institutional finance. The Central Ministries have also been requested to utilize at lease 8% of their budget for the welfare and development of Scheduled Tribes. SPECIAL CENTRAL ASSISTANCE FOR TRIBAL SUB-PLAN In support of TSP, the Government of India launched the SCA scheme in 1974 to the States and the UTs, as an additive to fill up the gaps, especially in the family based income-generating programmes. As a result, there has been a substantial increase in the flow of funds during the Ninth Five Year Plan for the development of STs besides enlargement of the share of benefits for STs under all the development programmes. The SCA to TSP is provided by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs to 21 Tribal SubPlan States including North Eastern States of Assam, Manipur and Tripura. Since 2003-04 the Ministry of Home Affairs is releasing the funds under SCA to TSP meant for the UTS. The SCA is to be utilised in conjunction with the TSP flow with a view to meeting the gaps, which are not otherwise taken care of by the State Plan. The objective and scope of SCA to TSP was originally meant for filling up of the critical gaps in the family-based income-generation activities of the TSP. From the Tenth Five Year Plan, the objective and scope of SCA to TSP has been expanded to cover the infrastructure incidental to income-generation. The funds released under SCA to TSP to State Governments/UT Administrations are as follows. (Rs. in crore) Five Year Plan
Fund released
V
119.31
VI
486.11
VII
846.95
VIII
1484.12
IX
2009.61
X
2960.83
XI (2007-08)
631.80
Grants under the First Proviso to Article 275(1) of the Constitution : The Constitution of India under the First Proviso Article 275(1) of the Constitution provides for assured special financial assistance for promoting the welfare of STs and for raising the level of administration of the Scheduled Areas to that of the rest of the State. Programme for Development of Forest Villages Development of forest villages is one of the thrust areas of tribal development during the 10th Five Year Plan. The Planning Commission allocated Rs. 450 crore to the
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1042
Ministry of Tribal Affairs for the development of forest villages at an average allocation of Rs. 15 lakh per village. There are about 2,474 such forest villages at an average allocation of Rs. 15 lakh per village. There are about 2,474 such forest villages in 12 States, which are still managed by State Forest Departments. It is estimated that there are about 2.5 lakh tribal families in these villages. A process of conversion of these forest villages into revenue earning villages is underway. The funds released under the scheme are as follows: (Rs. in lakh) Year
Fund Released
2005-06
19180.86
2006-07
22097.09
2007-08
4646.82
2008-09 (till 30.6.08)
13931.55.
Releases made in various Plans under Article 275(I) Plan
Rs. in crore
V
60.00
VI
80.00
VII
100.00
VIII
340.00
IX
741.00
X
1662.70
XI
390.28
Scheme for Primitive Tribal Groups (PTGs): A Central Sector Scheme was introduced in 1998-99 for the all-round development of these groups under which financial assistance is made available to Integrated Tribal Development Projects, Tribal Research Institutes and Non-Governmental Organisations for undertaking projects/activities not covered by any of the existing schemes. Scheme of Construction of Hostels for ST Boys and Girls: Under the scheme, Central assistance is given to States/UTs for construction of new hostel buildings and/or extension of existing hostels. In this scheme till 2007-08 the cost of the construction of the hostel building was equally shared between the Centre and the State in ratio of 50:50. In case of UTs, the Central Government bore the entire cost of the building. The cost of construction is based on the State PWD schedule of rates or local CPWD schedule of rates, which is lower. Maintenance of the hostel is the responsibility of the concerned States/UTs. The number of seats in a hostel was 100. The scheme of Construction of Hostel for ST Boys and Girls is being continued in the 11th Five Year Plan period with the following modifications: 1) Central Assistance for Construction of ST Girls Hostels in all States/UTs/ Universities will be 100% of the cost of construction. 2). Central Assistance for Construction of Boys' Hostel for ST Boys will be 100% in identified naxal-affected areas and will remain at 50% in all other areas.
Welfare
3) 4)
1043
Universities in naxal-affected areas would be entitled to receive 100% Central assistance. Central assistance would also be given on the same pattern in respect of vocational training centres if sought by States/UTs. The construction period for the hostels has been reduced from 5 years to 2 years. (Rs. in crore)
Plan Period
During the 10th Plan both schemes were merged)
Outlay
Actually Released
No. of Hostels Constructed
No. of Beneficiaries
104.00
88.41
389
24379
37.00
37.00
314
28146
2007-08
Establishment of Ashram School in Tribal Sub-Plan Area : The scheme of Ashram School has as its objective the establishment of residential schools for STs in an environment conducive to learning to increase the literacy rates among the tribal students and to bring them at par with the other population of the country. The funding for the scheme with the State is done on matching (50-50) basis, while cent percent assistance is given to UTs. (Rs. in crore) Plan period
Outlay
Actually Released
No. of Ashram Schools constructed
No. of seats
X
78.30
42.97
232
17650
2007-08
147.60
20.00
97
16839
Upgradation of Merit of ST Students : The objective of this scheme is to upgrade the merit of ST students by providing them remedial and special coaching in classes IX to XII, to prepare the students for competitive examinations for seeking entry into professional courses like Engineering and Medical disciplines. The scheme provides for 100 per cent Central assistance to the States/UT's. (Rs. in crore) Plan period
Outlay
Actually Released
Physical Achievements
IX
4.20
3.60
329 students*
X
5.56
4.58
3352 students
2007-08
1.75
1.38
1031 students
* the number of beneficiaries from 1997-98 to 1999-2000 are for SCs & STs.
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Post-Matric Scholarships for Scheduled Tribes Students The objective of the scheme is to provide financial assistance to students belonging to STs pursuing Post-Matriculation recognized courses in recognized institutions. The scheme covers professional, technical, non-professional and non-technical courses at various levels. It also includes correspondence courses including distance and continuing education and is implemented by the State Government and UT Administrations, covering 100% Central Assistance over and above the committed liability which is required to be borne by them from their own budgetary provisions. Budget Allocations, actually released and beneficiaries are given below : (Rs. in crore) Plan period
Outlay
Actually
IX
221.55
260.65
2639088
X
389.09
683.98
3744000
2007-08
201.24
200.03
Released Physical Achievements
1028903
Vocational Training in Tribal Areas : The main aim of this scheme is to develop the skill of the tribal youth in order to gain employment/self employment opportunities. This scheme was introduced in 1992-93 as Central Sector Scheme and implemented through the State Governments/UT Administrations, Institutions or Organisations set up by Government as autonomous body, educational and other institutions like local bodies and cooperative societies and Non-Governmental Organizations. The capacity of each vocational training center is 100 with hostel facility for 50. Each center caters to five vocational courses in traditional skills depending upon the employment potential of the area. Each tribal boy/girl is trained in two trades of his/ her choice, the course in each trade being of three months duration. Each trainee is attached at the end of six months to a Master Craftsman in a semi-urban area for a period of six months to learn his/her skill by practical experience, the practical experience if each trade being of three months duration. There is a provision for monthly stipend and for raw material for the trainees. Budget Allocations, actually released and beneficiaries are given below: (Rs. in crore) Name of the Five year Plan
Outlay
Actual Released
No. of VTC
IX
30.25
17.44
203
X
33.56
24.35
290
2007-08 (other than NGO
6.75
6.75
48
XI (2007-08) (NGO)
2.25
2.25
14
Education of Girls in Low Literacy Pockets : Launched in 1992-93 the scheme envisages setting up of residential educational complexes for ST girls from I to V standard with facility for upgradation in order to raise the literacy level of tribal females. This scheme is implemented through the voluntary organizations and autonomous bodies of the State Government. During 10th Pan period an amount of Rs. 33.34 crores was released benefitting more than 8000 (appr.) ST Girls each year.
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An amount of Rs. 19.75 crore was released to 76 complexes during 2007-08 benefitting 10379 ST girls. With the beginning of financial year 2009 the scheme has been revised and renamed as 'Strengthening Education among Scheduled Tribes Girls in Low Literacy Districts'. The revised scheme covers 54 identified districts where the ST population is 25% or more, and ST female literacy rate below 35% as per 2001 census. The scheme also covers blocks in districts other than 54 identified districts which have ST population 25% or more, and ST female rate below 35% and PTG areas. Naxal affected areas are given priority and the Ministry provides financial assistance under the scheme for Girls Hostel where schools under "Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan". Kasturba Gandhi Vidhyalayas or other schemes of Education Departments are available. Where such schools are not available, complete complex including hostel & school are considered. Besides free schooling, boarding/lodging, uniforms, books, food cast stipend and incentive to girls students are also provided. In addition, the organization running the educational complex is also required to impart Vocational/Skill development Training among ST girls. Grants-in-Aid to Voluntary Organisations : The prime objective of the scheme is to enhance the reach of welfare schemes of Government and fills the gaps in service deficient tribal areas in the sectors such as education, health, drinking water, agrohorticultural productivity, social security net etc. through the efforts of voluntary organizations and to provide an environment for socio-economic upliftment and overall development of the Scheduled Tribes (STs). The Ministry gives Grant-in-aid to voluntary organizations working for the welfare of STs for projects like residential schools and non-residential, hostels, hospitals, mobile medical units, computer training centres, libraries and audio-visual units, agriculture training etc. The grant is generally restricted to 90 per cent of the approved total cost of the project and the balance 10 per cent is borne by the guarantee organizations. During the 10th Five Year Plan period 146.16 crores were released under the scheme. An amount of Rs. 34.00 crore was released during 2007-08. During the 11th Five Year Plan, from 2008-09, the scheme and its financial norms has been revised. Rajiv Gandhi National Fellowship (RGNF) : The objective of the scheme is to provide fellowship in the form of financial assistance to students belonging to Scheduled Tribes to pursue higher studies. The fellowship under RGNF will be on the pattern of UGC Fellowships awarded to research students pursuing regular and full time M.Phil and Ph.D. Courses. Under the scheme, 776 students have been awarded fellowships during the 10th Plan and 667 new students are expected to benefit in the year 2007-08. National Overseas Scholarship Scheme for Scheduled Tribes (Non-Plan): The Scheme provides for financial assistance to meritorious students for pursuing higher studies abroad in specified fields of Master level courses, Ph.D. and Post-Doctoral research programmes, in the field of Engineering, Technology and Science for Scheduled Tribes, Denotified, Nomadic and Semi-nomadic tribes. The selected candidates are provided the cost of tuition and other educational fees charged by the foreign university, etc., maintenance and other grants along with travel expenses. In addition passage grants are also available to candidates belonging to ST who are in receipt of merit scholarship for postgraduate studies, research or training abroad (excluding attending seminars, workshops, conferences) from a foreign government/
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organisations or under any other scheme where cost of passage is not provided. The Scheme of NOS has been revised in 2004-05. The scheme provides financial assistance to meritorious ST students for pursuing higher studies abroad in specified fields of Master level courses, Ph.D. and Post-Doctoral research programmes, in the field of Engineering, Technology and Science. Budget Allocations, funds actually by released and beneficiaries are given below: Plan period
Outlay
Funds Actually Released
Physical Achievements
IX
114
50
5 students
X
418
50
5 students
2007-08
100
0.14
8 students
Scheme of Top Class Education for ST Students The Ministry of Tribal Affairs has introduced a new scheme of Top Class Education of ST students from 2007-08 with the objective of encouraging meritorious ST students for pursuing studies at degree and post degree and post degree level in any of the selected list of institutes of excellence, in which the scholarship scheme would be operative. There are 127 top-rated institutes approved under the scheme in both the Government and private sectors covering the field of management, medicine, engineering, law and commercial courses. Each institute has been allocated five awards, with a ceiling of a total of 635 scholarships per year. The family income of the ST students from all the sources shall not exceed Rs. 2.00 lakh per annum. The ST students will be awarded scholarship covering full tution fee and other nonrefundable dues in respect of Government/Government-funded institutions. However, there will be a ceiling of Rs. 2.00 lakh per annum per student for private sector institutions and Rs. 3.72 lakh per annum per student for the private sector flying clubs for Commercial Pilot Training. In addition to the above, the scholarship also provides for (i) living expenses @ Rs. 220/- per month per student subject to actual, (ii) books and stationery @ Rs. 3,000/- per annum per student and (iii) cost of a latest computer system along with its accessories limited to Rs. 45,000/- as one time assistance during the course. Grants-in-Aid for Minor Forest Produce (MFP) Operations: This is a Central Sector Scheme, with 100 per cent grant, available to the State Tribal Development Cooperative Corporations, Forest Development Corporations, and Minor Forest Produce (Trading and Development) Federations for taking up the minor forest produce operations. The funds under the scheme is available to the State TDCCS/FDC's for : (i) increasing the quantum of MFP handled by setting off operational losses, if need be : (ii) strengthening the share capital base of the Corporation for undertaking MFP operations thereby increasing the quantum of MFP presently handled; (iii) setting up of scientific warehousing facilities, wherever necessary; (iv) establishing processing industries for value addition with the objective of ensuring maximum returns on the MFPs for the tribals; (v) giving consumption loans to tribals; and (vi) supplementing Research & Development (R&D) efforts. Exchange of visits by STs : The Scheme "Exchange of Visits by Tribals" providing wider exposure and experience sharing to the tribals by visits to the more developed areas of the country.
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NATIONAL SCHEDULED TRIBES FINANCE AND DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION With a view to pay a focused attention and accelerate the pace of economic development of Scheduled Tribes, the erstwhile National Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Financial Development Corporation was bifurcated and National Scheduled Tribes Finance and Development Corporation (NSTFDC) was set up in April, 2001 under the Ministry of Tribal Affairs. The NSTFDC has been granted license under Sec. 25 of the Companies Act (A Company not for profit). The Authorized Share Capital of the NSTFDC is Rs. 500.00 crore and paid up capital is Rs. 230.50 crore as on date. In order to achieve the mandate set for the NSTFDC, (for undertaking selfemployment ventures/activities) financial assistance is extended by NSTFDC to the Scheduled Tribes, who are having annual family income upto double the poverty line. NSTFDC also provides financial assistance as grant for skill and entrepreneurial development of the target group. The financial assistance is channelized through Government owned agencies nominated by the respective Ministries/State Governments and UT Administrations. This is aimed to raise the level of income and improve socio-economic status of the eligible Scheduled Tribes. NSTFDC also provides financial assistance for procurement and marketing/minor forest produce so as to avoid the distress sale of produce/products by the Scheduled Tribes. Eligibility criteria for the beneficiary : The beneficiary (ies) should belong to ST community and annual family income of the beneficiary (ies) should not exceed double the poverty line (DPL) income limit (presently DPL is Rs. 39,500/- per annum for the rural areas and Rs. 54,500/- per annum for the urban areas). In the case of Self Help Groups (SHGs), all the members of the SHG should belong to the ST community having annual family income upto Double the Poverty line (DPL). Similarly for Cooperative Society, loan is extended to the eligible STs through co-operative Society having minimum 80% or more STs as member of the said cooperative society. NSTFDC is implementing following programmes for the economic development of STs. Term Loan for Income generating activities : i) NSTFDC provides term loan for viable scheme(s)/project(s) costing upto Rs. 10 lakh per individual unit/profit centre. ii) Financial assistance upto 90% of the cost of the scheme(s)/project(s) is provided by the NSTFDC. Promoter's contribution is not insisted upon for the scheme/project costing upto Rs. 1 lakh. However, only 2-5% of the total cost of the scheme(s)/project(s) costing above Rs. 1 lakh per unit/profit centre is required as promoter's contribution depending upon the cost of unit. iii) NSTFDC charges concessional rate of interest, which is 3% per annum for the scheme/project having NSTFDC's share upto Rs. 5 lakh per unit/profit centre and 5% for the schemes having NSTFDC's share more than Rs. 5 lakh/unit/profit centre. The SCAs are allowed to charge interest at the rate of 3% per annum over and above the interest rate charged by NSTFDC from the beneficiaries. iv) The loan is to be repaid in quarterly/half yearly installments, as the case may be, within a maximum period of 10 years including suitable moratorium period. Bridge Loan : Bridge loan is provided by the NSTFDC against subsidy/capital incentives etc. available for the scheme(s)/project(s) through the SCAs to meet the
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gap in funding requirement of scheme(s)/project(s) costing upto 10 lakh per unit/ profit centre. Schemes for Self Help Groups (SHGs) : i) NSTFDC has introduced specific scheme for extending financial assistance for Self Help Groups (SHGs) and financial assistance is extended for the scheme(s)/project(s) having unit cost upto Rs. 25 lakh per SHG. ii) Financial assistance is extended upto 90% of the cost of the scheme/ project subject to investment per member not exceeding Rs. 50,000/- per unit. iii) Minimum promoter's contribution under the scheme is 10% of the cost of the unit. Marketing Support Assistance : i) It is provided for financial support for meeting the working capital requirement of the Central/State Government owned agencies and national level federations for undertaking procurement and/or marketing of minor forest produce/agricultural produce collected/grown by the STs and/or related product/services. ii) Marketing Support Assistance extended to the beneficiaries through the SCAs, the interest is at par with rates of interest for long term loan. iii) For Marketing Support Assistance extended to the Central/State/UT owned organizations, national level federations directly involved in procurement, the interest rate is 7% per annum. Assistance by way of grant : Grant to meet up to 100% recurring cost in respect of regular training programmes conducted for imparting skill and entrepreneurial development training to the eligible STs through the Government/semi Government/ autonomous Government bodies is extended by the NSTFDC to its SCAs. SPECIAL SCHEMES (a) Adivasi Mahila Sashaktikaran Yojana (AMSY) is an exclusive scheme for the economic development of ST women, at a highly concessional rate of interest. Under the scheme, NSTFDC provides Term Loan for scheme(s)/project(s) costing upto Rs. 50,000/- per individual unit/profit centre. Financial assistance up to 90% of the cost of the scheme(s)/project(s) is provided by the NSTFDC. The SCAs may charge a maximum interest @ 4% per annum from the ultimate women beneficiaries. (b) Micro-credit scheme-launch of a new scheme : Micro Credit Scheme is meant to provide financial assistance for undertaking small self-employment ventures/ activities by the eligible STs through existing profit making SHGs. SCAs shall provide eligible amount of subsidy or margin money as per their scheme(s) for the target group and remaining amount may be provided as term loan by NSTFDC. In case of no subsidy and or no share of SCAs/banks as SCAs. NSTFDC may provide 100% of the funds required as term loan subject to maximum of Rs. 15,000/- per member. Performance of NSTFDC during 2006-07 : Till 31.03.2008, NSTFDC has cumulatively sanctioned 937 schemes/projects under its income generating programme having its share of Rs. 466.59 crores (net) for providing self employment to the 1.73 lakhs Scheduled Tribes. The above includes sanctions of Rs. 64.17 crores for assisting about 45,000 scheduled tribe women. Besides NSTFDC has also sanctioned loans of Rs. 65.00 crore for produce and marketing of the Agriculture/Forest produce and other produce etc. for 19.11 lakh number of Scheduled Tribes. TRIBAL COOPERATIVE MARKETING DEVELOPMENT FEDERATION OF INDIA LTD. (TRIFED) The Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India Limited (TRIFED), was set up in 1987 as a national level apex body under the Multi State Cooperative Societies Act, 1984 (MSCS Act, 1984).
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After the enactment of the Multi-State Cooperative Societies Act, 2002 (MSCS Act, 2002) TRIFED is deemed to be registered under the latter Act and is also listed in the Second Schedule to the Act as a National Cooperative Society. The Bye-laws of TRIFED were revised in April 2003 in tune with the new Multi State Co-operative Societies Act, 2002 read with the Multi State Co-operative Societies Rules, 2002. Under its revised mandate TRIFED has stopped bulk procurement in Minor Forest Produce (MFP) and Surplus Agricultural Produce (SAP) from tribals. (This procurement is now done by the State-level Tribal Cooperatives Societies/ Federations). TRIFED now functions as a 'market developer' for tribal products and as 'service provider' to its member federations. This way TRIFED is now striving to provide economic benefits to a large number of this unorganized section of the society. TRIFED is now engaged in the marketing development of tribal products (natural and organic products, handicrafts, ratification etc.) through its own shops ('TRIBES India') and shops selling its products on consignment basis. Recognition of Forest Rights of STs: The Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006 seeks to recognize and vest the forest rights and occupation in forest land in forest dwelling Scheduled Tribes and other traditional forest dwellers who have been residing in such forests for generations but chose rights on ancestral lands and their habitat were not adequately recognized in the consolidation of State forests during the colonial period as well as in independent India resulting in historical injustice to them. The Act has been notified for operation with effect from 31.12.2007. 2. The Scheduled Tribe and Other Traditional Forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Rules, for implementing the provisions of the Act, were notified on 1.1.2008 and they envisage the constitution of various Committees under the Act, viz, the Sub Divisional Level Committee, District Level Committee and the State Level Monitoring Committee, by the State Governments. 3. All the States have been requested to nominate the nodal officer for implementing the provisions of the Act. The State Government were also requested to take necessary steps to :a) ensure that awareness is created about the objectives, provisions and procedures of the Act and the Rules through various measures including awareness programmes and printed material such as posters in the regional languages; b) ensure the translation and publication of the Act and the rules in all the regional languages and arrange to distribute to all Gram Sabhas, Forest Right Committees and all departments of the Government including Panchayati Raj, Rural Development, Tribal and Social Welfare and Forest Departments; c) undertake the orientation of officials, civilian representatives and nonGovernment organizations in the State, who can then be called upon to assist as resource persons in the awareness programmes; d) sensitize the Sub-Divisional and District Level Committees on the objectives, provisions and procedures of the Act and the Rules: 4. As per the Act, the responsibility for recognition and vesting of forest rights and distribution of land rights resets with the State Government, as per the Rules notified for implementation of the Act. All the State a Governments have been directed that the entire process of vesting of forest rights as per the Scheduled Tribes and Other Traditional forest Dwellers (Recognition of Forest Rights) Act, 2006 should be completed at the earliest.
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5. Web-based MIS for online monitoring of the implementation of the Act has been made operational with effect from 4th June, 2008 for testing purposes on website http://www.tribal.gov.in. However, final website would be http://forestrights.gov.in which is at present under process of getting security-audit clearance. After clearance which is shortly expected to be given , the progress may be seen as it shall be in public domain.
WELFARE OF OTHER BACKWARD CLASSES The Other Backward Classes (OBC) constitutes estimated 52 per cent of population as per Second Report of Backward Classes popularly known as Mandal Report. After the Mandal Judgement in 1992 the OBCs started getting various benefits for their educational development, economic development and reservation in services. STATUTORY BODY National Commission for Backward Classes : In pursuance of the Supreme Court Judgement popularly known as Mandal Judgement (1992), the National Commission for Backward Classes was set up in 1993 as a permanent body for entertaining, examining and advising the Government on requests for inclusion and complaints of over-inclusion and under inclusion in the lists of Other Backward Classes (OBCs) of citizens. As per the provision of the Act, the advice tendered by the Commission shall ordinarily be binding upon the Government. EDUCATIONAL DEVELOPMENT Pre-matric Scholarships for OBCs : The Scholarships are awarded to the students belonging to OBCs whose parents’/guardians’ income from all sources does not exceed Rs 44,500 per annum. The scholarships are given to the students in class I or any subsequent class of pre-matric stage in the case of day scholars and class III or any subsequent class of pre-matric stage in the case of hostellers. The scholarship will terminate at the end of class X. The duration of the scholarship in an academic year is 10 months. The scholarship is tenable in such institutions and for such prematriculation courses, which have been duly recognised by the concerned State Government and Union Territory Administration. Under the scheme, 50 per cent Central assistance is provided to the State Governments and 100 per cent in case of UTs over and above the committed liability. An amount of Rs. 25.27 crores was released under the scheme to 12 states during 2006-07 for covering 9,57,338 beneficiaries. Post-Matric Scholarships for OBCs : The objective of the scheme is to provide financial assistance to the OBC students studying at post-matriculation or post secondary stage to enable them to complete their education. These scholarships are available for studies in India only and awarded through the State Governments/UT Administrations to which the applicant actually belongs. These scholarships are given for study in recognised institutions. Unemployed students whose parents/ guardians income from all sources does not exceed Rs. 44,500 per annum are entitled for scholarships under the scheme. Under the Scheme, 100 per cent Central assistance is provided to State Governments/UT Administrations over and above the committed liability. An amount of Rs. 55.73 crores was released under the scheme to 16 states/ UTs for covering 4,16,765 beneficiaries during the year 2006-07. Hostels for OBC Boys and Girls : The scheme aims at providing better educational opportunities to students belonging to socially and educationally backward classes notified as such in the Central/State/UT lists of OBCs, generally referred to as Other
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Backward Classes (OBCs). Under the scheme, 50 per cent Central assistance is provided to the States and 100 per cent to UTs for constructions of hostels. These hostels are constructed for middle, secondary, college and university level students. The expenditure on procurement of land, staffing and other maintenance shall be borne by the State Governments/UT concerned. During 2006-07 an amount of Rs 19.58 crore was released 11 States/UTs for construction of 82 hostels and for covering 4520 OBCs inmates. Assistance to Voluntary Organisations for Welfare of OBCs : The objective of the scheme is to involve the voluntary sector for improving the educational and socioeconomic conditions of the OBCs through skill upgradation and enables them to start income generating activities on their own or get gainfully employed. Under the Scheme, 90 per cent of approved expenditure in form of grant-in-aid is given to NGOs for running vocational training courses such as carpentry, computer, craft, electrician, motor winding and fitting, photography, printing, composing and bookbinding, type and shorthand and welding and fitter training, etc. An amount of Rs 2.22 crore was released in 2006-07 to 85 NGOs so as to benefit 4316 OBC beneficiaries. ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT National Backward Classes Finance and Development Corporation : The National Backward Classes Finance and Development Corporation (NBCFDC) provides credit facilities to beneficiaries whose annual income is less than double the poverty line for various income generation activities including implementation of Mahila Samridhi Yojana. The corporation extended credit facilities to 1,32,108 beneficiaries. RESERVATION IN SERVICES Reservation is given to Scheduled Castes (SCs), Scheduled Tribes (STs) and Other Backward Classes (OBCs) in services under the control of Government. Reservation is also provided to persons with disabilities and the ex-servicemen in certain categories of posts. The quantum of reservation for SCs, STs, and OBCs in direct recruitment on all-India basis by open competition is 15 per cent, 7.5 per cent and 27 per cent respectively. In direct recruitment on all-India basis otherwise than by open competition, reservation is 16.66 per cent for SCs, 7.5 per cent for STs and 25.84 per cent for OBCs. In case of promotion SCs and STs get reservation at the rate of 15 per cent and 7.5 per cent respectively. There is no reservation for OBCs is case of promotion. Three per cent of vacancies are kept reserved for persons with disabilities. Ten per cent of the vacancies in the posts of the level of Assistant Commandant in all paramilitary forces, 10 per cent of the vacancies in Group-C posts and 20 per cent of the vacancies in Group-D posts are reserved for the ex-servicemen. Article 341 and 342 of the Constitution define as to who would be the SCs and the STs with respect of any State or Union Territory. The Government has prepared a list of OBCs has been prepared by the Government. The inter-state area restrictions have been imposed so that the people belonging to the specific community residing in a specific area which has been assessed to qualify for SC, ST and OBC status only benefit from the facilities provided for them. Definition of ‘ex-servicemen’ for the purpose of getting reservation in services is contained in Ex-servicemen (Reemployment in Civil Services and Posts) Rules, 1979 and conditions for reservation to persons with disabilities are given under the Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995.
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To ensure that reserved vacancies are filled by candidates belonging to appropriate category, certain relaxations and concessions like relaxation in upper age-limit, etc., are provided. Liaison officers have been appointed for SCs/STs and OBCs in each Ministry/Department to ensure proper implementation of reservation policy for them. The representation of SCs/STs and OBCs in Central Government services as on 1 January 2005 is given below: Group
Total
SCs
%
STs
%
OBCs
%
A
80,589
9,551
11.9
3,448
4.3
3,791
4.7
B C
1,39,958
19,194
13.7
6,230
4.5
3,252
2.3
20.36,103
3,33,708
16.4
1,31,678
6.5
1,19,968
5.9
D
7,67,224
1,40,469
18.3
55,032
6.9
32,973
4.3
1,834
2.3
(Excluding Sweepers) Sweepers
8,1174
48,067
59.2
4,012
4.9
Total
30,23,874
5,02,922
16.63
1,94,388
6.43
1,59,984 5.29
31,05,048
5,50,989
17.74
1,98,400
6.39
1,61,818 5.21
(Excluding Sweepers) Total (Including Sweepers) Note : This does not include information in respect of two Ministry.
The Scheme of reservation is being followed by public sector undertakings including nationalised public sector banks. State governments have also provided for reservation of posts for SCs, STs and OBCs, etc., and have taken steps to increase their representation in State services. Reservation in State government services, however, is under the exclusive jurisdiction of respective State Governments.
WELFARE MEASURE FOR THE MINORITIES Five religious communities viz Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists and Zoroastrians (Parsis) have been notified as minorities as per provision under the National Commission for Minorities (NCM) Act-1992. These five communities constitute about 18.47 per cent of the country’s population. The Government has taken the following measures for welfare of Minorities: CONSTITUTIONAL MEASURES National Commission for Minorities : The Minorities Commission which was set up in January 1978 by a Resolution issued by Ministry of Home Affairs became a statutory body with the enactment of the National Commission for Minorities Act, 1992 and renamed as The National Commission for Minorties. The first statutory National Commission was set up on 17th May, 1993. The NCM Act, 1992 underwent an amendment on 8th September, 1995. The amendment was carried out in Section a2(b) and 3(2) of the Act, providing for a Vice Chairperson in the Commission. With the 1995 amendment to the Act, the Commission's composition was expanded to 7 Members (including a Chairperson and a Vice Chairperson). The provision under
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Section 3(2) of the Act stipulates that 5 Members including the Chairpersons shall be from amongst the minority communities. As per Gazette notification issued on 23rd October 1993 by the Ministry of Welfare. National Commission for Religious and Linguistic Minorities : The Government of India has been seized of the welfare needs of socially and economically backward sections among religious and linguistic minorities. For having a detailed examination to determine the criteria for identifications of socially and economically backward sections among religious and linguistic minorities and to suggest measures for their welfare, the Government has constituted a National Commission for Religious and Linguistic Minorities, with the following terms of reference: (a) to suggest criteria for identification of socially and economically backward sections among religious and linguistic minorities; (b) to recommend measures for welfare of socially and economically backward sections among religious and linguistic minorities, including reservation in education and government employment; (c) to suggest the necessary constitutional, legal and administrative modalities, as required for the implementation of their recommendations; and to present a Report of their deliberations and recommendations. The Commission has started functioning since 21 March 2005. THE CENTRAL WAKF COUNCIL A Wakf is a permanent dedication of movable or immovable properties for purposes recognised by the Muslim Law as religious, pious or charitable. Apart from these religious aspects, the Wakfs are also instruments of social and economic upliftment. Administration of Central Legislation for Wakfs is the responsibility of the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment. For the purpose of advising it on matters relating to working of the Wakf Boards and the proper administration of Wakfs in the country, the Central Wakf Council was established as a statutory body by the Central Government in December, 1964 under Section 8A of the Wakf Act, 1954 (now read as Sub-Sec(1) of the Section 9 of Wakf Act, 1995). The present Council has been reconstituted on 18 March 2005. The Union Minister in charge of Wakf is the Chairperson of the Central Wakf Council. The Central Wakf Council is also playing a vital role in the development of the society by way of implementing the following schemes: (i) Development of Urban Wakf Properties; (ii) Educational Development Programmes Special Officer for Linguistic Minorities : The Office of the Special Officer for Linguistic Minorities (commonly known as the Commissioner for Linguistic Minorities) was created in July 1957, in pursuance of the provision of Article 350-B of the Constitution. The Commissioner for Linguistic Minorities of India (CLM) has his Headquarters at Allahabad with Regional Offices at Kolkata, Belguam and Chennai. The CLM takes up all the matters pertaining to the grievances arising out of the non-implementation of the Constitutional and Nationally Agreed Scheme of Safeguards provided to linguistic minorities that come to its notice or are brought to its knowledge by the linguistic minority individuals, groups, associations or organisations at the highest political and administrative levels of the State Governments and UT Administrations and recommends remedial actions to be taken. ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT National Minorities Development and Finance Corporation : National Minorities Development and Finance Corporation (NMDFC) provides concessional finance
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for self-employment activities to eligible beneficiaries belonging to minority communities having family income below double the poverty line. The authorised share capital of the corporation has been enhanced from Rs 500 crore to Rs 650 crore. EDUCATIONAL DEVELOPMENT Maulana Azad Education Foundation : Maulana Azad Education Foundation is a registered society with the objectives of promoting education amongst the educationally backward sections of the society, and minorities in particular. The Government of India provides corpus fund to the Foundation. Keeping in view the overwhelming response to the educational schemes of the Foundation from all over the country, the Government is considering augmentation of its corpus fund from Rs 70.00 crores to Rs 100 crores. Three new schemes viz., Maulana Azad Sadbhawna Kendra, Maulana Azad National Scholarship for Meritorious Girls Students and Maulana Azad Literacy Award are being implemented from the current year. During the year the Foundation has sanctioned scholarship of Rs 10,000 each to 2774 girl students from 22 States. For the first time 300 scholarship were distributed in the state of Jammu and Kashmir. Under the scheme of Maulana Azad Sadbhawna Kendra the Foundation has sanctioned four projects in the state of Madhya Pradesh. WELFARE OF PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES For the marginalised sections of the society National Policy for Persons with Disabilities has been finalised in 2005. The policy focuses on the prevention of disabilities, the physical and economic rehabilitation measures for disabled persons. The policy is to be implemented by Government and other agencies. Various steps had also been taken in the past for welfare and rehabilitation of persons with disabilities. PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES ACT, 1995 A comprehensive law, namely, the Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995 has been enacted and enforced in February 1996. The law deals with both prevention and promotion aspects of the rehabilitation such as education, employment and vocational training, creation of barrier-free environment, provision of rehabilitation services for persons with disabilities, institutional services and supportive social security measures like unemployment allowance and grievance redressal machinery both at the Central and State-Level. National Trust for the Welfare of Persons with Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Mental Retardation and Multiple Disabilities: The National Trust is a statutory body under “The National Trust for the Welfare of Persons with Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Mental Retardation and Multiple Disabilities Act, 1999�. The main objectives of the Trust are to enable and empower persons with these disabilities to live independently as fully as possible, to extend support to registered organisations providing need-based services and to evolve procedure for appointment of legal guardians for persons with disabilities requiring such protection. During the year 384 awareness camps were held and 79,300 and professionals were given counseling.
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Office of the Chief Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities : The Chief Commissioner is an important statutory functionary, appointed under Section 57 of the Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995. The functions and duties of the Chief Commissioner include coordinating the work of State Commissioners for persons with disabilities, monitoring of utilisation of funds disbursed by the Central Government, taking steps to safeguard rights and facilities made available to persons with disabilities and also to look into complaints with respect to deprivation of rights of persons with disabilities. The Chief Commissioner can also take suo motu notice of non-implementation of any Rule. Law, etc, meant for persons with disabilities and is vested with the powers of a civil court relating to summoning of witness, discovery, requisitioning and production of any document, etc. REHABILITATION COUNCIL OF INDIA The Rehabilitation Council of India is a statutory body set up under the Rehabilitation Council of India Act, 1992. The Council is responsible for regulating the training policies and programmes for various categories of professionals in the area of rehabilitation and special education. Its functions include: (i) standardisation and regulation of training courses at different levels in all the training institutions throughout the country, (ii) recognition of institutions/universities running training courses in the area of rehabilitation of the disabled within and outside the country on a reciprocal basis, (iii) promotion of research in rehabilitation and special education, (iv) maintenance of a Central Rehabilitation Register for professionals possessing the recognised rehabilitation qualifications in the area of rehabilitation and (v) encouragement of Continuing Rehabilitation Education programmes in collaboration with organisations working in the area of disability. NATIONAL INSTITUTES In order to effectively deal with the multi-dimensional problem of the disabled population, the following National Institutes/apex level Institutes have been set-up in each major area of disability; (i) National Institute for the Visually Handicapped, Dehradun, (ii) National Institute for Orthopedically Handicapped, Kolkata, (iii) Ali Yavar Jung National Institute for the Hearing Handicapped, Mumbai, (iv) National Institute for the Mentally Handicapped, Secunderabad, (v) National Institute of Rehabilitation Training and Research, Cuttack, (vi) Institute for the Physically Handicapped, New Delhi, (vii) National Institute for Empowerment of Persons with Multiple Disabilities, Chennai. These institutes are mainly responsible for conducting innovative researches, organise training programmes for manpower development and deliver services in the country. Artificial Limbs Manufacturing Corporation of India : The Artificial Limbs Manufacturing Corporation of India (ALIMCO), Kanpur is a public sector body, engaged in manufacturing of aids and appliances for persons with disabilities. The products manufactured by the Corporation conform to ISI standards approved by the Bureau of Indian Standards. Marketing of products is done through Regional Marketing Centres at Kolkata, Mumbai, Chennai, Bhubaneswar and Delhi and also
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through National Institutes, voluntary organisations, 65 the corporation has manufactured aids and appliances. Composite Regional Centres and Regional Rehabilitation Centre : Five Composite Regional Centres (CRCs) for the Persons with Disabilities are located at Srinagar, Lucknow, Bhopal, Sundernagar and Guwahati. These centres conduct training programmes to prepare professionals in the field of rehabilitation as well as provide rehabilitation services to the disabled. Four Regional Rehabilitation Centres for Spinal Injuries and other Orthopaedic Disabilities at Mohali, Cuttack, Jabalpur and Bareilly are providing services for basic management and follow-up of the spinally injured so as to make the affected persons functionally independent. ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT National Handicapped Finance and Development Corporation : The National Handicapped Finance and Development Corporation (NHFDC) is an apex-level financial institution for extending credit facilities to persons with disabilities for their economic development. Funds assistance is disbursed through the channelising agencies authorized by the State Governments/UT Administrations and NonGovernment Organisations. It also extends loans for pursuing education at graduate and higher levels. Besides, it assists in the upgradation of technical and entrepreneurial skills to enable beneficiaries to manage their production units efficiently. Scheme for Assistance to Disabled Persons for Purchase/Fitting of AIDs and Appliances : The objective of the Scheme is to assist needy and disabled persons in procuring-durable, sophisticated and scientifically manufactured, standard aids and appliances that can promote their physical, social and psychological rehabilitation by reducing the impact of disability and enhancing their economic potential. The scheme is implemented through agencies like voluntary organisations, National Institutes under the Ministry, ALIMCO, Zila Panchayats, DRDAs, etc. The implementing agencies are provided grant-in-aid for purchase, fabrication and distribution of aids and appliances. The scheme also includes under its ambit medical/ surgical correction and intervention that may be essential prior to figment of aids and appliances. SOCIAL DEFENCE In the areas of Social Defence the Ministry is committed towards welfare of Older Persons and rehabilitation of Drug Addicts. The programmes for the targeted groups are as follows : National Policy for Older Persons : The National Policy for Older Persons (NPOP) was announced in January 1999, with the primary objective viz., to encourage individuals to make provision for their own as well as their spouse’s old age; to encourage families to take care of their older family members; to enable and support voluntary and non-governmental organisations to supplement the care provided by the family; to provide care and protection to the vulnerable elderly people, to provide health care facility to the elderly; to promote research and training facilities to train geriatric care givers and organisers of services for the elderly; and to create awareness regarding elderly persons to develop themselves into fully independent citizens.
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National Council for Older Persons (NCOP) : The Government has re-constituted a National Council for Older Persons (NCOP) to advise and aid the Government on developing policies and programmes for older persons. It provides feedback to the Government on the implementation of the National Policy on Older Persons and the specific initiatives for older persons. The NCOP is the highest body to advise and coordinate with the Government in the formulation and implementation of policy and programmes for the welfare of the aged. Integrated Programme for Older Persons : Under this scheme, financial assistance upto 90% of the project cost is provided to NGOs for establishing and maintaining old age homes, day care centers, Mobile Medicare Units and to provide noninstitutional services to older persons. Prevention and Rehabilitation of Drug Addicts/Alcoholics : Under the Scheme, grantin-aid to the extent of 90 per cent (95 per cent in North East States, J and K and Sikkim) of the expenditure is provided to voluntary organisations for rehabilitation of drug addicts and alcoholics. Assistance to Voluntary Organisation for Social Defence Services : It provides for undertaking programmes for the rehabilitation of various social segments at risk not currently covered under the existing schemes of the Ministry. In particular the scheme provides for Pilot Projects in unchartered areas in which the Ministry may like to formulate independent programmes in due course. A number of programmes are being supported for rehabilitation of children of sex workers. Initiatives have also been taken to support projects for rehabilitation of widows and for providing counselling and support to traumatised children and women particularly those who have been victims of physical violence and sexual abuse.
WOMEN AND CHILD DEVELOPMENT INTRODUCTION Women and Children (0-18 years) constitute roughly 71.14% of the Indian population as per 2001 census. While women (including female child 0-18 years) constitute 48% of total population, the children (male and female 0-18 years) constitute 44% of total population. The development of women and children is of paramount importance and sets the pace for overall development. Earlier there was a separate Department of Women and child Development functioning as a part of Ministry of Human Resources Development since 1985 to look into matters related to Women and Children. Keeping in view its importance, a separate Ministry of Women and Child Development came into existence from 30th January 2006. Vide Government notification dated 16.2.2006, all subjects relating to Child Welfare/Protection like the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act 2000, Central Adoption Resource Agency (CARA) and adoption which were earlier under Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment have been transferred to the newly created Ministry of Women and Child Development. VISION The Vision of Ministry of Women & Child Development is ‘‘Ensuring overall survival, development and protection of women and children of the country to enable them to lead productive and wholesome lives as citizens.’’ The Ministry has evolved policies, plans of action, legislations, programmes and schemes for advancement of women
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and children and has been implementing these with the support of State Governments, other Government agencies and voluntary sector. FOOD AND NUTRITION BOARD Food and Nutrition Board (FNB) is an attached office of the Ministry of Women & Child Development is involved in policy making, strategy development as well as identifying innovative measures for the improvement of the nutritional status of the people of our country. IT also focuses on improving the dietary habits of the people through nutrition education and extension; promotion of low cost, locally available foods; conservation of fruits and vegetables through home-scale processing; and training of health functionaries in nutrition. The FNB operates through a technical wing at the Centre, four Regional Offices, Quality Control Laboratories at Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai and 43 Community Food and Nutrition Extension Units (CFNEUs) located in 29 States/ UTs. The National Nutrition Policy (NNP) was formulated in 1993, and as a follow up the National Plan of Action was developed in 1995. The National Plan of Action identified the different sectors in the Government for taking up coordinated action to combat malnutrition. National guidelines on Infant and Young Child Feeding have been brought out and the implementation of the Infant Milk Substitutes, Infant Foods and Feeding Bottles (Regulation of Production, Supply and Distribution) Act, 1992, as amended in 2003 (IMS Act) rests with Food and Nutrition Board. Programmes are undertaken to train master trainers such as Medical Officers, Child Development Project Officers as well as the field level functionaries. Many nutrition awareness programmes for the community, home-scale preservation of fruits and vegetables which also promotes skill development in the adolescent girls and women are organized Demonstrations for promotion of low cost nutritious recipes are held to facilitate adoption of means to achieve better nutrition. Linkages with ICDS for nutritional quality of supplementary nutrition and health and nutrition education are maintained. Films, also and video spots, radio programmes dealing with important issues of infant and young child feeding, balanced diets, prevention of under nutrition and micronutrient deficiencies as well as diet related chronic non-communicable diseases form part of the communication strategy. Exhibitions are held and celebration of events like World Breast Feeding Week, National Nutrition Week, World food Day etc. are taken up on a regular basis. FNB has various publications and a wall calender with useful information on the basics of nutrition to the people at large. The list of publications is on the web site of the Ministry of Women and Child Development. ACTS RELATING TO WOMEN AND CHILDREN The Ministry is in charge of the administration of the following Acts relating to women and children: (a) The Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act, 1956 (as amended in 1986) (b) The Indecent Representation of Women (Prevention) Act, 1986 (60 of 1986) (c) The Dowry Prohibition Act, 1961 as amended in 1986 (d) the Commission of Sati Prevention Act, 1987 (3 of 1988) (e) The Prohibition of Child Marriage Act 2006
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(notified in January 2007) (f) Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act 2005, (g) National Commission for Women Act 1990 (h) Infant Milk Substitutes, Feeding Bottles and Infant Food (regulation of Production, Supply and Distribution) Act, 1992 (41 of 1992) (i) Commission for Protection of Child Rights Act 2005 and (j) Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act 2000 and the Juvenile Justice Amendment Act 2006 notified in gazette on 23rd August 2006. In addition, the Ministry is responsible for International Cooperation in matters relating to Women and Children. SCHEMES FOR WOMEN The Ministry is implementing the following schemes for women : ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT SCHEMES STEP : Support to Training and Employment Programme for Women (STEP) was launched as a Central Sector Scheme in 1987. It has made a significant impact on women in traditional sectors by upgrading skills and providing employment on project basis by mobilizing them into viable groups, arranging for marketing linkages, support services and access to credit. The Scheme covers traditional sectors of employment such as agriculture, Animal Husbandry, Dairying, Fisheries, handlooms, handicrafts, Khadi and Village Industries and Sericulture. The scheme is being implemented through Public Sector Organisations, State Corporations, DRDAs, Cooperatives, Federations and registered Voluntary Organisations which have been in existence for a minimum period of three years. During the period 2007-08 and 2008-09, 70920 poor women have been benefited from the Scheme. For this purpose, an amount of Rs. 3307.90 lakhs have been released to various implementing agencies across the country. Swayamsidha : Swayamsidha is an integrated scheme for the development and empowerment of women. It is based on the formation of women into Self-Help Groups (SHGs) with emphasis on converging services, developing access to micro credit and promoting micro enterprises. The long-term objective of the scheme is to achieve allround empowerment of women, especially, socially and economically, by ensuring their direct access to, and control over, resources through a sustained process of mobilization and convergence of all the on-going sectorial programmes. The immediate objectives of the programme are as follows : (a) Establishment of self-reliant women's Self-Help Groups (SHGs); (b) Creation of confidence and awareness among members of SHGs regarding women's status, health, nutrition, education, sanitation and hygiene, legal rights, economic upliftment and other social, economic and political issues; (c) Strengthening and institutionalizing the savings habit in rural women and their control over economic resources; (d) Improving access of women to micro credit; (e) Involvement of women in local level planning; and (f) Convergence of services of MWCD and other Departments. The scheme was launched in 2000-2001 covering 650 blocks in the country including 238 IMY blocks in 335 districts. Each block consists of 100 Self Help Groups in 31 States/UTs. The programme is being implemented and SHGs are formed by the ICDS machinery in most of the States. A few States such as U.P., Uttarakhand, Tamilnadu, Bihar etc. taking help from NGOs through Women's Development Corporations for the purpose. Over 69,803 women's SHGs have been formed under the scheme covering 10.02 lakh women members. An amount of Rs. 168.82 crores
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have been saved by SHGs formed under the scheme. 66,369 SHGs have accounts in banks, 36,574 SHGs (56%) have availed loans from banks to the tune of Rs. 167.61 crores. 53.207 SHGs (82%) constituting over 6.52 lakhs women are engaged in Income Generation Activities (IGA). 42,386 SHGs (65%) are benefiting from coveragence with other Government schemes. The SHGs have created over 5424 Community Assets. The Scheme was ended as on 31st March, 2009. SOCIAL EMPOWERMENT SCHEMES Swadhar : The Swadhar Scheme was launched by the Department during the year 2001-2002 as a Central Sector Scheme for providing holistic and integrated services to women in difficult circumstances, such as destitute widows deserted by their families in religious places like Vrindaban and Kashi, women prisoners released from jail and without family support; women survivors of natural disasters who have been rendered homeless and are without any social and economic support, trafficked women/girls, rescued or runaway from brothels or other places or victims of sexual crimes, who are disowned by family or who do not want to go back to their family for various reasons, women victims of terrorist violence who are without any family support, mentally challenged women who are without any support of family or relatives etc. The package of services made available under the Scheme include provision for food, clothing, shelter, health care counseling and legal support, social and economic rehabilitation through education, awareness generation, skill upgradation and behavioral training. The scheme also supports a Help-line for women in distress. The project is implemented through Social Welfare/Women and Child Development Department, Women’s Development Corporation, Urban Local Bodies, reputed Public/Private Trust or Voluntary organisations etc. provided they have the needed experience and expertise in the rehabilitation of such women on a project to project basis. An amount of Rs. 14.94 crore was released under Swadhar Scheme during the year 2008-09 (by 31st March, 2009) to benefit 15,360 women. Short Stay Homes : The Scheme of Short Stay Homes was launched in the year 1969 with the objective to protect and rehabilitate those women and girls who are facing social, economic and emotional problems due to family stress, social ostracism, moral danger, etc. The programme was transferred to CSWB for implementation w.e.f April 1999. Temporary shelter to the needy women and girls is given for 6 months to 3 years. Children accompanying the mother or born in the home may be permitted to stay in the home upto age of 7 years, after which they may be transferred to children institutions or provided foster care services. The programme was transferred to CSWB in April 1999. Family Counselling Centres : The objective of Family Counselling Centres is to provide preventive and rehabilitative services to women and children who are victims of atrocities and family maladjustments. The Family Counselling Centre (FCC) scheme is being implemented through Central Social Welfare Board (CSWB) since 1984 through voluntary organizations. Family Counselling Centres are also being run for special categories of clients such as at police headquarters, FCCs in Mahila Jails, Rape Crisis Intervention Centres and Pre-Marital Counselling Centres. Women’s
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organizations and other voluntary social welfare organizations engaged in work relating to women issues can avail grants from CSWB for setting up Family Counseling Centres. The guarantee Institutions are also expected to make 20% contribution to the budget sanctions. Condensed Courses of Education of Women : The scheme of Condensed Courses of Education implemented through the Central Social Welfare Board and aims to benefit needy women of tribal, hilly, backward areas and urban slums of the age 15 years who would not join mainstream education system or drop outs by providing them opportunity for education at different levels—primary, middle/high school. The main objective of the scheme is to provide educational qualification and relevant skills to women in order to make them eligible for identifiable remuneration, work opportunities so as to facilitate their empowerment. Awareness Generation Programme for Rural and Poor Women : The scheme of Awareness Generation Programme aims at generating awareness amongst women and community at large on rights, status and problems of women in particular and other social concerns. The programme enables women to organize themselves and strengthen their participation in socio-economic and political—processes. Under the scheme, 8 camps with 2 days follow up are conducted to provide a platform to women where they come together, exchange their experiences and ideas and in the process they develop an understanding of reality and are encouraged to tackle their problems themselves to fulfill their needs. SUPPORT SERVICES FOR WOMEN Working Women’s Hostel : The scheme of assistance for construction or expansion of hostel buildings for working women with day care facilities for children is being implemented since 1972-1973. Under this scheme, assistance is provided to nongovernmental organizations, cooperative bodies and other agencies engaged in the field of women’s welfare, women’s education, public sector undertakings, women’s development corporations, local bodies, universities, state governments, etc, for construction of buildings for Working Women’s Hostels. This scheme envisages provision of safe and affordable accommodation to working women (single working women, women working at places away from their hometowns, working but husband out of town, widows, divorcees, separated women, etc.) and women being trained for employment and girl students studying in post-school professional courses. Trainees are permitted to stay for a period upto one year and girl students for a period upto five years, but with the condition that first preference would be given to working women. It is also stipulated in the scheme guidelines that the category of women who are being trained for employment and girl students should not exceed 30 per cent of the total number of Women in hostel. A slightly variant scheme is implemented by Central Social Welfare Board since 1969-70, which provides maintenance grant for running hostels for working women and provide secure and safe accommodation. OTHER INITIATIVES Ujjawala : A new scheme called "Ujjawala"—'A Comprehensive Scheme for 'Prevention of Trafficking', with five specific Components—Prevention, rescue, rehabiliation, reintegration and repatriation of victims of Trafficking' has been launched on 4th December, 2007. An allocation of Rs. 10.00 crore has been made for 2008-09 under the Scheme.
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The scheme comprises of five components : 1. Prevention, which consists of formating of community vigilance groups/ adolescents groups, awareness and sensitization of important functionaries like police, community leaders and preparation of IEC materials, holding worshop, etc. 2. Rescue, safe withdrawal of the victim from the place of exploitation. 3. Rehabilitation, which includes providing safe shelter for victims with basic inputs of food, clothing, counselling medical care, legal aid, vocational training and income generation activities etc. 4. Reintegration, which includes restoring the victim into the family/community (if she so desires) and the accompanying costs. 5. Repatriation, to provide support to cross-border victims for their safe repatriation to their country of origin. Gender Budgeting Initiatives of the Ministry of Women & Child Development : Gender Budgeting is the application of gender mainstreaming in the budgetary process. It encompasses incorporating a gender perspective at all levels and stages of the budgetary process, and paves the way to translating gender commitments to budgetary commitments and carrying out an assessment of the budget to establish its gender differential impact. The Ministry adopted the mission statement of 'Budgeting for Gender Equity' in 2004-05 and also framed the Strategic Framework of Activities to implement this mission 2005 onwards. Extensive work on training, capacity building, advocacy, awareness generation and sensitization was undertaken by the Ministry. The Ministry of Women & Child Development implement this mission 2005 onwards. Extensive work on training, capacity building, awareness generation and sensitization was undertaken by the Ministry. The Ministry of Women & Child Development being the nodal Ministry for Gender Budgeting is proposing to set up a full fledged Gender Budgeting Bureau with appropriate staff and infrastructural facilities. The Ministry is also planning to set up Regional Resource and Training Centres for Gender Budgeting as well as Preparation of Training Manual, A 'Gender Budgeting Handbook for Government of India Ministries & Departments' has been developed and released by the Hon'ble State Minister (I/C) in January, 2009. So far, 56 Ministries and Departments, Government of India have set up Gender Budgeting Cells (GBCs) which are headed by a officer of Joint Secretary Level. In view of the substantial increase in workload envisaged by setting up of GBCs in all Ministries/Departments, as well as the need to take Gender Budgeting to the State and the corporate sector, there is an urgent need to set up a Gender Budgeting Bureau in the MWCD with dedicated staff and also provide a fund component to carry out the various activities pertaining to Gender Budgeting. In view of this, a Scheme for Gender Budgeting has been included in the 11th Plan. The Annual outlay for 2008-09 for the Scheme of Gender Budgeting was Rs. 3.00 crore. Grant-in-aid for Research, Publication and Monitoring : Through this scheme, the Ministry promotes research studies workshops and seminars on emerging issues in the field of women and child development. National Policy on Empowerment of Women : The objective of the National Policy for Empowerment adopted by the Government on 20 March 2001 is to bring about the advancement, development and empowerment of women and to eliminate all forms
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of discrimination against women and to ensure their active participation in all spheres of life and activities. A National Plan of Action proposes to translate this policy into achievable goals. Protection of women from Domestic Violence Act 2005 (number 43 of 2005) : A new law on the protection of women from domestic violence has been enacted and brought into operation from 26.10.2006. Convention on Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) : India signed the Convention on Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) on 30th July 1980 and ratified it on 9th July 1993 with one reservation and two declaratory statements. The convention obligates the state parties to undertake appropriate legislative and other measures to eliminate discrimination against women and for guaranteeing them the exercise and enjoyment of human rights and fundamental freedom on the basis of equality with men. The First Report was submitted (on 21st October) in 1997 and was considered (on 24th and 30th) in June 2000. A combined 2nd and 3rd Periodic Report was submitted in June 2005. The UN Committee on CEDAW considered the Report on 18th January 2007. Regional Conference on UN Convention on Elimination of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) for the Southern Zone was held at Hyderabad on 15-16 May, 2008. Regional Conference for the Eastern Zone was held at New Delhi on 21-22 October, 2008. Beijing Platform for Action : The Fourth World Conference on Women, held in Beijing in 1995 was a landmark event that set the pace for women's empowerment when a Declaration and Platform for Action (BPFA) were adopted. BPFA has identified 12 critical areas of concern for women. India adopted both without any reservations. The Committee on Status of Women reviews progress made by member countries in the critical areas. The 53rd session of Committee on Status of Women was held from 2-13, 2009 in New York. Stree Shakti Puraskar : As a measure of recognition of achievements of individual women in the field of social development, the Government of India has instituted five national awards, known as 'Stree Shakti Puraskar'. These awards will be in the name of the following eminent women personalities from Indian history, who are famous for their personal courage and integrity : l
Devi Ahilya Bai Holkar
l
Kannagi
l
Mata Jijabai
l
Rani Gaidenlou Zeliang
Rani Lakshmi Bai From the year 2007, another sub category of Stree Shakti Puraskar, named at the Rani Rudramma Devi has been added, which will be awarded to individual men and women for their outstanding administrative skill, leadership quality and courage. Each award carries a cash prize of Rs. 3 lakh and a citation. l
PROGRAMMES FOR CHILDREN Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) Scheme : The Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) Scheme was launched in 1975 as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme with the following objectives: (a) to improve the nutritional and health status of children below the age of six years and pregnant and lactating mothers; (b) to lay
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the foundation for the proper psychological, physical and social development of the child, (c) to reduce the incidents of mortality, morbidity, malnutrition and school dropouts, (d) to achieve effective coordination of policy and implementation among various departments to promote child development, (e) to enhance the capability of the mother to look after the health and nutritional needs of the child through proper health and nutrition education. The Scheme provides for a package of services to children below 6 years and pregnant women and lactating mothers, comprising (i) Supplementary nutrition (ii) Immunization, (iii) Health check-ups, (iv) Nutrition and Health eduction, (v) Referrals, (vi) Pre-school, non formal education. Population Norms : Population Norms for setting up a Project, Anganwadi Centre and Mini-AWC are as under :Project : (i) Community Development Block in a State should be the unit for sanction of an ICDS Project in rural/tribal areas, irrespective of number villages/population in it. (ii) The existing norm of 1 lakh population for sanction of urban project may continue. Further to this, for blocks with more than two lakh population, States could opt for more than one Project @ one per on lac population or could opt for one project only. In the latter case, staff could be suitably strengthened based on population or number of AWCs in the block. Similarly, for blocks with population of less than 1 lac or so, staffing pattern of CDPO office could be less than that of a normal block. Anganwadi Centres For Rural/Urban Projects 400-800 1 AWC 800-1600 2 AWCs 1600-2400 3 AWCs Thereafter in multiples of 800 1 AWC For Mini-AWC 150-400 1 Mini-AWC For Tribal/Riverine/Desert, Hilly and other difficult areas/Projects 300-800 1 Mini-AWC For Mini-AWC 150-300 1 Mini-AWC Nutrition Programme for Adolescent Girls (NPAG) : The Ministry of Women & Child Development is implementing the Nutrition Programme for Adolescent Girls (NPAG) on a pilot project basis in 51 identified districts across the country since 2005-06. Undernourished Adolescent Girls with body weight less than 30 kg in the age group of 11-15 years and less than 35 kg. in age group of 15-19 years are covered under the scheme. Free foodgrains @ 6 kg. per beneficiary per month, are provided to these undermourished adolescent girls. The programme has been operationalised through the administrative set up of ICDS at the state, district, block and Anganwadi Centre level. Allocation of funds for NPAG is made as Special Central Assistance (SCA), on 100% grant basis, to States/UTs. Foodgrains at Central Issue Price (CIP) applicable to the BPL rates are provided by Department of Food & Public Distribution to the States/UTs for the programme. Earlier, the Planning Commission implemented the pilot project during 2002-03 & 2003-04.
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Ministry of Women & Child Development is implementing Kishori Shakti Yojana (KSY) for addressing the needs of self development, nutrition and health status, literacy and numerical skills, vocational skills etc. of adolescent girls in the age group of 11 to 18 years. The scheme is being implemented through the infrastructure of ICDS in 6118 ICDS projects. Under KSY, various programmatic options are available to the States/UTs to selectively intervene for the development of the adolescent girls on the basis of specific needs of the area. This scheme also seeks convergence with schemes of the Health Department in order to improve the nutritional and health status of the Adolescent Girls. Grant-in-aid @ of Rs. 1.10 lakh only per block per annum is released to the States/UTs for the implementation of KSY. Rajiv Gandhi National Creche Scheme for the Children of Working Mothers : Rajiv Gandhi National Creche Scheme for the Children of Working Mothers was launched with effect from 1st January, 2006 to provide day care facilities to the children of working mothers. The scheme is being implemented through the Central Social Welfare Board and a national level Voluntary Organisation, namely Indian Council for Child Welfare (ICCW). 25 children are kept in one creche centre. 31718 creches have been sanctioned till date benefitting 7.92 lakh children. Objective of the scheme l
To provide day care facilities to the children (age group of 0 to 6 years) of working mothers by opening creches.
To provide development services, i.e., supplementary nutrition, health care inputs like immunization, polio drops, basic health monitoring and recreation to the children of working mothers. Financial assistance under the scheme l
l
The governmental assistance will be limited to 90% of the schematic pattern or actual expenditure (except honorarium to creche workers) whichever is less and the remaining expenditure will have to be borne by the implementing agencies concerned.
l
Government grant @ Rs. 3532.00 per month per creche is given to the implementing agencies concerned.
l
Schematics pattern is given as under.
Grant for running creche centres : Recurring and Non-recurring grants as per the following pattern : Recurring grant : Components
Ceiling expenditure
Grant
Honorarium to two creche workers per creche @ Rs. 1000.00 per creche worker per month
Rs. 2000.00 per month
Rs. 2,000.00 (100%)
Supplementary nutrition per creche for 25 children for 26 days @ Rs. 2.08 per child
Rs. 2352.00 per month
Rs. 1217.00 (90%)
Emergency medicines and contingencies
Rs. 350.00 per month
Rs. 315.00 (90%)
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1066 Recurring grant Components Purchase of consumable stores once at the time of opening of new creche @ Rs. 10,000.00 per creche.
Ceiling expenditure Rs. 10,000.00 per creche
Replacement of old consumable stores Rs. 5,000.00 per creche at an interval of five years @ Rs. 5,000.00 per creche.
Grant Rs. 10,000.00 (100%)
Rs. 5,000.00 (100%)
The scheme has in-built component of monitoring of creches through Statewise independent monitoring agencies which have been identified in consultation with the State Governments. Grant for monitoring is also given. Childline Services : Childline having a dedicated number 1098 is a 24 hour toll free telephone service available to all children in distress or by adults on behalf of children in distress. At present, Child Line is working in 83 cities. The basic objectives of Child Line are to : (i) respond to the emergency needs of the children in difficulty and refer him/her to such services as he/she is in need of; (ii) provide a forum for networking among Government agencies and non-Governmental agencies dedicated to the network of services in child care and protection; (iii) sensitize hospitals, medical personnel, police municipal corporations etc. towards needs of children, (iv) ensure protection of rights of the child, and (v) provide an opportunity to communities to respond to the needs of children in difficult circumstances. Childline operations are coordinated, monitored and expanded by Childline India Foundation, which is the umbrella organisation, set up by the Government of India. Integrated Child Protection Scheme ((ICPS) : Ministry of Women and Child Development has launched a new centrally sponsored scheme namely—Integrated Child Protection Scheme (ICPS) from the current financial year 2009-10 for implementation through the State Governments/UT Administrations. The objectives of the scheme are to contribute to the improvement in the well being of children in difficult circumstances, as well as to the reduction of vulnerabilities to situations and actions that lead to abuse, neglect, exploitation, abandonment and separation of children from parents. The scheme is being implanted through the State Governments/ UT administrations on a predefined cost sharing financial pattern. ICPS provides preventive, statutory, care and rehabilitation services to children who are in need of care and protection and children in conflict with law as defined under the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000 as amended in 2006 and any other vulnerable child. ICPS will provide financial support for setting up and running of services for children either by NGOs following due process by the State Government/UT Administrations or by the State Governments/UT Administrations themselves. These services include (a) Emergency outbreach services through children; (b) Open shelters for children in Need in Urban and Semi Urban areas: (c) Family Based NonInstitutional Care; (d) aftercare; (e) Institutional Services. Provisions have been made under the scheme for giving financial assistance to the State Governments/UT Administrations for setting up of statutory bodies like : (a) Child Welfare Committee; (b) Juvenile Justice Board (JJB); and (c) State Juvenile Police Unit as provided under the JJ Act.
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ICPS brings existing child protection programmes namely : (i) A programme for Juvenile Justice; (ii) an Integrated Programme for Street Children, and (iii) Scheme for Assistance to Homes (Shishu Greh) to promote in Country Adoption, under one umbrella with some new additional interventions. Scheme for Welfare of Working Children in Need of Care and Protection : The implementation of the scheme commenced in January, 2005. The objective of the scheme is to provide non-formal education, vocational training etc. to working children to facilitate their entry/re-entry into mainstream education in cases where they have either not attended any learning system or where for some reasons their education has been discontinued, with a view to preventing their future exploitation. Prevention of female foeticide : Crime and violence against the girl child starts even before she takes birth. This is evident from the incidence of female foeticide which has been increasing over the years denying the girl child the right to be born. The Ministry has suggested to Ministry of Health to strengthen the existing administrative, enforcement and monitoring provisions under the Pre-conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (Prohibition of Sex Selection) (PNDA) Act, 1994 and put in place such mechanisms that can tackle the problem of sex determination and foeticide in a more effective manner. Dhanlakshmi—Conditional Cash Transfer for Girl Child with Insurance Cover A new Pilot Scheme "Dhanlakshmi—Conditional Cash Transfer for Girl Child with Insurance Cover (CCT)" was launched on 3rd March, 2008 by the Ministry of Women and Child Development. The Scheme provides cash transfer to the family of the girl child (preferable the mother) on fulfilling certain specific conditionalities, for the girl child: l
At birth and registration of birth
l
On progress of immunization (6 monthly transfer)
l
On completion of full immunization
l
On enrolment and retention in school (MWCD will provide cash transfer till Class B and MHRD will provide cash incentives from Classes 9 to 12)
l
Remains unmarried at the age of 18 years.
l
In addition, an insurance maturity coverage to the tune of Rs. 1 lakh would be taken for the girl child born on and after the cut-off date suggested in the Scheme. The objective of the scheme is two fold :
l
The direct and tangible objective is to provide a set of staggered financial incentives for families to encourage them to retain the girl child and educate her.
l
The more subtle and intangible objective is to change the attitudinal mindset of the family towards the girl. This will force the families to look upon the girl as an asset rather then a liability since her very existence has led to cash inflow to the family. The Scheme will be piloted in 11 Districts across seven States. The annual outlay of Rs. 10.00 crore has been made for 2008-09.
PREVENTION OF CHILD MARRIAGE In order to prevent child marriages, the existing Child Marriage Restraint Act, 1929 was repealed and the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006 was notified on 11th
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January, 2007. Under Section 19(1) of the Act. The State Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, make rules for carrying out the provision of this Act and Section 19(2) stated that every rule made under this Act shall, as soon as may be after it is made, be laid before the State Legislature. The same has also been supported by the Supreme Court of India vide their Order dated 24th August, 2007 in WP (Civil) 212/203 that the prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006 be brought into force as expeditiously as possible and preferably within a period of four weeks from date. It is expected that the States within six weeks, thereafter, shall frame appropriate Rules. This Act provisions for enhancing punishment for offenders, and for appointment of Prohibition Officers in the States to prevent child marriages. Cooperation with UNICEF : UNICEF projects are being implemented in India through an agreement between Ministry of Women and Child Development on behalf of Government of India and UNICEF, which is prepared after mutual consultation and consensus. The Ministry of Women and Child Development is the nodal Ministry for coordination the implementation of the Agreement. The Ministry of Women and Child Development conducts periodic review meeting to coordinate and monitor the implementation and expenditure of the programme. The new Agreement, title "Country Programme Action Plan (CPAP)" for the period 2008-2012 was signed between Ministry of Women and Child Development and UNICEF on 3rd June, 2008 in New Delhi. The CPAP will be implemented through sectoral Ministries and Departments and aims at focusing on reduction in India's infant mortality and maternal mortality rates, fighting under-nutrition, promoting girl child, addressing violence against children, providing quality education, ensuring safe drinking water and environmental sanitation and tackling HIV. UNICEF has committed to support the Government of India's flagship programmes in the social sector in order to support and strengthen their essential work and to raise US $ 512 million for the five year programme of cooperation in India. The GOI-INCEF Country Programme Action Plan 2008-2012 is guided by UN Convention on the Rights of the Child and other national and international instruments. Assistance to Voluntary Organisations for Providing Social Defence Services : Under the scheme, assistance is given to Voluntary organizations working in the field of child and women welfare for innovative projects and activities which are not covered in the existing schemes of the Ministry of Women and Child Development. Children's Day : India observes Children's Day on 14 November every year. The Day enables us to review the progress made in attaining the decadal goals, identify gaps and constraints and work out strategies to reach the time-bound goals. Convention on the Rights of the Child : India acceded to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child on 11 December, 1992 to reiterate its commitment to the cause of children. The objective of the Convention is to give every child the right to survival and development in a healthy and congenial environment. The member countries that have acceded to the Convention on the Rights of the Child are required to submit a periodical report about the status of the implementation of the Convention in their country. Accordingly, the first India Country Report was submitted to UN in 1997. The Second Country Report was submitted on the rights of the child in 2001, which was discussed in an oral hearing in Geneva on 21 January, 2004. The UN Committee appreciated the Report and gave its comments and observations. The next Country Report is due in 2008 and the Ministry is working on it.
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India has signed two Optional Protocols to the Convention on the Rights of the Child, namely : (1) on the involvement of children in armed conflicts, and (2) on the sale of children prostitution and child pornography in September, 2004. National Plan of Action for Children : The National Policy for Children adopted on 22nd August 1974 lays down that the State shall provide adequate services towards children both before and after birth and during the growing stages for their full physical, mental and social development. The National Charter for Children is a policy document adopted by the government highlighting the roles and responsibilities of the government and the community towards the children and the duties of children towards their families., society and the country. It has been notified in the Official Gazette of India on 9 February, 2004. India was an active party in the recent movements at International Platforms like World Summit for Children 1990, UN Convention on the Rights of the Child 1992, UN special session on Children May 2002. As a further Step, Ministry prepared the National Plan of Action for Children 2005 after harmonizing the goals for children set in the UN General Assembly Special Session on Children held in 2002 and the monitorable targets set in the Tenth Five Year Plan, and goals for children in related Ministries/Departments. The Action Plan has been prepared in consultation with concerned Ministries and Departments. States/Union territory Governments, Non Governmental Organization and experts. The National Plan of Action includes goals, objectives, strategies and activities for improving nutritional status of children, reducing IMR and MMR, increasing enrolment ratio and reducing drop out rates, universalisation of primary education, increasing coverage for immunization etc. National Coordination Group has been constituted for the purpose of monitoring the implementation of the provisions of the NPAC. National Child Award for exceptional Achievement : The National Child Award for Exceptional Achievement was instituted in 1996 to give recognition to children of 4 to 15 age group with exceptional abilities who have achieved outstanding status in various fields including academics, arts, culture and sports, etc. One Gold Medal and 35 Silver Medals (one for each State/UT) are given annually. The awards for the year 2008 were given on 05-02-2009. National Award for Child Welfare : The Award was instituted in 1979 to honour five institutions and three individuals for their outstanding performance in the field of child welfare. The National Award for Child Welfare includes a cash prize of Rs. 3 lakh and a certficate for each institution and Rs. 1 lakh and a certificate for each individual. The Awards for the year 2008 were given on 05-02-2009. Rajiv Gandhi Manav Seva Award : This Award was instituted in 1994 to honour an individual who makes outstanding contribution towards service for children. The Awards carry a cash prize of Rs. 1.00 lakhs, a silver plaque and a citation. The number of Awards were increased to three from the year 2006. The Awards are declared on birth anniversary of late Shri Rajiv Gandhi on 20th August every year. The awards for the year 2008 were given on 05-02-2009. STATUTORY AND AUTONOMOUS ORGANISATIONS National Commission for Women : It is a statutory body constituted on 31.1.1992 under the National Commission for Women Act, 1990. The main task of the Commission is to study and monitor all matters relating to the Constitutional and legal safeguards provided for women and to review the existing legislations and suggest amendments, wherever necessary.
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The commission also ensures speedy redressal of grievances of women. The NCW has formulated a scheme titled 'Scheme for relief and Rehabilitation of Victims of Rape, 2005'. It envisages compensation to the victims of rape up to a maximum amount of Rs. 2 lakhs for all rehabilitation measures. The National Commission for Women has also initiated a pilot project with Delhi Police in May, 2008. The project called 'Save Home, Save Family' is intended to sensitize police personnel at the Thana/Police Station level in order to deal with women issues effectively. Phase-II of the project has been initiated in March 2009 for setting up three special cells for women and children in Delhi, based on Maharashtra model. The Major function of the Cells would be to handle cases of violence against women (VAW), provision of police assistance on criminal complaints, referral to family service agencies, counseling, legal aid and generating awareness on VAW. The project is funded by the National Commission for Women and is functioning in association with Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS). National Commission for Protection of Child rights : The Commissions for Protection of Child Rights Act (Number 4 of 2006) and its Amendment notified in the official Gazettee of India on 20th Jan., 2006 and 29th Dec., 2006 provides for constitution of a National Commission for Protection of Child Rights as per Section 3. The Commission has started functioning from 5th March 2007. The National Commission for Protection of Child rights is a statutory body. The objective of the Commission is proper enforcement of children’s rights and effective implementation of laws and programmes relating to children. The Commission is to look into all matters such in a holistic manner. The Commission will have a Chairperson and six other members, including two women members, and a Member Secretary. The members would be experts in the field of child health, education, child care and development, juvenile justice, children with disabilities, elimination of child labour, child psychology or sociology and laws relating to children. Rashtriya Mahila Kosh (RMK) : The objective of the institution set-up on 30 March, 1993 under Societies Registration Act, 1860 is to facilitate credit support to poor women for their socio-economic upliftment. The support is extended through NGOs, Women Development Corporations, state government agencies like DRDAs, Dairy Federations, Municipal Councils, etc. RMK extends loan to the above organisations at 8 per cent and the above organizations can lend to the women Self Help Groups/ ultimate women beneficiaries at an interest ranging from 8 per cent to 18 per cent. The RMK provides micro-credit with a unique credit delivery model ‘‘RMK-NGO-SHG Beneficiaries’’ which is one of the main reasons for its success. The other reasons are its flexible credit norms, hassle free loans, no collateral and reasonable rate of interest. National Institute of Public Cooperation and Child Development : National Institute of Public Cooperation and Child Development (NIPCCD), New Delhi is an autonomous organisation under the aegis of the Ministry of Women and Child Development. The objectives of the Institute are to develop and promote voluntary action in social development, take a comprehensive view of women and child development, develop and promote programmes in pursuance of the National Policy for Children, develop measures for coordination of governmental and voluntary action in social development, and evolve a framework and perspective for organising children’s programmes through governmental and voluntary efforts.
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The building of functionaries at the national and regional level, under the proposed Integrated Child Protection Scheme (ICPS), to be launched soon. The Institute provides technical advice and consultancy to government and voluntary agencies in promoting and implementing policies and programmes for women and child development and voluntary action. In addition, it collaborates with regional and international agencies, research institutions, universities and technical bodies. The Institute has established four Regional Centres at Guwahati, Bengaluru, Lucknow and Indore. Central Social Welfare Board : Set-up in August, 1953, the growth of the Board is synonymous with the development of voluntary agencies in India. The Central Social Welfare Board has the objective of promoting social welfare activities and implementing welfare programmes for women, children and handicapped through voluntary organisations. In 1969, the Board was registered as a charitable company under the company’s act to give it legal status. There are 33 State Boards which implement the programmes such as Awareness Generation Programme, Condensed Course of Education for Women, Family Counseling Centres, Short Stay Home, Rajiv Gandhi National Creche Scheme, Hostel for Working Women (Rent) etc. Rashtriya Mahila Kosh (RMK) : Rashtriya Mahila Kosh (National Credit Fund for Fund) was set up by the Government of India in March 1993 as an autonomous body registered under Societies Registration Act 1860 under the Department (now Ministry) of Women and Child Development. The objective was to facilitate Credit Support to poor women for their Socio-economic upliftment. The credit needs of poor women, specially those in the unorganized sector, are not adequately addressed by the formal financial institutions of the country. Thus RMK was established to provide loans in a quasi formal credit delivery mechanism, which is client-friendly, has simple and minimal procedure, disburse quickly and repeatedly, has flexible repayment schedules, link thrift and savings with credit and has relatively low transaction costs both for the borrower and the lender. The RMK provides micro-credit with a unique credit delivery model "RMKNGO-SHG-Beneficiaries". The support is extended through NGO's women Development Corporations, State Government agencies like DRDA's, Dairy Federations, Municipal Councils etc. These agencies are provided loan at 8 per cent interest on reducing balance and they can lend to the Self Help Groups (SHG)/ beneficiaries at interest ranging between 8-18 percent on reducing balance. This is a very reasonable interest rate and no collateral is required. Central Adoption Resource Agency (CARA) : Central Adoption Resource Agency (CARA) was set up on 20th June, 1990. It was registered as an autonomous body under the Registration of Societies Act, 1860 on 18.3.1999. On the recommendation of State Governments, CARA gives recognition to agencies to facilitate inter-country adoptions. It also gives enlistment to foreign adoption agencies, as recognized under the appropriate laws of their own country, and recommended by Indian Missions abroad. So far, CARA has recognized 64 Indian Placement Agencies in the country and 152 Enlisted Agencies, which also include Government Departments in more
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than 25 countries. CARA also implements Shishu Greh Scheme which promotes incountry adoptions. This scheme has been subscribed in ICPS. PENSION AND PENSIONERS WELFARE The Department of Pension & Pensioner' Welfare, set up in 1985, is the nodal agency of the Government of India for formulation of general policy on pension and other retirement benefits, as also for redressal of pensioners' grievances. A number of steps have been taken in the last few years for streamlining the pension administration system. In pursuance of the recommendations of the Sixth Central Pay Commission for rates of pension, family pension, etc. have been revised as under. (i) Pension/Family Pension : Minimum pension has been enhanced to Rs. 3500/- per month w.e.f. 1.1.2006. Linkage of full pension with 33 years of qualifying service has been dispensed with. Once a Government servant has rendered the minimum qualifying service of 10 years (20 years for voluntary retirement) pension is paid at 50% of the emoluments or average emoluments received during the last 10 months, whichever is more beneficial to him. (ii) Commutation of Pension : The commutation of pension has been allowed up to 40 per cent of pension. (iii) Gratuity : The ceiling of gratuity has been raised to Rs. 10 Lakhs. (iv) Family Pension : Family Pension is paid at the uniform rate of 30% of the pay last drawn. The Family pension at enhanced rate is payable to the family of a deceased government servant for a period of 10 years. In the case of deceased pensioner, enhanced family pension is paid for a period of seven years, or for a period upto the date on which the retired deceased government servant would have attained the age of 67 years, had he survived, whichever is earlier. The definition of family for the purpose of family pension has been broadened to include dependent parents; dependent widowed and divorced daughters made eligible for to family pension with effect from 1st January 1998; family pension for life extended to the dependent divorced and widowed daughters with effect from 30th August 2004 and to the unmarried daughters w.e.f. 6.9.2007. Son or daughter, suffering from any disorder or disability of mind or physically crippled or disabled, have been made eligible for family pension for life. Dependent disabled (i.e. sisters/brothers) have been made eligible for family pension for life. Dependent disabled siblings (i.e. sisters/brothers) have been made eligible for family pension for life. Maximum limit for two family pensions to dependent children of the deceased Government servants has been raised to Rs. 45,000/- with effect from 1 st January, 2006. (v) Deposit Linked Insurance Scheme : The upper ceiling of amount payable under the deposit linked Insurance Scheme has been fixed at Rs. 60,000/-. (vi) Medical Allowance : A fixed medical allowance @ Rs. 100 per month is payable to the Pensioners residing in areas not covered by CGHS. A proposal for enhancement in Fixed Medical Allowance consequent on 6th CPC recommendations is under consideration of the Government.
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(vii) CPF Retirees : CPF retirees of the period from 18th November 1960 to 31st December 1985, who retired on superannuation with 20 years of continuous service, have been allowed ex-gratia at the rate of Rs. 600/- per month with effect from 1st November, 1997. (viii) Timely Payment of Pension & Retirement Dues : In pursuance of observations made by the Parliamentary Standing Committee of the Ministry of Home Affairs in Para 61 of its 44th Report, detailed instructions have been issued for timely payment of pension and retirement dues to the retiring employees of the Union Government. The instructions also provide for fixing responsibility of penal interest paid on delayed amount of gratuity to the retiring employees from the salary of concerned dealing Official/Supervisor and Head of Office in proportion. (ix) Employed family pensioners have been allowed Dearness Relief (D.R.) on their family pension with effect from 18th July 1997. In the case of reemployed pensioners D.R. on pension is payable only if pay on reemployment has been fixed at the minimum of the scale of re-employed post and subject to certain conditions. (x) Central Government Servants who had drawn lump sum payment on absorption in PSUs/Autonomous Bodies are entitled to restoration of 1/3rd commuted portion of pension duly revised as per O.M. dated 06.092007 in pursuance of Supreme Court's Judgments dated 29th November 2006 and 24th July, 2007. The D.R. has now been allowed on full pension instead of 1/3rd commuted portion of pension. In pursuance of revision of pension as per 6th Pay Commissions Recommendations, the 1/3rd restorable pension of PSU/CAB absorbed employees, who had drawn lump sum in lieu of 100% pro-rata pension, has been revised vide OM No. 4/38/2008-P&P(D) dt. 15/9/08 and as clarified vide OM. No 4/38/2008-P&PW (D) dt. 27/5/2009. (xi) Identity Cards to Pensioners : The Government has decided to issue Identity Cards with National Emblem to all Civilian Central Government pensioners. (xii) DA to be Treated as Emoluments for Gratuity : W.e.f. 1st January 1996, DA admissible on the date of retirement/death of the Government employee is treated as emoluments for the purpose of gratuity. Besides following are the details of other benefits/facilities relating to pension, family pension, etc. which have been revised/improved from time to time. (i) New Pension Scheme (Restructured Defined Contribution Pension System) : Based on the recommendations of the High-level Expert Group-(2001) to review the pension system to introduce a comprehensive pension scheme and pursuant to the announcement in the Budget 2003-2004, Department of Economic Affairs notified on 22nd December, 2003, a new "Restructured Defined Contribution Pension System" for new entrants to the Central Government service, System" for new extrants to the Central Government service, except the Armed Forces, in the first stage, replacing the existing defined benefit pension system. (ii) The 'New Pension System' has become operative from 1st January, 2004 and applies to Central Government servants appointed on/after 1st January 2004;
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(iii) Consequent to introduction of 'New Pension Scheme' with effect from 1st January 2004, CCS (Pension) Rules 1972, CCS (Commutation of Pension) Rules 1981, GPF, CPF and EOP Rules will not be applicable to Central Government servants appointed on or after 1st January 2004; (iv) With the implementation of the 'New Scheme' with effect from 1st January 2004, the Old Pension Scheme' under the Central Civil Services (Pension) Rules, 1972 ceased to exist beyond 31st December 2003 for the Central Government servants appointed on or after 1st January, 2004. However, the employees would continue to be covered under the old pension scheme if they join after submitting technical resignation from Central Government or Central Autonomous Body where old pension scheme was in operation prior to 1st January 2004. This will facilitate mobility of employees between Central Government Department and Central Autonomous Bodies and vice-versa. (v) Additional benefits, such as gratuity, invalid pension, family pension, etc., as hitherto availed by Govt. servants under the Old Pension Scheme, allowed on death or discharge on invalidation/disability of Govt. servants covered by New Defined Contribution Pension System. (vi) Ex-Gratia to Disabled Children of CPF/Retirees : Physically or mentally disabled children of Contributory Provident Fund/State Reserve Police Force retirees are entitled to the benefit of ex-gratia payment for life on the same conditions as prescribed for such children of Government servants under CCS (Pension) Rules 1972 and corresponding rules applicable to Railway employees. (vii) Medical Certificate in Respect of Disabled Children : Rules 54 (6) of CCS (Pension) Rules, 1972 has been amended. Certificate of disability shall be provided only once if the disability is permanent; and once in 5 years if the disability is temporary. The Medical Certificate would now be issued by a Medical Board. (viii) Dearness Relief : Pensioners are allowed 100 per cent neutralization vis-a-vis the rise in cost of living and order to this effect are issued twice a year effective from 1st January and 1st July of the year. (ix) Central Government Servants Absorbed in PSUs or Autonomous Bodies : SubRules (8) of Rules 37(A) of CCS (Pension) Rules 1972 has been amended to allow the employees absorbed in PSU of Autonomous Body to exercise option either to get pro rata pensionary benefits or to continue to get combined service benefits. Prior to the above amendment, employees were eligible for benefits based on combined service. (x) Pensioners' Portal : As part of the National e-Governance Plan (NeGP), a webenabled 'Pensioners Portal', a Mission Mode Project, has been launched for public domain w.e.f. 30.03.2007. It envisages redressal of pensioners' grievances besides providing guidance and information on pension and retirement related matters. 27 pensioner's Associations have been identified for association with the implementation of the Portal. Hardware and software has been provided to the representatives of Pensioners Associations and official of various Ministries/Departments. An Impact Assessment study of the Scheme by an external agency is underway. (xi) SEVOTTAM : SEVOTTAM (i.e. Services Delivery Excellence Model), which envisages bringing about excellence in services delivery and assessing and rating
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the level of excellence as per the benchmarks/norms prescribed by the Department of the Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances, has been undertaken by the Department for implementation. A Citizens' Charter, Policy has been finalized under SEVOTTAM, and circulated on 28.03.2008; it outlines the Vision, Mission, Activities, Clients, Policy Framework, Grievances Redressal Mechanism, etc. of the Department. (xii) Ex-Burmese Civil Pensioners/Family Pensioners : Ex-gratia ad-hoc allowance has been revised and raised from Rs. 1275/- p.m. to 3500/-pm. w.e.f. 1.1.2006 to Burmese Civil Pensioners/family pensioners and Pensioners/families of displaced Government Pensioners from Pakistan who are Indian nationals. This law is very comprehensive, covers almost all levels of governance and has the widest possible reach. It is applicable not only to Union, State and Local Governments and the public authorities but also to the recipients of government grants. Access to information under this Act is extensive with minimum exemptions to safeguard national interests Even the exempted organizations are subject to the citizens' right to know when the exempted organizations are subject to the citizens' right to know when the matter relates to corruption or human rights violation. The Act is perhaps the most progressive of all such legislations in the world. The citizen does not have to establish his locus standi to seek information. It overrides anything contrary to any other Act including the 'Official Secrets Act'. The procedure for seeking information under the Act is very simple. A person seeking information from any office of the Government has to simply make a request to the concerned Public Information Officer. The request has to merely indicate the information sought and the address at which the information is required. The request can be sent either by post or submitted in person. It can be made in Hindi or English or in the official language of the area and can also be sent through e-mail. The Act permits the applicants to inspect the official documents. It also permits the applicants to collect samples of various works. If the applicant does not get the information within 30 days or the applicant is not satisfied with the reply given to him, he can make a first appeal within 30 days to the appellate authority who is generally the officer immediately superior to the Public Information Officer. The Appellate authority has to decide the appeal within 30 days of the receipt of appeal. If the applicant is not satisfied with the decision of the Appellate Authority, he can file a second appeal to the Central Information Commission or the State Information Commission, as the case may be within 90 days. The Central Information Commission entertains appeals in case of offices, financial institutions, public sector undertakings, etc. under the Central Government and the Union Territories while the State Information Commission entertains appeals pertaining to offices, financial institutions, public sector undertakings, etc. under the concerned State Government. Central Information Commission/State Information Commissions are highpowered independent Commissions. These Commissions have also been granted the authority to impose a penalty on the defaulting Public Information Officers.
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The Act has transformed the regime of secrecy into the regime of openness. It is not that information shall be supplied only when a person requests for it. Rather, every public authority, in order to disseminate maximum possible information, is obliged to publish large quantum of information in respect of its organisation suomotu so that the public has minimum need to resort to seek information from the public authorities. MINISTRY OF MINORITY AFFAIRS The Ministry of Minority Affairs was created on 29th January, 2006 to ensure a focused approach to the issues relating to the minorities and to play a pivotal role in the overall policy planning coordination evaluation and review of the regulatory and development programme for the benefit programme of the minorities communities. Five religious communities namely Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists and Zoroastrians (Parsis) have been notified as minorities communities under section 2(c) of the National Commission for Minorities Act, 1992. These five minorities communities constitute about 18.47 per cent of the population of the country. The Ministry is also responsible for the administration and implementation of the (i) National Commission for Minorities Act, 1992; (ii) Wakf Act, 1995 and (iii) Durgah Khwaja Saheb Act, 1955. In a short period of time, not only has the Ministry been made fully functional but concerted efforts have been made to streamline the ongoing programmes/schemes and to launch innovative and effective schemes/programmes for the welfare of minorities communities. The details/developments pertaining to scheme run by the Ministry as well as its subordinate organizations are as under :Prime Minister's New 15-Point Programme for the Welfare of Minorities : The Prime Minister's New 15-Point Programme for the Welfare of Minorities was announced in June, 2006. The objectives of the programme are: (a) Enhancing opportunities for education, (b) Ensuring an equitable share for minorities in economic activities and employment, through existing and new schemes, enhanced credit support for self-employment and recruitment to State and Central Government jobs, (c) Improving the conditions of living of minorities by ensuring an appropriate share for them in infrastructure development schemes, (d) Prevention and control of communal disharmony and violence. An important aim of the new programme is to ensure that the benefits of various government schemes for the underprivileged reach the disadvantaged sections of the minority communities. In order to ensure that the benefits of these schemes flow equitably to the minorities, the new programme envisages location of a certain proportion of development projects in minority concentration areas. It also provides that, whereever possible, 15% of physical targets and financial outlays under various schemes should be marked for minorities. As envisaged in the guidelines for the Prime Minister's New 15-Point Programme for the Welfare of Minorities, the progress of the implementation is monitored closely. Some of the notable achievements made during 2006-07 and 2007-08 and the targets fixed for 2008-09 are given below :(i) Under Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA), 961 primary schools were constructed in 2006-07 in minority concentration areas and this has now increased to 2008 in
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2007-08. In respect of new upper primary schools, 1,114 such schools were opened during 2006-07. This increased to 3,001 during 2007-08, Similarly, the number of Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalayas (KGBV) sanctioned for educationally backwards blocks, having a substantial minority population, rose from 97 in 2006-07 to 219 in 2007-08. (ii) Under the Swaranjayanti Gram Swarojgar Yojana (SGSY), 60,494 Swarojgaris belonging to the minorities were assisted in 2006-07 and this went up to 143,385 in 2007-08. The target for assisting swarojgaris has been fixed at 264,401 in 2008-09. (iii) Under the Indira Awas Yojana (IAY), 14,236 BPL families belonging to the minorities were assisted for construction of pucca houses in 2006-07. This went up to 155,980 in 2007-08. The target for construction of houses for minorities below the poverty line has been fixed at 319,075 in 2008-09. (iv) Under the Swaran Jayanti Shahari Rojgar Yojana (SJSRY), 15,933 beneficiaries were assisted for skill training in 2006-07. In 2007-08, the achievements rose substantially to 41,466. This was more than the target fixed. (v) The proportion of priority sector lending flowing to the minorities is expected to increase from 9% to 15% over three years i.e. 2007-08 to 2009-10. Rs. 58,662.67 crores of priority sector lending, which was 9.67% of the total priority sector lending, was disbursed to minorities in 2007-08. The target for 2008-09 is 13.00%. Exclusive scholarship schemes for students belonging to the minorities communities : Three Centrally sponsored scholarship schemes for students belonging to the minority communities have been launched. To ensure that girl students get a fair share, all three schemes have 30% scholarship earmarked for them. These schemes are : (i) Merit-cum-Means scholarship is a scheme fully funded by the Central Government. Every year 20,000 new scholarships are to be awarded for technical and professional courses at under graduate and post graduate levels. 70 institutes have been listed in the scheme and student enrolled in these institutes are entitled for reimbursement of course fee upto a maximum amount of Rs. 20,000 per annum. 17,258 scholarships were sanctioned to students in 28 States/UTs in 2007-08 of which 29.02% went to girl students. The target for 2008-09 is 37258 scholarships. (ii) Post-Matric Scholarships is a scheme fully funded by the Central Government. This scholarship is awarded to students belonging to the minority communities studying in class-XI up to Ph.D. level and it also includes technical and vocational courses of class XI and XII. Fees ranging from Rs. 3,000 to Rs. 10,000 per annum are reimbursed to students. 56,742 scholarships were sanctioned to students in 28 States/ UTs in 2007-08; 56.80% for girl students. The target for 2008-09 is 2.5 lakh students. (iii) Pre-Matric Scholarship is being implemented on a sharing basis between the Centre and States in the ratio of 75:25 for students in class-I to class-X. Fees upto Rs. 4700 per annum will be reimbursed to students under this scheme. Advertisements have been issued by both the Central and State Governments seeking applications. Four lakh scholarships are expected to be awarded in 2008-09.
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Identification of Minority Concentration Districts : 90 minority concentration districts (MCD) have been identified, based on the population data of 2001 census and relevant backwardness parameters. A multi-sectoral development programme, designed to address the 'development deficits', specially in education, employment, sanitation, housing, drinking water and electricity supply has been launched from 2008-09. Baseline survey to identify 'development deficits' has been carried out by the regional research institutes affiliated to the Indian Council of Social Science Research, New Delhi. The budgetary provision for 2008-09 is Rs. 540 crore. Multi sectoral development plans of 8 minority concentration districts have already been approved. A Coaching & Allied Scheme has been launched in July, 2007 with a view to improving the representation of minorities in government service and public sector undertakings and also to cater to the emerging trends of the job market. 60 proposals for coaching 4147 candidates have been sanctioned for the year 2007-08. The budgetary provision for 2008-09 is Rs. 10.00 crore. Initiatives taken in Pursuance of the Sachar Committee Recommendations : •
All public sector banks have been directed to open more branches in districts having a substantial minority population, 523 branches were opened in 200708 in such districts.
•
Expert group constituted to study and recommend the structures and functions of an Equal Opportunity Commission, Report submitted by the expert group on 13.3.2008.
•
Expert group constituted for evolving an appropriate Diversity Index to measure diversity in the areas of education, housing and employment. Report submitted by the expert group on 24th June, 2008.
•
A National Data Bank, to compile data on the various socio-economic and basic amenities parameters for socio-economic religious communities, set up in the Ministry os Statistics and Programme Implementation.
•
An autonomous Assessment & Monitoring Authority (AMA) to analyses data collected for taking appropriate and corrective policy decisions set up in the Planning Commission.
•
Mid day meal programme extended to upper primary level in all 3479 educationally backward blocks.
•
Seventy seven blocks with a high concentration of Muslims identified for establishment of Block Institutes of Teacher Education (BITEs) for teacher education. Scheme for setting up BITEs being modified.
•
Provision of more girls' hostel in colleges and universities in minority concentration districts proposed under the existing University Grants Commission (UGC) scheme. Proposed also to open new polytechnics with hostel facilities in MCDs.
•
The madrasa modernization programme is being revised. The two components of the existing programme have been proposed as two separate schemes (a)
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Quality improvement in Madrasa Education (b) Infrastructure development in Primary, Upper Primary, Secondary and Senior Secondary schools established by minorities. The scheme for quality improvement in Madrasa education to make it more attractive by providing better salary to teachers, increased assistance for books, teaching aids and computers and introduction of vocational subjects etc. has been approved. •
NCERT has prepared text books for all classes in the light of the NCF 2005.
•
Thirteen Universities which were provided Rs. 40 lakhs each for starting centres for studying social exclusion and inclusive policy for minorities and SCs & STs have been set up the centres.
Maulana Azad Education Foundation (MAEF) : The present corpus of the MAEF stands at Rs. 250.00 crores. A provision of 60 crores has been made towards augmentation of the Corpus Fund of the Foundation during the year 2008-09. In the year 2007-08, under the grant-in-aid scheme, an amount of Rs. 175 lakhs was given for construction of hostel buildings, Rs. 439.50 lakhs for construction/ expansion of schools, colleges and Rs. 45 lakhs for technical education. An amount of Rs. 425.88 lakhs was disbursed under the Maulana Azad National Scholarship to 3549 beneficiaries and Rs. 4.75 lakhs was given for Vocational Training Centre run by MAEF at Delhi. In 2008-09 (upto July, 08), under grant-in-aid scheme of MAEF, an amount of Rs. 172 lakhs has been disbursed for construction of hostel buildings, Rs. 311.90 lakhs for construction/expansion of schools, colleges and Rs. 37 lakhs for technical education. Rs. 55.44 lakhs has been disbursed to 462 beneficiaries under the Maulana Azad National Scholarship and Rs. 1.75 lakh has been spent on Vocational Training Centre run by MAEF at Delhi. National Minorities Development and Finance Corporation (NMDFC) : The National Minorities Development & Finance Corporation (NMDFC) was incorporated on 30th September 1994, with the objective of promoting economic activities amongst the backward sections of notified minorities. To achieve its objective, NMDFC is providing concessional finance for self-employment activities to eligible beneficiaries belonging to the minority communities, having a family income below double the poverty line. The authorized share capital of NMDFC is Rs. 750 crores. An amount of Rs. 70 crores was provided in 2007-08 and the entire amount was released to the Corporation. The government has given it's approval for increasing the authorized share capital of the National Minorities Development & Finance Corporation from Rs. 750 crores to Rs. 850 crores in 2008-09. NMDFC has two channels to reach the ultimate beneficiaries (i) Through state channelising agencies (SCAs) nominated by the respective State/UT Governments and (ii) through non-governmental organizations (NGOs). Under the SCA programme, projects costing up to Rs. 5.00 lakhs are financed. Funds are for this
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purpose are made available to the SCAs at an interest rate of 3% for further loaning to the beneficiaries at 6%. The Corporation is also implementing schemes of vocational training & educational loan through the SCAs for capacity building of the target groups for self as well as wage employment. Under the NGO programme micro credit up to Rs. 25,000 could be given to each of the members of a minority self-help groups (SHG). Funds for this purpose are made available to NGOs at 1% for further loaning at an interest rate of 5% per annum. In addition to loaning activity, NMDFC assists the targeted group in skill upgradation and marketing assistance. Under the NGOs programme, there is also a provision of interest free loan (adjustable as grant) for promotion and stabilization of SHGs. NMDFC is implementing the Educational Loan Scheme through state channelising agencies. Under this scheme , NMDFC provides Rs. 2,50,000 to eligible candidates belonging to the minority communities at a concessional interest rate of 3% for pursuing professional and technical education. This year the funds disbursed by NMDFC (up to August 2008) under its term loan scheme is Rs. 6709.00 lakhs to 13889 beneficiaries. For micro-financing Rs. 1103.25 lakhs has been disbursed to 11115 beneficiaries during the same period. Since its inception, NMDFC has released Rs. 1108.09 crores. The number of beneficiaries covered is 399976. The government has given in principle approval for restructuring of the NMDFC by converting it from a Section 25 company to a non-deposit taking Non-Banking Finance Company (NBFC). Annual Plan : The annual plan outlay for the Ministry of Minority Affairs has been doubled from Rs. 500 crores in 2007-08 to Rs. 1000 crores for 2008-09. A non-plan provision of Rs. 13.83 crores has been made for 2008-09. MINORITY AFFAIRS The Ministry of Minority Affairs was created on 29th January, 2006 to ensure a focused approach to the issues relating to the minorities and to play a pivotal role in the overall policy planning coordination evaluation and review of the regulatory and development programme for the benefit programme of the minority communities. Five religious communities namely Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists and Zoroastrians (Parsis) have been notified as minority communities under 2(c) of the National Commission for Minorities Act, 1992. These five minority communities constitute about 18.47 percent of the population of the country. The Ministry is also responsible for the administration and implementation of the : (i) National Commission for Minorities Act, 1992; (ii) Wakf Act, 1995 and (iii) Durgah Khawaja Saheb Act, 1955. In a short period of time, not only has the Ministry been made fully functional but concerted efforts have been made to streamline the ongoing programmes/schemes and to launch innovative and effective schemes/programmes for the welfare of minority communities. The details/developments pertaining to schemes run by the Ministry as well as its subordinate organizations are as under :
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Prime Minister's New 15-Point Programme for the Welfare of Minorities The Prime Minister's New 15-Point Programme for the Welfare of Minorities was announced in June, 2006. The objectives of the programme are : (a) Enhancing opportunities for education; (b) Ensuring an equitable share for minorities in economic activities and employment, through existing and new schemes, enhanced credit support for self-employment, and recruitment to State and Central Government jobs; (c) Improving the conditions of living of minorities by ensuring an appropriate share for them in infrastructure development schemes; (d) Prevention and control of communal disharmony and violence. An important aim of the new programme is to ensure that the benefits of various government schemes for the underprivileged reach the disadvantaged sections of the minority communities. In order to ensure that the benefits of these schemes flow equitably to the minorities, the new programme envisages location of a certain proportion of development projects in minority concentration areas. It also provides that, wherever possible, 15% of physical targets and financial outlays under various schemes should be earmarked for minorities. As envisaged in the guidelines for the Prime Minister's New 15 Point Programme for the Welfare of Minorities, the progress of the implementation is monitored closely. Some of the notable achievements made after launch of the programme are given below : (i) Under Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA), 961 primary schools were constructed in 2006-07 in minority concentration areas and this has now increased to 3266 in 2008-09. In respect of new upper primary schools, 1114 such schools were opened during 2006-07. This increased to 3176 during 2008-09. Similarly, the number of Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalayas (KGBV) sanctioned for educationally backward blocks, having a substantial minority population, rose from 97 in 2006-07 to 133 in 2008-09. (ii) Under the Swarnajayanti Gram Swarojgar Yojana (SGSY), 60,494 Swarojgaris belonging to the minorities were assisted in 2006-07 and this went up to 275121 in 2008-09. (iii) Under the Indira Awas Yojana (IAY), 14,236 BPL families belonging to the minorities were assisted for construction of pucca houses in 2006-07. This went up to 384775 in 2008-09. (iv) Under the Swarn Jayanti Shahari Rojgar Yojana (SJSRY), 15,933 beneficiaries were assisted for skill training in 2006-07. In 2008-09, the achievements rose substantially to 37179. This was more than the target fixed. (v) The proportion of priority sector lending flowing to the minorities is expected to increase from 9% to 15% over three years i.e. 2007-08 to 2009-10. Rs. 58,662.67 crores of priority sector lending, which was 9.67% of the total outstanding accounts, was for minorities. In 2008-09, Rs. 82864.65 crore which is 12.41 of total outstanding accounts was for minorities. Exclusive Scholarship Schemes for students belonging to the minority communities Three Centrally sponsored scholarship schemes for students belonging to the minority communities have been launched. To ensure that girl students get a fair share, all three schemes have 30% scholarships earmarked for them. These schemes are : (i) Merit-cum-Means scholarship is a scheme fully funded by the Central Government. Every year 20,000 new scholarships are to be awarded for technical and professional
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courses at under graduate and post graduate levels. 70 institutes have been listed in the scheme and students enrolled in these institutes are entitled to full re-imbursement of course fee. Students of other recognized institutes are entitled for re-imbursement of course fee upto a maximum amount of Rs. 20,000 per annum. 26,195 scholarships were sanctioned to students in 2008-09 of which 32.01% went to girl students. An amount of Rs. 64.79 crores was released during the year. (ii) Post-Matric Scholarship is a scheme fully funded by the Central Government. This scholarship is awarded to students belonging to the minority communities studying in class-XI up to Ph.D. level and it also includes technical and vocational courses of class XI and XII. Fees ranging from Rs. 3,000 to Rs. 10,000 per annum are reimbursed to students. An outlay of Rs. 1150 crore has been provided for the Plan period. An amount of Rs. 70.63 crore was released to award 1.51 lakh scholarships during the year 2008-09 of which 55.76% were for girl students. (iii)Pre-Matric Scholarship for students belonging to the minority communities was approved on 30th January, 2008. This scheme was launched on 1st April, 2008 as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme (CSS) on 75:25 fund sharing ratio between the Centre and States and is implemented through the State Governments/Union Territory Administrations. Students with not less than 50% marks in the previous final examination, whose parents/guardian's annual income does not exceed Rs. 1.00 lakh, are eligible for award of the pre-matric scholarship. An outlay of Rs. 1400 crores has been provided in the Eleventh Five Year Plan to award 25 lakh scholarships during the plan period (2007-12). Of these 30% have been earmarked for girl students. An amount of Rs. 62.21 crores was released and 5.13 lakh scholarships were awarded during 2008-09. Of this, 50.89% scholarships were for girl students. IDENTIFICATION OF MINORITY CONCENTRATION DISTRICTS 90 minority concentration districts (MCDs) have been identified, based on the population data of 2001 census and relevant backwardness parameters. A multisectoral development programme, designed to address the 'development deficits', specially in education, employment, sanitation, housing, drinking water and electricity supply has been launched from 2008-09 in these minority concentration districts. The list of 90 minority concentration districts is available on the web-site of the Ministry of Minority Affairs www.minorityaffairs.gov.in The details of implementation of the Scheme are as under :Year 2008-09
B.E. Rs. 540 cr. (BE) and
No. of plans approved
Funds
47
Rs. 270.85 cr.
25
Rs. 284.61 cr.
Rs. 280 cr. (RE) 2009-10
Rs. 990 cr.
(till September, 2009)
Free Coaching & Allied Scheme was launched in July, 2007 with a view to improving the representation of minorities in government service and public sector undertakings
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and also to cater to the emerging trends of the job market. IT was further modified in October, 2008 for its effective implementation. The details of implementation of the Scheme (upto 30.9.2009) are as under : Rs. in crores Year
Physical Targets
Achievements
BE
Expenditure
2007-08
4000 students
4097
10.00
5.74
2008-09
4000 students
5522
10.00
7.30
2009-10
5000 students
2382
12.00
3.10
Initiatives taken in pursuance of the Sachar Committee Recommendations l
All public sector banks have been directed to open more branches in districts having a substantial minority population. 523 branches were opened in 2007-08 in such districts.
l
Expert group constituted to study and recommend the structures and functions of an Equal Opportunity Commission. Report submitted by the expert group on 13.3.2008. A note for the Cabinet for creation of an Equal Opportunity Commission has been drafted and is under consideration.
l
Expert group constituted for evolving an appropriate Diversity Index to measure diversity in the areas of education, housing and employment. Report submitted by the expert group on 24th June, 2008. The recommendations of the expert group are being processed in conjunction with setting up of an EOC.
l
A National Data Bank, to compile data on the various socio-economic and basic amenities parameters for socio-economic religious communities, set up in the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation.
l
An autonomous Assessment & Monitoring Authority (AMA) to analyse data collected for tacking appropriate the corrective policy decisions set up in the Planning Commission.
l
Mid day meal programme extended to upper primary level in all 3479 educationally backward blocks.
l
Seventy seven blocks with a high concentration of Muslims identified for establishment of Block Institutes of Teacher Education (BITEs) for teacher education. Scheme for setting up BITEs being modified.
l
Provision of more girls' hostel in colleges and universities in minority concentration districts proposed under the existing University Grants Commission (UGC) scheme. Proposed also to open new polytechnics with hostel facilities in MCDs.
l
The madrasa modernization programme has been revised. The two components of the existing programme have been approved as two separate schemes : (a) Quality improvement in Madrasa Education, (b) Infrastructure development in Primary, Upper Primary, Secondary and Senior Secondary schools established by minorities.
l
NCERT has prepared text books for all classes in the light of the NCF 2005,
l
Thirteen Universities which were provided Rs. 40 lakhs each for starting centres
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for studying social exclusion and inclusive policy for minorities and SCs & STs have set up the centres. Maulana Azad Education Foundation (MAEF) An outlay of Rs. 500 crores has been provided in the 11th Five Year Plan period for enhancement of the corpus fund to Rs. 700 crore. Out of this, Rs. 110 crore have already been released during 2007-08 and 2008-09, bringing the corpus of MAEF as on 31.3.2009 to Rs. 310 crores. In the year 2008-09, under the grants-in-aid scheme, an amount of Rs. 24.51 crore was given to 176 NGOs. Under the scheme of meritorious girl students, the Foundation sanctioned scholarships of Rs. 14.48 crores to 12,064 meritorious girls belonging to minorities. National Minorities Development and Finance Corporation (NMDFC) The National Minorities Development & Finance Corporation (NMDFC) was incorporated on 30th September 1994, with the objective of promoting economic activities amongst the backward sections of notified minorities. To achieve its objective, NMDFC is providing concessional finance for self-employment activities to eligible beneficiaries belonging to the minority communities, having a family income below double the poverty line. The authorized share capital of NMDFC has been raised from Rs. 850 crores to Rs. 1000 crores in September, 2009. An amount of Rs. 75 crores was provided in 200809 and an amount of Rs. 125 crores was provided during 2009-10 as Central Government's equity contribution to NMDFC. NMDFC has two channels to reach the ultimate beneficiaries : (i) through state channelising agencies (SCAs) nominated by the respective State/UT Governments and (ii) through non-governmental organizations (NGOs). Under the SCA progrmme, projects costing up to Rs. 500 lakhs are financed. Funds for this purpose are made available to the SCAs at an interest rate of 3% for further loaning to the beneficiaries at 6%. The Corporation is also implementing schemes of vocational training & educational loan through the SCAs for capacity building of the target groups for self as well as wage employment. Under the NGO programme micro credit up to Rs. 25,000 could be given to each of the members of a minority self-half groups (SHG). Funds for this purpose are made available to NGOs at 1% further loaning at an interest rate of 5% per annum. In addition to loaning activity, NMDFC assists the targeted group in skill up-gradation and marketing assistance. Under the NGOs progrmme, there is also a provision of interest free loan (adjustable as grant) for promotion and stabilization of SHGs. NMDFC is implementing the Educational Loan Scheme through state channelising agencies. Under this scheme, NMDFC provides Rs. 2,50,000 to eligible candidates belonging to the minority communities at a concessional interest rate of 3% p.a. for pursuing professional and technical education. Since its inception, till 31st March, 2009 NMDFC has released Rs. 1190.84 crore. The number of beneficiaries covered is 4,34,329. During the last financial year 2008-09, till 31.3.2009, a consolidated amount of Rs. 130.72 crore has been disbursed covering 51,198 beneficiaries. The government has given in principle approval for restructuring of the NMDFC
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by converting it from a Section 25 company to a non-deposit taking Non-Banking Finance Company (NBFC). Annual Plan The annual plan outlay for the Ministry of Minority Affairs has been enhanced from Rs. 1000 crore in 2008-09 to Rs. 1740 crore for the year 2009-10. A non-plan provision of Rs. 16.50 crores has been made for 2009-10.
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29 Youth Affairs and Sports YOUTH constitute nearly forty per cent of India’s population. It is, therefore, necessary not only to make this vibrant and strong resource of the country beneficiaries of, but also, valuable partners in the process of our planning and development. In order that young men and women are able to contribute towards national development in a significant way, it is important that they should be able to effectively participate in the process of decision-making. Towards this end, the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports has in the recent past announced a National Youth Policy for the youth of the country so as to keep pace with the fast changing socio-economic scenario and also to address the emerging concerns of the youth. A National Commission for Youth has also been set up to recommend to the Government measures to tackle effectively the problems faced by the youth of India, with particular focus on unemployment. In adherence to the recommendation, two new schemes (i) National Programme for Adolescent and Youth Development (NPYAD) (restructured scheme); and (ii) Panchayat Yuva Krida Aur Khel Abihyan has been introduced in the Ministry during the 11th Plan w.e.f. 01.04.2008.
YOUTH SERVICES NATIONAL YOUTH POLICY, 2003 The first National Youth Policy was formulated and laid in Parliament in 1988. A need was felt to revise the existing National Youth Policy, as a result of rapid socioeconomic transformation in the country. The new National Youth Policy, 2003 formulated by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports, is designed to galvanise the youth to rise up to the new challenges, keeping in view the global scenario and aims at motivating them to be active partners in national development. The age group of the Youth, as per the National Youth Policy, 2003, is 13 to 35 years. The New Policy recognises four thrust areas viz., (i) Youth Empowerment; (ii) Gender Justice; (iii) Inter-Sectoral Approach; and (iv) Information and Research Network. The Policy includes eight key sectors for the development of youth. The Policy also identifies five priority groups of young people. The Policy provides implementation mechanism through which various development programmes and activities will be undertaken for the youth with active involvement of the State Governments and Union Ministries and Departments. It has further been decided to review and revise the National Youth Policy, 2003 in the context of 11th Five Year Plan. NATIONAL PROGRAMME FOR YOUTH AND ADOLESCENT DEVELOPMENT (COMMON GUIDELINES FOR THE ELEVENTH FIVE-YEAR PLAN) BACKGROUND The scheme titled National Programme for Youth Adolescent Development (NPYAD) has been formulated by merger of four 100% central sector grants-in-aid schemes of the Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports during 10th Plan namely, Promotion of Youth
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Activities & Training, Promotion of National Integration, Promotion of Adventure and Development and Empowerment of Adolescents. The merger was done with a view to reduce multiplicity of schemes with similar objectives, ensuring uniformity in funding pattern and implementation mechanism, avoiding delays in availability of funds to the field level and institutionalising participation of State Governments in project formulation and its implementation. While there will be synergy and convergence in operational mechanism and programme delivery, there will be clear distinction with regards the financial parameters of each of the components under the scheme. While some procedural changes were made in the schemes during the last year of 10th Five Year Plan in 2006-07, it was felt that the schemes need to be substantially restructured in order to make it more meaningful in terms of content. Impact and outcomes. The schemes were reviewed in the context of 11th Five Year Plan by the working Group constituted by the Planning Commission for formulation of the 11th Five Year Plan. The working Group has recommended that the restructured scheme should be more focused in terms of emerging needs and requirements as also with reference to the capabilities of implementing organization, programme context and methodology of training. Following these and in the context of zero - based budgeting during 11th Five Year Plan, all the four schemes have been merged into a single umbrella scheme. The revised umbrella scheme will be operated by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports as a 100% central sector scheme during 11th five Year Plan. OBJECTIVES OF THE SCHEME Short term objectives: Provide opportunity for holistic development of youth including adolescents for realisation of their fullest potential; ! Develop leadership qualities and personality development of youth and to channelise their energy towards socio-economic development and growth of the nation; ! Promote national integration, strengthen secular and eclectic outlook through creative expressions by youth; ! Foster the spirit of adventure, risk taking, teamwork, the capacity of ready and vital response to challenging situations and of endurance among youth; ! Acknowledge adolescents as a distinct subgroup among youth and address their distinct needs and at the same time provide positive stimulation and congenial environment for their all-round development; and ! To encourage research and publication and to promote technical resource support including development of information and database on issues concerning youth and adolescents. Long - term objectives ! Engage and canalize the energy of youth in a positive manner for nation building; ! Develop amongst youth a sense of pride in nationally accepted values like democracy, socialism, and secularism; !
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Promote activities and programmes, which foster social harmony and national unity among youth; ! Promote spirit of national integration, unity in diversity, pride in Indianness among the youth of different parts of the country and to induce a sense of social harmony amongst the youth; ! To motivate the youth to act as local point for dissemination of knowledge in the rural area and involve them in nation building process; ! To stimulate action for development and empowerment of adolescents, particularly from the economically and socially neglected/backward sections of society; ! To build and develop an environment which recognises the specific needs and promise of the adolescents in the country and provides for adolescent friendly services. SCHEME BENEFICIARIES Definition of youth and adolescent:- The Youth and Adolescents for the purpose of the scheme would be as defined in the extant National Youth Policy. In other words, the expression 'youth' would cover persons belonging to the age group of 13 to 35 years and 'adolescent' would cover persons in the age group of 10-19 years under the scheme. Target youth and adolescents under the scheme:- The targeted beneficiaries of the programmes include members of the youth clubs affiliated to the Nehru Yuva Kendra Sangathan, National Service Scheme, State Government Youth Organisations. Bharat Scouts & Guides or student, in Schools, Colleges and Universities. Adolescents and Youth from other established youth organisations or NGOs may be considered provided they are the registered members of such organisations. Preference may be given to the youth with special abilities and youth belonging to scheduled caste, scheduled tribes, minorities and weaker sections. Gender budgeting:- In selection of beneficiary women will have a distinct priority and care should be taken to include at least one-third beneficiaries from women. PROGRAMME AREA AND COMPONENTS Programme Component:- The umbrella scheme will comprise of the following broad programme area and their components:!
Name of the Programme Area
Programme Component
(a)
Youth Leadership and Personality Development
i.
(b)
Promotion of National Integration
i. ii. iii. iv. v.
(c)
Promotion of Adventure
Youth Leadership and Personality Development Training National Integration Camp Inter-State Youth Exchange Programme Multi-Cultural Activities National Youth Festival State Youth Festival
vi.
National Youth Awards
i.
Promotion of adventure of basic and intermediate level in India.
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Youth Affairs and Sports ii.
(d)
Development and Empowerment of Adolescents
(e)
Technical and Resource Development
Promotion of adventure of advance level including expeditions in India
iii.
Grants to Recognised Institutions.
iv.
Tenzing Norgey National Adventure Awards
i. ii.
Life Skills Education Counselling
iii.
Career Guidance
iv.
Residential Camps
i.
Environment Building
ii.
Research & Studies on youth issues
iii.
Documentation & Publication
iv.
Seminars, Conferences, Exhibitions and Workshops on youth or adolescent issues, national integration and adventure.
Operational Guidelines:- There are prescribed operational guidelines of each programme area and the activities under each programme component, eligible institutions/organisations for financial assistance and their financial cost norms. IMPLEMENTATION OF THE SCHEME Eligibility:- The following organization are eligible for financial assistance under the scheme. (a) All India Organisations (AIOs) i.e., i.
Nehru Yuva Kendra Sangathan (Head Quarter) for Nehru Yuva Kendra's;
ii. National Service Scheme (Programme Adviser Cell) for NSS Units; iii. Bharat Scouts & Guides (Head Quarter) for their own Units; iv. Universities including deemed Universities; v.
Association of Indian Universities and;
vi. Himalayan Mountaineeing. Institute. Indian Mountaineering Foundation, Jawahar Institute of Mountaineering and Winter Sports and other Adventure Institutes recognised by the Ministry; vii. Spic Macay; viii. National Youth Project; ix. India International Rural Cultural Centre x.
Rajyoga Education & Research Foundation
xi. The Energy & Resources Institute; and xii. R. K.Mission. (b) State Level Organisations (SLOs) i.e., i. State Governments, State Departments/ Directorates for Youth Affairs/Youth Welfare and other District Level Officers in States; ii. Panchayati Raj Institutions and Urban Local Bodies; iii. Educational Institutions including Polytechnics and
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India 2010 iv. Non-government Organisations (NGOs) and Voluntary Agencies registered under the Societies Registration Act 1860 (or other appropriate state law). Public trusts and non-profit making companies who have completed atleast 3 years of registration on the date of application and has average annual programme expenditure of Rs. 5.00 lakhs or more during last 3 years.
Project Mode : The scheme will be implemented in the project mode through project implementing Agencies (PIAs). The PIA may submit project proposal involving one or more programme area or components under the scheme but the key factor for consideration of project will be the past experience and resource (infrastructure and technical manpower) available with the PIA. The following parameters are mandatory for formulation of project proposal by PIA. (i)
Project area: The project proposal should have a well-defined geographical area and should clearly indicate forgeted beneficiaries under the project. Ordinarily two to three districts in a state will constitute a project area. Adequate justification in terms of available infrastructure manpower and past experience of the organisation needs to be given for projects having more then one State/UT in the project area.
(ii) Project Period: Ordinary, the project should have a period of one year with in which a number of activities can be planned. In case the project required more than one year the same should be adequately explained in the project proposal. (iii) Phasing of Project: The project should have three phases i.e. Preparatory Phase (PP) Activity Phase (AP) and Follow-up Phase (FP). During preparatory phase environment building activities and identification/selection of the targeted beneficiaries should be taken up. This should be followed by the activity phase in which detail scheduling of activities should be organised. The follow-up phase should have evaluation of the impact of the project on the target youth and adolescents including the outcome of the project intervention with respect to its stated aims and objectives. (iv) Project Budget: The project budget should have programme component-wise cost estimate. The cost estimate under each component will have two subheads i.e. (i) the contribution either in kind or cash to be provided by the PIA and (ii) the financial assistance sought from government under the scheme. Project Appraisal Committee:- The proposals will be considered by a duly constituted Project Appraisal Committee (PAC) in the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports. The PAC will have members from the Planning Commission, Integrated Finance Division and Administrative Division in the Ministry apart from out side experts as would be necessary. The Ministry will stipulate separate budget provisions for AIOs and SLOs from with in the annual budget allocated for the scheme. The recommendations of the PAC shall be placed for approval of the competent authority in the Ministry. Release of funds to PIAs:- On approval of the project grants-in-aid shall be released to the PIA up to 50% of the approved amount as 1st installment. In case of State/UT Governments, NSS and NYKS advance up to 90% may be released. The balance shall be released on completion of the approved programme whichever is earlier.
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Submission of documents for balance installment: The following documents are required to be submitted for consideration of further release of funds: (i)
Utilization Certificate by the guarantee in the form GFR-19(A).
(ii) Performance Report showing up to date item-wise physical and financial achievement with respect to sanction order. (iii) An undertaking stating that: (a) All the terms and conditions of the financial sanctions have been adhered to; (b) There is no deviation in respect of any stipulation of the sanction order including those relating to the age, number and category of the project beneficiaries; (c)
The amount for which reimbursement is sought from the ministry is not claimed from any other source and the organisation shall indemnify the government for any deviation noticed later, if any.
(iv) For release of final installment of fund in addition to the above three documents the audited statement of account showing the total receipt of funds (from the ministry and other sources including own resource) and total expenditure of the sanctioned project duly certified by a Chartered Accountant needs to be furnished. (v) No release of fund shall be considered in case the request for second/balance installment is received in the ministry after one year of the date of sanction order. Funding for the previously sanctioned project: The projects, which have been sanctioned under the pre-revised scheme of the Financial Assistance for Promotion of Youth Activities & Training, Promotion of National Integration, Promotion of Adventure and the Scheme for Development and Empowerment of Adolescents shall continue to be funded under this scheme as per the financial amount approved earlier. The remaining amount towards second or final installment shall be released under the scheme as committed liability. Projects sanctioned under the pre-revised Scheme shall continue to follow the earlier scheme guidelines. Revision of the scheme guidelines and cost norm: Any provision in the scheme guidelines cost norm may be modified/relaxed with the approval of the Secretary, Youth Affairs & Sports in consultation with the Financial Adviser in the Ministry. The decision of the Ministry with regard to modification/relaxation of any provision of the scheme shall be final and binding on the Project Implementing Agency. PATTERN OF FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE Typical Programme Components-The financial assistance from the government of India under the scheme will be catalytic funding and the PIA is free to mobilise additional resource from other collaborating agencies/ organizations for conduct of the programme. The amount of financial assistance may vary depending on the number of participants or the duration of any individual programme drawn, which may be different than the number of participants or number of days mentioned below against the each typical programme component. The pattern of financial assistance for a typical programme component under the scheme and the eligible organisations/
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institutions for the financial assistance are given below for guidance. Sl. No.
(1)
Typical Programme Component
(2)
Financial Assistance amount under the Scheme (3)
(a)
Youth Leadership and Personality Development
(i)
Youth Leadership and Personality Development Training Project
(b)
Promotion of National Integration
(i)
National Integration Camp for 150 persons for 7 days duration at State Capitals
Eligible grantee for the prog. Component (4)
Rs. 3,00,000/-
AIOs/SLOs
Rs. 4,30,000/-
AIOs/SLOs
AIOs/SLOs
(ii)
Other Places Inter-State Youth Exchange Programme for 50 participants for 15 days durations
Rs. 3,53,750/Rs. 2,92,500/-
(iii)
Multi-Cultural Activities
Maximum Rs. 3.0 lakh for first time grantee
AIOs/SLOs
(iv)
National Youth Festival
Maximum up to Rs. 2.00 crore
State Govts./ UT Admn.
(v)
State Youth Festival
Up to Rs. 10,00,000/-
State Govts./ UT Admn.
(vi)
National Youth Awards Individuals NGO
Rs. 40,000/Rs. 2,00,000.-
Individuals and NGOs
(c)
Promotion of Adventure
(i)
Grants to recognised institutions
As per approved Annual Budget
Recognised Institutions
(ii)
One-week adventure camp at basic and intermediate level for 25 persons
Rs. 93,750/-
AIOs/SLOs
(iii)
Promotion of adventure at advance level including expeditions in India
as per specific expedition
Recognised Institutions
(iv)
Tenzing Norgey National Adventure Awards
Rs. 5,00,000/-
Individuals
(d)
Development of Adolescents
(i)
Life Skills Education (for 40 teens) One-week Residential Prog. One-week Non-residential Prog.
Rs. 65,000/Rs. 23,000/-
AIOs/SLOs
(ii)
Counselling Out-reach Prog. Rural Counselling Centre Telephone help line
Rs. 1,73,000/Rs. 1,28,000/Rs. 1,00,000/-
AIOs/SLOs
Career Guidance Career Guidance Centre First year Second/Subsequent year Career Mela
Rs. 2,34,000/Rs. 2,14,000/Rs. 25,000/-
AIOs/SLOs
Second Chance Camps (4 months)
Rs. 4,56,000/-
AIOs/SLOs
(iii)
(iv)
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Youth Affairs and Sports (e)
Technical Resource Development
(i)
Environmental Building
Maximum Rs. 2.0 lakh
AIOs/SLOs
(ii)
Research & Studies on youth issues
Maximum Rs. 3.0 lakh for first time grantee
AIOs/SLOs
(iii)
Documentation & Publication
Maximum Rs. 3.0 lakh for first time grantee
AIOs/SLOs
(iv)
Seminars, Conferences and Workshops, on youth or adolescent issues including national integration and adventure. National Level State Level Regional/District Level
Maximum
AIOs/SLOs
Rs. 5.0 lakh Rs. 3.0 lakh Rs. 0.50 lakh
The maximum ceiling for grants-in-aid to a PIA will be limited to Rs. 10.0 lakh for a district or the average programme expenditure of the IA during last 3 years, whichever is less. The Project Appraisal Committee may in case of AIOs and State Government Organisations with reasons to be recorded in writing, recommend project for more than Rs. 10.0 lakh for a district. MONITORING AND EVALUATION An institutional monitoring and evaluation system will be evolved for the monitoring and evaluation of the projects sanctioned under the scheme. Institutions such as RGNIYD, TOC, TORCs of NSS, IDARAs or any other reputed institution/ NGO/VA may be designated as the Monitoring and Evaluation Institution (MEI) for the projects sanctioned in a State/UT. Funds for the monitoring and evaluation will be released to the MEIs from the budget under the scheme. The PIA shall produce all records connected with the project to the MEI for the monitoring and evaluation purpose. The MEI visit the project authority an quarterly basis and submit quarterly Progress Reports (GPRs) about the performance of the project to the Ministry under intimation to the concerned State/UT government. The MEI will also submit an end term evaluation report on completion of the project. The receipt of QPRs and evaluation report however will not hold the subsequent release of the funds to the Project Authority. The Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports, apart from the monitoring and evaluation done by the MEIs, may also conduct concomitant evaluation of the scheme/projectss for meta evaluation study in terms of its intended outcome and benefits for youth. NATIONAL YOUTH FESTIVAL Every year, the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports has been celebrating the birthday of Swami Vivekananda, the great philosopher and thinker. Earlier, the National Youth Festival was celebrated from 12th - 16th January. It has been decided to celebrate the Festival from 8th to 12th January every year onwards. The opening ceremony of the National Youth Festival will be on the 8th January and closing on 12th January, the birth of Swami Vivekananda. As part of the celebration, holding of National Youth Festival began in 1995 as a major activity under the programme of National Integration Camp (NIC). The Idea behind a Youth Festival is to organize a gathering of the youth
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and to take up one or all the programmes mentioned above so that the concept of National Integration, spirit of communal harmony, brotherhood, courage and adventure may be propagated. Like the National Youth Festival, States are also encouraged to hold State level, district level and block level youth festivals in the same line. NATIONAL YOUTH AWARDS National Youth Awards are given away every year to young people and to a Voluntary Organization. The Award will be considered on the theme in which that has done outstanding contribution in the field of Environment Protection including Rain Water Harvesting. NATIONAL SERVICE SCHEME National Service Scheme, popularly known as NSS, was launched on Gandhiji's Birth Centenary 1969 in 37 Universities involving 40,000 students with primary focus on the development of personality of students through community service. Today, NSS has more than 3.2 million student volunteers on its roll spread over 200 universities and 41 (+2) Senior Secondary Councils and Directorate of Vocational Education covering more than 10,313 colleges/institutes of higher and technical education and 7542 Secondary schools all over the country. From its inception, more than 2.9 crore students from Universities, Colleges and Institutions of higher learning have benefited from the NSS activities, as student volunteers. The National Service Scheme has two types of programmes, viz., ‘‘Regular Activities’’ and ‘‘Special Camping Programme’’ undertaken by its volunteers. Under ‘Regular Activities’, students are expected to work as volunteers for two years, rendering community service for a minimum of 120 hours per annum. The activities include constructive work in adopted villages and slums, blood donation, adult and non-formal education, health, nutrition, family welfare, AIDS awareness campaigns, tree plantation, improvement of campuses, etc. Under ‘Special Camping Programme’, a camp of 10 days’ duration is conducted every year in the adopted areas on a specific theme. Special camping programme: NSS added a new dimension to the process of education. Aligning to the needs of the community and simultaneously preparing students for their future role as sensitised self-confident citizens. NSS special camps were organised under various themes decided as per need and requirement of the country. It has been a long journey in programme development for the students. NSS is a value based volunteer programme, which has always remained closed to the living issues affecting Indian Society. NSS volunteers have always come to the forefront to extend voluntary service in natural calamities and disasters like cyclone, earthquake, tsunami, drought and flood. NSS special camps are organised under various themes every year giving special thrust on important areas like child marriage, gender issues dowry, HIV/AIDs, adolescent health issues and national integration and social harmony. ORGANISATION At National Level, the NSS Headquarter in the Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports, looks after policy, planning and monitoring of the scheme. A programme Adviser's Cell headed by a Programme Adviser has been entrusted with assessing and monitoring the targets set for a student under NSS and those under Special Camping
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Programme. In the States 15 Regional Centres and functioning under the control of Deputy or Assistant Programmes. Adviser or Youth Officer. INDIRA GANDHI NSS AWARDS In 1993-94, during the Silver Jubilee Year of NSS, the IGNSS Awards were instituted to give recognition to selfless service rendered by the NSS volunteers programme officers and the programme Coordinations. This award is given away in a ceremony during the National Youth Festival (12th to 16th January) every year. TRAINING To train the NSS Programme Officers and to equip them with the modern skills of social development, 5 Orientation, Training and Research Centres (TORCs) and 13 Training and Orientation Centres (TOCs) are functioning all over the country at the expense of the Government of India. These institutes run orientation as well as refresher courses to impart training to the NSS Programme Officers who are grass root level functionaries associated with the NSS. TARGETS & ACHIEVEMENTS In the Year 2008-09, 31.10 lakh volunteers were enrolled for regular activities and 20,625 Special Camps were conducted and also 25,385 villages/urban slums have been adopted. The NSS volunteers under the regular activities for environment conservation and enrichment planted thousands of saplings throughout the country. They have undertaken incentives projects like creation of NSS gardens in the Institution Campus, avenue plantation, plant identification and conducted a large number of plantation camps, 25,07,302 saplings were planted during the year. During the Pulse Polio Immunization Campaign, more than 29,44,069 kids were administered Pulse Polio Drops in which around 5 lakh NSS volunteers were involved. NSS volunteers enrolled themselves as potential blood donors and donated blood as and when required by the community members. During the year under report, 3.17 lakh volunteers donated blood. Apart from this regular blood donation camps, the national voluntary blood donation day was observed through out the country. Blood is a vital component of human body which can only be replaced by blood at emergencies. Keeping this in mind the NSS volunteers enrolled themselves as potential blood donors and donated blood as and when required by the community members. During the year under report 2,21,495 volunteers donated blood. Apart from this regular blood donation camps, the national voluntary blood donation day was observed through out the country. RD & Pre RD CAMPS NSS volunteers participate in the Republic Day Parade in New Delhi every year. To select the marching contingent, 5 Pre-Republic Day Parade Camps are organised at 5 different places across the country. 1000 selected volunteers and NSS Programme Officers participate in these camps from which 200 volunteers are selected to take part in the month long Republic Day Camp at New Delhi in January. During their stay at Delhi the volunteers are involved in physical fitness activities like PT, Yoga, academic activities like lecture session by eminent personalities and various cultural
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activities representing mini India at the camp. These volunteers also visit the President, Vice president, Prime Minister and other VIPs during their camp. YOUTH FESTIVAL Every year NSS participates in the National Youth Festival. Two events such as National Youth Convention and Suvichar are held during the Youth Festival in which around 200 NSS volunteers from different parts of the country participate. During these programmes, the volunteers get the opportunity to interact with eminent personalities. NEW INITIATIVES IN NSS New initiatives are being introduced in those areas where direct and full funding from the Central Government is possible. The First Summer Camp for 400 NSS volunteers drawn from all over the country, was launched on 22nd June at RGNIYD, Sriperumbadur. This camp was for 12 days including 5 days of educational tour in south India. In this camp issues relating to sustainable development had been incorporated in the academic sessions to give the students an exposure to current concerns. The Rajiv Gandhi Adventure Scheme proposes to cover every year 2000 NSS volunteers. In the current year so far 1000 volunteers have already attended these adventure camps. Each adventure camp is of 10 days. To maintain gender balance, it has been ensured that 50% of the volunteers are girls. The scheme will be gradually expanded to cover 5000 volunteers annually. The adventure activities to be undertaken include high altitude trekking, rock climbing, white water rafting, camel safari, jungle camp etc. The adventure activities are to be carried out in collaboration with lead partners like Indian Mountaineering Foundation and National Mountaineering Schools listed below. I. Indian Mountaineering Foundation II. Himalayan Mountaineering Institute, Darjeeling III. Nehru Institute of Mountaineering, Uttarkashi IV. Western Himalayan Mountaineering Institute, Manali V. Jawahar Institute of Mountaineering, J & K VI. National Adventure Foundation VII. Sea Explores’ Institute, Kolkata Additional adventure camps will be in chosen locations in South India viz. Rock Climbing in Kannur, Jungle Camps in Thekkady, Sayadri in Mumbai. In the south the adventure camps will be in collaboration with the State Governments. Ooty will be Centre for the South Indian Chapter of Adventure Activities. The Southern Centre will start functioning from the newly constructed Youth Hostel in Ooty which was inaugurated recently. 7000 NSS volunteers to be deployed in Commonwealth Games 2010: These volunteers will be specially trained for this purpose. It is hoped that this would give them on international exposure and an added edge. RD Camp facilities being scaled up: Annually 200 NSS volunteers are selected from all over the country to participate in the Republic Day Parade. Every year the camp is organized in Delhi from 1st to 31st of January. From the current year it is proposed to
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scale up the facilities being provided to these volunteers. Additional academic inputs are also to be incorporated so that this experience further fine-tunes their personality and these volunteers find themselves more equipped to face the job market. NEHRU YUVA KENDRA SANGATHAN The Nehru Yuva Kendra Sangathan (NYKS) is an autonomous organisation of the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports. NYKS has its offices in 500 districts of the country. It has become one of the largest grassroot level organizations in the world, catering to the needs of more than eight million non-student rural youth enrolled through 2.53 lakh village-based Youth Clubs. These Youth Clubs work in the areas covering education and training, awareness generation, skill development and selfemployment, entrepreneurial development, thrift and co-operation, besides development of the body through sports and adventure and mind through sustained exposure to new ideas and development strategies. For implementation of the programmes, every district NYK has a network of trained cadre of District Youth Coordinators, National Service Volunteers and Youth Leaders. The strength of NYKS is its vast network of Youth Clubs at grassroots level. NYKS accomplishes its task through two categories of programmes, i.e., ‘Regular Programmes’ such as Youth Club Development, Vocational Training, Work Camp, Awareness Generation, Cultural Programme, Sports Promotion, Adventure Promotion, Seminars and Workshops and Celebration of National and International Days/Weeks and ‘Schemes’ entrusted to it by the Ministry for implementation viz., National Service Volunteers, Financial Assistance to Youth Clubs, Awards to Outstanding Youth Clubs at District, State and National level and Youth Development Centre. Special programmes undertaken in collaboration with other Ministries and organizations. NATIONAL SERVICE VOLUNTEER SCHEME The National Service Volunteer (NSV) Scheme was launched in 1969. This is one of the oldest and most successful scheme of the Ministry in providing a platform for the youth take up a leadership role in the spheres of the social and community service at grass roots level. The National Service Volunteer is a youth social worker who is willing to commit his/her energy and time to the service of the community and country. National Service volunteers have been working in the field of education, agriculture, information technology, rural development and health. The NSVS provides an opportunity for the first work experience after education and is aimed to inculcate leadership qualities in them. During their deployment, the volunteers are paid Rs. 2250/- per month by way of honorarium. During 2009-10, 6708 NSVs have been sanctioned for deployment (through Nehru Yuva Kendra Sangathan 6408 and National Service Scheme 300). There is considerable potential for utilizing the service of NSVs as a key link in the structure of the Youth Organizations. RASHTRIYA SADBHAVANA YOJANA (RSY) The Rashtriya Sadbhavana Yojana was launched in 2005 in place of erstwhile National Reconstruction Crops Scheme. The scheme aims at encouraging leadership among the rural youth. Under the scheme on average of around 10-20 volunteers in
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each of the 501 districts having presence of NYKS were enrolled as Nehru Sathis (NYS). These NYS are to be nominated by the selected best Youth Club and Youth Development Centre in the block and district respectively. They are entitled to receive an honorarium of Rs. 1000/- per month. The parameters on which the clubs are to be evaluated have been finalized and sent to all registered clubs affiliated with NYKS for participation in the scheme. The trained volunteers would be a great strength in the efforts to and empower and encourage the youth. During 2009-10, 6000 NYSs have been sanctioned for development through Nehru Yuva Kendra Sangathan. YOUTH HOSTELS Youth Hostels are built to promote youth travel, to enable the young people experience the rich cultural heritage of the country. The construction of Youth Hostels has been conceived as a joint venture of the Central and State Governments. While the Central Government bears the cost of construction, the State Government provides developed land, free of cost with water, electricity and approach roads. After completion, these hostels are handed over to the State Governments for management. So far 79 youth hostels have been constructed in the country and 6 youth hostels are under construction. SCOUTING AND GUIDING Scouting and Guiding is an international educational movement aimed at developing the character of boys and girls. It inculcates in them a spirit of patriotism, sympathy for others and social service. Bharat Scouts and Guides mainly promote these activities in India. The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports extends financial assistance for the activities including adult literacy, tree plantation, community service, leprosy awareness, promotion of hygiene and sanitation etc. RAJIV GANDHI NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF YOUTH DEVELOPMENT The Rajiv Gandhi National Institute of Youth Development (RGNIYD) set up at Sriperumbudur (Tamil Nadu) functions as an autonomous body for coordinating and monitoring youth-related activities in the country. The Institute is to function as: (i) a research agency and think-tank for youth programmes, policies and implementation strategies; (ii) develop multifaceted programmes for youth; (iii) function as an institute for advanced studies in the field of youth; (iv) function as a centre for documentation, information and publication pertaining to youth development; and (v) work as a Resource Centre. The Institute was functioning with the skeleton staff and one division but is in the process of being expanded with the creation of 4 more divisions with supporting staff. Thus, the Institute will now have the following 5 divisions : (a) Training, Orientation and Extension Division, (b) Research, Evaluation and Documentation/ Dissemination Division, (c) Panchayati Raj and Youth Affairs Division, (d) International Centre for Excellence in Youth Development Division, (e) Social Harmony and National Unity Division. RGNIYD Institute has been granted the deemed University status by UGC on 23.10.2008.
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SPORTS Sports and games have always been seen as an integral component in all round development of human personality. Apart from being means of entertainment and physical fitness, sports have also played a great role in generation of spirit of healthy competition and bonding within the community. Achievement in sports have always been a source of national pride and prestige. However, unlike in the past the modern sports have become highly competitive. The use of modern equipments, infrastructure and advanced scientific support has changed the scenario of sports at international level. Keeping in line with the growing demands of advanced equipments, infrastructure and scientific support, Government of India has taken lot of initiatives. However, these efforts could not produce significant results on account of policy and inadequate budgetary support. NATIONAL SPORTS POLICY 2001 In order to broad-base sports and to promote excellence, the Government has formulated a National Sports Policy, 2001. The salient features of the National Sports Policy 2001 are as under : 1. Broad-basing of Sports and achievement of excellence; 2. Upgradation and development of infrastructure; 3. Support to the National Sports Federations and other appropriate bodies; 4. Strengthening of scientific and coaching support to sports; 5. Incentives to promote sports; 6. Enhanced participation of women, Scheduled Tribes and rural youth; 7. Involvement of the Corporate Sector in sports promotion; and 8. Promote sports mindedness among the public at large. SPORTS AUTHORITY OF INDIA The Sports Authority of India (SAI) was established by the Government of India in January 1984 as a registered society primarily to ensure effective maintenance and optimum utilisation of the various sports infrastructure that were built in Delhi during Asiad, 1982. It is now the nodal agency in the country for broad-basing sports and for training of sportspersons to achieve excellence in national and international sports. The Society for National Institute of Physical Education and Sports (SNIPES) was merged with SAI with effect from 1st May 1987. Subsequently, Netaji Subhash National Institute of Sports (NSNIS), Patiala and its allied centres at Bangaluru, Kolkata and Gandhinagar and Lakshmibai National Colleges of Physical Education at Thiruvananthapuram came under Sports Authority of India (SAI). It has now six regional centres at Bangalore, Gandhinagar, Kolkata, Chandigarh, Bhopal and Imphal and two sub-centres at Guwahati (Assam) and Lucknow (U.P.). Sports infrastructure is being created at Sonepat and the Northern Regional Centre would be shifted from Chandigarh to Sonepat. SAI has one Centre at Guwahati. SAI also operates a High Altitude Training Centre (HATC) at Shillaroo (H.P.). SAI operates various schemes at sub-junior, junior and senior level, namely, National Sports Talent Contest (NSTC), Army Boys Sports Company (ABSC), SAI Training Centres (STC) and Special Area Games (SAG) to achieve excellence at national and international level. SAI has also set-up Centres of Excellence (COE) for
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elite sports persons at each of its Regional Centres and one at National Institute of Sports, Patiala. LAKSHMIBAI NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF PHYSICAL EDUCATION The Lakshmibai National Institute of Physical Education was established initially as a College on 17th August 1957, the centenary year of the first war of India’s Independence. The University is located at Gwalior, where Rani Lakshmibai of Jhansi had laid down her life for the country’s freedom struggle. In recognition of the services rendered in the field of physical education and sports by the Institute, it has been upgraded to a ‘Deemed University’ in 1995 and has now been renamed as Lakshmibai National University of Physical Education (LNUPE), w.e.f 14.01.2009. The Institute is fully-funded by the Government of India. The Institute offers the following full-time courses: (1) Bachelor of Physical Education (BPE) (4 years degree course); (2) Master of Physical Education (MPE) (2 years course); (3) M. Phil in Physical Education (1 year course); and (4) Ph.D in Physical Education. Apart from the above, following PG diploma courses are also being conducted by the Institute : (a) Information Technology; (b) Sports Management; (c) Sports Journalism; (d) Yoga & Alternate Therapy; (e) Sports coaching. The Institute also conducts in-service training programmes in physical education for ex-army personnel, refresher/orientation course for physical education teachers in universities, colleges and schools. The Institute attracts students from abroad also. PANCHAYAT YUVA KRIDA AUR KHEL ABHIYAN (PYKKA) The Ministry was implementing four Centrally sponsored sports infrastructure Development Schemes during the Xth Five Year Plan period which were transferred to the State Sector w.e.f. 01.04.2005 viz., Scheme of Grants for the Creation of Sports Infrastructure, Scheme of Grants to Rural School for purchase of sports equipment and development of play grounds, Scheme of Grants for the promotion of Games & Sports in Universities and Colleges; and the Scheme of Grants for the Installation of Synthetic Playing Surface. Under these erstwhile centrally sponsored schemes, financial assistance was being provided to State Governments, educational institutions and NGOs for the creation of sports facilities on a cost sharing basis. With the closure of these schemes, there has been no provision for providing financial assistance to State Governments, educational institutions and NGOs for creation of sports infrastructure. There is a severe inadequacy of basic sports infrastructure at grassroots level especially in rural areas. Similarly, there is also a lack of sports competitions in the rural areas. The access to sports and games facilities in schools and colleges is very discouraging with hardly 30 million out of the 210 million students having such access. Overall, hardly 50 million out of the 770 million youth, adolescents and children have access to organized sports. Given the fact that less than 5% of the population has access to sporting facilities and organized sports, the need for promoting sports infrastructure of the grassroots level in a phased but time-bound manner has been repeatedly emphasized in various fora. Keeping these factors in view, the Government has in March 2008 approved the introduction of a new Scheme entitled Panchayat Yuva Krida Aur Khel Abhiyan
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(PYKKA) which aim at providing basis sports infrastructure at the panchayat level over a period of 10 years through concerted efforts of all stakeholders, particularly the State Governments, panchayats, educational institutes, sports promotion bodies and youth clubs. All the 2,50,000 village and block panchayats and equivalent units will be covered during this period. Apart from contributing to public health, social inclusiveness, the promotion of indigenous games, and the expansion of the talent pool through the identification and nurturing of rural sports talent. PYKKA is also expected to simulate the economic activities within the sports sector as it would lead to an exponential growth in the demand for sports instructors, coaches, sports equipment and consumable and sports events and related support services. Under the Scheme, each village Panchayat and each Block Panchayat would be given one time seed capital grant of Rs. one lakh and Rs. five lakh respectively for undertaking development of sports infrastructure viz. development of playfield, athletic track, fencing of playfield, goal posts, poles for net games, outdoor fitness equipments etc. The State share in this will be 25% for normal states and 10% for special category States. In addition, while village panchayats would be given annual acquisition grant for procurement of sports equipments and annual operational grant to meet the operational expenses of non-competition nature at Rs. 10,000 and Rs. 12,000 per annum, respectively, block panchayats would be given Rs. 20,000 and Rs. 24,000, respectively. Each block panchayat would also be provided annual competition grant of Rs. 50,000 for holding block level competitions and each district will be provided annual competition grant of Rs. 3 lakh for holding district level competitions. Further, prize money would also be provided to the winners (first three positions) in block level and district level competitions. The Planning Commission has allocated Rs. 1500 crore for the 11th Plan Period. The total requirement of funds for the entire programme over the 11th and 12th Plan Periods has been estimated at approximately Rs. 5000 crore. During 2008-09, nearly 23,000 panchayats have been assisted under this scheme. Against Rs. 250.78 crore sanctioned for this purpose, Rs. 92 crore was released towards the first installment. COMMONWEALTH GAMES, 2010 Commonwealth Games, 2010 are going to be hosted in Delhi from 3rd October to 14th October 2010. For successful conduct of the Commonwealth Games, a comprehensive integrated approach is being worked out for creation and development of world class sports infrastructure, Games Village, Civic Infrastructure, Tourism, Transportation and Security related aspects. A number of institutional arrangements have been made for ensuring proper planning and timely preparation for the Commonwealth Games, 2010. These include a Group of Ministers (GOM) under the chairmanship of Minister for Urban Development for coordinating various works related to the conduct of the Games, an Apex Committee headed by Minister for Youth Affairs & Ministers for overseeing and coordinating various matters related to CWG 2010; the Organizing Committee under the chairmanship of President, Indian Olympic Association for the conduct of the Games and a Committee of Secretaries headed by the Cabinet Secretary which is responsible for monitoring the implementation of the decisions of the GOM and taking decisions on other related matters, In addition to these arrangements of the Central level, there is a sub-committee under the Chief Minister of Delhi to take
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decisions in respect of all matters pertaining to infrastructure and other preparation for the games within the jurisdiction of the Government of NCT of Delhi. Lt. Governer of Delhi has been entrusted with the overall responsibility with specific reference to security, law and order and matters coming under DDA. All the stakeholders have been indicated their specific timelines with reference to key milestones, viz., finalization of detailed design and estimates, commencement of tendering process, award of work, commencement of work, completion of work and handing over to Organizing Committee. Work on most of the major projects has already commenced. SCHEMES RELATING TO PROMOTION OF EXCELLENCE IN SPORTS Scheme of Assistance to National Sports Federations : Under this scheme, the Govenment of India provides assistance to National Sports Fedrations (NSFs) for conducting National Championships and International tournaments in India, participation in international tournaments abroad, organizing coaching camps, procuring sports equipments, engagement of foreign coaches and disbursement of salaries of the paid Joint/Assistant Secretaries. SCHEME RELATING TO TALENT SEARCH AND TRAINING Under this Scheme, assistance is provided to promising sportspersons for training and training-cum-competitions in India and abroad, for purchase of equipment, for scientific support. Supporting personnel such as coaches, sports scientists, doctors masseurs etc. are also assisted for undergoing specialized training in particular sports disciplines and for attending seminars/conferences and major international sports events and for appearing in qualifying examinations. This scheme is implemented through Sports Authority of India (SAI). NATIONAL SPORTS DEVELOPMENT FUND National Sports Development Fund (NSDF) was instituted by the Central Government with a view to mobilizing resources from the Government as well as non-governmental sources, including the private/corporate sector and non-resident Indians, for promotion of sports and games in the country. In order to make contributions to the Fund attractive, 100% exemption from income tax is available on all contributions. To begin with, the Government made a contribution of Rs. 2.00 crore during the year 1998-99. Further Government contribution is on matching basis to the contributions received from the other sources. The funds available under NSDF are used towards promotion of sports in general and specific sports disciplines and individuals sportspersons for achieving excellence at the national and international level in particular; imparting special training and coaching in relevent sport disciplines to sportspersons, coaches and sports specialists; to construct and maintain infrastructure as may be required for promotion of excellence in sports; to supply equipment to Governmental and Non-Governmental organizations and individuals with a view to promoting excellence in sports; to identify problems and take up research and development studies for providing support to excellence in sports etc. SCHEME RELATING TO INCENTIVES TO SPORTS PERSONS The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports also implements various schemes as incentives to sportspersons to take up sports:
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RAJIV GANDHI KHEL RATNA AWARD The scheme was launched in the year 1991-92 with the objective of honouring sportsperson to enhance their general status and to give them greater dignity and place of honour in society. Under this scheme an amount of Rs. 7.5 lakhs is given as award for the most spectacular and outstanding performance by a sportsperson in the preceding year. ARJUNA AWARDS The Arjuna Award was instituted in 1961. To be eligible for the Award, a sportsperson should have had not only good performance consistently for the previous three years at the international level with excellence for the year for which the Award is recommended but also should have shown qualities of leadership, sportsmanship and a sense of discipline. The Awardee is given a statuette, a certificate, ceremonial dress and a cash award of Rs. 5.00 lakhs. Not more than 15 awards are given every year. DHYAN CHAND AWARD FOR LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENTS IN SPORTS AND GAMES Dhyan Chand Award for lifetime achievements in sports and games instituted in the year 2002 is given to honour those sportspersons who have contributed to sports by their performance and continue to contribute to promotion of sports even after their retirement from active sporting career. The award carries a cash of Rs three lakh, a plaque and a scroll of honour. Three awards are given every year. DRONACHARYA AWARD The Dronacharya Award, instituted in 1985, honours eminent Coaches who have successfully trained sportspersons or teams and enabled them to achieve outstanding results in international competitions. The awardee is given a statuette of Guru Dronacharya, a certificate, ceremonial dress and a cash award of Rs. five lakh. Not more than 5 awards are given every year. MAULANA ABUL KALAM AZAD (MAKA) TROPHY The Maulana Abul Kalam Azad (MAKA) Trophy was instituted in 1956-57. The top overall performing University in the Inter-University Tournaments is given the Maulana Abul Kalam Azad (MAKA) Trophy, which is a rolling trophy. A small replica of the MAKA Trophy is also awarded for retention by the University. In addition, the University also gets a cash prize of Rs 10 lakh. The second and third best universities also receive cash awards amounting to Rs five lakh and Rs three lakh respectively. RASHTRIYA KHEL PROTSAHAN PURUSKAR With a view to recognizing the contribution made to sports develoment by entities other than sportspersons and coaches, Government has instituted a new award entitled Rashtriya Khel Protsahan Puruskar from the year 2009, which has four categories, namely, community sports development, promotion of sports academies of excellence, support to elite sportspersons and employment to sportspersons. The awards consist of a citation and a trophy in each of the above mentioned categories. There is no cash award. SPECIAL AWARDS TO WINNERS IN INTERNATIONAL SPORTS EVENTS AND THEIR COACHES This scheme was introduced in the year 1986 to encourage and motivate outstanding
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sportspersons for even higher achievement and to attract the younger generation to take sports as a career. Under the scheme, special awards are given to sportspersons and their their coaches for winning medals in recognized international sports events held in a year at following rates : Name of Championship/Game
Gold Medal First Position
Silver Medal Second Position
Bronze Medal Third Position
Olympics Games
Rs. 50 lakhs
Rs. 30 lakhs
Rs. 20 lakhs
Official World Cups/Asian Games/Commonwealth Games
Rs. 10 lakhs
Rs. 5 lakhs
Rs. 3 lakhs
Asian and Commonwealth Championships
Rs. 3 lakhs
Rs. 2 lakhs
Rs. 1.5 lakhs
SCHEME OF SPORTS FUND FOR PENSION TO MERITORIOUS SPORTS PERSONS This scheme was launched in the year 1994. Under this scheme, those sportspersons, who are India citizens and have won gold, silver and bronze medals in Olympic Games, World Cup/World Championships, Asian Games, Commonwealth Games and paraolympic games and have attained the age of 30 years and have retired from active sports career are eligible for life pension under this Scheme at the following enhanced rates, which are effective from 01.07.2008: (a) (b)
(c)
(d) (e) (f) (g) (h)
Medalists at the Olympic Games Gold medalists at the World Cups/ World Championships in Olympic and Asian Games disciplines Silver or Bronze medalists of the World Cups/World Championships in Olympic and Asian Games disciplines Gold medallists of the Asian/ Commonwealth Games Silver and Bronze medalists of Asian/ Commonwealth Games Gold medalists of Para-Olympic Games Silver medalists of Para-Olympic Games Bronze medalists of Para-Olympic Games
Rs. 10,000/- p.m. Rs. 8,000/- p.m.
Rs. 7,000/- p.m.
Rs. 7,000/- p.m. Rs. 6,000/- p.m. Rs. 5,000/- p.m. Rs. 4,000/- p.m. Rs. 3,000/- p.m.
NATIONAL WELFARE FUND FOR SPORTSPERSONS (Non-Plan) The National Welfare Fund for sports persons was set up in March 1982 with a view to assist outstanding sportspersons of yesteryears, living in indigent circumstances who had won glory for the country in sports. Assistance from the fund is given in the form of lumpsum financial assistance ex-gratia to sportspersons or their femilies in case of sustaining a total injury during training for, or participation in, an international competition, sportspersons sustaining injury other than a fatal injury, families of sprtspersons, for sports promotors (referees, coaches and umpires) living in indigent circumstances. Assistance is provided to those whose monthly income from all sources is less than Rs. 2,00,000/- per annum. The fund is managed & operated by a Committee with the Minister for Youh Affairs and Sports as the Chairperson.
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SCHEME RELATING TO PARTICIPATIVE SPORTS NATIONAL SPORTS CHAMPIONSHIP FOR WOMEN (Non-Plan) The scheme started in 1975, aims at promoting sports amongst women. Under the scheme, national level competitions are preceded by holding of lower level competitions (Block, District and State level) for which States/UTs are provided financial assistance as per norms. The scheme is implemented through the Sports Authority of India. The pattern being followed at present for Central financial assistance is as under : i) ii) iii) iv)
for Block level competitions Rs. 1000/- per block for Distt. level competitions Rs. 3000/- per Distt for State level competitions Rs. 10,000/- per State for smaller States and UTs Rs. 5,000/- per State or UT However, Central financial assistance for block level competitions is restricted to 60% of total blocks where competitions are held in a State and for the remaining 40% of the blocks; the State concerned is advised to share the full expenditure. NORTH-EAST SPORTS GAMES The Scheme of North-East Sports Festival was launched in the year 1986-87 and is being operated through the Sports Authority of India. The North-East Sports Festival is organized by the Sports Authority every year in one of the North Eastern States by rotation in collaboration with the concerned State Government.There is no age restriction for participation in the festival but the participants have to be residents of the NE States for the last five years. For North East States, assistance of Rs. 50,000/per district for district level competitions and Rs. 75,000/- per discipline for State level competition is given. The funds for North-East Games are now provided from the PYKKA scheme. SCHEME OF ASSISTANCE FOR ANTI-DOPING ACTIVITIES Doping is the deliberate or inadvertent use by sportspersons of a substance or method banned by Medical Commission of International Olympic Committee/World Anti Doping Agency (WADA). In pursuit of gold and glory, large numbers of sportspersons all over the world are tempted to and/or use performance enhancing substances in an effort to gain a competitive edge over others. India is no exception to this malaise. Recognizing the urgent need for embarking upon a concerted effort to check doping in collaboration with the global anti-doping community, the Government of India became one of the members of the Foundation Board of WADA, set up with the initiative of the International Olympic Committee. National Anti Doping Agency (NADA) is the national organization responsible for promoting, coordinating and monitoring the doping control programme in sports in the country. The Anti Doping rules of NADA are compliant with the Anti Doping Code of WADA. National Dope Testing Laboratory (NDTL) is responsible for testing dope samples and conducting advance research on the subject by maintaining close association with the WADA and WADA accredited laboratories. NDTL achieved WADA accreditation on September 2008 after undergoing probation from October, 2006. The NDTL has now become the 35th WADA accredited laboratory in the World and 6th in the Asian Region.
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INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION COMMONWEALTH YOUTH PROGRAMME (CYP): The CYP came into being in 1974 with the purpose of promoting the development of young men and women in the Commonwealth countries. Main Objectives : i) To encourage and support participation of youth in the process of national development; ii) To give recognition to the contribution made by youth in economic, social and cultural spheres; iii) To promote productive activity in order to eliminate unemployment; iv) To provide opportunities for international understanding among the youth. Headquarters: London Headquarters of CYP Asia Centre: Chandigarh Present Activities:- The Ministry in collaboration with CYP Asia Centre organizes every year 3-4 programmes by way of national/regional consultations and workshops on issues of concern for the youth. New Initiatives:- Efforts are being made to organize more programmes in collaboration with CYP Asia Centre. EXCHANGE OF YOUTH DELEGATIONS AT INTERNATIONAL LEVEL The International exchange of youth delegation has been conceived as on effective instrument for promoting exchange of ideas amongst the youth of different countries and to develop better relations with other countries. Under the programme, youth delegations are exchanged with foreign countries for participation in various youth programmes, meetings, seminars, conferences etc. Presently, we have youth exchange programmes with Peoples Republic of China and Republic of Korea. New Initiatives:- Efforts are being made to sign Protocols/Agreement with more countries.
30
States and Union Territories
ANDHRA
PRADESH
Area
:
2,75,069 sq km
Population
: 8.32 crores as on 1.3.09
Capital
:
Hyderabad
Principal Languages
: Telugu and Urdu
HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY The earliest mention of the Andhras is said to be in Aitereya Brahmana (2000 BC). It indicates that the Andhras, originally an Aryan race living in north India migrated to south of the Vindhyas and later mixed with non-Aryans. Regular history of Andhra Desa, according to historians, begins with 236 BC, the year of Ashoka‘s death. During the following centuries, Satavahanas, Sakas, Ikshvakus, Eastern Chalukyas, Kakatiyas ruled the Telugu country. Other dynasties that ruled over the area in succession were the kingdoms of Vijayanagar and Qutub Shahi followed by Mir Qumruddin and his successors, known as the Nizams. Gradually, from the 17th century onwards, the British annexed territories of the Nizam and constituted the single province of Madras. After Independence, Telugu-speaking areas were separated from the composite Madras Presidency and a new Andhra State came into being on 1 October 1953. With the passing of the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, there was a merger of Hyderabad State and Andhra State, and consequently Andhra Pradesh came into being on 1 November 1956. Andhra Pradesh is historically called the Rice Bowl of India. The state has a large river system which supplements the rainfall in the state. It is one of the few states in the country blessed with riverine geography. Andhra Pradesh is bound on the north by Orissa and Chhattisgarh, on the west by Maharashtra and Karnataka, on the south by Tamilnadu and on the east by the Bay of Bengal with a coastline of 974 km. AGRICULTURE Agriculture is the main occupation of about 62 per cent of the people in Andhra Pradesh. Rice is a major food crop and staple food of the State contributing about 77 per cent of the foodgrain production. Other important crops are jowar, bajra, maize, ragi, small millets, pulses, castor, tobacco, cotton and sugarcane. Forests cover 23 per cent of the State’s area. Important forest products are teak, eucalyptus, cashew, casurina, bamboo, softwood, etc. The production of food grains in the state for the first time since formation of the State is recorded at 204.04 lakhs tonnes in 2008-09 as against 198.17 lakh tones in 2007-08. The Government is working with a mission of "Sustainable Agriculture Production with minimum cost of cultivation, eventually enhancing the return on income to the farmer". In the process of making the mission a reality, the Government is implementing schemes for the welfare of farmers like 9 hours free power supply, subsidized seed, subsidized interest rate on crop loans, subsidized
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and quality agricultural inputs etc., Andhra Pradesh occupies the first position in respect of agricultural loans from commercial and cooperative banks. The debt waiver scheme of Central Government and the incentive scheme of the State Government have helped about one crore farmers in the state to the tune of Rs. 16,000 crore. The Government of Andhra Pradesh is also keen on introducing cooperative farming to set up farm yields. IRRIGATION A total of 86 projects (44 Major+30 Medium+4 Flood Banks+8 Modernisation) have been taken up under Jalayagnam programme, with the aim of completing the ongoing and new projects in a record time to provide immediate irrigation to water starved areas on top priority by mobilizing funds from all possible sources. Till now, 12 projects were completed and water released for 19 more projects creating partial irrigation potential and the remaining projects are programmed to be completed in a time bound and planned manner, Andhra Pradesh Government has been making huge budgetary allocations for the execution of irrigation projects and it is the first state to involve the farmers in the management of irrigation sources. POWER Important power projects in the State are : the Nagarjunasagar and Neelam Sanjiva Reddy Sagar (Srisailam Hydel Project), Upper Sileru, Lower Sileru, Tungabhadra Hydel projects and Nellore, Ramagundam, Kothagudem, Vijayawada and Muddanur thermal power projects. The Srisailam Hydro Electric project (Right Bank) with an installed capacity of 770 MW and the Srisailam Left Bank HES capacity of 900 MW and the Nagarjunasagar complex with 960 MW are the principal sources of hydel generation. Vijayawada Thermal Power station with an installed capacity of 1,260 MW and Kothagudem Thermal Power station with an installed capacity of 1,220 MW are the main sources of thermal power generation. The 1,000 MW coal-based Simhadri Thermal Power station aims at supplying the entire energy generated to the State. Installed capacity of the State as on June, 2009 is 13,472.33 MW. The annual revenue from sale of power is Rs. 13,945 crores (including non-tariff income). Government is particularly committed to the welfare of farmers by way of enhancing free power from seven hours to nine hours to all agriculture consumers. Govt. also waived the power consumption arrears amounting to Rs. 1,259 crores relating to agricultural consumers. During the year 2008-09, 81,036 new agricultural connections were released. 21 new projects are programmed by APGENCO, out of which, 2 projects Rayalaseema TPP State II and Dr. Narla Tata Rao TPS State II (VTPS Stage IV) are already functioning. INDUSTRIES The Government of AP is extending various incentives for SSI & Tiny Sector and Large & Medium Scale Industries. The State Government has been promoting the manufacturing sector in a big way by providing concessions in power tariff, allotting land and relaxing labour laws in special Economic Zones (SEZs). AP has promoted 102 Special Economic Zones (SEZs) of which 64 have been notified by the Government of India. The state has recommended to Government of India for setting up of 59 IT/ ITES SEZs, with active private sector participation. As of now, 12 IT SEZs with 22 units are functioning and operational creating an employment of 15,000 of IT professionals.
States and Union Territories
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MINES & GEOLOGY Andhra Pradesh is well known globally for variety of rocks and minerals and is called Ratna Grabha. Andhra Pradesh has the largest deposits of quality chrysolite asbestos in the country. Other important minerals found in the state are copper ore, manganese, mica, coal and limestone. The Singareni Coal Mines supply coal to the entire South India. The mineral consumption is increasing due to promotion of various industries and manufacture of mineral based products. The state produces about 100 to 110 million tonnes of industrial minerals and 200 million cubic meters of stone and building material. AP stands first in Barytes and Limestone production in the country. The state stands first in value of minor mineral production and second in total value of mineral production in the country contributing about 9 to 10% to the country's mineral value production. The mineral revenue is Rs. 1,660.79 crores during 2008-09. The state stands first in Mineral Revenue among the important Mineral Producing states of the country. CIVIL SUPPLIES Rs. 2/-a kg rice scheme : To extend help to the poor and low-income groups the State Government has been implementing the Rs. 2/-a Kg Rice supply scheme since April 7, 2008. Depending on the size of the family, each white cardholder gets 16 kg to 20 kg every month. This benefits 1.82 crore white cardholders. The Government is keen on implementing the scheme without any scope for irregularities. HOUSING The Government has introduced an innovative, unique, self financed housing scheme "Rajiv Swagruha" for the moderate income group in the state with an objective that every person with moderate income group in the state having no house of his/her own must have a house at affordable cost in the urban/municipal areas in the state. The houses/flats have to be made available to them at prices 25% less than the existing market rates on similar specifications. The construction of housing programme under Rajiv Swagruha is under progress. Schemes were prepared for construction of 85,961 houses/flats and bids were received for 61,793 units and bids were awarded for construction of 52,340 houses/flats. Under Weaker Section Housing Program till the end of 31 st March, 2009, 87,70,082 houses have been completed comprising 80,64,383 in rural areas and 7,05,699 in urban areas. HEALTH 'Rajiv Arogyasri' is a unique health insurance scheme being implemented in Andhra Pradesh. The scheme enables the poor, suffering from chronic diseases, to undergo treatment costing upto Rs. 2 lakh. All white cardholders can undergo treatment for about 942 diseases. Medical and surgical treatment is provided in 344 corporate, private and Govt hospitals free of cost to patients Aarogyasri scheme is unique in its applicability, since no other state/government agency has provided universal health coverage to the poor for major ailments. The choice of hospital for treatment is with the patient. The entire process from the time of conduct of health camps to the screening, testing, treatment, follow up and claim payment is made transparent through online web based processing to prevent any misuse and fraud. This system is motivating more and more Government hospitals to participate in the scheme and utilize the revenue earned to improve facilities to provide quality
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medical care and thus bring reforms in tertiary medical care. Official from several status have visited the state and appreciated the scheme. Since inception of the scheme i . e . , 1st April 2007 and as on 31 st March 2009, 344 hospitals from Government and private sector have joined the network and organized 8785 health camps in rural areas wherein 15,99,520 patients have been screened and 2,43,529 surgeries/treatment conducted at a cost of Rs. 781.35 crores. In addition, 3,65,763 patients were given medical consultation as outpatients free of cost. INFORMATION
TECHNOLOGY
Andhra Pradesh has been forging ahead in the sphere of Information Technology. It is ahead of other states in exploiting the opportunities to the hilt. The State Government has introduced many schemes to utilize the maximum number of skilled human resources in the I.T. Sector. During 2008-09, I.T. sector recorded an export growth rate of over 20% with exports turnover of Rs. 31,800 crores. AP ranks 4th at National level in IT performance. The Government is making efforts to spread IT to Tier II cities like Warangal, Tirupathi, Kakinada, Vishakhapatnam, Vijayawada, Guntur and Kadapa. As a result, job opportunities in the IT sector in Tier II cities have improved. The IIT, Hyderabad is part of the history making which started functioning from August 20, 2008. The Government of Andhra Pradesh established Rajiv Gandhi University of Knowledge Technology (RGUKT) in 2008 to cater to the educational needs of the meritorious rural youth of Andhra Pradesh, Three IIITs are established in Basara (Adilbad), Nuzividu (Krishna) and Rajiv Knowledge Valley (Kadapa) under RGUKT. A total of 6000 students will be admitted in 2009 academic year. TRANSPORT Roads : The total R&B road network in the State is 69,051 km as on 31.3.2009, of which, the National Highways passing through Andhra Pradesh constitute 4,648 km., the state Highways constitute 10,519 kms and Major District Roads constitute 32,170 km and rural roads 21,714 kms. The density with reference to R&B road network in the state is 0.23 kms per one sq.km. and 0.86 kms per 1000 persons. Railways : Of the railways route covering 5,107 km in Andhra Pradesh, 4,633 km is broad-gauge, 437 km is metre-gauge and 37 km is narrow gauge. Aviation : Important airports in the State are located at Shamshabad, Tirupathi and Visakhapatnam. International flights are operated from Shamshabad. Ports : There is one major Port at Visakhapatnam under Government of India and 13 Non-Major Ports under State Government. Ports offer tremendous potential for development and for the growth of a wide spectrum of maritime activities such as international shipping, coastal shipping, ship repairs, fishing, captive ports for specific industries, all weather ports tourism and sports, etc. Minor Ports of Andhra Pradesh handled 26.88 million tones of cargo during 2009-10 and AP is the 2n d highest cargo handling state in India. TOURIST CENTRES Andhra Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation continues to strive for promotion of new tourism products such as Eco-tourism, Beach-Tourism and Cruise-Tourism.
States and Union Territories
1111
The Corporation currently runs a chain of 52 hotels with 1043 rooms and 2222 beds in prime locations fostering homely ambience. An impressive elect of 144 buses cater to varied tour packages connecting to important tourism locations within and outside the state. The Corporation runs Sound & Light shows, owns and operates water fleet of 120 boats making River and Lake cruise tourism at an affordable reality. 73.79 lakh tourists visited the state and the revenue is Rs. 109.00 crores during 2008-09. Charminar, Salarjung Museum, Golconda Fort in Hyderabad, Thousand Pillar Temple and Fort in Warangal, Sri Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy Temple at Yadagirigutta, Buddha Stupa at Nagarjunakonda, Nagarjuna Sagar, Sri Venkateswara Temple at Tirumala-Tirupathi, Sri Mallikarjunaswamy Temple at Srisailam, Kanaka Durga Temple at Vijayawada, Sri Satyanarayana Swamy Temple at Annavaram, Sri Varaha Narasimha Swamy Temple at Simhachalam, Sri Sita Rama Temple at Bhadrachalam, Araku Valley, Horsley Hills, Nelapattu, etc., are the major tourist attractions in Andhra Pradesh.
GOVERNMENT Governor
: Narayan Dutt Tiwari
Chief Secretary acting Chief Justice
:
A. Raghotham Rao
Chief Minister
: Sri Konijeti Rosaiah
Jurisdiction of High Court
:
A. R. Dave
Speaker
: N. Kiran Kumar Reddy Chairman
Legislative
Council :
Puvvada Nageswara Rao
AREA, POPULATION AND HEADQUARTERS OF DISTRICTS S.No.
District
Area in 000' sq km
2001 Census Population
Headquarters
1.
Adila b a d
16.1
24,88,003
Adilabad
2.
Ananthapur
19.1
36,40,478
Ananthapur
3.
Chittoor
15.2
37,45,875
Chittoor
4.
Cuddapah
15.4
26,01,797
Cuddapah
5.
East
10.8
49,01,420
Kakinada
6.
Guntur
11.4
44,65,144
Guntur
7.
Hyderabad
0.2
38,29,753
Hyderabad
8.
Karimnagar
11.8
34,91,822
Karimnagar
9.
Khammam
16.0
25,78,927
Khammam
10.
Krishna
8.7
41,87,841
Machilipatnam
11.
Kurnool
17.7
35,29,494
Kurnool
12.
Mahaboobnagar
18.4
35,13,934
Mahaboobnagar
13.
Medak
9.7
26,70,097
Sangareddy
14.
Nalgonda
14.2
32,47,982
Nalgonda
15.
Nellore
13.1
26,68,564
Nellore
16.
Prakasam
17.6
30,59,423
Ongole
17.
Nizamabad
8.0
23,45,685
Nizamabad
18.
Ranga
7.5
35,75,064
Hyderabad
19.
Srikakulam
5.8
25,37,593
Srikakulam
Godavari
Reddy
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India 2010
20.
Visakhapatnam
21.
Vizianagaram
22.
W a r a ng a l
23.
West
Godavari
ARUNACHAL
11.2
38,32,336
Visakhapatnam
6.5
22,49,254
Vizianagaram
12.9
32,46,004
Warangal
7.7
38,03,517
Eluru
PRADESH
Area
:
83,743 sq km
Population
: 10,97,968 (census 2001 Prov.)
Capital
:
Itanagar
Major Tribes
: Monpa, Miji, Aka, Sherdukpen, Nyishi, Apatani, Tagin, Hill Miri, Adi, DigaruMismi, Idu-Mishmi, Khamti, MijuMishmi, Nocte, Tangsa and Wancho.
HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY Arunachal Pradesh, became a full-fledged State on February 20, 1987. Till 1972, it was known as the North-East Frontier Agency (NEFA). It gained the Union Territory status on January 20, 1972 and renamed as Arunachal Pradesh. On August 15, 1975 an elected Legislative Assembly was constituted and the first Council of Ministers assumed office. The first general election to the Assembly was held in February 1978. Administratively, the State is divided into sixteen districts. Capital of the State is Itanagar in Papum Para district. Itanagar is named after Ita fort meaning fort of bricks, built in 14 th Century AD. Arunachal Pradesh finds mention in the literature of Kalika Purana and Mahabharata. This place is the Prabhu Mountains of the Puranas. It was here that sage Parashuram atoned of his sin, sage Vyasa meditated, King Bismaka founded his kingdom and Lord Krishna married his Consort Rukmini. The widely scattered archaeological remains at different places in Arunachal Pradesh bear testimony to its rich cultural heritage. AGRICULTURE AND HORTICULTURE Agriculture is the mainstay of the people of Arunachal Pradesh and mainly depends on jhum cultivation. Encouragement is being given to the cultivation of cash crops like potatoes and horticulture crops like apples, oranges and pineapples. INDUSTRIES AND MINERALS For conservation and exploration of the vast minerals the Arunachal Pradesh Mineral Development and Trading Corporation Limited (APMDTCL) was set up in 1991. Namchik-Namphuk coal fields are taken up by APMDTCL To provide training to craftsmen in different trades there are two Industrial Training Institutes at Roing and Daporijo. FESTIVALS Some of the important festivals of the State are: Mopin and Solung of the Adis, Lossar of the Monpas and Boori-boot of the Hill Miris, Sherdukpens, Dree of the Apatanis, SiDonyi of the Tagins, Reh of the ldu-Mishmis, Nyokum of the Nishis, etc. Animal sacrifice is a common ritual in most festivals.
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TOURIST CENTRES Places of tourist interest are : Tawang, Dirang, Bomdila, Tipi, Itanagar Malinithan, Likabali, Pasighat, Along, Tezu, Miao, Roing, Daporijo Namdapha, Bhismaknagar, Parashuram Kund and Khonsa.
PANCHAYATI
RAJ
The Arunachal Pradesh State Election Commission in support of State Govt. has sucessfully conducted and completed Panchayati Raj Elections in the State in the month of May 2008 for speedy development in the village and grass root level.
GOVERNMENT Governor
:
General (Retd.) J.J. Singh
Secretary
:
Tabom
Chief Minister
:
Dorjee
Jurisdiction of
:
Falls under Guwahati
Speaker
:
Wanglin
Khandu Lowangdong
High Court
High
Ban
Court
AREA, POPULATION AND HEADQUARTERS OF DISTRICTS S .No. D i s t r i c t
Area (sq km)
Population
Headquarters
1.
Tawang
2,172
38,924
Tawang
2.
West
7,422
74,599
Bomdila
3.
East
4,134
57,179
Seppa
4.
Papum-Pare
2,875
1,22,003
Yupia
5.
Lower Subansiri and Kurung Kumey
10,135
98,244
Ziro
6.
Upper
7,032
55,346
Daporijo
7.
West Siang
8,325
1,03,918
8.
East Siang
4,005
89,397
Pasighat
9.
Upper
6,188
33,363
Yingkiong Anini
Kameng Kameng
Subansiri
Siang
Along
10.
Dibang and Lower Dibang Valley
13,029
57,720
11.
Lohit and Anjaw
11,402
1,43,527
Tezu
12.
Changlang
4,662
1,25,422
Changlang
13.
Tirap
2,362
1,00,326
Khonsa
ASSAM Area
:
78,438 sq km
Population
:
2,66,55,528
Capital
:
Dispur
Principal Language
:
Assamese
HISTORY
AND
GEOGRAPHY
The word ‘Assam’ as interpreted by some scholars is derived from the Sanskrit word Asoma meaning peerless or unparalleled. But the widely accepted opinion of the academic circles today is that the term has come from the original name of the Ahoms, who ruled the land for about six hundred years prior to its annexation by the British.
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The races like Austric, Mongolian, Dravidian and Aryan that came to this land longlong ago have contributed to its composite culture. Thus Assam has a rich legacy of culture and civilization. Assam was known as Pragjyotisha or the place of eastern astronomy during the epic period and later named as Kamrupa. The earliest epigraphic reference to the kingdom of Kamrupa is found in the Allahabad pillar inscription of king Samudragupta. Kamrupa is mentioned as a Pratyanta or frontier state outside the Gupta empire but with friendly and subordinate relation to it. Hiuen Sang, the Chinese scholar pilgrim who visited Kamrupa in about 743 AD on an invitation of its monarch, Kumar Bhaskar Varman, left a record of the kingdom he called Kamolupa. Kamrupa also figured in the writings of the Arabian historian Alberuni in the eleventh century. Thus, from the epic period down to the twelfth century AD, the eastern frontier kingdom was known as Pragjyotisha and Kamrupa and kings called themselves ‘Lords of Pragjyotisha’. The advent of the Ahoms across the eastern hills in 1228 AD was the turningpoint in Assam history. They ruled Assam nearly for six centuries. The Burmese entered through the eastern borders and overran the territory at a time when court intrigues and dissensions were sapping the vitality of the Ahom royalty. It became a British protectorate in 1826 when the Burmese ceded Assam to the British under the provision of the Treaty of Yandabo. Assam is the sentinel of north-east India and gateway to the North-Eastern States. The State is close to India's international borders with Bangladesh and Bhutan. Assam is surrounded by Bhutan and Arunachal Pradesh on the north, Manipur, Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh on the east and Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram on the south. AGRICULTURE Assam is an agricultural State. Agriculture occupies an important place in the economy of the State. The principal food crop is rice. The cash crops are jute, tea, cotton, oilseeds, sugarcane, potato, etc. Noteworthy horticulture items are orange, banana, pineapple, arecanut, coconut, guava, mango, jackfruit and citrus fruits. The State has an estimated 39.83 lakh hectares gross cropped area of which net area sown is about 27.24 lakh hectares. FORESTS Assam is known for her rich forest wealth which constitutes 26.22 per cent of the total forest area. WILD LIFE The State has five National Parks and eleven wildlife sanctuaries. The Kaziranga National Park and the Manas Tiger Project (National Park) are internationally famous for the one horned Rhino and Royal Bengal Tiger respectively. INDUSTRY Of agriculture-based industries, tea occupies an important place. There are six industrial growth centres in the State and two such centres are being set up at Balipara and Matia. Presently four oil refineries have been working in the State including the one at Digboi. Construction of the Export Promotion Industrial Park (EPIP) at Amingaon near Guwahati is nearing completion. A Software Technology Park will be constructed at Borjhar near Guwahati. A Central Institute for Plastic Engineering
States and Union Territories
1115
Technology (CIPET) has been established at Amingaon near Guwahati. Assam has always enjoyed the highest reputation for her arts and crafts associated with her cottage industries. Cottage industries include handloom, sericulture, cane and bamboo articles, carpentry, brass and bell-metal crafts. Assam produces varieties of silk, Endi, Muga, Tassar, etc., Muga silk is produced only in Assam in the world. POWER The major power stations are Chandrapur Thermal Project, Namrup Thermal Project and a few Mobile Gas Turbine Units along with a mini hydro-electric project. Revitalising the Thermal Power Station of Bongaigaon and on-going the Karbi-Langpi Project will boost the power supply in the State. The Lakuwa Waste Heat Recovery Project is expected to be commissioned in 2008-09. TRANSPORT Roads : The total length of roads in the State was 37,515 km which includes 2,754 kms of National Highways. The construction of 160 km of barbed wire fencing and 27 kms of the border road along the Indo-Bangladesh Int ernational have been completed. Railways : The length of railway tract in Assam is 2,284.28 kms comprising 1,227.16 kms under broad-gauge and 1,057.12 km under meter-gauge lines. Aviation : The regular civil air services operate from Lokopriya Gopinath Bordoloi Airport (Guwahati), Salonibari (Tezpur), Mohanbari (Dibrugarh), Kumbhirgram (Silchar), Rawriah (Jorhat) and Silonibari (North Lakhimpur). FESTIVALS Assam has an exclusive range of colourful festivals. Bihu is the chief festival celebrated on three occasions. Rongali Bihu or Bohag Bihu marks the advent of the cropping season and it also ushers in the Assamese New Year. Bhogali Bihu or Magh Bihu is the harvest festival and Kati Bihu or Kongali Bihu coming in autumn is a simple affair. Religion accounts for a large variety of festivals. Vaishnavites observe the birth and death anniversaries of prominent Vaishnava saints through day-long singing of hymns and staging of Bhaonas (theatrical performances in traditional style). Ambubachi in Kamakhya shrine, Sivaratri Mela at Umananda and other places near Siva temples, Durga Puja, Diwali, Dol-Jatra, Id, Christmas, Ashokastami Mela, Rash Mela, Parasuram Mela are other religious festivals. TOURISM Important places of tourism in and around Guwahati are Kamakhya temple, Umananda (Peacock Island), Navagraha (temple of nine planets), Basistha Ashram, Dolgobinda, Gandhi Mandap, State Zoo, State Museum, Sukreswar temple, Gita Mandir, Madan Kamdev temple, a magnificent archaeological place of interest, and Saraighat bridge. Other places of tourist interest in the State are : Kaziranga National Park (famous for the one horned rhino), Manas Tiger Project, Pobi-tora and Orang (wildlife sanctuaries), Sibsagar (Shiv Temple-Rangghar-Karengghar), Tezpur (Bhairavi temple and scenic beauty), Bhalukpung (Angling), Haflong (health resort with Jatinga hills), Majuli (largest river island in the world), Chandubi lake (picnic spot), Hajo (meeting point of Buddhism, Hinduism and Islam), Batadrava (birth place of great Vaishnava saint Sankaradeva) and Sualkuchi (famous for silk industry).
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GOVERNMENT Governor
:
Lt. Gen. (Retd.) Ajai Singh
Secretary
Chief Minister
:
Tarun Gogoi
Jurisdiction of
Speaker
:
Tanka Bahadur Rai
Guwahati
:
P.C.
Sarma
:
All North-Eastern States
High
Court
AREA, POPULATION AND HEADQUARTERS OF DISTRICTS Area (sq km)
Population (in lakh) 1
S. No.
District
District Headquarters
1.
Dhubri
2,8 3 8
16.35
2.
Kokrajhar
3,129
9.30
Kokrajhar
3.
Bongaigaon
2,510
9.06
Bongaigaon
4.
Goalpara
1,824
8.22
Goalpara
5.
Barpeta
3,245
16.42
Barpeta
6.
Nalbari
2,257
11.38
Nalbari
7.
Kamrup
4,345
25.15
Guwahati
8.
Darrang
3,481
15.04
Mangaldoi
9.
Sonitpur
5,324
16.78
Tezpur
10.
Lakhimpur
2,277
8.89
Dhubri
North Lakhimpur
11.
Dhemaji
3,217
5.89
Dhemaji
12.
Morigaon
1,704
7.76
Morigaon
13.
Nagaon
3,831
23.15
14.
Golaghat
3,502
9.46
15.
Jorhat
2,851
10.09
Jorhat
16.
Sibsagar
2,668
10.53
Sibsagar
17.
Dibrugarh
3,381
11.72
Dibrugarh
18.
Tinsukia
3,790
11.50
Tinsukia
19.
Karbi-Anglong
10,434
8.12
Diphu
20.
North Cachar Hills
4,888
1.86
Haflong
21.
Karimganj
1,809
10.04
22.
Hailakandi
1,327
5.43
23.
Cachar
3,786
14.42
1
Provisional
Nagaon Golaghat
Karimganj Hailakandi Silchar
States and Union Territories
1117
BIHAR Area
:
94,163 sq km
Population
Capital
:
Patna
Principal
Language
:
8,28,78,796
:
Hindi
HISTORY AND GEOGRAPH Y Bihar finds mention in the Vedas, Puranas, epics, etc., and was the main scene of activities of Buddha, and the 24 Jain Tirthankars. Great rulers of the State before the Christian era were Bimbisar, Udayin, who founded the city of Pataliputra. Chandragupta Maurya and Emperor Ashoka and Maurya dynasty, the Sungs and the Kanvas. Then came the Kushan rulers followed by Chandragupta Vikramaditya of the Gupta dynasty. Muslim rulers made in-roads into the territory during the medieval period. The first conqueror of Bihar was Mohammed- bin-Bakhtiar Khalji. The Tughluqs and then the Mughals followed the Khaljis. One of the major states of the Indian Union, Bihar is bounded on the north by Nepal, on the east by West Bengal, on the west by Uttar Pradesh and on the south by Jharkhand. Bihar has a number of rivers, the most important of which is the Ganga. The other rivers are the Sone, Poonpoon, Falgu, Karmanasa, Durgawati, Kosi, Gandak, Ghaghara, etc. AGRICULTURE Bihar has a total geographical area of about 93.60 lakh hectare, out of which only 55.65 lakh hectare is the net cultivated area with a gross cultivated area of 77.19 lakh hectares. About 34.62 lakh hectares net area and 46.46 lakh hectare gross area receive irrigation from different sources. Principal food crops are paddy, wheat, maize and pulses. Main cash crops are sugarcane, potato, tobacco, oilseeds, onion, chillies, jute and mesta. Bihar has a notified forest area of 6.22 lakh hectare , which is 6.65 per cent of its geographical area. INDUSTRIES Major Industries are : Railway Wagon Plants of Bharat Wagon Limited at Muzaffarpur and Mokamah; Oil Refinery of Indian Oil Corporation at Barauni; Fertilizer Manufacturing Plant of Hindustan Fertilizer Corporation Limited (HPCL) at Barauni and Pyrites Phosphates & Chemicals Limited (PPCL) at Amjhor; Cotton Spinning Mills at Siwan, Pandaul, Bhagalpur, Mokamah and Gaya; 13 sugar mills in the private sector and 15 in the public sector located in south and north Bihar with a total crushing capacity of 45,000 (Tonne). In addition, distilleries at Gopalganj, West Champaran, Bhagalpur and Riga (in Sitamarhi district); finished leather industry in West Champaran, Muzaffarpur and Barauni; jute mills at Katihar and Samastipur; medicine manufacturing unit at Hajipur; food processing units as also vanaspati manufacturing units at Aurangabad and Patna; besides Kalyanpur Cement Limited at Banjari, are notable on the industrial map of Bihar. IRRIGATION Bihar has an irrigation potential of 28.73 lakh hectares. It is created through major and medium irrigation schemes and 49.35 lakh hectares through minor irrigation schemes.
1118
India 2010
TRANSPORT Roads : Up to March 2008, Bihar had 46107.00 km of pucca roads including 3734.38 km of national highways and 3989 km of state highways, 8156.00 km of major District Roads, 3818.00 km of other District Roads and 27400 km of Rural Roads. Railways : Bihar has a fairly good railway network. There is a railway bridge at Mokamaha in north Bihar. A few railway routes connecting important places like Muzaffarpur-Samastipur-Barauni-Katihar and Muzaffarpur-Chapra-Siwan have been converted into broad gauge. The main rail junctions are at Patna, Gaya, Muzaffarpur, Katihar and Samastipur, etc. Aviation : There is an international airport at Patna, besides landing grounds in all major districts of the State. TOURIST CENTRES Important places of tourist interest are Rajgir, Nalanda, Vaishali, Pawapuri (where Lord Mahavira breathed his last and attained Nirvana), Bodh Gaya, Vikramshila (ruins of Buddhist University of higher learning), Gaya, Patna (ancient city of Patliputra), Sasaram (tomb of Shershah Suri) and Madhubani (known for its famous Madhubani Paintings). Mundeshwari Mandir (Kaimur), Rohtras Garh Fort (Rohtas), Jain Pilgrim Place, Kundalpur (Nalanda), Bihar School of Yoga (Munger), Manersharif Patna, Rural Tourist Place Nepura (Nalanda), Kesaria Stupa (West Champaran), Barabar Hills (Jehanabad) and Lauria Nandangarh are also important tourist places.
GOVERNMENT Governor
:
D.
Chief Minister
:
Nitish
Konwar Kumar
Secretary
:
Anup
Jurisdiction of
:
Bihar
High Court
AREA, POPULATION AND HEADQUARTERS OF DISTRICTS S.No.
District
Area (in sq km)
Population
Headquarters
1.
Araria
2,830.00
21,58,608
Araria
2.
Arwal
637.00
5,89,476
Arwal
3.
Aurangabad
3,389.2
20,04,960
4.
Begusarai
1,918.00
23,49,366
Begusarai
5.
Bhagalpur
2,569.00
24,23,172
Bhagalpur
6.
Banka
3,020.00
16,08,773
Banka
7.
Bhojpur
2,395.00
22,43,144
Arrah
8.
Buxar
1,703.00
14,02,396
Buxar
9.
Kaimur (Bhabhua)
3,362.00
12,89,074
Bhabhua
10.
Darbhanga
2,279.00
32,95,789
Darbhanga
11.
East Champa r a n
3,968.00
39,39,773
Motihari
12.
Gaya
4,976.00
34,73,428
Gaya
13.
Gopalganj
2,033.00
21,52,638
Gopalganj
14.
Jahanabad
932.00
9,24,839
Jahanabad
15.
Jamui
3,098.00
13,98,796
Aurangabad
Jamui
Mukherjee
States and Union Territories
1119
16.
Katihar
3057.00
2392638
17.
Khagaria
1486.00
12800354
18.
Kishanganj
1884.00
1296348
Kishanganj
19.
Lakhisarai
1228.00
802225
Lakhisarai
20.
Madhepura
1788.00
1526646
Madhepura
21.
Madhubani
3501.00
3575281
Madhubani
22.
Munger
1419.00
1137297
Munger
23.
Muzaffarpur
3172.00
3746714
Muzaffarpur
24.
Nalanda
2355.00
2370528
Biharsharif
25.
Nawada
2494.00
1809696
Nawada
26.
Patna
3202.00
4718592
Patna
27.
Purnea
3229.00
2543942
Purnea
28.
Rohtas
3851.00
2450748
Sasaram
29.
Saharsa
1687.00
1508182
Saharsa
30.
Samastipur
2904.00
3394793
Samastipur
31.
Saran
2641.00
3248701
Chapra
32.
Shekhpura
689.00
525502
Sitamarhi
33.
Sheohar
349.00
515961
Sheohar
34.
Sitamarhi
2294.00
2682720
Sitamarhi
35.
Siwan
2219.00
2714349
Siwan
36.
Supaul
2425.00
1732578
Supaul
37.
Vaishali
2036.00
2718421
Hazipur
38.
West
5228.00
3043466
Bettiah
Champaran
Katihar Khagaria
CHHATTISGARH Area
:
1,36,034 sq km
Population
Capital
:
Raipur
Principal Language
:
2,07,95,956
(Census
2001)
: Hindi
HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY Chhattisgarh, carved out of Madhya Pradesh came into being on 1 November 2000 as the 26th State of the Union. It fulfills the long-cherished demand of the people. In ancient times the region was known as Dakshin-Kausal. This finds mention in Ramayana and Mahabharata also. Between the sixth and twelfth centuries Sarabhpurias, Panduavanshi, Somvanshi, Kalchuri and Nagvanshi rulers dominated this region. Kalchuris ruled in Chhattisgarh from 980 to 1791 AD. With the advent of the British in 1845, Raipur gained prominence instead of capital Ratanpur. In 1904 Sambalpur was transferred to Orissa and estates of Sarguja were transferred from Bengal to Chhattisgarh. Chhattisgarh is bounded by southern Jharkhand and Orissa in the east, Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra in the west, Uttar Pradesh and western Jharkhand in the north and Andhra Pradesh in the south. Areawise Chhattisgarh is the ninth largest state and population-wise it is seventeenth state of the nation. AGRICULTURE Agriculture and allied activities account for nearly 80 per cent of the work force in the state. Out of the geographical area 13,790 thousand hectares, gross cropped area is
1120
India 2010
about 35 per cent of the total geographical area. Kharif is the main cropping season. Rice is the predominant crop of the state, other important crops are maize, wheat, niger, groundnut and pulses. The state has one of the biggest collection of rice germplasm. Horticulture crops are grown in an area of about 303.57 thousand hectares. IRRIGATION AND POWER When the state came into being, the total irrigation capacity was 13.28 lakh hectares which has now increased to 16.81 Lakh hectares. Major completed projects are Tandula, Kodar and Pairy. The total capacity of the State Electricity Board is 1,681.05 MW, out of this the thermal power share is 1,260 MW and the rest is hydel power. The electricity board is investing in modernisation, strengthening transmission and distribution networks and creating more generating capacities. The Board itself is adding 500 MW installed generating capacity area 2 X 250 MW unit in Korba. The private sector has been encouraged to setup generating capacities and to make third party sales outside the state. Around 93 per cent of 19,720 inhabited villages of Chhattisgarh have been electrified. MINERAL RESOURCES Chhattisgarh hosts a wide variety of minerals found in igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic terrains. Large deposits of coal, iron ore, limestone, bauxite, dolomite and tin ore are located in several parts of the state. Lately diamonditerous kimberlites identified in Raipur district are likely to yield substantial quantity of diamonds. There are also present medium to small deposits of gold and base metals. Satite furn corrundum, graphite of workable size are likely to graduate to the category of large deposits after prospecting. Twenty per cent of the country’s steel and cement is produced in the state. It is the only tin ore producing state in the country. The mineral resources have immense potential for large investments in mining, setting of mineral based industries and generating employment. Chhatttisgarh nestles atop the world’s largest kimberlite area. Eight blocks have been demarcated for diamond exploration. Apart from diamond, four blocks of gold exploration and five blocks for base metal investigations have also been demarcated. INDUSTRY Chhattisgarh is generously bestowed with natural resources like forests, minerals and surface water. The State has undergone a radical change and is thriving with industrial activities now. Chhattisgarh produces 15 per cent of the steel made in the country. Many Government of India Undertakings like Bhilai Steel Plant, National Mineral Development Corporation, South-Eastern Coal Field Limited, NTPC and a number of large cement plants by groups like ACC, Gujarat Ambuja, Grasim, CCI and La-farge of France and 53 steel projects (sponge iron/pig iron route) in private sector are also under different stages of implementation. There are approximately 133 steel re-rolling mills and a number of mini steel plants. The state also boasts of 11 ferro-alloy units, steel/cast iron casting units, engineering and fabrication units apart from large number of agro-based and food processing, chemical, plastic, construction material, forest produce based units. Due to its conducive industrial environment, Chhattisgarh is now fetching huge amount of industrial investment. Approximately 80 MOUs worth Rs. 85,000
States and Union Territories
1121
cores were signed for establishing new industries and expansion of existing units. Chhattisgarh stood first in Industrial Entrepreneurship Memorandum (IEM) report released by Ministry of Industries, Government of India with the proposed investment of Rs. 1,07,899 crores during the period Jan-Dec 2006. Strategically located in central India, Chhattisgarh is able to supply power to units for all the time. About 17 per cent of the countries coal reserves in the state, offering cheap pithead power generation opportunities with the potential to produce up to 50,000 MW of power. NTPC is now installing a new power generation unit, the largest ever, by it in Bilaspur district. NTPC has started construction on its 2,640 MW Super Thermal plant in Sipat and another 600 MW plant in Korba. Several other states are also interested in installing plants here. Private sector MoUs for more than 25,000 MW and more projects are in the pipeline. Chhattisgarh State Industrial Development Corp. Ltd., Raipur has developed, maintained and is managing approximately an area of 3,500 hectares of industrial land. More than 925 industries with investments of more than Rs. 18,000 million providing direct employment to 80,000 persons have already been setup on the land developed by this corporation. INFORMATION
TECHNOLOGY
E-Governance in Chhattisgarh is oriented towards ensuring people, access to government, this makes the government even more responsive and transparent. Chips (Chhattisgarh Infotech and Biotech Promotion Society) was setup with a high powered governing council under the Chief Minister’s chairpersonship, to act as a prime mover for IT and Biotechnology in the state. All citizen services of e-governance are under one umbrella project called CHOICE (Chhattisgarh On-line Information for Citizens Empowerment). Chhattisgarh got the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Award 2007 for its Human Development Report, using Information technology for the betterment of citizens. TRANSPORT ROADS: The total length of the roads in the State in 34,930 kms. The length of the national highways is 2,225 kms, state highways 3,213.50 kms, district roads 4,814 kms and rural roads is 27,001 kms. Two north-south and four east-west road corridors are being constructed in the state for better connectivity having a total length of 3106.75 kms. RAILWAYS : Raipur, Bilaspur, Durg, Rajnandgaon, Raigarh and Korba are important railway stations. TOURIST
CENTRES
Chhattisgarh situated in the heart of India, is endowed with a rich cultural heritage and attractive natural diversity. The State is full of ancient monuments, rare wildlife species, carved temples, Buddhist sites, palaces, water-falls, caves, rock paintings and hill plateaus. Bastar, with its unique cultural and ecological identity; Chitrakote Falls, a spot where the river Indravati has an abrupt fall of 96 ft; Tirathgarh Falls, the picturesque waterfall of Kanger river from a height of 100 ft in the form of steps; Keshkal valley; Kangerghati National Park; Kailash caves; Sita Bongara and Kutumbsar caves are rich in natural beauty. Mahamaya temple at Ratanpur, Bambleshwari Devi Temple at Dongargarh, Danteshwari Devi Temple at Dantewada, Sirpur an important centre of Buddhism from 6-10th century, Champaran, the birth
1122
India 2010
place of Mahaprabhu Vallabhacharya, Khutaghat waterfall, Dindneswari Devi temple of Malhar and the Achanakmar sanctuary, Udanti sanctuary near Raipur, Pali and Kendai waterfall of Korba district are important places of tourist interest. The Sabari temple of Kharod Janjgir-Champa; Nar Narayan temple of Sheorinarayan; Vishnu Temple of Janjgir are important religious places. The state has set up a State Tourism Promoting Board as the nodal agency for the sustained development of interrelated sectors in tourism .
GOVERNMENT Governor
:
Shri
Chief Secretary
:
P. Joy Oommeh
Chief Minister
:
Dr. Raman Singh
Jurisdiction of
:
Chhattisgarh
Speaker
:
Prem
High Court
E.S.L.
Narasimhan
Prakash
Pandey
AREA, POPULATION AND HEADQUARTERS OF DISTRICTS S.No.
District
Area (in sq km)
Population
Headquarters
1
Bastar
10,376
11,31,453
Jagdalpur
2
Bilaspur
8,569
19,93,042
Bilaspur
3
Durg
8,702
28,01,757
Durg
4
Raigarh
6,528
12,65,084
Raigarh
5
Raipur
13,445
30,09,042
Raipur
6
Rajnandgaon
8,023
12,81,811
Rajnandgaon
7
Sarguja
16,034
19,70,661
Ambikapur
8
Koria
5,978
5,85,455
Baikunthpur
9
Jashpur
6,457
7,39,780
Jashpur
10
Janjgir-Champa
4,467
13,16,140
Janjgir
11
Korba
5,769
10,12,121
Korba
12
Kanker
6,434
6,51,333
Kanker
13
Dantewada
9,055
4,89,233
Dantewada
14
Mahasamund
4,963
8,60,176
Mahasamund
15
Dhamatari
4,081
7,03,569
Dhamtari
16
Kabirdham
3,958
5,84,667
Kawardha
17
Narayanpur
6,640
1,10,800
Narayanpur
18
Bijapur
6,555
2,29,832
Bijapur
GOA Area
:
3,702 sq km
Population
:
13,47,668 (2001 Census)
Capital
:
Panaji
Principal Languages
:
Konkani and Marathi
HISTORY
AND
GEOGRAPHY
Goa, known in the bygone days as Gomanchala, Gopakapattam, Gopakapuri, Govapuri, Gomantak, etc., abounds in a rich historical heritage. Early history of Goa
States and Union Territories
1123
is obscure. In the first century of the Christian era, Goa was a part of the Satavahana empire, followed by the Kadamba, the Rashtrakutas of Malkhed, the Chalukyas and the Silharas. The empire of the Yadavas by the end of the 14th century was displaced by the Khiljis of Delhi and thus Muslim rule came to Goa. After the discovery of the sea route to India by Vasco-da-Gama in 1498, many Portuguese expeditions came to India. In 1510, Alfonso de Albuquerque with the help of the emperor of Vijayanagar attacked and captured Goa. With the arrival of the Jesuit priest Francis Xavier in 1542 proselytisation began in Goa. However, the Portuguese continued to rule over the territory except for an interlude during the latter half of the 17th century when Shivaji conquered a few areas in and around Goa. Even after India’s independence, Goa continued to be in the hands of the Portuguese. However, they could not fulfil the aspirations of the Goan people and ultimately on 19 December 1961, Goa was liberated and made a composite union territory with Daman and Diu. On 30 May 1987 Goa was conferred statehood and Daman and Diu was made a separate union territory. Goa is situated on the western coast of the Indian Peninsula. On its north runs the Terekhol river which separates Goa from Maharashtra and on the south lies North Canara district of Karnataka. On the east lie the Western Ghats and in the west the Arabian Sea. Panaji, Margao, Vasco, Mapusa and Ponda are the main towns of Goa. AGRICULTURE Rice is the main food crop. Pulses, ragi and other food crops are also grown. Main cash crops are coconut, cashewnut, arecanut, sugarcane and fruits like pineapple, mango and banana. IRRIGATION AND POWER With the commissioning of dams like Selaulim and Anjunem and other minor irrigation projects, the area under irrigation is rising steadily. The total irrigation potential created by these projects is 43,000 hectares. All villages have been electrified leading to cent per cent coverage. Tillari Irrigation which is a inter-state joint venture of the Government of Maharashtra and Goa is aimed at creating an ultimate irrigation potential of 24618 ha for Goa State, besides providing 57.43 mm 3 of water for domestic industrial and other non-agricultural purposes. INDUSTRY AND MINERALS The State has 7110 small-scale industrial units and 20 industrial estates. Mineral products are ferro-manganese, bauxite and iron ore contributing substantially to the economy of the State through exports. FOREST The State has a rich forest cover of 34%. About 30.18 lakh seedlings have been planted including distribution to public. 978.50 ha area has been covered under plantation. FISHERIES Fish assumes special significance for the State as 90% of the population of Goa is fish dietarian. Fisheries is an important industry in the state providing employment and livelihood to around 1.00 lakh people. 3220 fishermen have been covered under the State Insurance scheme. 718 fishermen are covered under saving cum relief fund.
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India 2010
ART AND CULTURE The State has the distinction to have achieved the ISO 9001-2000 certification through the Directorate of Art and Culture. State Cultural Policy has been framed. Tiatr Academy of Goa has been set up. Various schemes such as Kala Sanman, Kalakar Kritadnyata Nidhi are being implemented to assist artists and promote cultural activities. TRANSPORT As on 31/12/2008 the total number of driving licenses issued in Goa is 4,40,152 and the total number of vehicles registered in Goa is 6,59,012. Roads : Of the motorable roads, national highway constitutes 224 kms, state highways 232 kms and district roads 815 kms. Railways : Goa is linked with Mumbai, Mangalore and Thiruvananthapuram through the Konkan Railway, which has introduced several fast trains on these lines. Vasco da Gama is connected with Bangaluru and Belgaum on the South Central Railway, pesently for goods traffic only. Aviation : Mumbai, Delhi, Thiruvananthapuram, Cochin, Chennai, Agati and Bangaluru are linked with Dabolim through regular Airlines services. Ports : Mormugao is the major port in the State. Mormugao handles cargo vessels. Minor ports are located at Panaji, Tiracol, Chapora Betul and Talpona, out of which Panaji is the main operative port. One off-shore berth at Panaji has also been commissioned. HEALTH The health care services in the state are made available to the people at their door steps. It is one of the best performing states in India in the matter of health and medical care. Under Mediclaim scheme financial assistance has been enhanced to Rs. 8 lakhs. Mobile health care vans and the unique 108 ambulance services have been introduced to cater to the health care needs of the people advanced emergency paramedics rooms have been established at Government run primary health centres to stabilize patients inflicted with major diseases. TOURIST CENTRES Important tourist centres are Colva, Calangute, Vagator, Baga, Harmal, Anjuna and Miramar beaches; Basilica of Bom Jesus and Se Cathedral churches at Old Goa; Kavlem, Mardol, Mangeshi, Bandora temples; Aguada, Terekhol, Chapora and Cabo de Rama Forts; Dudhsagar and Harvalem waterfalls and Mayem lake resort. The state has rich wildlife sanctuaries, viz., Bondla, Cotigao, Molem and Dr Salim Ali Bird Sanctuary at Chorao coverin g an area of 354 sq km.
GOVERNMENT Governor
:
Dr. Shivinder Singh Sidhu
Chief Minister
:
Sh.
Digamber
Kamat
Chief Secretary
:
Sanjay
Jurisdiction of
:
Falls under Panaji Bench of Mumbai High Court
High Court
Srivastava
States and Union Territories
1125
GUJARAT Area
:
1,96,024 sq km
Population
:
5,06,71,017
Capital
:
Gandhinagar
Principal
:
Gujarati
Language
HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY The history of Gujarat goes back to 2000 BC. It is belived that Lord Krishna left Mathura to settle on the west coast of Saurashtra which later came to be known as Dwarka, the gateway. Later it saw various kingdoms : Mauryas, Guptas, Pratiharas and others. It was during the rule of Chalukyas ( Solankis) that Gujarat witnessed progress and prosperity. In spite of the plunderings of Mahmud Ghazani, the Chalukyan kings were able to maintain general prosperity and well-being of the State. After this glorious respite, Gujarat faced troubled times under the Muslims, Marathas and the British rule. Before Independence, the present territories of Gujarat used to be in two parts the British and the Princely territories. With the re-organisation of the States, the Union of the States of Saurshtra and the Union Teritory of Kachchh along with the former British Gujarat, became a part of the biggest bilingual State of Bombay. The present State of Gujarat came in to being on 1 May 1960. It is situated on the west coast of India. The state is bounded by the Arabian Sea on the west, Pakistan and Rajasthan in the north and north-east respectively, Madhya Pradesh in the south–east and Maharashtra in the south. AGRICULTURE Gujarat is the main producer of cotton, groundnut and tobacco in the country and provides inputs for important industries like textiles, oil and soap. Other important cash crops are isabgol, paddy, wheat and bajra. Forest species available in Gujarat are sadad, haldariyo and manual bamboos. INDUSTRY The num ber of registered working factories in the State were 23,308 (Provisional) at the end of 2007 with the average daily employment of 10.93 lakh. The number of small-scale industrial units in the State was 3.12 lakh at the end of September 2006. Gujarat Industrial Development Corporation (GIDC) has been assigned the role of developing industrial estates with infrastructure facilities. At the end of year 2007-08 GIDC had set up 249 industrial estates. IRRIGATION
AND
POWER
The total irrigation potential through surface water as well as ground water has been assessed at 64.88 lakh hectars including 17.92 lakh hectares through Sardar Sarovar ( Narmada ) Project. The total irrigation potential created up to June 2008 is worked out to 42.26 lakh hectares. The maximum utilisation has been estimated at 37.42 lakh hectares up to June 2008. ELECTRICITY The total installed capacity for the state including central sector project has increased to 9827 MW as on 31 March 2008. All the 18066 villages have been covered under the scheme Jyoti Gram Yojana of Gujarat State Government.
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India 2010
TRANSPORT Roads : The total length of roads ( except Non-plan, Community, Urban and Project roads) was 74,038 km by the end of 2005-06. Aviation : The main airport of Gujarat at Ahmedabad is connected with Mumbai, Delhi and other cities by daily services. Ahmedabad airport has now got the status of an International Airport. Other domestic airports are Vadodara, Bhavnagar, Bhuj, Jamnagar and Rajkot and Surat. Ports :
Gujarat has 41 ports of which Kandla is a major port. The intermediate and
minor ports of Gujarat handled a total cargo of 152.81 lakh tonnes whereas Kandla port handled cargo of 722.25 lakh tonnes during 2008-09. FESTIVALS Tarnetar fair is held at village Tarnetar in the honour of Lord Shiva on the 4th, 5th , and 6th days of the bright half of of the month of Bhadrapada (August/September ). Madhavrai fair at Madhavpur near Porbandar is, held to celebrate the marriage by elopement of Lord Krishna and Rukmani, on the ninth day of the bright half of the month of Chaitra (March/April ). Ambaji fair dedicated to Amba-mother goddess is held in Banaskantha district. The biggest annual fair, Janmashtami the birthday of Lord Krishna is celebrated at Dwarka and Dakor with great enthusiasm. Other festivals are Makar-Sankranti, Navratri, Dangi Darbar, Shamlaji fair, Bhavnath fair. TOURIST CENTRES Religious centres like Dwarka, Somnath, Palitana, Pavagadh, Ambaji, Bhadreshwar, Shamlaji, Taranga and Girnar; Porbandar the birthplace of Mahatma Gandhi; places of memorable monuments of architectural and archaeological wonders like Patan, Siddhpur, Ghurnli, Dabhoi, Vadnagar, Modhera, Lothal and Ahmedabad; Beaches like Ahmadpur–Mandvi, Chorvad, Ubharat, and Thital; the Hill station-Saputara ; Lion sanctuary of Gir forest and wild as sanctuary in Katchchh area are major tourist attractions in the State.
GOVERNMENT Governor
: Navalkishore
Chief Minister
: Narendra
Speaker
: Ashok
Sharma
Modi
Chief Secretary
: D.
Jurisdiction of
: Gujarat
Rajagopalan
High Court
Bhatt
AREA, POPULATION AND HEADQUARTERS OF DISTRICTS District
Area (sq km)
Population (2001
Headquarters
Census)
A hm e d a b a d
8,087
58,16,519
Ahmedabad
Amreli
7,397
13,93,918
Amreli
Anand
2,941
18,56,872
Anand
10,757
25,04,244
Palanpur
Banaskantha
State
States and Union Territories
1127
Bharuch
6,527
13,70,656
Bharuch
Bhavnagar
9,981
24,69,630
Bhavnagar
Dohod
3,646
16,36,433
Dohod
The
1,764
1,86,729
2,163
13,34,455
Gandhinagar
Jamnagar
14,125
19,04,278
Jamnagar
Junagadh
8,846
24,48,173
Junagadh
Kheda
4,219
20,24,216
Nadiad
45,652
15,83,225
Bhuj
Mahesana
4,384
18,37,892
Mahesana
Narmada
2,755
5,14,404
Rajpipla
Navsari
2,209
12,29,463
Navsari
Panchmahal
5,220
20,25,277
Godhara
Patan
5,730
11,82,709
Patan
Porbandar
2,298
5,36,835
11,203
31,69,881
Rajkot
Sabarkantha
7,390
20,82,531
Himatnagar
Surat
7,657
49,95,174
Surat
10,489
15,15,148
Surendranagar
Vadodara
7,549
36,41,802
Vadodara
Valsad
3,035
14,10,553
Valsad
Dangs
Gandhinagar
Kachchh
Rajkot
Surendranagar
Ahwa
Porbandar
HARYANA Area
:
44,212 sq km
Population
:
2,11,44,564
Capital
:
Chandigarh
Principal
:
Hindi
Language
HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY Haryana has a proud history going back to the Vedic Age. The state was the home of the legendary Bharata dynasty, which has given the name Bharat to India. Haryana finds mention in the great epic of Mahabharata. Kurukshetra, the scene of the epic battle between the Kauravas and the Pandavas, is situated in Haryana. The state continued to play a leading part in the history of India till the advent of the Muslims
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and the rise of Delhi as the imperial capital of India. Thereafter, Haryana functioned as an adjunct to Delhi and practically remained anonymous till the First War of India’s Independence in 1857. When the rebellion was crushed and the British administration was re-established, the Nawabs of Jhajjar and Bahadurgarh, Raja of Ballabgarh and Rao Tula Ram of Rewari of the Haryana region were deprived of their territories. Their territories were either merged with the British territories or handed over to the rulers of Patiala, Nabha and Jind. Haryana thus became a part of the Punjab province. With the reorganisation of Punjab on 1 November 1966, Haryana was made into a full-fledged state. The state is bound by Uttar Pradesh in the east, Punjab in the west, Himachal Pradesh in the north and Rajasthan in the south. The National Capital Territory of Delhi juts into Haryana. AGRICULTURE Agriculture is the mainstay of more than 65 per cent population in Haryana with contribution of 26.4 per cent in GDP of the State. The quantum of foodgrains production, which was nearly 25.92 lakh tonnes at the time of inception of the state is likely to touch 155.08 lakh tonnes in 2008-09 due to crop intensification and increase in production of principal crops. Rice, wheat, jowar, bajra, maize, barley and pulses, sugarcane, cotton, oilseeds and potato are the major crops of the state. Under the diversification of crops, more and more area is being brought under cash crops like sugarcane, cotton and oilseeds, vegetable and fruits. Sustainable agriculture i s being promoted through the propagation of resource conserving technologies and organic farming. Dhaincha and Moong have also been encouraged to maintain soil fertility. INFORMATION
TECHNOLOGY
In view of the importance of Information Technology in the globalisation process throughout the world, the State Government has formulated an IT Policy which provides several incentives for IT and ITES/BPO Industry. The Government has also recently announced a policy for Technology Parks, which gives considerable flexibility for setting up Technology Parks and IT Corridors. The objective of this policy is also to promote convergence of Information Technology with frontier technologies like Nano Technology, Bio Technology, Mobile Computing and Robotics, etc. IT Park and Nano city are being set up in Panchkula district to create an environment and an eco system that fosters intellectual creativity in areas of frontier technologies, which in turn would create jobs and bring economic prosperity to the regions. The State Government is issuing licenses for setting up of Technology Parks, Cyber cities and IT corridors. From February 2006 to April 2008, 72 such projects have been approved in principle, which would provide employment opportunities for nearly 30000 professionals. Further, Gurgaon has been developed as a preferred investment destination for both IT and ITES/BPO companies. Now, Gurgaon has become the home of the corporate world in India. The State Government is planning to set up Hi-Tech Habitat Centre in the Electronic City, Gurgaon for IT/ITES/BPO companies, which would provide world-class facilities. Besides Gurgaon, the state also intends to develop other areas in NCR region, especially those alongside the Kundli-Manesar-Palwal Express Highway and Faridabad, as satellites of Gurgaon-Manesar Mega IT Hub. The software exports from Haryana during 2007-08 were Rs. 17,500 (approx.) crore.
States and Union Territories
1129
Haryana is the first state to have implemented its State Wide Area Network (ADHAAR) for voice, data and video transmission. The SWAN vertical connectivity at State Network Management Centre, District Network Management Centre (DNMC) Block Network Management Centre (BNMC) has been completed and made operational. Horizontal conncetivity at phase-I offices has been established and at phase-II offices, it is being established. The state has formulated its e-governance road map and capacity building road-map. The Government is in the process of setting up 1159 Rural and 104 Urban ICT based Common Service Centres under the State brand name e-Disha Ekal Sewa Kendra in the State and work of CSC implementation has already been started. The rollout in rural areas has been achieved 100%, while in urban/showcase CSCs it is 67%. At present Business to Citizens (B2C) services like computer training, eticketing, mobile recharges and insurance (general, motor and health), job placement services, internet services, financial services etc. are being provided through these centres and pilot projects are being run in all districts to start Government to Citizens (G2C) services like bus passes, electricity bill collection, issuing of nakal (land record), issuing of certificates like SC/BC/Income/Domicile, birth/death and issuing of new Ration Cards, Passports, Laadli scheme, Indira Gandhi Vivah Shagun Yojna etc. through these centres. The State has established District e-Disha centres, IT Training Labs at Distsrict Headquarters etc. A suit of office automation software packages for district & revenue administration has been developed and being implemented on district LANs. The State now wants to computerize all activities of district level offices for which a pilot project proposal costing Rs. 331.65 lakhs for e-District project at Rohtak has been approved by the Government of India and work has been started on this project. The State Government is implementing an IT Literacy Plan for Government employees to achieve 100% IT literacy in the State. Under IT Literacy Programme, IT Training Labs at Head Quarter and District Head Quarters have been set up. More than 24000 Government employees have been trained so far in the State. Besides this, to strengthen this program, IT Department, Government of India has approved a proposal worth Rs. 44.36 lakhs for imparting ICT training for women and SC/STs in the rural/urban area of the State. 800 girls/women have been trained in 10 districts under this programme. INDUSTRY Haryana has a large industrial base having more than 1,347 large and medium and 80,000 small scale units in the State. Haryana is the largest producer of passenger cars, tractors, motorcycles, bicycles, refrigerators, scientific instruments, etc. Haryana is the largest exporter of Basmati rice to the overseas market. Panipat handlooms and carpets are known all over the world besides, the famous Pachranga Achaar. Since July 1991, 3914 Industrial Entrepreneur Memorandum (IEMs) were filed and up to May 2008, of these 2274 IEMs were implemented with Capital Investment of Rs 24,034 crore and generating employment for 4,02,129 persons. As a result of the new Industrial Policy, the State has received about 100 proposals for setting up of SEZs in the State which is envisaging an investment of Rs. 2.00 lakh crore in the industrial infrastructure. These projects on implementation would create several thousand crores investment in the industrial sector besides, generating huge employment. The State is developing industrial model townships at Kharkhoda,
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Faridabad, Rohtak and Jagadhari besides expansion of IMT Manesar in Gurgaon. Petrochemical Hub is coming up with investment of Rs.33,000 crore at Panipat. KundliManesar-Palwal Expressway is being developed with an investment of Rs. 2000 crore. This will create a large number of economic hubs all along the expressway generating new investment opportunities in the industrial and service sector. There is a great demand from industries for allotment of industrial land in the industrial estates developed by the HSIDC and HUDA. During this period of the present Government, 98 new industrial units in the large and medium sectors and 7683 new small-scale industrial units with investment of Rs. 2744 crore have been set up generating direct employment for more than 1,25,747 persons. Besides, a large number of industrial units have undergone expansion and as a result of it fresh investment of more than Rs. 35,000 crore has been created. Recently, Indian Oil Corporation has set up Paraxylene/PTA project at Panipat with an investment of about Rs. 5000 crore. Maruti Udyog Hero Honda and many other automobile ancillaries are undergoing expansion programme with investment of about Rs. 10,000 crore. At present, investment proposals of about Rs. 70,000 crore are under implementation in the Industrial Sector. IRRIGATION Haryana is a beneficiary of the multi-purpose project in Sutlej and Beas sharing benefits with Punjab and Rajasthan. Major irrigation projects are western Yamuna Canal System, Bhakra Canal System and Gurgaon Canal System. Haryana has raised water from lower levels to higher and drier slopes through JLN canal project. It is a new endeavour that gave practical shape to lift irrigation for the first time in India. The Jui, Siwani, Loharu and Jawahar Lal Nehru lift irrigation schemes have helped to carry irrigation water against gravity flow to arid areas. Sprinkler and drip irrigation have been introduced in the highly undulating and sandy tracks of Haryana. Construction work of Hathni Kund barrage at a cost of Rs. 192 crore has been completed. Haryana and Uttar Pradesh would get additional water for irrigation purposes from the barrage and Delhi is also getting additional water for drinking. To ensure equitable distribution of water for irrigation and drinking purpose through out the State, the Government has been constructing a canal namely Bhakra Main Line-Hansi Branch-Buttana Branch Multipurpose link Channel of 109 kilometer length to the tune of Rs. 354 crores. To utilise surplus water of river Yamuna during monsoon season the construction work of Dadupur-Shahbad Nalvi Canal project has been taken up at an estimated cost of Rs. 267 crores. 590 cusecs surplus flood water will be used for irrigation and ground water recharging facilities to an area of 92,532 hectares falling in districts Yamuna Nagar, Ambala and Kurukshetra. The Government has sanctioned four projects of low height dams namely Kaushalaya dam, Dangrana dam, Dewanwala dam and Chhamla dam at an estimated cost of Rs. 180 crores, Rs. 63.69 crores, Rs. 132.70 crores and Rs. 20.41 crores respectively on river Ghaggar and its tributaries to prevent wasteful flow of water and loss to property by flood during the Monsoon season. The work on Kaushalya dam has been started with effect from March 18, 2008 and is likely to be completed by March 2010.
States and Union Territories
1131
POWER Haryana became the first State in the country to achieve 100 per cent rural electrification in 1970. Starting with 20,000 tubewells in 1966 there were 4.51 lakh tubewells in March 2008. The average power availability during 2008-09 was 743.45 lakh units a day. The number of consumers in 2007-08 were 42.70 lakh. The installed generation capacity as on 31 March 2009 was 4636.23 MW. TRANSPORT Roads : In Haryana all villages stand connected with metalled roads. The length of roads in the State is more than 34,772 kms. Railways : Kalka, Ambala, Kurukshetra, Rohtak, Jind, Hissar,Ambala, Panipat and Jakhal are important railway stations. There is a railway workshop at Jagadhari. Aviation : There are civil aerodromes at Pinjore, Karnal, Hisar, Bhiwani and Narnaul. TOURIST CENTRES The Government of Haryana has set up a network of 44 Tourist Complexes in all over the State. The availability of accommodation with Haryana Tourism is now 832 rooms and 62.00 lakh tourists visit these tourist complexes every year. Haryana has adopted a multi-pronged strategy for tourism promotion. Tourist complexes have been set at strategic points along the highway passing through the State. Further, tourist complexes have been developed around Delhi through promotion of leisure tourism and conference tourism. Tourist facilities at the district headquarter and important towns have been promoted to cater to the needs of the tourists and local people. Some of the important tourist complexes are Surajkund and Damdama in Gurgaon and fascinating pocket of pines at Morni Hills are other attractions of tourist interest. The other important resorts are Ethnic India Rai, Blue Jay (Samalkha), Skylark (Panipat), Karna Lake and Oasis (Uchana), Parakeet (Pipli), Kingfisher (Ambala), Magpie (Faridabad), Dabchick (Hodal), Shama (Gurgaon), Jungle Babbler (Dharuhera), Gauriyya (Bahadurgarh). Myna (Rohtak), Blue Bird (Hisar), Red Bishop (Panchkula) and Pinjore Gardens, (Pinjore). To promote the art and culture the famous Surajkund Crafts Mela is held every year in the month of February. Similarly, to promote the ancient heritage of Pinjore, the Pinjore Heritage Festival is celebrated every year.
GOVERNMENT Governor
:
Shri Jagannath Pahadia
Chief Secretary
:
Smt Urvashi Gulati
Chief Minister
:
Bhupinder
Jurisdiction of
:
Punjab and Haryana
Speaker
:
Shri
Singh
Harmohinder
Hooda Singh
High Court
Chathia
AREA, POPULATION AND HEADQUARTERS OF DISTRICTS (Census 2001) District
Area (sq km)
Population
Headquarters
Ambala
1,574
10,14,411
Ambala
Bhiwani
4,778
14,25,022
Bhiwani
Faridabad
1,752
19,90,719
Faridabad
1132
India 2010
Fatehabad
2,538
8,70,539
Gurgaon
1,254
16,60,289
Gurgaon
Hisar
3,983
15,37,117
Hisar
Jhajjar
1,834
8,80,072
Jind
2,702
11,89,827
Kaithal
2,317
9,46,131
Fatehabad
Jhajjar Jind Kaithal
Karnal
2,520
12,74,183
Kurukshetra
1,530
8,25,454
Mahendergarh
1,899
8,12,521
Narnaul
898
4,68,411
Panchkula
Panipat
1,268
9,67,449
Panipat
Rewari
1,594
7,65,351
Rewari
Rohtak
1,745
9,40,128
Rohtak
Sirsa
4,277
11,16,649
Sirsa
Sonipat
2,122
12,79,175
Sonipat Yamuna
Panchkula
Yamuna
1,768
10,41,630
Mewat
Nagar
1,859
9,93,617
Palwal
-
-
44,212
2,11,44,564
Total
HIMACHAL
Karnal Kurukshetra
Nagar
Nuh Palwal
PRADESH
Area
:
55,673 sq km
Population
:
60,77,900
Capital
:
Shimla
Principal
:
Hindi and Pahari
Languages
(Census
2001)
HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY Himachal situated in the heart of the Western Himalaya, identified as “Dev Bhumi” is believed to be the abode of Gods and Goddesses. The entire State is punctuated with stone as well as wood temples. The rich culture and traditions has made Himachal unique in itself. The shadowy valleys,rugged crags,glaciers and gigantic pines and roaring rivers and exquisite flora and fauna compose the symphony that is for ever Himachal. Himachal Pradesh came into being as a Union Territory in April 1948 as a result of integration of 30 princely states spread over 27,000 sq.km. In 1954, when another “C” class state of Bilaspur merged in Himachal Pradesh,its area increased to 28,241 sq.km. The position remained unchanged till 1966. On reorganisation of the State, the hilly areas of Punjab were merged with the State, increasing its size to 55,673 sq.km. Himachal Pradesh, today is quoted as a successful model of not only hill area development but also for having realised development in education, health and social services. AGRICULTURE Agriculture being the main occupation of the people of Himachal Pradesh has an important role in the economy of the state. It provides direct employment to about 69 per cent of the main working population. Income from agriculture and allied sectors
States and Union Territories
1133
accounts for nearly 22.1 per cent of the total State Domestic Product. Out of the total geographi cal area of 55.673 sq. km., area of operational holding is about 9.79 lakh hectare owned by 9.14 lakh farmers. The marginal and small farmers possess 86.4 per cent of the total land holdings. The cultivated area in the state is only 10.4 per cent. About 80 per cent of the area is rain fed and farmers depend on weather gods for rains. The food grain production in 2006-2007 has been 16 lakh M.tonnes. HORTICULTURE Nature has endowed Himachal Pradesh with a wide range of agro-climatic conditions which have helped the farmers to cultivate large varieties of fruits ranging from temperate to sub-tropical. The main fruits under cultivation are apple, pear, peach, plum, apricot nut and citrus fruits like mango, litchi, guava and strawberry. The total area under fruits, which was only 792 hectares in 1950 has increased to 2.23 lakh hectares now. Similarly, the fruit production has also increased from 1200 MT in 1950 to 6.95 lakh tonnes in 2007 seven lakh tonnes is the new target fixed for fruit production for year 2006-07. Horticulture generates gross domestic income of about Rs. 2200 crore annually. The Horticulture Technology Mission for the integrated development of horticulture is being implemented with a total outlay of Rs. 80 crore during the tenth five-year plan period. This Mission is based on the “end to end approach” taking into account the entire gamut of horticulture development with all backward and forward linkages in a holistic manner. Under this scheme, four centres of excellence are being created in different Agro-Climatic Zones with common facilities like water harvesting, vermicompost, greenhouses, organic farming and farm mechanisation. ROADS Roads are the lifelines and major means of communication in the predominantly hill State of Himachal Pradesh. Out of its 55,673 sq. km area, 36,700 km is inhabited out which 16,807 inhabited villages are scattered over slopes of numerous hill ranges and valleys. Realising the importance of construction of roads for connecting production areas with market cantres, Himachal Pradesh Government has decided to connect every panchayat with roads in the next two years. When the Pradesh came into existence in 1948 there were 288 km. of roads. This number had gone up to 30,264 km by 15 August 2007. HYDRO–POWER
GENERATION
Himachal Pradesh has immense hydro-potential in its five river basins. Chenab, Rabi, Beas, Satluj and Yamuna which emanates from the western Himalayas pass through the State. The strategy of devlopment in the power sector comprises expeditious actualisation of the Hydro Electric Potential and introduction of power sector reforms to bring efficiency in the sector and provide high quality power to the consumers at reasonable rates besides availablity of abundant power to industrial and tourism sectors. The total identified potential in the State stands at 21000 M.W which is one fourth of India’s total hydro-power potential. Presently out of this 6,067 M.W has already been harnessed by various agencies. Projects aggregating to 7,602 M.W are under execution. It is on the cards that State will have about 11,000 M.W actualised potential by the end of 11 th Plan.
1134
India 2010 There is no denying this fact in view of the way the Government has embarked
upon an accelerated Power Development Programme. The State is speedily moving towards becoming a “Power State� of the Country. All the census villages in the State have been electrified and now left out hamlets are being covered. INDUSTRIAL
GROWTH
Industrial development has been given big boost in the State. Pollution free environment, abundant availability of power and rapidly developing infrastructure, peaceful atmosphere, and responsive and transparent administration are some of the added attractions and advantages that the entrepreneurs get in Himachal Pradesh. 349 large and medium and about 33,284 small-scale industrial units with an investment of about Rs. 4822.54 crore have been set up in the state generating employment for 2 lakh persons. The sector is contributing 17 per cent to the State Domestic Product and the annual turnover on this account is about Rs. 6000 crore. The State has formulated a new Industrial Policy and Incentive Rules- 2004, which provides attractive packages to the entrepreneurs for setting up Industrial Units in the State. 42 industrial areas and 15 Industrial Estates with all basic amenities have been developed in the State. With a view to provide umbrella support to existing and new ventures, the State government has set up a State Level Single Window Clearance and Monitoring Authority ( SLSWCMA) in Himachal Pradesh under the Chairmanship of Chief Minister to give permission to the entrepreneurs to set up industrial units in the State. This also solves all industry related and inter-departmental issues, monitors and reviews the progress of units already approved and proposed to be set up. This Authority is also focusing its attention on the development of quality infrastructure. Presently 7040 industrial units with an investment of about Rs. 27,380.99 crore envisaging employment to about 3 lakh persons have been approved. A proposal is also underway for setting up Special Economic Zone in Kangra,Una and other districts with an estimated cost of Rs.7580 crore. The Central Government has also given attractive package for setting up of Industrial Units which also includes Income Tax Holidays. The State Government is also giving several attractive incentives including exemptions in excise duty. INFORMATION
TECHNOLOGY
The Government of Himachal Pradesh has developed an IT Vision-2010 in collaboration with NASSCOM to make Himachal Pradesh an IT destination. Under the IT policy, it has been decided to accord the status of industry to all IT projects including IT related services and educational institutions. As such, all the incentives available for industrial units are also being given to all IT units, and IT related services. The use of IT in governance is aimed at having SMART (Simple, Moral, Accountable, Responsive and Transparent) government. The State Government official website at http://himachal.nic.in is a web portal providing citizen centric services to the citizens and it has got interfaces for getting inputs from the grass root level. Ist phase of the H.P. State wide Area Network (HIM SWAN ) which has been
States and Union Territories
1135
completed has been connected to internet. In the Phase–I of HIMSWAN, H.P. Secretariat Local Area Network has been established with a provision to provide LAN connectivity to every third person. In the Phase-II of HIMSWAN all the district headquarters will be connected with state headquarter. Software Technology Park and High Speed Dat a Connectivity Facility in Shimla has started its activities. All IT units in the State have been given Income Tax holiday up to year 2007. Information Technology Park is proposed to be set up in the State in Solan district. BIO-TECHNOLOGY Keeping in view the importance of bio-technology, special emphasis is being laid on exploiting the vast bio-technology potential available in the state. A separate Department of Bio-technology has been set up in the state. State’s own bio-technology policy has been formulated. All bio-technological units are entitled for incentives which have been allowed for industrial units. The State Government proposes to set up Bio-Technology Park in Solan District. IRRIGATION AND WATER SUPPLY Net sown area in the State was 5.83 lakh hectares till 2007.Villages have been provided with the facility of drinking water. Over 14,611 hand pumps have been installed in the State so far. For better reform in water supply and irrigation sector, the State Government has taken up a WASH project with the total cost of Rs. 339 crore for irrigation as well as for drinking water supply schemes with Gesellschaft for Technische Zuoammeuorbeit (GTZ). FORESTRY The total geographical area of the state is 55,673 sq km. As per record, the total forest area is 37,033 sq. km. Out of this, 16,376 sq. km. area is not fit for tree growth comprising alpine pastures, area under permanent snow, etc. The cultivable recorded forest area is only 20,657 sq. km. Efforts are being taken to bring maximum area under green cover by implementing State’s own projects, Government of India’s projects and also through external aided projects. The World Bank has also sanctioned a Rs. 365 crore Integrated Watershed Development Project for the Mid Himalayas. 545 panchayats of 42 devlopmental blocks in 10 districts would be covered during the next six years.There are 2 National Parks and 32 wild life sancturies in the State. Total area under wild life sanctuaries is 5562 km area under National Parks is 1440 Km and total area of Protected Area Network is 7002 km. EDUCATION Himachal Pradesh has emerged as the third best State in terms of over-all development and performance. Himachal Pradesh has been adjudged number one State in Primary Education and teacher-student ratio. Himachal Pradesh has witnessed literacy revolution as we are second only to Kerala in literacy. The State has about 15,000 educational institutes, including three Universities, two Medical Colleges, one Engineering College in the Government Sector and a number of technical, professional and other educational institutions. The literacy percentage of the State according to 2001 Census is 77.13 which is much higher than the national average of 65.38. The
1136
India 2010
State Government’s emphasis now is to ensure qualitative improvement in the education besides need based expansion. Sarva Siksha Abhiyan an ambitious project worth Rs. 532 crore is being evolved with the main objective of achieving universalisation of elementary education with the sole aim to spread the light of knowlwdge to every nook and corner of the State. TOURISM Tourism Industry in Himachal Pradesh has been given very high priority and the Government has devloped an appropriate infrastructure for its devlopment which includes provision of public utility services, roads, communication network, airports, transport facilities, water supply and civic amenities, etc. The State Government is poised to transform the State into “A Destination for All Seasons and All Reasons”. The State Tourism Devlopment Corporation contributes 10 per cent to the State exchequer. The corporation contributes more than Rs. 2.00 crore per annum by way of Sales tax, luxury tax and passanger tax. In the year-2007,tourist arrivals in the State were 8.3 million of which 2008 lakh were foreigners. The State has a rich treasure of places of pilgrimage and of anthropological value. The State has also the pride of being the home to rishies like Vyas, Parashar,Vashist, Markandey and Lamas, etc. Hot water springs,historic forts, natural and man-made lakes, shepherds grazing their flock are sources of immense pleasure and joy to the tourist. The State Government is aiming at promoting sustainable tourism, encouraging private sector to develop tourism related infrastructure in the State without disturbing the existing ecology and environment. The main thrust is on employment generation and promoting new concepts of tourism in the State. In order to increase the duration of the stay of the visitors/tourists, a special emphasis is being laid on the development of activities-based on tourism. For the promotion and development of the State from the tourism point of view, the Government is focusing on the following areas : (1) History related tourism, (2) Identification of new areas/tourist destinations and promotion of village tourism. (3) Improvement of infrastructure, (4) Pilgrimage tourism. (5) Tribal tourism. (6) Ecotourism. (7) Health tourism. (8) Promotion of adventure tourism. (9) Wildlife tourism. (10) Cultural tourism. For the year 2006-07, there is an allotment of Rs. 6276.38 lakh for the devlopment of tourism in the State. A sum of Rs. 8 crore for the devlopment of KulluManali-Lahaul and Spiti and Leh Monastic circuit, Rs.21.00 crore for Kangra,Shimla and Sirmaur circuit, Rs.16.00 crore for Bilaspur-Mandi and Chamba circuit and Rs.30.00 lakh for construction of tourism information centre at Manali has been sanctioned by the Government of India. Rs.67.57 crore central financial assistance has been received for 1545 projects in respect of festivals and other major events.
GOVERNMENT Governor
:
V.S. Kokje
Chief Secretary
:
Ms. Asha Swarup
Chief Minister
:
Prof. Prem Kumar Dhumal
Himachal
:
Gangu Ram Musafir
Jurisdiction of High Court
:
Speaker
Pradesh
States and Union Territories
1137
AREA, POPULATION AND HEADQUARTERS OF DISTRICTS District
Area (sq km)
Population (2001 Census)
Headquarters
Bilaspur
1,167
3,40,885
Bilaspur
Chamba
6,528
4,60,887
Chamba
Hamirpur
1,118
4,12,700
Hamirpur
Kangra
5,739
13,39,030
Kinnaur
6,401
78,334
Kullu
5,503
3,81,571
13,835
33,224
Mandi
3,950
9,01,344
Mandi
Shimla
5,131
7,22,502
Shimla
Sirmaur
2,825
4,58,593
Nahan
Solan
1,936
5,00,557
Solan
Una
1,540
4,48,273
Una
Lahaul & Spiti
JAMMU
AND
Dharamshala Reckong
Peo
Kullu Keylong
KASHMIR
Area
:
*2,22,236 sq km
Population
:
1,01,43,700
Capital
:
Srinagar
Principal Languages Jammu (Winter)
:
Urdu, Dogri, Kashmiri, Pahari, Punjabi, Ladakhi,
(Summer)
(2001
Census)
Balti, Gojri and Dadri
HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY According to the most popular legend that is also recorded in Rajtarangani and Nilmat Purana, two most authoritative books, Kashmir was once a large lake and it was Kashyap Rishi who drained off the water, making it a beautiful abode. But geologists have their own theory, which says that geographical changes made way for the outflow of water by subsidence of the mountain at Khadianayar, Baramulla and thus emerged the Valley of Kashmir, the paradise on earth. Ashoka introduced Buddhism to Kashmir in the 3rd century B.C. which was later strengthened by Kanishka. Huns got the control of the valley in the early 6th century. The Valley regained freedom in 530 AD but soon came under the rule of the Ujjain empire. After decline of the Vikramaditya dynasty, the valley had its own rulers. There was a synthesis of Hindu and Buddhist cultures. Lalitaditya (697-738 AD) extended his rule up to Bengal in the east, Konkan in the south, Turkistan in the northwest and Tibet in the northeast. Considered as the most famous Hindu ruler, he was known for constructing beautiful * includes 78,114 sq km under illegal occupation of Pakistan, 5,180 sq km illegally handed over by Pakistan to China and 37,555 sq km under illegal occupation of China. The population figures excludes population of areas under unlawful occupation of Pakistan and China where census could not be taken.
1138
India 2010
buildings. Islam came to Kashmir during 13th and 14th century AD. Zain-ul-Abedin (1420-70) was the most famous Muslim ruler, who came to Kashmir when the Hindu king Sinha Dev fled before the Tatar invasion. Later Chaks overran Haider Shah son of Zain-ul-Abedin. They continued to rule till 1586 when Akbar conquered Kashmir. In 1752, Kashmir passed on from the feeble control of the Mughal emperor of the time, to Ahmed Shah Abdali of Afghanistan. The Valley was ruled by the Pathans for 67 years. Name of Jammu figures in the Mahabharata. Recent finds of Harappan remains and artefacts of Mauryan, Kushan and Gupta periods at Akhnoor have added new dimensions to its ancient character. The land of Jammu was divided into 22 hill principalities. Raja Maldev, one of the Dogra rulers, conquered many territories to consolidate his kingdom. Raja Ranjit Dev ruled over Jammu from 1733 to 1782. His successors were weak and thus Maharaja Ranjit Singh annexed the territory to Punjab. He later handed over Jammu to Raja Gulab Singh, a scion of the old Dogra ruling family, who had grown powerful among Ranjit Singh’s governors and had annexed almost the whole Jammu region. The State was governed by Dogra rulers till 1947 when Maharaja Hari Singh signed the Instrument of Accession in favour of the Indian Union on 26 October 1947. Jammu and Kashmir State is situated between 32 0 15' and 370 -05' north latitude and 72 0-35 ' and 83 0-20' longitude East. Geographically, the State can be divided into four zones. First, the mountainous and semi mountainous plain commonly known as Kandi belt, the second, hills including Shivalik ranges, the third mountains of Kashmir Valley and Pir Panchal range and the fourth is Tibetan tract of Ladakh and Kargil. Geographically and culturally the state has three distinct regions - Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh. Roads : The State is connected to the rest of the country through just one highway (NH 1A), 400 kms stretch (approx) maintained by Border Roads Organization (BRO) of India. As Railway network of the State is in infancy stage, this has rendered the State totally dependent on road connectivity which provides links to the remote areas of the State. The Jammu-Srinagar National Highway (NH1A) is considered to be the most expensive road for maintenance in the world. Out of 9933 habitations only 2735 habitations are yet to be connected. A total length of 18809.42 kms of road is being maintained by PWD. Out of this 9559.64 kims is black topped, 4832 kms metalled, 1315 kms shingled, 3000 kms fair-weather and 102 kms is Jeepable. The road length maintained by the State PWD was 14858 kms (12209 kms surfaced and 2749 kms un-surfaced) during 2002-03. Road length maintained by Public Works Department ending March 2009 stood at 18809 kms in J&K State. PWD road length per hundred Sq. Kms of area for the State gives the value of 18.55 km. However, (PWD) road length per lakh of population gives better picture of 154.34 kms. Number of vehicles per 100 km of road length for the State stands at 3553 vehicles for roads maintained by PWD during the year 200809. The number of vehicles has grown upto 6.68 lakh in 2008-09 from 3.64 lakh in 2001-02 showing an exponential growth rate of 8.00 percent per annum during the period. The road length at the end of the 2008-09 maintained by PWD is 18809 kms whereas the total public and private vehicular fleet of the State is 668427 vehicles. The number of registered vehicles per 100 Sq. Km of areas is 659 while as number of vehicles registered per lakh of people is 5342.
States and Union Territories
1139
At the end of March 2009 road length maintained by all the departments in the State was 40103 kms, of which 24017 kms were surfaced and remaining 16086 kms un-surfaced. The road density (road length per 100 sq. kms of area) of the State thus works out to be 35.71 kms against the National Average of 104.6 kms. With this road density, J&K is among the States with lowest road density in the Country, thus hampering opening up of the economy and adversely affecting delivery of public services to the people. Moreover, there are huge inter-district variations in the rural road density. Railways : Because of the difficult terrain Railway network has not developed as in other parts of the Country. At present Jammu is the Rail head of the State and the line has been extended upto District Udhampur only (90 kms). The work on UdhampurQazigund rail line is under progress and intra rail link between Quzigund to Bramulla is complete. However the railway traffic has been thrown open from Baramulla to Anantnag. Aviation : There are three major airports in the state providing aerial transport among three regions of the State and the Country. Out of the three Srinagar airport has been upgraded as international airport named as Sheikh-ul-Alam Airport, while as the facilities at Jammu and Leh airports are also being upgraded. One more airport at Kargil headquarters is connected by Dakota service. Commissioning of Sheikh-ul-Alam International Airport at Srinagar has opened the new vistas for enhancing connectivity at International level which will inturn facilitate international tourism, promote international trade especially export which will provide a big push to the economy and generate avenues of better employment. Agriculture : Agriculture constitutes an important sector of the state economy as around 70% of the population of J&K derive greater part of their income directly or indirectly from this sector. Economy of J&K continues to be predominantly agrarian as 49% of the total working force with 42% as cultivators and 7% as agriculture labourers depend directly on agriculture for their livelihood. Apart from direct impact of agriculture growth on generation of rural employment and incomes its significant secondary linkages with development of rural non-farm sectors as are more crucial. Trade in agricultural outputs and inputs and services required by it and processing of its products open up additional and more significant avenues for labour absorption. Agriculture in the state besides has a significant contribution in the export of rare agriculture produce like saffron, honey and basmati and remains an important source of raw material demanded by many industries. Looking at the contribution of agriculture and allied sectors to the state economy it has been estimated that 27% of GSDP (2007-08) accrue from it. The individual share of agriculture has been estimated in the range of 8-9% for 2007-08 (advance estimates). Irrigation : Irrigation is an essential input of agriculture and is practised in all parts of the world where rainfall does not provide enough ground moisture. In areas of irregular rainfall, irrigation is used during dry spells to ensure harvests and to increase crop yields. A major constraint to the development of agriculture in J&K is the fact that only 50% of the ultimate irrigation potential of the state has been harnessed. The ultimate irrigation potential in J&K has been assessed at 1358 thousand hectares, which includes 250 thousand hectares to be developed through major and medium irrigation and 1108 thousand hectares through minor irrigation. The net area sown in the state during 2007-08 was 734 thousand hectares whereas the gross area sown (total area sown under different crops) was 1134
1140
India 2010
thousand hectares. The mode of irrigating the crops mainly used is the canals. About 93 per cent of the net area irrigated is irrigated through canals, while tanks, tube wells and other means are also used. Horticulture : Jammu & Kashmir is well known for its horticulture produce both in India and abroad. The state offers good scope for cultivation of all types of horticulture crops covering a variety of temperate fruits like apple, pear, peach, plum, apricot, almonds, cherry and sub-tropical fruits like mango, guava, citrus, litchi etc. Apart from this, well known spices like saffron and zeera are cultivated in some parts of the state. Horticulture is emerging as a fast growing sector in the state. Its importance is visualised by its contribution to the state's economy which is estimated to be 7-8%. Almost 45% economic returns in agriculture sector is accounted for by horticulture produce. Five lakh families comprising 30 lakh people are involved in horticulture trade. The horticulture department has reported that an area of 3.06 lakh hectares was under horticulture during the year 2008-09 showing an increase of 3.73% over the previous year's area figures. In the area figures highest share of 43.30% is claimed by apple followed by 27.80% walnut. The production of fruit for the year 2008-09 was reported to be 16.91 lakh tonnes registering an increase of 3.36% over the fruit production figures for 2007-08. Out of total fruit production for 2008-09, 15.26 lakh tonnes constituting 90.24% are fresh fruit and the remaining 9.76% are dry fruit. In the fruit production figures share of apple accounts for 81.18% and walnut with 8.97% share is the next major fruit. Floriculture : Floriculture sector has been identified as the most focussed segment of horticulture. There is much more income to farmers from flower cultivation due to growing demand for flowers in domestic and foreign markets. To promote this segment floriculture nurseries have been developed where ornamental and medicinal plants are producted, besides the seed multiplication programmes of flower seeds. The Directorate of Floriculture produces more than 40 lakh seedlings of different kinds of flowers and ornamental plants not only for its own requirement but also sells the seedlings to the flower lovers on cash payment and earns revenue of Rs. 8 lakh on this account per annum. One of the landmark achievement of floriculture department has been the establishment of Tulip Garden first of its kind of Siraj Bagh Srinagar. Situated on the foothills of the mighty Zabarwan mountains the garden has the distinction of being Asia's largest Tulip garden. The garden remains in full bloom for one month (last week of March to last week of April). The garden witness highest inflow of tourists which includes film making companies for shooting song sequences in this beautiful garden. During 2007-08, Rs. 30 lakh accused to the state through sale of entry tickets. Forests : The state has 20230 sq km under forest area constituting about 19.95% of total geographical area of 101387 sq km on this side of actual line of control. Out of this, area under reserved forest is 2551 sq km which account for 12.61% of total forest area, protected forest forms 87.21% with an area of 17643 sq km and the remaining 36 sq km (0.18%) are unclassified. Looking to division wise distribution of forest cover 8128 sq km are in Kashmir valley, 12066 sq km in Jammu division and 36 sq km in Ladakh region constituting 50.97%, 45.89% and 0.06% respectively of the geographical area. Per capita forest area accounts for 0.17 hectares as compared to 0.07 hectares as the national level.
States and Union Territories
1141
Forest area reveals 90.68% under coniferous with 5.32% Deodar, 9.02% Chir, 9.73% Kail, 16.81% Fir and 49.80% others. 9.32% forest cover is claimed by nonconiferous non-commercial reserves. Industry : In order to achieve a self sustaining economy with continued higher levels of investment, rapid rate of increase on income and employment there is no option but to go for industrialisation. came being of its State.
To usher in new era of industrialization comprehensive industrial policy which into being in 2004 to be lasted till 2015 under which planned incentives are taken to raise J&K which is predominantly known as consumer State for most requirements to a level of self sufficiency and in the near future to a producer The incentives provided in the policy are ahead of other States of the country.
The incentives under the State Industrial Policy are available to the industrial units subject to fulfillment of the conditions of 90% local employment. During the year 2008-09 incentives of different kinds amounting to Rs. 74.l05 crores have been provided to 215 Industrial units of the state. Tourism : Jammu & Kashmir is an important Tourist destination and has been a place of attraction for tourist since centuries. The lush green forests, sweet springs, perennial rivers, picturesque alpine scenery and pleasant climate of Kashmir valley the paradise on earth has remained an internationally acclaimed tourist destination, whereas Jammu region-the land of temples is attracting a large number of pilgrim tourists tourists and the important destination has been a much sought-after destination especially for the foreign Tourists and is famous for adventure tourism. Tourist inflow to J&K has continuously been increasing steadily from 6912000 in 2004 to 7718175 in 2008, which indicates an increase of 11.66%. The percentage increase in respect of the pilgrim visitors to Amarnath Ji has been to the extent of 24.51%, Mata Vaishno Devi Ji by 7.80%, domestic tourists by 58.79% and foreign tourist by 34.15% for the same period. During 2009 32.49 lakh tourists visited J&K ending June 2009. In the perspective of overall tourist inflow to all the three regions of the state the percentage has increased during the years 1988 to 2008 by 172.19%. It may be in place to mention here that flow of foreign tourists has certainly diverted to ladakh region because of turmoil which erupted in the State of Jammu & Kashmir in late 1980s and the prevailing security scenario. Tourism generates employment, though it is difficult to measure or calculate the employment generation as these jobs are scattered across many sectors and can not be identified without a proper survey. The government is contemplating to conduct the survey to ascertain the employment generation under tourism sector. Further 65th round of NSS which envisages to cover the subject of Domestic Tourism has been taken up by the NSSO in all the states and UT's as well which would provide data for devising suitable policies for upgrading Tourism sector. The state has sufficient potential to exploit for more and more revenue generation. The annual revenue earnings made under the public sector during last 4 years is about 102.63 crore. There has been substantial increase in the earnings during the last four years from Rs. 2072.26 lakh during 2004-05 to Rs. 2916.93 lakh during 2007-08. The percentage of earnings has been more by 40.76% during 2007-08 when put in comparison to the figures of 2004-05. However, the percentage increase has been to the tune of 10.48% for the year 2007-08 as compared to 2006-07. The department of Tourism has initiated steps in many ways to attract more and more tourists by way of providing and creating various types of facilities and tourism infrastructure particularly in the field of adventure tourism.
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Festival : The fairs and festivals are a reflection of diverse cultural and social heritage of the state. All Hindu, Muslim or Sikh fairs and festivals are celebrated with full vigour and enthusiasm regardless of the religion. Like all parts of India, Jammu & Kashmir also celebrates Diwali (Hindu festival, famous for fireworks, crackers and sweets), Holi (Hindu festival, famous for colours and sweets), Eid (Besides other religious festivals Muslims observe Eid-ul-Fitre and Eid-ul-Azha, Milad-un-Nabi (SAW) and Muharam). Makar Sankranti (known as Pongal in South India and Lohri in Punjab)-This is celebrated on January 13 of every year, to welcome the spring. People bathe in the holy rivers and perform hawans and Yagnas (Hindu workship activities) in the temples. In the rural areas, boys visit newly-wedded couples to ask gifts according you will also be able to see the traditional "Chajja", a dance which is performed by young boys to the drum-beats, decorated colored paper and flowers. Baisakhi (celebrated on April 13 or 14)-Considered an auspicious occasion for marriages, the festival of Baisakhi is basically the harvest festival of northern India. The name of the festival is derived from the first month of the Hindu/Vikram calender ie "Vaishakh"
GOVERNMENT Governor
: N.N. Vohra
Chief Secretary
:
S. S. Kapoor, (IAS)
Chief Minister
: Omar
Jurisdiction of
:
Jammu, Kashmir & Ladakh
Abdullah
High Court
AREA, POPULATION AND HEADQUARTERS OF DISTRICTS S . N o . District
Geographical Area
Population
No. of
No of
(2001
Tehsils
Blocks
census)
1.
Anant n a g
2,917
7.83
6
7
2.
Badgam
1,371
6.29
6
8
3.
Bandipora
398
3.16
3
5
4.
Baramulla
4,190
8.53
7
12
5.
Doda
4,500
2.86
4
8
6.
Ganderbai
1,945
2.12
4
4
7.
Jammu
3,097
13.57
4
8
8.
Kargil
14,036
1.19
3
9
9.
Kathua
2,440
5.11
5
8
10.
Kishtwar
7,737
1.91
4
8
11.
Kulgam
1,067
3.89
3
5
12.
Kupwara
2,379
6.50
3
11
13.
Leh
45,100
1.17
3
9
14.
Poonch
1,674
3.73
4
6
15.
Pulwama
1,090
4.41
4
4+(Part of block Keller)
16.
Rajouri
2,630
4.83
7
8
17.
Ramban
1138
0.22
2
4
States and Union Territories 18.
Reasi
1143
1517
2.48
2
4
19.
Samba
910
2.70
1
4
20.
Shopian
612.87
2.11
1
1+(Part of block Keller)
21.
Srinagar
294
9.89
2
1
22.
Udhampur
2380
4.96
4
7
101387
101.43
82
Total
142
Note : The boundries of newly carved out districts and the districts from which they have been carved have not been finalised yet by the concerned agencies. So the disctepancies could exist in the geographical area figured above.
JHARKHAND Area
:
79,714 sq km
Population
:
2,69,09,428
Capital
:
Ranchi
Principal
:
Hindi
Language
HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY Jharkhand which came into being on 15 November 2000 as the 28th State of the Union is the homeland of the tribals who had dreamed of a separate state for a long time. According to legend, Raja Jai Singh Deo of Orissa had declared himself the ruler of Jharkhand in the 13th century. It largely comprises forest tracks of Chhotanagpur plateau and Santhal Pargana and has distinct cultural traditions. In postIndependence era, the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha started a regular agitation which impelled the government to establish the Jharkhand Area Autonomous Council in 1995 and finally a full-fledged State. Jharkhand is bound by West Bengal in the east, Uttar Pradesh and Chhattisgarh in the west, Bihar in the north and Orissa in the south. AGRICULTURE The State has an area of 79,714 sq km of which 18,423 sq km is forest land. Agriculture and allied activities are the major source of Jharkhand's economy. The total cultivable land is only 38 lakh hectares. IRRIGATION AND POWER Damodar, Maurakshi, Barakar, North Koyel, South Koyel, Sankh, Subarnarekha, Kharkai, and Ajay are major water resources in the State. The net sown area is 1.8 million hectares of which 8 per cent is irrigated. The installed capacity of power in Jharkhand is 2,590 MW. This includes 420 MW (Tenughat Thermal Power Station), 840 MW (Patratu Thermal Power Station), 130 MW (Sikkidiri Hydel Project) and 1,200 MW (Damodar Valley Corporation Thermal/Hydel Project). The prospects of capacity addition in both the thermal and hydel sectors of various power stations is 4,736 MW. This includes 686 Mw hydel generation. INDUSTRY AND MINERALS Some of Jharkhand's major industries are: Bokaro Steel Plant in the public sector, Tata Iron and Steel Company (TISCO)in Jamshedpur in the private sector. Other
1144
India 2010
important industries are Tata Engineering and Locomotive Company (TELCO), Timken India Limited (Jamshedpur), Bharat Coking Limited (Dhanbad), Khilari Cement Factory (Palamu), Indian Aluminum (Muri). ACC cement (Chaibsa), Central Coalfields Limited (Ranchi), Usha Martin, Usha Beltron, Uranium Corporation (I) Limited (Jadugora), Hindustan Copper Limited (Mussabani), Tin Plate Company of India Limited (Jamshedpur), Indian Explosive Limited (Gomia), and Hindalco Bauxite (Lohardaga), etc. The State is rich in mineral resources. The important available minerals are coal, iron ore, lime stone, copper ore, bauxite, pyrite, china clay, kyanite, fine clay, dolomite, graphite, bentonite, soap stone, quartz sand and silica sand. The nascent state of Jharkhand has the enormous potential for exploitation of coal, mica and other minerals particularly in Singhbhum, Bokaro, Hazaribagh, Ranchi, Koderma and Dhanbad. TRANSPORT Roads : The total length of roads in the State is 4,311 km. This inlcudes 1,500 km national highways and 2,711 km state highways. Railways : The state has a well-developed railway system. Ranchi, Bokaro, Dhanbad, Jamshedpur are some of the major railway stations. Aviation : Ranchi is connected with Delhi, Patna and Mumbai. Jamshedpur, Bokaro, Giridih, Deoghar, Hazaribagh, Daltonganj and Noamundi have air strips. TOURIST CENTRES There are many scenic attractions in the state, namely, Ichagarh Bird Sanctuary, Udhava Bird Sanctuary-Sahibganj (Pathara Lake), Chachro Crocodile Breeding Centre窶適oderma (Tilaya Dam), Chandrapura Bird Sanctuary, Jawaharlal Nehru Zoological Garden (Bokaro), Tenughat Bird Sanctuary, Dalma Wild Life Sanctuary (Jamshedpur), Tata Steel Zoological Park (Jamshedpur), Palkote Wild Life Sanctuary (Gumla), Bhagwan Birsa Zoological Gardens (Ranchi), Birsa Deer Sanctuary (Kalmati Ranchi), Betla National Park (Palamau), Ranchi Aquarium (Ranchi) and Hazaribagh National Park, Tatoloi hot water stream (Dumka) and Saranda Forest. Apart from the above, Jharkhand has some famous temples like, Jharkhand Dham, Lagnta Baba Temple/Majar, Bindhvashini Temple, Masanjore Dam, etc.
GOVERNMENT Governor
: K.
Chief Minister
: President's
Sankaranarayanan rule
Chief Secretary
:
Manoj
Jurisdiction of High Court
:
Jharkhand
Kumar
Names of the districts : Ranchi, Gumla, Lohardaga, Palamau, Garhwa, Dhanbad, Bokaro, Hazaribagh, Chatra, Giridih, Kodarma, East Singhbhum, West Singhbhum, Dumka, Deoghar, Godda, Pakur and Sahebganj.
States and Union Territories
1145
KARNATAKA Area
:
1,91,791 sq kms
Population
:
5,28,50,562
Capital
:
Bangaluru
Principal
:
Kannada
Language
HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY Karnataka has a recorded history of more than 2,000 years. Apart from its subjection to the rule of Nandas, Mauryas and the Satavahanas, Karnataka came to have indigenous dynasties like the Kadambas of Banavasi and the Gangas from the middle of the 4 th century AD. The world renowned Gomateshwara monolith at Sharavanabelagola was installed by a Ganga minister Chavundaraya. The colossal rock cut image of Sri Gometeshwara in the most magnificient among all Jaina works of art. Numerous visitors arrive at Shravanbelagola to gaze at this and other monuments. The Chalukyas of Badami (500-735 AD) reigned over a wider area, from the Narmada to the Kaveri from the days of Pulikeshi II (609-642 AD) who even defeated the mighty Harshavardhana of Kanauj. This dynasty created fine, everlasting and the most beautiful monuments at Badami, Aihole and Pattadakal, both structural and rock-cut. Aihole has been one of the cradles of temple architecture in the country. The Rashtrakutas (753-973 AD) of Malkhed who succeeded them heaped tributes on the rulers of Kanauj successively in the so-called ‘Age of Imperial Kanauj’. Kannada literature developed during this period. Outstanding Jain scholars of India lived in their court. The Chalukyas of Kalyana (973 AD to 1189 AD) and their feudatories, the Hoysalas of Halebidu built exiquisite temples, encouraged literature and various fine arts. Noted jurist Vijnaneshwara (work: Mitakshara) lived at Kalyana. The great religious leader Basaveshwara was a minister at Kalyana. Vijayanagar empire (13361646) patronised and fostered indigenous traditions and encouraged arts, religion and literature in Sanskrit, Kannada, Telugu and Tamil. Overseas trade flourished. The Bahamani Sultans (Capital: Gulbarga, later Bidar) and the Bijapur Adilshahis raised fine Indo-Saracenic buildings and encouraged Urdu and Persian literature. Advent of the Portuguese resulted in the introduction of new crops (Tobacco, Maize, Chillies, Groundnut, potato, etc). After the fall of the Peshwa (1818) and Tipu (1799), Karnataka came under British rule. Christian missionaries introduced English education and printing during the 19 th century. Revolution in transport, communication and industries was ushered in. The urban middle-class emerged. Mysore dynasty initiated and helped industrialisation and cultural growth. Freedom Movement was followed by the movement for the unification of Karnataka. After Independence, the Mysore State was created in 1953, wherein all the Kannada dominant areas under different dispensations were unified and the enlarged Mysore state carved in 1956 and was renamed Karnataka in 1973. o
o
Karnataka State is situated between 11 31' and 18 14' north latitudes and o 74 12' and 78 1 0 ' o
FORESTRY AND WILDLIFE The Forest department manages about 20.15% of the geographical area of the State. Forests have been classified as reserved forests, protected forests, unclassified forests, Villages forests, and private forests. There are 5 National Parks and 23 Wildlife
1146
India 2010
sancturaries. To overcome shortage of fuel wood, fodder and timber, degraded forests and waste lands are being developed. Emphasis is also being laid on the conservation, protection and development of the fragile eco-system of the Western Ghats. Several Wildlife protection schemes such as Project Tiger and Project Elephant are being implemented with the Central assistance. The concept of Joint Forest Planning and Management applied to the 2 externally aided projects viz., Western Ghats Forestry & Environment Project (DFID) and Forestry and Environment Project for Eastern Plains (JBIS) has resulted in village forest planning and management through establishment of Village Forest Committees. Japan Bank for International Cooperation has approved a new scheme called Karnataka Sustainable Forest Management and Bio-diversity proejct and it is being implemented from 2005-06 to 2012-13 throughout Karnataka. AGRICULTURE The State has 66% Rural population and 55.60 per cent of workers are agricultural labourers. The State has 60% (114 lakh ha) cultivable land and 72% of the cultivable area is rainfed; only 28% is under irrigation. The state has 10 Agro climatic Zones. The Red soil constitutes major soil type, followed by Black soil. The net sown area of the state constituted 51.7% of the total land. During 2007-08, food grain production is anticipated to be 117.35 lakh metric tons against the target of 119.70 lakh metric ton. DAIRY Karnataka is one of the major milk producers and the Karnataka Milk Federation has 21 dairy processing plants with a capacity of 26.45 lakh litres a day and 42 chilling centres having 14.60 lakh litres of chilling capacity. HORTICULTURE Horticulture crops are grown in an area of 16.80 lakhs hectares and the produces amount to 101 lakh tons. The Union Government has earmarked Rs. 171.29 crores for Karnataka under National Horticulture Mission. MAJOR AND MEDIUM IRRIGATION 28% of the cultivable land in the state is under irrigation. During 2006-07, 23.21 hectares of land was covered by major and medium irrigation and 9.93 lakh hectare was covered by minor irrigation, constituting a total of 33.14 lakh hectares of irrigated area. POWER GENERATION Karnataka was the pioneer in establishing hydroelectric projects in the country. Today, Karnataka has 7222.91 Power Generation Installed capacity and 31229 Million Units of Electricity was generated in 2007-08. INFORMATION
TECHNOLOGY
Karnataka State continues its unassailable lead in the IT sector, recording software exports of Rs. 48,700 crores, during 2006-07. For 2007-08 upto November-07 the export was Rs. 24450 crores. It is expected to grow by 25% over previous year's achievements. The recent report by Nasscom have recognised Manglore and Mysore among the fastest growing IT cities in the country. BIOTECHNOLOGY Karnataka State and Bangaluru city in particular have become the largest bio-clusters in the country. During 2006-07 three projects were cleared through SLSWA with an investment of Rs. 535.50 crores. The value of Biotech exports was 215 Million US$.
States and Union Territories
1147
TRANSPORT R o a d : Total road length of Karnataka has increased from 83,749 km in 1971 to 2,15, 849 km in 2007. The Karnataka Highways Improvement Project with World Bank assistance will improve 2375 kms of road, i.e. upgradation of 900 km and rehabilitation of 1475 kms comprising state highways and major district roads at an estimated cost of Rs. 2402.51 crores. Assisstance is being provided under the Rural Infrastructure Development Fund for the construction and improvement of roads and bridges in the state. P o r t s : The Karnataka State has a maritime coastline of 155 nautical mile (300 kilometers) and has only one Major Port at Manglore i.e. New Manglore Port and studded with 10 minor ports of the State are Karwar, Belekeri, Tadri, Honnavar, Bhatkala, Kundapur, Hangarkatta, Malpe, Padubidri and Old Manglore. Out of 10 ports Karwar is the only all weather port while the other nine are the reverine anchorage lighterage ports. All these ports have handled a total carago of 6573 thousand tonnes in 2006-07. Aviation : The Civil Aviation Sector has seen tremendous growth with international air passenger traffic growth of 50% and domestic air passenger growth at 44% during 2006-07. As regards cargo traffic, the State airports handled 1.66 lakh ton of freight during 2006-07, a 19% increase over the previous year. Bangaluru International Airports : Coutry's First Green Field International Airport has been set up at Devanahalli near Bangaluru at a cost of Rs. 2000 crores as a passenger and Cargo hub under Public Private Partnership and has started functioning from 28th May, 2008. This airport has put Banglore City on global destination and offer travelers' facilities comparable with best intenational standards. The Government has also planned to develop airports at Shimoga and Gulbarga on PPP basis. TOURISM Karnataka "One State Many Worlds" is becoming a Hub of tourist attraction of South India. The IT & BT Centre Bangaluru has received more tourists in the recent past. There is a phenomenal growth in tourist arrivals of over 40% in 200607 compared to 2005-06. The State is known for its Heritage monuments and EcoTourism destinations. The Golden Chariot named after the famous Stone Chariot in Hampi, a world heritage site, in Southern India will travel through timeless historical heritage sites, resplendent palaces, wildlife and golden beaches. Its 7 Nights/8 Days colourful journey begins every Monday from Bangaluru and traverses through Mysore, visiting Srirangapatna, Mysore Palace, The Nagarhole National Park (Kabini) and continuing to the historical sites of Shravanabelagola, Belur - the 11th century cradle of Hoysala architecture and a world heritage site, Halebidu, Hampi and thereafter entering into the triangular heritage site of Badami, Pattadakal, Aihole and finally the Golden Beaches of Goa before ending in Banglore. Karnataka has a blend of heritage places, thick dense forests and holy places. The new concept of 'Homestay' has added a new dimension to Tourism in the State. Hampi and Pattadakal have been declared as world heritage site.
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NEW SCHEMES & ACHIEVEMENTS E-Governance : Online delivery of land records scheme which was started in the year 2000 has successfully digitised 200 lakh land records and enabled the mutation process online making the RTCs easily available in Kiosks at taluk level specially set up for the purpose. It is now decided to redevelop the existing software to upgrade it with enhanced feature and strengthened technical base. The new Bhoomi software will cover all the existing features like linking with Kaveri Programme, Banks, Courts, Phodi process and have new features like linking land acquisition cases, mutations of non-agricultural land. In addition to this, E-Governance has implemented "Bangaluru
One
Programme" a multiple service centre where citizens can pay electricity bill, telephone bill etc. and avail around 25 other services under one roof. It has also developed Nemmadi programme in Karnataka by establishing 765 Nemmadi tele centres under PPP in all the Hobli Headquarters to obtain the Income, Birth and Death Certificates. Apart from this it has developed Human Resource Management Services (HRMS) as one of its core initiatives and most common function across all Departments. Bhagyalakshmi : With an intention to balance the male-female ratio and to provide moral support to poor families, the Government of Karnataka has introduced an innovative scheme "Bhagyalakshmi". The benefit is limited to two girls in each BPL family. This is an umbrella programme for child development for providing financial assistance of Rs. 10,000/- which will be deposited in the name of girl child born in the BPL family and will be given at the age of 18 years along with accrued interest. During 2007-08 Rs. 132.42 crores have been released and 1.31 lakh beneficiaries have been identified. In the budget 2008-09 recently presented by the Chief Minister has raised the amount to Rs.1 lakh and 266.65 crores has been allocatead. Madilu : This is another scheme introduced to promote the institutional delivery and thereby protecting the maternal as well as the infant's health. Under the scheme a kit consisting of requirements for the baby and mother is provided after delivery. This facility is provided to all BPL families. During 2007-08 about 1.50 lakh were benefitted. Further, the institutional deliveries has increased to 67.97% in 2007-08 compared to 63.82% in 2006-07. Bhagyaratha : In order to provide better access and further continue education, the state government has contemplated a programme to provide bicycles to both boys and girls studying in 8th standard studying in government and grant-in-aid schools. About 1.75 lakh girls and 2.33 lakh boys belonging to BPL families have been covered under this scheme during 2007-08. This year (i.e. 2008-09) this scheme has been extended to all children studying in 8th standard in government and grant-in-aid schools. Over 7 lakh children are expected to be benefitted from this.
GOVERNMENT Governor
:
Hans Raj Bhardwaj
Chief Secretary
:
Sudhakara
Rao
Chief Minister
:
B. S. Yeddyurappa
Jurisdiction of
:
Karnataka
State
High Court
States and Union Territories
1149
AREA, POPULATION AND HEADQUARTERS OF DISTRICTS S.No.
District
Area (sq km)
Population
1.
Bagalkot
6,575
16,51,892
Bagalkot
2.
Bangaluru
2,190
65,37,124
Bangalore
3.
Bangaluru
5,815
18,81,514
Bangalore
4.
Belgaum
13,415
42,14,505
Belgaum
5.
Bellary
8,450
20,27,140
Bellary
6.
Bidar
5,448
15,02,373
Bidar
7.
Bijapur
10,494
18,06,918
Bijapur
8.
Chamarajanagar
5,101
9,65,462
9.
Chikmagalur
7,201
11,40,905
Chikmagalur
10.
Chitradurga
8,440
15,17,896
Chitradurga
11.
Dakshina
4,560
18,97,730
Mangalore
12.
Davanagere
5,924
17,90,952
Davanagere
13.
Dharwad
4,260
16,04,253
Dharwad
14.
Gadag
4,656
9,71,835
15.
Gulbarga
16,224
31,30,922
Gulbarga
16.
Hassan
6,814
17,21,669
Hassan
17.
Haveri
4,823
14,39,116
Haveri
18.
Kodagu
4,102
5,48,561
19.
Kolar
8,223
25,36,069
Kolar
20.
Koppal
7,189
11,96,089
Koppal
21.
Mandya
4,961
17,63,705
Mandya
22.
Mysore
6,854
26,41,027
Mysore
23.
Raichur
6,827
16,69,762
Raichur
24.
Shimoga
8,477
16,42,545
Shimoga
25.
Tumkur
10,597
25,84,711
Tumkur
26.
Udupi
3,880
11,12,243
Udupi
27.
Uttara
10,291
13,53,644
Karwar
28.
Ramanagar
-
-
-
29.
Chikkaballapur
-
-
-
Rural
Kannada
Kannada
Headquarters
Rural
Chamarajanagar
Gadag
Madikere
KERALA Area
: 38,863 sq kms
Population
:
3,18,41,374
Capital
: Thiruvananthapuram
Principal
:
Malayalam
Language
HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY Kerala is in the extreme south-west of the Indian subcontinent. When independent India amalgamated smalls states together Travancore and Cochin states were
1150
India 2010
integrated to form Travancore-Cochin State on 1 July 1949. However, Malabar remained under the Madras province. Under the State’s Re-organisation Act 1956, TravancoreCochin state and Malabar were united to form Kerala state on 1 November 1956. In between the high Western Ghats on the east and the Arabian sea on the west, the width of the state varies from 35 km to 120 km. According to the geographical features, the state can be divided into hills, valleys, midland plains and costal belt. 44 rivers (41 west flowing and 3 east flowing) cut across Kerala with their innumerable tributaries and branches. The backwaters form an attractive and economically valuable feature of Kerala. AGRICULTURE A unique feature of the state is the predominance of cash crops. About 50 per cent of the population depends on agriculture. Kerala is a major producer of coconut, rubber, pepper, cardamom, ginger, cocoa, cashew, arecanut, coffee and tea. Spices like nutmeg, cinnamon, cloves, etc., are also cultivated. Rice and tapioca are the important food crops. The average annual decline in area under rice during the Eight Five-Year plan was around 22,000 ha, whereas it had come down to an average of 13,000 ha during the Ninth Plan period. The unprecedented drought in recent years has contributed to the decline of paddy production during 2003-04 which was reversed in 2004-05. During 2004-05 maximum increase in rice production was recorded in Allappuzha (+75 per cent) and Palakkad (+37 per cent) compared to previous year. Coconut is the most important cash crop of Kerala with a coverage of 9 lakhs ha. Coconut occupies 41 per cent of net cropped area and provides lively hood to over 3.5 million families. Pepper is one of the major export oriented commodities in which the state continuous to enjoy a near monopoly in area and production. Kerala has a substantial share in the four plantation crops of rubber, coffee, tea and cardamom. The four crops together occupy 6.53 lakh ha of the net cropped area in the state and 43 per cent of the area in the country. Kerala accounts for 83 per cent of area under rubber in the country. INDUSTRY Kerala is rich in industrial potentialities and infrastructure facilities such as hydroelectric power, rich forests, rare minerals and the efficient system of transport and communications. Traditional industries are handloom, cashew, coir and handicrafts, other important industries are rubber, tea, ceramics, electric and electronic appliances, telephone cables, transformers, bricks and tiles, drugs and chemicals, general engineering, plywood splints and veneers, beedi and cigar, soaps, oils, fertilizers and khadi and village industry products. There are a number of manufacturing units for production of precision instruments, machine tools, petroleum products, paints, pulp paper, newsprint, glass and non-ferrous metals. Principal export products are cashew nut, tea, coffee, spices, lemon grass oil, sea foods, rose wood and coir. The state has an abundance of important minerals like ilmenite, rutile, monozite, zircon, sillimanite, clay and quartz sand. The performance in the industrial export of almost all major products recorded positive growth.
States and Union Territories
1151
The Government of Kerala assists, industrial units by providing financial assistance, infrastructure and training/consultancy services. The important agencies/ departments engaged in industrial promotion are KFC, KSIDC, SIDBI, KINFRA, Directorate of Industries and Commerce, SIDC, SISI, KITCO & CMD. The Directorate of Industries and Commerce provides infrastructure facilities for small-scale sector by acquiring land and developing it into developmental area/ plots with facilities like developed land, road, water supply, electricity, necessary buildings, etc. The Small Industries Development Corporation also undertakes works on provision of infrastructure facilities for the small-scale sector through its major and mini industrial estates. One of the major thrust areas for export promotion has been the Special Economic Zone. The scheme intends to set up Special Economic Zone in the country with a view to provide an internationally competitive and hassle free-environment for exports. Kochi is the only city in India having three Special Economic Zones – Electronic Parks at KINFRA in Kalamassery, Cochin SEZs, Port Based SEZs. Other SEZs are Malappuram Food Park, Technopark, proposed SEZ, Thiruvananthapuram Apparel Park, Film and Video Park and Animation SEZ (First Animation SEZ in India). The small-scale industrial sector is one of the most dynamic and vibrant sectors in the Indian economy in terms of employment generation. The Government of Kerala has drawn up an investment promotion programme named as Kerala Local Industry Promotion Programme (KLIPP) under the banner name of PRATHYA SA through District Industries Centre. INFORMATION
TECHNOLOGY
Information technology and the ability to use it is increasingly being considered as the critical factor in generating and accessing wealth, power and knowledge and therefore societal welfare. The Government of Kerala has taken several steps for the development of IT in the State. Prominent among them are: (1) Technopark – Thiruvananthapuram – India’s first world class, world - scale IT campus. (2.) IT Park at KINFRA at Kochi. (3) Akshaya Programme of Kerala IT Mission. (4) E-Governance initiatives of State Government like FRIENDS. Technopark was conceived as an integrated IT environment with all necessary basic and enhanced infrastructural facilities that the industry needs. It acts as a single-point contact for most of the Government of India clearances and approvals. Kerala has been selected as the second best state in India in implementation of e-governance. FRIENDS (Fast Reliable Instant Efficient Network for disbursement Service) is a “Single Window Mechanism” where citizens have the opportunity to pay all taxes and other financial dues to the Government. E-pay is an online bill payment facility introduced by Government of Kerala through Akshaya e-kendras as an extension of FRIENDS project in Malappuram District during August 2004. The citizen call centre the first of its kind in the country-setup in the state capital provides information on transactions pertaining to various government departments which are required by common citizens, over tele phone.
1152
India 2010
IRRIGATION Keeping in line with National Approach, Kerala also relied upon surface water irrigation system operating the gravitational force for distribution. A major chunk of the outlay on water resources sector was earmarked for major and medium irrigation. Out of a cumulative investment of Rs 3572.40 crore made in March 2005, Rs 2462.51 crore (69 per cent) was for major and medium irrigation. The irrigation system in Kerala is serviced through major, medium and minor irrigation as well as ground water and command area development programmes. The completed major irrigation projects are Malampuzha, Chalakkudy, Peechi, Pampa, Periyar, Chittorpuzha, Kuttiyadi, Neyyar, Chimmini, Pazhassi, Kanjirapuzha and Kallada and the medium projects are Pothundy, Gayathri, Walayar, Vazhani, Mangalam and Cheerakuzhi. Construction works of four major projects Muvattupuzha, Idamalayar, Karapuzha, Kuriarkuty – Karappara and the medium projects Banasurasagar, Bridge-cum-regulator at Thrithala and Chammaravattom are in progress. In Kerala an outlay of Rs. 930 crore is set apart for irrigation sector during 10t h plan period which includes Rs. 600 crore for major and medium irrigation, Rs. 205 crore for minor irrigation for Rs. 50 crore for Flood Control and Anti-Sea Erosion work. During the first three years of plan period an amount of Rs. 435.95 crore was budgeted and expenditure for the period was Rs. 494.63 crore. The major portion of the outlay on water resources sector was earmarked for major and medium irrigation projects. The Command Area Development programme was launched with the main objective of bridging the gap between the irrigation potential created and utilised and improving agriculture production and productivity in the irrigation commands. The programme was restructured in 2003-04 and re-named as Command Area Development and Water Management Programme. The main activities of Command Area Development Authority (CADA) include construction of field channels, field drains, enforcement of wara bandhi and reclamation of Water logged areas. The CAD activities were carried out in 16 completed irrigation projects, namely, Malampuzha, Mangalam, Pothundy, Walayar, Cheerakuzhy, Vazhani, Peechi, Chalakkudy, Neyyar, Gayatri, Pampa, Periyar Valley, Chitturpuzha, Kuttiyadi, Pazhachi and Kanjirapuzha with a total layout of 2.03 lakh ha. CADA programmes are implemented with financial assistance of Govt. of India. The achievement recorded during 2004-05 include construction of field channels in 1,998 ha, drains to benefit 6,156 ha, adaptive trials in 10ha, 83 training programmes, bench mark and evaluation studies in 2,302 ha. The work on reclamation of water locked areas was done in 1033 ha and 3 evaluation reports were also published. POWER The growth of power sector in Kerala during the last two decades has been remarkable. During the early stages of development, focus was on tapping hydro power potential in the state. Kerala Power System consists of 30 power generating stations which include 24 hydel, 5 thermal and one wind of which KSEB owns 24 hydel and one wind and two thermal statio ns.
States and Union Territories
1153
The total installed capacity in Kerala as on 31 March 2005 is estimated as 2617.22 MW of which KSEB’s hydel plants contribute 1810.60 MW, Wind farm at Kanchikode 2.0 MW and Thermal Power Plants 234.60 MW. Malankara Hydro Electric Project was commissioned on 23 October 2005. As a result the installed capacity has been increased by 10.5 MW. Under the micro-hydel programme, implementation of Micro Hydel Projects on behalf of two district Panchayats, Kammadi in Kasargode district and Chakkarakundu in Kozhikode district have been undertaken by ANERT. UNIDO has set up a Regional Centre on small hydro power at Energy Management Centre. The centre has prepared detailed project reports for 30 small hydro projects in Kerala. Of which 13 small hydro project were allotted to bidders under Captive Power Projects and Independent Power Projects on BOOT basis. The first off grid 100 KW micro hydel power projects was commissioned in Mankulam, Iduki District. Pasavaikumbe in Kasargode district and Kalyanathandu in Idukki district are two sites identified for study under the National Wind Energy Resource Assessment. In the light of launching the project, Rajiv Gandhi Grameen Vidhyuteekaran Yojana (RGGVY) by the Government of India, proposals were submitted to the Government of India with an outlay Rs. 348.79 crore for the electrification of 3578 habitations in 930 villages covering 14 districts of Kerala. The Government of India have sanctioned Rs. 221.75 crore to implement the scheme as first phase covering seven districts in Kerala viz. Kasargod, Kannur, Wayanad, Kozhikode, Malappuram, Idukki, and Palakkad. TRANSPORT Transport system of the state consists of 1.61 lakh km of Road, 1148 km of Railways 1687 km of Inland Water Ways and 111 statute miles of Airways and 18 ports.
National Highways in Kerala Sl. No.
Name
Length
(kms)
1.
NH 17 – Thalappady – Edappally
420.777
2.
NH 47 – Walayar – Kaliyikkavila
416.800
3.
NH 47 A – Wellington Island to Kochi – Bypass
4.
NH 49 – Bodimettu – Muvatupuzha – Kochi
5.
NH 208 – Kollam – Aryankavu – Muvattupuzha
6.
NH 212 – Kozhikode – Kallegel
117.600
7.
NH 213 – Kozhikode – Palakkad
125.300
8.
NH 220 – Kollam – Kottayam – Kumily – Theni
190.300
5.920 167.593 81.280
Railway : The State has a total railway route of 1148 kms of which 111.14 kms are metre gauge and covers 13 railway routes. The work of guage conversion between Kollam and Punalur is in progress. Aviation : Kerala has three air ports; viz, Thiruvananthapuram, Kochi (Nadumbassery) and Kozhikode. Of which the first two are international airports.
1154
India 2010
Port Sector : Along its coastline of 585 kms' Kerala has one major port at Kochi and 17 minor intermediate ports. The Prime Minister laid the foundation stone for the Vallarpadam International Container Transshipment Terminal on 16 December 2005. Completion of the prestigious project would make the Kochi Port as a major hubport in the Indian Ocean. FESTIVALS Kerala is the home of many colourful festivals. Most of them have a religious fervour inspired by Hindu Mythology. Onam is the most typical of Kerala festivals which coincides with the harvest season. It is now celebrated on astronomical New Year Day. Navarathri is celebrated as Saraswathi Pooja in Kerala. Maha Shivarathri is celebrated on the banks of Periyar river as a spectacular festival which is compared to Kumbhamela. The 41-day festival, which coincides with Makaravilakku in Sabarimala Ayyappan Temple, attracts lakhs of people from India and abroad. The Vallamkali or boat race is typical of Kerala. All the boat festivals have a religious origin except Nehru Trophy Boat race conducted in the Punnamada Lake. Thrissur celebrates Pooram festival in April - May every year with an impressive procession of caparisoned elephants and display of unparalleled pyrotechnics. Main Christian festivals are Christmas and Easter. Maramon Convention held every year on the Pumba riverbed is the biggest gathering of Christians in Asia. The Muslims celebrate Milade Shareef, Ramzan fasting, Id-ul-Fitr and Bakrid. TOURISM Tourism to Kerala is what apple growing is to Himachal Pradesh. Both these regions offer all the pre-conditions for sustained and successful growth of the respective activities. The factors stimulating a flourishing tourism sector include, scenic splendour, moderate climate, clean environment, friendly and peace loving people with high tolerance for cultural diversity and the potential for creating unique tourism products. Kerala has emerged as the most acclaimed tourist destination in the country. Beaches, warm weather, back waters, hill stations, water falls, wild life, Ayurveda, treatment year–round festivals and diverse flora and fauna make Kerala a unique destination for tourists. The Department of Tourism, Kerala Tourism Development Corporation, District Tourism Promotion Council, Bakal Tourism Development Corporation, Local Government and Private Sector are the major players in the field. The thrust areas presently being looked into are the development of village tourism, MICE tourism (meeting, incentives, conventions and events/exhibitions/trade shows), heritage tourism, eco-tourism and medical tourism. Thenmala Eco-Tourism project features a tourist facilitation centre, shop court garden, plazas, picnic areas, natural trail, rock climbing, river crossing, amphitheatre, restaurant, suspension bridge, lotus pond, musical dancing fountain, sculpture garden, deer rehabilitation centre, boating, battery powered vehicles, etc. During 2004-05, 104622 tourists visited Thenmala and the revenue generated was Rs. 3563820. The foreign exchange earning from tourism during 2004 is Rs. 1266.77 crore. The earning from domestic tourists during 2004 is Rs. 3881.92 crore. Total revenue generated from tourism directly and indirectly in the state is worked out to about Rs. 6829 crore. Tourism employs about 8 lakh persons in the state. The investment in tourism is about Rs. 500 crore per year.
States and Union Territories
1155
EDUCATION According to 2001 census, the literacy rate in Kerala is well above the National average and it is the highest among the Indian States. The literacy rate in Kerala was 90.86 per cent in 2001 as against the all India rate of 65.38 per cent The male and female literacy rate are 94.2 per cent and 87.6 per cent respectively. In Kerala there were 12644 schools in 2006 comprising 6817 lower primary schools, 3037 upper primary schools and 2790 high schools. Besides there are 587 CBSE School, 78 ICSE Schools, 26 Kendriya Vidyalayas and 13 Jawahar Navodaya Vidhyalayas. The dropout rate is comparatively low in Kerala. During 2004-05 the dropout rate was 0.88 at LP level, 0.45 at UP level and 1.50 at HS level. In order to reorganise secondary level of education in accordance with the National Educational Policy, Higher Secondary course was introduced in the state. As a first step during 1990-91, 31 government schools were upgraded to the status of Higher Secondary Schools. Grading system of evaluation has been introduced in Higher secondary levels from 2005-06 academic year onwards. HEALTH Kerala has achieved very good health standards in areas like birth rate, death rate, infant motality rate, maternal mortality rate, average life at birth and immunisation. In Kerala birth rate is 16.90, death rate - 6.40, IMR – 10 and MMR – 0.87 per thousand population. Though Kerala has attained better health care indicators, the people are now facing the problem of high morbidity both from communicable and noncommunicable diseases. Kerala’s health care system consists of Allopathy, Ayurveda and Homoeopathy. Three systems of medicines together have 2,711 institutions in government sector. Kerala spends fairly substantial amount on medical and public health which is evident from the per capita government health expenditure. DRINKING WATER SUPPLY In Kerala 83.07 per cent urban and 62.74 per cent rural population was being supplied with piped water supply by 2004-05. The overall water supply coverage is 68.02 per cent as against 67.52 per cent. POVERTY ERADICATION Kerala is seeking to achieve a breakthrough in participatory poverty reduction through local government and Kudumbasree Programmes implemented by State Poverty Eradication Mission. As per the NSSO 55 th round, (1999-2000). Kerala’s poverty is 9.35 per cent in rural areas and 20.27 per cent in urban areas.
GOVERNMENT Governor
: R.S. Gavai
Chief Secretary
:
Lizzie
Jacob
Chief Minister
: V.S.
Jurisdiction of High Court
:
Kerala
and
Achuthanandan
Lakshadweep
1156
India 2010 AREA, POPULATION AND HEADQUARTERS OF DISTRICTS
District
Area (sq km)
Population
Headquarters (2001 Census)
Thiruvananthapuram
2192
3234356
Thiruvananthapuram
Kollam
2491
2585208
Kollam
Pathanamthitta
2637
1234016
Pathanamthitta
Alappuzha
1414
2109160
Alappuzha
Kottayam
2208
1953646
Kottayam
Idukki
4358
1129221
Painavu
Ernakulam
3068
3105798
Ernakulam
Thrissur
3032
2974232
Thrissur
Palakkad
4480
2617482
Palakkad
Malappuram
3550
3625471
Malappuram
Kozhikode
2344
2879131
Kozhikode
Wayanad
2131
780619
Kannur
2966
2408956
Kannur
Kasaragode
1992
1204078
Kasaragode
Kalpetta
MEGHALAYA Area
: 22,429 sq km
Population
:
23,18,822
Capital
: Shillong
Principal
:
Khasi, Garo and English
Languages
(2001
Census)
HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY Meghalaya was created as an autonomous State within the State of Assam on 2 April 1970. The full-fledged State of Meghalaya came into existence on 21 January 1972. It is bound on the north and east by Assam and on the south and west by Bangladesh. Meghalaya, literally means ‘the Abode of Clouds’ is essentially a hilly state. It is predominately inhabited by the Khasis, the Jaintias and the Garos tribe communities. The Khasi Hills and Jaintia Hills which form the central and eastern part of Meghalaya from an imposing plateau with rolling grassland, hills and river valleys. The southern face of the plateau is marked by deep gorges and abrupt slopes, at the foot of which, a narrow strip of plain land runs along the international border with Bangladesh. AGRICULTURE Meghalaya is basically an agricultural State in which about 80 per cent of its population depends primarily on agriculture for their livelihood. The State has a vast
States and Union Territories
1157
potential for development of horticulture due to the agroclimatic variations, which offer much scope for cultivation of temperate, sub-tropical and tropical fruits and vegetables. Besides major food crops of rice and maize, Meghalaya is renowned for its orange (Khasi Mandarian), pineapples, bananas, jackfruit, temperate fruits like plum, pear and peach, etc. Cash crops, popularly and traditionally cultivated include potato, turmeric, ginger, black pepper, arecanut, betelvine, tapioca, short staple cotton, jute and mesta, mustard and rapeseed. Special emphasis is presently being laid on non-traditional crops like oilseeds (groundnut, soyabean and sunflower), cashewnut, strawberry, tea and coffee, mushroom, medicinal plants, orchids and commercial flowers. INDUSTRIES The Meghalaya Industrial Development Corporation Limited, as the Industrial and Financial Institution of the State, has been rendering financial assistance to the local entrepreneurs. District Industries Centres have been working in the field for the promotion and development of small-scale, village, tiny and cottage industries. A number of industrial projects have been set up for the manufacture of iron and steel materials, cement and other industrial products. FESTIVALS A five-day-long religious festival of the Khasis ‘Ka Pamblang Nongkrem’ popularly known as ‘Nongkrem dance’ is annually held at Smit village, 11 km from Shillong. ‘Shad Sukmynsiem’, another important festival of the Khasis is held at Shillong during the second week of April. ‘Behdeinkhlam’, the most important and colourful festival of the Jaintias is celebrated annually at Jowai in Jaintia Hills in July. ‘Wangala festival’ is observed for a week to honour Saljong (Sungod) of the Garos during October – November. TOURIST CENTRES Meghalaya is dotted with a number of lovely tourist spots where nature unveils herself in all her glory. Shillong, the capital city, has a number of beautiful spots. A few of them are Ward’s Lake, Lady Hydari Park, Polo Ground, Mini Zoo, Elephant Falls, Shillong Peak overlooking the city and the Golf Course which is one of the best in the country. TRANSPORT Roads: Six national highways pass through Meghalaya. The State has 7,977.98 km of both surfaced and unsurfaced roads. Aviation: The only airport in the State at Umroi, is 35 km from Shillong.
GOVERNMENT Governor
: R. K. Mooshahary
Chief Secretary
:
R.
Chief Minister
: Dr. D.D. Lapang
Jurisdiction of High Court
:
Falls under the jurisdiction of Guwahati High Court. There is a
Chatterjee
High Court Bench at Shillong.
1158
India 2010 AREA, POPULATION AND HEADQUARTERS OF DISTRICTS
District
Area (sq km)
Population
Headquarters
East Khasi Hills
2,820
6,60,923
Shillong
West Khasi Hills
5,247
2,96,049
Nongstoin
Ri-Bhoi
2,376
1,92,790
Nongpoh
Jaintia Hills
3,819
2,99,108
Jowai
East Garo Hills
2,603
2,50,582
Williamnagar
West Garo Hills
3,715
5,18,390
Tura
South Garo Hills
1,849
1,00,980
Baghmara
MADHYA
PRADESH
Area
:
3,08,000 sq kms
Population
Capital
:
Bhopal
Principal
Language
:
6,03,85,118
:
Hindi
HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY Madhya Pradesh is the second largest Indian Sate in size with an area of 3,08,000 sq.km. Geographically it occupies a pivotal position in the country. King Ashoka first among all, ruled over Ujjain. A sizeable portion of Central India was part of the Gupta empire (300-500 A.D.). The Muslims came into Central India in the beginning of 11th century. First of all, Mahmud of Ghazni came over here and then Mohammad Gouri, who incorporated some parts of Central India into his ruling territory of Delhi. Central India was also part of the Mughal empire. Duing the period between the beginning of the influence of Marathas and the death of Madhoji Scindia in 1794, Marathas were on the ascendent in Central India but later on the small states started coming into existence. These small states became the cause of perpetuation of British power in the country. Queen Ahilyabai Holkar of Indore, the Gond Maharani Kamalapti and Queen Durgawati, etc., were women rulers whose names have left an indelible imprint on Indian history for their outstanding rule. Madhya Pradesh came into being on 1 November 1956. It was reorganised on 1 November 2000 to create a new Chhattisgarh state. The successive state, now, is bound in north by Uttar Pradesh, east by Chhattisgarh, south by Maharashtra and west by Gujarat and Rajasthan. AGRICULTURE Agriculture is the mainstay of State’s economy as 74.73 per cent of the people are rural. As much as 49 per cent of the land area is cultivable. The net sown area during 2007 was estimated at about 14.83 m. ha. The foodgrain production was 14.45m. metric tonnes. The productivity of major crops like wheat, rice, pulses has also been good. The National Horticulture Mission has been implemented in 31 districts. INDUSTRY AND MINERALS Madhya Pradesh has entered the era of high-tech industries such as electronics, telecommunications, automobiles, Information Technology, etc. The state produces
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1159
optical fibre for telecommunication needs. A large number of automobile industries have been established at Pithampur near Indore. Prominent industries in the public sector in the state are Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd. at Bhopal, Secruity paper mill at Hoshangabad, Bank Note Press at Dewas, newsprint factory at Nepanagar and alkaloid factory at Neemuch. The cement production touched 12.49 million metric tonne during the period. An air cargo complex is coming up at Pithampur. The Government of India has set up a Special Economic Zone at Indore. Foreign Direct Investment is being promoted by implementing the comprehensive Economic Development Policy. The state government has announced an Industries Promotion Policy offering attractive incentives for investment in the state. The docks have been cleared for the long pending Rs. 10,300 crore Oman Bina Refinary Project at Bina in Sagar district. The Government of India has also sanctioned a National Auto Testing and Research and Development Infrastructure Project to be set up at Pithampur in Dhar district. Madhya Pradesh is a mineral rich state. The state produced minerals worth Rs. 90.20 in 2007. It produces 21 types of minerals. The output of minerals in 2007 was -dolomite -164 thousand metric tonnes, diamond - 586 thousand carats, limestone25640 thosuand metric tonnes, bauxite-475 thousand million metric tonnes and copper ore - 2191 thousand million metric tonnes. The coal production was 25640 thousand metric tonnes. The State is famous for its traditional handicrafts and handloom cloth manufactured in Chanderi and Maheshwar. IRRIGATION AND POWER The net area under irrigation was 6,347 thousand-hectare in the year 2008. There is a target to increase the irrigation facilities from 39 per cent to 50 per cent. A Rs.1919 crore Water Sector Restructuring Project has been taken up to restore irrigation facility in five lakh hectares by renovating the existing irrigation system in 30 districts. Madhya Pradesh is rich in low-grade coal suitable for power generation and also has immense potential of hydro-energy. Total installed power generation capacity in year 2007 was 9658.45 M.W. There are eight hydro-electric power stations with 902.5 MW installed capacity. A total of 50,475 out of 51,806 villages had been electrified. DEVELOPMENT
INITIATIVES
Madhya Pradesh Rural Employment Scheme has been implemented in all 50 districts. M.P. has topped in the country in its implementation. National Horticulture Mission has been launched to boost horticulture production and productivity in the state. TRANSPORT Roads : The total length of roads in the state is 73311 kms. The length of national highway in the state is 4280 km while State highway extends to 8729 kms. The state government has taken up the construction and upgradation of roads in a big way and about 60 thousand kilometres of roads will be constructed and upgraded. Railways : The main rail route linking northern India with southern India passes through Madhya Pradesh. Main junctions in the state are Bhopal, Bina, Gwalior, Indore, Itarsi, Jabalpur, Katni, Ratlam and Ujjain. The divisional railways headquarters are at Bhopal, Ratlam and Jabalp ur.
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FESTIVALS A number of festivals are celebrated in Madhya Pradesh. An important tribal festival is Bhagoriya marked by traditional gaiety and enthusiasm. Shivratri is celebrated in Khajuraho, Bhojpur, Pachmarhi and Ujjain and has its own local flavour while Ramnavami festival at Chitrakoot and Orchha has a unique sense of devotion imbued with tradition. Festivals of Orchha, Malwa, Pachmarhi bring to the fore, repertoire of culture and art of the people. Tansen Music Festival, Gwalior, Ustad Allauddin Khan Music Festival of Maihar, Kalidas Samaroh, Ujjain and Festival of Dances at Khajuraho are some of the well-known art festivals of Madhya Pradesh. An annual Narmada Festival has been started from this year at Bedhaghat in Jabalpur, famous for its marble rocks. A Shivpuri Festival has been started from this year at Shivpuri. TOURIST CENTRES Perfectly preserved medieval cities, refreshing and enchanting wildlife sanctuaries and some of the holiest and most revered pilgrim centres offer to the tourist the most fulfilling experience. Tranquil beauty of Pachmarhi, glittering splendour of Marble Rocks and roaring sound of Dhuandhar Fall at Bedaghat, Kanha National Park, with its unique Barasingha and Bandhavgarh National Park with its prehistoric caves and wildlife are some of the major attractions of the state. Gwalior, Mandu, Datia, Chanderi, Jabalpur, Orchha, Raisen, Sanchi, Vidisha, Udaygiri, Bhimbetika, Indore and Bhopal are the places well-known for their historical monuments. Maheshwar, Omkareshwar, Ujjain, Chitrakoot and Amarkantak are major centres of pilgrimage. Unique temples of Khajuraho are famous all over the world. The temples of Orchha, Bhojpur and Udaypur attract large number of tourists as well as pilgrims. Archaeological treasures are preserved in the museums at Satna, Sanchi, Vidisha, Gwalior, Indore, Mandsaur, Ujjain, Rajgarh, Bhopal, Jabalpur, Rewa and many other places. Omkareshwar, Maheshwar and Amarkantak have been declared as holy cities for their integrated development in accordance with their religious significance. Burhanpur is being developed as a new tourist destination.
GOVERNMENT Governor
:
Rameshwar
Chief Minister
:
Shivraj Singh Chouhan
Thakur
Chief Secretary
:
R.C. Sahni
Jurisdiction of High Court
:
Madhya
Pradesh
AREA, POPULATION AND HEADQUARTERS OF DISTRICTS S. No. 1
District 2
Area (sq km) 3
Population
Headquarters
4
5
—
10,81,039
Badwani
1.
Badwani
2.
Balaghat
9,229
14,45,760
Balaghat
3.
Betul
10,043
13,94,421
Betul
4.
Bhind
4,459
14,26,951
Bhind
5.
Bhopal
2,772
18,36,784
Bhopal
6.
Chhatarpur
8,687
14,74,633
Chhatarpur
States and Union Territories
1161
7.
Chhindwara
11,815
18,48,882
Chhindwara
8.
Damoh
7,306
10,81,909
Damoh
9.
Datia
2,038
6,27,818
10.
Dewas
7,020
13,06,617
Dewas
11.
Dhar
8,153
17,40,577
Dhar
12.
Dindori
—
5,79,312
13.
Guna
11,065
16,65,503
Guna
14.
Gwalior
5,214
16,29,881
Gwalior
15.
Harda
16.
Hoshangabad
17.
Indore
18.
Jabalpur
19.
Jhabua
20.
Katni
21.
Khandwa
(East
Nimar)
22.
Khargone
(West
Nimar)
13,450
15,29,954
23.
Mandla
13,269
8,93,908
24.
Mandsaur
9,791
11,83,369
Mandsaur
25.
Morena
11,594
15,87,264
Morena
26.
Narsinghpur
5,133
9,57,399
Narsinghpur
27.
Neemuch
—
7,25,457
Neemuch
28.
Panna
7,135
8,54,235
Panna
29.
Raisen
8,446
11,20,159
Raisen
30.
Rajgarh
6,154
12,53,246
Rajgarh
31.
Ratlam
4,861
12,14,536
Ratlam
32.
Rewa
6,314
19,72,333
Rewa
33.
Sagar
10,252
20,21,783
Sagar
34.
Satna
7,502
19,68,648
Satna
35.
Sehore
6,578
10,78,769
Sehore
36.
Seoni
37.
Shahdol
38.
Shajapur
39.
Shayopur
—
5,59,715
40.
Shivpuri
10,278
14,40,666
Shivpuri
41.
Sidhi
10,256
18,30,160
Sidhi
42.
Tikamgarh
5,048
12,03,533
Tikamgarh
43.
Ujjain
6,091
17,09,885
Ujjain
44.
Umaria
—
5,15,851
Umaria
45.
Vidisha
2,742
12,14,759
Vidisha
46.
Ashoknagar
4,673.90
6,88,940
Datia
Dindori
—
4,74,174
10,037
10,85,011
Harda Hoshangabad
3,898
25,85,321
Indore
10,160
21,67,469
Jabalpur
6,782
13,96,677
Jhabua
—
10,63,689
Katni
10,779
17,08,170
Khandwa Khargone Mandla
8,758
11,65,893
Seoni
14,028
15,72,748
Shahdol
6,196
12,90,230
Shajapur Shayopur
Ashoknagar
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India 2010
47.
Burhanpur
2,472.5
6,35,661
Burhanpur
48. 49.
Anuppur
3,746
6,61,127
Anuppur
Alirajpur
-
-
Alirajpur
50.
Singrauli
-
-
Singrauli
MAHARASHTRA Area
: 3,07,713 sq km
Population
Capital
: Mumbai
Principal
Language
:
9,67,52,247
:
Marathi
HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY The first well-known rulers of Maharashtra were the Satavahanas (230 BC to 225 AD), who were the founders of Maharashtra, and have left a plethora of literary, epigraphic, artistic, and archaeological evidence. This epoch marks tremendous development in every field of human endeavour. Then came the Vakatakas who established a pan-Indian empire. Under them Maharashtra witnessed an all-sided development in the fields of learning, arts and religion. Some of the Ajanta Caves and fresco paintings reached their pinnacle during their rule. After the Vakatakas and after a brief interlude of the Kalachuri dynasty, the most important rulers were the Chalukyas followed by the Rashtrakutas and the Yadavas apart from the Shilaharas on the coast. The Yadavas, with Marathi as their court language extended their authority over large parts of the Deccan. While the Bahamani rule brought a degree of cohesion to the land and its culture, a uniquely homogeneous evolution of Maharashtra as an entity became a reality under the able leadership of Shivaji. A new sense of Swaraj and nationalism was evolved by Shivaji. His noble and glorious power stalled the Mughal advances into this part of India. The Peshwas established the Maratha supremacy from the Deccan Plateau to Attack in Punjab. Maharashtra was in the forefront during freedom struggle and it was here that the Indian National Congress was born. A galaxy of leaders from Mumbai and other cities in Maharashtra led the Congress movement under the guidance of Tilak and then Mahatma Gandhi. Mahrashtra was the home of Gandhiji’s movement, while Sevagram was the capital of nationalistic India during the Gandhian era. The administrative evolution of the state of Maharashtra is the outcome of the linguistic reorganisation of the States of India, effected on 1 May 1960. The State was formed by bringing together all contiguous Marathi-speaking areas, which previously belonged to four different administrative hegemonies. They were the district between Daman and Goa that formed part of the original British Bombay Province; five districts of the Nizam’s dominion of Hyderabad; eight districts in the south of the Central provinces (Madhya Pradesh) and a sizeable number of petty native-ruled state enclaves lying enclosed within the above areas, were later merged with adjoining districts. Located in the north centre of Peninsular India, with the command of the Arabian Sea through its Port of Mumbai, Maharashtra has a remarkable physical homogeneity, enforced by its underlying geology. The dominant physical trait of the State is its plateau character. Maharashtra is a plateau of plateaus, its western upturned rims rising to form the Sahyadri Range parallel to the sea-coast and its slopes gently descending towards the east and south-east. Satpuda ranges cover northern part of
States and Union Territories
1163
the State, while Ajanta and Satmala ranges run through central part of State. Arabian Sea guards the western boundry of Maharashtra, while Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh are on the northern side. Chhattisgarh covers the eastern boundary of the State. Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh are on its southern side. AGRICULTURE About 65 per cent of the total workers in the State depend on agriculture and allied activities. Net irrigated area in 2003-2004 was 29.4 lakh hectares. Principal crops grown in the State are rice, jowar, bajra, wheat, tur, mung, urad, gram and other pulses. The State is a major producer of oilseeds. Groundnut, sunflower, soyabean are major oil seed crops. Important cash crops are cotton, sugarcane, turmeric and vegetables. The State has an area of 13.66 lakh hectares under various fruit crops like mango, banana, orange, grape, cashewnut etc. INDUSTRY The State has been identified as the country’s powerhouse and Mumbai, its capital as the centre point of India’s financial and commercial markets. Industrial sector occupies a prominent position in the economy of Maharashtra. Food products, breweries, tobacco and related products,cotton textiles, textile products, paper and paper products, printing and publishing, rubber, plastic, chemical and chemical products, machinery, electrical machinery, apparatus and appliances, and transport equipment and parts contribute substantially to the industrial production in the state. The growth in industrial production (manufacturing ) in the state during 2005-06 was 8.9 per cent over the year IRRIGATION AND POWER By the end of June-2005, 32 major, 178 medium and about 2,274 state sector minor irrigation projects had been completed. Another 21 major and 39 medium irrigation projects are under construction. The gross irrigated area in 2004-2005 was 36.36 lakh hectares. Maharashtra had an installed capacity of 12,909 MW in 2004-2005. The Plant Load Factor (PLF) in the State was 81.6 per cent and power generation was 68,507 million KWH. TRANSPORT Roads : Total length of roads in the State as in March 2005 was 2.29 lakh km consisting of 4,367 kms of national highways, 33,406 kms of state highways, 48,824 kms of major district roads, 44,792 kms of other district roads, and 97,913 kms of village roads. Railways: Maharashtra has 5,527 kms of railway routes of which 78.6 per cent are broad gauge, 7.8 per cent meter gauge and 13.6 per cent narrow gauge. Aviation : Maharashtra has a total of twenty-four Air fields/airports. Of these 17 are under the control of the State government, four are managed and controlled by the International Airports Authority/Airports Authority of India and three by the Ministry of Defence. The Airfields under the control of the State government have no facilities for the operation of commercial flights at present. Ports : Mumbai is a major port. There are two major and 48 notified minor ports in the State.
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TOURIST CENTRES Some important tourist centres are : Ajanta, Ellora, Elephanta, Kanheri and Karla caves, Mahabaleshwar, Matheran and Panchgani, Jawhar, Malshej ghat, Amboli, Chikaldara, Panhala Hill stations and religious places at Pandharpur, Nashik, Shirdi, Nanded, Audha nagnath, Trimbakeshwar, Tuljapur, Ganpatipule, Bhimashanker, Harihareshwar, Shegaon, Kolhapur, Jejuri and Ambajogai.
GOVERNMENT Governor
:
S.M.
Chief Minister
:
Ashok
Krishna Chouhan
Chief Secretary
:
D.K.
Jurisdiction of
:
Maharashtra and Goa
Shankaran
High Court
AREA, POPULATION AND HEADQUARTERS OF DISTRICTS Districts
Area (sq km)
Population
Headquarters
(on ’00) provisional Ahmednagar
17,034
40,88,077
Ahmednagar
5,431
16,29,305
Akola
Amravati
12,235
26,06,063
Amravati
Aurangabad
10,106
29,20,548
Aurangabad
3,890
11,35,835
Bhandara
Akola
Bhandara Beed
10,692
21,59,841
Beed
Mumbai
City
157
33,26,837
Mumbai
Mumbai
(Sub.)
446
85,87,561
Bandra
9,680
22,26,328
Buldhana
11,417
20,77,909
Chandrapur
8,061
17,08,993
Dhule
Gadchiroli
14,477
9,69,960
Jalgaon
11,757
36,79,936
Jalgaon
Jalna
7,715
16,12,357
Jalna
Kolhapur
7,692
35,15,413
Kolhapur
Latur
7,166
20,78,237
Latur
Nagpur
9,810
40,51,444
Nagpur
Nanded
10,545
28,68,158
Nanded
Nashik
15,539
49,87,923
Nashik
Osmanabad
7,550
14,72,256
Osmanabad
Parbhani
6,511
14,91,109
Parbhani
15,637
72,24,224
Pune
Raigad
7,162
22,05,972
Aligbag
Ratnagiri
8,196
16,96,482
Ratnagiri
Sangli
8,577
25,81,835
Sangli
Satara
10,475
27,96,906
Satara
5,222
8,61,672
14,886
38,55,383
Buldhana Chandrapur Dhule
Pune
Sindhudurg Solapur
Gadchiroli
Oras Solapur
States and Union Territories
1165
Thane
9,563
81,28,833
Thane
Wardha
6,311
12,30,640
Wardha
Yavatmal
13,594
24,60,482
Yavatmal
Nandurbar
5,035
13,09,135
Nandurbar
Washim
5,150
10,19,725
Washim
Gondia
5,430
12,00,151
Gondia
Hingoli
4,526
9,86,717
Hingoli
MANIPUR Area
:
22,327 sq km
Population
:
22,93,896 (2001 Census)
Capital
:
Imphal
Principal
:
Manipuri
Language
HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY Manipur has a long and glorious history from before the beginning of the Christian era. The recorded history of kingship started from 33 A.D., which marked the coronation of Pakhangba. After Pakhangba a series of kings ruled over the kingdom of Manipur. The independence and sovereignly of Manipur remained uninterrupted until the Burmese invaded and occupied it for approximately seven years in the first quarter of the 19th century (1819-1826). Then came the British Parmaountcy in 1891. Manipur regained independence along with the rest of India in 1947. When the Constitution of India came into force on the 26th January, 1950, Manipur became a Part C State under a Chief Commissioner in 1950 - 51, a Council of Advisors was introduced and in 1957 this was replacedby a territorial Council of 30 elected and 2 nominated members. Later in 1963 a Territorial Assembly of 30 elected and 3 nominated members was established under the Government of Union Territories Act, 1963. In December 1969 the Chief Commissioner was replaced by the Lt. Governor. Manipur became a full-fledged State on the 21st January, 1972 with a Legislative Assembly of 60 members of whom 19 are reserved for Scheduled Tribes an one for Scheduled Castes. The state is represented in the Lok Sabha by two members and by one member in Rajya Sabha. Manipur is situated on the eastern frontier of India. It is bounded on the east by Myanmar (Burma), on the north by the State of Naglaland, on the west by the State of Assam and the south by the State of Mizoram and Myanmar Manipur lies between 23.83 N and 25.68N latitude and between 93.03 E and 94.78E longitude. It has an area of 22.327 sq. kms. Physically, Manipur comprises two parts - the hills and the valley. The valley is at the centre surrounded by hills on all sies. The hill covers about 9/10 of the total area of the State. Manipur Valley is about 790 metres above the sea level. The hill ranges are higher on the north and gradually diminish in height as they reach the southern part of Manipur. The valley itself slopes down towars the south. AGRICULTURE Agriculture and allied activities is the only mainstay of the State’s economy where about 70 per cent of the population depends on it. The state has two distinct topographical zones—valley and hills. The valley is known as the "Rice Bowl" of the State and its climate is sub-tropical to tropical to sub-temperate. The hills have sub-
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temperate to temperate climate with an average altitude of 3000 m above MSL. The State has distinct winter, warm humid and rainy season. The average rainfall during the last 10 years was 1482.20 mm with heavy precipitation during the moth of June, July and August. The growth of agriculture in the State has been quite uneven and unsatisfactory for the reason that its production still depends on seasonal rainfall. Agriculture in the State is confined to 10.48 per cent of the total geographical area. The percentage of agricultural land in valley districts is 47 per cent and that in the hill districts is 53 per cent. According to 2001 census, the ratio between man and agricultural land in ha is 1:0.10. The irrigated area is 30,980 ha. i.e. 13.24 per cent of the net agricultural land. The State is marginally deficit in cereals and highly deficit in the production of oilseeds and pulses. In spite of the rapid advancement in the crop productivity, the rapid population growth poses a great problem to agriculture in the State. The State Agriculture Department now plans to go ahead with diversification and commercialization during the 11 th Plan period (2007-2012) with the following aims and objective : i)
To increase the Net Agricultural Area of the State to the tune of 3.86 per cent and 18.68 per cent Gross Agricultural Area over the 10 th Plan achievement.
ii)
To increase the cropping intensity from the present level of 132.73 per cent to 140.45 per cent by the end of 11th Plan.
iii)
7.97 Per cent Annual growth rate of the over all crop production and targeted 39.85 per cent increase in crop production by the end of 11th Plan over the 10t h Plan achievement.
FOREST The forest cover of the State, based on satellite data of February 2004 and JanuaryFebruary 2005 is 17,086 sq.kms. which is 76.53 percent of the geographical area, out of which 923 sq. kms falls under Very Dense Forest, 5,541 sq. kms. falls under Moderately Dense Forest and 10,622 sq. kms falls under Open Forest. Forest Survey of India (FSI) has reported that there has been decrease of 7 sq. kms in Very Dense Forest, 54 sq. km. in Moderately Dense Forest and 112 sq. kms. in Open Forest. Also Scrub Forest has decreased by 35 sq. kms. The decrease in forest cover is mainly due to the practice of shifting cultivation in all the hill districts and partially due to flowering of bamboo in districts of Tamenglong, Churachandpur and Chandel. Siroy hill range in Ukhrul District, Manipur is the abode of Siroy Lily (Lilium macklineae), the flower which is not found elsewhere in the world. The Dzuko valley is also the only habitat of the endemic and the rare species—Dzuko Lily (Lilium chitrangade). Manipur is the only spot on earth in which the Brow-antlered deer (Cervus eldi eldi) locally known as Sangai is found. This rare deer is surviving in its natural habitat at the Keibul Lamjoi, Bishanpur District. This habitat was declared as a national Park in the year 1977 covering an area of 40 sq. kms. It is situated at the southern end of the famous fresh water lake, the Loktak Lake, a Ramsar Site. It is unique in its own physical feature as the park lies submerged under water covered entirely on the surface by a floating entangled mass of vegetation like grass, shrubs and earth, called phumdi. The deer survives on top of this phumdi. The conservation
States and Union Territories
1167
measures taken up by the State has led to the rise of Sangai population from a mere 14 animals in the year 1975 to 180 in the year 2003. The other area already declared as protected areas besides Keibul Lamjao National Park is the Yangoupokpi—Lokchao Wildlife Sanctuary with an area of 184.40 sq. kms. It is situated at Chandel District and is located on the Indo-Malayan Zoogeographical Zone. The Malayan sun bear is found in this wildlife sanctuary. The State is very rich in bio-diversity; large areas are still virgin forests. These are the habitats of very rare plants of rich medicinal value like Taxus baccata, ginseng, etc. To give an impetus to Medicinal Plants, the State Government hosted an International Conclave on Medicinal Plants for ASEAN and BIMSTEC countries at Imphal during 11-13 December, 2008 where delegates from 12 countries viz. Bangladesh, Bhutan, Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, India, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Vietnam participated and presented papers. The conclave was the first of its kind in the State of Manipur. Manipur is also the home of many rare orchids and ferns. IRRIGATION Major an Medium lrrigation had been introduced in the State from 1980. So far 8 (eight) Major and Medium Irrigation & Multipurpose Project have been taken up of which 5 (five) projects viz. Loktak Life Irrigation Project, Khoupum Dam Project, Imphal Barrage Project, Sekmai Barrage Project and Singda Multipurpose Project were completed by the end of VIIIth Plan. By the end of Eight Plan period, only about 67,546 ha. has been brought under irrigation of which Major and Medium irrigation projects contributed 28,150 ha. and Minor Irrigation contributed 39,396 ha. At present, three Major and Medium Irrigation Projects viz. Khuga Multipurpose Project, Thoubal Multipurpose Project and Dolaithabi Barrage having large irrigation potential are being undertaken. Unless these projects are completed, the desired level of irrigation facilities cannot be provided to achieve the desired level of agricultural growth. Hence, the priority of the State is to complete these ongoing projects. Thoubal Multipurpose Project has been partially completed and 4,000 ha of irrigation potential has been created. On completion of the ongoing projects with modernization of the completed projects an ultimate annual irrigation of 1,06,950 ha. water supply of 19 MGD and power generation of 9.75 MW will accure to the State. COMMERCE & INDUSTRIES Handloom industry is the largest cottage industry providing maximum number of employment after agriculture in the state. This industry has been flourishing since time immemorial. It remains an important source of income especially for womenfolk of the State. The traditional skill of handloom weaving is not only a status symbol for the womenfolk but also an indispensable aspect of the socio-economic life. Food Processing is another popular industry in Manipur. In view of the importance of the industry. State Government has established a Food Processing Training Centre and Food Processing Trocessing Training Hall at Imphal. A Food Park at Nilakuthi, Imphal East District is in good progress and it will provide common facilities like cold storage, weigh bridge, warehousing, post office, banks, power & Water supply to 60 Food Processing Units.
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India 2010
Indo-Myanmar Border Trade throug h Lan Custom Station, Moreh was opened on 12th April, 1995. The opening of Border Trade has been providing large scale employment to many families in the State. The Department of Commerce and Industries of the State Government has been acting as a liaisoning agent for promotion and development of the Border Trade. To promote Border Trade, the Warehouse, Conventional Hall and Stay Facility Centre have been set up a border town Moreh. The director General of Foreign Trade (G & T) Camp office has been opened in the Directorate of Commerce & Industries Complex, Imphal. Among the other thrust areas, State Govt. contemplates to the setting up of an Integrated Check Post at Moreh under the initiative of Ministry of Home Affairs. Land acquisition for 45.50 acre of land within the Custom's notified area for construction of Integrated Check Post at Moreh is under active process to facilitate export-import. The State Government has facilitated the visit of a trade delegation from Manipur to Myanmar and the visit of the representative of the Embassies of Czech Republic and Thailand in connection with the development of import and export. Actions have been taken to carry out base-level survey for export-import potential of Manipur. POWER The power supply of the State of Manipur depends upon the Central Sector Generating Stations located in the North Eastern Region. They are : 1.
Loktak Hydro Electric Project of National Hydroelectric Power Cooperation Ltd. (NHPC).
2.
Kopili HE Project of North Eastern Electric Power Corporation Ltd. (NEEPCO).
3.
Khandong HE Project (NEEPCO).
4.
Doyang HE Project (NEEPCO).
5.
Ranganadi HE (NEEPCO).
6.
AGBPP, Kathalguri (NEEPCO).
7.
AGTPP, Ramchandranagar (NEEPCO).
8.
Baramura Gas Thermal Project (TSECL).
Except during monsoon, most of the generating stations operate below installed capacity, reducing power allocation to the State. At present, Manipur is allocated about 40 to 50 MW in the day time and 70-90 MW during load hour against the demand of 100 MW and 150 MW during the day time and peak hour respectively. Manipur has substantial hydro power potential of more than 1800 MW, which is sufficient not only to meet the local requirement for domestic and industrial uses but leaves surplus for marketing outside. Some major power projects which are at different stages of implementation are : 1.
The Loktak Down Stream Hydro-Electric Project (2x33 MW) is being implemented through a Joint Venture Company (JVC) of NHPC and State Government with 74.26 equity share participation and may be operational during the 12 th plan period.
2.
The Tipaimukh Hydro-Electric Project (1500 MW) a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) of NHPC Ltd. (69% Equity Share), SJVNL (26% Equity Share) and Government of Manipur (5% Equity Share) is being taken up and may be operational during the 12 th plan period.
States and Union Territories
1169
3.
Survey and investigation of the Irang Hydro Electric Project (15x4 MW) is in the advance stage.
4.
Survey and investigation of the Tuivai Hydro Electric Project (17x3 MW) is expected to be completed during 2010-11.
TRANSPORT Roads: The total length of roads in Manipur by 2008 including National Highways, NEC, BRTF & Roads under Rural Development, was 12618 km. Out of this total road length, the surfaced length is 5443 Km. 3 National Highways : i) NH-39, ii) NH-53 and iii) NH-150 criss-cross the State connecting all Districts. Imphal the capital of Manipur is joined by NH-39 with Nagaland on the North and Myanmar on the east, on the west with Assam by NH-53 and Mizoram on the south by NH-150. The Saurashtra-Silchar Super Highway Project is being extended to Moreh. With the proposed Moreh to Mae Sot (Thailand) Highway coming up, Manipur will become the gateway to South-East Asia. Aviations : Imphal Airport is the second largest airport in the North Eastern Region Imphal is connected to Aizwal, Guwahati, Kolkata, Silchar and New Delhi by Indian Airlines, Jet Airways, Indigo and Air Deccan and Alliance Air. New flights from carrier like Spicejet and Kingfisher. Imphal Airport is being upgraded into the status of International Airport for which process of land acquisition work has already been taken up. A "dedicated airline" for NE Region, particularly for connectivity within the NE States is under consideration of NEC/DoNER. Railways: The State is include in the railway map of India with opening of a rail head at Jiribam in May, 1990. It is 225 km from Imphal. Dimapur (Nagaland), 215 kms. from Imphal is the nearest rail-head. The Jiribam - Tupul Railway line has been declared as a National Project. Construction of the Line has started with completion of 68 kms. survey. It is targeted for completion by 2014. Further, the Line will be extended from Tupul to Imphal. FESTIVALS A year in Manipur represents a cycle of festivities. Hardly a month passes by without a festival which to the Manipuris is a symbol of their social, cultural and religious aspirations. Important festivals of the State are : Lai Haraoba, Rasa Leela, Cheiraoba, Ningol Chak-Kouba, Rath-Jatra, Idul Fitre, Imoinu Iratpa, Gaan-Ngai, Lui-Ngai-Ni, Idul Zuha. Yaoshang (Holi), Durga Pujah, Mera Houchongba, Diwali, Kut, Christmas, etc. TOURIST CENTRES Blessed with a salubrious climate and landscapes languishing in natural beauty and scenic splendour, the state extends to the tourists a warm welcome to visit again and again. Some important tourist centres in the State are : Kangla, Shree Shree Govindajee Temple, Khwairamband Bazar (Ima Keithel), War Cemeteries, Shaheed Minar, Npi Lan (Women’s War) Memorial Complex, Khonghampat Orchidarium, INA Memorial (Morang), Loktak Lake, Keibul Lamjao National Park, Bishnu Temple at Bishnupur, Sendra, Moreh, Siroy village, Siroy Hills, Dzuko Valley, State Museum,
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India 2010
Kaina tourist Home, Kh ongjom War Memorial Complex, India Peace Memorial (Red Hill) etc.
GOVERNMENT Governor
: Shri Gurbachan Jagat
Chief Secretary
:
Shri D.S. Poonia, IAS
Chief Minister
: O. Ibobi Singh
Jurisdiction of High Court
:
Speaker
: Dr. Sapam Budhichandra Singh
A permanent bench of the Guwahati High Court, Imphal Bench started functioning from 14 March 1992. The Chief Justice of India laid foundation stone for construction of a new High Court Complex on 30th April, 2006
AREA, POPULATION AND HEADQUARTERS OF DISTRICTS S.N.
District
Area
Population
1.
Headquarters
S e n a pa t i
3,271
2,83,621
Senapati
2.
Ukhrul
4,544
1,40,778
Ukhrul
3.
Chandel
3,313
1,18,327
Chandel
4.
Churachandpur
4,570
2,27,905
Churachandpur
5.
Tamenglong
4,391
1,11,499
Tamenglong
6.
Imphal
(West)
519
4,44,382
Lamphel
7.
Imphal
(East)
709
3,94,876
Porompat
8.
Thoubal
514
3,64,140
Thoubal
9.
Bishnupur
496
2,08,368
Bishnupur
MIZORAM Area
:
Capital :
21,081 sq km
Population
:
8,91,058
Aizawl
Principal
:
Mizo and English
Languages
HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY Mizoram is a mountainous region which became the 23rd state of the Indian Union in February 1987. It was one of the districts of Assam till 1972 when it became a Union Territory. After being annexed by the British in 1891, for the first few years, Lushai Hills in the north remained under Assam while the southern half remained under Bengal. Both these parts were amalgamated in 1898 into one district called Lushai Hills District under the Chief Commissioner of Assam. With the implementation of the North-Eastern Reorganisation Act in 1972, Mizoram bacame a Union Territory and as a sequel to the signing of the historic memorandum of settlement between the Government of India and the Mizo National Front in 1986, it was granted statehood on 20 February 1987. Sandwiched between Myanmar in the east and the south and Bangladesh in the west, Mizoram occupies an area of great strategic importance in the north-eastern corner of India. Mizoram has great natural beauty and an endless variety of landscape. It is rich in fauna and flora.
States and Union Territories
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The origin of the word ‘Mizo’ is not known. The Mizos came under the influence of the British Missionaries in the 19th Century. Now most of the Mizos are Christians. Mizo language has no script of its own. The missionaries introduced the Roman script for the Mizo language and formal education. Literacy in the state has grown rapidly, and Mizoram literacy at 88.8 per cent today, is the second highest in the country. The state government is striving hard to attain the top position in the near future. AGRICULTURE About 80 per cent of the people of Mizoram are engaged in agricultural pursuits. The main pattern of agriculture followed is Jhum or Shifting cultivation. Of the total 21 lakh ha. of land estimated, 6.30 lakh hectares of land is available for cultivation of horticulture crops. The existing area under different horticulture crops account for about 4127.6 hectares, which is only 6.55 per cent of the estimated potential area. This indicates the vast scope for horticulture crops to flourish in Mizoram. The main horticulture crops are Mandarin Orange, Banana, Passion Fruit, Grapes, Hatkora, Pineapple, Papaya, etc., and flowers like Anthurium, Bird of Paradise, Orchid, Chrysanthemum, Rose and other subsidiary seasonal flowers. Spices like Ginger, Turmeric, Black Pepper and Bird’s eye Chillies are also grown. People have also started extensive cultivation of oil palm, medicinal and aromatic plants. IRRIGATION The ultimate surface irrigation potential is estimated at 70,000 hectares of which 45,000 hectares is under flow and 25,000 hectares by construction and 70 pucca minor irrigation projects and six lift irrigation projects for raising double and triple crops in a year are nearing completion. INDUSTRY The entire Mizoram is a Notified Backward Area and was categorised under ‘No Industry District’ in mid seventies. With the announcement of State Industrial Policy 1989, few modern small-scale industries have come up during the past decade. To further accelerate growth of industries, a New Industrial Policy of Mizoram was announced in the year 2000. The Policy identified thrust areas like Electronics and Information Technology, Bamboo and Timber based products, Food and Fruit Processing, Textiles, Handloom and Handicrafts, etc. In order to attract investment from outside the state, the Policy permits joint venture for all large, medium and small scale industries with local partners. Infrastructural development like Industrial Growth Centre (IGC) at Luangmual, Aizawl, Export Promotion Industrial Park (EPIP) at Lengte, Integrated Infrastructural Development Centre (IIDC) at Pukpui, Lunglei and Food Park at Chhingchhip are nearing completion, apart from upgradation of the existing industrial estates. Scientific cultivation of Tea has also been taken up. Establishment of Apparel Training and Design Centre, Gems cutting and polishing are in the pipeline to encourage setting up of Export Oriented Units (EOUs). Of the cottage industries, Handloom and Handicrafts are given high priority and the two sectors are flourishing to meet consumers demand in the state and in the neighbouring states of Meghalaya, Nagaland, etc.
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With the openin g up of border trade with Myanmar and Bangladesh, and the ‘Look East Policy’ of the Government of India coupled by peaceful condition of the state, Mizoram will no more be a remote corner state of the country, and as a result of which industrialisation will substantially gain momentum in the near future. POWER Construction of Tuirial HEP (60 MW) is in progress. Survey and investigation works of Kolodyne HEP (500 MW) has been completed by CWC. This project provides inland water transport facilities for the region besides generating 500 MW of power and the Government of Mizoram has given paramount importance to it. 3 MW capacity Tuipanglui and Kau-Tlabung SHPs were commissioned recently thus enhancing the state’s hydro generation by 15 MW capacity. Works on Maicham-II (3MW), Serlui ‘B’ (12MW) and Lamsial (0.5 MW) SHPs are in progress and expected to be commissioned during 2007. A Total of 695 villages have been electrified and 709 km of 132 kv line completed. TRANSPORT Total road length in the state is 5,982.25 km (BRO & State PWD). Rail link in the state has been established at Bairabi. Aizawl is connected by air. In order to have a better connectivity, the Government has undertaken the Mizoram State Roads Projects with a total cost of Rs 350 crore under funds provided by the World Bank. Connectivity under PMGSY covering a total length of 2,421 km connecting 384 villages of Mizoram is making steady progress. FESTIVALS Mizos are basically agriculture oriented. All their activities centre around jhum cultivation and their festivals are linked with such agricultural operations. Kut is the Mizo term for festival. Among the various cultural festivals, only three viz. Chapchar Kut, Mim Kut & Thalfavang Kut are observed today. TOURIST CENTRES Aizawl, located at nearly 4,000 ft. above sea level, is a religious and cultural centre of Mizoram. Champhai is a beautiful resort on the Myanmar border. Tam Dil, a natural lake with virgin forests, is 80 km from Aizawl and 10 km from Tourist Resort of Saitual. Vantawng Falls, 5 km from the town of Thenzawl, is the highest and most beautiful waterfall in Mizoram. The department of Tourism has opened Tourist Lodges in all the bigger towns all over the state, and Highway Restaurants and Travellers’ Inns in other townships. There is also a Recreational Centre at Beraw Tlang, Aizawl and Alpine Picnic Hut at District Park near Zobawk.
GOVERNMENT Governor
: Lt. Gen. (Retd.)
Chief Minister
: P.V.
M.M.
Lakhera Lalthanhawla
Chief Secretary
: Hauzel
Jurisdiction of
: Falls under the jurisdiction of
High Court
Haukhum
Guwahati High Court. There is a bench at Mizoram.
States and Union Territories
1173
AREA, POPULATION AND HEADQUARTERS OF DISTRICTS S. No.
District
Area (sq km)
Population
Headquarters
1.
Aizawl
3,576.31
3,39,812
Aizawl
2.
Lunglei
4,538.00
1,37,155
Lunglei
3.
Chhimtuipui
1,399.90
60,823
Saiha
4.
Lawngtlai
2,557.10
73,050
Lawngtlai
5.
Champhai
3,185.85
1,01,389
Champhai
6.
Kolasib
1,282.51
60,977
Kolasib
7.
Mamit
3,025.75
62,313
Mamit
8.
Serchhip
1,421.60
55,539
Serchhip
NAGALAND Area
: 16,579 sq kms
Population
:
19,88,636
Capital
: Kohima
Principal Languages
:
Angami, Ao, Chang, Konyak, Lotha, Sangtam, Sema and Chakhesang.
HISTORY AND GEOGRAPH Y Nagaland, the 16th State of the Indian Union, was established on 1 December 1963. It is bound by Myanmar on the East, Arunachal on the North, Assam on the West and Manipur on the South. It lies between the parallels of 98 degree and 96 degree East Longitude and 26.6 degree and 27.4 degree latitude North of the Equator. The State of Nagaland has an area of 16.579 sq kms with a population of 19,88,636 as per the 2001 census. The State is mostly mountainous except those areas bordering Assam valley. Mount Saramati is the highest peak in Nagaland with a height of 3,840 metres and its range forms a natural barrier between Nagaland and Myanmar. The Nagas belong to the Indo-Mongoloid group of people living in the contiguous areas of the North Eastern hills of India and the upper portion of Western Myanmar. The major-recognised tribes of Nagaland are Angami, Ao, Chakhesang, Chang, Khiamniungan, Kuki, Konyak, Lotha, Phom, Pochury, Rengma, Sangtam, Sumi, Yimchungru and Zeliang. The Naga languages differ from tribe to tribe and sometimes even from one village to another. They are, however, under the Tibeto-Burma family. In the 12 th and 13 th centuries, gradual contacts with the Ahoms of present day Assam was established but this did not have any significant impact on the traditional Naga way of life. However, in the 19 th Century the British appeared on the scene and ultimately the area was brought under British Administration. After Independence this territory was made a centrally administered area in 1957 administered by the Governor of Assam. It was known as the Naga Hills Tuensang Area. This failed to quell popular aspirations and unrest began. Hence, in 1961, the
1174
India 2010
area was renamed as Nagaland and given the status of State of the Indian Union, which was formally inaugurated on 1 December 1963. AGRICULTURE Nagaland is basically a land of agriculture. About 70 per cent of the population depends on agriculture. The contribution of agricultural sector in the state is very significant. Rice is the staple food. It occupies about 70 per cent of the total area under cultivation and constitutes about 75 per cent of the total food production in the state. The major land use pattern is slash and burn cultivation locally known as Jhum. Area under jhum cultivation and terraced cultivationis about 1,01,400 hectares. The total food production during the year was 3,86,300 MT. Out of the total land area of 16,57,587 hectares, forest area occupies approximately 8,35,436. There are wild life sanctuaries and national parks, namely, Intanki and Puliebadze in Kohima District, Fakim in Tuensang and Rangapahar in Dimapur. POWER According to the 1981 census, Nagaland achieved cent per cent electrification in the rural areas. Nagaland has so far achieved 100 per cent village electrification reaching even the remotest village of the state. IRRIGATION There is no major or medium irrigation project so far constructed in the state. The irrigation works are mostly meant to divert small hill streamlets to irrigate valleys used for rice cultivation. The total area under irrigation covers 93,231.43 hectares. TRANSPORT Roads : The total length of roads in Nagaland in 9,860 km which includes national highway, state highways, district and village roads. Railways/Aviation : Dimapur is the only place in the state from where air and train services are available. FESTIVALS Music and dances are an intrinsic part of Naga life. Folk songs and ballads eulogizing bravery, beauty, love, generosity, etc., are transmitted from generation to generation. Likewise dancing is an important part of every festive occasion. Feasting, singing, dancing and merrymaking invariably accompany festivals. Some of the important festivals are Sekrenyi, Moatsu, Tokhu Emong and Tuluni. TOURISM With the opening of the state to the international tourist by relaxation of Restricted Area Permit (RAP), a good number of foreign tourists as well as domestic tourists visit Nagaland every year. The HORNBILL festival conceived by the Tourism Department and held in the first week of December is an annual event where all tribes of Nagaland come together to celebrate, exhibit and sell their traditional wares, foodstuffs and crafts. Three traditional festivals, namely Sekrenyi at Touphema in Kohima District (Feb 26-27), Monyu at Pongo in Longleng Sub-division (April 1-3) and Moatsu at Chuchuyimlang in Mokokchung district (May 1-3) have been identified as festival destinations.
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INDUSTRIES The process of industrialisation in the state is in its infancy, but the need to have more industries has been well recognized. Nagaland Mechanised Bricks Co. Ltd., in Dimapur with one lakh capacity of bricks per day has been commissioned. Handloom and Handicrafts are important cottage capacity industries, which are mainly being managed by cooperative societies. The Nagaland Handloom and Handicrafts Development Cooperation Ltd. in Dimapur is the state owned corporation, which is responsible for the promotion and marketing of handloom and handicraft products in the state. An industrial growth centre at Ganeshnagar near Dimapur is ready for operation. The Nagaland Industrial Development Corporation is the premier promotional organisation in providing guidance and capital assistance to entrepreneurs. The fruits and vegetables processing and cold storage plant at Dimapur has an installed capacity of processing 5 MT of fruits and vegetables per day and 3000 MT cold storage facility.
GOVERNMENT Governor
:
Shyamal
Chief Minister
:
Neiphiu Rio
Dutta
Chief Secretary
:
Lal
Jurisdiction of
:
Falls under Guwahati High Court.
High Court
Huma
There is a bench at Kohima.
AREA, POPULATION AND DISTRICT HEADQUARTERS S. No.
District
Area (sq km)
Population
Headquarters
1.
Kohima
3,144
3,14,366
Kohima
2.
Mokokchung
1,615
2,27,320
Mokokchung
3.
Mon
1,876
2,59,604
Mon
4.
Tuensang
4,228
4,14,801
Phek
5.
Zunheboto
1,255
1,54,909
Tuensang
6.
Wokha
1,628
1,61,098
Wokha
7.
Dimapur
927
3,08,382
Dimapur
8.
Phek
2,026
1,48,246
Phek
ORISSA Area
: 1,55,707 sq km
Population
: 36,804,660
Capital
: Bhubaneswar
Principal
: Oriya
Language
HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY Orissa, the land of Oriyas, was known as Kalinga in ancient days. In the third century BC (261 BC) Ashoka the Mauryan emperor, sent a powerful force to conquer Kalinga
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India 2010
which offered stubborn resistance. Kalinga was subdued but the carnage which followed, struck Ashoka with remorse. After the death of Ashoka, Kalinga regained its independence. In the second century BC, it become a powerful country under Kharavela. With the death of Kharavela, Orissa passed into obscurity. In the fourth century AD, Samudragupta invaded Orissa which lay astride his path and overcame resistance offered by five of its kings. In 610 AD, Orissa came under the sway of King Sasanka. After Sasank’s death, Harsha conquered Orissa. Orissa had its own rulers (Ganga dynasty) in the seventh century AD. In 795 AD, Mahasivagupta Yajati II came to the throne and with him began the most brilliant epoch in the history of Orissa. He united Kalinga, Kangoda, Utkal and Koshala in the imperial tradition of Kharavela. Under the kings of Ganga dynasty, Orissa continued to flourish. Narasingha Dev of this dynasty is reputed to have built the unique Sun Temple of Konark. From mid-16th Century, Orissa was ruled successively by five Muslim kings till 1592, when Akbar annexed it into the Mughal empire. With the decline of the Mughal empire, Marathas occupied Orissa. They continued to hold it till the British took over in 1803. Orissa was made into a separate province on 1 April 1936. After Independence, princely states in and around Orissa surrendered their sovereignty to the Government of India. By the States Merger (Governor’s provinces) Order, 1949 the princely states of Orissa were completely merged with the state of Orissa in January 1949. Although the state of Orissa had many ancient names like Kalinga, Utkal and Udra, it is widely known as the land of Lord Jagannath. Lord Jagannath is intimately connected with the social, cultural and religious life of Orissa. Jainism, Islam and Christianity have had considerable impact on the people of Orissa in different periods. Orissa is situated in the north-eastern part of the Indian peninsula. It is bound by the Bay of Bengal on the east, West Bengal on the north-east, Jharkhand on the north, Chhattisgarh on the west and Andhra Pradesh on the south. The state may be broadly divided into four geographical regions-the northern plateau, central river basin, eastern hills and coastal plains. AGRICULTURE Agriculture occupies a vital place in the economy of the State. It contributes 26 per cent of the net domestic product of the state. 65 per cent of the total work force directly or indirectly engaged in agriculture. The production of foodgrains has fluctuated over the years. This is due to various natural calamities. However, during 2006-07, about 73.45 lakh MT of food grains were produced in the State. Paddy is the principal food grain and its production during 2006-07 was 10341 TMT. Sugarcane cultivation has been widely accepted by the farmers. IRRIGATION Irrigation is one of the key factors not only to stabilize agricultural production but also to encourage farmers to go for higher application of inputs and adoption of most modern technology to increase production. By the end of year 2006-07 about 28.31 lakh hactares of land has ben brought under irigation.
States and Union Territories
1177
POWER The total power generation in states sector during 2005-06 was 3095 MUs. Out of 46,989 inhabited villages in the state 38,044 village have been electrified till the end of March-2006. INDUSTRY The Industrial Promotion and Investment Corporation Limited (IPICOL), Industrial Development Corporation Limited (IDCOL) and Orissa State Electronics Development Corporation (OSEDC) are the three nodal agencies for promotion of large and medium industries in the State. To aecelerate the pace of Industrial Development MoUs for investment of over 4 lakh crores signed with reputed national and international investors in steel, aluminium and alumina, petrochemical, I.T. and ITES, Thermal Power Generation and other sectors. the state is also providing institutional and financial support with various incentives and concessions for promotino of smallscale, village and cottage industries. By the end of 2006-2007, there were about 4550 micro, small and medium enterprises production with an investment of Rs. 271.14 crore providing employment opportunities for 20,839 persons. TRANSPORT During 2006-07 the total road length of the state comprising 3,596 kms National Highway, 29 kms State Express Highway, 3855 kms State Highway, 3842 kms of Major District Roads, 6,515 kms of other District Roads, 27,284 kms Rural Roads, 20,314 kms Panchayat Samiti Roads, 1,39,942 kms Gram Panchayat Roads, 7,298 kms Forest Roads, 17,282 kms Urban Roads, 6,277 kms Irrigation Roads and 88 kms GRIDCO road. Railways : The State had 2339 kms of railway route including 54 kms of narrow gauge . There are 234 railway stations and 127 Passenger halts in the State. Aviation : Ministry of Civil Aviation, Government of India has taken up expansion and modernisation of Bhubaneswar Air Port (Biju Patnaik Air Port) in view of its geographical, tourist and commercial importance. Flights from Bhubanewswar to cities like Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai, Hyderabad, Bangalore and Mumbai are available. Ports : Among the 11 major ports in the country, Paradeep is the only port belonging to Orissa. Besides, construction of mega port of international standard at Dhamra has now commenced. Gopalpur is going to be an all-weather Port for which work has already started. Several port developers have also shown interest in putting up allweather port at Subarnarekha mouth (Kirtania) in Balasore and Devi mouth at Astaranga. With the development of these ports Orissa's coastline will be a major hub of international trade.
GOVERNMENT Governor
:
Muralidharan Bhandare
Chief Minister
:
Naveen
Acting Speaker
:
Prahallad
Patnaik Dora
Chandrakanta
Chief Secretary
:
Shri Ajit Kumar Tripathy
Chief Justice
:
Dr. Balbir Singh Chauhan
Jurisdiction of
:
Orissa
High Court
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India 2010 AREA, POPULATION AND HEADQUARTERS OF DISTRICTS
S. No.
District
Area (sq km)
Population
Headquarters
1.
Angul
6,375
11,40,003
Angul
2.
Balasore
3, 8 0 6
20,24,508
Balasore
3.
Bolangir
6,575
13,37,194
Bolangir
4.
Boudh
3,098
37,33,72
5.
Bhadrak
2,505
13,33,749
Bhadrak
6.
Bargarh
5,837
13,46,336
Bargarh
7.
Cuttack
3,932
23,41,984
Cuttack
8.
Deogarh
2,940
2,74,108
Deogarh
9.
Ganjam
8,206
31,60,635
Chhatrapur
10.
Dhenkanal
4,452
10,66,878
Dhenkanal
11.
Gajapati
4,325
51,18,837
Parlakhemundi
12.
Jagatsinghpur
1,668
10,57,629
Jagatsinghpur
13.
Jajpur
2,899
16,24,341
Jajapur
14.
Jharsuguda
2,081
5,09,716
15.
Keonjhar
8,303
15,61,990
Keonjhar
16.
Kalahandi
7,920
13,35,494
Bhawanipatna
17.
Koraput
8,807
11,80,637
Koraput
18.
Kendrapara
2,644
13,02,005
Kendrapara
19.
Khurda
2,813
18,77,395
Khurda
20.
Mayurbhanja
10,418
22,23,456
Baripada
21.
Malkangiri
5,791
5,04,198
22.
Nawarangpur
5,291
10,25,766
23.
Nayagarh
3,890
8,64,516
Nayagarh
24.
Nuapada
3,852
5,30,690
Nuapada
25.
Puri
3,479
15,02,682
26.
Kandhamal
8,021
6,48,201
Phulbani
27.
Rayagada
7,073
8,31,109
Rayagada
28.
Sambalpur
6,657
9,35,613
Sambalpur
29.
Sundargarh
9,712
18,30,673
30.
Sonepur
2,337
5,41,83 5
Boudh
Town
Jharsuguda
Malkangiri Nawarangpur
Puri
Sundargarh Sonepur
PUNJAB Area
:
50,362 sq km
Population
Capital
:
Chandigarh
Principal
Language
:
2,43,58,999
:
Punjabi
HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY Ancient Punjab formed part of the vast Indo-Iranian region. In later years it saw the rise and fall of the Mauryas, Bactrians, Greeks, Sakas, Kushans and Guptas. Medieval
States and Union Territories
1179
Punjab saw a supremacy of the Muslims. Ghaznavi was followed by the Ghoris, the slaves, the Khiljis, the Tughlaks, the Lodhis and the Mughals. Fifteenth and sixteenth centuries marked a period of watershed in the history of Punjab. Through teachings of Guru Nanak, Bhakti movement received a great impetus. Sikhism began as a socioreligious movement, which was more interested in fighting evils in religion and society. It was Guru Gobind Singh, the tenth Guru, who transformed the Sikhs into the Khalsa. They rose to challenge tyranny and after centuries of servitude, established a humane Punjabi Raj based on secularism and patriotism. Maharaja Ranjit Singh, in the works of a Persian writer, changed Punjab from Madam Kada to Bagh-Bahist (from the abode of sorrow to the garden of paradise). But soon after his death the entire edifice collapsed due to internal intrigues and British machinations. After two abortive Anglo-Sikh wars, Punjab was finally annexed to the British Empire in 1849. The fight against the British rule had begun long before Mahatma Gandhi’s arrival on the scene. The revolt found expression through the movement of a revivalist or reformist character. First, it was the Namdhari sect, which believed in self-discipline and self-rule. Later, it was Lala Lajpat Rai who played a leading role in the Freedom Movement. Punjab was in the vanguard of India’s freedom struggle on all fronts in India and abroad. Punjab’s hardships did not end with Independence. It had to face the misery of Partition with large-scale bloodshed and migration. Besides their rehabilitation, there was the task of reorganisation of the State. Eight princely states of East Punjab were grouped together to form a single state called PEPSU—Patiala and the East Punjab States Union—with Patiala as its capital. PEPSU state was merged with Punjab in 1956. Later in 1966, Haryana was carved out of Punjab and during the same year the erstwhile capital of Punjab was shifted from Shimla to Chandigarh. Situated in the north-western corner of the country, Punjab is bound on the west by Pakistan, on the north by Jammu and Kashmir, on the north-east by Himachal Pradesh and on the south by Haryana and Rajasthan. There are 13 Members of Parliament from Punjab and 117 Members of Legislature are elected to form the state Government. AGRICULTURE The State has 84% of its total geographical area (50.33 lakh hectares) under cultivation. The cropping intensity is around 189% with over 97% of the cultivable area being under assured irrigation. The State produces 20% of the country's wheat, 11% rice, 13% cotton and contributes significantly to the Central Pool with about 50% wheat and 40% rice. The paddy and wheat productivity in the State is 4022 kg/ha and 4450 kg/ha against the national average of 2173 kg/ha and 2868 kg/ha respectively. Fertilizer consumption at 225 kg/ha is almost two times higher than the national average of 113 kg/ha. The State's farm economy is highly mechanized owing 18% of the country's tractors. During 2008-09 the production of Paddy was 167 lakh mt against which 132.18 lakh mt was procured and production of wheat was 157 lakh mt against which a record 109.84 lakh mt was procured. INDUSTRY There are 1.54 lakh small-scale and 375 large and medium units in the state of Punjab as on 31/3/2009. These units produce bicycle parts, sewing machines, hand tools,
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India 2010
machine tools, auto parts, electric good items, sports goods, surgical instruments, leather goods, hosiery, knitwear, nuts and bolts, textile goods, textile, sugar, vegetable oil, etc., giving employment to about 11.69 lakh persons. S.A.S Nagar, (Mohali) in the vicinity of Chandigarh has emerged as an attractive destination for IT and IT enabled industries. Under the Industrial Infrastructure Upgradation Scheme (IIUS), Government of India has approved Machine Tools Cluster at Batala. Government of India is yet to approve the proposals for setting up of Hand Tool Cluster at Jalandhar and Common Facility Centre for Knitwear and Apparel Exporters Organization, at Ludhiana. State Government proposes to set up three more clusters namely steel Rolling Mills Cluster, Mandi Gobindgarh, Information Technology Park and Development of Spinning Industry, for these project reports are being prepared. Besides, above mentioned clusters, 22 clusters of Micro, Small & Medium industries have been identified for development in the state and have been sent to Micro Small & Medium Enterprises, Government of India, New Delhi. Out of these 13 proposals have been approved by Government of India for conducting Diagnostic Study Report. Development of Industry has been adversely affected in the State as a result of withdrawal of Freight Equalization on coal and Iron & Steel by Government of India. This has been further compounded with grant of tax exemption to the neighbouring States of Himachal Pradesh & Jammu & Kashmir. As a result a large number of Industrial Units from Punjab have expanded their capacities by making investments in the State of Himachal Pradesh & Jammu & Kashmir. IRRIGATION The total Geographical area of the State is 50.36 lakh hectares, out of which about 41.74 lakh hectares area is under cultivation. After partition of the country in 1947, Indus water treaty of 1960 between India and Pakistan restricted India's right to usage to only three eastern rivers Satluj, Beas and Ravi. The State has three dams namely Bhakra Dam with storage capacity of 5.60 MAF constructed on River Satluj, Pong Dam with storage capacity 1.90 MAF constructed on River Ravi. At present the area under irrigation is 40.77 lakh hectares, which is 97.68% of the area under cultivation. The canal surface water distribution System consists of 14500 km of Canals/ Distributaries covering six major systems in the state namely: Sirhind Canal system, Bhakra Main Line, Bist Doab Canal, Upper Bari Doab Canal, Sirhind feeder and Eastern canal. 27% area is irrigated by canal surface water and 73% area by 12.82 lakh tubewells. The total length of watercourses is 1,20,000 km in the State, out of which 41,294 km watercourses has been lined so far. The canal water and electricity is being provided free of cost to the farmers in the State. Project for remodeling of UBDC System to utilise additional water available on completion of Ranjit Sagar Dam has been completed under AIBP at a cost of Rs. 177.80 crore and benefited the 118 thousand hectares area of Amritsar and Gurdaspur district. The problem of adequate water discharge in Kasur Branch Lower and Sabraon Branch Canal System has been removed by undertaking the remodeling of their parent channel i.e., Kasur Branch Upper, thereby restoring adequate canal water supplies to the vast agricultural area of UBDC System. It is proposed to convert Banur Canal System from non-perennial to perennial under the Project costing Rs 58.15 crore. A consolidated Project costing Rs. 299.22 crore for increasing capacity of various channels of BML Canal System,
States and Union Territories
1181
Sirhind Feeder System, Bist Doab Canal System and Eastern Canal System has been proposed for funding by NABARD under which an additional irrigation potenital of 33,000 hectares will be created. The backward Kandi Area in Punjab has been developed by constructing 12 Low Dams with estimate cost of Rs. 420.00 crore which will further provide irrigation facilities to 12000 hectares. Similarly with the completion of Kandi canal from Talwara to Balachaur an additional area of 29640 hectares will be brought under irrigation. Besides, 1800 deep tubewells are being energized in the kandi area for irrigation purposes. 84800 hectare area is affected by water logging out of total area of 263929 Ha of three districts Ferozepur, Mukatsar and Faridkot. The impact of high water table in the southern part of state has been reduced with the construction of new drains and the maintenance of existing 8000 km of drains. Besides 1800 km of flood protection embankments and about 3800 river training works have also been completed. Installation of shallow tubewell along Sirhind Feeder in the most critical area also helped arresting the seepage from the canal. In order to arrest the menace of water logging in Ferozepur, Faridkot and Mukatsar districts by relining of Rajasthan Canal and Sirhind Feeder with an approximate cost of Rs. 1440 crore under AIBP. The central Punjab faces water depletion in 112 blocks (70%) out of 141 blocks declared dark in thee central Punjab. POWER The present generation capacity of Punjab is 6841 MW, whereas peak unrestricted demand is about 9000 MW. There is a shortfall of 30% of peak demand. The construction of Bhakra Nangal Complex including Bhakra Dam, Bhakra Main line, Nangal Hydel Channel, Ganguwal and Kotla Power House, Harike Barrage, Sirhind Feeder, remodelling of Madhopur Headwork into barrage, etc., and Beas Dam at Pong have been some of the major Irrigation and Hydroelectric Projects which have played a significant role in enhancing the irrigation and power potential of the State. Madhopur Beas Link was constructed to transfer surplus water of Ravi to Beas. A similar Beas-Satluj Link Project envisages the utilisation of the Beas water for the production of electricity at slapper and then transferring this water to Gobind Sagar lake. The Mukerian and Anandpur Sahib Hydroelectric projects are two important irrigation and power projects. All the four units of Ranjit Sagar Dam (4 x 150 MW) have been commissioned successfully. Annual generation from this project shall be 2,100 MUs’ out of which 4.6 per cent of energy generated shall be supplied to Himachal Pradesh and 20 per cent energy generated shall be supplied to J&K at genuine cost. By the completion of this dam, water of all three rivers allocated to Punjab under Indus Water Treaty will be harnessed. About Rs 500 crore per annum has started accruing. Moreover this project is likely to cover its own cost by the next four or five years. Four new thermal Power Plant are being setup in the State namely Talwandi Sabho (1980 MW) in Bathinda district, Rajpura (1320 MW) in Patiala district, Gidderbaha (2640 MW) in Mukatsar district and Goindwal Sahib (540 MW) in Tarn Taran district. PEDA Punjab Energy Development Agency (PEDA) has installed about 200, 2HP Solar Photovoltaic Water Pump Sets for irrigation purposes in the state. 16 Mini Hydel
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(15.85 MW) and 28 Micro Hydel (35 MW) Projects have been commissioned on BOO basis. PEDA has also commissioned Rs. 4.5 crore, 200 kwp Solar Photovoltaic Grid Interactive Power Plant at village Khatkar, Kalan, Distt. Shahid Bhagat Singh Nagar 218.65 MW Biomass/Baggasse based cogeneration power projects have been commissioned in the State. Punjab Energy Development Agency being the state designated agency for implementation of Energy Conservation Act 2001 in the state of Punjab, has initiated activities such as publicity and awareness of Energy Conservation/energy efficiency through print/electronic media, energy audit of building and industries, demo projects of energy efficiency in Municipal street lighting and water pumping, mandatory measure announcements, promotion of CFL/energy efficient lighting in domestic sector. TRANSPORT Roads : Public Works Department (Building and Roads) has been responsible for roads, bridges and buildings. The total road network length is 63833 kms., consisting of 1739 kms National Highways. 1462 kms State Highways, 5968 kms Major and other District Roads, 45000 kms Rural Link Roads, 8130 kms Urban Roads, 1534 kms Project Roads. Out of total 3400.02 kms rural roads, new construction of 815.16 kms and upgradation of 2584.86 kms under PMGSY has been completed. Aviation : There are three Civil Aviation Clubs at Ludhiana, Patiala and Amritsar. There is a domestic Airport at Chandigarh an International Airport at Rajasansi (Amritsar and two Aerodromes at Patiala and Ludhiana (Sahnewal). Two Aviation Clubs are coming up at Faridkot and Talwandi Sabo. FAIRS AND FESTIVALS Besides festivals of Dussehra, Diwali, Holi, other important festivals/fairs/melas are Maghi Mela at Mukatsar, Rural Sports at Kila Raipur, Basant at Patiala, Holla Mohalla at Anandpur Sahib, Baisakhi at Talwandi Saboo, Urs at Rauza Sharif at Sirhind, Chappar Mela at Chappar, Skeikh Farid Agam Purb at Faridkot, Ram Tirath at Village Ram Tirath, Shaheedi Jor Mela at Sirhind, Harballah Sangeet Sammelan Baba Sodal at Jalandhar. In addition to above Fairs and Festivals three heritage festivals at Amritsar, Patiala, Kapurthala are also celebrated every year and are very popular among the tourists. TOURISM The State has a large number of places of tourist interest some of which include Golden Temple, Durgiana Mandir, Jallianwala Bagh and the Wagah Border in Amritsar, Takht Sri Kesgarh Sahib and Khalsa Heritage Complex at Anandpur Sahib, Bhakra Dam, Qila Androon, Moti Bagh Palace and Chattbir Zoo at Patiala, Wetland at Harike Pattan, Sanghol (district Fatehgarh Sahib) and Rupnagar archeological Musem at Rupnagar, Shaheed Bhagat Singh Memorial at Village Khatkar Kalan, SBS Nagar for archeological importance, Mughal Complex at Aam Khas Bagh, Rauza Sharif of Sheikh Ahmed at Graves of Afghan Rulers at Sirhind and Sodal Temple at Jalandhar, commemorative of Maharishi Balmiki Heritage. To meet the requirement of trained manpower in tourism Industry and enhancement of employment generation the State Government has introduced the Hospitality courses in Schools, Colleges. LT.Is and Polyte chnics.
States and Union Territories
1183
In Rural areas, the scheme of Farm Tourism has been launched to provide better opportunities of employment with the assistance of District Administration. Uptill now 23 farm houses have been registered under Diamond/Gold/Silver category. Besides this, to explore the resources of the State, the project of Heritage Village is being set up at Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar with an estimated cost of Rs 22.00 crores. Quila Gobind Garh Fort, Amritsar which has been handed over to the State Government by the Army, is being renovated and conserved to be opened for general public. The Department of Tourism, Punjab has got prepared Tourism Master plan from the UNWTO. PENSIONS Punjab Government is paying monthly pension of Rs. 250/- to 12.30 lakh old persons (60 and above for women and 65 and above for men), 84,568 destitute children, 1,10,967 disabled persons and 2.14 lakh widows Rs. 468.00 crore has been allocated for 2009-10 for payment of pensions to these 16.40 lakh persons. Under "Indira Gandhi National Old Age Pension" scheme, Rs. 200/- p.m. over and above the pension paid by the State Government is given to disabled, issueless persons, widows and destitute old persons of 65 years and above belonging to below poverty line families. 100% ACA is provided for this purpose by GOI under National Social Assistance Programme. 1,59,292 beneficiaries are covered in Punjab under this scheme.
GOVERNMENT Governor
: General S.F.
Chief Minister
(Retd.)
Chief Secretary
:
K.R.
Jurisdiction of
:
Punjab, Haryana and
Lakhanpal
Rodrigues
: Sardar Singh
Prakash Badal
High Court
Chandigarh
AREA, POPULATION AND HEADQUARTERS OF DISTRICTS S. No.
District
Area (sq km)
Population (P)
Headquarters
1.
Amrits a r
5,075
30,96,077
Amritsar
2.
Bhatinda
3,377
11,83,295
Bathinda
3.
Faridkot
1,472
5,50,892
Faridkot
4.
Fatehgarh
1,180
5,38,041
Fathegarh
5.
Firozepur
5,865
17,46,107
Firozepur
6.
Gurdaspur
3,570
21,04,011
Gurdaspur
7.
Hoshiarpur
3,310
14,80,376
Hoshiarpur
8.
Jalandhar
2,658
19,62,700
Jalandhar
9.
Kapurthala
1,646
7,54,521
10.
Ludhiana
3,744
30,32,831
Ludhiana
11.
Mansa
2,174
68,87,558
Mansa
12.
Moga
1,672
8,94,854
Moga
13.
Muktsar
2,596
7,77,493
Muktsar
14.
Nawan
1,258
5,87,468
Nawan
Sahib
Shehar
Sahib
Kapurthala
Shehar
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India 2010
15.
Patiala
3,627
18,44,934
Patiala
16.
Roo p
2,117
11,16,108
Roop
Nagar
17.
S.A.S.
Nagar
1,093
6,98,317
Roop
Nagar
18.
S.B.S.
Nagar
1,267
5,87,468
Roop
Nagar
19.
Sangrur
5,021
20,00,173
20.
Tarn Taran
2,449
9,39,057
Nagar
Sangrur -
RAJASTHAN Area
:
3,42,239 sq km
Population
:
5,64,73,122
Capital
:
Jaipur
Principal
:
Hindi and Rajasthani
Languages
HISTO RY AND GEOGRAPHY Rajasthan, the largest State in India area-wise prior to Independence was known as Rajputana. The Rajputs, a martial community ruled over this area for centuries. The history of Rajasthan dates back to the pre-historic times. Around 3,000 and 1,000 BC, it had a culture akin to that of the Indus Valley civilisation. The Chauhans who dominated Rajput affairs from seventh century and by 12 th century they had become an imperial power. After the Chauhans, it were the Guhilots of Mewar who controlled the destiny of the warring tribes. Besides Mewar, the other historically prominent states were Marwar,Jaipur,Bundi,Kota,Bharatpur and Alwar. Other states were only offshoots of these. All these states accepted the British Treaty of Subordinate Alliance in 1818 protecting the interest of the princes. This naturally left the people discontented. After the revolt of 1857, the people united themselves under the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi to contribute to the freedom movement. With the introduction of provincial autonomy in 1935 in British India, an agitation for civil liberties and political rights became stronger in Rajasthan. The process of uniting scattered states commenced from 1948 to 1956 when the States Reorganisation Act was promulgated. First came Matsya Union (1948) consisting of a fraction of states, then, slowly and gradually other states merged with this Union. By 1949, Major states like Bikaner, Jaipur, Jodhpur and Jaisalmer joined this Union making it the United State of Greater Rajasthan. Ultimately in 1958, the present State of Rajasthan formally came into being, with Ajmer state, the Abu Road Taluka and Sunel Tappa joining it. The entire western flank of the state borders with Pakistan, while Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh bound Rajasthan in north-east, south– east and Gujarat in south-west. AGRICULTURE Total cultivable area in the State is 225 lakh hectares (2008-2009). The estimated food grain production is 161.80 lakh tonnes (2008-09). Principal crops cultivated in the State are rice, barley, jowar, millet, maize ,gram, wheat, oilseeds, pulses, cotton and tobacco. Cultivation of vegetable and citrus fruits such as orange and malta has also picked up over last few years. Other crops are red chillies, mustard, cumin seeds, fenugreek methi and asofoetida hing.
States and Union Territories
1185
INDUSTRY AND MINERALS Endowed with a rich culture, Rajasthan is also rich in minerals and is fast emerging on the industrial scenario of the country. Some of the important Central undertakings are Zinc Smelter Plant at Devari (Udaipur), Copper Plant at Khetri Nagar (Jhunjhunu) and Precision Instrument Factory at Kota. Small-scale industrial units numbering 13,16,267 with a capital investment of Rs 8,88,820.70 crore provides employment potential to about 13,16,267 persons in the States as on March 2009. Major industries are textiles and woollens, sugar, cement, glass, sodium plants, oxygen, vegetable dyes, pesticides, zinc, fertilizers, railway wagons, ball bearings, water and electricity metres, sulphuric acid, television sets, synthetic yarn and insulting bricks. Besides, precious and semi-precious stones, caustic soda, calcium carbide, nylon and tyers, etc. are other important industrial units. Rajasthan has rich deposits of zinc concentrates, emerald, granite, gypsum, silver ore, asbestos, felspar and mica. Promotional Industrial Park of the country has been established and made operational at Sitapura (Jaipur). IRRIGATION
AND
POWER
By the end of March 2009 irrigation potential of 36.46 lakh hectares was created in the state through various major, medium and minor irrigation projects and additional irrigation potential of 58,067 hectares ( excluding IGNP & CAD) had been created. The installed power capacity in the State has become 7019.59Mw upto December 2009 of which 4375.30 Mw is produced from State-owned projects, 766.00 Mw from collaboration projects and 1879.29 Mw from the allocation from Central power generating stations. TRANSPORT Roads : The total length of roads was 1,86,806 km as on March 2009. Railways : Jodhpur, Jaipur, Bikaner, Kota, Sawai Madhopur and Bharatpur are main rail junctions of State. Aviation : Regular air services connect Jaipur, Jodhpur and Udaipur with Delhi and Mumbai. FESTIVALS Rajasthan is a land of festivals and fairs, besides the national festivals of Holi, Deepawali, Vijayadashmi, Christmas, etc., birth anniversaries of gods and goddesses, saintly figures, folk heroes and heroines are celebrated. Important fairs are Teej, Gangaur(Jaipur),annual Urs of Ajmer Sharif and Galiakot, tribal Kumbh of Beneshwar(Dungarpur), Mahaveer fair at Shrimahavirji in Sawai Madhopur, Ramdeora(Jaisalmer),Janbheslwari fair(Mukam-Bikaner), Kartik Poornima and Cattle Fair (Pushkar-Ajmer) and Shyamji Fair(Sikar), etc. TOURISTS CENTRES Jaipur, Jodhpur,Udaipur, Bikaner, Mount Abu, Sariska Tiger Sanctuary in Alwar, Keoladeo National Park at Bharatpur, Ajmer, Jaisalmer, Pali and Chittorgarh are important places of tourist interest in the State.
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GOVERNMENT Governor
: Shilendra
Chief Minister
: Ashok
Speaker
: Deependra
Kumar
Singh
Gehlot
Chief Secretary
:
Chief Justice Jurisdiction of
Kushal
Singh
Justice Narain Ray :
Rajasthan
High Court
Shekhawat
AREA, POPULATION AND HEADQUARTERS OF DISTRICTS S. No.
District
Area (sq km)
Population
Headquarters
1.
Ajmer
8,481
21,80,526
Ajmer
2.
Alwar
8,380
29,90,862
Alwar
3.
Banswara
5,037
15,00,420
Banswara
4.
Barmer
28,387
19,63,758
Barmer
5.
Bharatpur
5,066
20,98,323
Bharatpur
6.
Bhilwara
10,455
20,09,516
Bhilwara
7.
Bikaner
27,244
16,73,562
Bikaner
8.
Bundi
5,550
9,61,269
9.
Chittorgarh
10,856
18,02,656
Chittorgarh
10.
Churu
16,830
19,22,908
Churu
11.
Dholpur
3,034
9,82,815
12.
Dungarpur
3,770
11,07,037
Dungarpur
13.
Ganganagar
7,944
17,88,487
Ganganagar
14.
Jaipur
11,588
52,52,388
Jaipur
15.
Jaisalmer
38,401
5,07,999
16.
Jalore
10,640
14,48,486
Jalore
17.
Jhalawar
6,219
11,80,342
Jhalawar
18.
Jhunjhunu
19.
Jodhpur
20.
Kota
21.
Nagaur
22.
Pali
23.
Sawai
24.
Bundi
Dholpur
Jaisalmer
5,928
19,13,099
Jhunjhunu
22,850
28,80,777
Jodhpur
5,481
15,68,580
Kota
17,718
27,73,894
Nagaur
12,387
18,19,201
Pali
5,043
11,16,031
Sawai
Sikar
7,732
22,87,229
Sikar
25.
Sirohi
5,136
8,50,756
Sirohi
26.
Tonk
7,194
12,11,343
Tonk
27.
Udaipur
12,511
26,32,210
Udaipur
28.
Dausa
2,950
13,16,790
Dausa
29.
Baran
6,955
10,22,568
Baran
30.
Rajsamand
4,768
9,86,269
31.
Hanumangarh
12,690
15,17,390
Hanumangarh
32.
Karoli
5,041
12,05,613
Karol i
33.
Partapgarh
4,189
7,06,807
Madhopur
Madhopur
Rajsamand
Partapgarh
States and Union Territories
1187
SIKKIM Area
:
7,096 sq km
Population
Capital
:
Gangtok
Principal
Languages
:
5,40,493 (2001 census)
:
Lepcha, Bhutia and Nepali
HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY The early history of Sikkim starts in the 13th century with the signing of a bloodbrotherhood treaty between the Lepcha Chief Thekong Tek and Tibetan prince KhyeBumsa at Kabi Lungtsok in North Sikkim. This follows the historical visit of three revered Lamas to Yuksam in 1641 in West Sikkim where they consecrated Phuntsog Namgyal, a sixth generation descendent of Khye-Humsa as the first Chogyal of Sikkim, thus heralding the beginning of the Namgyal dynasty in Sikkim. With the march of history, events in Sikkim saw the State pass through the process of democratisation and become an integral part of the Indian Union in 1975. Guru Padmasambhava blessed Sikkim enroute to Tibet. Sikkim is a blessed land where people from all communities live in harmony. Inspite of the fact that Sikkim comprises different people and multi ehtnic society, it is perhaps the most peaceful State of the Indian Union to promote communal harmony and human relations, a feat which is much expected in a plural society like India. Sikkim is a small hilly state, bound by vast stretches of Tibetan Plateaux in the North, the Chumbi Valley of Tibet and the Kingdom of Bhutan in the East, the Kingdom of Nepal in the West and Darjeeling (West Bengal) in the South. The State has a total area of 7,096 sq km and is stretched over 112 km from North to South and 64 km from East to West. It lies in the North-Eastern Himalayas between 27 degree 00’46’’ to 28 degree 07’48’’ North Latitude and 88 degree 00’58’’ to 88 degree 55’25’’ East Longitude. The world’s third highest mountain, Khangchendzonga, regarded as the guardian deity of Sikkim. Sikkim is one of the 18 biodiversity hotspots in the world. More than 5000 species of angiosperms are found in the State, nearly one third of the total species of angiosperm found in the country. There are over 4000 species of flowering plants, 300 species of ferns and algies, over 500 species of orchids, atleast 36 species of Rhododendrons, 40 species of oak, 40 species of primulas and bamboos, about 150 species of mammals, 500 to 600 species of birds, over 400 species of butterflies and moths and many species of reptiles in the State. Rare blue sheep, Tibetan mastiff, yaks and red pandas are found here. TOURISM Sikkim is famous for its lush green vegetation, forest, scenic valleys and majestic mountains and a range of rich and magnificent cultural heritage and peace loving people who provide a safe haven for tourists. The State Government supports ecofriendly and pilgrimage tourism and accordingly have provided facilities to enable visitors to enjoy a first-hand experience of the rich heritage and lifestyle of Sikkim. Recognising the potential of adventure tourism, the state government is setting up a Himalayan Centre for Adventure Tourism at Chemchey Village in South Sikkim. The premier monastery of Sikkim is Pemayantshe in Pelling. Apart from this there is Tashiding Monastery in West Sikkim, which is considered the holiest of all the monasteries in Sikkim. The most ancient monastery of Sikkim is in Yuksom, called the Drubdi monastery. It was the personal hermitage of Lhatsun Chenpo (Patron
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Saint of Sikkim), and was possibly built in 1700 AD. Some of the other monasteries are Phodong, Phensang, Rumtek, Ngadak, Tolung, Ahlay, Tsuklakhang, Ralong, Lachen, Enchey and others. Of the Hindu temples, the best known is the Thakurbari, in the heart of Gangtok. Then there is a holy cave in South district, which has a Shiva Lingam that irradiates the cave where no other light finds its way. There are some important Gurdwaras and Mosques, cheif among them being in Gangtok and Ravangla. FESTIVALS Sikkim's population comprises the three principal ethnic communities of the Bhutias, Lepchas and the Nepalese. Maghey Sankranti, Durga Puja, Laxmi Puja and Chaite Dassai/Ram Navami Dassai, Tyohar, Sonam Losoong, Namsoog, Tendong Lho Rum Faat (Worship of Mt. Tendong), Losar (Tibetan New Year) are the major festivals. The other festivals include Sakewa (Rai), Sonam Lochar (Gurung), Barahimzong (Mangar). AGRICULTURE Agriculture is the mainstay of majority ruler populace of Sikkim. The economy of the state is linked with agriculture that serves as the source of livelihood and economic security of more than 64% of the population. The total agriculture land holding in Sikkim is estimated to be 109,000 ha i.e. around 15% of total geographical area. The net area sown is estimated to be 78,300 Ha (Agri Census 2000-2001). Farming practice in Sikkim is integrated in nature. Maize, rice, wheat potato, large cardamom, ginger and orange are the principle crops. Sikkim has the largest area and highest production of cardamom in India, Ginger, potato, orange and off-season vegetable are the cash crops of Sikkim. INDUSTRY Though Sikkim is a tiny Himalayan State, the Government and its people are very conscious about the environment and therefore has paid priority for setting up ecofriendly industries and the thrust areas are Agro-Horticulture and Floriculture based, Animal Husbandry and Dairy Development, Handloom & Handicrafts; Tourism, Precision Oriented high value low volume products, Hydel Power, Tea, Health, Education etc. After the announcement of North-East Industrial and Investment Policy, 2007, to North-East Region, including Sikkim w.e.f. 1.4.2007, a number of industrial units have been set up especially in pharmaceutical and other activities like packaging etc., besides the existing famous units like, Sikkim Jewels, Sikkim Time Corporation, Temi Tea Estate and Directorate of Handloom & Handicrafts. The Sikkim Industrial Development & Investment Corporation and NEDFI are providing long term loans to Micro and Medium industrial activities and other service oriented units. Sikkim is considered as one of the best destinations for investment in the entire North East due to prevailing peace and tranquility, political stability and rule of law in the State. IRRIGATION AND POWER The Department of Irrigation and Flood Control has covered 3789.88 hectares agricultural land. Tenth Five year Plan targets to irrigate 5000 hectares of agricultural land.
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The State has installed hydro power capacity of 40.7 MW, diesel generation of capacity of 5 MW, and transformation capacity of 132/66 KV of 200 MVA and 66/11 KV of 207.5 MVA. Under PSU, NHPC has installed hydropower of 570 M.W. Hydropower potential of 4538 MW are awarded to private generating companies on BOOT format. Out of them power projects of 2015 MW are under construction. The total estimated seasonal hydro potential of the State is of 8000 m.w. TRANSPORT Roads : Gangtok is connected by roads with Darjeeling, Kalimpong, Siliguri and also with all the district headquarters within Sikkim. The total road length of the state is 2,383 kms which includes 873.40 km road maintained by Border Roads Organisation. Railways and Aviation : The closest railway stations are Siliguri (113) and New Jalpaiguri (125 km) connecting Koklata, Delhi, Guwahati, Lucknow and other important cities. There is no airport in Sikkim. There is a helicopter service between Gangtok and Bagdogra. INFORMATION
TECHNOLOGY
A new Information Technology Department has been created in the state and has prepared extensive projects to give top priority to this department. The newly created department has already launched a number of web sites on Sikkim and is now aiming for e-governance through the use of information tools. The official website of Sikkim hosted and maintained by the Department of Information Technology, Government of Sikkim is www.sikkimgovt.org.
GOVERNMENT Governor
: Balmiki
Prasad
Chief Minister
: Pawan
Chamling
Speaker
: K.T.
Namgyal
Singh
Gyartser
Chief Secretary
: T.T. Dorji
Chief Justice
: Aftab Husain Saikh
Jurisdiction of
: Sikkim
High Court
AREA, POPULATION AND HEADQUARTERS OF DISTRICTS S. No.
District
1.
East
2.
Area (sq km)
Population
Headquarters
954
1,78,452
Gangtok
North
4,226
11,240
Mangan
3.
South
750
98,604
Namchi
4.
West
1,166
98,161
Gyalshing
TAMILNADU Area
:
1,30,058 sq km
Population
:
6,24,05,679
Capital
:
Chennai
Principal
:
Tamil
Language
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HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY Tamilnadu has a hoary antiquity. Though early sangam classics throw historical references it is only from the Pallavas we pass to recorded history. South India had remained under the hegemony of the Cholas, the Cheras and the Pandyas for centuries. The Pallavas held supremacy from about the second quarter of the fourth century AD. They were the originators of the famous Dravidian style of temple architecture. The last Pallava ruler was Aparajita in whose reign the later Cholas under Vijayalaya and Aditya asserted themselves by about the 10th century. At the end of the 11th century, Tamilnadu was ruled by several dynasties like the Chalukyas, Cholas and Pandyas. In the two centuries that followed, the imperial Cholas gained paramountacy over South India. Muslims gradually strengthened their position, which led to the establishment of the Bahamani Sultanate, by the middle of the 14th century. At the same time, the Vijayanagar Kingdom quickly consolidated itself and extended its sway over the whole of South India and at the close of the century, Vijayanagar became the supreme power in South. However, it crumbled at the battle of Talikota in 1564 to the confederate forces of the Deccan Sultans. Even during the period of the tumultous confusion that followed the battle of Talikota, European commercial interest had appeared as rivals in the area of South India. The Portuguese, the Dutch, the French and the English came in quick succession and established trading centres known as ‘Factories’. East India Company which had established their factory at Masulipatnam, now in Andhra Pradesh, in 1611 gradually annexed territories by encouraging enmity among the native rulers. Tamilnadu was one of the first of British settlements in India. The State is the successor to the old Madras Presidency which in 1901 covered the bulk of the southern peninsula. The composite Madras State was later reorganised and the present Tamilnadu was formed. Tamilnadu is bounded on north by Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka on west by Kerala, on east by the Bay of Bengal and on south by the Indian Ocean. AGRICULTURE Agriculture is the major occupation in Tamilnadu. The total cultivated area in the State was 58.15 lakhs hectares in 2007-08. The principal food crops include paddy, millets and pulses. Commercial crops include sugarcane, cotton, sunflower, coconut, cashew, chillies, gingelly and groundnut. Plantation crops are tea, coffee, cardamom and rubber. Major forest produces are timber, sandalwood, pulp wood and fuel wood. Tamilnadu occupies a premier position in the production and extensive application of bio-fertilizers. Efforts are on to improve farming technologies so as to increase yields in the low rainfall areas of the State. Annual foodgrains production in the year 2007-08 was 65.81 lakhs Mt. INDUSTRY AND MINERALS Major Industries in the State are cotton, heavy commercial vehicles, auto components, railway coaches, power pumps, leather tanning industries, cement, sugar, paper, automobiles and safety matches. Knowledge based industries like I.T. and Biotechnology have become the thrust area in the industrial scene in Tamilnadu. TIDEL, a software technology park, has been established in Tharamani, Chennai. The Software export from the State which was Rs. 20,700 crores in 2006-07 is expected to cross Rs. 25,000 crores in 2007-08. Top
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I.T. and Telecom companies such as Nokia, Motorola, Foxcon, Flextronic and Dell have commenced production. Global auto majors Hyundai Motors, Ford, Hindustan Motors and Mitsubishi have commenced production plants. Ashok Leyland and TAFE have set up expansion plants in Chennai. Main mineral wealth of the state is granite, lignite and limestone. The state is an important exporter of tanned skin and leather goods, yarn, tea, coffee, spices, engineering goods, tobacco, handicrafts and black granite. Tamil Nadu contributes to 60 per cent of the tannery industry in India. IRRIGATION Important irrigation schemes and modernisation of existing Periyar Vaigai System, Palar Basin System and Parambikulam-Aliyar System besides the minor system in Vellar, Pennayar, Araniyar Amaravathi, Chithar basins totalling, an extent of six lakh acres of existing ayacut in Tamil Nadu have been benefited by implementing the ‘System Improvement and Farmers Turnover Projects’ executed with assistance from World Bank. The World Bank has also approved Rs 2,547 crores for the Irrigated Agriculture Modernisation and Water Bodies Restoration Management Project. The Project covers about 6,17lakh ha. in 63 selected sub-basins throughout the state. Nine irrigation projects which were just started and going on a slow progress have been speeded up with adequate fund and guidance for early completion. The major irrigation system covering one-third of irrigated extent in Tamil Nadu, namely tank irrigation system has been given due regard for development under WRCP and 620 tanks maintained by Public Works Department falling under Palar, Vaigai and Tamaraparani Basins have been taken up for rehabilitation and improvement. This project is nearing completion to the maximum satisfaction of the farmers. This State has become the pioneer State to implement the system of ‘River basin management’ by an individual body consisting of officials and farmers besides various representatives of the basin. POWER The total installed capacity for electricity in the State is 10,214 MW as on 31.03.2009. The installed capacity of State Sector is 5,690 MW and that of Private Sector is 1,180 MW. Apart from this 2825 MW is available as share from Central Sector, 305 MW is obtained from external assistance and 214 MW from Captive Power Plants. Apart from this wind mills from the private sector provide 4270 MW and 466.10 MW is received from co-generation plants and 109.55 MW from Bio-mass plants. As on 31.03.2009, there are 1259 sub stations, 1.64 lakh ckt kms of Extra High Tension/High Tension lines, 5.26 lakh kms of low tension lines, 1.86 distribution transformers and 203.87 lakh service connections. TRANSPORT Roads : The length of roads network in Tamil Nadu is 61,641 km. Railways : The total length of railways is 3,927 km and the main junctions stations are Chennai, Madurai, Tiruchirapalli, Coimbatore, Tirunelveli, Salem, Erode and Arakkonam. Aviation : Chennai being the international airport in the southern region, is the main centre of airline routes. Besides, there are airports at Tiruchirapalli, Madurai, Coimbatore and Salem.
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Ports : Major ports in the State are Chennai, Egmore and Tuticorin. There are seven other minor ports including Cuddalore and Nagapattinam. FESTIVALS Pongal is the harvest festival celebrated by the farmers in January to worship the sun, the earth and the cattle as thanks giving for a bounteous harvest. Pongal is followed by the Jallikattu -Bull fight, Tamilnadu style in some parts of sourthern Tamilnadu. Alanganallur in Tamilnadu is internationally famous for Jallikattu -Bull fight. Chithirai festival, Madurai: Madurai brings a spectacular re-enactment of the marriage of the Pandiyan princess Meenakshi to Lord Sundareswarar. Adipperukku is a festival celebrated on the 18th day of Tamil month, Adi, on the banks of rivers. It marks the commencement of new farming operations. A truly secular festival - where devotees flock to the shrine of saint Quadirwali. One of the descendants of the Saint is chosen as a Peer or spiritual leader and is honoured with offerings. On the tenth day of the festival, the Saint’s tomb is annointed with sandalwood and later the holy sandal paste is distributed to everyone. Velankanni festival : Wondrous legends surround the church, the most famous being that of the ship wrecked Portuguese sailors, who in the 16th century, vowed to build a great shrine for the Virgin Mary, for saving their lives in a terrible storm. The Velankanni festival attracts thousands, clad in orange robes to the sacred spot where the ship landed. Equally famous are the Virgin Mary's miraculous healing powers - earning for the church the name 'Lourdes of the East'. Navarathiri festival : Literally, this means the festival of ‘nine nights’ taking unique and different forms in different states of India - all to propitiate the goddess Sakthi, for power, wealth and knowledge. Music Festival : In December Chennai celebrates her priceless heritage of carnatic music and dance to present a galaxy of star artistes, old and new. TOURIST CENTRES Chennai, Mamallapuram, Poompuhar, Kancheepuram, Kumbakonam, Dharasuram, Chidambaram, Tiruvannamalai, Srirangam, Madurai, Rameswaram, Tirunelveli, Kanniyakumari, Thanjavur, Velankanni, Nagoor, Chithannavasal, Kazhugumalai (monument centres), Courtallam, Hogenakkal, Papanasam, Suruli (water-falls), Ooty (Udhagamandalam), Kodaikanal, Yercaud, Elagiri Kolli Hills (hill stations), Guindy (Chennai), Mudumalai, Annamalai, Mundanthurai, Kalakad (wild life sanctuaries), Vedanthangal and Point Calimere (bird sanctuaries), Arignar Anna Zoological Park, near Chennai, are some of the places of tourist interest.
GOVERNMENT Governor
: S.S.
Chief Minister
: M.
Barnala Karunanidhi
Chief Secretary
: L. Tripathy
Jurisdiction of
: Tamil Nadu and
High Court
Pondicherry
AREA, POPULATION AND HEADQUARTERS OF DISTRICTS S. No.
District
Area (sq km)
Population
Headquarters
1.
Chen n a i
174
43,43,645
Chennai
2.
Kancheepuram
4,307
28,77,468
Kancheepuram
3.
Thiruvallur
3,550
27,54,756
Thiruvallur
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4.
Vellore
6,077
34,77,317
Vellore
5.
Thiruvannamalai
6,190
21,86,125
Thiruvannamalai
6.
Cuddalore
3,706
22,85,395
Cuddalore
7.
Villupuram
7,190
29,60,373
Villupuram
8.
Salem
5,425
30,16,346
Salem
9.
Namakkal
3,404
14,93,462
Namakkal
10.
Dharmapuri
9,622
28,56,300
Dharmapuri
11.
Pudukottai
4,651
14,59,601
Pudukottai
12.
Erode
8,209
25,81,500
Erode
13.
The Nilgiris
2,549
7,62,141
14.
Coimbatore
7,469
42,71,856
Coimbatore
15.
Tiruchirappalli
4,511
24,18,366
Tiruchirappalli
16.
Karur
2,901
9,35,686
Karur
17.
Perambalur
1,750
4,93,646
Perambalur
18.
Ariyalur
1,944
6,95,524
Ariyalur
19.
Thanjavur
3,476
22,16,138
Thanjavur
20.
Nagapattinam
2,417
14,88,839
Nagapattinam
21.
Thiruvarur
2,377
11,69,474
Thiruvarur
22.
Madurai
3,696
25,78,201
Madurai
23.
Theni
2,869
10,93,950
Theni
24.
Dindigul
6,058
19,23,014
Dindigul
25.
Ramanathapuram
4,175
11,87,604
Ramanathapuram
26.
Sivagangai
4,143
11,55,356
Sivagangai
27.
Virudhunagar
4,283
17,51,301
Virudhunagar
28.
Tirunelveli
6,810
27,23,988
Tirunelveli
29.
Thoothukudi
4,621
15,72,273
Thoothukudi
30.
Kanniyakumari
1,684
16,76,034
Nagercoil
31.
Tiruppur
4719.85
19,17,033
Tiruppur
Udhagamandalam
TRIPURA Area
:
10,491.69 sq km
Population
:
31,99,203
Capital
:
Agartala
Principal
:
Bengali
Languages
and
Kokborak
HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY Tripura has its unique tribal culture and a fascinating folklore. The history of Tripura can be learnt from ‘Rajmala ’ chronicles of king Tripura and writings of historians. There are references of Tripura even in the Mahabharata and the Puranas. According to ‘Rajmala’, the rulers were known by the surname ‘Fa’ meaning ‘father’. There is a reference to rulers of Bengal helping Tripura kings in the 14th century. Kings of Tripura had to face frequent Mughal invasions with varying successes. They defeated the Sultans of Bengal in several battles. Nineteenth century marked the beginning of the modern era in Tripura when king Maharaja Bir Chandra Kishore Manikya Bahadur
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modelled his administrative set-up on the British India pattern and brought in various reforms. His successors ruled Tripura till 15 October 1949 when the state merged with the Indian Union. Initially, a part 'C' state, it became a centrally administered territory with the re-organisation of states in 1956. In 1972, Tripura attained the status of a full-fledged state. Tripura is strategically situated between the river valleys of Myanmar and Bangladesh. Encircled almost on three sides by Bangladesh, it is linked with Assam and Mizoram in the North-East. IRRIGATION Tripura is a predominantly hilly state having geographical area of 10,49,169 hectare. Amid the undulating terrain, the cultivable 2,80,000 hectares, as on 31 March 2008, an area of 93,359 hectares of land which is 79.97% of irrigation area and 33.34% of cultivable land has been brought under irrigation coverage through Medium Irrigation, Lift Irrigation, Diversion, Deep Tube Well, Shallow Sube Wells etc. The nature of schemes completed and commissioned by PWD (Water Resource) include 1411 nos. Diversion Schemes and 166 nos. Irrigation Deep Tube Wells. The three ongoing medium irrigation projects (Gumati, Khowai and Manu) have also been partially commissioned and expected to be complete by 2009-10. POWER The present highest peak demand of power in the State is around 162 MW. Power available now from own generating stations is around 80 MW. About 40 MW power is being imported from the State's allocated share from the Central Sector power generating stations in the NE-Region. It is estimated that the peak demand during 2012 will be around 396 MW considering the demand arising out of Rajiv Gandhi Vidyutikaran Yojana (RGGVY) and Industrialization in the State. NEW POWER PROJECTS IN TRIPURA 1.
1 x 21 MW GT Project at Baramura, West Tripura under NEC, Implementing Agency : TSECL, Work is in progress, completion schedule :- December 2009.
2.
OTPC Power project (740 MW) at Palatana, Udaipur, Tripura South : Tripura's share is 200 MW. Likely to be commissioned in 2011-12.
3.
Monachak G.T. Project (104 MW) : Implementing Agency : NEEPCO, likely to be commissioned in 2010-11.
TRANSPORT Roads : The total length of roads in Tripura is 1,997 km of which major district roads constitute 90 km. Other district roads are 1,218 km and State Highway is 689 km. Railways : The work for Rail line up to Agartala as a part of National Project has been completed. The project for extention of Rail Line from Agartala to Sabroom has been approved by Central Government. Aviation : The main Airport is at Agartala. TOURISM The important tourist centres are : (a) West-south Tripura Tourism Circuit: (i) Agartala (ii) Kamalsagar (iii) Sepahijala (iv) Neermahal (v) Udaipur (vi) Pilak (vii) Mahamuni (b) West-North Tripura Tourism Circuit: (i) Agartala (ii) Unokuti (i ii) Jampui Hill.
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FESTIVALS a) Tourism Festival: (i) Tourism Festival at Vanghmun, (ii) Unokuti Tourism Festival, (iii) Neermahal Tourism Festival, (iv) Pilak Tourism Festival. b) Cultural Religious Festival: (i) Makar Sankranti at Thirthamukh and Unokoti, (ii) Holi, (iii) Ashokashtami at Unokoti, Brahmakunda (Mohanpur), (iv) Rash (v) Bengali New Year, (vi) Garia, Dhamail, Biju and Hozagiri Festival, (vii) Boat Race and Manasa Mangal Festival, (viii) Ker and Kharchi Festival, (ix) Durgapuja, (x) Diwali, (xi) Christmas at Jampui Hills, (xii) Budha Purnima, (xiii) Rabindra-Najrul-Sukanta Utsav, (xiv) Street Drama Festival, (xv) Chongpreng Utsav, (xvi) Khumpui Festival, (xvii) Wah Festival, (xviii) Folk Cultural Festival (Loka Utsav), (xix) Murasing Festival, (xx) Sanghati Festival, (xxi) Baishakhi Festival (Sabroom), etc, are celebrated annually.
GOVERNMENT Governor
:
Dinesh
Nandan
Chief Minister
:
Manik
Sarkar
Speaker
:
Remendra
Sahaya
Chandra
Chief Secretary
:
Shashi
Jurisdiction of
:
Falls under
High Court
Debnath
Prakash
Guwahati
High
Agartala
Bench
Court
AREA, POPULATION AND HEADQUARTERS OF DISTRICTS S. No.
District
1.
North Tripura
2.
Area (sq km)
Population
Headquarters
2,820.63
5,90,913
Kailashahar
South Tripura
2,151.77
7,67,440
Udaipur
3.
West Tripura
2,996.82
15,32,982
Agartala
4.
Dhalai
2,552.47
3,07,868
Ambassa
UTTARAKHAND Area
:
53,484 sq km
Population
:
84,89,349
Capital
:
Dehradun
Principal
:
Hindi,
Languages
English,
Garhwali,
Kumauni
H ISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY Uttarakhand finds mention in the ancient Hindu scriptures as Kedarkhand, Manaskhand and Himavant. The Kushanas, Kunindas, Kanishka, Samudra Gupta, the Pauravas, Katuris, Palas, the Chandras and Panwars and the British have ruled it in turns. It is often called the Land of the Gods (Dev Bhoomi) because of its various holy places and abundant shrines. The hilly regions of Uttarakhand offer pristine landscapes to the tourists. The State of Uttarakhand was earlier a part of the United Province of Agra and Awadh which came into existence in 1902. In 1935, the name of State was shortened ot the United Province. In January 1950, the United Province was renamed as Uttar Pradesh and Uttaranchal remained a part of Uttar Pradesh before it was carved out of Uttar Pradesh on 09 November 2000. It is incepted as the 27th State of India.
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Located in the foothills of the Himalayas, the State has international boundaries with China (Tibet) in the north and Nepal in the east. On its north-west lies Himachal Pradesh while on the south is Uttar Pradesh. AGRICULTURE About 90 per cent of the population of Uttarakhand depends on agriculture. The total cultivated area in the State is 7,67,571 hectares. INDUSTRY AND MINERALS The State is rich in mineral deposits like limestone, marble, rock phosphate, dolomite, magnesite, copper greyphyte, gypsum, etc. The number of small-scale industries is 34,231 providing employment to 1,77,677 persons, with an investment of Rs 14,965.67 crore. IRRIGATION AND ENERGY Agricultural land under irrigation is 5,49,381 hectares. The State has excellent potential for hydropower generation. There are a number of hydro-electric projects on the rivers Yamuna, Bhagirathi, Bhilangana, Alaknanda, Mandakini, Saryu Gauri, Kosi and Kali generating electricity. Total hydropower potential approx 25,450 MW. Projects alloted to various agencies 13,667 MW. Out of 15,761 villages, 15,241 villages have been electrified. TRANSPORT Roads : The total length of metalled roads in Uttarakhand is 29,939 km. The length of PWD roads is 22,623 km. The length of roads built by local bodies is 15,041 km. Railways : The main railway stations are Dehradun, Hardwar, Roorkee, Kotdwar, Kashipur, Udhamsingh Nagar, Haldwani, Ramnagar and Kathgodam. Aviation : There are air strips at Jolly Grant (Dehradun), and Pantnagar (Udham Singh Nagar). Air strips at Naini-Seni (Pithoragarh), Gauchar (Chamoli) and Chinyalisaur (Uttarkashi) are under construction. From this year Pawan Hans Ltd., has started helicopter service from Rudraprayag to Kedarnath for pilgrims. FESTIVALS The world-famous Kumbh Mela/Ardh Kumbh Mela is held at Hardwar at every twelfth/ sixth year interval. Other prominent fairs/festivals are : Devidhura Mela (Champawat), Purnagiri Mela (Champawat), Nanda Devi Mela (Almora), Gauchar Mela (Chamoli), Baisakhi (Uttarkashi), Magha Mela (Uttarkashi), Uttaraini Mela (Bageshwar), Vishu Mela (Jaunsar Bhabar), Peerane-Kaliyar (Roorkee), and Nanda Devi Raj Jat Yatra held every twelfth year. TOURIST CENTRES Prominent places of pilgrimage/tourist interests are Gangotri, Yamunotri. Badrinath, Kedarnath, Hardwar, Rishikesh, Hemkund Sahib, Nanakmatta, etc. Kailash Mansarovar Yatra can be performed through Kumaon region. The world-famous Valley of Flowers, Pindari Glacier, Roop Kund, Dayara Bugyal, Auli, and hill stations like Mussoorie, Dehradun, Chakrata, Nainital, Ranikhet, Bageshwar, Bhimtal, Kausani, Lansdowne etc. are the other tourist destinations.
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GOVERNMENT Governor
: Smt. Margaret Alwa
Chief Secretary
:
Indu
Chief Minister
: Dr. Ramesh Pokhriya "Nishank"
Jurisdiction of High Court
:
Uttarakhand
Speaker
: Harbansh
Kumar
Pandey
Kapoor
AREA, POPULATION AND HEADQUARTERS OF DISTRICTS S. No.
District
Area (sq km)
1.
Uttarkashi
8,016
2,95,013
Uttarkashi
2.
Chamoli
7,520
3,70,359
Gopeshwar
3.
Rudra
Prayag
2,439
2,27,439
Rudra
4.
Tehri Garhwal
3,796
6,04,747
New Tehri
5.
Dehradun
3,088
12,82,143
Dehradun
6.
Pauri
5,329
6,97,078
Pauri
7.
Pithoragarh
7,169
4,62,289
Pithoragarh
8.
Champawat
2,004
2,24,542
Champawat
9.
Almora
3,689
6,30,567
Almora
10.
Bageshwar
1,696
2,49,462
Bageshwar
11.
Nainital
3,422
7,62,909
Nainital
12.
Udhamsingh
3,055
12,35,614
Garhwal
Nagar
Population
Headquarters
Prayag
Udhamsingh
Ngr.
(Rudrapur) 13.
Hardwar
UTTAR
2,360
14,47,187
Hardwar
PRADESH
Area
:
2,40,928 sq km
Population
:
16,61,98,000
Capital
:
Lucknow
Principal Languages
:
Hindi and Urdu
HISTORY
AND
GEOGRAPHY
The history of Uttar Pradesh is very ancient and interesting. It is recognised in the later Vedic Age as Brahmarshi Desha or Madhya Desha. Many great sages of the Vedic times like Bhardwaja, Gautam, Yagyavalkaya, Vashishtha, Vishwamitra and Valmiki flourished in this state. Several sacred books of the Aryans were also composed here. Two great epics of India, Ramayana and Mahabharata, appear to have been inspired by Uttar Pradesh. In the sixth century BC Uttar Pradesh was associated with two new religionsjainism and Buddhism. It was at Sarnath that Buddha preached his first sermon and laid the foundations of his order and it was in Kushinagar in Uttar Pradesh where Buddha breathed his last. Several centres in Uttar Pradesh like Ayodhya, Prayag, Varanasi and Mathura became reputed centres of learning. In the medieval period Uttar Pradesh passed under Muslim rule and led the way to new synthesis of Hindu and Islamic cultures. Ramananda and his Muslim disciple Kabir, Tulsidas, Surdas and many other intellectuals contributed to the growth of Hindi and other languages.
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India 2010
Uttar Pradesh preserved its intellectual excellence even under the British administration. The British combined Agra and Oudh into one province and called it United Provinces of Agra and Oudh. The name was shortened to the United Provinces in 1935. In January 1950 the United Provinces was renamed as Uttar Pradesh. The State is bound by Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh in the north, Haryana in the west, Madhya Pradesh in the South and Bihar in the east. Uttar Pradesh can be divided into two distinct regions (i) Southern Hills and (ii) Gangetic Plain. AGRICULTURE Agriculture is the main occupation of 66 per cent of the population of the state. The net cultivated area in the state is 167.50 lakh hectares. In the year 2006-07 the state produced 260.27 lakh metric tonnes of wheat, 109.12 lakh metric tonnes of rice, 18.14 lakh metric tonnes of pulses and 7.54 lakh metric tonnes of oilseeds and 1309.22 lakh tonnes sugar cane. Total foodgrains production during 2006-2007 was 418.65 lakh metric tonnes. INDUSTRY AND MINERALS During the year 2006-07 there were 6,12,338 small-scale industrial units involving a total investment of Rs. 7172 crore and employment opportunities for 2396 thousand persons. About 73.20 lakh tonnes of sugar was produced in the state during the year 2007-08. There were 68 textile units. Thirty-two automobile units with an investment of Rs. 5,740 crore provided jobs to 20280 persons. It is planned to develop 102 sectors of New Okhla Industrial Development Authority (NOIDA) by the year 2011. The Authority includes industrial sectors,housing sectors,group housing sectors, residential buildings, commercial assets and institutional sectors. Steps have been taken to develop other industrial areas in the state on the pattern of Noida and Greater Noida. A Software Technology Park has been set up in Kanpur while five more Software Parks are proposed to be set up. Under the public sector, mining of limestone, magnesite, coal, rock phosphate, dolomite and silicon-sand is carried out. The bulk production of minor and some of the major minerals like limestone, silica-sand, magnesite, pyrophyllite and diaspore is mostly with the private sector. Important mineral based industries include large cement plants in Sonebhadra. IRRIGATION AND POWER UP Power Corporation, UP State Power Generation and UP Hydel Power Corporation had been formed by reorganising UP State Electricity Board on 14 January 2000. During 2001-02 the total installation capacity was 4659 MW, in 2003-04 it was 4621 MW which has now been raised upto 4706 MW. During the year 2001-02 the total power production was 226330 lakh KW and in the year 2003-04 it was 228355 which is at present 209114 during the year 2004-05. Power is an important input to accelerate the process of economic growth. The installed capacity of re-organized Uttar Pradesh during Tenth Five Year Plan was 7821.82 MW. Only 56.6 per cent of 97135 villages were electrified and 7.88 lakh private tubewells were energized. At the time of inception the total installed capacity
States and Union Territories
1199
of UPSEB, including thermal and hydro, was 2,635 MW which has now been raised to 5414 MW (derated 5,885.75 MW). An expenditure of Rs. 2,094.5256 crore was made to raise the irrigation potential to a level of 267.99 lakh hectares. It is estimated that the irrigation potential created in U.P. is 319.12 lakh hectare till the end of 2004-05. Out of this only 231.61 lakh hectare could be utilized. Additional irrigation potential of 5.14 lakh hectare is expected to be created in the year 2005-06 and the target for 2006-07 is 7.41 lakh hectare. TRANSPORT Roads : The total road length of PWD in the state is 131969 km. This includes 3794 km of national highways, 8449 km of state highways, 119726 of other district roads and 72,931 km of rural roads. Railways : Lucknow is the main junction of the northern network. Other important railway junctions are Agra, Kanpur, Allahabad, Mughalsarai, Jhansi, Moradabad, Varanasi, Tundla, Gorakhpur, Gonda, Faizabad, Bareilly and Sitapur. Aviation : There are airports at Lucknow, Kanpur, Varanasi, Allahabad, Agra, Jhansi, Bareilly, Hindon (Ghaziabad), Gorakhpur, Sarsawa (Saharanpur) and Fursatganj (Rae-Barelli). FESTIVALS The biggest congregation, perhaps of the world, Kumbha Mela is held at Allahabad every twelfth year and Ardh kumbh Mela every sixth year. Magh Mela is also held at Allahabad in January when the people come in large number to have a dip in the holy Sangam. Among other fairs is the fortnight long Jhoola fair of Mathura, Vrindavan and Ayodhya, when dolls are placed in gold and silver jhoolas or cradles. A dip in the Ganga on Kartik Poornamasi is supposed to be the holiest and there are big congregations at Garhmukteshwar, Soran, Rajghat, kakora, Bithur, Kanpur, Allahabad, Varanasi and Ayodhya. A famous cattle fair is held at Bateswar in Agra district. Dewa in Barabanki district has became famous because of the Muslim saint Waris Ali Shah. Besides, important festivals of the Hindus, Muslims, etc., are widely celebrated in the state. TOURIST CENTRES Uttar Pradesh has varied attractions for all kinds of tourists. Besides ancient places of pilgrimage like Varanasi, Vindhyachal, Ayodhya, Chitrakoot, Prayag, Naimisharanya, Mathura, Vrindavan, Dewa Sharief, Dargah of Sheikh Saleem Chisti in Fatehpur Sikri, Sarnath, Shravasti, Kushinagar, Sankisa, Kampil, Piprahwa and Kaushambi, places like Agra, Ayodhya, Sarnath, Varanasi, Lucknow, Jhansi, Gorakhpur, Jaunpur, Kannauj, Mahoba, Devgarh, Bithur, and Vindhyachal have rich treasures of Hindu and Islamic architecture and cultur e .
GOVERNMENT Governor
:
B.L. Joshi
Chief Secretary
:
Atul
Chief Minister
:
Kumari
Jurisdiction of
:
Uttar
Mayawati
High Court
Kumar
Gupta
Pradesh
1200
India 2010 AREA, POPULATION AND HEADQUARTERS OF DISTRICTS
Sl. No. 1.
District
Area (sq km)
2
3
Population 4
Headquarters 5
1.
Agra
4,027
36,20,436
Agra
2.
Aligarh
3,650
29,92,286
Aligarh
3.
Allahabad
5,482
49,36,105
Allahabad
4.
Azamgarh
4,054
39,39,916
Azamgarh
5.
Bahraich
4,420
23,81,072
Bahraich
6.
Balia
2,981
27,61,620
Balia
7.
Banda
4,460
15,37,334
Banda
8.
Barabanki
4,402
26,73,581
Barabanki
9.
Bareilli
4,120
36,18,589
Bareilli
10.
Basti
2,688
20,84,814
Basti
11.
Bijnore
4,561
31,31,619
Bijnore
12.
Badaun
5,168
30,69,426
Badaun
13.
Bulandshahar
4,352
29,13,122
Bulandshahar
14.
Deoria
2,538
27,12,650
Deoria
15.
Etah
4,446
27,90,410
Etah
16.
Etawah
2,311
13,388,71
Etawah
17.
Faizabad
2,341
20,88,928
Faizabad
18.
Ambedkar
2,350
20,26,876
Akbarpur
19.
Fatehpur
4,152
23,08,384
Fatehpur
20.
Farukkhabad
2,181
15,70,408
Fatehgarh
21.
Gaziabad
1,148
32,90,586
Gaziabad
22.
Gautam
1,442
12,02,030
Noida
23.
Gazipur
3,377
30,37,582
Gazipur
24.
Gonda
4,003
27,65,586
Gonda
25.
Gorakhpur
3,321
37,69,456
Gorakhpur
26.
Hamirpur
4,282
1043724
Hamirpur
27.
Hardoi
5986
3398306
Hardoi
28.
Jalaun
4565
1454452
Orai
29.
Jaunp u r
4038
3911679
Jaunpur
30.
Jhansi
5024
1744931
Jhansi
31.
Kanpur
(Dehat)
3021
1563336
Akbarpur
32.
Kanpur
(City)
3155
4167999
Kanpur
33.
Lakhimpur
7680
3207232
Kheri
34.
Lalitpur
5039
977734
35.
Lucknow
2528
3647834
Lucknow
36.
Mainpuri
2760
1596718
Mainpuri
37.
Mathura
3340
2074516
Mathura
38.
Meerut
2590
2997361
Meerut
39.
Mirzapur
4521
2116042
Mirzapur
Nagar
Buddha
Kheri
Nagar
Lalitpur
Mati
States and Union Territories 40.
Moradabad
41. 42. 43.
1201 3718
3810983
Moradabad
Muzaffarnagar
4,008
3543362
Muzaffarnagar
Pilibhit
3,499
1645183
Pilibhit
Pratapgarh
3717
2731174
Pratapgarh
44.
Raibareilli
4609
2872335
Raibareilli
45.
Rampur
2367
1923739
Rampur
46.
Jyotiba Phule Nagar
2249
1499068
Jyoitba Phule Nagar
47.
Saharanpur
3689
1499068
Saharanpur
48.
Shahjahanpur
4575
2547855
Shahjahanpur
49.
Sitapur
5743
3619661
Sitapur
50.
Unnao
4558
2700324
Unnao
51.
Sultanpur
4436
3214832
Sultanpur
52.
Varansi
1535
3138671
Varansi
53.
Mau
1713
1853997
Mau
54.
Siddharthnagar
2895
2040085
Navgarh
55.
Firozabad
2361
2052958
Firozabad
56.
Sonbhadra
6788
1463519
Robertsganj
57.
Maharajganj
2952
2167041
Maharajganj
58.
Sant Ravidas Nagar
1015
1353705
Bhadohi
59.
Mahoba
2884
708447
Mahoba
60.
Hathras
1840
1336031
Hathras
61.
Kaushambi
1780
1293154
Kaushambi
62.
Kushinagar
2906
2893196
Podraune
63.
Chandauli
2541
1643251
Chandauli
64.
Balrampur
3349
1682350
Balrampur
65.
Shrawasti
2458
1176391
Shrawasti
66.
Chitrakoot
3164
766225
Chitrakoot
67.
Baghpat
1321
1163991
Baghpat
68.
Kannauj
2093
1388923
Kannauj
69.
Orraiya
2015
1179993
Orraiya
70.
Sant Kabir Na g a r
1646
1420226
Khalilabad
71.
Kanshi
-
92485
WEST Area
Ram
Nagar
Kanshi
Ram
Nagar
BENGAL :
Capital :
88,752 sq km
Population
:
8,01,76,197
Kolkata
Principal
:
Bengali
Language
HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY Bengal finds a coveted place even in pre-historic times. At the time of Alexander's invasion a powerful kingdom called Gangaridai ruled over Bengal. Ascendancy of the Guptas and the Mauryas had somewhat little effect on Bengal. Later Sasanka became King of Bengal and is said to have played an important role in north-eastern
1202
India 2010
India in the early half of the seventh centur y. He was succeeded by Gopala, who founded the Pala dynasty, which ruled for centuries and had created a huge empire. The Palas were followed by the Sena dynasty which was ended by Muslim rulers from Delhi. Bengal was ruled by various Muslim rulers and governors till the Mughal period in sixteenth century. After the Mughals, history of modern Bengal begins with the advent of European and English trading companies. Battle of Plassey in 1757 changed the course of history when the English first gained a strong foothold in Bengal and India. In 1905 it was partitioned to achieve some political returns but people’s growing movement under the auspices of Congress led to the reunion in 1911. This triggered off hectic movement for freedom which culminated with Independence in 1947, and partition. After 1947, the merger of native princely states began which ended with its final reorganisation in 1956 (as per Recommendations of the States Reorganisation Act, 1956) when some Bengali speaking areas of a neighbouring state were transferred to West Bengal. The land frontiers of the State touch Bangladesh in the east and are separated from Nepal in the west, Bhutan lies in the north-east, while Sikkim is on the north. On the west are the states of Bihar and Jharkhand, while in the south lies Orissa, and the Bay of Bengal washing its southern frontiers. AGRICULTURE Agriculture plays a pivotal role in the State’s economy and nearly three out of every four persons is directly or indirectly involved in agriculture. The total food production in the State in 2007-08, was 16060.0 thousand tonnes. During 2007-08, the production of rice was 14719.2 thousand tonnes, of wheat 917.3 thousand tonnes and of pulses 158.0 thousand tonnes respectively. The production of oilseeds during the same period was 705.7 thousand tonnes and of potato 9900.89 thousand tonnes. The production of jute was 8216.0 thousand bales in 2007-08. INDUSTRY In 2008, 187 projects with a total investment of Rs. 4060.78 crore were implemented in the State. The index of industrial production (Base 1993-94 =100) of West Bengal has been consistently rising from 132.8 in 2001-02 to 200.8 in 2007-08. Despite economic recession, industrial production index in West Bengal grew by 4.0 per cent in 2007-08 over previous year. Within the industrial sector the rates of growth of manufacturing sector it may be noted, have been quite impressive over the years. The contribution of manufacturing sector was 7.9 per cent in 2007-08. The salient features of the State policy on industrial promotion and economic development are to welcome foreign technology and investment, private sector investment in power generation, improvement and upgradation of industrial infrastructure. The thrust areas are petrochemicals and downstream industries, electronics and information technology, iron and steel, metallurgical and engineering, textile, leather and leather products, food processing, medicinal plants, edible oil, vegetable processing and aquaculture. In the recent years the flow of investment in the districts like Bankura, Midnapur, Burdwan and Purulia has been quite impressive. In 2007 highest amount of investment, Rs. 1532.52 crore took place in chemical and petrochemical sector, followed by Rs. 1359.62 crore in iron and steel sector, Rs. 705.13 crore in food
States and Union Territories
1203
processing sector, Rs. 471.26 crore in engineering industry, Rs. 328.51 crore in software and other services sector. The State Government has continued its effort for accelerating the process of industrialization with the State implementing 42 numbers of industrial Entrepreneur Memorandums (IEMs) with an additional employment generation of 4535 persons in 2007, in the iron and steel sector. Several companies like JSW Bengal, Bhusan Steel Limited, Jai Balaji, Videocon groups will set up integrated steel, cement and captive power plants in the State. Apart from JSW Bengal some of the important approvals received in the sponge iron and steel sector during the period include-5 million tonnes per annum (tpa) steel plant of Jai Balaji group involving investment of Rs. 7737 crore at Purulia, 1.1 million tpa steel plant of Adhunik Corporation involving an investment of Rs. 1850 crore at Raghunathpur in Purulia, 0.6 million tpa steel plant at Kharagpur in Midnapore and 1.1 million tpa steel plant of Shyam Group involving investment of 910 crore, 2 million tpa steel plant of Shyam Sel Limited involving investment of Rs. 1028 crore. Apart from the above mentioned power projects of steel companies, the State received an important IEM for setting up of 1200 MW power plant by Bharat Aluminium Company at Raniganj. Although the State has no linkage for iron ore supplies, the companies have decided to set up steel plants in the State and source the raw materials from neighboring states like Jharkhand and Orissa. Apart from these, the State government has also been making efforts to locate Petroleum, Chemical and Petrochemicals Investment Region (PCPIR) in the State, which has the potential to draw huge investments. Major investments are taking place in mine, steel plants, forging, pig iron etc. The easy availability of power, removal of freight equalization, close proximity to areas with natural resources relevant to the industry, and a labour force, traditionally skilled in operating iron and steel units are factors that have influenced the surge in investment in this sector. In recent years, investment in the chemical and cement industry has also picked up. After the commissioning of the Haldia Petrochemicals Limited (HPL) in 2000, downstream units in the plastic and other related industries were set up in the State and they are mostly engaged in manufacturing plastic items like buckets, containers, moulded furniture, battery containers, nylon nets, house wares etc. During 2008 an amount of Rs. 138 crore has been invested in 67 HPL downstream units. Thus direct employment of 43863 persons was created till 2006-07. Indirect employment of 80044 persons was created. The State Government has introduced policy reforms in several areas in conjunction with practical measures to sustain investor confidence; the State Government has introduced policy reforms in several areas. It has promulgated in a quick succession its policies on the development of industries in Biotechnology, Mines and Minerals, Information Technology and IT enabled services sectors. These policy statements have clearly enunciated the State Government objectives and outlined map to achieve them. Through WBIIDC and WBIDC the State Government has set up the leather complex, foundry, rubber, chemical, plasto-steel, light engineering, polymer, garments and jute parks. Setting up of industrial parks in the Paschim Medinipore, Bankura, Malda, Darjeeling, Jalpaiguri districts have been initiated.
1204
India 2010
The State Government is focused on developing Special Economic Zones (SEZs). It encourages hassle free manufacturing and trading for export promotion. Till March, 2008, 6 notified approvals have been issued by the Ministry of Commerce, Government of India. Around 80 per cent investment takes place in IT/ITES sector and 2 per cent in biotech sector. In West Bengal, there are three 3 functional Special Economic Zones— Falta (multi products zone), Manikanchan (Salt lake—gems and jewellery) and WIPRO (Salt Lake—IT/ITEs). The Calcutta Leather Complex at Bantala has already been declared as a Special Economic Zone. It is a perfect model of public private partnership, spread over around 1,100 acres of land and is steadily emerging as one of the largest projects of its kind in the world. The Food Processing Industries & Horticulture Department of the State Government promotes food-processing industries in the State. There is an increasing trend towards setting up of Food Processing Industries in West Bengal and in 2006-07, 67 projects with a total investment of Rs. 336.18 crore were implemented in the food processing industries sector. The State has identified the Information Technology (IT) sector as a priority sector for growth. The IT Hub at sector-V of Salt Lake is India's first fully integrated electronic complex spread over 150 acres of green pollution free area near airport. An estimated 15,000 new jobs were created in 2007-08. The gross value of export under software Technology Park in Kolkata has already touched Rs. 4000 crore during 2007-08 as against Rs. 2167 crore in 2005-06 and Rs. 3169 crore in 2006-07. POWER AND IRRIGATION There are 7 major irrigation projects and 34 medium irritative schemes being managed by the irrigation and Waterways Department of the State Government. Teesta Barrage Project and Subarnarekha Barrage Projects are the two major in-going schemes. A cumulative potential to the tune of 145020 hectares has been created from the Teesta Barrage Project upto 2007-08 against the ultimate potential of 527000 hectares. The Subarnarekha Barrage Project envisages the utilization of the share of water resources available from the river Subarnarekha as per the Tripartite Agreement with the Government of Bihar (presently Government of Jharkhand) and Orissa to irrigate an area of 99248 hectares in Kharif and 30766 hectares in Rabi in the districts of Paschim and Purba Medinipur of the State. The State Government took up several Medium Irrigation Schemes in the districts of Bankura, Birbhum, Burdwan and Purulia. Out of the 32 schemes in Purulia, 25 schemes have been completed and 7 schemes are continuing, of which 2 schemes namely Patloi and Tatko Irrigation Schemes are included under modified programme of AIBP. The ultimate irrigation potential achieved through the completed medium irrigation schemes is 43,002 thousand hectares, whereas the ultimate irrigative potential of the on-going schemes is 8.21 thousand hectares. The ultimate minor irrigation potential in the State has been estimated as 44.34 lakh hectares, out of which 31.34 lakh hectares are from ground water resources and 13.00 lakh hectares are from surface water resources. At the end of the Annual Plan of 2008-09, creation of irrigation potentials in the Minor Irrigation sector has been estimated to reach 40.20 lakh hectares, of which 27.47 lakh hectares through ground water resources and 12.73 lakh hectares through Surface Water Resources. The electricity generating utilities in West Ben gal in the State Sector are West Bengal Power Development Corporation Limited (WBPDECL), Durgapur Projects
States and Union Territories
1205
Limited (DPL) for thermal power generation, West Bengal State Electricity Distribution Company Limited (WBSEDCL) West Bengal State Electricity Distribution Company Limited, Renewable Energy Development Agency (WBREDA) for non-conventional energy generation. Besides, Damodar Valley Corporation (DVC) and National Thermal Power Corporation (NPTC) in the Central Sector, CESC Limited and Disergarh Power Supply Corporation in the Private sector are the other power generating utilities in the State. Total generation of power produced by the state agencies was 16270.1 MU in 2008-09 (from April to October). The total number of Mouzas Electrified upto October 2008 is 37416 and in 2008-09 (upto October 2008) the total number of pump sets energized is 1,15,357. TRANSPORT Roads : The length of roads as on 31 March 2002 was 91970 km including 1898 km national highways. The length of roads under State highway is 3533 km, under PWD 12565 km and that of the district roads are 42,479 km respectively. Railways : The total length of railway route in the State in 2007-08 was 4561.93 km. Howrah, Asansol, Sealdah, Bandel, Bardhaman, Kharagpur and New Jalpaiguri are the main junctions.
GOVERNMENT Governor
: Gopal Krishna Gandhi
Chief Secretary
:
Ashok
Chief Minister
:
Jurisdiction of
:
West Bengal and
Speaker
: Hasim Abdul Halim
Chief Justice
: S.S. Najjar
Buddhadeb
Bhattacharjee
High Court
Mohan
Andaman
Chakraborty
and
Nicobar
AREA, POPULATION AND HEADQUARTERS OF DISTRICTS S . N o . District
Area (sq km)
Population
Headquarters
1.
Bankura
6,882
31,91,822
Bankura
2.
Ba r d h a m a n
7,024
69,19,698
Bardhaman
3.
Birbhum
4,545
30,12,546
Suri
4.
Kolkata
185
45,80,544
Kolkata
5.
Darjeeling
3,149
16,05,900
Darjeeling
6.
Howrah
1,467
42,74,010
Howrah
7.
Hooghly
3,149
50,40,047
Chinsurah
8.
Jalpaiguri
6,227
34,03,204
Jalpaigur
9.
Coochbe h a r
3,387
24,78,280
Coochbehar
10.
Malda
3,733
32,90,160
English
11.
Medinipur
14,081
96,38,473
Medinipur
12.
Murshidabad
5,324
58,63,717
Berhampore
13.
Nadia
3,927
46,03,756
Krishnagar
14.
North 24 Parganas
4,094
89,30,295
Barasat
15.
South 24 Parganas
9,660
69,09,015
Alipore
16.
Purulia
6,259
25,35,233
Purulia
17.
Uttar
3,140
24,41,824
Raigunj
18.
Dakshin
2,219
15,02,647
Balurghat
Dinajpur Din a j p u r
Bazar
Note : The district Medinipur has been bifurcated on 1 January 2002 into Purba and Paschim Medinipur (the population figures of census 2001 are yet to be incorporated).
1206
India 2010
ANDAMAN
AND
NICOBAR
ISLANDS
Area
:
8,249 sq km
Population
:
3,56,152 (2001 census)
Capital
:
Port Blair
Principal
:
Hindi, Nicobarese, Bengali, Tamil,
Languages
Malayalam,
Telugu
HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY The Union Territory of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, is situated between 6° and 14° North Latitude and 92° and 94° East Longitude. The islands located north of 10° north latitude are known as Andaman Group of islands while islands located south of 10° north latitude are called Nicobar Group of islands. The climate of the islands can be defined as humid, tropical coastal climate. The islands receive rainfall from both the south west and north east monsoons and maximum precipitation is between May & December. The original inhabitants of the islands lived in the forests on hunting and fishing. There are four Negrito tribes, viz., the Great Andamanese, Onge, Jarawa and Sentinalese in the Andaman group of islands and two Mongoloid tribes, viz., Nicobarese and Shompens in the Nicobar group of islands. AGRICULTURE A total of 51,694.35 hect. of area 8068.71 hectares. under agriculture and plantation in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands was damaged by Tsunami / Earthquake. Out of that paddy and other field crops is 2177.70 ha. and 5891.01 ha. under plantation crops. Area under permanent submergence is 4206.64 hect. with paddy and other field crops. Paddy the main food crop, is mostly cultivated in Andaman group of Islands, whereas Coconut and Areca nut are the cash crops of Nicobar group of Islands. Field crops, namely, pulses, oilseeds and vegetable are grown followed by paddy during Rabi season. Different kinds of fruits such as mango, sapota, orange, banana, papaya, pineapple and root crops are grown on hilly land owned by the farmers. Spices, viz. pepper, clove, nutmeg and cinnamon are grown under multitier cropping system. Rubber, red oil, palm and cashew are grown on a limited scale in these Islands. FORESTS Recorded forest is 7,171 sq km of the total geographical area of the islands. Many types of forests are found in the islands, such as tropical wet evergreen, tropical semievergreen, moist deciduous, littoral, mangrove and swamp forests. A large variety of timbers are found in the Andaman group of islands. The most valuable timbers are padauk and gurjan. These species are not found in Nicobar. WILD LIFE There are 96 Wildlife Sanctuaries, 9 National Parks and 1 Biosphere Reserve in these Islands. Mammals - out of 55 terrestrial and 7 marine mammal species reported so far, 32 species are endemic. Birds - as many as 246 species and sub species of birds are reported to inhabit these Islands and of these 99 species and sub-species are endemic. Reptiles - there are 76 terrestrial reptiles found here, of these, 24 species are endemic. Marine Line -Islands harbour more than 1,200 species of fish, 350 species of
States and Union Territories
1207
echinoderms, 1,000 species of molusscs and many more lower forms of life. Among vertebrates dugongs, dolphins, whales, salt water crocodiles, sea turtles, sea snakes, etc., are common. Coral and Coral reefs - so far 179 species of corals belonging to 61 genera have been reported. Reefs are mostly fringing type on eastern coast and barrier type on the western coast. INDUSTRY There are 1833 registered MSMEs and Handicrafts Units as on 31 March 2007. Two units are 100 per cent export oriented units in the line of Fish/Prawn processing activity. Apart from this, there are shells and wood based handicraft units. SSI units are engaged in the production of paints and varnishes, mini flour mills, soft drinks and beverages, steel furniture and fixtures, readymade garments, steel gate grills and structures. MSMEs handicraft units are also engaged in shell crafts, bakery products, rice-milling, furniture-making, etc. The Andaman and Nicobar Islands Integrated Development Corporation in the Public sector has spread its wings in the field of Tourism, Fisheries, Industries and Industrial financing and functions as authorized agents for Alliance Air/Jet Airways/Air Deccan. TRANSPORT The Motor Transport Department of A & N Administration operates from 13 stations in Northern and Southern group of islands. The department has a total number of 205 buses in operation mainly in rural area of A & N islands. Computerized ticketing for ATR express service has been implemented w.e.f. 15th August, 2007 where advance tickets can be obtained. During the year 2007-08 a total of 135.88 lakh people tarvelled by the State Transport Sevice buses and the Department has generated a revenue of Rs. 1075.22 lakhs. It is therefore evident that the Department has been making steady progress in not only providing better public transport service but also has been increasing its earnings. TOURISM Andaman and Nicobar Islands have been recognised as an eco-friendly tourist’s destination. As a tourist paradise, these islands have something very special to offer like Cellular Jail, Ross Island and Havelock Island. The Andaman tropical evergreen rain forests, beautiful silver sandy beaches, serpentine mangrove-lines creeks, marine life abounding in rare species of plants, animals, corals, etc., provide a memorable experience to the tourists. There is tremendous scope for enjoying nature in the beach resorts, water sports and adventure water sports, adventure tourism like trekking, Island camping, Nature trail, Scuba Diving, etc. Tourism Department runs guest houses in various parts of the Islands for comfortable accommodation to tourists visiting these Islands. The important places of tourist interest are Anthropological Museum. Marine Museum, Water Sports Complex, Gandhi Park, North Bay, Viper Island, Ross Island, Chidiyatapu, (Bird watching), Red Skin Island, Corbyn’s cove Beach, Islands like Neil Island, Havelock Island, Cinque, Little Andaman, Diglipur (Ross and Smith), etc.
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As regards the connectivity, the islands are well connected to the mainland by air and sea. Indian Airlines, Air Deccan, Jetlite operates to Portblair from Kolkata and Chennai. There are regular passenger ship service from Chennai, Kolkata and Vishakhapatnam.
GOVERNMENT Lt.
Gov ernor
: Lt. Gen. (Retd.) Bhopinder Singh, PVSM, AVSM,
Chief Secretary
: Vivek Rai
Jurisdiction of High Court
: Falls under the jurisdiction of Kolkata High Court
AREA, POPULATION AND HEADQUARTERS OF DISTRICTS S . N o . District Andaman
Area (sq km)
Population
Headquarters
3181.401
2,08,471
Port Blair
1.
South
2.
Nicobar
1,841
42,068
Car
3.
North and Middle Andaman
3226.599
1,05,613
Mayabunder
Nicobar
CHANDIGARH Area
: 114 sq km
Population
:
9,00,635
Capital
: Chandigarh
Languages
:
Hindi, Punjabi, English
HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY Chandigarh is a fully grown town of most modern architectural splendour. The city nestles in a picturesque setting in the foothills of Shivalik hills and enjoys the popular epithet the "City Beautiful". Representative of modern architecture and town planning, the city is a creation of the French Architect, Le Corbusier. Chandigarh and the area surrounding it were constituted as a Union Territory on 1 November 1966. It serves as the joint capital of both Punjab and Haryana States. It is bound on North and West by Punjab and on the East and South by Haryana. ADMINISTRATION Chandigarh Administration is moving on four broad fronts. First, it is our aim to provide, with the help of information technology, an accessible and transparent administration. We were among the earliest to implement the provisions of the Right to Information Act. A number of services, for which citizens earlier had to go to government offices, are now available on computer and mobile phones. All rules are being reviewed to see what simplification can be carried out to make them userfriendly. The purpose is to minimise the exercise of discretion, and minimise the leg work of the citizen in dealing with the Administration. Secondly, the Administration is working towards a higher rate of economic growth by encouraging economic activities which provide greater value addition, such as knowledge based industries, high-end commercial activity, etc., Chandigarh already has the highest per capita income in the country. Thirdly, the Administration is seeking to provide infrastructural services such as electricity supply, water supply, health and educational services and public
States and Union Territories
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transport which should compare with those in advanced countries. It will take time, but we believe that our ambitions can be achieved in the medium term. Fourthly, the Administration is all too conscious of the fact that the benefits of development do not reach everyone equally. Hence there is a special emphasis on reaching out to those whom development has by-passed. TRANSPORT Chandigarh Administration comprehending the need for a user friendly transport system has decided to launch a Mass Rapid Trnsport System shortly. The UT Administration and the State Governments of Punjab and Haryana have come together for the implementation of the project. Administration will soon introduce Air Conditioned and Double Decker buses. 85 buses were purchased and put on routes during the year 2007-08. CTU has computerized 70 per cent of its working and is in the process of further computerization. The Undetaking is also in the process of installing a Global Positioning System to monitor its fleet in a phased manner. The first phase of the ISBT Sector 43 has already started functioning and the second phase is scheduled for completion later this year. RURAL DEVELOPMENT In order to sensitize the poor and weaker sections of the society about the rights and different benefits being extended to them by the State Legal Services Authority, 14 legal awareness seminars have already been organized in different villages of the UT. Cement concrete paving and underground drains in village Kajheri and Palsora have been completed. 70 per cent work in village Mauli Jagran has been completed. SPORTS The Administration has opened a Girls Hockey Academy in sector-18 and would shortly start two more girls academies — one for Cricket and another for Football. The Administration successfully organized a One-day International Cricket match between India and Australia on October 8, 2007 by upgrading the Cricket Stadium of Sectot-16. Various facilities of international standards and latest ground equipments have been added. A new athletic-cum-Football stadium would be built with all state-of -art-facilities in Sector 56 with a seating capacity of 40,000 spectators, the process for which has already started. Indoor provisions for Basket Ball, Volley Ball, Judo and wrestling will also be provided in this stadium. In the year 2007, the Chandigarh Sports Council had set up two more new inhouse Academies, in Hockey and Cricket to churn out high class first rate players from the UT. All facilities including board and lodging, education, diet, sport gear etc. are being provided free-of-cost to the trainees in the academies. INFORMATION
TECHNOLOGY
Construction work of Chandigarh Administration's visionary project Rajiv Gandhi Chandigarh Technology Park (RGCTP) is in its full swing. Completion of Phase III will provide direct employment to 35000 professionals, thereby increasing the direct employment of RGCTP to 67,000 and would create 2,00,000 indirect jobs in Chandigarh. The Entrepreneur Development Centre at the RGCTP is being set up over an area of 1.5 acres approximately. The centre would become operational this year.
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Chandigarh has become a role model in using information technology to provide fast and user friendly services for the masses. Under the E-Governance initiatives of the Department, seven more Gram Sampark Centres have been set up in the villages of Dhanas, Khudda Jassu, Kaimbwala, Raipur Khurd, Raipur Kalan, Makhan Majra and Bahlana in 2007. As many as seven more Gram Sampark Centres in villages Palsora, Dadu Majra, Hallo Majra, Khuda Alisher, Daria, Mauli Jagran and Maloya have been made operative. In addition to the existing Centres some more Sampark Centres have been proposed and new services like payment of BSNL bills, power bills, water bills, payment of LIC premium, school fees collection and tubewell booking, especially for rural citizens , has also been incorporated or are being afoot. The Administration is working on energy conservation. A Work order has ben issued to the Tata BP Solar Ltd. for commissioning the State Level Energy Park at the Botanical Garden. Under the Solar Lighting initiative, all street lights in the villages would be replaced with solar based street lights. SOCIAL WELFARE Social Welfare has been a major focus of the Administration. Many people-friendly and innovative schemes for them have been launched by Administration. To wipe away the menace of casteism and encourage the people for inter-caste marriage, a sum of Rs. 5,000 is granted to the married couples provided that one of the spouses belongs to SC Community. The Administration has enhanced the amount to Rs. 50,000. Under the Balika Samridhi Yojana, A sum of Rs. 500 is being given to the newly born girl child in the BPL families. The Chandigarh Administration has decided to set up a Preparatory School for Children with Special Needs (for 50 children) which will run in the premises of PRAYAS Building, Sector 38. An outlay of about Rs. 14 lakh has been proposed in the Annual Plan 2008-09 for purchase of equipments and other contingent expenditure. The Vocational Training Centre for Street Children in Maloya with the capacity to provide training for 900 children is under construction. The Administration has set up a child help line. HEALTH Telemedicine Project has been launched with state-of-art facilities at Government Medical College and Hospital, Sector 32, Chandigarh aiming to help needy patients to avail the expert advice of the doctors of specialized fields in PGI and ensuring them high-quality medical services. The Government Multi Speciality Hospital (GMSH), Sector 16 has been upgraded by adding a Trauma Unit having 28 beds with Emergency Operation Theaters. The Administration has launched the project for improving the Monitorable Indicators of Reproductive and Child Health in UT at a cost of Rs. 5,273 per mother and her child. Seven more "State of the art" operation theatres including pre-anesthesia, postanesthesia rooms and a post opertive ward has been commissioned in Government
States and Union Territories
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Medical College and Hospital, Chandigarh. "SAMARTH" a residential house for mentally retarded individuals had also been set up in Sector 15, Chandigarh. A huge total of around 5.6 crore has been sanctioned for the Residential Accommodation of the eligible faculty staff of GMCH. INDUSTRIES The Administration is developing the Phase-III of the Industrial Area at the revenue estate of village Mauli Jagran. 152 acres of land have been acquired. After a gap of 17 years, Chandigarh was awarded Silver Medal amongst all UTs for its excellent display at the recently held India International Trade Fair, 2007, New Delhi. EDUCATION Chandigarh Administration is coming up with its World Class Project, the multi institutional 'Chandigarh Education City' at Sarangpur with a total area of 130 acres. Administration has enhanced the attendance scholarship being given to girl students of general category from Rs. 30 per month to Rs. 250 per month for a period for Class 1st to 5th. For ensuring enrolment and education among schedule caste boys and girls, Administration has also decided to increase the attendance schlorship being given to the Scheduled Castes students studying in Class 1st to 8th from Rs. 30 per month to Rs. 250 per month in the age group of 6 to 14 years. It has been decided to increase the scholarship to the meritorious SC/ST students of Class 9th to 12th; it has been now increased to Rs. 300 per month whereas it was Rs. 20/- and 25/- earlier. Chandigarh Administration has also decided to exempt the tution fees of Muslims, Christians, Other Backward Classes, Handicapped, Ward of Freedom Fighters, Ex-serviceman, widows and divorcees having family income below Rs. 1.5 lakh per year.For the children belonging to low income groups and slum based families, it has decided to give incentive of Rs. 250 per month to rope in the children presently not enrolled in any school on their fresh enrolment. TOURISM Administration has taken many innovative and novel measures like Wedding Tourism.With the focus on extending efficient medical, educational and entertainment oriented facilities, Administration is promoting Cinematic Tourism, Sports Tourism and Medical Tourism in a big way. Chandigarh International Airport will prove to be a big leap for Tourism in the region. HOUSING Chandigarh Housing Board is working on various projects. CHB being a Nodal agency for the implementation of the 'Chandigarh Small Flats Scheme-2006' has during the year finalized the process for implementation of the construction of 25,728 One Room Tenement under the scheme in two phases. Construction of 1024 Flats in Sector 49 and 1120 Flats in Sector 38 (West) under the scheme has already commenced. Similarly, construction at the remaining six locations will commence in due course of time.
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The Board during the year, has completed construction of 326 Prefab Shelters in Sector-56 for allotment to rag pickers of the City. Construction of 400 EWS houses in Sector-49 & 288 EWS houses in Sector-38 (W) under the scheme is in progress and is likely to be completed by February, 2009. A special self-financing Housing Scheme has ben launched by the Board for allotment of Dwelling Units to the employees of the Administration which will be constructed over 45.5 acres of land in Sectors-52 and 56. Reservation of 5 per cent in favour of employees retiring within three years and those who have retired in the last three years has been kept in the scheme. Reservation of 3% for physically challenged persons has also ben made. As a step towards utilization of land vacated by Slum Dwellers in Sector-26 (East) Madrasi Colony, CHB has commenced construction of 160 EWS houses in the area. The work is likely to be completed by March, 2009. The construction of 256 one bedroom and 208 two-bedroom flats are in progress and are likely to be completed by June, 2008. The construction of 400 EWS and 288 EWS are likely to be completed by March, 2009. POWER Provisions of sufficient electricity to all the residents of UT is also getting attention of the Administration. To improve the voltage profile and to reduce the load on the power distribution network of UT, the Electricity Wing had planned to add 80 MVAR Automatic Capacitor Banks at various existing 66KV Grid Sub-Station located at different points in the periphery of UT. Use of CFL has been made mandatory inside all government buildings. Similarly, all institutional buildings will have to provide solar lighting in their parking spaces within their complexes. The Electricity Wing also achieved its target in reduction of transmission & distribution losses from 20.89% to 19.29%. The reduction is around 1.5%. Every effort is being made to reduce the losses further in the next year by another 1.5%. MUNICIPAL CORPORATION Municipal Corporation Chandigarh has upgraded the Sewage Treatment Plant at Diggian at a cost of Rs. 28 crore. MC also bagged the 1st prize both in water supply and sewage/drainage services from the Government of India, which was awarded by the Prime Minister of India. A Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition System has been installed at a cost of Rs. 700 crore to keep surveillance and monitor the water supply. It will save power consumption, reduce operation and maintenance cost by approximately Rs. 3 crore annually. To save portable water & provide additional water for landscaping, a project amounting to Rs. 36 crores has been taken up. This project will generate 10 MGD tertiary water. The existing Dhobi Ghat of Sector 15 has been converted into Automatic Laundry Marts, The first of its kind in India. Adding another milestone to up-gradation of the environment in City Beautiful, The Municipal Corporation has set up a Solid Waste Processin g Plant at Dadu Majra at a cost of Rs. 30.00 crores on 10 acres. The plant is one of its kinds in northern India.
States and Union Territories
1213
GOVERNMENT Administrator
:
Adviser to the Administrator
General (Retd.) S.F. Rodrigues
:
Jurisdiction of High Court
Lalit
Sharma
Falls under jurisdiction of Punjab and Haryana High Court
DADRA
AND
NAGAR
HAVELI
Area
:
491 sq km
Population
Capital
:
Silvassa
Principal
HISTORY
AND
: 2,20,490 Languages
: Gujarati, Hindi
GEOGRAPHY
After prolonged skirmishes between the Portuguese and Marathas, on 17 December 1779, the Maratha Government assigned the aggregated revenue of Rs 12,000 in a few villages of this territory to the Protuguese as compensation to ensure their friendship. The Portuguese ruled this territory until its liberation by the people on 2 August 1954. From 1954 till 1961 the territory functioned almost independently by what was known as ‘‘Free Dadra and Nagar Haveli Administration’’. However, the territory was merged with the Indian Union on 11 August 1961 and since then is being administered by the Government of India as a Union Territory. After liberation of the territory from Portuguese rule, a Varishtha Panchayat was working as an advisory body of the Administration. This was dissolved in August 1989 and a Pradesh Council for Dadra and Nagar Haveli District Panchayat and 11 Village Panchayats were constituted as per constitutional amendments at All India level. The U.T. of Dadra and Nagar Haveli has an area of 491 sq km and it is surrounded by Gujarat and Maharashtra. It consists of two pockets, namely, Dadra and Nagar Haveli. The nearest railway station is at Vapi which is 18 km from Silvassa. AGRICULTURE Dadra and Nagar Haveli is a predominantly rural area with about 79 per cent tribal population. It has about 21,115 hectares under cultivation. Major crop is paddy (Kharif) while Nagli and other hillmillets are crops of the area. Among fruits Mango, Chiku and Banana, etc., are also produced. Forests cover 40 per cent of the total geographical area. Sugarcane cultivation has also been taken up in a big way since the last few years. And efforts are afoot to adopt a multiple cropping system in assured irrigated areas. During 2006-07, 87 MT of H.Y.V. seeds, were distributed to 2211 farmers alongwith 1407 M.T. of chemical fertilizers to 6449 farmers. The organic farming scheme will shortly be implemented in Dudhani and Mandoni patelads. To this end, 60 Kisan Credit Cards have been issued. The Wadi Development programme in the tribal area of both Dadra and Nagar Haveli is implemented by the N.G.O., B.A.I.F. with the financial allocation from NABARD, a total of 800 tribal and scheduled caste famileis will benefit. INDUSTRY Prior to 1965-66 there was no industry in the Union Territory. There were a few traditional craftsmen who used to make pots, leather items, viz., chappals, shoes and
1214
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some other items of bamboo. Industrial developme nt started on a low-key during 1967-68 with the establishment of an industrial estate under the cooperative sector by Dan Udyog Sahakari Sangh Ltd. Thereafter, three Government Industrial Estates have been developed at Silvassa, Masat and Khadoli in the U.T. With the inception of the economic liberalization policy, a real boost in industrial development was seen. Presently i.e. in 2006-07 there are 1863 small sector industrial units and 430 MSI/LSI units the U.T. functioning in the U.T. providing gainful employment to over 46,000 people. IRRIGATION AND POWER Prior to liberation of the territory, there was no irrigation facility and cultivators had to fully depend upon rainfall. After the merger of the territory with the Indian Union, adequate steps were taken under minor irrigation sector. So far 128 lift irrigation schemes have been completed on irrigation wells, surface water sources like rivers, check dams at various places in the territory crearing additional irrigation potential of 1,851 hectares. Under medium irrigation project viz., Damnganga Reservoir Project, about 115 km of minor canals and distributaries are falling in the area of this Union Territory. Development works have been completed in field channels in all respects in 4,300 hectares and testing is done in 4,049 hectares. There was no rural electrification prior to liberation of this territory. The electricity was provided with only one DG Set which was installed and operated in Silvassa Town for VIPs at Circuit House. After liberation, the UT Administration commenced rural electrification work with the co-operation of neighbouring State of Gujarat and completed electrification work in 25 villages by 1976. The power demand of the UT is met by Gujarat Electricity Board through a single Circuit from Vapi-Silvasa and distributed amongst limited number of consumers. The first 66 KV Sub-Station was established at Amli in 1979. With the commissioning of the said Sub-Station, the electricity department is in a position to provide electricity to all villages. One more 220/66 KV, 2x160 MVA sub-station at village Khadoli has been approved by the Ministry of Power. The Power Grid Corporation of India will execute this work, which is likely to be completed within three years. In addition to this, a proposal for the establishment of various 66/11 KV sub-station at Vaghdhara, Athal, Piparia, Sayli, Velugam etc is in the pipeline. The Power requirement of the territory is being met from Central Sector Power Generating Stations located in the western region. At present the power allocation from the Central Sector is 270 MW. The power demand has increased tremendously due to rapid industrialisation with the extension of Tax Holiday benefit to this UT by the Government of India. TRANSPORT The Union Territory depends heavily on Maharashtra and Gujarat road network the territory can be accessed only after crossing these two States from Mumbai. present road length is about 635 km. out of which 570 km. is surfaced. Almost villages are connected with all weather roads. The rail route from Mumbai
as At all to
States and Union Territories
1215
Ahmedabad links Vapi also. Mumbai is the nearest airport. Recently, the work of widening of roads in the Union Territory has been taken up to meet the requirement of increasing vehicular traffic. To meet the need of rapid industrialisation, four laning work has been taken up in Silvassa and adjoining areas, besides other spillover works. Converting of two lane road to four lane road for a length of 17.69 kms has been completed. The Dadra — Tighra road is under progress and during the current financial year i.e. 2007-08, another 5.70 kms length of road connecting Silvasa and Naroli is likely to be converted into a four-lane drive. TOURISM Tourism sector has been assigned high priority keeping in view the dense forest area and favourable climate. The prominent places of tourist interest are Tadekeshwar Shiva Mandir, Bindrabin, Deer Park at Khanvel, Vanganga lake and Island Garden, Dadra, Vanvihar Udhyan Mini Zoo, Bal Udhyan, Tribal Museum and Hirvavan Garden at Silvassa. The development of water sports at Dudhani has been completed. The construction of an Amphitheatre close to Yatri Niwas, Silvassa is under progress. To encourage tourism activities, some traditional and modern cultural activities like celebreation of Tarpa Festival, Kite festival, World Tourism day, etc., are organised every year. FESTIVALS Normally all festivals of Hindus, Muslims and Christians are celebrated in the territory, while tribals celebrate their own festivals. Diwaso is celebrated by Dhodia and Varli tribes and Raksha Bandhan is celebrated by Dhodia tribe. Other festivals include Bhawada amongst Varlist, Koli tribes and Khali Puja by all tribes after harvesting of crops and Gram Devi before harvesting of crops.
DAMAN
AND
DIU
Area
:
112 sq km
Population
Capital
:
Daman
Principal
Languages
:
1,58,204
:
Gujarati
HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY Daman and Diu along with Goa was a colony held by the Portuguese even after Independence. In 1961, it was made an integral part of India. After Goa was conferred with statehood, on 30 May 1987, Daman and Diu was made a separate Union Territory. Daman lies about 193 km away from Mumbai. It is bound on the east by Gujarat, on the west by the Arabian Sea, on the north by the Kolak river and on the south by Kalai river. The neighbouring district of Daman is Valsad in Gujarat. Diu is an island connected by two bridges. The neighbouring district of Diu is Junagadh of Gujarat. AGRICULTURE AND IRRIGATION Total irrigated area is 393.93 h.a. and un-irrigated area is 3304.73 hectares as per the Agricultural Census 2000-01. In 2000-01 the net area under cultivation was 3375.65 h.a. Important field and garden crops are paddy, ragi, bajra, jowar, groundnut, pulses and beans, wheat, banana, sapota, mango, chickoo, coconut and sugarcane. There are no major forests in the territory.
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INDUSTRY AND POWER There are 2930 small-scale and medium-scale industries in Daman and Diu. Two industrial areas have been developed by Omnibus Industrial Development Corporation at Daman. The other industrial areas are Dabhel, Bhimpore, Kachigam and Kadaiya. All villages have been electrified. Daman and Diu have got adequate power allocation from Central sector power stations in western region. TRANSPORT Roads : The total length of roads in Daman and Diu are 191 km and 78 km respectively. Railways : There is no railway link with Daman and Diu. The Nearest railway station from Daman is Vapi on western railway on Mumbai-Delhi route. The nearest railway station from Diu is Delvada on meter-gauge. Aviation : There are airports both in Daman and Diu. Diuis connected by air and there is regular air service from Mumbai to Diu. TOURIST PLACES Important tourist places in Daman are as under : Bom Jesus Chruch, Our Lady of Sea Church; Our Lady of Remedios Church; Forts of Moti Daman and Nani Daman; Jampore and Devka Beaches; Public Garden at Nani Daman and Moti Daman Jetty, Pargola Garden, Moti Daman; Amusement Park, Devka; Damanganga Tourist Complex, Kachigam; Satya Sagar Udyan; Mirasol Garden; Mirasal Water Park. In Diu, St. Paul’s Church; Diu Fort and Panikota Fort; Nagoa and Chakratirth and Children’s park at Ghoghla and Summer House.
GOVERNMENT Administrator
:
R.K. Verma
:
Dharmendra
Secretary
:
P.K.
Daman
:
Vikas
Collector, Diu
:
J.B. Singh
Jurisdiction of High Court
:
Falls under Mumbai High Court
Development Finance Collector,
Commissioner
Gupta Anand
AREA, POPULATION AND HEADQUARTERS OF DISTRICTS S . N o . District
Area (sq km)
Population
1.
Daman
72
1,13,989
2.
Diu
40
44,215
Headquarters Daman Diu
DELHI Area
:
1,483 sq km
Population
Capital
:
Delhi
Principal
Languages
:
13.80 million
:
Hindi, Punjabi, Urdu & English
HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY Delhi finds prominent reference right from the times of the epic Mahabharata. Its control passed from one ruler/dynasty to another, beginning with the Mauryas,
States and Union Territories
1217
Pallavas, Guptas of Central India and then going on to the Turks of Afghan during the 13th to 15th centuries, and finally to the Mughals in the 16th century. In the latter half of the 18th century and early 19th century, British rule was established in Delhi. In 1911, Delhi became the centre of all activities after the capital was shifted from Kolkata (Calcutta). It was made a Union Territory in 1956. Lying in the northern part of the country, Delhi is surrounded by Haryana on all sides except the east where it borders with Uttar Pradesh. The 69th Constitutional amendment is a milestone in Delhi’s history as it got a Legislative Assembly with the enactment of the National Capital Territory Act, 1991. AGRICULTURE The principal food crops are wheat, bajra, jowar, gram and maize. However, emphasis has now shifted from food crops to vegetables and fruit crops, dairy and poultry farming, floriculture, etc., as these are more remunerative than food crops in the territory. INDUSTRY Delhi is not only the largest commercial centre in northern India, but also the largest centre of small industries. These units manufacture a wide variety of items like television, tape recorders, light engineering machines and automobile parts, sports goods, bicycles and PVC goods including footwear textiles, fertilizers, medicines, hosiery, leather goods, software, etc. Delhi’s new millennium industrial policy, emphasizes setting up of high-tech and sophisticated industries in electronics, telecommunications, software industries, IT enabling services, etc. The industries, which are non-polluting and encourage high value addition and depend largely on skilled manpower are being promoted. DSIDC is setting up a Training Institute for Gems and Jewellery and Assaying and Hallmarking Centre at Okhla in the building of Hitech Vocational Centre. For the purpose of relocating industrial units functioning in residential nonconforming areas, the Government of NCT of Delhi took possession of 1900 acres of land at village Bawana, Holambi Kalan and Holambi Khurd for developing new industrial estates. Bawana Industrial area developed by DSIDC is the largest in Asia and is spred over 1900 acres of land. At Narela 900 plots have been developed and allotted and another 600 plots are being developed. Work of construction of 378 flatted factories at Jhilmil Industrial Area for relocation of smaller units has been completed. 450 acres of land have been taken for development at the Bhorgaarh industrial estates. In addition to the above, 652 hectares of land is being acquired for development into a huge industrial area in Kanjhawala/Kerala. IRRIGATION AND POWER Due to fast urbanisation of the rural areas of Delhi, cultivable command area under irrigation is getting reduced day by day. Two schemes, namely, ‘‘Keshopur Effluent Irrigation Scheme Phase-III’’ and ‘‘Improvement and Extension of Effluent Irrigation System from Coronation Treatment Plant’’ are under execution. Irrigation of about 350 hectares with state tube-wells and 1,376 hectares from effluent water is being provided in the rural area of NCT of Delhi. In addition about 4,900 hectares of land is being irrigated from western Yamuna Canal network. The firm availability of power for Delhi from its own generating units at Rajghat Power Houses, IP Station and Gas Turbines including Badarpur Thermal Station is of the order of 850-900 MW. The remaining power is drawn from Northern Regional
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Grid. Delhi has also envisaged a number of generating projects to be taken up. Pragati Combined Cycle Power Project has been established at Indraprastha Estate. A 330 MW Pragati Power Project under construction is scheduled to be commissioned soon. The test run for its first phase of 100 MW has already started. The work of newly planned 330 MW gas based power plant under Pragati-II and 1000 MW power plant planned at Bawana is going on. Existing coal-based Indraprastha plant is being replaced by 1000 MW gas based plant. To streamline the distribution of power, DVB has been privatised and Delhi is now served by the two of the best electric utilities in India, BSES and Tata Power (NDPL). TRANSPORT Delhi is well connected by roads, rail and air with all parts of India. It has three airports—Indira Gandhi International Airport for the international flights, Palam Airport for domestic air services and Safdarjung Airport for training purposes. It has three important railway stations — Delhi Junction, New Delhi Railway Station and Nizamuddin Railway Station. Delhi has three inter-state bus terminals at Kashmeri Gate, Sarai Kale Khan and Anand Vihar. Keeping in view the rising vehicular pollution and chaotic traffic condition in the city of Delhi, it has been decided to start Mass Rapid Transit System (MRTS) in Delhi. The Project is under implementation and is uses the state-of-the-art modern technology. The metro rail project runs in Delhi. Now three metro corridors exist in phase-1 of Delhi Metro comprising of three corridors of total length of 65.1 Km have been completed and operational in record time with full commissioning of line from Shahdara to Rithala and Vishwa Vidyalaya to Central Secretariat. The third line from Barakambha road to Dwarka is also running to provide better connectivity to the commuters from NCR region. FESTIVALS Being a cosmopolitan city, all major festivals of India are celebrated here. Moreover, some tourism festivals have become regular annual events of Delhi. Delhi Tourism and Transportation Development Corporation organises Roshnara Festival, Shalimar Festival, Qutab Festival, Winter Carnival, Garden Tourism Festival, Jahane-Khusrao Festival and Mango Festival every year. TOURIST
PLACES
Important tourist places are Lal Quila (Red Fort), Jama Masjid, Qutab Minar, India Gate, Laxmi Narian Mandir (Birla Mandir), Humayun’s tomb, Lotus Temple, etc. Delhi Tourism and Transportation Development Corporation Limited conducts city sight-seeing and excursion tours. The Corporation has also introduced adventure tourism activities such as para-sailing, rock-climbing and boating in Delhi. The Corporation has also developed DELHI HAAT, where beverages and food items of different states are available at one place. More such HAATs are planned in different parts of Delhi. The Corporation is also running Coffee Homes in different parts of Delhi. The ‘‘Garden of five Senses’’ has also been opened in the South District of Delhi, which attracts a lot of tourists visiting Del hi.
GOVERNMENT Lt.
Governor
Chief Secretary
:
Rakesh
Sheila Dikshit
Jurisdiction of
:
Delhi
Dr. Yoganand Shastri
High Court
:
Tejinder
Chief Minister
:
Speaker
:
Khanna
Mehta
States and Union Territories
1219
LAKSHADWEEP Area
:
32 sq km
Population
:
60,650
Capital
:
Kavaratti
Principal
:
Jeseri (Dweep Bhasha) and Mahal
Language
HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY Not much is kno wn of the early history of these islands. The islands supposed to have been inhabited first are Amini, Andrott, Kavaratti and Agatti. It was earlier believed that the islanders were originally Hindus and later converted to Islam under the influence of Arab traders sometime in the 14 th century. But Archaeological evidences unearthed indicate that there were Buddhist settlements around the 6th o r 7th century. Earliest Muslim converts or settlers pre-date the year 139 AH of the Hijra year (eighth century) of which period grave stones have recently been discovered in Agatti. This would tend to bear out the traditional belief that Islam was brought to the Island by Arab Saint, Ubaidulla in 41 AH. Probably independent till 16 th century the Islands were driven to seek the assistance of Raja of Chirakal to help them avert establishment of Protuguese domination. This enabled him to establish his authority and, later, the islands were transferred in jaggeer to Ali Raja, head of Moplah community in Cannanore, who later became an independent ruler himself. The Arakkal rule was not popular and in 1787, Tipu Sultan acceded to the petitions of the Northern islands to annex these islands. After the fall of Tipu Sultan, the Islands were passed to East India Company but continued to be ruled de facto by the rulers of Cannanore till their ultimate annexation by the British in the early 20th century. In 1956, the islands were constituted into a single territory, and since then, have been directly administered by the Union Government through an Administrator. The Laccadives, Minicoy and Amindivi group of islands were renamed as Lakshadweep in 1973. Lakshadweep, a group of coral islands consist of 12 atolls, three reefs and submerged sand banks. Of the 27 islands, only 11 are inhabited. These lie scattered in the Arabian Sea about 280 km to 480 km off Kerala coast between 8o and 12o 3’ North Latitude and 71o and 74o East Longitude. AGRICULTURE Coconut is the only major crop with a production of 580 lakh nuts per year. The area under cultivation is about 2,598 hectares. Lakshadweep coconut is branded as an organic product. In India, Lakshadweep stands first in coconut production and productivity per hector is 22,310 per hector and average yield per palm per year is 97 nuts. The Lakshadweep coconuts are the highest oil content nuts in the world (72 per cent). FISHERIES Fishing is another major activity. The sea around the island is highly productive. The islands stand first in the country in per capita availability of fish. During 2009, 11,751 tonnes of fish have been landed in this U.T. INDUSTRIES Coconut fibre extraction and conversion into fibre products is the main industry in the islands. Under Government Sector , there are seven coir fibre factories, five coir
1220
India 2010
production cum demonstration centres and seven fibre curling units, functioning under coir sector. These units produced coir fibre and coir yarn in addition to other coir products like curled fibre, corridor mat, mat and mattings. A few coir twisting unit also function in private sector. TRANSPORT At present M.V. Kavaratti, M.V. Tipu Sultan, M.V. Bharat Seema, M.V. Minicoy, M.V. Amindivi and M.V. Dweep Setu are operating in the mainland-island sector. From 2008-09 onwards three 150 passenger high speed vessels HSC Valiyapani HSC Cheriyapani and HSC Parali are doing service in Andrott/Kochi/Beypore sector as well as in Minicoy-Kavaratti Sectors. The other inter island ferries M.V. Khadeeja Beevi, M.V. Hameedath Bee, HSC Viringili, HSC Blue Marlin, HSC Black Marlin and HSC Skipjack provide connectivity between the islands except Minicoy and Bitra and Kavaratti. The Cargo traffic in this sector are handled with four cargo largest, namely M.V. Ubaidulla, M.V. Thinnakara, M.V. Laccadives and M.V. Cheriyam. Further one oil barge M.V. Sukheli (60 MT) is being utilized for providing bunker to winterIsland ferries at Kavaratti. Two 10 Ton Bullard Tugs are also in operation for assisting berthing of smaller ships at Andrott breakwarer as well as for providing bunker for the speed vessels in the absence of Oil Barges at Andrott and Minicoy. Besides, the administration operates two helicopters for evacutation of serious patients from the islands to Kavaratti as well as to mainland. The second helicopter is used for meeting the requirement of emergency law and order situation and for inter-island connectivity during monsoon season. Helicopter connectivity between Kavaratti and Agatti/ Bangaram is also provided for the passengers and tourists availing Indian Airlines and Kingfisher Airlines in Agatti-Kochi sector. The 15 years Perspective Plan for shipping requirements in UTL are approved by Ministry of Shipping in December 2000. Among the 18 new ships recommended by the above plan, three 150 passenger high speed crafts and two 10 Ton Bullard Tugs have already been procured and inducted into service. One 15 passenger and three 50 passenger high speed vessels were also sanctioned by Government of India under PMGSY which has already been procured and inducted into service. Two 250 passenger cum 100 MT cargo ships are being constructed at Colombo Dockyard, Srilanka. The first ship is to be delivered in December 2009 and the second ship in June 2010. Six 200 passenger landing Barges are also being constructed at Vipul Shipyard, Goa, Apart from the above vessels, two landing Barges, one Oil Barge and one LPG Ships are also recommended by the committee for which tenders are being finalized by SCI. Proposal has also been submitted to Ministry of Shipping for approval of EFC for acquisition of one 400 passenger ship. TOURIST CENTRES Tourism is developing into an important industry. Important tourist places are Agatti, Bangaram, Kalpeni, Kadmat, Kavaratti and Minicoy, etc. 13,115 tourists visited this year 2008-09 of which 2,852 are foreign tourists.
GOVERNMENT Administrator
:
J.K. Dadoo, IAS
Jurisdiction of High Court
:
Falls under jurisdiction of Kerala High Court
States and Union Territories
1221
PUDUCHERRY Area
:
479 sq km
Population
:
9,74,345
Capital
:
Puducherry
Principal
:
Tamil,
Languages
Telugu,
Malayalam,
English and French
HISTORY AND GEOGRAPHY The territory of (Puducherry) comprises the former French establishment Puducherry, Karaikal, Mahe and Yanam, which lie scattered in South India. Puducherry, the capital of the territory was once the original headquarters of the French in India. It was under the French rule for 138 years and merged with the Indian Union on 1 November 1954. It is bounded on the east by the Bay of Bengal and on the three sides by Tamil Nadu. About 150 kms south of Puducherry on the East Coast lies Karaikal. Mahe is situated on the Malabar coast on the Western Ghats surrounded by Kerala. It can be reached from Calicut Airport, which is 70 kms from Mahe. Yanam is situated adjoining the East Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh and is about 200 kms from Visakhapatnam airport. AGRICULTURE Nearly 24.37 per cent of the population of the Union Territory is engaged in agriculture and allied pursuits. 80.7% of the cultivated area is irrigated. Paddy is the predominant crop (65%) followed by pulses. Mahe region contributes to the plantation wealth of this territory. Crops like coconut, areca nut, condiments and spices are grown here. Paddy crop is a major crop and pulses, groundnut and chillies are the other rainfed crops grown in Yanam. INDUSTRY 7,982 Industrial Units in total with an aggregate investment of Rs 2,177.78 crores provided employment to 93,044 persons up to March 2008. The total value of production of these industrial units worked out to Rs 13,455.34 crores. Further, during the financial year 2006-2007 (upto March 2007) the value of exports in respect of the various products manufactured by the export oriented units is Rs 901.06 crores. IRRIGATION Under the assistance from the European Union many tanks were rehabilitated. 8 bed dams have been constructed across the river Sankaraparani and Pennar at various places. In addition to the above, necessary proposal to construct bed dams for ground water recharges at Aratchikuppam, Pambaiyar confluence point at Sellipet, across Malatar in Vadukuppam at Puducherry and across Mullaiyar, Pravadayanar and Vanjiar at Karaikal and also the construction of a bridge-cum-barrage at Villanur are under progress. POWER The Power requirements of the Union Territory of Puducherry are met by availing share of power from the Central Generating Stations and by purchasing power from the neighbouring State Electricity Boards viz., Tamilnadu Electricity Board, Kerala State Electricity Board and from the Puducherry Power Corporation Limited. The total power available for Union Territory of Puducherry is 396 58 MW.
1222
India 2010
TRANSPORT Roads nearly 677.525 km. of various category are being maintained by Roads Divisions of PWD Puducherry. Construction of bridges and improvement of roads are under progress. TOURISM Located about 160 Km South of Chennai, Puducherry (known in Tamil as Puddcherry), the former French Colony of the early 18th Century, is a charming Indian town with a few enduring pockets of French Culture, and an Ashram set beside the sea. Together with the othe former French enclaves of Karaikal (also in Tamil Nadu), Mahe (Kerala), Yanam (Andhra Pradesh), it now forms the Union, Territory of Puducherry. The uniqueness of this town invariably lies in skillful town planning and Franco Tamil architecture. The town is built on the model of "bastide", a fortified French coastal town of the late 18th Century. Being the legendary abode of renowned saints, ancient trading settlement with Rome and Greece, once capital of French India, a spiritual Power house, Puducherry has touristic resources in the back waters, rivers, beaches and other areas developed as sustainable eco-tourist facilities. Influenced by East and West, Puducherry has unique handicrafts in leather pottery, hand made paper, incense and antique colonial furniture. Late Prime Minister Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru rightly described Puducherry as "the Window of French Culture". Sri Aurobindo, the great seer, poet and prophet of Indian spirituality, preached his vision and ideals staying in Puducherry till his life. His Ashram is still an unique institution with its distinctive way of life attracting people from all over the world.
GOVERNMENT Lt.
: Govind Singh Gurjar
Chief Secretary
:
Naini Jayaseelan,
Chief Minister
Governor
: N.
Rangasamy
Jurisdiction of
:
Falls under jurisdiction
Speaker
: R.
Radhakrishnan
High Court
Chennai,
IAS
High Court
AREA, POPULATION AND HEADQUARTERS OF DISTRICTS S . N o . District
Area (sq km)
Population
Headquarters
1.
Puducherry
290
7,35,332
Puducherry
2.
Karaikal
161
1,70,791
Karaikal
3.
Mahe
9
36,828
Mahe
4.
Yanam
20
31,394
Yanam
Diary of National Events
1223
31 Diary of National Events (OCTOBER
2008—SEPTEMBER
2009)
OCTOBER 2008 •
At least 187 persons killed and hundreds injured in a stamped at Chamunda Devi Temple in Rajasthan.
•
Tata
•
India and the US seal an unprecedented nuclear deal ending New Delhi's 34 years isolation.
•
Election Commission announces one-day poll in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Delhi, Mizoram and two-day poll in Chhattisgarh.
•
Election Commission announces seven phase election in Jammu & Kashmir from November 17, 2008.
•
India joins the global club of six moon-faring nations as it launches its maiden unmanned moon mission Chandrayaan-I
NOVEMBER
Group shifts Nano small car project from Singur in West Bengal.
2008
•
The fifth and final orbit raising manouevre of Chandrayaan-I carried out placing the spacecraft in the Lunar Transfer Trajectory.
•
The number of cases pending before the Supreme Court reach to 47,855 during the period April-June 2008.
•
Former Union Minister and one of founder members of the Trinamool Congress, Ajit Panja passed away at the age of 72.
•
The US-hosts G-20 Summit, agrees on a greater role for emerging economies like India, China and Brazil in the proposed restructuring of the international financial system following the economic meltdown.
•
The Government and the Reserve Bank open a special Rs. 20,000 crore refinance window to boost growth of small and medium enterprises (SMEs).
•
Terrorists strike at important points in Mumbai on November 26, 2008. Maharashtra Anti-terrorism Squad (ATS) Chief Hemant Karkare, Additional Commissioner of Police (North-East) Ashok Kamte and encounter specialist Vijay Salaskar among the 14 police personnel killed in attacks.
•
Operations against terrorists hiding at different locations in Mumbai continue for the next two days. The attacks leave 155 dead and 327 injured.
•
Pakistan Government repatriates 101 Indians through the Attari border in Punjab.
•
Former Prime Minister V.P. Singh passes away at the age of 77.
DECEMBER 2008 •
Supreme Court holds that retirement benefits like pension and gratuity cannot be attached by authorities for recovery of dues.
1224
India 2010
•
RBI announces measures, including a one percentage point cut in the short term rates at which it lends and borrows from banks. Also pumps in Rs. 11,000 crore in Small Industries Development Bank of India and National Housing Bank. The short-term lending rate (repo) fall to 6.5 per cent and borrowing (reverse repo) rate to 5 per cent.
•
India and Russia sign a deal worth over one billion dollars for 80 MI-17 helicopters for the IAF.
•
Government announces Rs. 20,000 crore additional non-plan expenditure as part of a package to stimulate the economy.
•
A package set rolling by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh targets power, exports, housing, auto, small and medium industries and infrastructure sectors through additional funding and guarantees an amount totalling to Rs 35,000 crore.
•
Congress wins Assembly elections in Delhi, Rajasthan and Mizoram.
•
BJP's wins Assembly elections in Madhya Pradesh and Chhattisgarh.
•
India raises the Mumbai terror attack at the UN and demands that the world body ban Pak-based Jamaat-ud-Dawa, the front organisations with effective sanctions.
•
About 2.52 crore cases are pending in the subordinate courts in the country, says the Law Ministry.
•
Parliament passes a Bill aimed at ensuring social security and welfare of the workers in the unorganised sector.
•
Minister of Minority Affairs, A. R. Antulay resigns.
•
India successfully tests a supersonic cruise missile.
•
India hands over to Pakistan a letter written by the lone surviving terrorist of the Mumbai attacks, Ajmal Amir Kasab, confirming the nationality of the attackers and his as Pakistanis.
•
World Bank bars India's Satyam Computer Services from providing software services to the bank offices for eight years following alleged malpractices.
JANUARY 2009 •
RBI cuts Cash Reserve Ratio by 0.50 percent to 5 per cent, also cuts repo and reverse repo rate by 100 basis points each to 5.5 per cent and 4 per cent rate respectively.
•
Two US-based law firms file suits against Satyam Computer Services on behalf of shareholders.
•
Andhra Pradesh police arrests disgraced former founder-chairman of Satyam Computer, B. Ramalinga Raju and his brother and former company managing director B. Rama Raju.
•
India assumes the chairmanship of the Afro-Asian Rural Development Organisation (AARDO).
•
Government constitutes a three-member board comprising noted banker Deepak Parekh, IT expert Kiran Karnik and ex-SEBI member C. Achutan for Satyam Computers.
Diary of National Events
1225
•
Jharkhand Chief Minister Shibu Soren resigns following defeat in Tamar Assembly bypoll.
•
The Centre approvs a 300 crore rupee plan for setting up of a chain of forensic laboratories and upgrading the existing ones across the country for better investigation of criminal and terrorism-related cases.
•
Indian-American lawyer Preeta Bansal joins as General Counsel and Senior Policy Advisor at the White House Office of Management and Budget.
•
Another Indian-American Lawyer Neal Kumar Katyal joins the Obama Administration as the Principal Deputy Solicitor General.
•
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh operated upon for a heart ailment at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) by a team of doctors from the Asian Cardiology Institute (ACI), led by Dr. Ramakanta Panda.
•
India's rich cultural heritage and military might showcased on the Rajpath, in the National Capital on its 60th Republic Day. Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev, Chief Guest on the occasion.
•
Former President R. Venkataraman passes away.
FEBRUARY 2009 •
In tennis, Yuki Bhambri wins the ju nior boys singles title while Sania MirzaMahesh Bhupathi duo lift the mixed doubles title at Australian Open.
•
India signs a key safeguards agreement with IAEA to allow inspection of additional civilian reactors.
•
Government changes FDI policy and excludes indirect investment through domestic companies from overall sectoral ceilings.
•
Musician A.R. Rahman becomes the first Indian to win two Oscars for his music in the film 'Slumdog Millionaire' which sweeps eight Academy Awards.
MARCH 2009 •
Election Commission announces Lok Sabha elections in five phases from April 16 to May 13.
•
Reliance Industries Chairman Mukesh Ambani and NRI steel baron Lakshmi Mittal lead the pack of 24 Indians in the Forbes' list of world's richest people.
•
US Administration approves a 2.1 billion dollar deal for the supply of eight Boeing P-81 maritime patrol aircraft to India.
•
T ata Motors commercially launches its people's car, 'Nano' with a 1 lakh rupee price tag.
•
Obama Administration calls upon India to help strengthen Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) and foster safe and affordable nuclear power.
•
India and Israel sign a Rs. 8,000 crore defence deal for the purchase and development of medium range surface to air missiles.
APRIL 2009 •
CBI gives clean chit to former Union Minister Jagdish Tytler in the 1984 antiSikh riots case.
1226
India 2010
•
Seven persons killed and six ty-three injured in terrorist attacks in Assam.
•
India win a test series against New Zealand (1-0) after 41 years.
•
India and Israel ink a Rs. 1,200 crore deal to revive ammunition production in Nalanda, Bihar.
•
After a six-week long probe into Satyam scam, CBI files a 300 page chargesheet in the case.
•
India and Kuwait sign three pacts for strengthening cooperation in science and technology, education and culture.
•
Noted Hindi filmmaker Shakti Samanta passes away at the age of 83.
•
Forty seven Indian companies including State Bank of India and Reliance Industries make to the list of world's biggest 2,000 companies.
•
India regain Azlan Shah hockey title after 13-years, defeating Malaysia in the finals of the five nations tournament.
•
Indigenously developed nuclear capable surface-to-surface ballistic missile Prithivi-II successfully testfired.
•
Shri. Navin Chawla takes charge as the Chief Election Commissioner.
•
Government issues a travel advisory for travellers to countries affected by A (H1N1) influenza and puts in place a screening system for incoming passengers.
•
Bollywood actor Feroz Khan passes away.
MAY 2009 •
Supreme Court lifts the stay on trial of 2002 Gujarat riots cases and directs setting up of fast track courts.
•
A Special Court frames as many as 86 charges against Pakistani gunman and prime accused Ajmal Kasab and two others involved in the 26/11 Mumbai attacks.
•
The Indian Air Force seeks assistance of Russia to carry out checks on the entire fleet of the SU-30 MKI Fighter jet following a crash.
•
Former naval chief, Admiral S.M. Nanda, a veteran of the 1971 Indo-Pak war passes away.
•
Congress powers the UPA for another term in office in the Lok Sabha elections. BJP concedes defeat and says the party had performed below expectation and the mandate of the people was in favour of the Congressled UPA alliance.
•
India successfully test-fires its nuclear-capable 'Agni-II' missile with a strike range of upto 3,000 kms.
•
Shri Manmohan Singh appointed Prime Minister for term.
•
Cyclone 'Aila' hits 13 West Bengal districts and
•
The Union Council of Ministers expanded with the induction of 59 ministers, including three former chief ministers. With this, the strength of the Union Council of Ministers goes up to 79, including the Prime Minister.
second consecutive
claims 81 lives.
Diary of National Events
1227
JUNE 2009 •
India expresses displeasure at the release of Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JuD) chief Hafiz Mohammed Saeed, and says it raises serious doubts about Pakistan's commitment to probe the Mumbai attacks.
•
Smt. Meira Kumar becomes the first woman Speaker of the Lok Sabha.
•
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh declares his Government's 'zero tolerance' for terror but expresses readiness to make peace with Pakistan if its leadership takes 'strong and effective' steps to prevent terrorism directed against India.
•
Gopal Subramanium becomes the new Solicitor General of India.
•
Centre bans the CPI (Maoist) under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.
•
The Ministry of Information & Broadcasting grants clearance to 22 new TV channels. With this, India would now have more than 450 TV channels beaming into the households.
•
The Liberhan Commission that probed the 1992 demolition of Babri Masjid in Ayodhyay submits its report to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
•
India's first open sea bridge, a 5.6-km cable-held engineering marvel inaugurated in Mumbai.
JULY 2009 •
Railway Minister Ms. Mamata Banerjee presents the Railway Budget. The Minister announces setting up of a new coach factory at KanchraparaHalisahar Railway Complex in West Bengal, proposes introduction of "Only Ladies" EMU trains in Delhi, Chennai and Kolkata suburban during office rush hours and low cost air-conditioned seated accommodation 'Yuva Trains' for youth and low-income groups.
•
The Economic Survey tabled in Parliament. The Survey favours 100 per cent FDI on a case-by-case basis in high technology, strategic defence goods, services and systems.
•
Union Finance Minister Shri Pranab Mukherji presents the Budget-2009 in Parliament on July 6, 2009.
•
At least 113 people killed in a hooch tragedy in Ahmedabad, Gujarat.
•
Indian origin Indra Nooyi is among the 13 women who are at the helm of companies featured in Fortune 500 list.
•
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh underlines India's commitment to strengthening the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) and its desire at strengthen strategic partnership with France in all areas, including civil, nuclear cooperation and defence.
•
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and French President Nicolas Sarkozy discuss cooperation in atomic energy, defence, space and agree to work together to fight terrorism.
1228 •
India 2010 A 14-member Indian crew on board a country-made vessel hijacked by Somali pirates in the Gulf of Aden, rescued in a joint operation by Indian and French naval warships.
•
Gayatri Devi, from the royal family of Jaipur dies at the age of 90.
AUGUST 2009 •
Nirupama Rao takes over as Foreign Secretary.
•
Gujarat Governor D.N. Dwivedi passes away at the age of 74.
•
On India's 63rd Independence Day, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh asserts that Indians had immense faith and confidence in themselves and the world's largest democracy was headed to a "new glory".
•
BJP expels veteran leader Jaswant Singh for showering praise on Mohammad Ali Jinnah in his book-Jinnah—India, Partition, Independence.
•
Haryana
assembly dissolved months ahead of its term.
SEPTEMBER 2009 •
India beat Syria 6-5. via tie-breaker to win the Nehru Cup International Football Tournament.
•
Oscar-winning musician A.R. Rahman wins 'Grassroot Grammy' held in the US.
•
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy and four other killed in a helicopter crash.
•
India's Pankaj Advani wins his maiden World Professional Billiards title.
•
India's Ramesh Kumar creates history by winning the bronze medal in the freestyle 74kg category at the World Wrestling Championship, Denmark.
•
The World Bank approves $4.3 billion in loans for India to bolster its economic stimulus programme and finance infrastructure projects.
General Information
1229
32 General Information PRESIDENTS OF INDIA Name
Tenure
Dr Rajendra Prasad (1884-1963) ........................................ 26 January 1950-13 May 1962 Dr Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan (1888-1975) ....................... 13 May 1962-13 May 1967 Dr Zakir Hussain (1897-1969) ............................................ 13 May 1967-3 May 1969 Varahagiri Venkatagiri (1884-1980) ................................... 3 May 1969-20 July 1969 (Acting) Justice Mohammad Hidayatullah (1905-1992) ................... 20 July 1969-24 August 1969 (Acting) Varahagiri Venkatagiri (1884-1980) ....................................... 24 August 1969-24 August 1974 Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed (1905-1977) ..................................... 24 August 1974-11 February 1977 B.D. Jatti (1913-2002) ............................................................... 11 February 1977-25 July 1977 (Acting) Neelam Sanjiva Reddy (1913-1996) ...................................... 25 July 1977-25 July 1982 Giani Zail Singh (1916-1994) .................................................. 25 July 1982-25 July 1987 R. Venkataraman (b-1910) ...................................................... 25 July 1987-25 July 1992 Dr Shankar Dayal Sharma (1918 -1999) ........................... 25 July 1992-25 July 1997 K.R. Narayanan (1920-1925) ............................................... 25 July 1997-25 July 2002 Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam (b-1931) ....................................... 25 July 2002-25 July 2007 Smt. Pratibha Patil (b-1934) ................................................ 25 July 2007-till date
VICE-PRESIDENTS OF INDIA Name
Tenure
Dr Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan (1888-1975) ....................... 1952-1962 Dr Zakir Hussain (1897-1969) ............................................ 1962-1967 Varahagiri Venkatagiri (1884-1980) ................................... 1967-1969 Gopal Swarup Pathak (1896-1982) ................................... 1969-1974 B.D. Jatti (1913-2002) ........................................................... 1974-1979 Justice Mohammad Hidayatullah (1905-1992) .............. 1979-1984 R. Venkataraman (b-1910) ................................................... 1984-1987 Dr Shankar Dayal Sharma (1918-1999) ............................ 1987-1992 K.R. Narayanan (1920-1925) ............................................... 1992-1997 Krishan Kant (1927-2002) .................................................... 1997-2002 Bhairon Singh Shekhawat(b-1923) ..................................... 2002-2007 Mohammed Hamid Ansari(b-1937) .................................. 2007-till date
1230
India 2010 PRIME MINISTERS OF INDIA
Name
Tenure
Jawaharlal Nehru (1889-1964) ............................................ 15 August 1947-27 May 1964 Gulzari Lal Nanda (1898-1997) ......................................... 27 May 1964-9 June 1964 (Acting) Lal Bahadur Shastri (1904-1966) ........................................... 9 June 1964-11 January 1966 Gulzari Lal Nanda (1898-1997) ............................................. 11 January 1966-24 January 1966 (Acting) Indira Gandhi (1917-1984) ..................................................... 24 January1966-24 March 1977 Morarji Desai (1896-1995) ...................................................... 24 March 1977-28 July 1979 Charan Singh (1902-1987) ...................................................... 28 July 1979-14 January 1980 Indira Gandhi (1917-1984) ..................................................... 14 January 1980-31 October 1984 Rajiv Gandhi (1944-1991) ....................................................... 31 October 1984-1 December 1989 Vishwanath Pratap Singh (b-1931) ....................................... 2 December 1989-10 November 1990 Chandra Shekhar (b-1927) ..................................................... 10 November 1990-21 June 1991 P.V. Narasimha Rao (1921-2004) ............................................ 21 June 1991-16 May 1996 Atal Bihari Vajpayee (b-1926) ................................................ 16 May 1996-01 June 1996 H.D. Deve Gowda (b-1933) .................................................... 01 June 1996-21 April 1997 I.K. Gujral (b-1933) .................................................................. 21 April 1997-18 March 1998 Atal Bihari Vajpayee (b-1926) ................................................ 19 March 1998 -13 October 1999 Atal Bihari Vajpayee (b-1926) ................................................ 13 October 1999 - 22 May 2004 Dr. Manmohan Singh (b-1932) .............................................. 22 May 2004 - till date
CHIEF JUSTICES OF INDIA Name
Tenure
Harilal J. Kania ................................................................... 26 January 1950—6 November 1951 M. Patanjali Sastri .............................................................. 7 November 1951—3 January 1954 Mehar Chand Mahajan ..................................................... 4 January 1954—22 December 1954 B.K. Mukherjea .................................................................. 23 December 1954—31 January 1956 S.R. Das ............................................................................... 1 February 1956—30 September 1959 Bhuvaneshwar Prasad Sinha ........................................... 1 October 1959—31 January 1964 P.B. Gajendragadkar .......................................................... 1 February 1964—15 March 1966 A.K. Sarkar ......................................................................... 16 March 1966—29 June 1966 K. Subba Rao ...................................................................... 30 June 1966—11 April 1967 K.N. Wanchoo .................................................................... 12 April 1967—24 February 1968 M. Hidayatullah ................................................................ 25 February 1968—16 December 1970 I.C. Shah .............................................................................. 17 December 1970—21 January 1971 S.M. Sikri ............................................................................. 22 January 1971—25 April 1973 A.N. Ray ............................................................................. 26 April 1973—27 January 1977 M.H. Beg ............................................................................. 28 January 1977—21 February 1978 Y.V. Chandrachud .............................................................. 22 February 1978—11 July 1985
General Information
1231
Prafullachandra ................................................................. 12 July 1985—20 December 1986 Natvarlal Bhagwati R.S. Pathak ......................................................................... 21 December 1986—18 June 1989 E.S. Venkataramaiah ....................................................... 19 June 1989—17 December 1989 S. Mukherjee ...................................................................... 18 December 1989—25 September 1990 Ranganath Mishra ............................................................ 26 September 1990—24 November 1991 K.N. Singh .......................................................................... 25 November 1991—12 December 1991 M.H. Kania ......................................................................... 13 December 1991—17 November 1992 I.M. Sharma ....................................................................... 18 November 1992—11 February 1993 M.N. Venkatachalaiah ..................................................... 12 February 1993—24 October 1994 A.M. Ahmadi .................................................................... 25 October 1994—24 March 1997 J.S. Verma ........................................................................... 25 March 1997—17 January 1998 M.M. Punchhi .................................................................... 18 January 1998—9 October 1998 A.S. Anand ........................................................................ 10 October 1998—31 October 2001 S.P. Bharucha .................................................................... 1 November 2001—5 May 2002 B.N. Kirpal ......................................................................... 6 May 2002—7 November 2002 G.B. Pattanaiak ................................................................. 8 November 2002—18 December 2002 V.N. Khare .......................................................................... 19 December 2002—1 May 2004 S. Rajendra Babu .............................................................. 02 May 2004—31 May 2004 R.C. Lahoti ......................................................................... 01 June 2004—31 October 2005 Y.K. Sabharwal .................................................................. 01 November 2005—31 December 2006 K.G. Balakrishnan ............................................................. 14 January 2007—till date
CHIEF ELECTION COMMISSIONERS OF INDIA Name
Tenure
Sukumar Sen ..................................................................... 21 March 1950-19 December 1958 K.V.K. Sundaram ............................................................. 20 December 1958-30 September 1967 S.P. Sen Verma ................................................................... 1 October 1967-30 September 1972 Dr Nagendra Singh .......................................................... 1 October 1972-6 February 1973 T. Swaminathan ................................................................ 7 February 1973-17 June 1977 S.L. Shakdhar .................................................................... 18 June 1977-17 June 1982 R.K. Trivedi ........................................................................ 18 June 1982-31 December 1985 R.V.S. Peri Sastri ............................................................... 1 January 1986-25 November 1990 Smt V.S. Rama Devi ........................................................ 26 November 1990-11 December 1990 T.N. Seshan ........................................................................ 12 December 1990-11 December 1996 M.S. Gill .............................................................................. 12 December 1996-13 June 2001 J.M. Lyngdoh ..................................................................... 14 June 2001 - 7 February 2004 T.S. Krishna Murthy .........................................................
8 February 2004 - 15 May 2005
B.B. Tandon ....................................................................... 16 May 2005 - 29 June 2006 N. Gopalaswamy ............................................................. 30 June 2006 - 20 April 2009 Navin Chawla ................................................................... 21 April 2009
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India 2010 CHAIRMEN OF UPSC
Name
Tenure
Sir Ross Barker ............................................................ 1926-1932 Sir David Petrie ........................................................... August 1932-1936 Sir Eyre Gorden ........................................................... 1937-1942 Sir F.W. Robertson ...................................................... 1942-1947 Sh. H.K. Kripalani ...................................................... 1 April 1947-13 January 1949 Sh. R.N. Banerjee ........................................................ 14 January 1949-9 May 1955 Sh. N. Govindarajan .................................................. 10 May 1955-9 December 1955 Sh. V.S. Hejmadi ........................................................ 10 December 1955-9 December 1961 Sh. B.N. Jha .................................................................. 11 December 1961-22 February 1967 Sh. K.R. Damle ............................................................ 18 April 1967-2 March 1971 Sh. R.C.S. Sarkar ......................................................... 11 May 1971-1 February 1973 Dr. A.R. Kidwai .......................................................... 5 February 1973-4 February 1979 Dr. M.L. Shahare ........................................................ 16 February 1979-16 February 1985 Sh. H.K.L. Capoor ...................................................... 18 February 1985-5 March 1990 Sh. J.P. Gupta .............................................................. 5 March 1990-2 June 1992 Smt. R.M. Bathew (Kharbuli) .................................. 23 September 1992-23 August 1996 Sh. S.J.S. Chhatwal ..................................................... 23 August 1996-30 September 1996 Sh. J.M. Qureshi .......................................................... 30 September 1996-11 December 1998 Lt. Gen. (Retd.) Surinder Nath ................................ 11 December 1998-25 June 2002 Sh. P.C. Hota ............................................................... 25 June 2002-8 September 2003 Sh. Mata Prasad ......................................................... 8 September 2003-04 January 2005 Dr. S.R. Hashim .......................................................... 04 January 2005-01 April 2006 Sh. Gurbachan Jagat .................................................. 01 April 2006-30 June 2007 Prof. D.P. Agarwal .................................................... As on date
CHAIRMAN AND MEMBERS OF THE UPSC (As on 25 October 2006) CHAIRMAN PROF. D. P. AGARWAL MEMBERS MS. PARVEEN TALHA SH. K. ROY PAUL PROF. K.S. CHALAM PFOF. E. BALAGURUSAMY SMT. SHASHI UBAN TRIPATHI PROF. PURUSHOTTAM AGARWAL
General Information
1233
DR. K.K. PAUL LT. GEN (RETD.) NIRBHAY SHARMA SH. I.M.G. KHAN SHRI PRASHANTA KUMAR MISHRA
CIVILIAN AWARDS Bharat Ratna
:
The award is given for exceptional service towards the advancement of Art, Literature and Science and in recognition of public service of the highest order.
Padma Vibhushan
:
The award is given for exceptional and distinguished service in any field including service rendered by the Government servants.
Padma Bhushan
:
The award is given for distinguished service of high order in any field including service rendered by the Government servants.
Padma Shri
:
The award is given for distinguished service in any field including service rendered by the Government servants.
In pursuance of the Supreme Court's Judgement, the Government had constituted a High Level Review Committee chaired by the Vice-President of India, to go into the guidelines for the Padma Awards and certain other aspects. The Review Committee submitted its report in November 1996 and the same has been accepted by the Government. The institution of these awards has been revived since 1997.
RECIPIENTS OF BHARAT RATNA Name
Awarded in
Chakravarti Rajagopalachari (1878-1972) ......................................................... 1954 Dr Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan (1888-1975) ......................................................... 1954 Dr Chandrasekhar Venkat Raman (1888-1970) ................................................ 1954 Dr Bhagwan Das (1869-1958) .............................................................................. 1955 Dr Mokshagundam Visvesvaraya (1861-1962) ................................................. 1955 Jawaharlal Nehru (1889-1964) ............................................................................. 1955 Govind Ballabh Pant (1887-1961) ....................................................................... 1957 Dr Dhondo Keshave Karve (1858-1962) ............................................................ 1958 Dr Bidhan Chandra Roy (1882-1962) ................................................................. 1961 Purushottam Das Tandon (1882-1962) ............................................................... 1961 Dr Rajendra Prasad (1884-1963) .......................................................................... 1962 Dr Zakir Hussain (1897-1969) .......................................................................... 1963 Dr Pandurang Vaman Kane (1880-1972) ....................................................... 1963 Lal Bahadur Shastri (Posthumous) (1904-1966) ......................................... 1966 Indira Gandhi (1917-1984) .................................................................................... 1971 Varahagiri Venkatagiri (1884-1980) .................................................................... 1975 Kumaraswami Kamraj (Posthumous) (1903-1975) ........................................... 1976
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India 2010
Mary Teresa Bojaxhiu (Mother Teresa) (1910-1997) .................................... 1980 Acharya Vinobha Bhave (Posthumous) (1895-1982) .................................. 1983 Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan (1890-1988) ......................................................... 1987 Marudu Gopalan Ramachandran (Posthumous) (1917-1987) ................. 1988 Dr Bhim Rao Ramji Ambedkar (Posthumous) (1891-1956) ...................... 1990 Dr Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela (b-1918) .......................................................... 1990 Rajiv Gandhi (Posthumous) (1944-1991) ....................................................... 1991 Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel (Posthumous) (1875-1950) ................................. 1991 Morarji Ranchhodji Desai (1896-1995) ........................................................... 1991 Maulana Abul Kalam Azad (Posthumous) (1888-1958) .......................... 1992 Jehangir Ratanji Dadabhai Tata (1904-1993) ................................................ 1992 Satyajit Ray (Posthumous) (1922-1992) ........................................................ 1992 Aruna Asaf Ali (Posthumous) (1909-1996) .................................................. 1997 Gulzari Lal Nanda (Posthumous) (1898-1997) ............................................ 1997 Dr Avul Pakir Jainulabdeen Abdul Kalam (b-1931) ................................... 1997 Madurai Shanmukhavadivu Subbalakshmi (1916-2004) .......................... 1998 Chidambaram Subramaniam (1910-2000) .................................................... 1998 Loknayak Jayaprakash Narayan (Posthumous) (1902-1979) ................... 1999 Professor Amartya Sen (b-1933) ...................................................................... 1999 Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi (Posthumous) (1890-1950) .......................... 1999 Pandit Ravi Shankar (b -1920) ........................................................................... 1999 Sushri Lata Dinanath Mangeshkar (b-1929) .................................................. 2001 Ustad Bismillah Khan (1916-2006) ................................................................. 2001
Padma Awards : Padma awards are amongst the highest civilian awards of the country. There are three categories of Padma Awards - 'Padma Vibhushan', 'Padma Bhushan' and 'Padma Shri'. These are given for distinguished service in any field including Art, Literature and Education, Science and Engineering, Sports, Medicine, etc. Padma Awards are announced on the eve of the Republic Day every year. PADMA AWARDS CONFERRED ON REPUBLIC DAY 2007 Padma Vibhushan Recipients
:
Prof. Balu Sankaran Prof. Ennackal Chandy George Sudarshan Shri Fali Sam Nariman Shri Khushwant Singh Shri Naresh Chandra Shri Narinder Nath Vohra Justice Prafulla Chandra Bhagwati Prof. Raja Rao (Posthumous) Dr. Raja Jesudoss Chelliah Dr. V. Krishnamurthy
General Information Padma Bhushan Recipients
1235 :
Prof. Bhikhu Parekh Shri Chandra Prasad Saikia (Posthumous) Ms. Ela Gandhi Father Gabriel Chiramel C.M.I. Dr. Gopaldas Neeraj Dr. Gurcharan Singh Kalkat
Mrs. Indra K. Nooyi Dr. Jamshed J. Irani Shri Javed Akhtar Prof. Jeffrey D. Sachs Justice K.T. Thomas Shri Kavalam Narayana Panikkar Capt. L.Z. Sailo Dr. (Smt.) Manju Sharma Dr. N. Mahalingam Mr. Osamu Suzuki Dr. Prithipal Singh Maini Pandit Rajan Misra Shri Ramankutty Nair Pandit Sajan Misra Dr. Saroj Ghose Shri Sayed Haider Raza Prof. (Dr.) Shiv Kumar Sarin Prof. (Vaidya) Shriram Sharma Prof. Somnath Hore (Postumous) Shri Sunil Bharati Mittal Hakim Syed Mohammad Sharfuddin Quadri Prof. Tapan Kumar Raychaudhuri Prof. Thirukodikaval Nilakanta Srinivasan Shri Tyeb Mehta Dr. (Smt.) V. Mohini Giri Dr. Vilayanur Subramanian Ramachandran Padma Shri Recipients
:
Prof. (Dr.) Adya Prasad Mishra Shri Amitav Ghosh
1236
India 2010 Prof. Ananda Mohan Chakrabarty Dr. (Smt.) Ananda Shankar Jayant Shri Anantharamakrishnan Sivasailam Dr. Anoop Misra Prof. (Dr.) Ashok Kumar Hemal Shri Astad Aderbad Deboo Prof. (Dr.) Atul Kumar Dr. B. Paul Thaliath Dr. Bakul Harshadrai Dholakia Dr. Balbir Singh Dr. Baldev Raj Shri Chiranjeev Milkha Singh Prof. Deveindra Rahinwal (Postumous) Prof. Dilip Biswas Pandit Gajendra Narayan Singh Smt. Geeta Chandran Dr. Giriraj Kishore Rajmata Goverdan Kumari Prof. (Dr.) Harpinder Singh Chawla Prof. Kallipatti Ramasamy Palaniswamy Prof. (Dr.) Khadg Singh Valdiya Shri Khalid Zaheer Shri Kiran Sharadchandra Karnik Ms. Koneru Humpy Dr. Lalit Pande Shri Lama Thupten Phuntsok Sister M. Cyril Mooney Dr. M. Mohan Babu Dr. Mahadev Prasad Pandey Dr. Mahipal Singh Sachdev Dr. Manjunath Cholenahally Nanjappa Prof. Mayil Vahanan Natarajan Dr. (Ms.) Meenakshi Gopinath Ms. Mira Salganik Alias Mariam L'vovna Salganik
General Information
1237 Dr. Mohsin Wali Shri Mujtaba Hussain Prof. Mushirul Hasan Mrs. Naina Lal Kidwai Smt. Naorem Ongbi Neelamani Devi Prof. (Dr.) Narmada Prasad Gupta Shri P. Gopinathan Dr. P. Namperumalsamy Smt. P.R. Thilagam Shri Pannuru Sripathy Dr. (Smt.) Pratibha Ray Smt. Pushpa Hans Dr. Rabi Narayan Bastia Shri Rabinder Gokaldas Ahuja Shri Rajinder Gupta Shri Ravindra Dayal (Postumous) Shri Remo Fernandes Ms. Runa Banerjee Prof. Rybakov Rostislav Shri S. Dakshinamurthy Pillai Shri S. Balachandra Menon Smt. Shanti Hiranand
`
Smt. Shashikala Jawalkar Prof. (Dr.) Shekhar Pathak Dr. Sheo Bhagwan Tibrewal Shri Sonam Skalzang Shri Sonam Tshering Lepcha Prof. Sudhir Kumar Sopory Shri Sushil Gupta Dr. (Ms.) Syeda Saiyidain Hameed Shri T.S. Rangarajan Alias Kavignar Vaalee Smt. Tarla Dalal Ms. Teesta Setalvad Prof. (Ms.) Temsula Ao Prof. Thanu Padmanabhan Dr. Thekkethil Kochandy Alex Shri Thingbaijam Babu Singh
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India 2010 Shri Valayapatti A.R. Subramaniyam Shri Vijai Dan Detha Shri Vikram Seth Shri Waman Thakre Dr. Yusufkhan Mohamadkhan Pathan
JEEVAN RAKSHA PADAK SERIES OF AWARDS The Jeevan Raksha Padak series of awards are given for courage and promptitude under circumstances of great danger to the life or bodily injury of the rescuer, displayed in an act or a series of acts of humane nature, in saving the life of a person from drowning, fire, rescue operations in mines, etc. There are three categories of Jeevan Raksha Padak awards viz. Sarvottam Jeevan Raksha Padak, Uttam Jeevan Raksha Padak and Jeevan Raksha Padak. Recommendations for Jeevan Raksha Padak series of awards are received from the State Governments/Union Territory Administrations and Ministries/Departments of the Government of India. On the basis of the recommendations of the Awards Committee, the President approved the award of Uttam Jeevan Raksha Padak to three persons and Jeevan Raksha Padak to 38 persons for the year 2006. No Sarvottam Jeevan Raksha Padak award was announced this year. SAHITYA AKADEMI AWARDS 2005 Language
Title and Genre
Author
Assamese
Mouna Ounth Mukhar Hriday (Novel)
Yeshe Dorje Thongchi
Bengali
Haspatale Lekha Kbitaguchha (Poetry)
Binoy Mazumdar
Bodo
Jiuni Mwgthang Bisombi Arw Aroj (Poetry)
Mangalsingh Hazowary
Dogri
Dhaldi Dhuppe Da Sek (Short Stories)
Krishan Sharma
Gujarati
Akhand Zalar Vage (Poetry)
Suresh Dalal
Hindi
Kyap (Novel)
Manohar Shyam Joshi
Kannada
Teru (Novel)
Raghavendra Patil
Kashmiri
Yath Miani Joye (Poetry)
Hamidi Kashmiri
Konkani
Bhaangarsaall (Short Stories)
N. Shivdas
Maithili
Chanan Ghan Gachchiya (Poetry)
Vivekanand Thakur
Malayalam
Jappana Pukayila (Short Stories)
G.V. Kakkanadan
Manipuri
Pangal Shonbi Eishe Adomgeeni (Short Stories)
M. Nabakishore Singh
Marathi
Bhijaki Vahi (Poetry)
Arun Kolatkar
Nepali
Jeevan Goreto Ma (Novel)
Krishna Singh Moktan
Oriya
Gopapura (Short Stories)
Ramachandra Behera
Punjabi
Agni-Kalas (Short Stories)
Gurbachan Singh Bhullar
Rajasthani
Kisturi Mirag (Short Stories)
Chetan Swami
Sanskrit
Sri Bhargave-Raghaviyam (Epic)
Swami Rambhadracharya
General Information
1239
Santhali
Bhabna (Poetry)
Jadumani Besra
Sindhi
Andhero Roshan Thiye
Dholan ‘Rahi’
Tamil
Kalmaram (Novel)
G. Thilakavathi
Telugu
Tana Margam (Short Stories)
Abburi Chayadevi
Urdu
Ret Per Khema (Memoirs)
Jabir Husain
NOBEL LAUREATES AMARTYA SEN (b -1933) : Prof. Amartya Sen is the recipient of the Nobel Prize for Economics for the year 1998, becoming the first Asian to have been honoured with the award. The Santiniketanborn economist who is a pioneer in Welfare Economics has to his credit several books and papers on aspects of welfare and development. An economist with a difference, Prof. Sen is a humanist. He has distinguished himself with his outstanding writings on famine, poverty, democracy, gender and social issues. The ‘impossibility theorem’ suggested earlier by Kenneth Arrow states that it was not possible to aggregate individual choices into a satisfactory choice for society as a whole. Prof. Sen showed mathematically that societies could find ways to alleviate such a poor outcome. SUBRAMANIAN CHANDRASHEKHAR (1910-1995) : The Nobel Prize for Physics in 1983 was awarded to Dr S. Chandrashekhar, an Indian-born astrophysicist. Educated in Presidency College, Chennai, Dr Chandrashekhar happened to be the nephew of his Nobel forbear, Sir C.V. Raman. He later migrated to the United States where he authored several books on Astrophysics and Stellar Dynamics. He developed a theory on white dwarf stars which posts a limit of mass of dwarf stars known also as Chandrashekhar Limit. His theory explains the final stages of stellar evolution. MOTHER TERESA (1910-1997) : The Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to Mother Teresa in 1979. Albanian parentage, Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu was born at Skopje, now in Yogoslavia. She joined the Irish order of the Sisters of Loretto at Dublin in 1928 and came to Kolkata in 1929 as a missionary, only to find the misery of the abandoned and the destitute. Concern for the poor and the sick prompted her to found a new congregation, Missionaries of Charity. Having become an Indian citizen, Mother Teresa served the cause of dying destitutes, lepers and drug addicts, through Nirmal Hriday (meaning Pure Heart), the main centre of her activity. Her selfless service and unique devotion, not only to helpless fellow-Indians but also to the cause of world peace, earned her and India the first Nobel Peace Prize. HARGOBIND KHORANA (b. 1922) : Hargobind Khorana was awarded the Nobel Prize for Medicine in 1968. Of Indian origin, Dr Khorana was born in Raipur, Punjab (now in Pakistan). He took his doctoral degree in Chemistry from Liverpool University and joined the University of Wisconsin as a Faculty Member in 1960. His major breakthrough in the field of Medicine —interpreting the genetic code and analysing its function in protein synthesis — fetched him the Nobel Prize. CHANDRASHEKHAR VENKATARAMAN (1888-1970) : India’s first Nobel Prize for Physics was claimed in 1930 by the renowned physicist Sir C.V. Raman. Born at Thiruvanaikkaval near Tiruchirapalli in Tamilnadu, Raman studied at Presidency College, Chennai. Later, he served as Professor of Physics at Calcutta University. Recipient of many honours and awards, including the title of ‘Sir’, Sir C.V. Raman received the Nobel Prize for an important optics research, in which he discovered that diffused light contained rays of other wavelengths—what is now popularly known as Raman Effect. His theory discovered in 1928 explains the change in the frequency of light passing through a transparent medium. RABINDRANATH TAGORE (1861-1941) : Rabindranath Tagore was the first Indian ever to receive a Nobel Prize. Popularly known as Gurudev, India’s Poet Laureate Tagore was born on 7th May 1861 in Kolkata. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in recognition of his work Geetanjali, a collection of poems, in 1913. Tagore wrote many love lyrics. Geetanjali and Sadhana are among his important works. The poet, dramatist and novelist is also the author of India’s National Anthem. In 1901 he founded the famous Santiniketan which later came to be known as Vishwabharati University.
1240
India 2010 COMMANDERS-IN-CHIEF
Name
Tenure
General Sir Roy Bucher .................................................... 1 January 1948-14 January 1949 General (later Field Marshal) K.M. Cariappa ............. 15 January 1949-14 January 1953 General Maharaj Rajendra Sinhji…………………………..........15 January 1953-31 March 1955 CHIEFS OF ARMY STAFF Name
Tenure
General Maharaj Rajendra Sinhji ................................... 1 April 1955-14 May 1955 General S.M. Srinagesh .................................................... 15 May 1955-7 May 1957 General K.S. Thimayya .................................................... 8 May 1957-7 May 1961 General R.N. Thapar ........................................................ 8 May 1961-19 November 1962 General J.N. Choudhuri .................................................. 20 November 1962-7 June 1966 General P.P. Kumaramangalam .................................... 8 June 1966-7 June 1969 General S.H.F.J. Manekshaw .......................................... 8 June 1969-31 December 1972 Field Marshal S.H.F.J. Manekshaw ............................... 1 January 1973-14 January 1973 General G.G. Bewoor ........................................................ 15 January 1973-31 May 1975 General T.N. Raina ........................................................... 1 June 1975-31 May 1978 General O.P. Malhotra ..................................................... 1 June 1978-31 May 1981 General K.V. Krishna Rao ............................................... 1 June 1981-31 July 1983 General A.S. Vaidya ......................................................... 1 August 1983-31 January 1986 General K. Sunderji .......................................................... 1 February 1986-30 April 1988 General V.N. Sharma ....................................................... 1 May 1988-30 June 1990 General S.F. Rodrigues ..................................................... 1 July 1990-30 June 1993 General B.C. Joshi ............................................................. 1 July 1993-18 November 1994 General S. Roychowdhury .............................................. 22 November 1994-30 September 1997 General V.P. Malik ............................................................ 1 October 1997-30 September 2000 General S. Padmanabhan ............................................... 30 September 2000-31 December 2002 General J.J. Singh .............................................................. 1 February 2005 - 30 September 2007 General Deepak Kapoor .................................................. 30 September 2007 - till date CHIEFS OF NAVAL STAFF Name
Tenure
Rear Admiral J.T.S. Hall ................................................. 15 August 1947-14 August 1948 Admiral Sir Edward Parry ............................................. 15 August 1948-13 October 1951 Admiral Sir Mark Pizey .................................................. 14 October 1951-21 July 1955
General Information
1241
Vice Admiral Sir Stephen Carlill ................................... 22 July 1955-21 April 1958 Vice Admiral R.D. Katari ............................................... 22 April 1958-4 June 1962 Vice Admiral B.S. Soman ............................................... 5 June 1962-3 March 1966 Admiral A.K. Chatterjee ................................................. 4 March 1966-27 February 1970 Admiral S.M. Nanda ....................................................... 28 February 1970-28 February 1973 Admiral S.N. Kohli .......................................................... 1 March 1973-28 February 1976 Admiral J.L. Cursetji ....................................................... 1 March 1976-28 February 1979 Admiral R.L. Pereira ........................................................ 1 March 1979-28 February 1982 Admiral O.S. Dawson ..................................................... 1 March 1982-30 November 1984 Admiral R.H. Tahiliani .................................................... 1 December 1984-30 November 1987 Admiral J.G. Nadkarni .................................................... 1 December 1987-30 November 1990 Admiral Ramdas .............................................................. 1 December 1990-30 September 1993 Admiral V.S. Shekhawat ................................................. 1 October 1993-30 September 1996 Admiral Vishnu Bhagwat ............................................... 1 October 1996-30 December 1998 Admiral Sushil Kumar .................................................... 31 December 1998 - 29 December 2001 Admiral Madhvendra Singh .......................................... 29 December 2001 - 31 July 2004 Admiral Arun Prakash ................................................... 1 August 2004 - 30 October 2006 Admiral Sureesh Mehta .................................................. 30 October 2006 - 31 August 2009 Admiral Nirmal Verma ................................................... 1 September 2009-till date CHIEFS OF AIR STAFF Name
Tenure
Air Marshal Sir Thomas Elmhirst ................................. 15 August 1947-21 February 1950 Air Marshal Sir Ronald Chapman ................................ 22 February 1950-9 December 1951 Air Marshal Sir Gerald Gibbs ......................................... 10 December 1951-31 March 1954 Air Marshal S. Mukherjee ............................................... 1 April 1954-8 November 1960 Air Marshal A.M. Engineer ............................................ 1 December 1960-31 July 1964 Air Chief Marshal Arjan Singh ...................................... 1 August 1964-15 July 1969 Air Chief Marshal P.C. Lal ............................................. 16 July 1969-15 January 1973 Air Chief Marshal O.P. Mehra ....................................... 16 January 1973-31 January 1976 Air Chief Marshal H. Moolgavkar ................................ 1 February 1976-31 August 1978 Air Chief Marshal I.H. Latif ........................................... 1 September 1978-31 August 1981 Air Chief Marshal Dilbagh Singh .................................. 1 September 1981-4 September 1984 Air Chief Marshal L.M. Katre ........................................ 5 September 1984-1 July 1985 Air Chief Marshal D.A. La Fontaine ............................ 3 July 1985-31 July 1988 Air Chief Marshal S.K. Mehra ........................................ 1 August 1988-31 July 1991
1242
India 2010
Air Chief Marshal N.C. Suri ........................................... 1 August 1991-31 July 1993 Air Chief Marshal S.K. Kaul .......................................... 1 August 1993-31 December 1995 Air Chief Marshal S.K. Sareen ....................................... 1 January 1996-31 December 1998 Air Chief Marshal A.Y. Tipnis ........................................ 1 January 1999-31 December 2001 Air Chief Marshal S. Krishnaswamys .......................... 31 December 2001-31 December 2004 Air Chief Marshal S. P. Tyagi ......................................... 31 December 2004-31 March 2007 Air Chief Marshal M.F. Major ........................................ 31 March 2007-31 August 2009 Air Chief Marshal Pradeep Vasant Naik .................... 1 June 2009-till date
WINNERS OF PARAM VIR CHAKRA Major Somnath Sharma, Kumaon Regiment Posthumous-November 1947 (Kashmir Operations 1947-48) 2nd Lt. R.R. Rane, Corps of Engineers April 1948 (Kashmir Operations 1947-48) Company Havaldar Major Piru Singh, Rajputana Rifles Posthumous-July 1948 (Kashmir Operations 1947-48) L/NK Karam Singh, Sikh Regiment October 1948 (Kashmir Operations 1947-48) Naik Jadunath Singh, Rajput Regiment Posthumous-December 1948 (Kashmir Operations 1947-48) Captain Gurbachan Singh Salaria, Gorkha Rifles Posthumous-December 1961 (Congo) Major Dhan Singh Thapa, Gorkha Rifles October 1962 (Ladakh) Subedar Joginder Singh, Sikh Regiment Posthumous-October 1962 (NEFA) Major Shaitan Singh, Kumaon Regiment Posthumous-November 1962 (Ladakh) CQMH Abdul Hamid, Grenadiers Posthumous-September 1965 (Operation against Pakistan) Lt. Col. A.B. Tarapore, Poona Horse Posthumous-September 1965 (Operation against Pakistan) Flg. Officer Nirmal Jit Singh Sekhon, Flg. Pilot Posthumous-December 1971 (Indo-Pakistan conflict) Major Hoshiar Singh, Grenadiers December 1971 (Indo-Pakistan conflict) 2nd Lt. Arun Khetarpal, 17 Poona Horse Posthumous-December 1971 (Indo-Pakistan conflict) L/NK Albert Ekka, Brigade of Guards Posthumous-December 1971 (Indo-Pakistan conflict) Naib Subedar Bana Singh, J & K Light Infantry June 1987 (Operations in Siachen Glacier)
General Information
1243
Major Ramaswamy Parameswaran, Mahar Regiment, Posthumous-November 1987 (IPKF Operations in Sri Lanka) Capt Vikram Batra, 13 JAK Rif Posthumous-June 1999 (OP Vijay in Kargil) Lt Manoj Kumar Pandey, 1/11 GR Posthumous-June 1999 (OP Vijay in Kargil) Rifleman Sanjay Kumar, 13 JAK Rif June 1999 (OP Vijay in Kargil) Gdr Yogender Singh Yadav, 18 GDRS June 1999 (OP Vijay in Kargil)
GALLANTRY AWARDS The following Gallantry Awards were announced on the Independence Day, 2009: Award
Total
Posthumous
Ashok Chakra
9
9
Kirti Chakra
13
6
Shaurya Chakra
20
9
Bar to Sena Medal (G)
2
-
Sena Medal (G)
99
10
Nao Sena Medal (G)
4
-
Vayu Sena Medal (G)
6
-
The following Gallantry Awards were announced on the Republic Day, 2008 Award
Total
Posthumous
Ashok Chakra
1
1
Kirti Chakra
4
2
Bar to Shaurya Chakra
1
1
Shaurya Chakra
30
8
Bar to Sena Medal/Nao Sena Medal/ Yayu Sena Medal (Gallantry)
2
-
Sena Medal/Nao Sena Medal/ Vayu Sena Medal (Gallantry)
99
14
Param Vishisht Seva Medal
29
-
Bar to Ati Vishisht Seva Medal
1
-
Ati Vishisht Seva Medal
50
-
Uttam Yudh Seva Medal
2
-
Yudh Seva Medal
5
-
Bar to Vishisht Seva Medal
2
-
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India 2010
Vishisht Seva Medal
122
-
Bar to Sena Medal (Devotion to duty)
1
-
Sena Medal/Nao Sena Medal/ Vayu Sena Medal (Devotion to duty)
62
1
The following Gallantry Awards were announced on the Independence Day, 2009 : Award
Total
Posthumous
Ashok Chakra
2
-
Kirti Chakra
4
-
Shaurya Chakra
26
-
Bar to Sena Medal/Nao Sena Medal/(Gallantry)
2
-
Sena Medal/Nao Sena Medal/Vayu Sena Medal (Gallantry)
109
-
Total
143
In addition to above, 37 Mention-in-Despatches awards to the Army officers/personnel have also been announced on 15th August, 2009.
LIST OF STATE-WISE NATIONAL HIGHWAYS IN THE COUNTRY Sl. Name of State No.
National Highway No.
Total Length (in km)
1
Andhra Pradesh
4, 5, 7, 9, 16, 18, 43, 63, 202, 205, 214, 214A, 219, 221 & 222
2
Arunachal Pradesh
52, 52A & 153
4472
3
Assam
31, 31B, 31C, 36, 37, 37A, 38, 39, 44, 51, 52, 52A, 52B, 53, 54, 61, 62,151,152,153 &154
2836
4
Bihar
2, 2C, 19, 28, 28A, 28B, 30, 30A, 31, 57, 57A, 77, 80, 81, 82, 83, 83, 84, 85, 98, 99, 101, 102, 103, 104, 105, 106, 107 & 110
3642
5
Chandigarh
21
6
Chhattisgarh
6, 12A, 16, 43, 78, 200,202, 216, 217, 111, & 221
7
Delhi
1, 2, 8, 10 & 24
8
Goa
4A, 17, 17A & 17B
9
Gujarat
NE-I, 6, 8, 8A, 8B, 8C, 8D, 8E, 14, 15, 59, 113 & 228
3245
10
Haryana
1, 2, 8, 10, 21A, 22, 64, 65, 71, 71A, 72, 73, 73A , 71B & NE-II1512
1512
11
Himachal Pradesh
1A, 20, 21, 21A, 22, 70, 72, 88 & 73A
1208
12
Jammu & Kashmir 1A, 1B, 1C &1D
1245
13
Jharkhand
2, 6, 23, 31, 32, 33, 75, 78, 80, 98, 99 & 100
1805
14
Karnataka
4, 4A, 7, 9, 13, 17, 48, 63, 67, 206, 207,209, 212 & 218
3843
15
Kerala
17, 47, 47A, 49, 208, 212, 213, & 220
1440
16
Madhya Pradesh
3, 7, 12, 12A, 25, 26, 26A, 27, 59, 59A, 69, 75, 76, 78, 86 & 92
4670
17
Maharashtra
3, 4, 4B, 4C, 6, 7, 8, 9, 13, 16, 17, 50, 69, 204, 211 & 222
4176
18
Manipur
39, 53, 150 & 155
959
19
Meghalaya
40, 44, 51 & 62
810
392
24 2184 72 269
General Information
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20
Mizoram
44A, 54, 54A, 54B, 150 & 154
927
21
Nagaland
36, 39, 61, 150 & 155
494
22
Orissa
5, 5A, 6, 23, 42, 43, 60, 75, 200, 201, 203, 203A, 215, 217 & 2243704
23
Puducherry
45A & 66
24
Punjab
1, 1A, 10, 15, 20, 21, 22, 64, 70, 71, 72 & 95
25
Rajasthan
3, 8, 11, 11A, 11B, 12, 14, 15, 65, 71B, 76, 79, 79A, 89, 90, 113, 112, 114 & 116
3704 53 1557 5585
26
Sikkim
31A
27
Tamilnadu
4, 5, 7, 7A, 45, 45A, 45B, 45C, 46, 47, 47B, 49, 66, 67, 68, 205, 207, 208, 209, 210, 219, 220, 226 & 227
28
Tripura
44 & 44A
29
Uttaranchal
58, 72, 72A, 73, 74, 87, 94, 108, 109, 123, 119, 121, 87 Ext. & 125
30
Uttar Pradesh
2, 2A, 3, 7, 11, 12A, 19, 24, 24A, 24B, 25, 25A, 26, 27, 28, 28B, 28C, 29, 56, 56A, 56B, 58, 72A, 73, 74, 75, 76, 86, 87, 91, 91A, 92, 93 ,96, 97 , 119 & NE-II
5874
31
West Bengal
2, 2B, 6, 31, 31A, 31C, 32, 34, 35, 41, 55, 60, 60A, 80, 81& 117
2377
32
Andaman & Nicobar
223 Total
62 4462 400 1991
300 66590
LENGTH OF SOME IMPORTANT INDIAN RIVERS River ........................................................................................ Length (km) 1.
Indus ...................................................................................... 2,900
2.
Brahmaputra ........................................................................ 2,900
3.
Ganga ..................................................................................... 2,510
4.
Godavari ................................................................................ 1,450
5.
Narmada ............................................................................... 1,290
6.
Krishna ................................................................................... 1,290
7.
Mahanadi .............................................................................. 890
8.
Kaveri ..................................................................................... 760 AMENDMENTS TO THE CONSTITUTION
1. The Constitution (First Amendment) Act, 1950—This amendment provided for several new grounds of restrictions to the right to freedom of speech and expression and the right to practise any profession or to carry on any trade or business as contained in Article 19 of the Constitution. These restrictions related to public order, friendly relations with foreign States or incitement to an offence in relation to the right to freedom of speech, and to the prescribing of professional or technical qualifications or the carrying on by the State, etc., of any trade, business, industry or service in relation to the right to carry on any trade or business. The amendment also inserted two new Articles, 31A and 31B and the Ninth Schedule to give protection from challenge to land reform laws. 2. The Constitution (Second Amendment) Act, 1952—By this amendment, the scale or representation for election to the Lok Sabha was readjusted. 3. The Constitution (Third Amendment) Act, 1954—This amendment substituted entry 33 of List III (Concurrent List) of the Seventh Schedule to make it correspond to Article 369.
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4. The Constitution (Fourth Amendment) Act, 1955—Article 31 (2) of the Constitution was amended to re-state more precisely the State’s power of compulsory acquisition and requisitioning of private property and distinguish it from cases where the operation of regulatory or prohibitory laws of the States results in “deprivation of property”. Article 31A of the Constitution was also amended to extend its scope to cover categories of essential welfare legislation like abolition of zamindaris, proper planning of urban and rural areas and for effecting a full control over the mineral and oil resources of the country, etc. Six Acts were also included in the Ninth Schedule. Article 305 was also amended to save certain laws providing of State Monopolies. 5. The Constitution (Fifth Amendment) Act, 1955—This amendment made a change in Article 3 so as to empower President to specify a time limit for state legislatures to convey their views on the proposed Central laws affecting areas, boundaries, etc., of their states. 6. The Constitution (Sixth Amendment) Act, 1956—This amendment made some changes in Articles 269 and 286 relating to taxes on sale and purchase of goods in the course of inter-state trade and commerce. A new entry 92 A was added to the Union List of the Seventh Schedule to the Constitution. 7. The Constitution (Seventh Amendment) Act, 1956—This amendment Act purported to give effect to the recommendations of the State Reorganisation Commission and the necessary consequential changes. Broadly, the then existing states and territories were changed to have twofold classification of states and union territories. The amendment also provided for composition of the House of the People, re-adjustment after every census, provisions regarding the establishment of new High Courts, High Court Judges, etc. 8. The Constitution (Eighth Amendment) Act, 1960—Article 334 was amended with a view to extending the period of reservation of seats for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes and to the Anglo-Indian community by nomination in Parliament and in the State Legislatures for a further period of ten years. 9. The Constitution (Ninth Amendment) Act, 1960—The purpose of this amendment is to give effect to the transfer of certain territories to Pakistan in pursuance of the agreement extended into between Governments of India and Pakistan. This amendment was necessitated in view of the Judgement of Supreme Court in In Re Berubari Union by which it was held that any agreement to cede a territory to another country could not be implemented by a law made under Article 3 but would only be implemented by an amendment of the Constitution. 10. The Constitution (Tenth Amendment) Act, 1961—This Act amended Article 240 and the First Schedule in order to include areas of Dadra and Nagar Haveli as a Union Territory and to provide for its administration under the regulation making powers of President. 11. The Constitution (Eleventh Amendment) Act, 1961—The purpose of this amendment was to amend Articles 66 and 71 of the Constitution to provide that the election of President or Vice President could not be challenged on the ground of any vacancy in the appropriate electoral college. 12. The Constitution (Twelfth Amendment) Act, 1962—This amendment sought to include Goa, Daman and Diu as a Union Territory and to amend Article 240 for the purpose. 13. The Constitution (Thirteenth Amendment) Act, 1962—By this amendment, a new Article 371A was added to make special provisions with respect to state of Nagaland in pursuance of an agreement between Government of India and Naga People’s Convention. 14. The Constitution (Fourteenth Amendment) Act, 1962—By this Act, Pondicherry was included in the First Schedule as a Union Territory, and this Act has also enabled the creation of Legislature by Parliamentary law for Himachal Pradesh, Manipur, Tripura, Goa, Daman and Diu and Pondicherry. 15. The Constitution (Fifteenth Amendment) Act, 1963—This amendment provided for increase in the age of retirement of High Court Judge and for the provision of compensatory allowance to judges who are transferred from one High Court to another. The Act also provided for appointment of retired judges to act as judges of High Court. Article 226 was also enlarged to empower High Court to issue direction, orders or writs to any Government authority, etc., if the cause of action for the exercise of such power arose in the territories wherein the High Court exercise jurisdiction notwithstanding that seat of such Government authority is not within those territories. The Act also
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provided for the exercise of powers of Chairman of the Service Commissions, in their absence, by one of their Members. 16. The Constitution (Sixteenth Amendment) Act, 1963—Article 19 was amended by this Act to impose further restriction on the rights to freedom of speech and expression, to assemble peaceably and without arms and to form associations in the interests of sovereignty and integrity of India. The oath of affirmation to be subscribed by candidates seeking election to Parliament and State Legislatures have been amended to include as one of the conditions that they will uphold the sovereignty and integrity of India. The amendments are intended to promote national integration. 17. The Constitution (Seventeenth Amendment) Act, 1964—Article 31A was further amended to prohibit the acquisition of land under personal cultivation unless the market value of the land is paid as compensation and the definition of “estate” as contained in that Article had also been enlarged with retrospective effect. The Ninth Schedule had also been amended to include 44 more Acts. 18. The Constitution (Eighteenth Amendment) Act, 1966—Article 3 was amended by this Act to specify that the expression “State” will include a union territory also and to make it clear that the power to form a new state under this Article includes a power to form a new state or union territory by uniting a part of a state or a union territory to another state or union territory. 19. The Constitution (Nineteenth Amendment) Act, 1966—Article 324 was amended to effect a consequential change as a result of the decision to abolish Election Tribunals and to hear election petitions by High Courts. 20. The Constitution (Twentieth Amendment) Act, 1966—This amendment was necessitated by the decision of the Supreme Courts in Chandramohan vs. State of Uttar Pradesh in which certain appointments of District Judges in State of Uttar Pradesh were declared void by Supreme Court. A new Article 233A was added and the appointments made by Governor were validated. 21. The Constitution (Twenty-first Amendment) Act, 1967—By this amendment, Sindhi Language was included in the Eighth Schedule. 22. The Constitution (Twenty-second Amendment) Act, 1969—This act was enacted to facilitate the formation of a new autonomous state of Meghalaya within state of Assam. 23. The Constitution (Twenty-third Amendment) Act, 1969—Article 334 was amended so as to extend the safeguards in respect of reservation of seats in Parliament and State Legislatures for Schedules Castes and Scheduled Tribes as well as for Anglo-Indians for a further period of ten years. 24. The Constitution (Twenty-fourth Amendment) Act, 1971—This amendment was passed in the context of a situation that emerged with the verdict in Golaknath’s case by Supreme Court. Accordingly, this Act amended Article 13 and Article 368 to remove all doubts regarding the power of Parliament to amend the Constitution including the Fundamental Rights. 25. The Constitution (Twenty-fifth Amendment) Act, 1971—This amendment further amended Article 31 in the wake of the Bank Nationalisation case. The word ‘amount’ was substituted in place of ‘compensation’ in the light of the judicial interpretation of the word ‘compensation’ meaning ‘adequate compensation’. 26. The Constitution (Twenty-sixth Amendment) Act, 1971—By this amendment, the privy and privileges of the former rulers of Indian states were abolished. This amendment was passed as a result of Supreme Court decision in Madhav Rao’s case. 27. The Constitution (Twenty-seventh Amendment) Act, 1971—This amendment was passed to provide for certain matters necessitated by the reorganisation of north-eastern states. A new Article 239B was inserted which enabled the promulgation of Ordinances by Administrators of certain union territories. 28. The Constitution (Twenty-eighth Amendment) Act, 1972—The amendment was enacted to abolish the special privileges of the members of Indian Civil Services in matters of leave, pension and rights as regard to disciplinary matters. 29. The Constitution (Twenty-ninth Amendment) Act, 1972—The Ninth Schedule to the Constitution was amended to include therein two Kerala Acts on land reforms. 30. The Constitution (Thirtieth Amendment) Act, 1972—The purpose of the amendment was to amend Article 133 in order to do away with the valuation test of Rs 20,000 as fixed therein, and to
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provide instead for an appeal to Supreme Court in Civil proceedings only on a certificate issued by High Court that the case involves a substantial question of law of general importance and that in opinion of High Court, the question needs to be decided by Supreme Court. 31. The Constitution (Thirty-first Amendment) Act, 1973—This Act inter alia raises the upper limit for the representation of states in the Lok Sabha from 500 to 525 and reducing the upper limit for the representation of union territories from 25 members to 20. 32. The Constitution (Thirty-second Amendment) Act, 1973—This Act provided the necessary constitutional authority for giving effect to the provision of equal opportunities to different areas of the State of Andhra Pradesh and for the constitution of an Administrative Tribunal with jurisdiction to deal with grievances relating to public services. It also empowered Parliament to legislate for the establishment of a Central University in the State. 33. The Constitution (Thirty-third Amendment) Act, 1974—By this amendment, Articles 101 and 190 were amended in order to streamline the procedure for resignation of Members of Parliament and State Legislatures. 34. The Constitution (Thirty-fourth Amendment) Act, 1974—By this Act, twenty more land tenure and land reforms laws enacted by various State Legislatures were included in the Ninth Schedule. 35. The Constitution (Thirty-fifth Amendment) Act, 1974—By this Act a new Article 2A was added thereby conferring on Sikkim the status of an associate State of Indian Union. Consequent amendments were made to Articles 80 and 81. A new schedule, i.e., Tenth Schedule, was added laying down terms and conditions of association of Sikkim with the Union. 36. The Constitution (Thirty-sixth Amendment) Act, 1975—This was enacted to make Sikkim a full-fledged State of Indian Union and to include it in the First Schedule to the Constitution and to allot to Sikkim one seat each in the Council of States and in the House of the People. Article 2A and the Tenth Schedule inserted by the Constitution (Thirty-fifth Amendment) Act were omitted and Articles 80 and 81 were suitably amended. 37. The Constitution (Thirty-seventh Amendment) Act, 1975—By this Act, Union Territory of Arunachal Pradesh was provided with a Legislative Assembly. Article 240 of the Constitution was also amended to provide that as in the case of other union territories with Legislatures, the power of President to make regulations for the Union Territory of Arunachal Pradesh may be exercised only when the assembly is either dissolved or its functions remain suspended. 38. The Constitution (Thirty-eighth Amendment) Act, 1975—This Act amended Articles 123, 213 and 352 of the Constitution to provide that the satisfaction of President or Governor contained in these Articles would be called in question in any court of law. 39. The Constitution (Thirty-ninth Amendment) Act, 1975—By this Act, disputes relating to the election of President, Vice-President, Prime Minister and Speaker are to be determined by such authority as may be determined by Parliamentary Law. Certain Central enactments were also included in the Ninth Schedule by this Act. 40. The Constitution (Fortieth Amendment) Act, 1976—This act provided for vesting in the Union of all mines, minerals and other things of value lying in the ocean within the territorial waters or the continental shelf or the exclusive economic zone of India. It further provided that all other resources of the exclusive economic zone of India shall also vest in the Union. This act also provided that the limits of the territorial waters, the continental shelf, the exclusive economic zone and the maritime zones of India shall be as specified from time to time by or under any law made by Parliament. Also some more Acts were added to the Ninth Scheme. 41. The Constitution (Forty-first Amendment) Act, 1976—By this Act, Article 316 was amended to raise the retirement age of Members of State Public Service Commissions and Joint Public Service Commissions from 60 to 62 years. 42. The Constitution (Forty-second Amendment) Act, 1976—This act made a number of important amendments in the Constitution. These amendments were mainly for purpose of giving effect to the recommendations of Swaran Singh Committee. Some of the important amendments made are for the purpose of spelling out expressly the high ideals of socialism, secularism and the integrity of the nation, to make the Directive Principles
General Information
1249
more comprehensive and giving them precedence over those Fundamental Rights which have been allowed to be relied upon to frustrate socio-economic reforms. The amendment Act also inserted a new chapter on the Fundamental Duties of citizens and made special provisions for dealing with anti-national activities, whether by individuals or by associations. The judiciary provisions were also amended by providing for a requirement as to the minimum number of judges for determining question as to the constitutional validity of law and for a special majority of not less than two-third for declaring any law to be constitutionally invalid. To reduce the mounting arrears in High Courts and to secure the speedy disposal of service matters, revenue matters and certain other matters of special importance in the context of socio-economic development and progress, this amendment Act provided for the creation of Administrative and other tribunals for dealing with such matters while preserving the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court in regard to such matters under Article 136 of the Constitution. Certain modifications in the writ jurisdiction of High Courts under Article 226 were also made. 43. The Constitution (Forty-third Amendment) Act, 1977—This Act inter alia provided for the restoration of the jurisdiction of the Supreme Court and High Courts, curtailed by the enactment of the Constitution (Forty-second Amendment) Act, 1976 and accordingly Articles 32A, 131A, 144A, 226A and 228A included in the Constitution by the said amendment, were omitted by this Act. The Act also provided for the omission of Article 31 which conferred special powers on Parliament to enact certain laws in respect of anti-national activities. 44. The Constitution (Forty-fourth Amendment) Act, 1978—The right to property which had been the occasion for more than one amendment of Constitution was omitted as a Fundamental Right and it was made only as a legal right. It was, however, ensured that the removal of the right to property from the list of Fundamental Rights would not affect the right of minorities to establish and administer educational institutions of their choice. Article 352 of the Constitution was amended to provide “armed rebellion” as one of the circumstances for declaration of emergency. Internal disturbance not amounting to armed rebellion would not be a ground for the issuance of a Proclamation. The right to personal liberty as contained in Articles 21 and 22 is further strengthened by the provision that a law for preventive detention cannot authorise, in any case, detention for a longer period than two months unless an Advisory Board has reported that there is sufficient cause for such detention. The additional safeguard has also been provided by the requirements that Chairman of an Advisory Board shall be a serving Judge of the appropriate High Court and that the Board shall be constituted in accordance with the recommendations of the Chief Justice of that High Court. With a view to avoid delays, Articles 132 and 134 were amended and a new Article 134A was inserted to provide that a High Court should consider the question of granting a certificate for appeal to Supreme Court immediately after the delivery of the judgement, final order or sentence concerned on the basis of an oral application by a party or, if the High Court deems it so to do, on its own. The other amendments made by the Act are mainly for removing or correcting the distortions which came into the Constitution by reason of the amendment initiated during the period of internal emergency. 45. The Constitution (Forty-fifth Amendment) Act, 1980—This was passed to extend safeguards in respect of reservation of seats in Parliament and State Assemblies for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes as well as for Anglo-Indians for a further period of ten years. 46. The Constitution (Forty-sixth Amendment) Act, 1982—Article 269 was amended so that the tax levied on the consignment of goods in the course of inter-state or commerce shall be assigned to the states. This Article was also amended to enable Parliament to formulate by law principle for determining when a consignment of goods takes place in the course of inter-state trade or commerce. A new entry 92B was also inserted in the Union List to enable the levy of tax on the consignment of goods where such consignment takes place in the course of inter-state trade or commerce. Clause (3) of Article 286 was amended to enable Parliament to specify, by law, restrictions and conditions in regard to the system of levy rates and other incidence of tax on the transfer of goods involved in the execution of a works contract, on the delivery of goods on hire-purchase or any system of payment of instalments, etc. Article 366 was also suitably amended to insert a definition of “tax on the sale or purchase of goods” to include transfer for consideration of controlled commodities, transfer of property in
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goods involved in the execution of a works contract, delivery of goods on hire-purchase or any system of payment by instalments, etc. 47. The Constitution (Forty-seventh Amendment) Act, 1984—This amendment is intended to provide for the inclusion of certain land Reforms Acts in the Ninth Schedule to the Constitution with a view to obviating the scope of litigation hampering the implementation process of those Acts. 48. The Constitution (Forty-eighth Amendment) Act, 1984—The Proclamation issued by President under Article 356 of the Constitution with respect to the State of Punjab cannot be continued in force for more than one year unless the special conditions mentioned in clause (5) of the said Article are satisfied. As it is felt that the continued force of the said Proclamation is necessary, therefore, the present amendment had been effected so as to make the conditions mentioned in clause (5) of Article 356 inapplicable in the instant case. 49. The Constitution (Forty-ninth Amendment) Act, 1984—Tripura Government recommended that the provisions of the Sixth Schedule to the Constitution may be made applicable to tribal areas of that State. The amendment involved in this Act is intended to give a constitutional security to the autonomous District Council functioning in the State. 50. The Constitution (Fiftieth Amendment) Act, 1984—by Article 33 of the constitution, Parliament is empowered to enact laws determining to what extent any of the rights conferred by Part III of the constitution shall, in their application to the members of the armed forces or the forces charged with the maintenance of public order, be restricted or abrogated so as to ensure proper discharge of their duties and maintenance of discipline among them. It was proposed to amend Article 33 so as to bring within its ambit: (i) the members of the Force charged with the protection of property belonging to or in the charge or possession of the state; or (ii) persons employed in any bureau or other organisation established by the state for purposes of intelligence or counter-intelligence; or (iii) persons employed in or in connection with the telecommunication systems set up for the purposes of any Force, bureau or organisation. Experience has revealed that the need for ensuring proper discharge of their duties and maintenance of discipline among them is of paramount importance in the national interest. 51. The Constitution (Fifty-first Amendment) Act, 1984—Article 330 has been amended by this Act for providing reservation of seats for Scheduled Tribes in Meghalaya, Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh and Mizoram in Parliament and Article 332 has been amended to provide similar reservation in the Legislative Assemblies of Nagaland and Meghalaya to meet the aspirations of local tribal population. 52. The Constitution (Fifty-second Amendment) Act, 1985—It amends the Constitution to provide that a Member of Parliament or a State Legislature who defects or is expelled from the party which set him up as a candidate in the election or if an independent member of the House joins a political party after expiry of six months from the date on which he takes seat in the House shall be disqualified to remain a member of the House. The Act also makes suitable provisions with respect to splits in and merger of political parties. 53. The Constitution (Fifty-third Amendment) Act, 1986—This has been enacted to give effect to the Memorandum of Settlement of Mizoram which was signed by Government of India and Mizoram Government with Mizoram National Front on 30th June 1986. For this purpose, a new Article 371G has been inserted in the Constitution inter alia preventing application of any Act of Parliament in Mizoram in respect of religious or social practices of Mizos, Mizos’ customary law and procedure, administration of civil and criminal practice involving decisions according to Mizos’ customary law and ownership and transfer of land unless a resolution is passed in the Legislative Assembly to that effect. This, however, will not apply to any Central Act already in force in Mizoram before the commencement of this amendment. The new Article also provides that the Legislative Assembly of Mizoram shall consist of not less than 40 members.
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54. The Constitution (Fifty-fourth Amendment) Act, 1986—This Act increases the salaries of Supreme Court and High Court judges as follows : Chief Justice of India
Rs 10,000 per month
Judges of Supreme Court
Rs 9,000 per month
Chief Justice of High Court
Rs 9,000 per month
Judges of High Court
Rs 8,000 per month
This Act amended Part ‘D’ of the Second Schedule to the Constitution to give effect to the above increases in the salaries of judges and to make an enabling provision in Articles 125 and 221 to provide for changes in the salaries of judges in future by Parliament by law. 55. The Constitution (Fifty-fifth Amendment) Act, 1986—This Act seeks to give effects to the proposal of Government of India to confer statehood on the Union Territory of Arunachal Pradesh and for this purpose, a new Article 371H has been inserted which, inter alia, confers, having regard to the sensitive location of Arunachal Pradesh to vest special responsibility on Governor of the new State of Arunachal Pradesh with respect to law and order in the State and in the discharge of his functions, the Governor shall after consulting the Council of Ministers, exercise his individual judgement, as to the action to be taken and this responsibility shall cease when President so directs. The new Article also provides that the new Legislative Assembly of the new State of Arunachal Pradesh, shall consist of not less than thirty members. 56. The Constitution (Fifty-sixth Amendment) Act, 1987—Government of India has proposed to constitute the territories comprised in Goa District of the Union Territory of Goa, Daman and Diu as the State of Goa and the territories comprised in Daman and Diu districts of that Union Territory as a new Union Territory of Daman and Diu. In this context, it was proposed that the Legislative Assembly of the new State of Goa shall consist of 40 members. The existing Legislative Assembly of the Union Territory of Goa, Daman and Diu has 30 elected members and three nominated members. It was intended to make this Assembly with the exclusion of two members representing Daman and Diu districts the provisional Legislative Assembly for the new State of Goa until elections are held on the expiry of the five year terms of the existing Assembly. It was, therefore, decided to provide that the Legislative Assembly of the new State of Goa shall consist of not less than 30 members. The special provision required to be made to give effect to this proposal is carried out by this amendment. 57. The Constitution (Fifty-seventh amendment) Act, 1987—The Constitution (Fifty-first Amendment) Act, 1984 was enacted to provide for reservation of seats in the house of the people for scheduled tribes in Nagaland, Meghalaya, Mizoram and Arunachal Pradesh and also for reservation of seats for scheduled tribes in the legislative assemblies of Nagaland and Meghalaya by suitably amending articles 330 and 332. Even though these states are predominantly tribal, the underlying objective of the aforesaid act was to ensure that the members of scheduled tribes in these areas do not fail to secure a minimal representation because of their inability to compete with the advanced sections of the people. The Constitution (fifty-first amendment) act, though formally enforced, could not be fully implemented unless parallel action is taken to determine the seats which are to be reserved for Scheduled tribes in these areas. The number of seats reserved for Schedule Castes and Schedule Tribes in the Legislative Assembly of any State under article 332 of the constitution will have to be determined having regard to the provisions of article 332 (3) of the Constitution. However, in view of the historical background with respect to the areas comprised in north-eastern states, the circumstances obtaining in these areas in the State of development of Scheduled Tribes and other relevant considerations, it was considered necessary to provide for special arrangements with regard to the reservation for Scheduled Tribes in these areas for a temporary period so as to facilitate easy transition of these areas to the normal arrangements as envisaged in the Constitution. Article 332 of the Constitution was further amended for making a temporary provision, until the readjustment of seats on the basis of first census after the year 2000 under article 170 of the Constitution for these states, for the determination of the number of seats reserved for Scheduled Tribes. This amendment seeks to provide that if all the seats in the Legislative Assembly of such States in existence on the date of coming into force of this constitution amendment act are held by the members of Scheduled Tribes, all the seats except one shall be reserved for scheduled tribes and in any other case such number of seats as bears to the total number of seats a proportion not less than the number of members belonging to Scheduled Tribes in the existing assembly bears to the total number of seats in the existing assembly. The act achieves these objectives.
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58. The Constitution (Fifty-eighth Amendment) Act, 1987—There has been general demand for the publication of authoritative text of the Constitution in Hindi. It is imperative to have an authoritative text of the Constitution for facilitating its use in the legal process. Any Hindi version of the Constitution should not only conform to the Hindi translation published by the Constituent Assembly, but should be in conformity, with the language style and terminology adopted in the authoritative texts of Central Acts in Hindi. The Constitution has been amended to empower President of India to publish under his authority the translation of the Constitution in Hindi signed by the Members of the Constituent Assembly with such modification as may be necessary to bring it in conformity with the language, style and terminology adopted in the authoritative texts of Central Acts in Hindi language. President has also been authorised to publish the translation in Hindi of every amendment of the Constitution made in English. 59. The Constitution (Fifty-ninth Amendment) Act, 1988—The Act amends Article 365 (5) of the Constitution so as to facilitate the extension of a Presidential Proclamation issued under clause (1) of Article 356 beyond a period of one year, if necessary upto a period of three years, as permissible under clause (4) of Article 356 with respect to the State of Punjab because of the continued disturbed situation there. The Act also amends Article 352 of the Constitution pertaining to the Proclamation of Emergency in its application to the State of Punjab and includes internal disturbance as one of the grounds for making a Proclamation in respect of the State of Punjab only. As a consequence of amendment in Article 352, Articles 358 and 359 in relation to the State of Punjab will be operative only for a period of two years from 30 March 1988, which is the date of commencement of the amendment. 60. The Constitution (Sixtieth Amendment) Act, 1988—The Act amends clause (2) of Article 276 of the Constitution so as to increase the ceiling of taxes on professions, trades, callings and employment from Rs 250 per annum to Rs 2,500 per annum. The upward revision of this tax will help state governments in raising additional resources. The proviso to clause (2) has been omitted. 61. The Constitution (Sixty-first Amendment) Act, 1989—The Act provides for reducing voting age from 21 to 18 years by amending Article 326 of the Constitution to provide to the unrepresented youth of the country an opportunity to give vent to their feelings and help them become a part of political process. 62. The Constitution (Sixty-second Amendment) Act, 1989—Article 334 of the Constitution lays down that the provisions of the Constitution relating to the reservation of seats for the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes and the representation of the Anglo-Indian community by nomination in the Lok Sabha and in the Legislative Assemblies of the States shall cease to have effect on the expiry of a period of 40 years from the commencement of the Constitution. Although the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes have made considerable progress in the last 40 years, the reasons which weighed with the Constituent Assembly in making provisions with regard to the aforesaid reservation of seats and nomination of members, have not ceased to exist. The Act amends Article 334 of the Constitution to continue the reservation for the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes and the representation of the Anglo-Indians by nomination for a further period of 10 years. 63. The Constitution (Sixty-third Amendment) Act, 1989—The Constitution (Fifty-ninth Amendment) Act, 1988 was enacted in March 1988 making certain changes in regard to making a Proclamation of Emergency in Punjab and to the duration of President’s rule in State. On reconsideration, the Government decided that the special powers in regard to the Proclamation of Emergency in Punjab as envisaged in the said amendment is no longer required. Accordingly the provision to clause (5) of Article 356 and Article 359A of the Constitution have been omitted. 64. The Constitution (Sixty-fourth Amendment) Act, 1990—This Act amends clauses (4) and (5) of Article 356 of the Constitution with a view to facilitate the extension of the proclamation issued under clause (1) of Article 356 of the Constitution on 11th May 1987 upto a total period of three years and six months in relation to the State of Punjab. 65. The Constitution (Sixty-fifth Amendment) Act, 1990—Article 338 of the Constitution provides for a Special Officer for the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes to investigate all matters relating to the safeguards provided for the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes under the Constitution and to report to the President on their working. The Article has been amended for the constitution of a National Commission for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes consisting of a Chairperson, Vice Chairperson and five other Members who shall be appointed by the President by
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warrant under his hand and seal. The amended Article elaborates the duties of the said Commission and covers measures that should be taken by the Union or any state for the effective implementation of the reports presented by the Commission. It also provides that the Commission shall, while investigating any matter or inquiring into any complaint have all the powers of a Civil Court trying a suit and the reports of the said Commission shall be laid before Parliament and the Legislature of the states. 66. The Constitution (Sixty-sixth Amendment) Act, 1990—The Act protects 55 State Acts relating to land reforms and ceiling on agricultural land holdings enacted by States of Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Orissa, Rajasthan,Tamilnadu, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and administration of the Union Territory of Puducherry, from challenge in courts, by including them in the Ninth Schedule to the Constitution. 67. The Constitution (Sixty-seventh Amendment) Act, 1990—The three year period in the case of proclamation issued on 11th May 1987 with respect to the State of Punjab was extended to three years and six months by the Constitution (Sixty-fourth Amendment) Act, 1990. This Act further amends clause (4) of Article 356 so as to further extend the period upto a total period of four years. 68. The Constitution (Sixty-eighth Amendment) Act, 1991—The three year period in the case of proclamation issued on 17th May 1987 with respect to the State of Punjab was earlier extended to four years by the Constitution (sixty-seventh Amendment) Act, 1990. This Act further amends clause (4) of Article 356 so as to further extend the period upto a total period of five years. 69. The Constitution (Sixty-ninth Amendment) Act, 1991—The Government of India appointed on 24th December 1987 a Committee to go into various issues connected with the administration of Delhi and to recommend measures, inter alia for the streamlining of the administrative set up. After detailed inquiry and examination, it recommended that Delhi should continue to be a union territory and may be provided with a Legislative Assembly and a Council of Ministers responsible to such assembly with appropriate powers to deal with matters of concern to the common man. The Committee also recommended that with a view to ensuring stability and permanence, arrangements should be incorporated in the constitution to give the national capital a special status among the union territories. This act has been passed to give effect to the above recommendations. 70. The Constitution (Seventieth Amendment) Act, 1992—While considering the (Seventy-fourth Amendment) Bill, 1991 and the Government of National Capital Territory Bill, 1991 views were expressed in both the Houses of Parliament in favour of including also the elected members of the legislative assemblies of union territories in the electoral college for the election of the President under Article 54 of the Constitution. At present Article 54 relating to the election of the President provides for an electoral college consisting of only the elected Members of Parliament as well as the legislative assemblies of the states (not of union territories). Similarly, Article 55 providing for the manner of such election also speaks of legislative assemblies of states. Accordingly, an Explanation was inserted in Article 54 to provide that reference to ‘State’ in Article 54 and 55 would include the National Capital Territory of Delhi and the Union Territory of Puducherry for constituting the electoral college for election of the President. This would enable the elected members of the Legislative Assembly created for the Union Territory of Puducherry under the provisions of Article 239A and of the proposed Legislative Assembly of the National Capital Territory of Delhi under Article 239AA to be included in the electoral college. 71. The Constitution (Seventy-first Amendment) Act, 1992—There have been demands for inclusion of certain languages in the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution. This Act amends the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution to include Konkani, Manipuri and Nepali languages in the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution. 72. The Constitution (Seventy-second Amendment) Act, 1992—For restoring peace and harmony in the areas of the State of Tripura where disturbed conditions prevailed, a Memorandum of Settlement was signed by the Government of India with Tripura National Volunteers on 12 August 1988. In order to implement the said Memorandum, Article 332 of the Constitution has been amended by the Constitution (Seventy-second Amendment) Act, 1992 for making a temporary
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provision for the determination of the number of seats reserved for the Scheduled Tribes in the State Assembly of Tripura, until the re-adjustment of seats is made on the basis of the first Census after the year 2000 under Article 170 of the Constitution. 73. The Constitution (Seventy-third Amendment) Act, 1993—Article 40 of the Constitution which enshrines one of the Directive Principles of State Policy lays down that the State shall take steps to organise village panchayats and endow them with such powers and authority as may be necessary to enable them to function as units of self-government. In the light of the above, a new Part IX relating to the Panchayats has been inserted in the Constitution to provide for among other things, Gram Sabha in a village or group of villages; constitution of Panchayats at village and other level or levels; direct elections to all seats in Panchayats at the village and intermediate level, if any and to the offices of Chairpersons of Panchayats at such levels; reservation of seats for the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in proportion to their population for membership of Panchayats and office of Chairpersons in Panchayats at each level; reservation of not less than one-third of the seats for women; fixing tenure of five years for Panchayats and holding elections within a period of six months in the event of supersession of any Panchayat. 74. The Constitution (Seventy-fourth Amendment) Act, 1993—In many states local bodies have become weak and ineffective on account of a variety of reasons, including the failure to hold regular elections, prolonged supersession and inadequate devolutions of powers and functions. As a result, Urban Local Bodies are not able to perform effectively as vibrant democratic units of self-government. Having regard to these inadequacies a new part IX-A relating to the Municipalities has been incorporated in the Constitution to provide for among other things, constitution of three types of Municipalities, i.e., Nagar Panchayats for areas in transition from a rural area to urban area, Municipal Councils for smaller urban areas and Municipal Corporations for larger urban areas. 75. The Constitution (Seventy-fifth Amendment) Act, 1994—The operation of the Rent Control Legislations, as are today in various states, suffers from major weaknesses and has led to various unintended consequences. Some of the deleterious legal consequences include mounting and mending litigation, inability of the courts to provide timely justice, evolution of practices and systems to bypass the operations of rent legislations and steady shrinkage of rental housing market. The Supreme Court taking note of the precarious state of rent litigation in the country in case of Prabhakaran Nair and others vs. State of Tamilnadu (Civil Writ Petition 506 of 1986) and other writs observed that the Supreme Court and the High Courts should be relieved of the heavy burden of rent litigation. Tiers of appeals should be curtailed. Laws should be simple, rational and clear, litigations must come to end quickly. Therefore, this Act amends Article 323B in Part XIVA of the Constitution so as to give timely relief to the rent litigants by providing for setting up of state-level Rent Tribunals in order to reduce the tiers of appeals and to exclude the jurisdiction of all courts, except that of the Supreme Court, under Article 136 of the Constitution. 76. The Constitution (Seventy-sixth Amendment) Act, 1994—The policy of reservation of seats in educational institutions and reservation of appointments or posts in public services for Backward Classes, Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes has had a long history in Tamilnadu dating back to the year 1921. The extent of reservation has been increased by the State Government from time to time, consistent with the needs of the majority of the people and it has now reached the level of 69 per cent (18 per cent Scheduled Castes, one per cent Scheduled Tribes and 50 per cent Other Backward Classes). The Supreme Court in Indira Sawhney and others vs. Union of India and others (AIR, 1993 SC 477) on 16th November 1992 ruled that the total reservations under Article 16(4) should not exceed 50 per cent. The Tamilnadu Government enacted a legislation, namely, Tamilnadu Backward Classes, Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Reservation of Seats in Educational Institution and of appointments or posts in the Services under the State) Bill, 1993 and forwarded it to the Government of India for consideration of the President of India in terms of Article 31-C of the Constitution. The Government of India supported the provision of the State legislation by giving the President’s assent to the Tamilnadu Bill. As a corollary to this decision, it was necessary that the Tamilnadu Act 45 of 1994 was brought within the purview of the Ninth Schedule to the Constitution so that it could get protection under Article 31B of the Constitution with regard to the judicial review.
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77. The Constitution (Seventy-seventh Amendment) Act, 1995—The Schedule Castes and the scheduled tribes have been enjoying the facility of reservation in promotion since 1955. The Supreme Court in its judgment dated 16th November 1992 in the case of Indira Sawhney and others vs. Union of India and others, however, observed that reservation of appointments or posts under Article 16(4) of the Constitution is confined to initial appointment and cannot extend to reservation in the matter of promotion. This ruling of the Supreme Court will adversely affect the interests of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes. Since the representation of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes in services in the States have not reached the required level, it is necessary to continue the existing dispensation of providing reservation in promotion in the case of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes. In view of the commitment of the Government to protect the interests of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes, the Government have decided to continue the existing policy of reservation in promotion for the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes. To carry out this, it was necessary to amend Article 16 of the Constitution by inserting a new clause (4A) in the said Article to provide for reservation in promotion for the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes. 78. The Constitution (Seventy-eighth Amendment) Act, 1995—Article 31B of the Constitution confers on the enactments included in the Ninth Schedule to the Constitution immunity from legal challenge on the ground that they violate the fundamental rights enshrined in Part III of the Constitution. The Schedule consists of list of laws enacted by various State Governments and Central Government which inter alia affect rights and interest in property including land. In the past, whenever, it was found that progressive legislation conceived in the interest of the public was imperilled by litigation, recourse was taken to the Ninth Schedule. Accordingly, several State enactments relating to land reforms and ceiling on agricultural land holdings have already been included in the Ninth Schedule. Since, the Government is committed to give importance to land reforms, it was decided to include land reform laws in the Ninth Schedule so that they are not challenged before the courts. The State Governments of Bihar, Karnataka, Kerala, Orissa, Rajasthan, Tamilnadu and West Bengal had suggested the inclusion of some of their Acts relating to land reforms in the Ninth Schedule. Since the amendment to Acts which are already placed in the Ninth Schedule are not automatically immunised from legal challenge, a number of amending Acts along with a few principal Acts have been included in the Ninth Schedule so as to ensure that implementation of these Acts is not adversely affected by litigation. 79. The Constitution (Seventy-ninth Amendment) Act, 1999—By this Act the Government has extended the reservations of seats for the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes as well as for the Anglo-Indians in the House of the People and in the Legislative Assemblies of the States for another ten years. 80. The Constitution (Eightieth Amendment) Act, 2000—Based on the recommendations of the Tenth Finance Commission, an alternative scheme for sharing taxes between the Union and the States has been enacted by the Constitution (Eightieth Amendment) Act 2000. Under the new scheme of devolution of revenue between Union and the States, 26 per cent out of gross proceeds of Union taxes and duties is to be assigned to the States in lieu of their existing share in the income-tax, excise duties, special excise duties and grants in lieu of tax on railway passenger fares. 81. The Constitution (Eighty-first Amendment) Act, 2000—By this amendment the unfilled vacancies of a year which were reserved for the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes for being filled up in that year in accordance with any provision for reservations made under Article 16 of the Constitution, shall be considered as a separate class of vacancies to be filled up in any succeeding year or years, and such class of vacancies shall not be considered together with the vacancies of the year in which they were filled up for determining the ceiling of fifty per cent reservation against total number of vacancies of that year. 82. The Constitution (Eighty-second Amendment) Act, 2000—The amendment provides that nothing in Article 335 shall prevent the State from making any provision in favour of the members of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes for relaxation in qualifying marks in any examination or
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lowering the standards of evaluation for reservation in matters of promotion to any class or classes of services or posts in connection with affairs of the Union or of a State. 83. The Constitution (Eighty-third Amendment) Act, 2000—The Act amended Acticle 243M of the Constitution to provide that no reservation in Panchayats need be made in favour of the Scheduled Castes in Arunachal Pradesh wholly inhabited by tribal population. 84. The Constitution (Eighty-fourth Amendment) Act, 2001—The Act amended provisos to articles 82 and 170(3) of the Constitution to readjust and rationalise the territorial constitutencies in the States, without altering the number of seats allotted to each State in House of People and Legislative Assemblies of the States, including the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes constituencies, on the basis of the population ascertained at the census for the year 1991 so as to remove the imbalance caused due to uneven growth of population/electorate in different constituencies. It is also to refix the number of seats reserved for the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes in the House of the People and the Legislative Assemblies of the States on the basis of the population ascertained at the census for the year 1991 so as to remove the imbalance caused due to uneven growth of population/ electorate in different constituencies. It is also to refix the number of seats reserved for Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes in the House of the People and the Legislative Assemblies of the States on the basis of the population ascertained at the census for the year 1991. 85. The Constitution (Eighty-fifth Amendment) Act, 2001—This Act amended article 16(4A) of the Constitution to provide for consequential seniority in the case of promotion by virtue of rule of reservation for the Government servants belonging to the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes. It also provides retrospective effect from 17th day of June 1995. 86. The Constitution (Eighty-sixth Amendment) Act, 2002—The Act deals with insertion of a new article 21A after article 21. The new article 21A deals with Right to Education—“The State shall provide free and compulsory education to all children of the age of six to fourteen years in such manner as the State may, by law, determine”. Substitution of new Article for Article 45. For Article 45 of the Constitution, the following article shall be substituted, namely, Provision for early childhood care and education to children below the age of six years. Article 45: “The State shall endeavour to provide early childhood care and education for all children until they complete the age of six years.” Article 51A of the Constitution was amended and a new clause (k) was added after clause (j), namely, “(k) who is a parent or guardian to provide opportunities for education to his child or, as the case may be, ward between the age of six and fourteen years.” 87. The Constitution (Eighty-seventh Amendment) Act, 2003 - In Article 81 of the Constitution, in clause (3), in the proviso, in clause (ii), for the figures ‘‘1991’’, the figures ‘‘2001’’ shall be substituted. In Article 82 of the Constitution, in the third proviso, in clause (ii), for the figures ‘‘1991’’, the figures ‘‘2001’’ shall be substituted. In Article 170 of the Constitution, - (i) in clause (2), in the Explanation, in the proviso, for the figures ‘‘1991’’, the figures ‘‘2001’’ shall be substituted; (ii) in clause (3), in the Explanation, in the third proviso, for the figures ‘‘1991’’, the figures ‘‘2001’’ shall be substituted. In Article 330 of the Constitution, in the Explanation, in the proviso, for the figures "1991", the figures "2001" shall be substituted. 88. The Constitution (Eighty-eighth Amendment) Act, 2003 - It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint. After Article 268 of the Constitution, the following article shall be inserted, namely : ‘‘268A. (1) Taxes on services shall be levied by the Government of India and such tax shall be collected and appropriated by the Government of India and the States in the manner provided in clause (2). (2) The proceeds in any financial year of any such tax levied in accordance with the provisions of clause (1) shall be - (a) collected by the Government of India and the States; (b) appropriated by the
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Government of India and the States, in accordance with such principles of collection and appropriation as may be formulated by Parliament by law’’. In Article 270 of the constitution, in clause(1), for the words and figures "Article 268 and 269", the words, figures and letter "Articles 268, 268A and 269" shall be substituted. In the Seventh Schedule to the Constitution, in List I-Union List, after entry 9.2B, the following entry shall be inserted, namely : ‘‘92C. Taxes on services’’. 89 The Constitution (Eighty-ninth Amendment) Act, 2003-It shall come into force on such date as the Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint. In Article 338 of the Constitution, - (a) for the marginal heading, the following marginal heading shall be substituted, namely : ‘‘National Commission for : Scheduled Castes’’; (b) for clauses (1) and (2), the following clauses shall be substituted, namely: ‘‘(1) There shall be a Commission for the Scheduled Castes to be known as the National Commission for the Scheduled Castes. (2) Subject to the provisions of any law made in this behalf by Parliament, the Commission shall consist of a Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson and three other Members and the conditions of service and tenure of office of the Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson and other Members so appointed shall be such as the President may by rule determine’’; (c) in clauses (5), (9) and (10), the words ‘‘and Scheduled Tribes’’, wherever they occur, shall be omitted. After Article 338 of the Constitution, the following article shall be inserted, namely: ‘‘338A. (1) There shall be a Commission for the Scheduled Tribes to be known as the National Commission for the Scheduled Tribes. (2) Subject to the provisions of any law made in this behalf by Parliament, the Commission shall consist of a Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson and three other Members and the conditions of service and tenure of office of the Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson and other Members so appointed shall be such as the President may by rule determine. (3) The Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson and other Members of the Commission shall be appointed by the President by warrant under his hand and seal. (4) The Commission shall have the power to regulate its own procedure. (5) It shall be the duty of the Commission - (a) to investigate and monitor all matters relating to the safeguards provided for the Scheduled Tribes under this Constitution or under any other law for the time being in force or under any order of the Government and to evaluate the working of such safeguards; (b) to inquire into specific complaints with respect to the deprivation of rights and safeguards of the Scheduled Tribes; (c) to participate and advise on the planning process of socioeconomic development of the Scheduled Tribes and to evaluate the progress of their development under the Union and any State; (d) to present to the President, annually and at such other times as the Commission may deem fit, reports upon the working of those safeguards; (e) to make in such reports recommendations as to the measures that should be taken by the Union or any State for the effective implementation of those safeguards and other measures for the protection, welfare and socio-economic development of the Scheduled Tribes; and (f) to discharge such other functions in relation to the protection, welfare and development and advancement of the Scheduled Tribes as the President may, subject to the provisions of any law made by Parliament, by rule specify. (6) The President shall cause all such reports to be laid before each House of Parliament along with a memorandum explaining the action taken or proposed to be taken on the recommendations relating to the Union and the reasons for the non-acceptance, if any, of any of such recommendations. (7) Where any such report, or any part thereof, relates to any matter with which any State Government is concerned, a copy of such report shall be forwarded to the Governor of the State who shall cause it to be laid before the Legislature of the State along with a memorandum explaining the action taken or proposed to be taken on the recommendations relating to the State and reasons for the non-acceptance, if any, of any of such recommendations. (8) The Commission shall, while investigating any matter referred to in sub-clause(a) or inquiring into any complaint referred to in sub-clause (b) of clause (5), have all the powers of a civil
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court trying a suit and in particular in respect of the following matters, namely: (a) summoning and enforcing the attendance of any person from any part of India and examining him on oath; (b) requiring the discovery and production of any document; (c) receiving evidence on affidavits; (d) requisitioning any public record or copy thereof from any court or office; (e) issuing commissions for the examination of witnesses and documents; (f) any other matter which the President may, by rule, determine. (9) The Union and every State Government shall consult the Commission on all major policy matters affecting Scheduled Tribes’’. 90. The Constitution (Ninetieth Amendment) Act, 2003-In Article 332 of the Consitution, in clause (6), the following proviso shall be inserted, namely : ‘‘Provided that for elections to the Legislative Assembly of the State of Assam, the representation of the Scheduled Tribes and non-Scheduled Tribes in the constituencies included in the Bodoland Territorial Areas District, so notified, and existing prior to the constitution of the Bodoland Territorial Areas District, shall be maintained’’. 91. The Constitution (Ninety-first Amendment), Act, 2003 - In Article 75 of the Constitution, after clause (1), the following clauses shall be inserted, namely : ‘‘(1A) The total number of Ministers, including the Prime Minister, in the Council of Ministers shall not exceed fifteen per cent of the total number of members of the House of the People. (1B) A member of either House of Parliament belonging to any political party who is disqualified for being a member of that House under paragraph 2 of the Tenth Schedule shall also be disqualified to be appointed as a Minister under clause (1) for duration of the period commencing from the date of his disqualification till the date on which the term of his office as such member would expire or where he contests any election to either House of Parliament before the expiry of such period, till the date on which he is declared elected, whichever is earlier" In Article 164 of the Constitution, after clause (i), the following clauses shall be inserted, namely: "(1A) the total number of Ministers, including the Chief Minister, in the Council of Ministers in a State sall not exceed fifteen per cent of the total number of members of the Legislative Assembly of that State : Provided that the number of Ministers, including the Chief Minister, in a State shall not be less than twelve: Provided further that where the total number of Ministers, including the Chief Minister, in the Council of Ministers in any State at the commencement of the Constitution (Ninety-first Amendment) Act, 2003 exceeds the said fifteen per cent or the number specified in the first proviso, as the case may be, then, the total number of Ministers in that State shall be brought in conformity with the provisions of this clause within six months from such date as the President may by public notification appoint. (1B) A member of the Legislative Assembly of a State or either House of the Legislature of a State having Legislative Council beloging to any poitical party who is disqualified for being a member of that House under paragraph 2 of the Tenth Schedule shall also be disqualified to be appointed as a Minister under clause (1) for duration of the period commencing from the date of his disqualification till the date on which the term of his office as such member would expire or where he contests any election to the Legislative Assembly of a State or either House of the Legislature of a State having Legislative Council, as the case may be, before the expiry of such period, till the date on which he is declared elected, whichever is earlier" After Article 361A of the Constitution, the following article shall be inserted, namely : 316B. A member of a House belonging to any political party who is disqualified for being a member of the House under paragraph 2 of the Tenth Schedule shall also be disqualified to hold any remunerative political post for duration of the period commencing from the date of his disqualification till the date on which the term of his office as such member would expire or till the date on which he contests an election to a House and is declared elected, whichever is earlier. Explanation : For the purposes of this Article,— (a) the expression "House" has the meaning assigned to it in clause (a) of paragraph 1 of the Tenth Schedule : (b) the expression "remunerative political post" means any office—(i) under the Government of India or the Government of a State where the salary or remuneration for such office is paid out of
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the public revenue of the Government of India or the Government of the State, as the case may be, or (ii) under a body, whether incorporated or not, which is wholly or partially owned by the Government of India or the Government of a State and the salary or remuneration for such office is paid by such body, except where such salary or remuneration paid is compensatory in nature'. In the Tenth Schedule to the Constitution,—(a) in paragraph, 1, in clause (b), the words and figure "paragraph 3 or, as the case may be," shall be omitted; (b) in paragraph 2, in sub-paragraph (1), for the words and figures "paragraphs 3, 4 and 5", the words and figures "paragraphs 4 and 5" shall be substituted; (c) paragraph 3 shall be omitted. 92. The Constitution (Ninety-second Amendment) Act, 2003—In the Eighth Schedule to the Constitution,—(a) existing entry 3 shall be re-numbered as entry 5, and before entry 5 as so re-numbered, the following entries shall be inserted, namely: "3. Bodo; 4. Dogri". (b) existing 4 to 7 shall respectively be re-numbered as entries 6 to 9; (c) existing entry 8 shall be re-numbered as entry 11 and before entry 11 as so renumbered, the following entry shall be inserted, namely: "10. Maithili". (d) existing entries 9 to 14 shall respectively be re-numbered as entries 12 to 17; (e) existing entry 15 shall be re-numbered as entry 19 and before entry 19 as so re-numbered, the following entry shall be inserted, namely : "18. Santhali". (f) existing entries 16 to 18 shall respectively be re-numbered as entries 20 to 22. 93. The Constitution (Ninety-third amendment) Act, 2006 - Greater access to higher education including professional education, is of great importance to a large number of students belonging to the Scheduled Castes, the Scheduled Tribes and other socially and educationally backward classes of citizens. The reservation of seats for the Scheduled Castes, the Scheduled Tribes and the Other Backward Classes of citizens in admission to educational institution is derived from the provisions of clause (4) of articles 15 of the constitution. At present, the number of seats available in aided or State maintained institutions, particularly in respect of professional education, is limited, in comparison to those in private unaided institutions. Clause (i) of article 30 of the Constitution provides the right to all minorities to establish and administer educational institutions of their choice. It is essential that the rights available to minorities are protected in regard to institutions established and administered by them. Accordingly, institutions declared by the State to be minority institutions under clause (1) of article 30 are excluded from the operation of this enactment. To promote the educational advancement of the socially and educationally backward classes of citizens, i.e., the Other Backward Classes or of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes in matters of admission of students belonging to these categories in unaided educational institutions, other than the minority educational institutions referred to in clause (1) of article 30, the provisions of article 15 were amplified. The new clause (5) of said article 15 shall enable the Parliament as well as the State Legislatures to make appropriate laws for the above mentioned purpose.
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Appendices GOVERNMENT OF INDIA Smt. Pratibha Devisingh Patil — President Mohammed Hamid Ansari — Vice-President
CABINET MINISTERS (As on 14.06.2009) Dr. Manmohan Singh
Prime Minister and also in-charge of the Ministries/ Departments not specifically allocated to the charge of any Minister, viz., Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions; Ministry of Planning; Department of Atomic Energy; Department of Space; and Ministry of Culture;
Shri Pranab Mukherjee
Minister of Finance
Shri Sharad Pawar
Minister of Agriculture; Minister of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution
Shri A.K. Antony
Minister of Defence
Shri P. Chidambaram
Minister of Home Affairs
Km. Mamata Banerjee
Minister of Railways
Shri S. M. Krishna
Minister of External Affairs
Shri Virbhadra Singh
Minister of Steel
Shri Vilasrao Deshmukh
Minister of Heavy Industries & Public Enterprises
Shri Ghulam Nabi Azad
Minister of Health & Family Welfare
Shri Sushilkumar Shinde
Minister of Power
Shri M. Veerappa Moily
Minister of Law and Justice
Shri Farooq Abdullah
Minister of New and Renewable Energy
Shri S. Jaipal Reddy
Minister of Urban Development
Shri Kamal Nath
Minister of Road Transport and Highways
Shri Vayalar Ravi
Minister of Overseas Indian Affairs
Shri Dayanidhi Maran
Minister of Textiles
Shri A. Raja
Minister of Communications and Information Technology
Shri Murli Deora
Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas
Smt. Ambika Soni
Minister of Information and Broadcasting
Shri Mallikarjun Kharge
Minister of Labour and Employment
Shri Kapil Sibal
Minister of Human Resource Development
Shri B. K. Handique
Minister of Mines and Minister of Development of North Eastern Region
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Shri Anand Sharma
Minister of Commerce and Industry
Shri C. P. Joshi
Minister of Rural Development and Minister of Panchayati Raj
Kumari Sailja
Minister of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation and Minister of Tourism
Shri Subodh Kant Sahay
Minister of Food Processing Industries
Dr. M. S. Gill
Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports
Shri G. K. Vasan
Minister of Shipping
Shri Pawan Kumar Bansal
Minister of Parliamentary Affairs and Minister of Water Resources
Shri Mukul Wasnik
Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment
Shri Kantilal Bhuria
Minister of Tribal Affairs
Shri M. K. Alagiri
Minister of Chemicals and Fertilizers.
MINISTERS OF STATE (Independent Charge) Shri Praful Patel
Minister of State (Independent Charge) of the Ministry of Civil Aviation
Shri Prithviraj Chavan
Minister of State (Independent Charge) of the Ministry of Science and Technology; Minsiter of State in the Earth Science; Minister of State in the Prime Minister's Office; Minister of State in the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions; and Minister of State in the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs
Shri Shriparkash Jaiswal
Minister of State (Independent Charge) of the Ministry of Coal and Minister of State (Independent Charge) of the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation
Smt Salman Khursheed
Minister of State (Independent Charge) of the Ministry of Corporate Affairs and Minister of State (Independent Charge) of the Ministry of Minority Affairs
Shri Dinsha J. Patel
Minister of State (Independent Charge) of the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises
Smt. Krishna Tirath
Minister of State (Independent Charge) of the Ministry of Women and Child Development
Shri Jairam Ramesh
Minister of State (Independent Charge) of the Ministry of Environment and Forests
MINISTERS OF STATE (MoS) Shri Shrikant Jena
MoS in the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers
Shri E. Ahammed
MoS in the Ministry of Railways
Shri Mullappally Ramachandran
MoS in the Ministry of Home Affairs
Shri V. Narayanasamy
MoS in the Ministry of Planning and MoS in the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs
India 2010
1262 Shri Jyotiraditya Madhavrao Scindia
MoS in Ministry of Commerce and Industry
Smt. D. Purandeswari
MoS in the Ministry of Human Resource Development
Shri K. H. Muniappa
MoS in the Ministry of Railways
Shri Ajay Maken
MoS in the Ministry of Home Affairs
Smt. Panabaka Lakshmi
MoS in the Ministry of Textiles
Shri Namo Narain Meena
MoS in the Ministry of Finance
Shri M. M. Pallam Raju
MoS in the Ministry of Defence
Shri Saugata Ray
MoS in the Ministry of Urban Development
Shri S. S. Palanimanickam
MoS in the Ministry of Finance
Shri Jitin Prasada
MoS in the Ministry of Petroleum and Gas
Shri A. Sai Prathap
MoS in the Ministry of Steel
Smt. Preneet Kaur
MoS in the Ministry of External Affairs
Shri Gurudas Kamat
MoS in the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology
Shri Harish Rawat
MoS in the Ministry of Labour and Employment
Prov. K. V. Thomas
MoS in the Ministry of Agriculture and Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution
Shri Bharatsinh Solanki
MoS in the Ministry of Power
Shri Mahedev S. Khandela
MoS in the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways
Shri Dinesh Trivedi
MoS in the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare
Shri Sisir Adhikari
MoS in the Ministry of Rural Development
Shri Sultan Ahmed
MoS in the Ministry of Tourism
Shri Mukul Roy
MoS in the Ministry of Shipping
Shri Choudhury Mohan Jatua
MoS in the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting
Shri D. Napoleon
MoS in the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment
Dr. S. Jagathrakshakan
MoS in the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting
Shri S. Gandhiselvan
MoS in the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare
Shri Tusharbhai Chaudhary
MoS in the Ministry of Tribal Affairs
Shri Sachin Pilot
MoS in the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology
Shri Arun Yadav
MoS in the Ministry of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises
Smt Pratik Prakashbapu Patil
MoS in the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports
Shri R. P. N. Singh
MoS in the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways
Shri Shashi Tharoor
MoS in the Ministry of External Affairs
Appendices
1263
Shri Vincent Pala
MoS in the Ministry of Water Resources
Shri Pradeep Jain
MoS in the Ministry of Rural Development
Ms. Agatha Sangma
MoS in the Ministry of Rural Development
MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT RAJYA SABHA Chairman
Shri Mohmmed Hamid Ansari
Deputy Chairman
Shri K. Rahman Khan
Name
Party/Group
STATES ANDHRA PRADESH (18) 1.
Raashid Alvi
INC
2.
Mohd. Ali Khan
INC
3.
Penumalli Madhu
CPI(M)
4.
Harikrishna Nandamuri
TDP
5.
Yellaiah Nandi
INC
6.
Syed Azeez Pasha
CPI
7.
Jairam Ramesh
INC
8.
Dr. Dasari Narayana Rao
INC
9.
Dr. K. Keshava Rao
INC
10.
K. V. P. Ramachandra Rao
INC
11.
V. Hanumantha Rao
INC
12.
Smt. T. Ratnabai
INC
13.
G. Sanjeeva Reddy
INC
14.
M.V.Mysura Reddy
TDP
15.
Dr. N. Janardhana Reddy
INC
16.
Dr. T. Subbarami Reddy
INC
17.
Gireesh Kumar Sanghi
INC
18.
Jesudasu Seelam
INC
ARUNACHAL PRADESH –1 19.
Mithi Mukut
INC
ASSAM – 7 20.
Birendra Prasad Baishya
AGP
India 2010
1264 21.
Silvius Condpan
INC
22.
Biswajit Daimary
O
23.
Kumar Deepak Das
AGP
24.
Bhubaneshwar Kalita
INC
25.
Dr. Manmohan Singh
INC
26.
Smt. Syeda Anwara Taimur
INC
BIHAR – 16 27.
Dr. Ejaj Ali
JD(U)
28.
Sabir Ali
O
29.
Anwar Ali
JD(U)
30.
R. K. Dhawan
INC
31.
George Fernandes
JD(U)
32.
Prem Chand Gupta
RJD
33.
Jabir Husain
RJD
34.
Dr. Mahendra Prasad
JD(U)
35.
Rajniti Prasad
RJD
36.
Ravi Shankar Prasad
BJP
37.
Rajiv Pratap Rudy
BJP
38.
Mahendra Sahni
JD (U)
39.
N. K. Singh
JD(U)
40.
Dr. C. P. Thakur
BJP
41.
Shivanand Tiwari
JD(U)
42.
Subhash Prasad Yadav
RJD
CHHATTISGARH – 5 43.
Smt. Mohsina Kidwai
INC
44.
Nand Kumar Sai
BJP
45.
Shivpratap Singh
BJP
46.
Motilal Vora
INC
47.
Shrigopal Vyas
BJP
GOA – 1 48.
Shantaram Laxman Naik
INC
GUJARAT – 11 49.
Suryakantbhai Acharya
BJP
50.
Arun Jaitley
BJP
Appendices
1265
51.
Prof. Alka Balram Kshatriya
BJP
52.
Prabhatsinh Bhatratsinh Parmar
INC
53.
Ahmed Patel
INC
54.
Kanjibhai Maganbhai Patel
BJP
55.
Surendra Motilal Patel
BJP
56.
Pravinchandra Somabhai Rashtrapal
INC
57.
Khodabhai Rupala Parshottam
BJP
58.
Vijaykumar Ramniklal Rupani
BJP
59.
Natuji Halaji Thakor
BJP
HARYANA – 5 60.
Shadi Lal Batra
INC
61.
Ajay Singh Chautala
INLD
62.
Dr. Ram Parkash
INC
63.
Ishwar Singh
INC
64.
Tarlochan Singh
IND.
HIMACHAL PRADESH – 3 65.
Anand Sharma
INC
66.
Shanta Kumar
BJP
67.
Smt. Viplove Thakur
INC
JAMMU & KASHMIR – 4 68.
Ghulam Nabi Azad
INC
69.
G. N. Ratanpuri
J&KNC
70.
Mohammad Shafi
J&KNC
71.
Prof. Saif-ud-Din Soz
INC
JHARKHAND – 6 72.
S.S. Ahluwalia
BJP
73.
Parimal Nathwani
IND
74.
Ms. Mabel Rebello
INC
75.
Dhiraj Prasad Sahu
INC
76.
Jai Prakash Narayan Singh
BJP
77.
Hemant Soren
JMM
KARNATAKA – 12 78.
Rajeev Chandrasekhar
IND
79.
Oscar Fernandes
INC
India 2010
1266 80.
B.K. Hariprasad
INC
81.
M. Rama Jois
BJP
82.
K. Rahman Khan
INC
83.
Dr. Prabhakar Kore
BJP
84.
S. M. Krishna
INC
85.
Anil H. Lad
INC
86.
M. Rajasekara Murthy
JD(S)
87.
M. Venkaiah Naidu
BJP
88.
Dr. M.A.M. Ramaswamy
JD(S)
89.
K.B. Shanappa
BJP
KERALA – 9 90.
Abdul Wahab Peevee
ML
91.
M. P. Achuthaan
CPI
92.
A.K. Antony
INC
93.
K.E. Ismail
CPI
94.
Prof. P. J. Kurian
INC
95.
P. R. Rajan
CPI(M)
96.
P. Rajeeve
CPI(M)
97.
Vayalar Ravi
INC
98.
A. Vijayaraghavan
CPI(M)
MADHYA PRADESH – 11 99.
Anil Madhav Dave
BJP
100.
Prabhat Jha
BJP
101.
Narayan Singh Kesari
BJP
102.
Pyarelal Khandelwal
BJP
103.
Raghunandan Sharma
BJP
104.
Arjun Singh
INC
105.
Smt. Maya Singh
BJP
106.
Kaptan Singh Solanki
BJP
107.
Su. Thirunavukkarasar
BJP
108.
Ms. Anusuiya Uike
BJP
109.
Vikram Verma
BJP
MAHARASHTRA – 19 110.
Govindrao Wamanrao Adik
NCP
111.
Balavant alias Bal Apte
BJP
Appendices
1267
112.
Rahul Bajaj
IND.
113.
Prithviraj Chavan
INC
114.
Vijay J. Darda
INC
115.
Murli Deora
INC
116.
Vilasrao Dagadojirao Deshmukh
INC
117.
Rajkumar Dhoot
SS
118.
Prakash Keshav Javadekar
BJP
119.
Manohar Gajanan Joshi
SS
120.
Sharad Anantrao Joshi
SBP
121.
Ranjitsinh Vijaysinh Mohitepatil
NCP
122.
Shivraj Vishwanath Patil
INC
123.
Bharatkumar Bhavanishankar Raut
SS
124.
Sanjay Raut
SS
125.
Rajeev Shukla
INC
126.
Tariq Anwar
NCP
127.
Yogendra Premkrishna Trivedi
NCP
128.
Janardhan Madhavrao Waghmare
NCP
MANIPUR – 1 129.
Rishang Keishing
INC
MEGHALAYA – 1 130.
Thomas Sangma
NCP
MIZORAM – 1 131.
Lalhming Liana
MNF
NAGALAND – 1 132.
Khekiho Zhimomi
NPF
ORISSA – 10 133.
Ramachandra Khuntia
INC
134.
Bhagirathi Majhi
BJP
135.
Mangala Kisan
BJD
136.
Kishore Kumar Mohanty
BJD
137.
Pyarimohan Mohapatra
BJD
138.
Dr. Radhakant Nayak
INC
139.
Rudra Narayan Pany
BJP
India 2010
1268 140.
Smt. Renubala Pradhan
BJD
141.
Balbir Punj
BJP
142.
Ms. Sushila Tiriya
INC
PUNJAB – 7 143.
Ashwani Kumar
INC
144.
Varinder Singh Bajwa
SAD
145.
Dr. M.S. Gill
INC
146.
Naresh Gujral
SAD
147.
Raj Mohinder Singh Majitha
SAD
148.
Dharam Pal Sabharwal
INC
149.
Smt. Ambika Soni
INC
RAJASTHAN – 10 150.
Ramdas Agarwal
BJP
151.
Santosh Bagrodia
INC
152.
Krishan Lal Balmiki
BJP
153.
Narendra Budania
INC
154.
Lalit Kishore Chaturvedi
BJP
155.
Dr. (Smt.) Najma A. Heptullah
BJP
156.
Om Parkash Mathur
BJP
157.
Dr. Gyan Parkash Pilania
BJP
158.
Dr. Abhishek Manu Singhvi
INC
159.
Dr. Prabha Thakur
INC
SIKKIM – 1 160.
O.T. Lepcha
SDF
TAMILNADU – 18 161.
S. Anbalagan
AIADMK
162.
N. Balaganga
AIADMK
163.
T.T.V. Dhinakaran
AIADMK
164.
A. Elavarasan
AIADMK
165.
B. S. Gnanadesikan
INC
166.
N. R. Govindarajar
AIADMK
167.
S. Amir Ali Jinnah
DMK
168.
Smt. Kanimozhi
DMK
169.
Dr. V. Maitreyan
AIADMK
Appendices
1269
170.
Dr. K. Malaisamy
AIADMK
171.
Smt. Jayanthi Natarajan
INC
172.
E.M. Sudarsana Natchiappan
INC
173.
D. Raja
CPI
174.
Dr. Anbumani Ramadoss
PMK
175.
T. K. Rangarajan
CPI(M)
176.
Tiruchi Siva
DMK
177.
Smt. Vasanthi Stanley
DMK
178.
G.K. Vasan
INC
TRIPURA – 1 179.
Matilal Sarkar
CPI(M)
UTTAR PRADESH – 31 180.
Mohammad Adeeb
IND.
181.
Kamal Akhtar
SP
182.
Munquad Ali
BSP
183.
Smt Jaya Bachchan
SP
184.
Virendra Bhatia
SP
185.
Charan Ganga
BSP
186.
Dr. Akhilesh Das Gupta
BSP
187.
Avtar Singh Karimpuri
BSP
188.
Vinay Katiyar
BSP
189.
Brijlal Khabri
BSP
190.
Amir Alam Khan
SP
191.
Mahmood A. Madani
RLD
192.
Mahendra Mohan
SP
193.
Janeshwar Mishra
SP
194.
Kalraj Mishra
BJP
195.
Satish Chandra Misra
BSP
196.
Shriram Pal
BSP
197.
Brajesh Pathak
BSP
198.
Prakash Jai
BSP
199.
Smt. Kusum Raj
BJP
200.
Ambeth Rajan
BSP
201.
Rajaram
BSP
202.
Ram Narayan Sahu
SP
203.
Arun Shourie
BJP
India 2010
1270 204.
Amar Singh
SP
205.
Bhagwati Singh
SP
206.
Veer Singh
BSP
207.
Brij Bhushan Tiwari
SP
208.
Nand Kishore Yadav
SP
209.
Prof Ram Gopal Yadav
SP
210.
Veerpal Singh Yadav
SP
UTTARAKHAND – 3 211.
Satyavrat Chaturvedi
INC
212.
Bhagat Singh Koshyari
BJP
213.
Satish Kumar Sharma
INC
WEST BENGAL – 16 214.
Mohammad Amin
CPI(M)
215.
Swapan Sadhan Bose
AITC
216.
Shyamal Chakraborty
CPI(M)
217.
Prasanta Chatterjee
CPI(M)
218.
Smt. Brinda Karat
CPI(M)
219.
Ahmad Sayeed Malihabadi
IND.
220.
Moinul Hassan Ahamed
CPI(M)
221.
Barun Mukherjee
(AIFB)
222.
Saman Pathak
CPI(M)
223.
Abani Roy
RSP
224.
Mukul Roy
AITC
225.
Tarini Kanta Roy
CPI(M)
226.
Tapan Kumar Sen
CPI(M)
227.
Arjun Kumar Sengupta
IND.
228.
Ram Chandra Singh
CPI
229.
Sitaram Yechury
CPI(M)
UNION TERRITORIES NATIONAL CAPITAL TERRITORY OF DELHI – 3 230.
Janardan Dwivedi
INC
231.
Parvez Hashmi
INC
232.
Dr. Karan Singh
INC
Appendices
1271
PUDUCHERRY – 1 233.
.....
......
NOMINATED – 12 (VACANT-8) 234.
Shyam Benegal
NOM.
235.
Smt. Shobhana Bhartia
NOM.
236.
Prof. M. S. Swaminathan
NOM.
237.
Dr. (Smt.) Kapila Vatsyayan
NOM.
LOK SABHA Speaker : Smt. Meira Kumar State/Constituency
Name of the Member
Party/Group
ANDHRA PRADESH (42) 1
Adilabad
Ramesh Rathod
TDP
2
Peddapalle
Dr. G. Vivekanand
INC
3
Karimnagar
Poonam Prabhakar
INC
4
Nizamabad
Yakshi Madhu Goud
INC
5
Zahirabad
Suresh Kumar Shetkar
INC
6
Medak
Vijaya Shanthi M
TRS
7
Malkajgiri
Sarvey Sathyanarayana
INC
8
Secundrabad
Anjan Kumar Yadav M
INC
9
Hyderabad
Asaduddin Owaisi
AIMEIM
10
Chelvella
Jaipal Reddy Sudini
INC
11
Mahbubnagar
K. Chandrashekhar Rao
TRS
12
Nagarkurnool
Dr. Manda Jagannath
INC
13
Nalgonda
Gutha Sukender Reddy
INC
14
Bhongir
Komatireddy Raj Gopal Reddy
INC
15
Warangal
Rajaiah Siricilla
INC
16
Mahbubabad
P. Balram
INC
17
Khammam
Nama Nageshwara Rao
TDP
18
Araku
Deo, V. Kishore Chandra S.
INC
19 20 21 22 23 24
Srikakulam Vizianagram Visakhapatnam Anakapalli Kakinada Amalapuram
Dr. (Smt.) Kruparani killi Jhansi Lakshmi Botcha Daggubati Purandeshwari Sabbam Hari M. M. Pallamraju G. V. Harsha Kumar
INC INC INC INC INC INC
India 2010
1272 25 26 27 28 29 30
Rajahmundry Narsapuram Eluru Machillipatnam Vijayawada Guntur
Aruna Kumar Vundavalli Bapiraju Kanumuru Kavuri Sambasiva Rao Konakalla Narayana Rao Lagadapati Raja Gopal Rayapati Sambasiva Rao
INC INC INC TDP INC INC
31 32
Narasaraopet Bapatia
Modugula Venugopala Reddy Panabaka Lakshmi
TDP INC
33 34
Ongole Nandyal
Magunta Srinivasulu Reddy S. P. Y. Reddy
INC INC
35 36 37
Kurnool Anantapur Hindupur
Kotla Jaya Surya Prakash Reddy Anantha Venkata Rami Reddy Kristappa Nimmala
INC INC TDP
38
Kadapa
Y. S. Jagan Mohan Reddy
INC
39 40
Nellore Tirupati
Mekapati Rajamohan Reddy Chinta Mohan
INC INC
41 42
Rajampet Chitoor
Annayyagari Sai Prathap Naramalli Sivaprasad
INC TDP
ARUNACHAL PRADESH (2) 43
Arunachal West
Takam Sanjoy
INC
44
Arunachal East
Ninong Ering
INC
Lalit Mohan Suklabaidya Kabindra Purkayastha Biren Singh Engti Badruddin Ajmal Sansuma Khunggur Bwiswmuthiary Ismail Hussain Bijoya Chakravarty Ramen Deka Joseph Toppo Rajen Gohain Dip Gogoi Bijoy Krishna Handique Paban Singh Ghatowar Ranee Narah
INC BJP INC AUDF BPF
ASSAM (14) 45 46 47 48 49
Karimganj Silchar Autonomous District Dhubri Kokrajhar
50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58
Barpeta Guwahati Mangaldoi Tezpur Nowgong Kaliabor Jorhat Dibrugarh Lakhimpur
INC BJP BJP AGP BJP INC INC INC INC
BIHAR (40) 59
Valmiki Nagar
Baidyanath Prasad Mahto
JD(U)
60
Pachim Champaran
Dr. Sanjay Jaiswal
BJP
Appendices
1273
61
Purvi Champaran
Radha Mohan Singh
BJP
62
Sheohar
Rama Devi
BJP
63
Sitamarhi
Arjum Roy
JD(U)
64
Madhubani
Hukumdeo Narayan Yadav
BJP
65
Jhanjharpur
Mangani Lal Mandal
JD(U)
66
Supaul
Vishwa Mohan Kumar
JD(U)
67
Araria
Pradeep Kumar Singh
BJP
68
Kishanganj
Mohammad Asrarul Haque
INC
69
Katihar
Nikhil Kumar Choudhary
BJP
70
Purnia
Uday Singh alias Pappu Singh
BJP
71
Madhepura
Sharad Yadav
JD(U)
72
Darbhanga
Kirti Azad
BJP
73
Muzaffarpur
Captain Jai Narayan Prasad Nishad
JD(U)
74
Vaishali
Raghuvansh Prasad Singh
RJD
75
Gopalganj
Purnmasi Ram
JD(U)
76
Siwan
Om Parkash Yadav
IND.
77
Maharajganj
Uma Shankar Singh
RJD
78
Saran
Lalu Prasad
RJD
79
Hajipur
Ram Sundar Das
JD(U)
80
Ujjarpur
Aswamedh Devi
JD(U)
81
Samastipur
Maheshwar Hazari
JD(U)
82
Begusarai
Dr. Monazir Hassan
JD(U)
83
Khagaria
Dinesh Chandra Yadav
JD(U)
84
Bhagalpur
Syed Shahnawaz Hussain
BJP
85
Banka
Digvijay Singh
IND.
86
Munger
Rajiv Ranjan Singh
JD(U)
87
Nalanda
Kaushalendra Kumar
JD(U)
88
Patna Sahib
Shatrughan Sinha
BJP
89 Arrah
Pataliputra Meena Singh
Ranjan Prasad Yadav JD(U)
JD(U) 90
91
Buxar
Jagada Nand Singh
RJD
92
Sasaram
Meira Kumar
INC
93
Karakat
Mahabali Singh
JD(U)
94
Jahanabad
Jagdish Sharma
JD(U)
95
Aurangabad
Sushil Kumar Singh
JD(U)
96
Gaya
Hari Manjhi
BJP
97
Nawada
Bhola Singh
BJP
98
Jamui
Bhudeo Choudhary
JD(U)
Murarilal Singh Vishnu Deo Sai
BJP BJP
CHHATTISGARH (11) 99 100
Surguja Raigarh
India 2010
1274 101 102 103 104 105 106 107 108 109
Janjgir-Chanpa Korba Bilaspur Rajnandgaon Durg Raipur Mahasamund Bastar Kanker
Smt. Kamala Devi Patle Charan Das Mahant Dilip Singh Judev Madhusudan Yadav Saroj Pandey Ramesh Bais Chandulal Sahu Baliram Kashyap Sohan Potai
BJP INC BJP BJP BJP BJP BJP BJP BJP
Shripad Yesso Naik Cosme Francisco Caitano Sardinha
BJP INC
GOA (2) 110 111
North Goa South Goa
GUJARAT (26) 112
Kachchh
Jat Poonamben Veljibhai
BJP
113
Banaskantha
Gadhvi Mukeshkumar Bheiravdanji
INC
114
Patan
Jagdish Thakor
INC
115
Mahesana
Smt. Jayshreeben Patel
BJP
116
Sabarkantha
Mahendersinh
BJP
117
Gandhinagar
L.K. Advani
BJP
118
Ahmedabad East
Harin Pathak
BJP
119
Ahmedabad West
Dr. Kirit Premjibhai Solanki
BJP
120
Surendranagar
Koli Patel Somabhai Gandalal
INC
121
Rajkot
Kuvarjibhai Mohanbhai Bavalia
INC
122
Porbandar
Radadiya Vithalbhai Hansrajbhai
INC
123
Jamnagar
Ahir Vikrambhai Arjanbhai Madam
INC
124
Junagarh
Solanki Dinubhai Boghabhai
BJP
125
Amreli
Kachhadia Naranbhai
BJP
126
Bhavnagar
Rajendrasinh Ghanshyamsinh Rana
BJP
127
Anand
Bharatbhai Madhavsinh Solanki
INC
128
Kheda
Dinsha Patel
INC
129
Panchmahal
Prabhatsinh Pratapsinh Chauhan
BJP
130
Dahod
Dr. Prabha Kishor Taviad
INC
131
Vadodara
Balkrishna Khanderao Shukla
BJP
132
Chhota Udaipur
Rathwa Ramsingbhai Patalbhai
BJP
133
Bharuch
Mansukhbhai Dhanjibhai Vasava
BJP
134
Bardoli
Chaudhari Tusharbhai Amrasinhbhai
INC
135
Surat
Smt. Darshna Vikram Jardosh
BJP
Chauhan
136
Navsari
C. R. Patil
BJP
137
Valsad
Kishanbhai Vestabhai Patel
INC
Appendices
1275
HARYANA (10) 138
Ambala (SC)
Selja
INC
139
Kurukshetra
Naveen Jindal
INC
140
Sirsa
Ashok Tanwar
INC
141
Hisar
Bhajan Lal
HJC(BL)
142 143
Karnal Sonipat
Arvind Kumar Sharma Jitender Singh Malik
INC INC
144
Rohtak
Deepender Singh
INC
145
Bhiwani-Mahendragarh
Shruti Choudhry
INC
146
Gurgaon
Inderjit Singh
INC
147
Faridabad
Avtar Singh Bhadana
INC
HIMACHAL PRADESH (4) 148
Kangra
Dr. Rajan Sushant
BJP
149
Mandi
Virbhadra Singh
INC
150
Hamirpur
Anurag Singh Thakur
BJP
151
Shimla
Virender Kashyap
BJP
JAMMU & KASHMIR (6) 152 Baramulla
Sharief Ud Din Shaariq
J&KNC
153
Srinagar
Farooq Abdullah
J&KNC
154
Anantnag
Mirza Mehboob Beg
J&KPDP
155
Laddakh
Hassan Khan
IND
156
Udhampur
Ch. Lal Singh
INC
157
Jammu
Madan Lal Sharma
INC
JHARKHAND (14) 158
Rajmahal
Devidhan Besra
BJP
159
Dumka
Shibu Soren
JMM
160
Godda
Nishikant Dubey
BJP
161
Chatra
Inder Singh Namdhari
IND.
162
Kodarma
Babulal Marandi
163
Giridih
Ravinder Kumar Pandey
BJP
164
Dhanbad
Pashupati Nath Singh
BJP
165
Ranchi
Subodh Kant Sahay
INC
166
Jamshedpur
Arjum Munda
BJP
167
Singhbhum
Madhu Kora
IND.
168
Khunti
Karia Munda
BJP
169
Lohardaga
Sudarshan Bhagat
BJP
170
Palamu
Kameshwar Baitha
JMM
171
Hazaribagh
Yashwant Sinha
BJP
JVM (Prajatantrik)
India 2010
1276 KARNATAKA (28) 172 173 174 175 176 177 178 179 180 181 182 183 184 185 186 187 188 189 190 191 192 193 194 195 196 197 198 199
Chikkodi Belgaum Bagalkot Bijapur Gulbarga Raichur Bidar Koppal Bellary Haveri Dharwad Uttara Davanagere Shimoga Udupi Hassan Dakshina Chitradurga Tumkur Mandya Mysore Chamarajanagar Bangaluru Rural Bangaluru North Bangaluru Central Bangaluru South Chikkballapur Kolar
Katti Ramesh Vishwanath Angadi Suresh Channabasappa Gaddigoudar P. C. Ramesh Chandappa Jigajinagi Mallikarjun Kharge Pakkirappa. S. N. Dharam Singh Shivaramagouda Shivanagouda J. Shantha Udasi Shivkumar Chanabasappa Prahlad Joshi Kannada Anantkumar Hegde Siddeswara G. M. B. Y. Raghvendra Chikmagalur D. V. Sadananda Gowda H. D Devegowda Kannada Nalin Kumar Kateel Janardhana Swamy G. S. Basavraj N. Cheluvaraya Swamy Adugar H Vishwanath R. Dhruvanarayana H. D. Kumarswamy D. B. Chandre Gowda P. C. Mohan Ananth Kumar M. Veerappa Moily K. H. Muniyappa
BJP BJP BJP BJP INC BJP INC BJP BJP BJP BJP BJP BJP BJP BJP JD(S) BJP BJP BJP JD(S) INC INC JD(S) BJP BJP BJP INC INC
KERALA (20) 200 201 202 203 204 205 206 207 208 209 210
Kasaragod Kannur Vadakara Wayanad Kozhikode Malappuram Ponnani Palakkad Alathur Thrissur Chalakudy
P. Karunakaran K. Sudhakaran Mullapally Ramachandran M.I. Shanavas M. K. Raghavan E. Ahamed E. T. Muhammed Basheer M. B. Rajesh P. K. Biju P. C. Chacko K. P. Dhanaplan
CPI(M) CPI(M) INC INC INC MLKSC MLKSC CPI(M) CPI(M) INC INC
Appendices
1277
211
Ernakulam
Prof. K. V. Thomas
INC
212
Idukki
Adv. P. T. Thomas
INC
213
Kottayam
Jose K Mani (Karingozheckal)
KEC(M)
214
Alappuzha
K. C. Venugopal
INC
215
Mavelikkara
Kodikkunnil Suresh
INC
216
Pathanamthitta
Anto Antony Punnathaniyil
INC
217
Kollam
Kurup N. Peethambara
INC
218
Attingal
Adv. A Sampath
CPI(M)
219
Thiruvananthapuram
Shashi Tharoor
INC
Narendra Singh Tomar
BJP
MADHYA PRADESH (29) 220
Morena
221
Bhind
Ashok Argal
BJP
222
Gwalior
Yashodhara Raje Scindia
BJP
223
Guna
Jyotiraditya Madhavrao Scindia
INC
224
Sagar
Bhupendra Singh
BJP
225
Tikamgarh
Virendra Kumar
BJP
226
Damoh
Shivraj Bhaiya
BJP
227
Khajuraho
Jeetendra Singh Bundela
BJP
228
Satna
Ganesh Singh
BJP
229
Rewa
Deoraj Singh Patel
BSP
230
Sidhi
Govind Prasad Mishra
BJP
231
Shahdol
Rajesh Nandini Singh
INC
232
Jabalpur
Rakesh Singh
BJP
233
Mandla
Basori Singh Masram
INC
234
Balaghat
K. D. Deshmukh
BJP
235
Chhindwara
Kamalnath
INC
236
Hoshangabad
Uday Partap Singh
INC
237
Vidisha
Sushma Swaraj
BJP
238
Bhopal
Kailash Joshi
BJP
239
Rajgarh
Narayan Singh Amlabe
INC
240
Dewas
Sajjan Singh Verma
INC
241
Ujjain
Guddu Premchand
INC
242
Mandsour
Meenakshi Natrajan
INC
243
Ratlam
Kantilal Bhuria
INC
244
Dhar
Gajendra Singh Rajukhedi
INC
245
Indore
Sumitra Mahajan (Tai)
BJP
246
Khargone
Makhansingh Solanki
BJP
247
Khandwa
Arun Subhashchandra Yadav
INC
248
Betul
Jyoti Dhurve
BJP
India 2010
1278 MAHARASHTRA (48) 249 250 251 252 253 254 255 256 257 258 259
Nandurbar Dhule Jalgaon Raver Buldhana Akola Amravati Wardha Ramtek Nagpur Bhandara-Gondiya
Gavit Manikrao Hodlya Sonawane Pratap Narayanrao A. T. Nana Patil Haribhau Madhav Jawale Jadhav Prataprao Ganpatrao Dhotre Sanjay Shamrao Adsul Anandrao Vithoba Datta Meghe Wasnik Mukul Balkrishna Muttemwar Vilasrao Baburaoji Praful Manoharbhai Patel
INC BJP BJP BJP SS BJP SS INC INC INC NCP
260
Gadchiroli-Chimur
Kowase Marotrao Sainuji
INC
261
Chandrapur
Ahir Hansaraj Gangaram
BJP
262
Yavatmal-Washim
Bhavana Gawali (Patil)
SS
263
Hingoli
Subhash Bapurao Wankhede
SS
264
Nanded
Khatgaonkar Patil Bhaskarrao Bapurao
INC
265
Parbhani
Dudhgaonkar Ganeshrao Nagorao
SS
266
Jalna
Danve Raosaheb Dadarao
BJP
267
Aurangabad
Chandrakant Khaire
SS
268
Dindori
Chavan Harishchandra Deoram
BJP
269
Nashik
Sameer Bhujbal
NCP
270
Palghar
Jadhav Baliram Sukur
BVA
271
Bhiwandi
Suresh Kashinath Taware
INC
272
Kalyan
Anand Prakash Paranjape
SS
273
Thane
Dr. Sanjeev Ganesh Naik
NCP
274
Mumbai North
Sanjay Brijkishorilal Nirupam
INC
275
Mumbai North West
Ad. Kamat Gurudas Vasant
INC
276
Mumbai North East
Sanjay Dina Patil
NCP
277
Mumbai North Central
Dutt Priya Sunil
INC
278
Mumbai South Central
Eknath M. Gaikwad
INC
279
Mumbai South
Milind Murali Deora
INC
280
Raigad
Anant Geete
SS
281
Maval
Babar Gajanan Dharmshi
SS
282
Pune
Kalmadi Suresh
INC
283
Baramati
Smt. Supriya Sadanand Sule
NCP
284
Shirur
Adhalrao Shivaji Dattaray
SS
285
Ahmadnagar
Gandhi Dilipkumar Mansukhlal
BJP
286
Shirdi
Wakchaure Bhausaheb Rajaram
SS
287
Beed
Gopinathrao Pandurang Munde
BJP
Appendices
1279
288
Osmanabad
Padamsinha Bajirao Patil
NCP
289
Latur
Awale Jayant Gangaram
INC
290
Solapur
Sushilkumar Sambhajirao Shinde
INC
291
Madha
Sharadchandra Govindrao Pawar
NCP
292
Sangli
Pratik Prakashbapu Patil
INC
293
Satara
S C U Pratapsinhmaharaj
NCP
294
Ratnagiri-Sindhudurg
Dr. Nilesh Narayan Rane
INC
295
Kolhapur
Sadashivrao Dadoba Mandlik
IND
296
Hatkanangle
Shetti Raju Alias Devappa Anna
SWP
Dr. Thokchom Meinya Thangso Baite
INC INC
Vincent H Pala Agatha K. Sangma
INC NCP
C. L. Ruala
INC
C. M. Chang
NPF
Sanjay Bhoi Hemanand Biswal Amarnath Pradhan Yashbant Narayan Singh Lagur Laxman Tudu Srikant Kumar Jena Arjun Charan Sethi Mohan Jena Tathagata Satpathy Kalikesh Narayan Singh Deo Bhakta Charan Das Pradeep Kumar Majhi Rudramadhab Ray Bhartruhari Mahtab Baijayant Panda Bibhu Prasad Tarai Pinaki Misra
INC INC INC BJD BJD INC BJD BJD BJD BJD INC INC BJD BJD BJD CPI BJD
MANIPUR (2) 297 298
Inner Manipur Outer Manipur
MEGHALAYA (2) 299 300
Shillong Tura
MIZORAM (1) 301
Mizoram
NAGALAND (1) Nagaland ORISSA (21) 303 304 305 306 307 308 309 310 311 312 313 314 315 316 317 318 319
Bargarh Sundargarh Sambalpur Keonjhar Mayurbhanj Balasore Bhadrak Jaipur Dhenkanal Bolangir Kalahandi Nabarangpur Kandhamal Cuttack Kendrapara Jagatsinghpur Puri
India 2010
1280 320
Bhubaneswar
Prasanna Kumar Patasani
BJD
321
Aska
Nityanand Pradhan
BJD
322
Berhampur
Sidhant Mohapatra
BJD
323
Koraput
Jayaram Pangi
BJD
PUNJAB (13) 324
Gurdaspur
Pratap Singh Bajwa
INC
325
Amritsar
Navjot Singh Sidhu
BJP
326
Khadoor Sahib
Dr. Rattan Singh Ajnala
SAD
327
Jalandhar
Mohinder Singh Kaypee
INC
328
Hoshiarpur
Santosh Choudhry
INC
329
Anandpur Sahib
Ravneet Singh
INC
330
Ludhiana
Manish Tiwari
INC
331
Fatehgarh Sahib
Sukhdev Singh
INC
332
Faridkot
Paramjit Kaur Gulshan
SAD
333
Ferozpur
Sher Singh Ghubaya
SAD
334
Bhatinda
Harsimrat kaur Badal
SAD
335
Sangrur
Vijay Inder Singla
INC
336
Patiala
Preneet Kaur
INC
Bharat Ram Meghwal
INC
RAJASTHAN (25) 337
Ganganagar
338
Bikaner
Arjum Ram Meghwal
BJP
339
Churu
Ramsingh Kaswan
BJP
340
Jhunjhunu
Sheesh Ram Ola
INC
341
Sikar
Mahadev Singh
INC
342
Jaipur Rural
Lal Chand Kataria
INC
343
Jaipur
Mahesh Joshi
INC
344
Alwar
Jitendra Singh
INC
345
Bharatpur
Ratan Singh
INC
346
Karauli-Dholpur
Khiladi Lal Bairwa
INC
347
Dausa
Dr. Kirodilal Meena
IND
348
Tonk-Sawai Madhopur
Namo Narain Meena
INC
349
Ajmer
Sachin Pilot
INC
350
Nagaur
Dr. Jyoti Mirdha
INC
351
Pali
Badri Ram Jakhar
INC
352
Jodhpur
Chandresh Kumari
INC
353
Barmer
Harish Choudhary
INC
354
Jalore
Devji Patel
BJP
355
Udaipur
Raghuvir Singh Meena
INC
356
Banswara
Tarachand Bhagora
INC
Appendices
1281
357
Chittorgarh
Dr. Girija Vyas
INC
358
Rajsamand
Gopal Singh
INC
359
Bhilwara
Dr. C. P. Joshi
INC
360 361
Kota Jhalawar Baran
Ijyaraj Singh Sushyant Singh
INC BJP
Prem Das Rai
SDF
SIKKIM (1) 362
Sikkim
TAMILNADU (39) 363
Thiruvallur
Venugopal P
AIADMK
363
Chennai North
Elangovan T. K. S
DMK
364
Chennai South
Rajendran C
AIADMK
365
Chennai Central
Dayanidhi Maran
DMK
366
Sriperumbudur
T.R. Baalu
DMK
367
Kancheepuram
Vishwanathn P.
INC
368
Arakkonam
Jagathrakshakan
DMK
369
Vellore
Abdulrahman
DMK
370
Krishnagiri
Sugavanam E. G.
DMK
371
Dharamapuri
Thamaraiselvan. R
DMK
372
Tiruvannamalai
Venugopal. D
DMK
373
Arani
Krishnasamy M
INC
374
Viluppuram
Anandan M
AIADMK
375
Kallakurichi
Sankar Adhi
DMK
376
Salem
Semmalai. S
AIADMK
377
Namakkal
Gandhiselvan. S
DMK
378
Erode
Ganeshmurthi. A Marumalarchi
DMK
379
Tiruppur
Sivasami C
AIADMK
380
Nilgiris
Raja A
DMK
381
Coimbatore
Natarajan. P. R
CPI(M)
382
Pollachi
Sugumar K.
AIADMK
383
Dindigul
Chitthan N S V
INC
384
Karur
Tambidurai M.
AIADMK
385
Tiruchirappalli
Kumar P.
AIADMK
386
Perambalpur
Napoleon D
DMK
387
Cuddalore
Alagiri S
INC
388
Chidambaram
Thirumaavalavan Thoi
VCK AIADMK
389
Mayiladuturai
Manian O. S
390
Nagapattinam
Vijayan A K S
DMK
391
Thanjavur
Palanimanickam. S. S.
DMK
392
Sivaganga
Chidambaram P
INC
393
Madurai
Alagiri M K
DMK
India 2010
1282 394
Theni
Aaron Rashid. J. M.
INC
395
Virudhunagar
Manicka Tagore
INC
396
Ramanathapuram
J. K. Ritheesh. K
DMK
397
Thoothukkudi
Jeyadurai. S. R.
DMK
398
Tenkasi
Lingam P
CPI
400
Tirunelveli
Ramasubbu S. S.
INC
401
Kanniyakumari
Helen Davidson
DMK
Khagen Das Baju Ban Riyan
CPI(M) CPI(M)
Vijay Bhauguna Satpal Maharaj Pardeep Tamta K.C. Singh Baba
INC INC INC INC
Harish Rawat
INC
Jagdish Singh Rana Tabassum Begum Kadir Rana Sanjay Singh Chauhan Yashvir Singh Mohammed Azharuddin Jaya Prada Nahata Dr. Shafiqur Rahman Barq Devendra Nagpal Rajendra Agarwal Ajit Singh Rajnath Singh Surendra Singh Nagar Kamlesh Raj Kumari Chauhan Sarika Singh Jayant Chaudhary Dr. Ramshankar Seema Upadhyay --Mulayam Singh Yadav
BSP BSP BSP RLD SP INC SP BSP RLD BJP RLD BJP BSP SP BSP RLD RLD BJP BSP -SP
TRIPURA (2) 402 403
Tripura West Tripura East
UTTARAKHAND (5) 404 405 406 407 408
Tehri Garhwal Garhwal Almora Nainital-Udhamsingh Nagar Haridwar
UTTAR PRADESH (80) 409 410 411 412 413 414 415 416 417 418 419 420 421 422 423 424 425 426 427 428 429
Saharanpur Kairana Muzaffarnagar Bijnor Nagina Moradabad Rampur Sambhal Amroha Meerut Baghpat Ghaziabad Gautam Budh Nagar Bulandshahr Aligarh Hathras Mathura Agra Fatehpur Sikri Firozabad Mainpuri
Appendices 430 431 432 433 434 435 436 437 438 439 440 441 442 443 444 445 446 447 448 449 450 451 452 453 454 455 456 457 458 459 460 461 462 463 464 465 466 467 468 469 470 471 472
Etah Badaun Aonia Bareilly Pilibhit Shahjahanpur Kheri Dhaurahra Sitapur Hardoi Misrikh Unnao Mohanlalganj Luchnow Rae Bareli Amethi Sultanpur Pratapgarh Farrukabad Etawah Kannauj Kanpur Akbarpur Jalaun Jhansi Hamirpur Banda Fatehpur Kaushambi Phulpur Allahabad Barabanki Faizabad Ambedkar Nagar Bahraich Kaiserganj Shrawasti Gonda Domariyaganj Basti Sant Kabir Nagar Maharajganj Gorakhpur
1283 Kalyan Singh Darmendra Yadav Menka Gandhi Parveen Singh Aron Feroze Varun Gandhi Mithlesh Zafar Ali Naqvi Kunwar Jitin Prasada Kaisar Jahan Usha Verma Ashok Kumar Rawat Annu Tandon Sushila Saroj Lal Ji Tandon Sonia Gandhi Rahul Gandhi Dr. Sanjay Singh Rajkumari Ratna Singh Salman Khursheed Premdas Katheria Akhilesh Yadav Prakash Jaiswal Rajaram Pal Ghanshyam Anuragi Pradeep Kumar Jain (Aditya) Vijay Bahadur Singh R. K. Singh Patel Rakesh Sachan Shailendra Kumar Kapil Muni Karwariya Kunwar Rewati Raman Singh P. L. Punia Nirmal Khatri Rakesh Pandey Kamal Kishore Brijbhushan Sharan Singh Dr. Vinay Kumar Pandey Beni Prasad Verma Jagdambika Pal Arvind Kumar Chaudhary Bhisma Shankar Alias Kushal Tiwari Harsh Vardhan Adityanath Yogi
IND SP BJP INC BJP SP INC INC BSP SP BSP INC SP BJP INC INC INC INC INC SP SP INC INC SP INC BSP SP SP SP BSP SP INC INC BSP INC SP INC INC INC BSP BSP INC BJP
India 2010
1284 473 474 475 476 477 478 479 480 481 482 483 484 485 486 487 488
Kushi Nagar Deoria Bansgaon Lalganj Azamgarh Ghosi Salempur Ballia Jaunpur Machhlishahr Ghazipur Varanasi Bhadohi Mirzapur Robertsganj Chandauli
Ratanjeet Pratap Narayan Singh Gorakh Prasad Jaiswal Kamlesh Paswan Dr. Baliram Ramakant Yadav Dara Singh Chauhan Ramashankar Rajbhar Neeraj Shekhar Dhananjay Singh Tufani Saroj Radhey Mohan Singh Dr. Murli Manohar Joshi Gorakhnath Bal Kumar Patel Pakauri Lal Ramkishan
INC BSP BJP BSP BJP BSP BSP SP BSP SP SP BJP BSP SP SP SP
Nripendra Nath Roy Manohar Tirkey Mahendra Kumar Roy Jaswant Singh Deepa Dasmunsi Prasanta Kumar Majumdar Masusam Noor Abu Hasem Khan Choudhury Pranab Mukherjee Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury Abdul Mannan Hossain Tapas Pal Sucharu Ranjan Haldar Gobinda Chandra Naskar Dinesh Trivedi Saugata Ray Kakali Ghoush Dastidar S. K. Nurul Islam Dr. Tarun Mondal Choudhury Mohan Jatua Somendra Nath Mitra Kabir Suman Mamata Banerjee Sudip Bandyopadhyay Ambica Banerjee
AIFB RSP CPI(M) BJP INC RSP INC INC INC INC INC AITC AITC AITC AITC AITC AITC AITC IND AITC AITC AITC AITC AITC AITC
WEST BENGAL (42) 489 490 491 492 493 494 495 496 497 498 499 500 501 502 503 504 505 506 507 508 509 510 511 512 513
Cooch Behar Alipurduars Jalpaiguri Darjeeling Raiganj Balurghat Maldaha Uttar Maldaha Dakshin Jangipur Bahrampur Murshidabad Krishnanagar Ranaghat Bangaon Barrackpore Dum Dum Barasat Basirhat Jaynagar Mathurapur Diamond Harbour Jadhavpur Kolkata Dakshin Kolkata Uttar Howrah
Appendices
1285
514
Uluberia
Sultan Ahmed
AITC
515
Srerampur
Kalyan Banerjee
AITC
516
Hooghly
Dr. Ratna De (Nag)
AITC
518
Arambagh
Malik Sakti Mohan
CPI(M)
519
Tamluk
Adhikari Suvendu
AITC
520
Kanthi
Adhikari Sisir Kumar
AITC
521
Ghatal
Gurudas Dasgupta
CPI
523
Jhargram
Pulin Bihari Baske
CPI(M)
524
Medinipur
Parbodh Panda
CPI
525
Purulia
Narahari Mahato
AIFB
527
Bankura
Acharya Basudeb
CPI(M)
528
Bishnupur
Susmita Bauri
CPI(M)
529
Bardhman
Purba Anup Kumar Saha
CPI(M)
530
Burdwan-Durgapur
S. K. Saidul Haque
CPI(M)
530
Asansol
Bansagopal Chowdhury
CPI(M)
530
Bolpur
Dr. Ram Chandra Dome
CPI(M)
530
Birbhum
Satabdi Roy
AITC
ANDAMAN & NICOBAR ISLANDS (1) 531
Andaman & Nicobar IslandsBishnu Pada Ray
BJP
CHANDIGARH (1) 532
Chandigarh
Pawan Kumar Bansal
INC
DADRA & NAGAR HAVELI (1) 533
Dadra & Nagar Haveli
Gomanbhai Nathubhai Patel
BJP
DAMAN & DIU (1) 534
Daman and Diu
Lalubhai Patel
BJP
NATIONAL CAPITAL TERRITORY OF DELHI (7) 535
Chandni Chowk
Kapil Sibal
INC
536
North East Delhi
Jai Parkash Aggarwal
INC
537
East Delhi
Sandeep Dikshit
INC
538
New Delhi
Ajay Makan
INC
539
North West Delhi
Krishna Tirath
INC
540
West Delhi
Mahabal Mishra
INC
541
South Delhi
Ramesh Kumar
INC
* Speaker of Lok Sabha
India 2010
1286 LAKSHADWEEP (1) 542
Lakshadweep
Muhammed Hamdulla Sayeed A. B
INC
Narayanasamy
INC
PUDUCHERRY (1) 543
Puducherry
Abbreviations used for Parties : All India Forward Bloc - AIFB; All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen - AIMEIM; All India Trinamool Congress -AITC; Asom Gana Parishad - AGP; Bahujan Samaj Party - BSP; Bharatiya Janata Party- BJP; Bharatiya Navshakti Party - BNP; Biju Janata Dal - BJD; Communist Party of India - CPI; Communist Party of India (Marxist) - CPI(M); Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam - DMK; Indian National Congress - INC; Jammu & Kashmir National Conference - J&KNC; Janata Dal (Secular) - JD (S); Janata Dal (United) JD (U); Jharkhand Mukti Morcha - JMM; Kerala Congress - KC; Lok Jan Shakti Party - LJSP; Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam - MDMK; Mizo National Front - MNF; Muslim League - ML; Nagaland Peoples Front - NPF; Nationalist Congress Party - NCP; Pattali Makkal Katchi - PMK; Jammu and Kashmir Peoples Democratic Party - J&K PDP; Rashtriya JanataDal - RJD; Rashtriya Lok Dal - RLD; Republican Party of India (A) - RPI (A); Revolutionary Socialist Party - RSP; Samajwadi Janata Party (Rashtriya) - SJP (R); Samajwadi Party - SP; Shiromani Akali Dal - SAD; Shiv Sena - SS; Sikkim Democratic Front - SDF; Telangana Rashtra Samithi - TRS; Telugu Desam Party - TDP; Independent-IND.
1
Joined INC w.e.f. 8 December 2004
2
Joined INC w.e.f. 9 December 2004