1. NERs 1st Regional Centre For Agriculture With Israeli Collaboration To Be Inaugurated In Mizoram.
A delegation led by Israeli Ambassador to India, Mr Daniel Carmon met the Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) of the Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER), MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr Jitendra Singh, here today. Various issues of common interest including start-ups, food processing, innovation and technology were discussed during the meeting.
Israeli Ambassador informed that a Centre for Agriculture, with collaboration of Israeli expertise, is going to be inaugurated in Mizoram on 7th March this year. This will be the first such centre in the North East region of India that is being established with Israeli collaboration, he added. Set up with a cost of Rs 8-10 crore, this centre is exclusively for processing of citrus fruits. The project has been set up with the tripartite collaboration of Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Government of India, Government of Israel and State Government of Mizoram. Israel will provide expertise knowledge and professional support. Though located in Mizoram, this centre will cater to the whole north east. There are 22 such operational centres in India including in the states of Haryana, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Punjab. The first centre was established in 2008 in Haryana. He said that in the long run, Israel wants to establish one such centre in each state.
DoNER Minister Dr Jitendra Singh said that this centre is a beginning of the larger collaboration between the two countries in this area. The Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER) will coordinate wherever required, he said. He further said that it will benefit the farmers of the north eastern region in the long run and will also encourage the farmers from other regions. It will serve as a model of learning for other countries in Indian sub-continent, he added. He said that the Government under the leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, has given priority to the development of North Eastern region of the country. He said that Sikkim has been declared the first Organic State of India and Israel can look forward to this kind of collaboration there also. It will benefit the people of North East in the area of innovation, specially for start-ups, both sides agreed.
2. Parivartan Scheme Launched In Haryana.
The Haryana government today launched Parivartan, a scheme designed to address 10 issues, including cleanliness and pollution, in 46 developmental blocks of the state.
The scheme was launched by Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar and 46 top officials of the state, including those from the IAS, IFS and IPS cadres, have been allotted one block each, an official release said.
The 10 issues include facilitation of financing, making agriculture profitable and sustainable, improving health services, implementing Swachh Bharat, decongesting market areas, engaging the youth, checking air pollution, ensuring availability of identity-related services, effective policing, and ensuring road order and conduct.
The 46 officers will undertake works in the 10 selected common fields and one field of their choice, Khattar said.
The chief minister said that for each of the 10 fields, there are three to seven parameters on which the performance of the officers would be assessed.
"Some of these parameters include making a 10 km-long stretches accident free, one town or mahagram stray cattle free, ensuring delivery of caste certificates to all school students and ensuring charge sheets are filed in all FIRs of heinous crime," Khattar said in the release.
He said that a maximum of 39 marks would be available for 38 parameters covering these 10 fields and scoring would be done by the officers.
A maximum of four marks has been kept for `Any Field of Officers Choice` and another seven marks would be given on the basis of social audit by the Haryana Governance Reforms Authority (HGRA), the chief minister said.
Khattar said the state has a strong work force of about 3 lakh employees and directed administrative secretaries to utilise their services to ensure benefits of government schemes and programmes reach people of these 46 blocks, which comprise over one-third of the state`s total area.
This would not only help in achieving the objective of the government but also provide practical training to employees, and lead to raising of a strong trained workforce in the state, he added.
He directed the the secretaries to personally visit the blocks allocated to them at least once and apprise the block and district officers about the scheme.
The review of the experience of the officers would be done on April 21, Civil Service Day, Khattar said.
On the three-day Chintan Shivar (brainstorming session) organised at Timber Trail, Parwanoo, Himachal Pradesh, from December 15 to December 17, the chief minister described it as a unique experiment aimed at the welfare of people of the state.
He said in the last three years, the state government had taken various steps for providing good governance in the state.
"Under the Ek Aur Sudhar Programme, we are rolling out one reform every month after massive public consultations.
In the same series, the state government has constituted the Ponds Management Authority and the Kisan Kalyan Pradhikaran.