• The government has introduced Constitution (125th Amendment) Bill in Rajya Sabha to increase the financial and executive powers of the 10 Autonomous Councils in the Sixth Schedule areas of the northeastern region. 

• The amendment will impact one crore tribal people in Assam, Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram.

• The proposed amendments provide for elected village municipal councils, ensuring democracy at the grassroot level.

• The village councils will be empowered to prepare plans for economic development and social justice including those related to agriculture, land improvement, implementation of land reforms, minor irrigation, water management, animal husbandry, rural electrification, small scale industries and social forestry.

• The Finance Commission will be mandated to recommend devolution of financial resources to them.

• The Autonomous Councils now depend on grants from Central ministries and the State government for specific projects. At least one-third of the seats will be reserved for women in the village and municipal councils in the Sixth Schedule areas of Assam, Mizoram and Tripura after the amendment is approved.

 

 

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi will flag off the country`s first semi high-speed train - Vande Bharat Express from New Delhi Railway station.

• The train will run between New Delhi and Varanasi via Kanpur and Allahabad. 

• It will cover the distance between New Delhi and Varanasi in eight hours and will run on all days except Mondays and Thursdays. 

• It will run at a maximum speed of 160 kilometres per hour and will provide a totally new travel experience to passengers.

• Vande Bharat Express has 16 air-conditioned coaches of which two are executive class coaches. 

• The total seating capacity is one thousand and 128 passengers.

• All coaches are equipped with automatic doors, GPS based audio-visual passenger information system, onboard hotspot Wi-Fi for entertainment purposes and comfortable seating. Every coach has a pantry with a facility to serve hot meals and cold beverages. 

• The train has been designed and built in India and has a regenerative braking system in the coaches which can save up to 30 per cent of electrical energy. 

 

 

• Union Minister Smt Harsimrat Kaur Badal commissioned Godavari Mega Aqua Food Park at Tundurru Village in West Godavari District, Andhra Pradesh.

• The park is promoted by M/s Godavari Mega Aqua Food Park Pvt. Ltd.

• This is the 1st Mega Aqua Food Park operationalised and exclusively established for fish and marine products processing in the State of Andhra Pradesh.

• Another Mega Food Park sanctioned by the Ministry in Chittoor District of Andhra Pradesh has already been inaugurated on 9th of July 2012.

• The 3rd Mega Food Park sanctioned by the Ministry in Andhra Pradesh is under implementation at Krishna District.

 

 

• Bihar government has announced a universal old age pension scheme ‘Mukhyamantri Vridhajan Pension Yojna’, MVPY for all people above 60 years of age.

• The scheme will come into force from the 1st of April this year.           

• All will be eligible for 400 rupees monthly pension irrespective of caste, religion or community, except those senior citizens who have retired from government service,

• Currently old age pension scheme is applicable to only the BPL category.

• The Chief Minister also announced a pension of 6,000 rupees for journalists above 60 years of age.

 

 

• Minister of State for AYUSH, Shri Shripad Yesso Naik launched the e-AUSHADHI portal.

• The portal is for online licensing of Ayurveda, Siddha, Unani and Homoeopathy drugs and related matters.

• The e-AUSHADHI portal is intended for increased transparency, improved information management facility, improved data usability and increased accountability.

• The timelines will be fixed for processing of application through this portal with SMS and e-mail status updates at each step of the process.

 

 

• Union Minister for Food Processing Industries Smt Harsimrat Kaur Badal inaugurated Cremica Mega Food Park Pvt Ltd.

• The Park is located at Village Singhain Una District of Himachal Pradesh.

• This is the first Mega Food Park operationalized in the State of Himachal Pradesh.

• The Park will give an impetus to the growth of the Food Processing Sector in Himachal Pradesh.

• Cremica Mega Food Park will benefit the people of Una District and the people of nearby districts of Kangra, Hamirpur & Bilaspur.

 

 

• The government of Assam has announced a new scheme called Arundhati to provide gold at free of cost to the brides.

• Under the scheme, the government of Assam aims to provide 1 Tola Gold to brides belonging to all such communities of Assam where it is customary to provide gold at the time of the wedding.

• The scheme is named after Arundhati, wife of great sage Basistha. The government has set aside Rs 300 cr has been for the implementation of the Arundhati Scheme.

• The benefit under Arundhati scheme can be availed upon formal registration of marriages under Special Marriage (Assam) Rules, 1954.

• The scheme is limited for economically weaker sections, whose annual income is below Rs 5 lakh. 

 

 

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched several development projects in Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka on a day-long visit to the three states.

• At Guntur in Andhra Pradesh, the Prime Minister dedicated to the nation the 1.33 million metric ton capacity Visakhapatnam Strategic Petroleum Reserve facility.

• He also inaugurated Oil and Natural Gas Corporation Limited`s Vashishta and S1 development project located in the Krishna-Godavari Offshore Basin.

• Foundation stone was also laid for setting up of a new terminal of BPCL at Krishnapatnam.

• Addressing a gathering in Guntur, Mr Modi said the project is not only important for Andhra Pradesh but for the entire nation to meet its energy needs.  The Prime Minister said these projects will create huge job opportunities.

• At Tiruppur in Tamil Nadu, Mr Modi commissioned the 10-km stretch of the Chennai Metro rail through video-conferencing. The stretch connects DMS and Washermanpet and also completes the 45-km long Metro rail first phase in the state capital. 

• The Prime Minister laid the foundation stone for a 100-bedded ESIC hospital, besides inaugurating a 470-bedded modern ESIC hospital in Chennai. He also launched the modernisation and expansion works of Chennai and Trichy airport terminals. 

• The Bharat Petroleum and Chennai Petroleum, BCPL`s Ennore Coastal Terminal and the new crude oil pipeline from Chennai Port to its refinery at Manali in north Chennai were also commissioned by the Prime Minister.

• Addressing a BJP rally at Tiruppur, Mr Modi termed creation of two defence corridors, one of which is in Tamil Nadu, as a path-breaking step. He said, the corridor in the state will bring industry and investment opportunities for the youth.

• The Prime Minister made a scathing attack against Congress, saying the previous Government led by the party was not serious about the modernisation of the Defence Forces. 

• At Hubli in Karnataka, the Prime Minister laid the foundation stone of Indian Institute of Technology - Dharwad and Indian Institute of Information Technology - Dharwad. City Gas Distribution Project at Dharwad was also unveiled. Mr Modi also dedicated to the nation SPR facilities in Mangalore and Padur. 

• Mr Modi said, projects worth 5,000 crore rupees have been inaugurated which will give an impetus to the government`s vision of development for all.

• The work for doubling of the Chikjajur-Mayakonda railway line was also inaugurated by the Prime Minister.

 

 

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi said there is a need to move towards responsible pricing of Oil and Gas to balance the interests of both the producer and the consumer. 

• He was inaugurating the 13th International Oil and Gas Conference - PETROTECH-2019 in Greater Noida. 

• The three-day biennial event began at India Expo Mart. The Prime Minister stressed on the need to move towards transparent and flexible markets for oil and gas to serve energy needs in an optimal manner. 

• The Prime Minister said, winds of change are evident in the global energy arena. He said supply, sources and consumption of energy patterns are changing. Mr Modi said, there is a shift in energy consumption from West to East.

• He said, there are signs of convergence between cheaper renewable energy, technologies and digital applications. He said, it may expedite the achievement of sustainable development goals. Prime Minister expressed happiness that  nations are coming together to tackle climate change. 

• He said, the petrotech has served as a platform to discuss the challenges the world  is facing in the energy sector. Prime Minister said, energy is a key driver of socio-economic growth and energy justice is a top priority for India. 

• He said, a Blue Flame Revolution is under-way in the country and LPG connections have been given to over 64 million house-holds in just three years under Ujjwala Scheme. 

• Speaking on the occasion, Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Dharmendra Pradhan said, India has made tremendous strides in providing energy justice. He said, UJJWALA scheme and expansion of City Gas Distribution Network have provided clean cooking gas to people.