Daily Current Capsules - 3^rd JUNE 2019

Government Schemes
Modi government 2.0
First Cabinet meet - govt extends PM-KISAN, announces new farm pension scheme
Relevance IN -prelims about the new decisions taken by the cabinet + Mains ( GS III issues related to direct and indirect farm subsidy)
Highlights

• The newly-sworn in NDA government at the Centre has taken four major decisions related to farmers' and traders welfare in the first meeting of the Union Cabinet.
  
  Modi government 2.0 ( key decisions taken in the first cabinet meeting )
  

What's the NEWS

• In the first Cabinet meeting, the government decided to extend PM- KISAN scheme to all 14.5 crore farmers in the country costing Rs 87,000 crore a year and also announced over Rs 10,000 crore pension scheme for 5 crore farmers
• The Union Cabinet has approved to extend the ambit of the scheme by including all land holding eligible farmer families under the scheme, subject to the prevalent exclusion criteria
  

Know! about PM-KISAN

• The Rs 75,000-crore Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Niddhi (PM-KISAN) was announced in the interim Budget under which the government decided to provide Rs 6,000 per year (in three equal instalments) to an estimated 12.5 crore small and marginal farmers holding land up to 2 hectares.

What's added in PM-KISAN

• Now, the revised scheme envisages to cover around 2 crore more farmers increasing the coverage of the PM- KISAN to around 14.5 crore beneficiaries

The new Scheme - Pradhan Mantri Kisan Pension Yojana

• The Cabinet also approved the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Pension Yojana under which small and marginal farmers will get a minimum fixed pension of Rs 3,000 per month on attaining the age of 60 years.

Know! the details of the new pension scheme

• A voluntary and contributory pension scheme for all Small and Marginal Farmers (SMF) across Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN the country.
• Entry age of 18 to 40 years with a provision of minimum fixed pension of Rs.3,000/- on attaining the age of 60 years.
• For example, a beneficiary farmer is required to contribute Rs 100/ - per month at median entry age of 29 years. The Central Government shall also contribute to the Pension Fund an equal amount as contributed by the eligible farmer.
• After the subscriber's death, while receiving pension, the spouse of the SMF beneficiary shall be entitled to receive 50% of the pension received by the beneficiary as family pension, provided he/she is not already an SMF beneficiary of the Scheme. If, the death of the subscriber happens during the period of contribution, the spouse shall have the option of continuing the Scheme by paying regular contribution.

The Cabinet cleared a pension scheme for small traders

• Cabinet approved a new Central Sector Scheme, it is a voluntary and contributory pension scheme for all Small and Marginal Farmers (SMF) across the country.
  
  

• The scheme is meant to provide universal social security to all shopkeepers, retail traders and self-employed persons.
• They will be given a minimum monthly pension of 3 thousand rupees on attaining the age of 60 years.
• Altogether 3 crore retail traders and shopkeepers will be benefited under this scheme.

Know! more about the scheme

• All small shopkeepers and self-employed persons as well as the retail traders with GST turnover below Rs. 1.5 crore and age between 18-40 years, can enrol for this scheme. The scheme would benefit more than 3 crore small shopkeepers and traders.
• The scheme is based on self-declaration as no documents are required except Aadhaar and bank account. Interested persons can enrol themselves through more than 3,25,000 Common Service Centres spread across the country.
• The Government of India will make matching contribution in the subscribers' account. For example if a person with age of 29 years contributes Rs. 100/- month, then the Central Government also contributes the equal amount as subsidy into subscriber's pension account every month.
• Entry age of 18 to 40 years with a provision of minimum fixed pension of Rs.3,000/- on attaining the age of 60 years.

Other important decision taken

• The government approved a special scheme for controlling foot and mouth diseases of animals.
• Amount of scholarship have been increased from Rs. 2,000 per month to Rs. 2,500 per month for boys and from Rs. 2,250 per month to Rs. 3,000 per month for girls.
• Under National Defence scheme, Scholorships have been raised for children of police personnel.

Add on facts

• The Prime Minister also in-charge of: Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances and Pensions; Department of Atomic Energy; Department of Space; and All important policy issues; and All other portfolios not allocated to any Minister

Know! the newly elected cabinet ministers

• Amit Shah, the Bharatiya Janata Party Lok Sabha MP from Gandhinagar in Gujarat, is the new Home minister of India in the Narendra Modi government while Rajnath Singh becomes the Defence Minister.
• India's new Finance Minister is Nirmala Sitharaman and S Jaishankar new External Affairs Minister. Additionally, Ravi Shankar Prasad becomes Law Minister.
• The 58-member Union Council of Ministers includes those holding the 25 Cabinet ranks, nine Ministers of State (Independent charge) and 24 Ministers of state.

Know! the difference between council of ministers and cabinet minister

Jal Shakti, Nal Se Jal for all
Relevance IN - Prelims ( about this new Jal Shakti ministry) + GS II ( government policies and interventions for the development of various sectors)
What's the NEWS

• The scheme ‘Nal se Jal' to provide piped drinking water to every household will be a component of the government's Jal Jivan Mission.
• This was among the primary promises made in the BJP's vision document released in the run-up to the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

Know! more about it

• The new Ministry of Jal Shakti will led by Rajasthan MP Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, the new ministry has set the ball rolling for the government's ambitious plans to provide piped water connections to every household in India by 2024
• The Jal Shakti ministry merges the ministries of Water Resources, River Development & Ganga Rejuvenation along with Drinking Water and Sanitation to bring all aspects of water management and regulation under one department.
• The scheme ‘Nal se Jal' to provide piped drinking water to every household will be a component of the government's Jal Jivan Mission.
• This was among the primary promises made in the BJP's vision document released in the run-up to the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.
•  Drinking water accounts for only 4 per cent of the water used in the country while agriculture accounts for 80 per cent of all water including groundwater.
• The present approach to water conservation is pushed through the National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGA) and driven by the provision of work and not geared at addressing the issue of water management itself.

Know! the benefits of setting up this new ministry

• The setting up of a separate ministry will give water conservation measures the much-needed impetus it deserves.
• It will also address international and inter-states water disputes and the Namami Gange project which is the flagship initiative to clean the River Ganga, its tributaries and sub-tributaries. The Jal Ministry's priority will be to provide clean drinking water to everyone

Know! about the last year report of NITI Ayog

• According to a 2018 NITI Aayog report, "600 million Indians face high to extreme water stress and about two lakh people die every year due to inadequate access to safe water.
• By 2030, the country's water demand is projected to be twice the available supply, implying severe water scarcity for hundreds of millions of people and an eventual ~6% loss in the country's GDP.

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