CHHATTISGARH
- Every sector of c’garh developed in last 14 years: cm
- Chief Minister Raman Singh on Tuesday said that in last 14 years, every sector of the State has undergone development and there has been a positive change in every person’s life.
- In next five years, Chhattisgarh will witness four times the development made so far
- Besides, Rs six crore will be sanctioned for extension of drinking water pipeline in village Jaibel, Kongara, Pakhna, Khorkhosa and Chhote Amabal, Singh said. The Chief Minister later distributed goods, cheques and aabaadi patta to more than 6,000 beneficiaries under various government schemes. This includes distribution of ‘aabaadi patta’ to 3300 families, LPG connection to 1110 women of poor families under Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana.
- Singh informed people about various schemes of central and state government and said that these schemes have brought prosperity in every sector in every household of the state He said that it was our government who first started distribution of rice at Rs 1 per kg, free salt and chickpeas at Rs 5/kg. During Vikas Yatra, more than 12 lakh families of state are being provided ‘aabaadi patta’. Under Chief Minister Health Insurance Scheme, each and every family, irrespective of their financial status, are entitled to free medical treatment of upto Rs 50,000.
- Wages of tendupatta labourers has been increased from Rs 450 in year 2003-04 to Rs 2500 this year. Prayas Residential Schools have been started for tribal children of Naxal-affected areas. Education facilities in tribal areas are expanding, and children of these areas are now aiming high, while certain youngsters have cleared UPSC and become IAS-IPS officers, Singh said. The Chief Minister said that under Saubhagya Yojana, alla the villages and households of Bastar Division will be electrified in next the four months. Network of good all-weather roads is being established in every district of Bastar Division. He mentioned about and praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Ayushman Bharat Yojana’.
INTERNATIONAL
- 26th BASIC Ministerial meeting of Environment Ministers in Durban
- The 26th BASIC Ministerial Meeting of Environment Ministers was held in Durban, South Africa for co-operation to protect the climate for present and future generations.
- The BASIC grouping is a bloc of four countries – Brazil, South Africa, India and China – formed by an agreement on November 28, 2009.
- International Bio-diversity Day: 22 May
- The International Bio-diversity Day is observed on 22nd May every year to increase understanding and awareness of biodiversity issues.
- The theme for this year is, ‘Celebrating 25 Years of Action for Biodiversity’.
- 2018 marks the 25th anniversary of the entry into force of the Convention on Biological Diversity and to highlight progress made in the achievement of its objectives at the national and global levels.
NATIONAL
- GDP growth in Q4 of FY18 seen at 7.4%: Icra
- Rating agency Icra expects GDP growth in January-March 2017-18 at 7.4 per cent on account of good rabi crop harvest and improved corporate earnings, up from 7.2 per cent in the third quarter.
- The Central Statistics Office (CSO) is scheduled to come out with GDP estimate for the fourth quarter (Q4) of fiscal 2017-18 and provisional annual estimates for the year 2017-18 on May 31.
- As per Icra, the growth of the Indian gross value added (GVA) at basic prices in year-on-year (YoY) terms is likely to record a considerable recovery to 7.3 per cent in Q4 FY2018.
- Regional Conference on “Clean and Renewable Energy” held in Bhopal
- The Minister of New and Renewable Energy, Govt. of Madhya Pradesh (MP), Shri Narayan Singh Kushwah inaugurated the one day Regional Conference on the theme of “New and Renewable Energy” in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh.
- This was sixth such Regional Conference in the series in a lead-up to 3rdAnnual Meeting of the Board of Governors of Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) which is being hosted by the Ministry of Finance, Government of India in collaboration with AIIB, Government of Maharashtra, RIS and CII among others in Mumbai on 25th and 26th June, 2018.
- The one day Seminar in Bhopal was also organized by the Ministry of Finance, Government of India in collaboration with the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), Research and Information System for Developing Countries (RIS) and the Federation of Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industries (FICCI).
· English Translation of Polish Novel Flights Wins Man Booker Prize
- Polish author Olga Tokarczukwon the Man Booker International Prize for her novel ‘Flights’.
- The novel, translated by Jennifer Croft, interweaves narratives of travel with explorations of the human body.
- It bagged the 67,000 US dollar prize after topping a shortlist of six titles, with Tokarczuk becoming the first Polish writer to win the award.
- The awards were announced at a ceremony in London. The head judge of the awards was Lisa Appignanesi.
· Finance Ministry Ties Up With 40 Companies Under Mudra Scheme
- The Union Finance Ministry has tied up with 40 entities including Flipkart, Swiggy, Patanjali, and Amulfor extending loans to small entrepreneurs under the Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana (PMMY).
- In order to identify people who can be given funds under the Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana (PMMY), the ministry organized an event in Mumbai to extend loan under the scheme.
- The CEOs of various Banks, senior officials in the rank of MD or CEO from Oil Companies, Railway Board would be part of the event.
· MCX Launches India’s 1st Copper Options
- India’s Multi Commodity Exchange launched the country’s first copper options contracts.
- Three contracts with a lot size of 1 tonne were launched.
- The option contract will provide physical market participants an additional instrument to hedge their risk.
· Model law for contract farming
- After two drafts that received wide criticism from both industry and farmers groups, Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Sharma released the model law
- The law is aimed at reducing farmers’ risks by creating an assured market for their produce at a pre-agreed price, while encouraging investment from agribusiness and food processing industries by enhancing productivity and cost efficiency. It provides for State-level boards to be set-up to promote and facilitate — rather than regulate — contract farming, and sets out a framework for registering and recording agreements. It also provides for a dispute settlement authority.
- The model law stipulates that the sponsor will not be allowed to build any permanent structure on the farmers’ land.
- In India, 86% of farmers fall into the small and marginal category. The average farm size is 1.15 hectares, so there is no efficiency of scale. While collectivisation would improve efficiency, consolidation of farm lands is not possible under the Indian system, he said. “Instead, the producer of farmers needs to be aggregated.