Month Highlights: February – 2018

Month Highlights: February – 2018
Government Policy and Schemes
National Health Protection Scheme
National Health Protection Scheme (Ayushman Bharat Scheme) will cover 10 crore poor and vulnerable families.
Under it, up to Rs 5 lakh insurance cover will be provided to each family per year in secondary and tertiary care
institutions. It will have 50 crore beneficiaries. It will be world’s largest government-funded healthcare
programme.
Operation Green
It will be launched with an allocation of Rs 500 crore on the lines of Operation Flood. It aims to promote farmer
producers organisations, processing facilities, agri-logistics and professional management. It also aims to aid
farmers and help control and limit erratic fluctuations in the prices of tomatoes, onions and potatoes (TOP). It is
essentially price fixation scheme that aims to ensure farmers are given the right price for their produce. The idea
behind it is to double the income of farmers by the end of 2022.
Eklavya School
Eklavya schools will be established for scheduled caste (SC) and schedule tribe students by 2022 on the lines of
Navodaya schools. They will be model residential schools set up in each Block. It will in areas with more than 50%
tribal areas and 20,000 tribal people. These schools will be part of Navodaya Vidyalayas. It will provide training in
sports and skill development. It has special facilities for preserving local art and culture.
Revitalising Infrastructure and Systems in Education (RISE) Scheme
RISE scheme aims to lend low-cost funds to government higher educational institutions. It will be launched with a
total investment of Rs. 1 lakh crore in the next four years. It will be financed via restructured higher education
financing agency (HEFA), a non-banking financial company.
Prime Minister Fellowship Scheme
It is aimed at facilitating cutting edge research by provide high fellowship amounts to 1000 B. Tech students to
pursue PhD in IITs and IISc. Its purpose is to make to produce better research in India and make its institutions
climb up in global rankings.
Kisan Credit Card to Fishermen and Cattle owners
Kisan Credit Card was extended to fishermen and cattle owners. It will enable them to avail the easier loans. It will
help people associated with milk production business in rural areas by providing financial assistance and also to
fisheries.
Affordable Housing Fund (AHF)
Affordable Housing Fund (AHF) will be created under National Housing Bank (NHB). It will be funded from
priority sector lending shortfall and fully serviced bonds authorised by Central Government. Beyond this, he did
not elaborate about the proposed Fund. It will be used to construct one crore households in the rural areas
Pradhanmantri Awas Yojana.
Gobar-Dhan Yojna
Gobar-Dhan Yojana (also known as Galvanizing Organic Bio-Agro Resource Fund scheme) aims to improve lives
of the villagers. Under it, solid waste of dung and fields will be changed into compost, biogas and bio-CNG.
National Bamboo Mission
1,290 crore will be allocated under this scheme to help development of bamboo production as an industry in the
country. This will help the people of rural and tribal areas.
Jal Marg Vikas Project (JMVP)
Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) signed project agreement with World Bank and for Jal Marg Vikas
Project (JMVP) i.e. National Waterway-1 on Ganga River from Varanasi (Uttar Pradesh) to Haldia (West Bengal).
It also inked US $375 million loan agreement for the project.
Kisan Urja Suraksha evam Utthaan Mahaabhiyan (KUSUM) scheme
The Union Government has announced Rs.1.4 lakh-crore Kisan Urja Suraksha evam Utthaan Mahaabhiyan
(KUSUM) scheme for promoting solar farming i.e. decentralised solar power production of up to 28,250 MW to
help farmers.