‘Lakshya Zero Dumpsite’: Government of India approves 433.74 crores Legacy Waste Remediation Proposal of Maharashtra

Why is it in news?

Greater Mumbai aims to remediate 2.6 crore MT of legacy waste to transform its urban landscape by reclaiming approximately 355 acres of valuable land.

Highlights

1.    The way issues of cleanliness and sanitation have been addressed in the Pan-India initiative of the Swachh Bharat Mission, has been widely acclaimed. After its launch on October 2021 by the Hon'ble Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, the Swachh Bharat Mission - Urban 2.0 has brought a paradigm shift in terms of changing behaviors.

2.    To deal with the legacy of dross and dregs which resulted in garbage hills, built up at dumpsites, 'Lakshya Zero Dumpsite' is one of the aims, SBM-U 2.0 eyes to achieve within the mission period. The remediation of legacy waste will take the country closer to the mission's dream of being garbage-free, further the vision of resource recovery and principles of the circular economy.

3.    Garbage Dumpsites have become a massive problem for most urban cities, Maharashtra's Greater Mumbai holds the maximum amount of legacy waste in the state. It aims to remediate 2.6 crore MT of legacy waste to transform its urban landscape by reclaiming approximately 355 acres of valuable land. Thane Municipal Corporation is all set to remediate 8.3 lakh MT of waste lying in the city's dumpsite while Mira-Bhayandar plans to remediate approximately 9 lakh MT of the legacy waste, reclaiming acres of prime land for optimum utilization. However, to deal with the issues of legacy wastes, 28 ULBs of Maharashtra have submitted action plans to the central government for the remediation of dumpsites.

4.    To support Maharashtra in effectively managing Solid Waste Management, the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs has approved ₹433.72 crores for 28 ULBs to remediate over 3.7 crores MT of waste. With the variety of ULBs having diverse and dense populations, the project will ensure the ecological balance in approx. 1532 acres of land.

5.    States and cities across the country have recognized the rising need for eliminating hazardous legacy dumpsites. Strengthening the vision of Garbage Free Cities, various cities have come forward seeking help from the central government. Taking this into consideration, the Union government has approved the proposal of nearly 500 cities for legacy waste remediation across States like Andhra Pradesh, Telengana, Rajasthan, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, Delhi etc.

What lies ahead?

The remediation of the legacy waste will facilitate the treasure of the area which is currently buried under decades-old waste. Swachh Bharat Mission is constantly working on designing sustainable waste management systems to ensure scientific waste processing of 'Garbage Free Cities' and circular economy from waste.

Coal Sector to Invest Rs.12500 Crore for 35 First Mile Connectivity Projects says Shri Prahlad Joshi
Focus on to Bring in Private Firms and Latest Technology for Coal Gasification Project
Two Projects of Rs. 1190 crore Combined Investment Launched for Western Coalfields Ltd.

Why is it in news?

Union Minister of Coal, Mines and Parliamentary Affairs, Shri Prahlad Joshi said that scaling up domestic coal production must be the priority for all subsidiaries of CIL to ensure continuous supply of coal, especially during the up-coming monsoon season.

Highlights

1.    The Minister disclosed that with an estimated capital investment of Rs.12,500 crore, 35 First Mile Connectivity (FMC) projects will be completed on priority basis. Inaugurating two projects virtually of Dhoptala Open Cast Mine and foundation stone laying for First Mile Connectivity project at Chandrapur in Maharashtra under the Western Coalfields Ltd., Shri Joshi stated that Ministry of Coal is giving utmost priority to coal gasification projects and efforts are underway to bring in private firms and latest technology for coal gasification with focus on  Atmanirbhar Bharat.

2.    The combined investment of two projects initiated today comes to Rs 1190 crore.  Dhoptala Opencast Mine of Ballarpur Area will have a capacity of 2.50 Million Ton coal per year and involves a cost of Rs.720.87 crore. The open cast mine having a reserve of 53.11 MT coal will be providing 795 employment opportunities directly and the land area requirement for the project comes to 1257.46 Hac.

3.    The first mile connectivity project of Wani Area will have capacity of eight million ton per year and involves investment of Rs. 471 crore for different segments of it. Some of the advantages of this particular project include average reduction in coal road transportation by over 12 km, substantial reduction in carbon & CO₂ emission and diesel consumption over conventional loading by tipper/pay loader.

4.    Joining the function, Union Minister of Road Transport & Highways Shri Nitin Gadkari urged the Coal Ministry and Coal India Ltd. to avoid the present delay in obtaining land and approval from other departments for beginning projects on the new coal mines.

5.    Addressing the function, Minister of State for Coal, Mines and Railways Shri Raosaheb Patil Danve called upon Coal India Ltd. and Western Coalfields Ltd, to attain the set targets of coal production for this financial year and smooth supply to the power sector. Secretary, Ministry of Coal, CMD, Coal India Ltd. and CMD, Western Coalfields Ltd. also addressed the function.

A year after getting financial help from the Sports Ministry, UP Archer Neeraj Chauhan makes it to India’s Asian Games team

Nearly a year and a half after getting financial help from the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports (MYAS)’s Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay National Welfare Fund for Sportspersons (PDUNWFS), Uttar Pradesh’s archer Neeraj Chauhan has made it to the Indian National Archery Team for the Asian Games.

Why is it in news?

What is more, Neeraj Chauhan, who on Sunday finished in the top three positions of the ongoing Asian Games Selection Trials, will also get to represent India at the four World Cups and World Games that are set to take place later this year.

Highlights

·       “The timely intervention at that time helped me and my family a lot and got me back to training for the future competition,” Neeraj said during a phone conversation.

·       Neeraj had first made news back in the year 2020 when during the COVID 19 lockdown his father, who at the time was the only earning member of the family had lost his job due to the pandemic. The sudden job loss had led to a huge financial crunch for the family, which had then forced Neeraj and his family to sell vegetables to make ends meet. 

·       Their plight was then highlighted by Archery Association of India (AAI) president Shri Arjun Munda, who in a tweet had requestd the Sports Minister  for his help. Following the same,  Neeraj and his brother Sunil, who is a national boxer, were sanctioned financial assistance of Rs 5 lakh each under the ministry’s Pandit Deendayal Upadhyay National Welfare Fund.

·       “Since getting the financial help, I was able to upgrade my Archery equipment to the one I am currently using during my training at SAI Sonepat, and also spend a little more money on diet, which I could not before,” Neeraj added.

·       When asked how he felt about making it to the national team, an ecstatic Neeraj said “I am very happy and excited that I made it to the Indian National team. My first international event would be the Asian Games, and now I will give my full energy to prepare for the event so I can win a medal there.”

·       The 2nd Phase of the Asian Games, World Games & World Cup Selection trials is currently on at Sports Authority of India (SAI) Sonepat. While the Recurve category of completion ended on Sunday, March 27th, the selection trials for the Compound category would continue till 30th March 2022.

5th BIMSTEC Summit

Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi participated in the 5th BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) Summit hosted in virtual mode on 30^th March, 2022 by Sri Lanka, the current chair of BIMSTEC.

Why is it in news?

Prior to the 5th BIMSTEC Summit, preparatory meetings at the Senior Official and Foreign Minister levels were held in Colombo on 28th and 29th March in the hybrid mode.

Highlights

1.    The Summit’s theme “Towards a Resilient Region, Prosperous Economies, Healthy People” captures the main current priorities of member states, and the efforts by BIMSTEC to develop cooperation activities that support member states’ programmes to deal with the economic and developmental consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic.

2.    The main outcome of the Summit was the adoption and signing of the BIMSTEC Charter, which formalizes the grouping into an organization made up of member states that are littoral to, and dependent upon, the Bay of Bengal.

3.    The Summit also saw considerable progress being achieved in the BIMSTEC connectivity agenda with the adoption of the ‘Master Plan for Transport Connectivity’ by Leaders which lays out a guidance framework for connectivity related activities in the region in the future.

4.    In his intervention, the Prime Minister underscored the importance of enhanced BIMSTEC regional connectivity, cooperation and security, and made several suggestions in this regard. The Prime Minister called upon fellow leaders to strive to transform Bay of Bengal into a Bridge of Connectivity, Prosperity, and Security among the BIMSTEC-member countries.

Major BIMSTEC Agreements Signed

Prime Minister Modi along with other leaders also witnessed the signing of three BIMSTEC agreements which represent progress being achieved in ongoing cooperation activities:

(i)                          BIMSTEC Convention on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters,

(ii)                       BIMSTEC Memorandum of Understanding on Mutual Cooperation in the field of Diplomatic Training, and

Ministry of Power issues advisory to States, CEA, All RPCs, CPSUs, NLDC, RLDCs to ensure maintaining and reliability of electricity grid during the strike called by National Convention of Workers from 28^th to 30^th March.  

Why is it in news?

The Ministry advised that all the power utilities shall take necessary measures to ensure round the clock normal functioning of the electricity Grid and availability of all plants, transmission lines and substations.

Highlights

·       The followings measures shall also be taken for secure and reliable grid operations:   Shutdown activities planned during 28th March 2022 to 29th March, 2022 may be rescheduled to suitable future dates to the extent possible.

·       All concerned may be advised to ensure close supervision of their regional network/control area and shall report to the concerned SLDC/ RLDC and NLDC in the event of any contingency.

·       Additional manpower may be deployed at all critical sub-stations/power station on 24X7 to handle any emergency conditions.  

·       Soundness data and voice communication between the identified sub-stations/ power stations and their corresponding SLDC/RLDCs may be ensured.

·       Power supply to essential services such as hospitals, defence, railways etc. should be ensured.

·       All regional/state control room executives should be on vigil and on high alert.

·       All defence mechanism such as df/dt, Under Frequency Relay based Load shedding (UFLS), SPS etc. shall be in service.  A 24x7 Control Room may be made functional for information dissemination and for handling any kind of contingency.