DEVELOPMENT DIGEST

VOL.4 1-31 August 2001 NO.5

The Department of Posts in partnership with Nettlinx has launched ePost service, its new Internet initiative, as a pilot project for six months. Nettlinx, an Andhra Pradesh-based Internet service provider, will provide maintenance support and internet connectivity for the service. The highlight of the service is that an e-mail can be sent to people not having a computer or Internet connection. "The aim is to spread the reach of technology to the common man. People can use the electronic mode of communication without having a PC or Internet," said Minister for Communication at the inauguration ceremony of the service. The service will initially be provided in 203 post offices in the five states of Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Maharashtra, Gujarat and Goa. It is expected to be launched in the rest of the country in next four to six months. The target users group includes people in the far-flung areas, army personnel and NRIs. The e-mail ID will be a generic one based on the PIN code of the delivery post office. The e-mail, sent to this ID, will reach the nearest ePost centre, be downloaded, printed, enveloped and delivered. The e-mail can be sent in any language. Privacy is maintained as the messages cannot be read on screen and as the department claims, with the strict supervisory structure that does not permit reading of messages after printing.

Moving towards a pollution-free and ecologically attractive modern transportation system, the Delhi Government has decided to introduce the noiseless Electric Trolley

Buses (ETBs) on four major traffic corridors of the Capital from next year to encourage citizens to move away from personalised modes of transport. The Electric Trolley Buses would be similar to urban diesel buses and would be electrically propelled with pneumatic tyres, drawing power from overhead conductors called trolley wires. They would ply on roads like any other vehicle. While no separate track is required, the ETBs will have sideward manoeuvrability to overtake slow moving vehicles. These buses are free from noxious exhaust and are capable of high acceleration and retardation which enables them to attain higher average speeds.

The National Bureau of Plant Genetics Resources (NBPGR) will soon start collecting and preserving seed/planting materials of fruit crops in its national gene bank facility. This has become necessary in view of the emerging international scenario in the aftermath of patenting farm research achievements under WTO agreement, genetic material exchange protocols under the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and International Undertaking on Plant Genetic Resource (IUPGR). The NBPGR under the Indian Council of Agricultural Research, system has so far been keeping the seeds of only cereal crops in its gene bank for preserving germplasm diversity and facilitating their use in crop breeding. But now it will include seeds and seedlings of fruits and horticultural crops.

(Ministry of Information and Broadcasting)

Keeping of fruit seeds material in the gene bank would need cryo preservation for which facilities are already available. As against the current actual storage of 125000 plant accessions, NBPGR facilities have a capacity for one million seeds/seedlings.

The Madhya Pradesh Government has launched a campaign to make farmers aware of the need for the production of good quality cotton. Under the ambitious plan to improve the quality of cotton produced in the State, nine projects worth Rs. 12.75 crore have recently been sanctioned in the State under the National Cotton Technology Mission (NCTM). In addition, Re. 1 core has been sanctioned for the cotton seed delinting plant in Nimar area. Besides, sanction of Rs 4.44 crore for other cotton related projects is also expected soon. In the meanwhile, two ultra modern biological control laboratories are being set up at Bhuteda in Ratlam and Dhamnod in Dhar districts at a cost of Rs. 3.50 crore under the NCTM. Special mandis are also being constructed at six places to build up the infrastructure for marketing cotton. Attached to each of these mandis would also be a cotton research laboratory. Now with the installation of the cotton seed delinting plant in Nimar area, good quality cotton seed would be available in Madhya Pradesh.

The Government has decided to allot the 6,000 Internet ‘dhabas’ – planned in each block of the country – only to unemployed persons. This was revealed by the Minister of State for communication in the Rajya Sabha. Free Internet access will be permitted to a ‘dhaba’ in the rural block headquarters as defined by State Governments. Free access for 1,500 hours per annum will be permitted for those in the urban block headquarters. In addition, franchisees in both rural and urban block headquarters will be paid 25 per

cent of the PSTN access charges, which works out to Rs. 6 per hour. However, the Government will not stipulate the charges to be levied from customers. The franchisees will be given the freedom to decide usage charges. Existing PCO franchisees will be allowed to upgrade to Internet PCO and concessions will be extended to them. The telephone line for the Internet facility will be provided on an out-of-turn basis. Free training will be provided by Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (BSNL) at its centres.

The Haryana Government has accorded sanction for upgrading three polytechnic colleges in the State to integrate the physically disabled in the mainstream of technical and vocational education. 25 seats over and above the sanctioned intake would be provided in each polytechnic for the disabled in regular three years diploma programmes . Besides, 100 persons would be trained through vocational and skill development programmes from among the persons with disability in the vicinity of each polytechnic. Admission to these 25 seats would be made directly by the selected polytechnics based on merit at 10+ or 10+2 at par with concessions available for Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe categories through newspaper advertisement. Age and qualifying percentage marks relaxation would also be provided. The principals would try and admit all categories of persons with disabilities depending upon the availability of suitable infrastructure facilities for respective categories. All efforts would be made to accommodate women with disabilities in both diploma and skill development programmes to the extent of 15 per cent of the seats reserved for persons with disabilities.

The Cabinet approved the Inland Waterways Authority India (Amendment) Bill 2001 to enable Inland Waterways Authority of India to raise bonds from joint ventures with private players and fix depreciation rate of

inland vessels at par with the ocean-faring ones. The Cabinet had early this year allowed IWAI to raise bonds and moblise funds as is provided for other infrastructure sectors. In case of private sector participation, IWAI would be able to hold equity to the extent of 40 per cent in a build-operate-transfer project. Besides, this sector offers tax holidays to private investors up to 100 per cent for five years and a further 30 per cent tax exemption which could be availed of in the next five years within a period of 20 years. In addition to this, the rate of depreciation of inland vessels has been fixed at par with the ocean-faring carriers. The government also has in place a vessel building subsidy of 30 per cent for inland vessels built in Indian shipyards. India has 14,500 km of navigable waterways, of which 5,700-km are navigable by mechanised vessels. In India, there are three national waterways. These include Allahabad-Haldia, Dhubri-Sadiya over Brahmaputra and Kottapurram-Kollam on the west coast canal.

Roads towards the end of 2007 will connect over 1.40 lakh habitations across the country. The massive rural road construction programme will be funded by the Centre under Pradhan Mantri Gam Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) and is expected to cost Rs. 34,200 crore. The programme was cleared at a Union Cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister. The Sadak Yojana will be implemented in three segments. In the first segment, all unconnected rural habitations with a population of 1,000 and more will be connected with all-weather roads within 3 years. The second segment will connect habitations with a population of 500 and more by the end of the 10^th Plan Period (2007). Under the third segment of the scheme, existing roads which do not meet the minimum required specifications of all-weather roads will be upgraded at a cost of Rs 24,000 crore.

Terming it as a gift to the new-born babies of Delhi and their parents, the Chief Minister announced that more than three lakh children born in Delhi every year would be administered the Hepatitis B vaccine free of cost under the newly-launched Universal Immunisation Programme. More than four per cent of Delhi’s population suffers from Hepatitis B related problems. Delhi would be the first city to introduce this vaccine under the Universal Immunisation Programme for which Rs. 4 crore has been sanctioned. About 86 hospitals and maternity centres of the Delhi Government, MCD, NDMC, Delhi Cantonment, CGHS, Railways and ESI would administer the three doses free. The first dose will be given in first 48 hours, the next after one month and the last one after six months. A specially designed immunisation card with weather proof cover having effective health promoting messages for the women and child, is being introduced for the first time. This would prove to be a vital instrument for making mothers conscious of its importance in preserving it for follow-up advice.

The windows of Vrindavan eke out their livelihood on the charity of bhajan ashrams run by various trusts. Considering the condition of health infrastructure in the town and the accessibility to the health facilities for these elderly women, Help Age India has launched a Mobile Medical Unit (MMU) which would bring health care to them. Most of the women are over sixty years, many have crossed eighty and almost all of them suffer from joint pains, respiratory diseases, back problems and other common ailments. MMU will visit the various ashrams where the women stay to offer them treatment at their doorstep. The services will be totally free of cost cases will be referred to the hospital if they need further treatment. The State Government has offered to give one more MMU to Help Age to run in the area.

A helpline for rendering medical and psychological advice to adolescents was launched at Jaipur. Aptly named "Friend Anonymous", it will provide professional counselling by psychologists and doctors to young boys and girls on their medical, emotional, psychological and sexual problems. Adolescence is a significant phase of life, when the boys and girls need emotional support from their families and society at large. The larger issues of community health, infant mortality, maternal mortality and women’s empowerment are closely associated with the way an adolescent is matured as an adult. The helpline on telephone – launched by an NGO, the Concerned Citizens for Community Health and Development (CCCHD) – will initially function for two hours daily.

The National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) has formulated a scheme for financing agriculture graduates to set up agri-clinics and agri-business centres. The scheme, in pursuance of the announcement made by the Union Finance Minister in the budget speech this year, aims at supplementing the existing extension network to accelerate the process of technology transfer to agriculture. The scheme would be open to graduates in agriculture and allied sciences like horticulture, animal husbandry, forestry, dairy, veterinary, poultry farming, aquaculture and related activities. The related activities could be water and soil quality testing laboratories, pest surveillance, repairs and custom hiring of agriculture implements and machinery, seed processing units, vermiculture units, apiary, veterinary dispensaries and information technology kiosks for

access to various agriculture-related products, post harvest management centres and retail market outlets for processed agri- products. Any combination of two or more of the activities in the related areas selected by the graduates would be acceptable. All cooperative banks, commercial banks and regional rural banks would finance the scheme. In deserving cases, 50 per cent of the margin money could be provided to the beneficiaries at nominal interest by the bank out of the "Soft Loan Assistance Fund" of NABARD.

In a significant decision, the Haryana State Industrial Development Corporation (HSIDC) has decided to set up a European Technology Park (ETP) near Delhi to encourage mutual exchange of technologies for industrial development, between Haryana and European nations. The main objective of setting up an ETP within the National Capital Region was to invite European multinational companies to join hands in developing infrastructure in Haryana for infusing confidence amongst the European companies to invest in the State.

Rajasthan's Churu District which is always in news for its extreme temperatures, has set up an example in solving the water scarcity problem of the region. Facing acute drinking water crisis for centuries, the district has been successful in constructing over 8,000 water tanks, traditionally known as Tankas or Kunds. By constructing Tankas under the famine relief project, the district seems to be returning to its old rainwater harvesting system, which was there in practice for centuries. The Kunds, having water storage capacity ranging between 10,000 liter to 20,000 liter, would also save money to the tune of Rs. 1 crore which the administration used to spend over transporting drinking water to the worst hit villages every year. The administration had

set guidelines in constructing Kunds. Under the scheme, Scheduled Caste applicants get first priority followed by STs, widows, backwards and small and marginal farmers.

For the first time in the history of Southern Railway, the Chennai Division completed the construction of a subway at Tiruvottiyur in just 10 hours. The construction cost of the subway is Rs. 30 lakh and is met by the Chennai Corporation under the local MP Area Development Fund. For constructing the subway, the traffic on the Chennai-Gudur section was blocked for about 12 hours. The Railway utilised the traffic block for completing the other maintenance works such as replacement of 150 channel sleepers in two bridges between Sulurpet and Gudur, rail renewal works, welding of rails between Basin Bridge and Tiruvottiyur, overhead electrification modification work for platform extension in Naidupetta and preventive maintenance of traction sub-station at Ennore. The services of about 450 employees were utilised for construction work under the supervision of the Divisional Manager.

The Haryana Government has constituted State Steering Committee under the chairmanship of Commissioner and Secretary, Environment, for implementation of the "National Green Corps" idea through the formation of eco-clubs in schools across the State. This scheme would be introduced in 1,900 Government high schools and senior secondary schools - 100 schools in each district at the initial stage. The clubs would provide an opportunity to the school children to know ecology,

the role of different components of eco-systems, and various environmental issues which affect life. The themes to be implemented by the school children include disposal of household waste, hospital waste, pollution, afforestation, maintenance of public parks and gardens, development of environment-friendly attitude and behaviour among the people and study of eco-systems and the important role played by bio-diversity in human lives. These clubs would also organise seminars, discussions, lectures and talks on specific environment issues in schools, besides awareness camps, rallies, human chains and mobilise public opinions. Film shows, musical programmes, exhibitions, science fairs, festivals, streetcorner plays, sticker campaigns, quiz, essay and painting competitions would also be organised. Schools which implement these programmes effectively, will be suitably rewarded.

A project has been planned to link five tiger reserves in the hilly forests stretching from Melghat Tiger project in Maharashtra in the west to Achanakmar Wildlife Sanctuary located 500 km away in Chhattisgarh in the east. It covers over 25,000 sq km of tiger habitat that is home to over 500 tigers. The region has four major forest types, five tiger reserves, five national parks and seven wildlife sanctuaries in its preserve. The World Wildlife Fund for Nature (WWF) is working on the ambitious project to identify the forest links through three central States of Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh. This is one of the three landscapes identified by the WWF. The project, known as the Satpuda-Maikal Range Landscape, also covers the catchment area of three major rivers – Narmada, Wainganga and Godavari. Agricultural activity too extends to the fringe of these forests.

Women who were unhappy with the Centre’s decision to include injectible contraceptives

in family planning programmes can now take the herbal route. For the first time in India, a herbal contraceptive will be available soon. The contraceptive, taken orally, is in the final phase of human trials. This herbal contraceptive will have much more acceptability by Indians. It has a 100 per cent success rate in tests on animals and there is no side effect on humans. The clinical trials on humans are on in Chandigarh PGI, JIPMER in Pondichery and KEM hospital, Mumbai. The project is being undertaken by the Ministry of Health, the money being sponsored by the Family Welfare Deptt. The contraceptive is based on the combination of three plants – Pipali (Piper longum), Vindaga (Embella ribes) and Borax.

The ISO certification of quality usually awarded to corporate and other institutions, has for the first time been presented to the Presentation Convent Sr Secondary School in the national Capital. The Presentation Convent is the first school in the World to get an ISO 9001:2000 and ISO 140001certification. It is not only the first school to get the ISO certification but also the first girls school to get it. This school has been awarded certification primarily for its Quality Management System (QMS) and the Environment Management System (EMS) . The main reason the school has got this honour is because it has not only created these systems but also has been able to inculcate their value among the children. Under the Quality Management System, the school has a counseling programme, for students, parents and teachers.

Giving a push for rural healthcare, the Tamil Nadu State Government proposes to conduct "speciality" health camps in all villages, provide mobile medicare in hill areas and upgrade at least 20 primary health centres into 30-bed hospitals at a cost of Rs. 12.89 crore this year. With more rural women in Tamil Nadu suffering from aneamia, the Government will distribute iron and folic tablets to girls in the age-group of 10-17 at a cost of Rs. 57 lakh. According to the Health Minister of Tamil Nadu, 25 healthcare vehicles would be provided for the mobile healthcare scheme at a cost of Rs. 1.13 crore. Special clinics would be opened in 300 block primary health centres for detection of cervical and breast cancer. AIDS counselling and testing centres would be set up in all district headquarters, hospitals and medical college hospitals for detecting the AIDS causing HIV, for a nominal fee of Rs. 10. A Medicinal Plants Board would be set up to identify valuable medicinal plants available in the State and to enable their commercial exploitation. The proposed Board would look into the patents of herbs as well.