Content :
- Pradhan Mantri Kisan Sampada Yojana (PMKSY)
- Draft Legal Metrology (Indian Standard Time) Rules, 2025
Pradhan Mantri Kisan Sampada Yojana (PMKSY)
Context : Applications Invited for Creation/Expansion of Food Processing Units under PMKSY
The Pradhan Mantri Kisan Sampada Yojana (PMKSY), launched in 2016, aims to boost India’s agricultural and food processing sectors, enhancing farmer incomes, reducing post-harvest losses, and improving food processing infrastructure.
Relevance : GS 2(Schemes ), GS 3(Agriculture)
Objectives:
- Promote Value Addition: Encourages agro-processing to increase the value derived from agricultural produce.
- Enhance Farmer Income: Provides better market access and infrastructure to farmers, helping them earn more.
- Reduce Post-Harvest Losses: Focuses on building cold chains and storage facilities to prevent wastage.
- Improve Infrastructure: Develops processing units, warehouses, and cold storage.
- Boost Exports: Aims to enhance the quality of processed food products for international markets.
- Job Creation: Encourages employment in rural areas through food processing and logistics.
Main Components:
- Mega Food Parks: Large-scale hubs connecting farmers and processors, reducing costs.
- Cold Chain Infrastructure: Cold storage and refrigerated transport to preserve perishables.
- Backward & Forward Linkages: Connecting farmers with processors and markets.
- Food Safety Infrastructure: Ensures food quality with testing labs and certifications.
- Skill Development: Trains workers in food processing and packaging.
Funding:
The government offers subsidies up to 50% for infrastructure development, with a focus on encouraging private sector participation. Assistance varies depending on the component, e.g., up to 35-50% for cold storage and processing units.
Impact:
- Increased Farmer Incomes: By reducing waste and improving market access, farmers earn better prices.
- Job Creation: The initiative has generated employment, especially in rural areas.
- Improved Exports: Indian food products are now more competitive in global markets.
Challenges:
- Implementation Delays: Bureaucratic and logistical issues have hindered smooth rollout.
- Infrastructure Gaps: Uneven distribution of cold storage and food parks across regions.
- Private Investment Hesitancy: Challenges like regulatory hurdles still deter some investors.
Conclusion:
PMKSY has the potential to transform India’s agricultural sector, reduce wastage, and improve farmer livelihoods. However, effective implementation, regional balance, and private sector involvement are key to realizing its full potential.
Draft Legal Metrology (Indian Standard Time) Rules, 2025
Overview
- Objective: The Government of India has published the Draft Legal Metrology (Indian Standard Time) Rules, 2025, aiming to achieve “One Nation, One Time” by ensuring uniform and precise time synchronization across India.
Relevance : GS 2(Governance)
- Lead Departments: The initiative is led by the Department of Consumer Affairs, in collaboration with National Physical Laboratory (NPL) and Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).
- Project Goal: To disseminate Indian Standard Time (IST) with millisecond to microsecond accuracy, impacting various sectors like telecommunications, banking, navigation, power grid synchronization, and scientific research.
Features of the Draft Rules
- Precision Time Dissemination: Establishes infrastructure to broadcast Indian Standard Time (IST) nationwide with high precision, leveraging advanced technologies from NPL and ISRO.
- Critical Sectors Impacted:
- Navigation (e.g., satellite-based services)
- Telecommunications (ensuring synchronization of networks)
- Power Grid Synchronization (essential for grid management)
- Banking and Financial Services (important for transaction timing)
- Digital Governance (supporting data integrity and security)
- Cutting-Edge Research (e.g., deep space navigation, gravitational wave detection)
- Current Challenges: Many Telecom Service Providers (TSPs) and Internet Service Providers (ISPs) still rely on foreign time sources (like GPS), which are not synchronized to IST. This creates vulnerabilities in critical national infrastructure.
- Legal Metrology Act, 2009: The rules will be incorporated under this Act to ensure legal enforcement of IST across sectors.
- Mandatory Adoption of IST: The rules propose making IST the official time reference across all sectors in India.
- IST is based on UTC +5:30 hours and maintained by CSIR-NPL.
- Synchronization Guidelines:
- Government offices, public institutions, and critical infrastructure must synchronize their activities with IST using reliable protocols like Network Time Protocol (NTP) and Precision Time Protocol (PTP).
- Exceptions are allowed only for scientific, astronomical, and navigational purposes with prior government approval.
- Cybersecurity and Resilience:
- Establishes cybersecurity frameworks to protect the time dissemination infrastructure from cyber-attacks.
- Includes alternative time references and mechanisms to ensure continuity during disruptions.
- Compliance and Penalties:
- Compliance will be audited periodically.
- Penalties will be imposed for violations to enforce nationwide adherence.
Benefits of the Rules
- Strategic Benefits:
- National Security: Synchronizing all systems to IST is critical for national security, ensuring that time-sensitive applications function seamlessly across the country.
- Scientific Advancements: Precision in timekeeping supports high-end scientific endeavors, such as deep space exploration and gravitational wave detection.
- Economic Efficiency:
- Accurate Financial Transactions: Improved synchronization in financial services ensures accurate time-stamping for transactions, reducing errors and fraud.
- Industrial Benefits: Manufacturing processes and industrial operations will be optimized through synchronized processes, enhancing productivity and efficiency.
- Global Competitiveness: Enables Indian industries to align with global standards, improving their competitiveness in international markets.
- Enhanced Public Services:
- Facilitates the scheduling of public transportation, ensuring reliable and synchronized operations.
- Improves coordination in emergency response systems.
- Technological Advancements: Supports the integration of 5G technologies, Artificial Intelligence (AI), and Internet of Things (IoT) by ensuring precise timekeeping across devices and systems.
Implementation and Compliance
- Synchronization Procedures: The rules define procedures for synchronization, accuracy standards, and the process for implementation across different sectors.
- Auditing and Monitoring: To ensure uniformity, periodic audits and inspections will be conducted.
- Penalties: Strict penalties for those who fail to comply with the synchronization standards, ensuring the rules are followed.
Long-term Implications
- Unified National Time Standard: The rules pave the way for a unified, synchronized time standard across India, which is crucial for the integration of national infrastructure, communication networks, and emerging technologies.
- Government Efficiency: Improves the efficiency of government operations by ensuring consistent time-keeping across departments and public services, enhancing coordination and decision-making.
- Social and Economic Impact: By standardizing time, the rules aim to improve day-to-day operations for businesses, consumers, and government institutions, promoting smoother societal and economic functioning.
