PIB 12th & 13th February 2021

Contents

1. National e-Governance Plan in Agriculture (NeGPA)
2. Status of Skilled Youths in India
3. Punjab: 13th State to complete ONORC

NATIONAL E-GOVERNANCE PLAN IN AGRICULTURE (NEGPA)

Context:

The National e-Governance Plan in Agriculture (NeGPA) Scheme initially launched in 2010 in 7 pilot states, has been extended up to March of 2021.

NeGPA has been continued now as a part of Sub Mission on Agricultural Extension (SMAE) under National Mission on Agricultural Extension & Technology (NMAET).

Under Phase-II of the scheme, funds were released to States for carrying out the activities.

Relevance:

GS-II: Social Justice, Polity and Governance

Dimensions of the Article:

1. e-Governance in India
2. National e-Governance Plan (NeGP)
3. National e-Governance Plan in Agriculture (NeGPA)
4. Unified Farmer Service Platform (UFSP)
5. Farmers Database

e-Governance in India

• e-Governance in India has steadily evolved from computerization of Government Departments to initiatives that encapsulate the finer points of Governance, such as citizen centricity, service orientation and transparency.
• Lessons from previous e-Governance initiatives have played an important role in shaping the progressive e-Governance strategy of the country.
• Due cognizance has been taken of the notion that to speed up e-Governance implementation across the various arms of Government at National, State, and Local levels, a programme approach needs to be adopted, guided by common vision and strategy.
• This approach has the potential of enabling huge savings in costs through sharing of core and support infrastructure, enabling interoperability through standards, and of presenting a seamless view of Government to citizens.

National e-Governance Plan (NeGP)

• The National e-Governance Plan (NeGP), takes a holistic view of e-Governance initiatives across the country, integrating them into a collective vision, a shared cause.
• Around this idea, a massive countrywide infrastructure reaching down to the remotest of villages is evolving, and large-scale digitization of records is taking place to enable easy, reliable access to the internet.
• Further, with a vision to transform e-Governance for transforming Governance and keeping in view the need to utilize emerging technologies such as Cloud and Mobile Platform and focus on the integration of services, the Government has proposed to implement “e-Kranti: National e-Governance Plan (NeGP) 2.0” under the Digital India programme.
• National e-Governance Plan has been launched with the aim of improving delivery of Government services to citizens and businesses, is guided by the following vision: “Make all Public Services accessible to the common man in his locality, through common service delivery outlets and ensure efficiency, transparency and reliability of such services at affordable costs to realize the basic needs of the common man.”

National e-Governance Plan in Agriculture (NeGPA)

• National e-Governance Plan in Agriculture (NeGPA) was launched in 2010-11 in 7 pilot States.
• In 2014-15, the scheme was further extended for all the remaining States and 2 UTs
• It aims to achieve rapid development in India through use of Information & Communication Technology (ICT) for timely access to agriculture related information to the farmers.

Key Objectives of NeGPA

1. Bringing farmer centricity & service orientation to the programs 
2. Enhancing reach & impact of extension services 
3. Improving access of farmers to information & services throughout cropcycle 
4. Building upon, enhancing & integrating the existing ICT initiatives of Centre, and States 
5. Enhancing efficiency & effectiveness of programs through process redesign 
6. More effective management of schemes of Department of Agriculture, Cooperation & Farmers Welfare
7. Promoting a common framework across states

Unified Farmer Service Platform (UFSP)

UFSP is a combination of Core Infrastructure, Data, Applications and Tools that enable seamless interoperability of various public and private IT systems in the agriculture ecosystem across the country.

UFSP is envisaged to play the following roles:

1. Act as a central agency in the agri-ecosystem (like UPI in the e Payments)
2. Enables Registration of the Service Providers, public and private
3. Enables Registration of the Farmer Services G2F, G2B, B2F and B2B
4. Enforces various rules and validations required during the service delivery process
5. Acts as a Repository of all the applicable standards, API’s and formats
6. It shall also act as a medium of data exchange amongst various schemes and services to enable comprehensive delivery of services to the farmer.

Farmers Database

For better planning, monitoring, policy making, strategy formulation and smooth implementation of schemes for the farmers a nationwide Farmers Database linked with land records is being created with the following objectives:

1. Develop nationwide database of farmers
2. Keep a record of unique farmers.
3. Unique farmer ID (FID) to uniquely identify a farmer
4. To know benefits availed by a farmer under various schemes

-Source: PIB

STATUS OF SKILLED YOUTHS IN INDIA

Context:

Information regarding Pradhan Mantri Kaushal VikasYojana (PMKVY) and other schemes implemented by the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) was given in the Rajya Sabha.

Relevance:

GS-II: Social Justice

Dimensions of the Article:

1. Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY)
2. Craftsmen Training Scheme (CTS)
3. Jan Shikshan Sansthan (JSS)
4. National Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme (NAPS)

Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY)

• Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY) is a skill development initiative scheme of the Government of India for recognition and standardisation of skills.
• Launched in 2015, it is a flagship program of Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE).
• National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) implements it with the help of training partners.
• Under this Scheme, Training and Assessment fees are completely paid by the Government.
• Skill training would be done based on the National Skill Qualification Framework (NSQF) and industry led standards.

Aims of PMKVY

1. Its Aim is to encourage aptitude towards employable skills and to increase working efficiency of probable and existing daily wage earners, by giving monetary awards and rewards and by providing quality training to them.
2. It aims to mobilize youth to take up skill training with the aim of increasing productivity and aligning the training and certification to the needs of the country.
3. To enable a large number of Indian youths to take up industry-relevant skill training that will help them in securing a better livelihood.
4. Individuals with prior learning experience or skills will also be assessed and certified under Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL).

Craftsmen Training Scheme (CTS)

• The Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) initiated Craftsmen Training Scheme (CTS) in 1950 by establishing about 50 Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) for imparting skills in various vocational trades to meet the skilled manpower requirements for technology and industrial growth of the country.
• Currently there are more than 15 thousand Government and Private Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) with an objective to provide skilled workforce to the industry.
• Under the constitution of India, Vocational training is the concurrent subject of both Central and State Governments.
• ITIs are functioning under the administrative control of the respective State Govts./UTs / Private Organisations.

Jan Shikshan Sansthan (JSS)

• Jan Shikshan Sansthan (formerly known as Shramik Vidyapeeth) provide vocational skills to non-literate, neo-literates as well as school drop-outs by identifying skills that have a market in the region of their establishment.
• The Scheme of Jan Shikshan Sansthan has been transferred from Ministry of Human Resource Development to Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship in 2018.
• The JSS are being sanctioned to voluntary agencies/charitable trusts/no-profit organisations.

Target Group:

• Socio-economically backward and educationally disadvantaged groups of rural/urban population.
• Main target include non-literate, neo-literates, person education upto 8th standard, school drop-outs, in the age group of 15-35 years.
• Priority given to women, SC, ST, OBC and Minorities in rural areas and urban slums.

National Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme (NAPS)

• National Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme (NAPS) is a scheme of Government of India to promote apprenticeship launched in 2016.
• Apprenticeship Training consists of Basic Training and On-the-Job Training/Practical Training at workplace in the industry.
• The main objective of the scheme is to promote apprenticeship training and to increase the engagement of apprentices.

-Source: PIB

PUNJAB: 13TH STATE TO COMPLETE ONORC

Context:

Punjab has become the 13th State in the country to successfully undertake “One Nation One Ration Card system” reform stipulated by the Department of Expenditure, Ministry of Finance.

Relevance:

GS-II: Polity and Governance

Dimensions of the Article:

1. What is the one ‘One Nation, One Ration Card’ system?
2. Why do we need a ‘One Nation, One Ration Card’ system?
3. How will the system of ration card portability work?
4. Since when has the One Nation, One Ration Card System been in the works?

What is the one ‘One Nation, One Ration Card’ system?

• Under the ‘One Nation, One Ration Card’ system, the beneficiary will be able to buy subsidised foodgrains from any FPS across the country.
• The new system, based on a technological solution, will identify a beneficiary through biometric authentication on electronic Point of Sale (ePoS) devices installed at the FPSs, and enable that person to purchase the quantity of foodgrains to which she is entitled under the NFSA.
• The reform especially empowers the mirgatory population mostly labourers, daily wagers, urban poor like rag picker, street dwellers, temporary workers in organised and unorganised sectors, domestic workers etc., who frequently change their place of dwelling to be self reliant in food security.
• Its implementation ensures availability of ration to beneficiaries under National Food Security Act (NFSA) and other welfare schemes, especially the migrant workers and their families, at any Fair Price Shop (FPS) across the country.
• The reform also enables the States in better targeting of beneficiaries, elimination of bogus/ duplicate/ineligible card holders resulting in enhanced welfare and reduced leakage.
• Further, to ensure seamless inter-state portability of a ration card, Aadhar seeding of all ration cards as well as biometric authentication of beneficiaries through automation of all Fair Price Shops (FPSs) with installation of electronic point of sale (e-PoS) devices are essential.

Additional Borrowing by States

Additional borrowing limit of 0.25 percent of the Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) is allowed to the States only on completion of both of the following actions:

1. Aadhar Seeding of all the ration cards and beneficiaries in the State
2. Automation of all the FPSs in the State.

Why do we need a ‘One Nation, One Ration Card’ system?

• In the present system, a ration cardholder can buy foodgrains only from an FPS that has been assigned to her in the locality in which she lives.
• Suppose a beneficiary lives in the district of Basti in Uttar Pradesh and migrates to Mumbai for work. Currently, she is no longer able to purchase subsidised foodgrains from a PDS shop in her new locality in Mumbai.
• The Public Distribution System (PDS) system is marred with inefficiency leading to leakages in the system. To plug the leakages and make the system better, the government has started the reform process.

How will the system of ration card portability work?

• Ration card portability is aimed at providing intra-state as well as inter-state portability of ration cards.
• While the Integrated Management of Public Distribution System (IM-PDS) portal provides the technological platform for the inter-state portability of ration cards, enabling a migrant worker to buy foodgrains from any FPS across the country, the other portal (annavitran.nic.in) hosts the data of distribution of foodgrains through E-PoS devices within a state.
• The Annavitran portal enables a migrant worker or his family to avail the benefits of PDS outside their district but within their state.

Since when has the One Nation, One Ration Card System been in the works?

• The one card scheme work started back when the government launched a scheme called Integrated Management of Public Distribution System (IM-PDS) in April 2018.
• It used a technological solution involving the use of Aadhaar to identify beneficiaries.
• Under the scheme, the seeding of ration cards with Aadhaar is being done.
• Simultaneously, PoS machines are being installed at all FPSs across the country.
• Once 100 per cent of Aadhaar seeding and 100 per cent installation of PoS devices is achieved, the national portability of ration cards will become a reality.
• It will enable migrant workers to buy foodgrains from any FPS by using their existing/same ration card.

-Source: PIB