General Awareness

GOVERNMENT POLICIES AND SCHEMES - July 2019

Jul 2019

Oct 02, 2020

GoI to Revamp Food Safety and Standards Authority of India

The Ministry of Health and Family Welfare has framed a Food Safety and Standards (Amendment) Bill, 2020. The bill introduces 70 amendments in the FSSAI act, 2006. It intends to revamp the functioning and jurisdiction of the FSSAI.
The amendment will give more powers to FSSAI.
The jurisdiction of FSSAI is to be extended towards animal feed as well
It will simplify the processes and enhance penalties imposed for violations. This will include manufacture and sale of unsafe food, businesses that are carried out without licenses, adulteration of food that leads to death. The punishment of sale of unsafe food under the new amendment has been extended till life imprisonment.
The amendment will specify standards for food packaging material. The food packaging material has been mentioned as "food contact material" in the bill.
A Chief Executive Officer is to be appointed at FSSAI. Earlier, the chairperson and the members were selected based on the recommendations made by the Selection Committee. However, now there would be no role of selection committee.
The process of serving notices to a food business operator has been simplified. The notice shall be issued to those running unsafe restaurants.
The FSSAI was established under FSSAI, 2006. The shortcomings and challenges with the act are as follows
The hawkers, retailers and petty manufacturers are exempted from the ambit of FSSAI. They contribute largely to unorganised food sector
There are no enough food testing laboratories in the country for the authority to scrutinize the food processing industries.
The body has failed to ensure quality, safety and hygiene in the food industry.
There are shortages in enforcement and licensing officers. This severely affects food safety measures and thus it requires a structural reform. This is to be achieved through the current amendment.
The FSSAI has only 377 regulations mentioned. On the other hand, foreign countries have more than 10,000 foods and detailed standards.

Oct 01, 2020

Thaawarchand Gehlot Launches Ambedkar Social Innovation and Incubation Mission

The Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment Minister Thaawarchand Gehlot launched Ambedkar Social Innovation and Incubation Mission for the Scheduled Castes under Venture Capital Funds. The mission aims to promote innovation among the SC students in the country.
The key features of the mission are:
To promote entrepreneurship among SC students with special preference to disabled
To support innovative ideas till 2024 through synergetic work with Technology Business Incubators that are set up by the Department of Science and Technology
To promote, support, and hand-hold start-up ideas till they reach commercial stage. This is to be sone by providing liberal equity support.
To incentivise students with innovative mindset to take entrepreneurship with confidence.
Around 1,000 SC youths are to be identified under the mission in the next four years. The identified persons will be those with start up ideas through technology business incubators in higher educational institutions.
The youths are to be provided with 30 lakh rupees in three years. This is to be provided as equity funding. This will help to transfer their start-up ideas into commercial ventures.
The successful ventures are qualified for the funding up to Rs. 5 crores.

Sep 30, 2020

President Gives Assent to Taxation and Other Laws Bill

The President of India gave his assent to the Taxation and Other Laws (Relaxation and Amendment of Certain Provisions) Bill, 2020, which will extend compliance-related timelines for taxpayers while offering significant relief to foreign investors.
The ministry of law and justice issued a notification to the effect.
The bill, which now becomes an Act, was issued as an ordinance on March 31, 2020, to defer compliance deadlines for direct and indirect taxes amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Act also provides significant relief to foreign investors.
Surcharge levied on the dividend income of foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) that use a trust structure will be capped at 15%, offering them significant relief. From April 1, 2020, tax exemption will be provided on the income of category III Alternate Investment Funds in the International Financial Services Centre from 'masala' bonds, derivatives or overseas investments.
Among other changes, tax deduction at source or tax collection at source (TDS, TCS) at three-fourth the rate or 9% a year on transactions from May 14, 2020, till March 31, 2021, will be enacted. The lower rate of interest and exemption from penalty or prosecution in case of non-payments has been enabled in cases of payments of Equalization Levy, Securities Transaction Tax (STT), Commodities Transaction Tax (CTT) besides advance tax, TDS and TCS.

AP CM Launches YSR Jala Kala Scheme

To benefit the small and medium farmers who have no open water source for irrigation, Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy launched YSR Jala Kala Scheme. Under the scheme, borewells will be dug free of cost to the needy farmers. The scheme is estimated to bring in five lakh acres under cultivation through groundwater irrigation.
During his 3,648-km padayatra, Jagan met farmers, whose fields were parched due to lack of water sources. They explained how they were being pushed into debts by drilling borewells. After seeing their distress, Jagan promised to provide borewells to farmers having fields in uplands and included the same in the Navaratnalu (nine promises made by the YSRC before the elections).
With the launch of the scheme, one more election promise joins the long list of promises kept by the Jagan Mohan Reddy government. Around three lakh farmers will be benefitted from YSR Jala Kala, which is estimated to cost Rs. 2,340 crore in four years.

Sep 27, 2020

Karnataka Assembly Passes Amendment to Land Reforms Act

The Karnataka Legislative Assembly passed amendments to the land reforms act that liberalised farmland ownership, despite opposition Congress strongly opposing it, with some party members tearing copies of the bill, and staging a walkout calling it a "black law." The contentious Karnataka Land Reforms (Second Amendment) Bill, 2020 that further amends the act of 1961, removing almost all restrictions on buying farm lands was passed by the assembly with a voice vote.
The act passed, repeals Section 79(A) that sets a limit of non-agricultural income at Rs 25 lakh to buy agricultural land, Section 79(B) that bars non-agriculturists from purchasing agricultural lands, and Section 79 (C) that deals with penalty for falsely claiming eligibility to hold agricultural land.
It also makes certain amendments to Section 80 and states that the Class-A irrigated land (irrigated with water from a dam) can be used only for agricultural purposes.
It also inserts a new Section 80 (A) which states that no conditions laid in this act shall be relaxed in respect of lands granted to persons belonging to the SC/STs, during the period of prohibition under the Karnataka SC and ST (Prohibition of Transfer of Certain Lands), Act, 1978.

Sep 25, 2020

Provisions of the Major Port Authorities Bill, 2020

The Major Port Authorities Bill, 2020 was passed in Lok Sabha. The Bill replaces the Major Ports Act, 1963. It aims to regulate, operate and plan major ports in India. The Bill will provide a greater autonomy to ports in the country.
The Bill specifically deals with the major ports including the Vishakhapatnam, Paradip, Mormugao, V.O. Chidambaranar, New Mangalore, Kolakata, Kandla, Mumbai, Jawaharlal Nehru Port, Chennai, Cochin port.
As per the Bill, ports will be managed by Port Authorities Board and every port will have a port authority which will act under the leadership of a central board.
The Port authority boards will replace the port trusts.
The board comprises of chairperson, members from respective state governments, representatives from Defence Ministry, Railway Ministry and Customs Department.
The chairperson of the board will be appointed by the Central Government.
The board will also include two to four independent members who will represent the interests of the port authorities.
The board will be empowered to use its properties and fix scales of rates for assets.

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