Government Launched ‘Namma Toilet’ under Swachh Bharat Mission
- Urban Development Minister Venkaiah Naidu inaugurated Namma Toilet on April 6, 2016 in New Delhi. Local municipal council will build Namma toilet in 19 different locations in Delhi.
- The mission has the targets to establish 5 lakh public toilets by October 2, 2017. Namma model was evolved on the idea of APJ Abdul Kalam, wh had suggested this model.
- The toilet module was pre-fabricated in such was that it could be easily installed onsite in Short time. Also has adequate lighting and motion sensor lighting powered by solar panel.
- The toilet was of a single mould without joints and the interiors are seamless with no . sharp edges and comers to avoid dust accumulation.
Union Government formed BB Tandon Committee
- The Union Information and Broadcasting (I&B) Ministry has constituted a three-member Committee on April 8; 2016 to see that-guidelines issued by Supreme Court on regulating the government advertisements.
- The committee will be headed by the former Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) BB Tandon. Rajat Sharma and Piyush Pandey will be the other two members of the committe.
Union Government Launched ISBN Portal
- Union HRD Minister Smriti Irani launched ISBN portal on April 8, 2016 as part of Union government’s ambitious Digital India. It is another step taken in e-governance initiative for simplifying process of registration for publishers and author.
- Under the portal, publishers and authors can register for ISBN number. ISBN gives an identity to a book without which the bookshops will not sell it. The ISBN portal seeks to completely automate the process of seeking application, their examination and allotment of ISBNs. The developed software has several modules including users’ registration and online application submission.
- The automation process maintain inventory as well as process the data that will be provided by the users. There will be doing away with receipt of hard copy of any document unless considered appropriate for establishing the identity of the applicant and for confirming the book publishing activity.
Union Government Launched Two Energy Efficiency Schemes
- The Union government on April 7, 2016 launched two new schemes. These schemes will be implemented by Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL), a joint venture of Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs) under the Ministry of Power.
- Under National Energy Efficiency Programme, farmers can replace their inefficient pumps free of cost with the new energy efficient agricultural pump-sets.
- EESL will distribute 200000 BEE star rated pump-sets to the farmers under this programme, which will lead to 30% of energy savings by 2019. Pumps to come with Smart Control Panes that has a SIM card and a Smart Meter. Smart Control Panel will enable a farmer to switch on or switch off these pumps through his mobile.
- Under National Energy Efficient Fan Programme, 50 Watts BEE 5 Star rated ceiling fans, to be distributed under this Programme, it is estimated that consumer’s electricity bills will come down by about Rs 700-730 per year.
- Scheme will be available to the consumer on providing a copy of latest electricity bill along with a copy of residence proof at the designated distribution cent.
National Hydrology Project Approved
- The Union Cabinet has cleared the National Hydrology Project on April 6, 2016. It aims to collect hydrometrology data across India and use it for efficient water management in the country.
- In this project, half funding support Would come from a World Bank loan and half funding would come from budgetary support from the centre.
- It will cover the entire country. It will use information systems and adoption of state-of-the-art technologies like remote sensing.
Water Expo 2016 Held
- Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation Minister Uma Bharti inaugurated the Water Film Festival, a part of the India water week celebration jit ‘Water Expo 2016’ in New Delhi on April 6, 2016.
- The film festival was organised by the Water and Power Consultancy Services (WAJPCOS), a PSU under Ministry of Union Minster for Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation.
- Purpose of this event is that water resources are prime requirement to growth and prosperity of a nation and films can prove to be an effective tool of communication to spread the messaged water conservation.
