Hydrogen as an energy source , Special Package for UT of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh under the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana, Zozila Tunnel, Tap water connections reach the remote homes of Arunachal Pradesh under the Jal Jeevan Mission, World Bank aided project STARS
Hydrogen as an energy source will play a key role in transforming climate-neutral systems
- Hydrogen has high energy content per unit mass, which is three times higher than gasoline. Hydrogen is being used for energy applications with suitable fuel cells.
- However, in order to make renewable hydrogen a viable option, several key challenges related to materials, including new material development, electrolytes, storage, safety, and standards, need to be addressed.
- Since hydrogen technologies can help to reduce global warming, further acceleration of efforts is critical to ensuring a significant share of hydrogen in the energy system in the coming decades.
- Two key developments have contributed to the growth of hydrogen in recent years– the cost of hydrogen supply from renewables has come down and continues to fall, while the urgency of greenhouse gas emission mitigation has increased, and many countries have begun to take action to decarbonise their economies.
- Hydrogen can help tackle various critical energy challenges, decarbonise a range of sectors including intensive and long-haul transport, chemicals, and iron and steel, where it is proving difficult to meaningfully reduce emissions and also help improve air quality and strengthen energy security.
- In addition, it increases flexibility in power systems.
- It is one of the best options for storing energy from renewables and looks poised to become the lowest-cost option for storing large quantities of electricity over days, weeks, or even months.
- Hence, a compilation of ongoing research activities in the country related to hydrogen being carried out by several scientists, industry, utilities, and other stakeholders from R&D laboratories and academia was launched by Secretary, Department of Science and Technology Professor Ashutosh Sharma recently.
- The compilation titled India Country Status Report on Hydrogen and Fuel Cells was an outcome of a brainstorming discussions and presentations on various issues for developing programmes and strategies to accelerate the ushering in of hydrogen economy as part of India’s commitment as a participating country in Mission Innovation Renewable and Clean Hydrogen Challenge.
Special Package approval for UT of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh under the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana - National Rural Livelihoods Mission
- The Union Cabinet, chaired by the Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi has approved a Special Package worth Rs. 520 crore in the UTs of J&K and Ladakh for a period of five years till FY 2023-24 and ensure funding of Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana – National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM) in the UTs of Jammu and Kashmir & Ladakh on a demand driven basis without linking allocation with poverty ratio during this extended period.
- This will ensure sufficient funds under the Mission, as per need to the UTs and is also in line with Government of India’s aim to universalize all centrally sponsored beneficiary-oriented schemes in the UTs of J&K and Ladakh in a time bound manner.
- This is based on the outcomes of the evaluation pointing to potential of the Mission to improve the quality of life of rural households and women’s empowerment and given the changed circumstances in the UTs of J&K and Ladakh.
- Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana – National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM) is a centrally sponsored programme that aims at eliminating rural poverty through promotion of multiple livelihoods for the rural poor households across the country.
- The launch of DAY-NRLM in June 2011 to address rural poverty marks a paradigm shift in poverty alleviation programmes.
- DAY-NRLM seeks to reach out to all rural poor households, estimated at about 10 crore households, and impact their livelihoods through universal social mobilization by inter alia organizing one-woman member from each rural poor household into Self Help Groups (SHGs), their training and capacity building, facilitating their micro-livelihoods plans, and enabling them to implement their livelihoods plans through accessing financial resources from their own institutions and the banks.
- The Mission involves working with the community institutions through community professionals in the spirit of self-help.
- This is the unique proposition of DAY-NRLM and that is how it is different from the previous poverty eradication programmes.
- The other distinguishing features of the programme is that it is implemented in a Mission mode by special purpose vehicles (autonomous state societies) with dedicated implementation support units at the national, state, district and block levels, using professional human resources in order to provide continuous and long-term handholding support to each rural poor family.
- DAY-NRLM has been implemented in the erstwhile state of J&K by the Jammu and Kashmir State Rural Livelihoods Mission (JKSRLM) as “Umeed” programme.
- As per the current funds allocation procedure under DAY-NRLM based on inter-se poverty allocations among states, the share of J&K was less than 1% of the annual allocation under DAY-NRLM.
- In order to ensure sufficient funding support under the Mission for J&K and to ensure adequate coverage of the rural vulnerable population in the state, Gol had approved a Special Package under DAY-NRLM for the State of Jammu & Kashmir to cover all the rural vulnerable households in the State (estimated at two-thirds of the total number of rural households) within a definite time frame of five years from FY 2013-14 to FY 2017-18.
- The Cabinet also approved allocation of funds to the State under DAY-NRLM on a need basis for implementation of the Special Package without linking it with poverty ratio.
- Originally approved financial outlay for the proposal was of the order of Rs.755.32 crores (Central share 679.78 crores) for the five-year period.
- Due to various reasons and the disturbed conditions in the State, the Special Package as approved in May 2013, and subsequently extended by a year to up to 2018-19, could not be fully implemented.
- A detailed third-party evaluation of the achievements of the programme in J&K and assessment of the preparedness of the State Mission to implement the special package further was conducted by Institute of Rural Management (IRMA), Anand, Gujarat in 2019.
- The evaluation has brought out many good outcomes of implementation of the DAY-NRLM in the erstwhile state.
- These included increase in income levels, improved assets base, creating new/multiple livelihoods opportunities for women, higher savings, higher investments for productive purposes, productive utilization of loans etc.
- In addition, it has had a positive impact on resolving community level issues, increased transparency in beneficiary selection, social harmony and mutual help.
- A large cadre of community resource persons and social capital in the form of SHGs members and officer bearers has also been created.
The first blasting at 14.15 Km Zozila Tunnel will ensure all-weather connectivity between Srinagar valley and Leh
- Union Minister for Road Transport, Highways and MSMEs Shri Nitin Gadkari has initiated the first blasting for Zozila Tunnel in J&K.
- The tunnel will provide all-weather connectivity between Srinagar valley and Leh (Ladakh plateau) on NH-1, and will bring about an all-round economic and socio–cultural integration of Jammu & Kashmir (Now UTs of J&K and Ladakh).
- It involves construction of a 14.15 Km long tunnel at an altitude of about 3000 m under Zojila pass (presently motorable only for 6 months in a year) on NH-1 connecting Srinagar and Leh through Dras & Kargil.
- It is one of the most dangerous stretch in the world to drive a vehicle & this project is also geo-strategically sensitive.
- The project was first conceived in 2005 and its Detailed Project Report (DPR) was prepared by BRO in year 2013 on BOT (Annuity) mode.
- Attempts to award the project four times weren’t successful.
- The Project was eventually given to NHIDCL in July 2016 for implementation on EPC mode.
Significance of the project:
(i) The construction of Zojila Tunnel will provide all-weather safe connectivity between Srinagar, Dras, Kargil and Leh regions. The all-weather safe connectivity of the road is immensely important from the strategic point of view.
(ii) The construction of Zozila Tunnel shall bring about all round economic and socio-cultural integration of these regions which remains cut-off from rest of the country during winters due to heavy snowfall for about six months.
(iii) A tunnel in Zozila is the only viable alternative at present for a full year connectivity road. This tunnel when completed will be a landmark achievement in the history of modern India. It will also be of great importance to the Defence of the country, in view of the fact that massive military activities along our borders in Ladakh, Gilgit and Baltistan regions are taking place.
(iv) Zozila Tunnel project shall bring to fruition, 30 years of overwhelming public demand of Kargil, Drass and Ladakh region.
(v) This Project will make the travel on Srinagar-Kargil-Leh Section of NH-1 free from avalanches.
(vi) Project would enhance the safety of the travelers crossing Zozila Pass and would reduce the Travel time from more than 3 hours to 15 minutes.
(vii) Project will generate employment to the locals.
Tap water connections reach the remote homes of Arunachal Pradesh under the Jal Jeevan Mission
- Broksarthang is a small village of West Kameng district of Arunachal Pradesh situated at the international border between India and Bhutan.
- It is situated at an altitude of around 2,900 meters above Mean Sea Level (MSL).
- It has 22 households with the present population of 170 persons belonging to ‘Brokpa’ community.
- Brokpasare well known for their Yak rearing and nomadic lifestyle.
- The village is approx. 76 Km from the district headquarter, Bomdila and 36 Km from Dirang, the nearest town.
- Until 2019, the villagers were facing acute shortage of water supply, but under Jal Jeevan Mission (JJM), the Public Health Engineering department of the State provided treated water supply to all the households of the village in 2020.
- The scheme is based on piped gravity system and has been designed for the future population as well with an estimated cost of Rs. 67 lakh with provision of treatment plant in it.
- The community were involved in planning and implementation of the scheme.
- They contributed the 5% of in-village component of the water supply scheme in the formof labour.
- The Village Water & Sanitation Committee is active and the committee is in the process of taking over the O&M of the water supply system.
- Jal Jeevan Mission mandates the involvement of local community in planning, implementation, operation and maintenance of water supply schemes.
- The task of providing treated water supply was not easy due to harsh weather conditions ranging from sub-zero temperature in winter and incessant rain in monsoon.
- Construction part was the most difficult one because the skilled masons and labourers are very scarce to get and secondly they kept on leaving the worksite due to extreme cold and lack of basic facilities.
- Monitoring and transportation of materials during construction was equally difficult due of frozen icy road, zero visibility due to fog and frequent landslides.
- But braving all these odds, the work was completed as envisaged in the designed scheme.
- Most happy were the villagers, their joy was clearly visible as they happily received water in their households with tying of traditional “Kada” around the bib-cock with prayers.
- Announced by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi on 15th August, 2019, Jal Jeevan Mission is under implementation in partnership with States with the objective to provide tap water connection to every rural household of the country by 2024.
- The goal of the Mission is to enable every rural household has assured availability of potable water at a service level of 55 litres per capita per day (lpcd) on regular and long-term basis so as to bring improvements in lives of people living in rural areas.
- The implementation of the Jal Jeevan Mission in these tough terrains and high altitude is a tough task.
- Impediments increase with the harsh climatic conditions and poor connectivity.
- Equally challenging is to instill behavioral change in the local community who are very reluctant to shun their beliefs and lifestyle.
- But the success story of this remote village is a proof of the better future envisioned by the Union Government to improve the lives of people especially the women.
World Bank aided project STARS (Strengthening Teaching-Learning and Results for States)
- Implementation of the Strengthening Teaching-Learning and Results for States (STARS) project with a total project cost of Rs 5718 crore with the financial support of World Bank amounting to US $ 500 million (approximately Rs. 3700 crore).
- STARS project would be implemented as a new Centrally Sponsored Scheme under Department of School Education and Literacy, Ministry of Education. (MOE)
- Setting up and support to the National Assessment Centre, PARAKH as an independent and autonomous institution under Department of School Education and Literacy, MOE.
- The project covers 6 States namely Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Kerala and Odisha.
- The identified States will be supported tor various interventions for improving the quality of education.
- Besides this project, it is also envisaged to implement a similar ADB funded project in 5 states namely Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Uttarakhand, Jharkhand and Assam.
- All states will partner with one other state for sharing their experiences and best practices.
- The STARS project seeks to support the states in developing, implementing, evaluating and improving interventions with direct linkages to improved education outcomes and school to work transition strategies for improved labour market outcomes.
- The overall focus and components of the STARS project are aligned with the objectives of National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 of Quality Based Learning Outcomes.
- The Project envisions improving the overall monitoring and measurement activities in the Indian School Education System through interventions in selected states.
- The project shifts focus from the provision of inputs and maintaining of outputs to actual outcomes by linking the receipt and disbursement of funds to these outcomes.
The STARS Project has two major components:
1) At the national level, the project envisages the following interventions which will benefit all states and UTs:
- To strengthen MOE’s national data systems to capture robust and authentic data on retention, transition and completion rates of students.
- To support MOE in improving states PGI scores by incentivizing states governance reform agenda through SIG (State Incentive Grants).
- To support the strengthening of learning assessment systems.
- To support MOE’s efforts to establish a National Assessment Center (PARAKH).
- Among the tasks of such a center would be to leverage the experiences of states selected for the operation by collecting, curating and sharing these experiences with other states through online portals (e.g. Shagun and DIKSHA), social and other media engagement, technical workshops, state visits and conferences.
Further, the STARS project includes a Contingency Emergency Response Component (CERC) under the National Component which would enable it to be more responsive to any natural, man-made and health disasters.
It will help the government respond to situations leading to loss of learning such as school closures/infrastructure damage, inadequate facilities and use technology for facilitating remote learning etc.
The CERC component would facilitate the rapid re-categorization of financing and the utilization of streamlined financing request procedures.
2) At the State level, the project envisages:
- Strengthening Early Childhood Education and Foundational Learning
- Improving Learning Assessment Systems
- Strengthening classroom instruction and remediation through teacher development and school leadership
- Governance and Decentralized Management for Improved Service Delivery.
- Strengthening Vocational education in schools through mainstreaming, career guidance and counselling, internships and coverage of out of school children
The STARS project also aims to focus on initiatives of PM e-Vidya, Foundational Literacy and Numeracy Mission and National Curricular and Pedagogical Framework for Early Childhood Care and Education as part of the Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan.
Some of the measurable outcomes of the project are Increase in students achieving minimum proficiency in grade 3 language in selected states, Improvement in secondary school completion rate, Improvement in governance index scores, Strengthened learning assessment systems, Partnerships developed to facilitate cross-learning between states, and improvement in the State level service delivery such as Strengthening planning and management capacities for decentralized management by training of BRCs and CRCs, Strengthened school management by training of Head Teachers and Principals for improved education service delivery.
