"How friendly all men
would be one with another, if no regard were paid to honour and money!"
—Saint Teresa of Avila
(Spanish, 1515-1582)
Word for the day
Shavie (n)
A trick or prank
Malice towards none
Sachin Tendulkar's act of
"donating" his salary to the PM Relief Fund somehow felt like
"you stupid guys, keep this chicken s**t to yourself and shut your fu****g
mouth up$#@$@$!!!"
First random thought this morning
Imagine an army general, when attacked by the enemy, telling his
troops to hold their guards and wait for his orders, which he may or may not decide
to give.
Many of the key incumbent central ministers and chief ministers
have behaved just like that in recent past. The latest case in point is the HRD
Minister's indecisive act in CBSE Exam leak case. In past chief ministers of
Rajasthan Haryana, and MP have shown similar tendencies.
Taking growth to the last man
The Government of India has
recently launched an ambitious program to make India's growth more inclusive
and broader. The program called "Transformation of Aspirational
Districts" aims to improve the Human Development index (HDI) in district
which are currently placed at the bottom of growth pyramid.
The concept paper for the program
states that "India is on a high growth trajectory that is expected to
lift millions out of poverty. However, presently the quality of life of many of
its citizens is not consistent with this growth story, a fact reflected in
UNDP’s 2016 Human Development Index wherein we are ranked 131 out of 188
countries. A closer look at the data reveals high heterogeneity in the living
standards in India. There are significant inter-state and inter-district variations.
By uplifting the districts which have shown relatively lesser progress in
achieving key social outcome, India can move ahead in the human development
index. The ‘Transformation of Aspirational Districts’ initiative aims to remove
this heterogeneity through a mass movement to quickly and effectively transform
these districts."
As per the concept paper the "broad
contours of the programme are Convergence (of Central & State Schemes),
Collaboration (of Central, State level ‘Prabhari’ Officers & District
Collectors), and Competition among districts driven by a spirit of mass
Movement. With States as the main drivers, this program will focus on the
strength of each district, identify low-hanging fruits for immediate
improvement, measure progress, and rank districts."
The government has identified 115
districts from 28 states, at least one from each state, using a composite index
of key data sets that included deprivation enumerated under the Socio-Economic Caste
Census, key health and education sector performance and state of basic
infrastructure.
To enable optimum utilization of
their potential, this program focuses closely on improving people’s ability to
participate fully in the vibrant economy. Health & Nutrition, Education,
Agriculture & Water Resources, Financial Inclusion & Skill Development,
and Basic Infrastructure are this program’s core areas of focus.
The central government has
accorded the program a "policy priority" status. NITI Aayog is
steering the initiative in 30 districts, various central ministries oversee 50
districts besides the Ministry of Home Affairs, which focuses on 35 Left Wing
Extremism (LWE) affected districts. Officers at the level of Joint Secretary /
Additional Secretary have been nominated to become the ‘Central Prabhari
Officers’ of each district. States have appointed state-nodal and Prabhari
officers. An Empowered Committee under the Convenorship of the CEO, NITI Aayog
will help in the convergence of various government schemes and streamlining of
efforts.
This by far is one of the best
initiatives of this NDA government. Given the personal interest the prime
Minister is showing in execution of this program, I am sure it will show decent
results in next couple of years...to continue
No comments:
Post a Comment