A quick look at top initiatives by Narendra Modi's government in April

Narendra Damodardas Modi became 15^th Prime Minister of India on May 26, 2014. Since then he left no stone unturned to upgrade the position of India in the world map of developed countries. Several welfare initiatives and schemes taken in the last two years speak out loud the success India experienced never before. Some of the flagship initiatives include Make in India, Digital India, Clean India, Skill India, 100 Smart Cities and Startup India Standup India.

Alas! That does not seem enough as PM Narendra Modi has been questioned recently on the credibility of his educational qualification. A rare video of Narendra Modi revealed that he studied till class 10, whereas his election affidavits stated that he graduated from Delhi University in 1978 through distance learning programme and post-graduated from Gujarat University in 1983.

Without getting entangled into the very controversy and brushing aside all the speculations, we have enlisted a number of initiatives taken by our PM in the last one month:

A new dawn for startups

• PM Narendra Modi launched the 'Stand Up India' scheme under which banks will offer loans in the range of Rs 10 lakhs to Rs 1 crore to Dalits and women. Under this scheme, 1.25 lakh banks will provide loan to 1.25 lakh young people from marginalised communities.
• The government will shortly unveil a blueprint for startups to ease the process of setting up new venture.
• The MSME ministry also said that 292 PSUs in India have been mandated to procure 20 per cent of their requirements from MSME sector.
• The government has permitted 100 per cent FDI in the marketplace format of e-commerce retailing. However, as per the guidelines issued by the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP), the same has not been given to inventory-based model of e-commerce.

Betterment of environment and infrastructure

• Varanasi will soon get solar-powered 11 E-boats and 1,000 E-rickshaws as a part of Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana. According to PM Modi, E-boats will not only help reduce pollution, but will also ensure higher incomes for those who earn their livelihoods through such boats.
• India has grown from 1,500 MW of solar power to 10,000 MW per annum in a short span of time. India Power Minister Piyush Goyal said that during 2015-16, 7,012 villages have been electrified under Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojna scheme (launched last year).
• Government has signed a $1.5 billion loan agreement with World Bank to give a fillip to Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM).

Government for poor

• The ‘Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana' scheme, launched at Ballia in Uttar Pradesh, will provide free LPG connections to five crore women from below poverty line (BPL) in the next three financial years. PM Modi thanked 90 lakh people of India for giving up LPG subsidies for the benefits of poor who use wood for cooking.
• The government will leverage the benefits of Aadhaar and Jan Dhan Yojana accounts to address the financial inclusion of 40 unorganised workers such as insurance and pension.
• The Government of India in association with other state governments will be soon working on Gramoday Se Bharat Uday Abhiyan campaign. The objective of the campaign is to amplify Panchayati Raj System to boost social harmony in the villages, promote rural development, foster farmers’ welfare and enhance the livelihoods of the poor.

Agricultural productivity

• Announcement to construct five lakh farming pools to address the substantial drop in the ground water table in some parts of the country. PM Modi urged the farming community to create small reservoirs, use less fertilizer, and switch to modern technology.
• According to the Groundwater Surveys and Development Agency (GSDA), the water table level has dropped to one meter in about 540 villages across 13 talukas in Pune district.
• Launch of e-NAM, the e-trading platform of National Agriculture Market, which will allow 21 mandis across eight states initiate e-trading on a pilot basis.

Sports: FIFA Under-17 World Cup

• India will host the FIFA Under-17 World Cup football tournament next year. 24 teams from across the world will participate in the tournament.
• PM invited suggestions from public on the creation of logo, slogans, songs, and souvenirs for the FIFA event.
• PM also encouraged youths of India to get indulged in and become the ambassador of the FIFA Under-17 World Cup, 2017.

Education: quality improvement

• The government will facilitate an enabling regulatory architecture to 10 public and private institutions.
• PM Modi reiterated that the regulatory framework will not get mingled with the existing University Grants Commission and All India Council for Technical Education. It will have complete autonomy in academic, administrative and financial matters, making world-class degree courses accessible to Indians.

Apps development

• The Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) has launched a portal and mobile application to help startups get registered online in a day. With this launch, startups can avail up-to-date information on various notifications or circulars issued by various government ministries/departments.
• Announcement to develop a master app UMANG (Unified Mobile App for New-age Governance). The app is likely to integrate 200 public services including passport services, income tax, e-Post, Women safety and more.

Bilateral trade pact

The recent bilateral talks between PM Narendra Modi and Maldives President Abdulla Yameen led to a defence corporation pact and other agreements in the fields of taxation, tourism, space research and conservation.

Affordable housing

As many as 2,508 cities in 26 states have been identified to provide affordable housing to the urban poor under 'Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana' scheme.

The NDA (National Democratic Alliance) government will commemorate its completion of two years on 26^th of this month. Time has come to analyse the achievements and failures of UPA versus NDA government. This second anniversary celebration will focus on its accountability and transparency of actions on employability, rural development, agricultural development, ease of doing business, bi-lateral trading, women safety and smart cities, quality education and more.