13 pc more wheat procured during current Rabi Marketing season

The Union Government has said that 13 per cent more wheat has been procured during the current Rabi Marketing Season in comparison to corresponding period last year. The Consumer Affairs Ministry said, a quantity of over 390 lakh tonnes of wheat has been procured against the last year corresponding purchase of 344 lakh tonnes. The Ministry said, about 40.81 lakh farmers have already been benefitted from the ongoing procurement operations with MSP value of over Rs 77,159 crore. It said, procurement of wheat is continuing smoothly in the procuring States of Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Rajasthan, Delhi, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir.

-The National Commission for Women has sent a notice to DGP West Bengal to appear before it in person on the  May 31 in matters related to atrocities against women in the state. It has asked the DGP to come up with complete action taken reports on matters sent by the Commission. The NCW said it is also to be apprised about measures taken to ensure the safety of women.

-In Jammu and Kashmir, Shopian District Administration in south Kashmir has been tirelessly reaching-out to the people since the outbreak of the second wave of COVID-19 pandemic. During the prevailing difficult times, the administration has also been able to achieve a 100 per cent target of vaccinating the people aged above 45 years in the apple district 'Shopian' of the Kashmir Valley.With this, Shopian district has the distinction to have become the second district in the country after Jammu to have achieved 100 per cent target in administering vaccination doses to its residents aged above 45 years.

-FCI has so far supplied 48 Lakh Metric Tonnes (LMT) free foodgrains to all 36 States and Union Territories under Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana- PMGKAY. The Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution in a statement said that the scheme of free distribution of foodgrains to the beneficiaries under PMGKAY has provided a big relief to the beneficiaries during ongoing COVID pandemic period. The Ministry said, five States and UTs namely Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Lakshadweep, Puducherry and Telangana have lifted full allocation of foodgrains for May and June, 2021 while other 31 States and UTs have lifted 100 per cent allocation for May period. The Ministry said, at present 295 Lakh Metric Tonnes  wheat and 597 Lakh Metric Tonnes of rice are available under the Central Pool. During the COVID pandemic period, since 25th March of last year, FCI has issued a total 1062 Lakh Metric Tonnes foodgrains under various government schemes.

-The Union Government has released Rs 1605 crore to eight North Eastern states under Jal Jeevan Mission to provide tap water supply to rural homes in the current financial year. Jal Shakti Ministry said, this is the first tranche of the four to be released in this financial year. There are about 90 lakh rural households in all the North East States, with a maximum 63.35 lakh in Assam.In the last financial year, about 11 lakh new tap water connections were provided in all these states. The Ministry said, as on today, 16.27 lakh households in the region are getting tap water supply in these states in comparison to 3.2 lakh households in August, 2019.The Jal Jeevan Mission was announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 15th of August 2019, with the aim to provide assured tap water supply to every rural home by 2024. The Mission is being implemented in partnership with States and Union Territories. Despite challenges faced due to COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent lockdowns, over 4.20 crore households have been provided with tap water supply. The Ministry said, now 39 per cent of rural households are getting potable water through taps. Goa, Telangana, Andaman and Nicobar Islands and Puducherry have become ‘Har Ghar Jal’ States and UT.