The Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Wednesday, Oct 12, has approved a new Scheme, the Prime Minister’s Development Initiative for North East Region (PM-DevINE) for the remaining four years of the 15th Finance Commission.
It will be operational from fiscals 2022-23 to 2025-26. The new Scheme, PM-DevINE, is a Central Sector Scheme with 100 percent Central funding and will be implemented by the Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER).
The PM-DevINE Scheme will have an outlay of Rs 6,600 crore for the four-year period from 2022-23 to 2025-26, officials said.
Efforts will be made to complete the PM-DevINE projects by 2025-26 so that there are no committed liabilities beyond this year.
PM-DevINE will lead to creation of infrastructure, support industries, social development projects and create livelihood activities for youth and women, thus leading to employment generation.
The four principal objectives of the scheme as envisioned in the Budget 2022-23 are to: (a) fund infrastructure convergently, in the spirit of PM Gati Shakti; (b) Support social development projects based on felt needs of the NER; (c) Enable livelihood activities for youth and women and (d) Fill the development gaps in various sectors.
PMDevINE is an additionality to the quantum of resources available for the development of the NER. It will not be a substitute for existing central and state schemes.
The justification for announcement of PMDevINE is that the parameters of NE States in respect of Basic Minimum Services (BMS) are well below the national average and there are critical development gaps as per the NER District Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Index 2021-22 prepared by NITI Aayog, UNDP and DoNER ministry.
The new Scheme was announced to address these basic minimum services shortfalls and development gaps.
Other Decisions:
The Cabinet also extended Rs 22,000 crore as one time grant to oil PSUs to cover losses in domestic LPG
It approved payment of a Productivity Linked Bonus equivalent to 78 days to railway employees for the financial year 2021-22.
Briefing reporters after the cabinet meeting in New Delhi, Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Singh Thakur said, the bonus amount will be paid to about 11, 27000 non-gazetted railway employees.
He underlined that the prices of LPG have risen globally up to 300 per cent. Mr. Thakur said, the compensation will be given to the three companies – Indian Oil Corporation, Bharat Petroleum Corporation and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation.
