Government Extends Ambit Of Free Grains, Launches "One Nation, One Ration Card"
Detailing upon the second tranche of measures under the 'Atma Nirbhar Bharat Abhiyan', Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday, announced government's plans aimed at migrant workers and poorer sections of the country. The finance minister announced the extension of provision of free food grains to those who do not hold public distribution system (PDS) cards under the state and centre. Ms Sitharaman said that the government will provide 5 kgs of rice or wheat per person and one kg of chana (chickpea) per family for the next two months.
The government will be spending Rs 3,500 crore towards this measure and believes that it will aid 8 crore non-PDS card holders, Ms Sitharaman said, adding that the implementation would be carried out by state governments.
The government also launched the 'One Nation, One Ration Card' initiative, under which a ration card holder will be able to draw the allocated ration from anywhere in the country, irrespective of where the person hails from.
Moreover, the government also said that it will soon launch an affordable rental housing scheme for migrant workers. The scheme under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana will provide housing at an affordable rent, Ms Sitharaman said.
The scheme will be implemented under a private-public partnership (PPP) model and will involve converting government-funded housing in cities into Affordable Rental Housing Complex (ARHC).
In Thursday's announcement, Ms Sitharaman also detailed upon measures aimed at benefiting street vendors, middle class and small borrowers under MUDRA scheme.
-
Opinion | India at 38: From Innovation Overperformer to Innovation Powerhouse
India now has 453 VC-backed deep science startups, 18 of them late-stage, after 117 percent growth since 2020. Laurus Labs, at USD 9.3 billion, is the most valuable deep science company in any middle-income economy outside China.
-
Navigating Energy Crossroads: S Jaishankar's Call For Diversified Supply Chains At G20 Ministerial Meeting
As geopolitical fault lines continue to test maritime trade routes and commodity flows, Jaishankar's message remains pertinent: true economic resilience requires open markets, protected transit lines, and a genuine commitment to multilateral cooperation rather than coercion.
-
Indians Are Travelling, But Not Every Journey Is A Holiday | The Week In Whys
Pilgrims, patients and working women are the real travellers, and the system hasn't quite caught up with them.
-
Getting To Work Costs Women More | The Reason Why
It is not just about women paying more than men. It is about women paying much more in cities than in villages.
-
AI Bias In Investing Cannot Be Eliminated, But It Can Be Governed
Framing is a particularly important example as identical financial information presented in terms of gains rather than losses can lead an LLM to reach a different assessment.
-
Joining The Dots | Dark Skies, Steady Diya: Why Hope Holds This Diwali
With war, a weak rupee and foreign outflows weighing on sentiment, policymakers at the NDTV World Summit and market veterans at NDTV Profit Ignite: Diwali Edition offered the same advice: stay invested and filter out the noise.
-
The Curious Case of Equitas Small Finance Bank And A CEO Who Quit For Stock
PN Vasudevan believes persistent investor concerns over a perceived conflict of interest had become a governance overhang on Equitas Small Finance Bank's stock, even as the lender improved profitability and asset quality.
-
Talking Points This Week: AI Cash Burn, A Tiger Comeback And An India That Still Finds Its Own Path
India is not immune to higher oil or tighter global liquidity, yet its earnings base is broader, its domestic policy levers are still available.
-
Foreign Investors Own Half Of HDFC Bank and ICICI Bank. An LTCG Cut Could Matter Most Here
Foreign portfolio investors have US$115 billion parked in HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank. If the government cuts long-term capital gains tax, Jefferies says returning foreign money could land here first.
