Department of Drinking Water & Sanitation (DDWS), Ministry of Jal Shakti held Technical Session on “Rural WASH Partnerships – the way forward’ on the second day of the 7th India Water Week. The focus of the session, chaired by Minister of Jal Shakti, was on how the partnerships with academia, WASH experts and other partners can be harnessed to achieve the targets of the two flagship programs of DDWS – Jal Jeevan Mission and the Swachh Bharat Mission Grameen phase-II. Union Minister also launched the toolkit for Swachh Survekshan Grameen (SSG) 2023 and the web portal for the ‘Twinpit to Retrofit Abhiyan’ at the session.
An important initiative under Swachh Bharat Mission is the Swachh Survekshan Grameen (SSG). DDWS has been conducting SSG since 2018 onwards to rank the States and Districts on the basis of their performance attained on key quantitative and qualitative Swachh Bharat Mission (Grameen) (SBM(G)) parameters and engaging rural community in improvement of their sanitation status through an intensive and holistic IEC campaign. The previous experiences have been that SSG provided impetus to the results achievement by States, which reflected in improvements of program indicators during the SSG period. In similar spirit, to encourage States, Districts and Panchayats, DDWS intends to undertake SSG 2023, which envisages to further significantly intensify the SSG campaign, and make it much more participative and competitive. The Swachh Survekshan Grameen 2023 Toolkit comprises information on various stages of assessment, baseline rankings of the Panchayats and Districts based on their ODF Plus progress as reported on SBM-G Integrated Management Information System (IMIS).
Department of Drinking Water & Sanitation (DDWS) held Technical Session on “Rural WASH Partnerships
The objective of the campaign is promoting simple on-site technologies through retrofitting the existing single pit toilets into twin pit toilets
The event also had sessions on various program elements of JJM and SBM(G) phase-II
SBM(G) activity, targeting sustaining the ODF status, is ‘Retrofit to Twinpit Campaign’ which was launched on Swachh Bharat Diwas in October this year
DDWS puts up 20 stalls at IWW-2022 focusing on state-of-the-art WASH technologies, innovations and solutions
Applauding the efforts of SBM(G) team, Sh. Gajendra Singh Shekhawat said, “SSG is not just a ranking exercise but also a vehicle for creating Jan Andolan and ensuring prompt action for achievement of SBM(G) 2.0 programme elements.” Union Minister also highlighted the fact that self-assessment by Panchayats on ODF Plus progress for all its villages, as part of SSG 2023 will not only enhance participation from community/panchayats but at the same time also act as a tool to build capacities of Panchayats on ODF Plus verticals.
Another SBM(G) activity, targeting sustaining the ODF status, is the ‘Retrofit to Twin-pit Campaign’ which was launched on Swachh Bharat Diwas in October this year by Sh. Gajendra Singh Shekhawat. The objective of the campaign is promoting simple on-site technologies through retrofitting the existing single pit toilets into twin pit toilets. It also aims to generate awareness about the safe disposal of faecal sludge in rural households. Speaking about the next phase of the campaign, Union Minster said “I am very happy to launch the web module of the campaign, which will be utilized for updating baseline data of States/Districts and the achievements of the States/ UTs in this campaign would be assessed based on the progress reported in the module starting 19th November 2022 up to 26th January 2023.” The Minister also urged all the partners gathered at the forum, to support the states in achieving the objectives of both SSG 2023 and the Retrofit to Twin pit Campaigns.
The event also had sessions on various program elements of JJM and SBM(G) phase-II. Four sessions were held by JJM Professor Chairs viz. ‘Sustainability of drinking water sources’ by Prof. Pradip Kumar Tewari, IIT-Jodhpur, ‘Utility development & water economics’ by Prof. Gopal Naik, IIM-Bengaluru, ‘IT and Data Science for service delivery’ by Prof. Amit Mitra, IIT-Kanpur and ‘Decentralized governance for water and sanitation services’ by Prof. Amita Bhide, TISS-Mumbai. This was followed by three sessions by the WASH Experts viz. ‘Faecal Sludge Management’ by Sh. Sasanka Velidandla from WASH institute, ‘Greywater Management’ by Sh. V. K. Madhavan from WaterAid India and ‘Water Quality’ by Dr. Sundarrajan Krishnan from INREM Foundation.
Speaking on the occasion, Ms. Vini Mahajan, Secretary-DDWS commended the contributions of all the Rural WASH partners to both JJM and SBM(G), “I thank you all for your feedback and expert inputs you bring to DDWS programs and I hope this enriching partnerships help our states and UTS in achieving the JJM and SBM targets”. Secretary also added that though the WASH targets of the country are ambitious, the efforts to achieve them are backed by strong political will, adequate funding and the partnerships among all stakeholders especially the Rural WASH Partners.
The India Water Week is an annual activity of Ministry of Jal Shakti and this year, the 7th Water Week has been inaugurated on 01/11/2022 at the India Expo Centre in Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh by the President of India, Smt. Droupadi Murmu, amidst the august presence of Governor Uttar Pradesh, Smt. Anandiben Patel, Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh Shri Yogi Adityanath, Union Minister of Jal Shakti, Shri Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, and Ministers of State for Jal Shakti, Shri Prahlad Singh Patel and Shri Bishweswar Tudu.
DDWS has put up 20 stalls at the IWW-2022 focusing on state-of-the-art WASH technologies, innovations and solutions. While the experts at the sessions share their rich experiences in the field of water management, the exhibition supports technologies for sustainable development for WASH. Other countries participating in the weeklong event are Finland, Germany, Israel and European Union. People who are working in WASH sector must attend the conference and visit the DDWS exhibition at Hall No 6, to understand the intricacies, policy interventions, programme implementation and way forward for WASH in the country.
माननीय जल शक्ति मंत्री, श्री @gssjodhpur ने इंडिया एक्सपो सेंटर और मार्ट, ग्रेटर नोएडा में सातवें भारत जल सप्ताह के दौरान रेट्रोफिटिंग मॉड्यूल का शुभारंभ किया।#retrofittotwinpit #ODFPlus #SwachhBharatMission #SBMG #IndiaWaterWeek@mahajan_vini @MoJSDDWS pic.twitter.com/aBIGyIQW5K
— Swachh Bharat I #AzadiKaAmritMahotsav (@swachhbharat) November 2, 2022
Union Minister Shri Gajendra Singh Shekhawat Addressing the Session
Union Minister of Jal Shakti Launches the ‘Retrofitting Module’
Minister of Civil Aviation, Shri Jyotiraditya M. Scindia along with MoS Civil Aviation, Gen. Dr Vijay Kumar Singh (Rtd.) has inaugurated the operation of three flights connecting five cities of Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Manipur, and Mizoram.
The enhanced aerial connectivity in the mountainous cities of the five states of north-eastern part of the country will play a vital role in creating the ease of living for the residents of region and boosting tourism and trade.
In his inaugural address, Minister of Civil Aviation Shri Jyotiraditya M. Scindia congratulated the people of the region and said that today is a very auspicious day that we have taken such a significant step in the direction of providing air connectivity to every part of the country.
The minister further said that Union Government has given special emphasis on the air connectivity for the north-eastern region. In the last eight years, seven airports have been developed in the region. Under UDAN scheme, 14% routes have been awarded to the north-east. Under UDAN 4.2, about 18% routes have been awarded to the northeast. A Rs 500 crore corpus has been dedicated to the air-connectivity of the northeast. Under Krishi UDAN, 25 airports have been incentivised in the region.
Minister announced that under International UDAN, two new routes Agartala-Chittagong-Agartala and Imphal-Mandalay-Imphal will be operationalised which will expand the scope of air connectivity in the north-eastern states from national to the international level.
MoS, Civil Aviation Gen. Dr Vijay Kumar Singh (Rtd.) said that it is matter of great pleasure that this additional air connectivity is being provided for the north-eastern region of the country. It will facilitate the travel between the states and help people traveling for various purposes and contribute to the growth of the region.
The flight will be operated by Alliance Air and will be conducted as per the following schedule:
IMPHAL-AIZAWL-IMPHAL (UNDER RCS UDAN): 30TH OCTOBER 2022
From
To
Frequency
Departure Time
Arrival Time
Effective Date
Aircraft Type
IMPHAL
AIZAWL
5 times weekly
1005
1045
30thOCTOBER
2022
ATR72-600
AIZAWL
IMPHAL
5 times weekly
1115
1155
ATR72-600
LILABARI-ZIRO-LILABARI: 30th OCTOBER 2022
From
To
Frequency
Departure Time
Arrival Time
Effective Date
Aircraft Type
LILABARI
ZIRO
2 times weekly
1155
1225
30thOCTOBER
2022
Dornier Do-228
ZIRO
LILABARI
2 times weekly
1245
1315
Dornier Do-228
SHILLONG-LILABARI-SHILLONG (UNDER RCS UDAN): 31st OCTOBER 2022
From
To
Frequency
Departure Time
Arrival Time
Effective Date
Aircraft Type
SHILLONG
LILABARI
4 times weekly
1035
1135
31st OCTOBER
2022
ATR72-600
LILABARI
SHILLONG
4 times weekly
1155
1255
ATR72-600
The inauguration was graced by Shri. Pema Khandu Chief Minister, Arunachal Pradesh, Shri. N. Biren Singh Chief Minister, Manipur, Shri Hemanta Biswa Sarma Chief Minister, Assam, Shri Conrad Sangama Chief Minister of Meghalaya (by a pre-recorded video message), Shri. Kiren Rijiju Union Minister of Law and Justice, and other ministers and members of parliament from the states.
Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science & Technology; Minister of State (Independent Charge) Earth Sciences; MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances, Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr Jitendra Singh today said that the new voters will define India @2047, and with the active young years on their side, they have the privilege and opportunity to contribute to the making of Century India, as envisaged by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Addressing the new and young voters at Moradabad, Dr Jitendra Singh said, Uttar Pradesh is home to about 55 million young men and women who are in the 18-30 age group, which is approximately 37 % of the total voters in the State.
Dr Jitendra Singh told the youth that a few days ago, Prime Minister Modi launched Rozgar Mela – the recruitment drive for 10 lakh personnel and during the ceremony, appointment letters were handed over to 75,000 newly inducted appointees. He said, in near future, the target of 10 lakh government jobs will be completed in a mission mode.
The Minister, also appealed to the youth to strive for other means of livelihood through lucrative StartUp ventures and innovative entrepreneurship, as it is next to impossible for any country to provide government jobs to all.
Referring to Prime Minister’s focus on the most job-intensive sectors like agriculture, private sector and MSME, Dr Jitendra Singh said, today, under the Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana, a huge campaign is going on to train the youth according to the needs of the industries of the country and added that 1.25 crore young people have been trained so far all over the country.
Dr Jitendra Singh pointed out that initiatives like liberalising drone policy, opening up space policy, and 20 Lakh crore rupees worth of loans under Mudra Yojana have opened new opportunities for the youth.
Referring to Prime Minister’s continued focus on youth power since 2014, Dr Jitendra Singh said, on August 15, 2017, in his Independence Day speech, Mr. Modi said, “January 1, 2018 will not be an ordinary day – those born in this century will start turning 18. For these people, this is a decisive year of their lives. They are going to be the creator of the destiny (Bhagya Vidhata) of our nation in the 21st century. I heartily welcome all these youth, honour them and offer my respects to them. You have an opportunity to shape the destiny of our country. A proud nation invites you to become a part of its developmental journey”.
Dr Jitendra Singh said, in the 2019 polls, 133 million young adults got the opportunity to vote and of them 70 million were young men and 63 million young women and over 72 percent of them were living in India’s villages. The Minister said, this number may touch 140 million by 2024, and this is India’s demographic dividend that should not be allowed to go waste.
Dr Jitendra Singh reminded the youth and also the administration that the Election Commission of India in July this year announced that those above the age of 17 years can now apply in advance to get enrolled in the voters’ list and not wait until the voting age of 18 years.
The Commission has directed the chief electoral officers and electoral registration officers of all states to work out tech-based solutions to enable the youth to file their advance applications concerning three subsequent qualifying dates – April 1, July 1 and October 1, and not only just January 1. The Minister said, the move will boost EC’s efforts to enrol new young voters who turn 18 in a year, for which an amendment was recently made to allow quarterly registration of voters.
Dr Jitendra Singh said, the Central government and the UP Government are jointly planning to hold ‘Yuva Vijay Sankalp Rally’ in all the nooks and corners of the state to make the youth aware of the developmental initiatives and achievements of the “Double Engine Sarkar”.
In the first tranche of appointment letters issued on 22nd October, 2022 in a programme graced by the Prime Minister, 88 candidates of the Ministry of Mines were provided appointment letters by Union / Sate Ministers at Rozgar Melas organised at different venues throughout the country thus moving towards further filling all its vacant posts.
As per the announcement made by the Prime Minister for filling up 10 lakh vacant posts in Central Government, all the Central Government Ministries/ Departments are mandated to fill up all their vacancies on Mission Mode from July, 2022 to December, 2023.
Ministry of Mines has a total of 4673 vacancies which are to be filled up by direct recruitment as well as promotion quota. Starting this recruitment drive since July, 2022 the Ministry had already issued 127 appointment letters in the first quarter ending in September, 2022.
It has now been decided to issue the appointment letters centrally through Unified Integrated Digital Issuance on bimonthly basis.
With this, total appointment letter issued by the Mines Ministry since the launch of Mission Recruitment drive reaches 215. Action plan for filling up all the vacant posts by December, 2023 is in place for the Ministry.
The High-Level Intergovermental Meeting on the Final Review of the Asian and Pacific Decade of Persons with Disabilities (HLIGM-FRPD), has started this morning at Fairmont Hotel, Jakarta, Wednesday (19/10). The meeting took place hybrid from 19 to 21 October, and attended by 53 member states of the United Nations of Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) and 9 associated members. Representing the President of the Republic of Indonesia Joko Widodo, the Coordinating Minister for Human Development and Culture Muhadjir Effendy was present to open the meeting officially. In his speech, Muhadjir emphasized the commitment and strong support of Indonesian government in fulfilling and protecting the rights of persons with disabilities. “This can be seen in the implementation of policies and programs related to the persons with disabilities,” said Muhadjir Effendy.
On her keynote speech, Executive Secretary of UNESCAP and Under Secretary General of the UN, Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana expressed her appreciation to Indonesian government for organizing this event, especially for the Minister of Social Affairs Tri Rismaharini.
Armida stated that the aims of this conference were to review, assess the progress of the Incheon strategy implementation, after 10 years. The second, to build on the commitment of ESCAP members to improve accessibility for persons with disabilities, including access to inclusive public transportation and social rehabilitation efforts that have been carried out.
The third aim is to make some recommendations of future plans that mark the 4th decade of 2023 to 2032 which will be formulated as the Jakarta Declaration.
On the same occasion, Social Affairs Minister Risma delivered a country statement, emphasizing that Indonesian government has taken concrete steps in fulfilling and protecting disability rights, as evidenced by the issuance of Law No. 8/2016 on Persons with Disabilities.
“With this provision, it marks an important movement in Indonesia from placing persons with disabilities as objects of assistance recipients, to becoming subjects who have rights and are actively involved in making decisions related to their own needs,” said the Minister of Social Affairs.
Implementation and Evaluation of Respect, Protection and Fulfillment of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities at the national and regional levels, the government also prioritizes persons with disabilities in a policy for a period of 25 years or known as the National Master Plan for Persons with Disabilities, followed by the National Action Plan on Human Rights.
Government Regulation 70 of 2019 on planning, implementation and evaluation of respect, protection and fulfillment of the rights of persons with disabilities.
“Recently, Indonesia also passed Law No. 12 of 2022 on the Crime of Sexual Violence as legal protection for women and children from all forms of sexual violence with a 1/3 heavier penalty if the victim is a person with a disability,” said Risma.
To further empower and protect persons with disabilities and create an inclusive society, Indonesia launched Indonesia Visualize, Indonesia Hear, and Indonesia Take Steps programs. “Through these programs, accessibility and mobility tools are distributed and cataract surgery and physical therapy are carried out by campaigns to raise awareness in inclusion and capacity building,” said Minister Risma.
In 2021, the Ministry of Social Affairs has distributed 6,581 units of assistive devices, consisting of 757 units of electric wheelchairs, 354 units of commercial tricycle motorbikes, 5,420 units of adaptive sticks, and 50 units of blind water sensors. “Meanwhile, in 2022, it is targeted that 10,000 aid tools can be distributed,” added the Minister.
The Government of Indonesia is also increasing its commitment through patented innovations and assistive technology technologies such as the Smart Blind Stick, and incorporating the values of gender equality, disability, and social inclusion (GEDSI) into its universal designs.
In her statement, the Minister of Social Affairs also emphasized Indonesia’s commitment and concrete steps in overcoming stocks. In response to the high prevalence of stocks for persons with disabilities, several efforts have been made, including enforcing laws that prohibit stocks and educating families and communities.
To protect persons with disabilities from the COVID 19 pandemic, the government launched protection programs such as Family Hope Program (PKH), Conditional Cash Assistance, ATENSI program, food assistance, health insurance, house renovation for the elderly with disabilities and other inclusive social assistance.
Protection against natural disasters, the government formulates regulations on Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) that are inclusive at the national and regional levels. “Some of the best practices of disability-inclusive DRR can be seen from Disaster Preparedness Village and Disaster Resilient Village Program, which involves persons with disabilities as disaster volunteers such as Difagana (Disaster Voluntary Workers with Disabilities) and the formulation of technical guidelines for disaster management in sign language for the deaf,” said Social Affairs Minister Tri Rismaharini.
To increase economic independence, Indonesia strengthens skills development, entrepreneurship training and provides accessibility/mobility tools needed by persons with disabilities to carry out their entrepreneurial activities.
“In addition, access to employment opportunities is also enhanced through the Inclusive Public-Private Partnership. It is proven that there has been an increase in income from social-inclusive entrepreneurial activities for persons with disabilities,” she said.
Indonesia recognizes that there are still a lot of work to do. Next, it will focus on improving the monitoring and evaluation of measurable-based policies and programs, roadmaps to adaptive social protection, more accountable disaggregated data, meaningful participation of persons with disabilities in DRR and economic empowerment, and global partnerships in humanitarian nexuses.
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