All that was discussed in the House through the day
Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups funds not utilised
Only five per cent of the funds allocated under the 'Development of Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups' scheme for 2018-19 was utilised, the Union Ministry of Tribal Affairs informed Parliament.
Out of Rs 250 crore released under the scheme in 2018-19, only Rs 12.3 crore was utilised by the states, the ministry said.
The scheme covers 75 identified PVTGs in 18 states and the Union Territory of Andaman & Nicobar Islands. It aims at planning their socio-economic development in a comprehensive manner while retaining the culture and heritage of the communities by adopting habitat level development approach.
LEDs safe
LED lamps not conforming to relevant standards may pose hazards to the skin and eyes, the Union Ministry of Power informed Parlaiment.
The Energy Efficiency Services Ltd (EESL) has distributed more than 35.16 crore LED bulbs and installed over 92 lakh LED street lights across India as of June 28, 2019. LED bulbs procured by EESL under the UJALA scheme conform to quality control measures specified by the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS). These standards have been made mandatory in May, 2015 by BIS and are applicable to domestic manufacturing as well as imports.
LED bulbs are placed under the Star labelling programme of the Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) with effect from January 1, 2018. As part of this programme, it is mandatory for the manufacturers of LED bulbs to submit photobiological test reports for their respective LED bulb model.
Water bodies not restored
Under the Repair, Renovation and Restoration (RRR) of Water Bodies scheme, 2,064 water bodies, at an estimated Rs 1,765 crore have been taken up for restoration in various states since the XII Plan, stated the Union Jal Shakti Ministry.
Out of these, 1,160 water bodies have been reported to be completed up to March, 2019. Total central assistance amounting to Rs 369.11 crore has been released to the states up to March, 2019, for completion of works of these water bodies.
Ganga polluters
In 2019-20, 1,072 Grossly Polluting Industries (GPIs) have been identified on the main stem of the Ganga after a re-inventorisation exercise carried out by the Central Pollution Control Board.
The inspection of these 1,072 GPIs has commenced by 17 third-party technical institutions in April 2019. As on June 24, 2019, the inspection of 316 GPIs has been completed, Union Jal Shakti Minister Rattan Lal Kataria informed the Lok Sabha.
The minister was replying to a question on whether the government had evaluated the pollution standards of the industries situated along the Ganga.
Atomic Power
The share of atomic energy in the overall electricity generation in the country was about 2.93 per cent in 2017-18. The share of nuclear power has remained around three per cent of the total electricity generation in the country. The main reason for the low share has been the low installed capacity base, stated Union Minister of State in charge of Department of Atomic Energy Jitender Singh.
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