Nabadwip and Cooch Behar given heritage status

Nabadwip and Cooch Behar given heritage status

Posted on August 16, 2019 | by aitc | Leave a Comment

The towns of Nabadwip and Cooch Behar have been officially given heritage status by the State Government. The process was in the works for the last few months, and finally, recently, the announcement was officially made.

The decision regarding giving the status of heritage town has been taken by the State Government after detailed studies of the places by teams of multi-disciplinary experts from the Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur and the Indian Institute of Science and Technology, Shibpur.

Long and storied history

Both towns have a lot of history and culture entwined with them. Nabadwip is the birthplace of Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, the 16th-century proponent of Gaudiya Vaishnavism.

Cooch Behar is well-known as the capital of the formerly princely state of the same name, and the royal palace there draws a lot of tourists. It is also famous as the site of a famous Ras Mela at the Madan Mohan Bari temple grounds.

The State Heritage Commission has brought out a detailed list of the heritage structures in the two towns. Nabadwip has 86 such structures and Cooch Behar has 155.

Preserving heritage

Being a heritage town comes with several restrictions aimed at preserving the heritage value of the place and keeping the place beautiful to draw tourists. And arrival of more tourists would naturally open up a lot of economic opportunities.

As part of the rules, putting up advertisement hoardings in and around the heritage structures is banned. There are strict rules regarding the sale, lease and renovation of properties and setting them up as lodges. Applications need to be sent to the relevant municipality or zilla parishad, or even to the State Heritage Commission, if required.

Source: Ei Samay

Bengalathon 2019: Focus on senior citizen support

Posted on August 16, 2019 | by aitc | Leave a Comment

The third edition of the highly popular annual hackathon organised by the State Information Technology and Electronics (IT&E) Department, Bengalathon, was launched yesterday, that is, August 15.

The focus this year is on harnessing technology for elderly care, said a senior official of the IT&E Department.

Innovative ideas are also being invited in the areas of face recognition, solid waste management, road safety, health, citizen feedback, water quality monitoring, smart water metering, soil productivity, quick accident response and open data platform.

An example of elderly care using technology is the app-based digital visitor control system that HIDCO is setting up at Snehodiya, the senior citizen’s home in New Town. This will enable security guards at the gate to monitor the entry and exit of all visitors electronically and notify the facility manager or resident by SMS.

Bengalathon is an India-wide competition meant to recognise and promote innovative ideas on tech-based interventions for a better life. Through this competition, the State Government is trying to position Bangla as the best in using emerging technologies to provide solutions for real-life challenges.

TiE, a non-profit organisation, helps in linking the winners to global enterprises, for funding and further technical support.

Source: Millennium Post

Kanyashree to join hands with Utkarsh Bangla

Posted on August 14, 2019 | by aitc | Leave a Comment

Two internationally-recognised schemes of the Bangla Government are coming together for a better world. Class XI and XII students enlisted under the Kanyashree Scheme are now going to get career-centric technical education under the aegis of Utkarsh Bangla.

Incidentally, among other prestigious awards, both have won the WSIS Prize, given by ITU, an agency of the United Nations. While the Kanyashree Scheme won it in 2016, the Utkarsh Bangla Scheme won it in 2019.

The students will also get a stipend of Rs 50 per day during the course of the training. This would be added to the regular yearly stipend given under Kanyashree. It may be mentioned here that Kanyashree Clubs have also been involved in Utkarsh Bangla.

Under Utkarsh Bangla, short-term courses of duration between 80 and 600 hours are offered by government as well as private institutions, in fields like telecom, tailoring, beauty treatment, computer education, jewellery-making and many more.

Like the rest of the Utkarsh Bangla Scheme, the training of Kanyashree girls will also be overseen by the Paschimbanga Society for Skill Development, which comes under the Technical Education, Training and Skill Development Department.

Appeal to the authorities not to impose such tax or TDS or ‘Jijia’ tax on any puja committees or any festival: Mamata Banerjee

Posted on August 13, 2019 | by admin2 | Leave a Comment

Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee took to social media to inform that CBDT has issued a Press Release clarifying regarding notices to Durga Puja Committees for puja tax, which is popularly known as ‘Puja Jijia Tax’. She appealed to the authorities not to impose such tax or TDS or ‘Jijia’ tax on any puja committees or any festival.

Here is the text of her full post:

“I have come to know just now that CBDT has issued a Press Release clarifying regarding notices to Durga Puja Committees for puja tax, which is popularly known as ‘Puja Jijia Tax’.

I would like to share with all of you that in the name of so-called Press Release, they have made certain claims which themselves prove that they are factually incorrect.

In fact, Income Tax authorities sent notices to Puja Committees last year regarding event management including ‘Dhaki’, ‘Purohit’, small and village artisans engaged in arts and crafts working in pandals for collecting tax from them through puja committees by way of TDS, which is as good as ‘Terrible Disaster Scheme’.

This is, undoubtedly a huge burden on them.

CBDT clarification that no notices have been issued for this year makes little sense. It is only obvious that for pujas held this year, notices will only be issued next year, which is as per their scheme of tax assessment. So, the clarification itself proves that the imposition of tax very much stands. Then, why misleading?

The Press Release is a sheer distortion of facts with an aim to create confusion in the minds of local people and puja committees and perpetrate mental tension.

This is also an attack on our culture and on our Durga Puja festival. I do not know whether this is being done knowingly or unknowingly, but it is certainly of bad taste, especially when people of all religions, caste, creed participate in our Durga Puja, which is just like a national festival. Any such taxation should be totally withdrawn and the festival should be allowed to be celebrated with its usual fervour.

My humble submission and appeal to the authorities would be not to impose such tax or TDS or ‘Jijia’ tax on any puja committees or any festival.”

Here is the link to her Facebook post.

Bangla no. 1 in growth rate

Posted on August 11, 2019 | by aitc | Leave a Comment

In a Facebook post written today, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee put up the news that according to a report by the Central Government, Bangla has achieved the highest growth rate in the country – 12.58 per cent, in financial year (FY) 2018-19.

Sharp contrast to the national scene

Congratulating everyone concerned, she also noted that this was in sharp contrast to the deep recession and policy paralysis that has engulfed the country, courtesy the policies of the Union Government.

As a result, there has been a significant decline in the overall growth rate in the country as well as the highest rate of unemployment in 45 years.

In recent months, the automobile and leather sectors saw job losses to the tune of 3 lakh.

Disinvestment dampener

On top of so much unemployment, the Centre is actively pursuing the disinvestment of 45 public sector companies. This will lead to further loss of jobs for lakhs of people.

Investments going down

And on the other hand, she wrote, investment in new projects has plunged to a 15-year low in the quarter ending June 2019.

Implementation of new projects worth Rs 13 trillion has stalled, according to the well-respected business and economic data research company, Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE). This is the highest value since it began compiling data in 1995.

Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) has shown a negative growth rate of 1.09 per cent in FY 2018-19, as compared to 2017-18.

Figures prove the desperate state of economy

Figures put up in her post point to the desperate state of the Indian economy:

GDP growth: 5.8% in Q4 of 2018-19, lowest in last five years (from FY 2014-15)

Industrial Output growth: 2% in June 2019, against 7% in June 2018

Growth: 3.6% in Q1 of 2019-20, compared to 5.1% in Q1 of 2018-19

Index of Industrial Production: 1.2% in June 2019, compared to 6.9% in June 2018

Capital Goods Sector growth: -6.5% in June 2019, compared to 9.7% in June 2018

Mining Sector growth: 1.6% in June 2019 , compared to 6.5% in June 2018

Unemployment rate: 6.1% in FY 2018-19, the highest in the last 45 years

Number of new projects announced: In Q1 of FY 2019-20, 87% lower compared to Q1 of FY 2018-19 and 81% lower in compared to Q4 of the same FY

Politics trumps development

Mamata Banerjee ended her post saying, for the new government at the Centre, it is all about “politics, politics and only politics” now, rather than economy and development.

She exhorted the people of the country to realise the true situation India has been dragged into by this government.

Tech giants investing in the MSME space in Bangla

Posted on August 9, 2019 | by admin2 | Leave a Comment

Two of the world’s tech giants are firming up plans for providing help to people involved in sectors like MSME, agriculture, education, healthcare and e-governance in Bangla.

Microsoft

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee recently announced that Microsoft will work towards creating an e-commerce platform for weavers in Bangla, through two projects, named ‘Sangam’ and ‘E-Web’.

The company will impart training to weavers and share its expertise in enhancing their skills. As a result of this initiative, about six lakh weavers will benefit. Their income will increase by 25 per cent.

Amazon

Amazon Web Services (AWS), the cloud technology service platform of the e-commerce giant, Amazon, will offer learning content and promotional credit worth $100,000 to start-ups in the State, to enable them to develop innovative solutions addressing the requirement of the MSME industry in the State.

This was announced by the State Commerce & Industries and Finance Minister, Dr Amit Mitra, who added that this was the result of the MoU signed between WEBEL and AWS at the Bengal Global Business Summit (BGBS) last February.

Sources: The Statesman, Millennium Post, Livemint

Wipro to go for major expansion in Bangla

Posted on August 9, 2019 | by admin2 | Leave a Comment

Indian tech major Wipro has been allotted 50 acres at the Silicon Valley Hub in New Town by the Bangla Government, announced Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee recently.

This would enable the company to go in for a major expansion, generating job opportunities for 10,000 people.

Earlier, the Trinamool Congress Government had allotted 50 acres to Infosys too, which project would generate employment for a total of 1,000 engineers when complete. The company is investing Rs 100 crore in the project.

Source: The Statesman

Comprehensive development of Adivasis

Posted on August 9, 2019 | by admin2 | Leave a Comment

The Trinamool Congress Government created the Tribal Development Department to bring about the comprehensive development of the various tribal communities in Bangla.

On the occasion of International Adivasi Day, let us take a look at some of the major developments that have taken place.

Development/Cultural Boards and Advisory Councils

• Six boards – Mayel Lyang Lepcha Development Board, Tamang Development and Cultural Board, Sherpa Cultural Board, Bhutia Development Board, Limboo Development Board and Adivasi Development and Cultural Board – constituted for the welfare and development of these six communities
• Rs 348.32 crore sanctioned to these boards for important developmental activities like construction of environment-friendly houses and toilets, jhora improvement schemes for drinking water, planting of around 80,000 trees and instituting of more than 1,000 individual-benefitting programmes
• Despite the fact that Bangla is not a Schedule V State, the Tribes Advisory Council has been reconstituted and given a meaningful role to play in various aspects of tribal development. Since the reconstitution, six meetings have been held under the chairpersonship of the Chief Minister and follow-up actions were taken up.

Old-age pension and social security

• Old-age pension of Rs 1,000 per month per person provided to 1.5 lakh people below the poverty line (BPL) beneficiaries from scheduled tribes on attaining 60 years of age
• Social Security Scheme instituted for kendu leaf collectors in FY 2014-15, under which 34,743 collectors registered, 447 eligible beneficiaries from among which receive benefits to the tune of Rs 2.26 crore
• To ensure employment in the lean season, more than Rs 17 crore disbursed from the State Plan fund to create nearly 9.5 lakh person-days for kendu leaf collectors

Forest rights

• Community pattas for ‘jaher than’ being distributed, and installation of fencing around thans being completed
• Forest Rights Act, 2006 translated into Santhali and Kurukh, and distributed to all concerned
• 45,818 Individual Rights, 738 Community Rights and 64 Community Forest Resource Rights distributed among forest dwellers
• Formalising of forest pattas taken up and 8,583 pattas formalised through the issuance of Record of Rights

Promotion of indigenous languages

• Trilingual (Santhali-English-Bengali) Santhali dictionary published by the Paschimbanga Santhali Academy for promoting Santhali language
• Booklet published in Bengali, Santhali and Hindi for the dissemination of information on schemes and programmes on tribal development
• Language primer published in Kurukh (Tolong Siki is the script of the Kurukh language) by the Cultural Research Institute (Kurukh is spoken by the Oraon community and is one of the endangered languages of the world)
• Kurukh conferred the status of an official language by amending the West Bengal Official Languages Act, 1961

Healthcare

• Construction of ICDS centres in tribal-dominated areas in convergence with MGNREGA prioritised
• Pilot project conducted by the Institute of Haematology & Transfusion Medicine, Calcutta Medical College for the screening of tribal people suffering from sickle cell disease taken up by the department in 2014-15, after which a wider study covering 4 lakh samples was approved at a cost of Rs 25 crore

Thus we see that the Tribal Development Department has brought about all-round development of the tribal population of the State. Through various schemes and programmes, development is happening at a fast pace.

State Govt training to combat poaching

Posted on August 8, 2019 | by admin2 | Leave a Comment

The State Forest Department recently organised training for the people living in areas adjacent to the forests of Jaldapara and Gorumara so that they can help actively in combating poaching. Members of various NGOs also took part in the training.

This is of crucial importance as the people living in such areas know the forest like the back of their hand. Investing them with this responsibility will also make them much more aware of how activities like poaching destroy nature and wildlife.

It may be mentioned in this connection both Jaldapara and Gorumara are famous for being home to the Indian rhinoceros, besides many other animals and birds, and of course a variety of trees and plants.

Source: Khabar 365 Din

District sabhadhipatis undergoing training

Posted on August 8, 2019 | by admin2 | Leave a Comment

The Trinamool Congress Government has organised a comprehensive training for district sabhadhipatis from across the State. The training is taking place from August 6 to 8, at the Biswa Bangla Convention Centre in New Town.

The training is being given by senior officers of various departments on all aspects of governance related to zilla parishads, like e-governance, health, education, public works, running panchayats, etc.

Since the responsibility for many crucial work lie with the sabhadhipatis, this training would help in better management of the work related to panchayats.

Source: Sangbad Pratidin