IndiaAI Mission, DA hike, Ujjwala subsidy: 5 decisions taken by Union Cabinet
Union minister Piyush Goyal on Thursday announced five major decisions taken by the Narendra Modi government in its cabinet meeting. The decisions range from allowance hikes and minimum support price hikes to new schemes for artificial intelligence. The announcement comes in the run up to the Lok Sabha polls that are likely to be held in May this year. Here’s a look at the major decisions announced by the union minister today:
- 4% increase in dearness allowance
The Union Cabinet approved a hike in Dearness Allowance to government employees and Dearness Relief to pensioners by 4 per cent. The new rate will be effective from January 1, 2024, and will represent an increase of 4 per cent over the existing rate of 46 per cent of the basic pay/pension.
In addition to the hike in Dearness Allowance (DA), the central government has also raised various allowances such as transport, canteen, and deputation by 25 per cent. Moreover, House Rent Allowance (HRA) has been increased from 27 percent, 19 percent, and 9 percent of the basic pay to 30 percent, 20 percent, and 10 percent, respectively.
- Continuation of ₹300 Ujjwala subsidy
The Cabinet approved the continuation of a targeted subsidy of ₹300 per 14.2 kg cylinder for up to 12 refills per year for the beneficiaries of the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY). Beneficiaries can avail of this scheme starting April 1, 2024, till March 31, 2025. The total expenditure for this will be ₹12,000 crores, union minister Piyush Goyal has said.
- ₹10,371 crore outlay for IndiaAI Mission
The Cabinet has endorsed a comprehensive nationwide initiative titled ‘IndiaAI Mission’ with a budget of ₹10,371.92 crore spanning over five years. According to a press release of the cabinet, the mission aims to advance the vision of fostering indigenous AI development.
“The IndiaAI mission will establish a comprehensive ecosystem catalyzing AI innovation through strategic programs and partnerships across the public and private sectors. By democratizing computing access, improving data quality, developing indigenous AI capabilities, attracting top AI talent, enabling industry collaboration, providing startup risk capital, ensuring socially impactful AI projects, and bolstering ethical AI, it will drive responsible, inclusive growth of India’s AI ecosystem,” the government said in a press release.
- Govt raises MSP for raw jute by ₹285 per quintal
The government has increased the Minimum Support Price (MSP) for raw jute by ₹285 per quintal. This means the minimum support price of raw jute has increased to ₹5335 per quintal. “This would ensure a return of 64.8 per cent over the all India weighted average cost of production. The announced MSP of raw jute for 2024-25 season is in line with the principle of fixing the MSP at a level of at least 1.5 times all India weighted average cost of production as announced by the Government in the Budget 2018-19,” the government said in its release.
- ₹10,037 crore for the Uttar Poorva scheme
The Cabinet approved ₹10,037-crore scheme to promote industrialisation in the Northeast region. “The proposed scheme envisages approximately 2180 applications, and it is anticipated that direct employment opportunities of about 83,000 will be generated during the scheme period. A significant number of indirect employment is also expected to be generated,” the press release noted.
