by admin | May 25, 2021 | Economy, Entrepreneurship, Markets, News, Politics, Startup Basics
Hunar Haat
Puducherry : The central government is preparing a data bank of artisans and will also provide them with relevant training to facilitate their access to national and international markets, Union Minority Affairs Ministry Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said here on Sunday.
A web portal has been prepared to provide national and international markets to artisans and craftsmen from across the country, he said while inaugurating ‘Hunar Haat’ organised by his Ministry with the aim to encourage master artisans from poor sections of the minority communities.
He said that a data bank of artisans will be prepared by year end and thousands from across the country have already registered.
Besides, he said, the Ministry is working to establish ‘Hunar Hubs’ across the country to provide a platform to artisans to display as well as sell their products.
“Encouragement to talent and skill development will be an essential part of the vision of ‘New India’,” Naqvi said.
The ‘Hunar Haat’ is being organised at Craft Bazaar, Gandhi Thidal Beach, Goubert Avenue here and will continue till September 30.
Artisans from 16 states are showcasing their wares including Hyderabad pearl, wrought iron and wood carving, wooden and sandalwood items, handmade jewellery, hand embroidery items, handmade paintings, wooden toys and mementos, printed dresses, sarees and other handicraft and handloom items at the event.
Visitors can also enjoy regional food as culinary experts from various states are also participating.
Recently, the Ministry had organised a similar event in New Delhi and plans to replicate it in other cities like Mumbai, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Lucknow, Allahabad, Ranchi, Guwahati, Jaipur and Bhopal among others.
Chief Minister V. Narayanasamy and Puducherry MP R. Radhakrishnan were also present at the inauguration.
—IANS
by admin | May 25, 2021 | News
New Delhi : Stressing that technology is the tool for transformation, Union Minority Affairs Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi on Friday said engineers play a crucial role in nation-building.
Addressing a seminar organised by the Institution of Civil Engineers on the occasion of Engineers Day, Naqvi said Indian engineers and technocrats are among the best in the world.
“Be it defence sector, infrastructure, railway or space technology, India’s engineers and technocrats have made their mark and made the country proud. Through their creative thinking and dedication and hard work, they give a new direction to the country,” he said.
Naqvi said it is true that providing basic amenities and infrastructure is the responsibility of the government, but at the same time, engineers, doctors and other professionals also have a role to play in this regard.
“Earlier, a large number of professionals from various fields preferred to work abroad. But now, they are coming back to India and are contributing to the vision of ‘New India’,” he noted.
“India has continued to rise in the Global Innovation Index (GII) rankings. In this year’s rankings, India has come at 60th place from 81.
“India has improved its performance in most areas, including infrastructure, business sophistication, knowledge and technology outputs and creative outputs,” he added.
Highlighting the utilisation of the latest technology by the BJP-led government “to make people’s life more comfortable”, the Minister said: “Through technology, we have filled the gap between governance and the common people.”
Naqvi added the government has been utilising the technology to ensure “leakage proof” and transparent system for welfare of the common man.
“India is moving towards becoming a digital economy. Money meant for welfare of the common people is going directly to bank accounts through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT). Crores of students are getting their scholarships directly into their bank accounts though DBT,” he added.
—IANS
by admin | May 25, 2021 | News, Politics
New Delhi : Growing population across the world is becoming the biggest hurdle in the way of sustainable development, and leaders and social activists will have to join hands to create awareness in this connection, Union Minority Affairs Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said on Wednesday.
Addressing MPs and leaders from the social sector at a conference organised here by the Indian Association of Parliamentarians on Population and Development, Naqvi said the increasing population has been causing several other problems related to development, employment and health.
Naqvi appealed to the MPs and other leaders present at the conference to come together and create awareness on a large scale to tackle the menace of population.
He said India has all the potential to become a hub for medical tourism. “The Narendra Modi government has taken several measures to improve the healthcare sector in the country including allocating several thousand crore rupees for the sector in the Budget.”
MPs and other leaders belonging to the social sector from India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cameroon, Kenya, Liberia, Malawi, Tanzania, Zambia, Malaysia, Nepal, Tajikistan, Japan, UAE, Kyrgyzstan, Turkey and Jordan are participating in the two-day conference which started on Wednesday.
—IANS
by admin | May 25, 2021 | News, Politics
New Delhi : Four Ministers of State — Dharmendra Pradhan, Piyush Goyal, Nirmala Sithraman and Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi — were on Sunday promoted to the Cabinet and nine new faces including four former bureaucrats became Ministers of States as Prime Minister Narendra Modi expanded the union council of ministers.
The promoted ministers and the new faces were administered the oath of office and secrecy by President Ram Nath Kovind at a 35-minute ceremony at the Rashtrapati Bhavan, attended among others by Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu, Modi, BJP President Amit Shah, Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad and family members of the some new ministers.
The new Ministers of State are former diplomat Hardeep Puri, Gajendra Singh Shekhawat (MP), former Mumbai Police Commissioner Satya Pal Singh (MP), former bureaucrat K.J. Alphons as well as Ashwini Choubey, Shiv Pratap Shukla, Virendra Kumar, Anant Kumar Hegde and former union Home Secretary R.K. Singh (all MPs).
Sunday’s exercise did not involve BJP allies including the Janata Dal-United.
The portfolios of the new and existing ministers — if any of them gets a new ministry — will be known after Rashtrapati Bhavan issues a press communique on recommendations of the Prime Minister, who left for China after the swearing-in ceromony.
Pradhan (Petroleum), Goyal (Power), Sitharaman (Commerce and Industry) and Naqvi (Minority Affairs) were Ministers of State with independent charge.
Suresh Prabhu appeared to indicate that he will no longer be the Railway Minister.
“Thanks to all 13 Lacs plus rail family for their support, love, goodwill. I will always cherish these memories with me. Wishing you all a great life,” he tweeted. Prabhu had offered to quit after last months’s rail accident in Uttar Pradesh claimed 23 lives.
Among the new entrants, four are former bureaucrats. While Puri and Alphons are not members of Parliament, R.K. Singh and Satyapal Singh are members of Lok Sabha. Four others are from the Lok Sabha and one is from Rajya Sabha.
Puri, who was India’s Permanent Representative at the UN, joined the BJP ahead of the 2014 Lok Sabha election. An officer of the 1974 IFS batch, he is known for his experience and expertise in foreign policy and national security.
Alphons, who earned the sobriquet “Demolition Man” when as DDA Commissioner he undertook a campaign against unauthorized constructions in Delhi scrapping 15,000 buildings, is a former IAS officer who joined the BJP in Kerala.
As a Collector, Alphons played a leading role in making Kottayam the first literate town in the whole country in 1989. He is the first BJP person from Kerala in the central government after the veteran O. Rajagopal.
R.K. Singh, a Lok Sabha member from Ara in Bihar, was union Home Secretary during the UPA rule and served in various capacities.
Satyapal Singh, an MP from Baghpat in Uttar Pradesh, was Mumbai Police Commissioner and is also known for his work in Maoist-affected areas of Andhra Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh. He was credited with breaking the backbone of organised crime syndicates in the 1990s.
In the political category, Shiv Pratap Shukla, the Rajya Sabha MP from Uttar Pradesh, is a member of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Rural Development and a four-time member MLA in Uttar Pradesh. He has served as cabinet minister in the state for eight years and is known for his work in rural development, education and prison reforms.
The other nominee from Bihar, Ashwini Choubey, is a Lok Sabha member from Buxar. He was elected MLA from Bhagalpur five consecutive times and has held the portfolios of Health, Urban Development and Public Health Engineering.
Virendra Kumar is a six-time Lok Sabha member from Tikamgarh in Madhya Pradesh and is the chairman of Parliamentary Standing Committee on Labour. Choubey and Kumar have participated in the JP movement in 1970s and were imprisoned during the Emergency.
Hegde, a Lok Sabha MP from Uttara Kannada in Karnataka, is a seasoned parliamentarian having won five elections. He is a member of the parliamentary committee on External Affairs and Human Resource Development and has keen interest in rural development. Assembly elections are due in Karnatka early next year and in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan in the later part.
Shekhawat, a first time MP from Jodhpur in Rajasthan, is a techno savvy progressive farmer and is seen as a role model for the rural community. Known for his simple lifestyle, he is one of the most followed political leaders on Quora globally.
With Sunday’s exercise, the strength of the Modi ministry goes up to 76 including the Prime Minister. Twenty-eight are in the Cabinet.
—IANS
by admin | May 25, 2021 | News, Politics
Gandhinagar : Union Minority Affairs Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi on Saturday said the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance Government treated every section of the society equally and was committed to minorities’ empowerment with dignity but “without appeasement”.
Addressing a cheque distribution programme of Gujarat Minorities Development Finance Corporation here, he said: “Minorities, Dalits, farmers, women and every other section of the country have played an equal role in nation building.”
“There is no place for any kind of discrimination against any religion, caste and community in this agenda. India’s uniqueness is its unity in diversity, ‘Sarva Dharm Sadbhav’. Secularism is in the DNA of India,” he said, adding that “some elements want to disturb this fabric”.
“We all need to come together to defeat such elements. The Modi government will not allow any destructive agenda to dominate our developmental narrative.
“Empowerment without appeasement, inclusive growth and antyodaya (commitment to take benefits of development to the last person of the society) is our agenda,” he said.
Naqvi urged people to be cautious of hostile forces trying to disturb an atmosphere of trust and development.
“We have to remain cautious against these elements. Every section/community of the country is feeling a sense of trust and development under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi,” he said, claiming these forces were trying to disturb the atmosphere by creating a “fabricated atmosphere of insecurity”.
“Like all others, minorities are safe and secure in India,” he said, accusing certain opposition parties and their allies of trying to give a “communal colour to criminal incidents” but “fail to understand that their acts will only provide a cover for persons involved in such incidents”.
Saying that India was much ahead of other democratic countries in ensuring freedom of expression to its people, Naqvi however cautioned that in the name of such freedom, one should not do anything that helps elements inimical to national interest.
He said those unable to digest the developmental works carried out by the Modi government had become disappointed and desperate since they failed to find even a single logical issue against it.
“In their desperation, they are misusing religion as well as community and caste issues for narrow political interests. Earlier, these people raised the issue of so-called intolerance and launched ‘award wapsi’ (return of awards) campaign. Now, they are trying to disturb peace through political propaganda by raising the baseless issue of a sense of insecurity among members of a particular community,” Naqvi added.
—IANS
