23-Jul-2019: Pension scheme for retailers, traders notified.
Labour ministry has notified the pension scheme for retailers and traders benefitting over three crore self-employed workers in the country. The scheme, which is an extension of the PM Shram Yogi Maan-dhan Yojana, will make all beneficiaries eligible for a monthly pension of Rs 3000 after the age of 60 at a miniscule monthly contribution.
The proposal was approved by the cabinet on May 31 at the first meeting of the Modi 2.0 government and later announced by the finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman in her maiden budget speech on July 5.
All shopkeepers and self-employed persons, as well as retail traders with GST turnover below Rs 1.5 crore and aged between 18-40 years, can enroll for the scheme. Government has earmarked Rs 750 crore for the scheme in the Union Budget 2019-20.
Interested persons can enroll themselves through over 3.25 lakh common service centres spread across the country. The government will make a matching contribution in the subscribers' account.
The scheme may be called the Pradhan Mantri Laghu Vyapari Maan-dhan, Yojana 2019 and shall come into force on the 22nd day of July, 2019.
The provisions of this scheme shall apply to the laghu vyaparis, who are self-employed and working as shop owners, retail traders, rice mill owners, oil mill owners, workshop owners, commission agents, brokers of real estate, owners of small hotels, restaurants and other laghu vyaparis.
Justifying the extension of the scheme, the government said the operations of such small traders are generally characterized by family owned establishments, small scale of operations, labour intensive, inadequate financial aid, seasonal in nature and extensive unpaid family labour.
Government will establish a pension fund to run the scheme. The Life Insurance Corporation of India has been chosen as pension fund manager responsible for managing the pension fund, central record keeping agency and responsible for pension pay out.
31-May-2019: Cabinet clears pension scheme for traders
India has a rich tradition of trade and commerce. Our traders continue to make a strong contribution to India’s economic growth.
In a decision that will benefit the trading community, the Union Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has approved a new scheme that offers pension coverage to the trading community. This is a part of the Prime Minister’s vision to provide a robust architecture of universal social security.
Under this scheme all shopkeepers, retail traders and self-employed persons are assured a minimum monthly pension of Rs. 3,000/- month after attaining the age of 60 years.
All small shopkeepers and self-employed persons as well as the retail traders with GST turnover below Rs. 1.5 crore and age between 18-40 years, can enroll for this scheme. The scheme would benefit more than 3 crore small shopkeepers and traders.
The scheme is based on self-declaration as no documents are required except Aadhaar and bank account. Interested persons can enroll themselves through more than 3,25,000 Common Service Centres spread across the country.
The Government of India will make matching contribution in the subscribers’ account. For example if a person with age of 29 years contributes Rs. 100/- month, then the Central Government also contributes the equal amount as subsidy into subscriber’s pension account every month.
By imitating a pension architecture for the trading community, the Prime Minister and his team have fulfilled a major promise made to the people of India. Shri Modi had spoken about the need of providing pension for traders, that would assure them a life of dignity and financial security especially when during their old age.
This decision can also be seen in the light of several other steps taken for the welfare of traders, small and medium business. The GST underwent significant simplification after taking feedback of the trading community. In the same way, Mudra loans gave wings to the entrepreneurial zeal of young India. Loans upto Rs. 1 crore are now easily available. These, and many more efforts would help the trading community.
19-Dec-2018: India’s largest cancer institute launched at AIIMS’ Jhajjar campus
India’s largest cancer institute, the National Cancer Institute (NCI) hospital opened at Haryana’s Jhajjar area. The hospital is expected to be fully operational by December 2020.
The 710-bed hospital opened its OPD services around five years after its foundation stone was laid by the then prime minister Manmohan Singh in 2014.
X-ray facilities at the hospital will start by end of December, CT scans by early January and radio therapy equipment in next three-four months.
Finalised at a cost of Rs 2,035 crore, the project was approved by the cabinet committee on December 26, 2013, and the hospital’s foundation stone was laid on January 3, 2014.
The aim was to strengthen research and also bring down the patient load at All India Institute of Medical Sciences’ (AIIMS) cancer centre.
The state-of-art cancer centre is a part of the AIIMS-II campus at Jhajjar, for which the Haryana government gave 300 acres of land to AIIMS. The NCI has come up in 35 acres.
The project was dubbed as “independent India’s largest government-funded hospital”. The institute has been modelled after United States’ National Cancer Institute (NCI). It is developed as the premier institute for all activities related to cancer in the country and will have the linkages with all regional cancer centres.
To increase the tertiary care facilities in cancer, the government is supporting the establishment of 20 State Cancer Institutes (SCIs) and 50 Tertiary Care Cancer Centres (TCCCs) in different parts of the country, to mentor cancer-related activities in their respective areas.
The NCI will act as an apex body for the network of the SCIs and TCCCs and shall develop and mentor Cancer related activities. Apart from treatment, the centre’s main focus will be translational research in India-specific cancers.