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Amid growing protest over the imposition of Goods and Services Tax (<keyword id="6354679" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="gst" source="Orion">GST</keyword>) on essential commodities, <keyword id="28504" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="kerala" source="Orion">Kerala</keyword> government on Tuesday said it does not intend to tax items sold by entities like <keyword id="783826" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="kudumbashree" source="Orion">Kudumbashree</keyword>, or small stores in 1 or 2kg packets. State Finance Minister K N <keyword id="255137" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="balagopal" source="Orion">Balagopal</keyword> told the Kerala Assembly that the decision might lead to issues with the central government but the state was not ready to compromise. "At any rate, in Kerala we don't intend to tax items which are sold by organisations like Kudumbashree or in small stores in 1 or 2 kg packets or in loose quantities. Even if this will lead to issues with the Centre," Balagopal told the Assembly. "We are not ready to compromise on this. We had already said this there." He said the state government has already written to the Centre regarding its stand. "Yesterday too, the CM wrote to them regarding these things. We don't intend to levy it on small-scale traders and small stores. There can be no argument on this," Balagopal added. Kerala government's Kudumbashree, a women self-help group, is considered one of the largest women empowerment projects in the country. It's engaged in ventures such as running of small-scale food processing units, and various others. Balagopal said the branded companies have to pay a tax of 5 per cent on packaged products, but if they mention in the packaging that they are not "claiming the brand" then it is not taxed. "So they (centre) have brought in the rule to catch such companies... but there is still some confusion prevailing over this," he added. Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi <keyword id="6388414" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="vijayan" source="Orion">Vijayan</keyword> has sought an urgent intervention of Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the issue of the imposition of GST on essential commodities, arguing the move will severely affect the common people. Vijayan pointed out that many small shopkeepers and millers pre-pack and keep the items ready for sale so that the customers can readily purchase them off the shelf rather than spend time getting the items weighed and packed. In the letter, Vijayan said such pre-packing is a common practice in most of the retail shops in Kerala and the present change will have an adverse impact on the large number of ordinary customers who frequent these shops for their essential purchases. SEE ALSO: <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/cryptocurrency/news/singapore-to-to-act-tough-on-crypto-platforms-in-the-coming-months/articleshow/92994010.cms">Singapore to to act tough on crypto platforms in the coming months</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/finance/news/food-items-when-sold-loose-wont-attract-any-gst-says-nirmala-sitharaman/articleshow/92993947.cms">Food items when sold loose won't attract any GST, says Nirmala Sitharaman</a>

Kerala will not levy GST on items sold by cottage industries

When the pandemic struck, there was a worry in <keyword id="3931800" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="meenangadi" source="Orion">Meenangadi</keyword>, in Kerala's Wayanad district, that their pioneering "tree banking" initiative would hit a roadblock. On the contrary, the project launched by NGO <keyword id="4833341" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="thanal" source="Orion">Thanal</keyword> and the Meenangadi panchayat in 2016 gathered even more momentum. As a part of its series on 'The Promise of Commons', 101Reporters had earlier reported on how Thanal came up with a model to assess Wayanad's excess 11,412 tonnes of carbon dioxide production. Soon, as an initiative to turn Meenangadi carbon neutral, the panchayat launched a project on planting trees in the region. In return, farmers would be incentivised for not cutting the trees down. Executive Director of Thanal <keyword id="147167" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="jayakumar" source="Orion">Jayakumar</keyword> C told 101Reporters that though there were initial challenges when the lockdown started, local support soon helped put the project back on track. With schools being shut, children were at home -- this meant there were more volunteers to lend a hand to their vision. Also, with transport having come to a standstill, it became strenuous for the Forest Department to deliver saplings on time, but they soon found a solution -- a record number of saplings were procured through the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (<keyword id="6361863" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="mgnrega" source="Orion">MGNREGA</keyword>), the country's rural livelihood scheme that provides 100 days of work to rural households. "We saw more progress than we expected, with the local community taking up ownership as well as plantation drives, especially through MGNREGA. We planted around 4 lakh saplings, of which around 2.8 lakh were through efforts under MGNREGA; local residents planted a lakh of them on their own," said Jayakumar. The vision behind the project is to achieve carbon neutrality. While Thanal had decided to evaluate the emissions in 2020, the deadline was pushed to 2023, with the pandemic slowing down the process. To calculate emissions, Thanal follows the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change's (IPCC) model, which means it looks at the cumulative emissions of the panchayat. "Nearly 60 per cent to 65 per cent of the original agenda has been accomplished. In terms of work progressing, there's been tremendous progress from when we started," said Jayakumar. While the exact figures are not available, travel restrictions significantly lowered emissions in the panchayat in the past two years. "In Meenangadi, one of the major contributors (of carbon emissions) is transport. So when transport came to a standstill, there was a huge emission reduction� While we may have been carbon neutral had we looked at emissions in the past few years, but with the easing of restrictions, we are not," he added. While the Meenangadi model may be deemed successful in its attempt to keep a check on the climate crisis, its scalability remains a challenge, especially when we move away from rural communities. "In a rural area like Meenangadi, there's the advantage of bringing in a nature-based solution model, but it's a whole other situation while considering solutions for urban areas with higher carbon emissions. One needs to look for more technical solutions when an urban setting is involved," Jayakumar emphasised. "When you move from a rural to an urban area, your demands are higher because urban settings have higher emissions. Say, for example, in Meenangadi, none of the 8,000 families have a car. But in Kochi, almost every household will have one or two cars. Plus, Kochi would not have any area available to plant 4 lakh trees like Meenangadi!" Moreover, other difficulties lie in getting influential businesspersons engaged in a conversation on the subject. "There are not many shopping complexes in rural areas, and the energy consumption is much lower. In Meenangadi, most people survive on smaller livelihoods, and conversations are possible. The homestays promoting tourism are willing to set up solar rooftop water heaters, so their guests get hot water from solar energy. However, the situation is complex in Kochi. When we reach out to a big retailer, we can't even get the owner to meet us because he has already invested in crores," said Jayakumar. "But the fact that the Meenangadi panchayat is extremely progressive has helped shape the model, and that the community is a politically conscious one is a big plus," he added. Another bonus is women's participation through the Kerala government's self-help group in the area, <keyword id="783826" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="kudumbashree" source="Orion">Kudumbashree</keyword>. A sustainable waste management system in place and sizable coffee plantations and paddy production were other factors that helped boost the project. "With Meenangadi chosen as a current model, there's a possibility of one local government collaborating with other local governments. Then the government of India will have major savings," said Jayakumar. But this does not mean there are no obstacles in Thanal's path. Limited resources in the area is a major concern, but the panchayat has been looking for support from various quarters to make up for the gap. "With limited resources in rural regions, the panchayat has also been looking for support under the Corporate Social Responsibility schemes. There's also support from Kerala's National Institute of Rural Development as well as volunteer programmes. Thanal is also working closely with the panchayat and supports it as much as it can. There's voluntary activism and community acceptance, which helps drive the initiative, including support from Kudumbashree. There's support from local shopkeepers, as well, who have accepted the idea of carbon neutrality," said Jayakumar. There are other bureaucratic and technical challenges when it comes to streamlining the finances for the project. "Even though the government provided the startup money to plant trees, the panchayat can only use the interest from the deposit the state made. There are bureaucratic processes even though this is an approved project. It's not that they are purposely delaying it, but there are some genuine problems with the current rules and regulations." "There are technical obstacles, as well. The panchayat has not been able to get revolving money. More administrative processes need to be up to date in terms of reforms. Financial flow is crucial," he stressed. The other major challenge that Thanal's initiative ran into initially was fighting unfounded beliefs and negative campaigns. "How do you educate people on something that they are not familiar with? Look at rural India. They are not familiar with legislation processes. How do we talk to them about the IPCC and disasters affecting humanity? This is a huge challenge." "At the same time, there's also an opportunity because many coffee plantations had low productivity, so they were experiencing a crisis. When they experience such a crisis, it becomes easier to connect the issue with their experience. Like at the beginning of the project, nobody understood they could not grow two crops of paddy in a year due to climate change. Now they understand that there's a clear climate change impact," Jayakumar pointed out. However, one of the big thrusts behind the project is that it was piloted by the state government with a grant for the tree-banking project. This has translated into the state closely tracking Meenangadi's development and taking lessons from it to replicate the model in other parts of Kerala. When the project started, both the state and panchayat were led by the Left Democratic Front. "In the last elections, the Congress-led coalition came to power at the panchayat. Fortunately, the Left state government and the Congress-led panchayat have been collaborating quite well," he remarked. Jayakumar is confident of the long-term benefits of Thanal's project. To drive more change at the ground, Thanal has now started a climate literacy programme, where more than 50 social media posters will be shared at the panchayat. (The author is a New Delhi-based freelance journalist and a member of 101Reporters, a pan-India network of grassroots reporters.)

Wayanad's Tree Banking project gained momentum  during the pandemic years

Nearly 95 per cent of all new digital workloads will be deployed on the <keyword id="11929101" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="cloud" source="Orion">Cloud</keyword> by 2025, <keyword id="10387" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="microsoft" source="Orion">Microsoft</keyword>'s Executive Chairman CEO <keyword id="276564" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="satya-nadella" source="Orion">Satya Nadella</keyword> has said. Addressing the company's annual conference �Microsoft Inspire 2022', <keyword id="2045946" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="nadella" source="Orion">Nadella</keyword> said that Cloud is foundational to how organisations will be competitive going forward. "Every customer I speak with is clear-eyed about aligning their IT investments to scale with demand. Moving to the cloud allows them to just do that - converting their spending from CapEx to OpEx", Nadella told the partner community. "It's the only way to navigate the headwinds we are confronting today. This is not some abstract concept," he added. Microsoft is set to add 10 new data centres in 10 global markets to deliver faster access to services and help address data residency needs, Nadella informed. The demand for cloud solutions is estimated to exceed $1 trillion by 2025. Microsoft announced new benefits with the �ISV Success Programme', to help independent software vendors (ISVs) innovate rapidly, build well-architected applications, publish them to our commercial marketplace and grow their sales. "Currently in private preview, and broadly available in fall 2022, the program is intended to be the pathway to ISV success in the Microsoft <keyword id="14504514" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="cloud-partner-programme" source="Orion">Cloud Partner Programme</keyword>," said the company. Participants can get access to nearly $128,000 in benefits to utilise productive, modern and innovative developer tools to accelerate software production. The company also announced Microsoft Cloud for Sovereignty, designed specifically for the government sector. This new solution enables public sector customers to build and digitally transform workloads in the Microsoft Cloud while meeting their compliance, security and policy requirements. "Public sector customers can harness the full power of the cloud including broad platform capabilities, resiliency, security, and scale, while having greater control over their data, residency, and transparency to its operational and governance processes," said the tech giant. On <keyword id="107950" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="artificial-intelligence" source="Orion">Artificial Intelligence</keyword>, Nadella said that by 2025, 10 per cent of all data will be produced by generative AI models. "Analytics is moving from backend processes to being critical part of the product experience," he said. SEE ALSO : <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/politics/india/news/wont-impose-gst-on-items-sold-by-kudumbashree-or-small-stores-says-kerala-minister/articleshow/92998602.cms">Won't Impose GST On Items Sold By Kudumbashree Or Small Stores, says Kerala Minister</a> <a target="_blank" class="c-link c-message_attachment__title_link" href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/telecom/news/airtel-outpaces-jio-vi-in-subscriber-additions-this-year/articleshow/92997035.cms">Airtel outpaces Jio &amp; VI in subscriber additions this year</a>

Satya Nadella says 95% of new digi-workloads will be on cloud by 2025

Thiruvananthapuram, Apr 24 (): Kudumbashree, hailed asone of the worlds largest women empowerment and povertyeradication missions, has launched a special initiative forthe well-being of the elderly in Kerala during theCOVID-19lockdownwitha string of confidence-building measures.  The thrust of the outreach has been to take care of themental health of the elderly and boost their confidencethrough IEC(Information, Education and Communication)programme.   There are chances of co-morbidity and low immunity amongthe elderly people. So, it makes them vulnerable to theepidemic. We could successfully convey the message to around43 lakh people throughthe IECcampaign,saidS Harikishore,Executive Director, Kudumbashree, which functionsas acommunity organisation of Neighborhood Groups (NHGs) of womenin Kerala.    The programme, which focuses on the message elderlyshould take extra precaution,is one of the three campaignscatering to the senior citizens. A letter and a video message from the Executive Directorwere distributed to Ayalkoottams(neighbourhoodgroups),apart from SMS and posters through WhatsApp, tocreate a sense of seriousness among the public, he noted.   There are three lakh Ayalkoottams in Kerala and around 43lakh people are part of it. Just before lockdown got underway, Kudumbashree sent a discussion note to all neighbourhoodgroups, which they discussed in their meetings,"Harikishore said. "Apart from the message to the elderly, the focus of thenote was to effectively implement Break the Chain campaignand social distancing. So, I can confidently say that we havecovered around 50 per cent of families, he said.    In the second round, Kudumbashree targeted two groups:quarantined elders at home and people above 60 years fromdestitute families.   Among the 1,50,000 people, who were quarantined at home,around 5,000 elderly people were primary contacts. Since theyare the most vulnerable, as per the directions of the HealthDepartment, Kudumbashree gave special care to them, theofficial pointed out.   Kudumbashree has mobilised and trained 786 volunteers witheach one of them contacting 10 people. The one-to-onecontact campaign with the elderly is effective. It also has atouch of care, he said.   Expressing happiness over Kudumbashree teams making one-to-one contact with such a large number of people indestitute and quarantined families, Harikishore said itboosted their confidence considerably.   The third phase of the campaign targeted elderly people indestitute families under Destitute-Free Kerala project ofKudumbashree.    Among 1.54 lakh destitute families, there are 1.14 lakhelderly people. We designated 2,176 resource persons and theycontacted them once in five days. So far, we have covered 95per cent such vulnerable people, he added.  LGK UDNVG   NVG

Special initiatives for the elderly in COVID-19 times

<ul><li>Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that there will be a ‘Janata Curfew’ on March 22.</li><li>Simultaneously, Kerala’s Chief Minister <keyword id="6356705" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="pinarayi-vijayan">Pinarayi Vijayan</keyword> announced some serious steps for his state in a relief fund of ₹20,000 crore ($2.6 billion).</li><li>Vijayan plan includes free food for all, extension on bill payments, and social security for those without pension. </li></ul>As Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke about a <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/top-highlights-from-prime-minister-narendra-modi-speech-on-coronavirus-news/articleshow/74715505.cms">nation-wide curfew and placated his audience</a>, the Kerala’s Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan announced some serious steps to keep help citizens within the state. Modi’s ‘<a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/what-is-janata-curfew-that-pm-narendra-modi-suggested-coronavirus-impact/articleshow/74716089.cms">Janata Curfew</a>’ has its own charm, indicative of more such exercises to be a part of the coming weeks until the <keyword id="1754604" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="coronavirus">coronavirus</keyword> outbreak dies down. However, Vijayan’s concrete steps will go a long way to actually calm down citizens in a situation where many are now starting to panic — including free ration, a relief for those rushing to stores to buy staples before stocks run out. A total of ₹20,000 crore ($2.6 billion) has been allocated towards relief measures. Here are some of things that the ₹20,000 relief funds will cover: <ul><li>Free ration for everyone, no discrimination between rich and poor</li><li>2 month’s pension to be given together</li><li>₹100 crore has been set aside for those without pension </li><li>One month extension on the payment of power and water bills</li><li>Health package of ₹500 crore</li><li>Loans worth ₹2,000 crore will be allocated to families in need through Kudumbashree </li><li>Fitness fee for autorickshaws will be relaxed</li><li>Entertainment tax reduction will be given in cinema halls</li><li>Stage carriage and contract carriage in buses will be tax-deductible</li><li>Stage carrier will be give an one-month exemption for three months tax</li></ul>Currenly, there are 27 active coronavirus cases in Kerala. It’s among the top 5 most impacted states in India. The country’s overall death toll 4 today — after a 64-year old man in Punjab passed away — and there are 173 total reported cases. 
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 See also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/what-is-janata-curfew-that-pm-narendra-modi-suggested-coronavirus-impact/articleshow/74716089.cms">What is Janata Curfew that PM Narendra Modi suggested: Coronavirus Impact</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/top-highlights-from-prime-minister-narendra-modi-speech-on-coronavirus-news/articleshow/74715505.cms">Prime Minister Narendra Modi tells 1.3 billion Indians to impose a symbolic 'janata curfew' on March 22</a>

While PM Modi called for a 'janata curfew', the Kerala government implemented some serious steps

Mala in Alleppey, Rashmi in Sitamarhi and Sarita in Damoh are busy making masks to protect thousands from <keyword id="1754604" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="coronavirus">coronavirus</keyword> and at the same time are supporting their family financially during the lockdown period. Several self help groups, NGOs and local administration have joined hands to ensure that masks -- a very essential means of protection from the infection-- reach everyone in the country. The move has not only helped in protecting others but has also given livelihood opportunities to several women specially during the period of lockdown when most of them from the unorganised sectors have lost their jobs. In Kerala, over 300 women-led micro enterprises under the Kudumbashree – State Poverty Eradication Mission in Kerala -- have manufactured more than 14.50 lakh cloth masks, a representative from the Gram Panchayat of Veeyapuram said. Priced between Rs 10 and 15 depending on the layering in the mask, the micro enterprises have by that measure grossed a turnover of around Rs 2 crore through these units to meet the demand for masks and providing a reusable option in cloth, he said. The masks are being sought through bulk orders by government departments and essential service providers, he added. Child rights body Save the Children said they had provided support in setting up the apparel training centre in 2018 and women are beneficiaries. "These women were trained, provided material support and currently they are making masks. This unit is self sustainable and at this crisis time this is not only providing service to the community but this is also a livelihood support for the marginalised and BPL category women," said Anindit Roy Choudhury, Director Programmes, Save the Children. These masks are not only ensuring protection of people from coronavirus but also giving a means of livelihood for people like Mala. Mala has got Rs 8000 so far by for stitching masks under the initiative. She says she can stitch up to 200 masks every day. "Sale of the masks is a means of livelihood in this period of lockdown. Earlier, I was not contributing to my family but now I am able to support them financially," she told . In <keyword id="6354915" type="LOCATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="assam">Assam</keyword>'s Dibrugarh district, the masks are manufactured by Partner NGO of Save the Children, SEWA. The masks are being made as per request of the district administration. Till now 800 pieces which have been made will be distributed in the tea estate, Chaudhary said. As per SEWA's request the district administration issued a general order to shop owners to supply raw material to SEWA. "A worker can produce 40 to 50 masks per day. The main aim is to promote the use of masks amongst the common people and also to make the masks available for poor and vulnerable people," he said. In Damoh in Madhya Pradesh, around 156 women have been involved in production of masks and have made over 50,000 masks till now which are ready for distribution, a local administration official said. Sarita, who used to earlier work as a daily wager, is now stitching masks in Damoh. "This way, I can support my family till things return to normal. She says she knew basic training and it is helping her now," she said. In Bihar's Sitamarhi, women are making masks with support from the government and supplying it to primary health centres. "We are selling one mask for Rs 20. It is our way to ensure that these affordable masks reach every one," said Rashmi, a volunteer, involved in stitching these masks. In east Champaran district and Gaya too, Save the Children is involved in the production of masks. "In east Champaran district, our partners have received the approval from the government on helping spread the awareness on COVID-19 and on the importance of lockdown and physical distancing. The masks were also made and distributed on the basis of same approval," said Choudhury. In Gaya, an adolescent group of girls prepared the masks at a local level on the basis of specifications advised by the government and distributed in their community, he said. He said the materials were procured locally from local vendors. Due to non-availability of materials they couldn't make many masks. He said around 3500 masks were made in two days in Gaya and east Champaran. "The aim of this program is to orient and make aware children and communities on COVID-19 and its preventive measures. The focus is to mitigate the risk factors related to COVID-19 transmission," he added He said the move not only aims at providing immediate respite to communities through food (dry ration) baskets, hygiene and dignity kits, but also provide livelihood support to make sure that families can deal with the economic blow that the pandemic has brought on to them, said Choudhury. India is currently under the biggest lockdown with around 1.3 billion people asked to stay home in view of the coronavirus outbreak, which has claimed 273 lives and infected more than 8,000 people. UZM DVDVDV

Masks saving not only lives but also helping women earn livelihood during lockdown

By Uzmi Athar New Delhi, Apr 12 () Mala in Alleppey, Rashmi in Sitamarhi and Sarita in Damoh are busy making masks to protect thousands from coronavirus and at the same time are supporting their family financially during the lockdown period.Several self help groups, NGOs and local administration have joined hands to ensure that masks -- a very essential means of protection from the infection-- reach everyone in the country.The move has not only helped in protecting others but has also given livelihood opportunities to several women specially during the period of lockdown when most of them from the unorganised sectors have lost their jobs.In Kerala, over 300 women-led micro enterprises under the Kudumbashree – State Poverty Eradication Mission in Kerala -- have manufactured more than 14.50 lakh cloth masks, a representative from the Gram Panchayat of Veeyapuram said.Priced between Rs 10 and 15 depending on the layering in the mask, the micro enterprises have by that measure grossed a turnover of around Rs 2 crore through these units to meet the demand for masks and providing a reusable option in cloth, he said.The masks are being sought through bulk orders by government departments and essential service providers, he added.Child rights body Save the Children said they had provided support in setting up the apparel training centre in 2018 and women are beneficiaries."These women were trained, provided material support and currently they are making masks. This unit is self sustainable and at this crisis time this is not only providing service to the community but this is also a livelihood support for the marginalised and BPL category women," said Anindit Roy Choudhury, Director Programmes, Save the Children. These masks are not only ensuring protection of people from coronavirus but also giving a means of livelihood for people like Mala.Mala has got Rs 8000 so far by for stitching masks under the initiative. She says she can stitch up to 200 masks every day."Sale of the masks is a means of livelihood in this period of lockdown. Earlier, I was not contributing to my family but now I am able to support them financially," she told .In Assam's Dibrugarh district, the masks are manufactured by Partner NGO of Save the Children, SEWA. The masks are being made as per request of the district administration.Till now 800 pieces which have been made will be distributed in the tea estate, Chaudhary said.As per SEWA's request the district administration issued a general order to shop owners to supply raw material to SEWA."A worker can produce 40 to 50 masks per day. The main aim is to promote the use of masks amongst the common people and also to make the masks available for poor and vulnerable people," he said.In Damoh in Madhya Pradesh, around 156 women have been involved in production of masks and have made over 50,000 masks till now which are ready for distribution, a local administration official said.Sarita, who used to earlier work as a daily wager, is now stitching masks in Damoh."This way, I can support my family till things return to normal. She says she knew basic training and it is helping her now," she said.In Bihar's Sitamarhi, women are making masks with support from the government and supplying it to primary health centres."We are selling one mask for Rs 20. It is our way to ensure that these affordable masks reach every one," said Rashmi, a volunteer, involved in stitching these masks.In east Champaran district and Gaya too, Save the Children is involved in the production of masks."In east Champaran district, our partners have received the approval from the government on helping spread the awareness on COVID-19 and on the importance of lockdown and physical distancing. The masks were also made and distributed on the basis of same approval," said Choudhury.In Gaya, an adolescent group of girls prepared the masks at a local level on the basis of specifications advised by the government and distributed in their community, he said.He said the materials were procured locally from local vendors. Due to non-availability of materials they couldn't make many masks.He said around 3500 masks were made in two days in Gaya and east Champaran."The aim of this program is to orient and make aware children and communities on COVID-19 and its preventive measures. The focus is to mitigate the risk factors related to COVID-19 transmission," he addedHe said the move not only aims at providing immediate respite to communities through food (dry ration) baskets, hygiene and dignity kits, but also provide livelihood support to make sure that families can deal with the economic blow that the pandemic has brought on to them, said Choudhury.India is currently under the biggest lockdown with around 1.3 billion people asked to stay home in view of the coronavirus outbreak, which has claimed 273 lives and infected more than 8,000 people. UZM DVDV

You Searched For "kudumbashree" and got 7 results

Kerala will not levy GST on items sold by cottage industries

PTI

Wayanad's Tree Banking project gained momentum during the pandemic years

IANS

Satya Nadella says 95% of new digi-workloads will be on cloud by 2025

IANS

Special initiatives for the elderly in COVID-19 times

PTI

While PM Modi called for a 'janata curfew', the Kerala government implemented some serious steps

Prabhjote Gill

Masks saving not only lives but also helping women earn livelihood during lockdown

PTI

Masks saving not only lives but also helping women earn livelihood duirng lockdown

PTI

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