State Govt okays VOA office
Source: Hueiyen News Service
Imphal, January 04 2014 :
The State Cabinet has resolved to open a Visa on Arrival (VOA) office at Moreh at the earliest in addi-tion to opening an Immigration Centre at Tulihal Airport.
As decided in a Cabinet meeting held this afternoon, staff required for the Immigration Centre and the VOA office would be requisitioned from the existing staff of Home Department, informed Education and CAF&PD Mi-nister M Okendro who is also the Government spokesman.
During the Cabinet meeting presided by Chief Minis- ter O Ibobi, the Home Department put up a proposal of creating 26 posts for manning the proposed VOA office at Moreh and the Immigration Centre at Imphal airport.
However, the State Cabinet, keeping in view sick fi- nancial condition of the State, decided to requisition necessary staff of the two offices from among the existing Go-vernment employees.
Informing that the Cabinet gave its consent to open an IIT in Bishnupur district, Okendro said Manipur Protection of Interests of Depo- sitors (in Finance Establishment) Bill, 2012 was passed by the Cabinet meeting.
The Bill would enable the Government to take befitting action in case any financial establishments, multi level marketing networks, chain bu-siness networks etc dupe de- positors and rob money from public as and when the Bill is passed by the State Assembly and becomes an Act, he said.
NFSA meeting: The first District Level Committee Meeting for implementation of National Food Security Act, 2013 in respect of Thou-bal district was held today at the Conference Hall of DC, Thoubal district.
The meeting was chaired by CAF&PD Minister M Okendro and attended by Agriculture and Fisheries Mi-nister Md Abdul Nasir; Com- missioner (CAF&PD) Y Thamkishore; DC (Thoubal) T Ranjit and MLAs of Thou-bal district, Pradhans and members of Zilla Parishad.
The National Food Security Act, 2013 which came into force from July 5, 2013 envisages to provide food-grains at subsidised rates to eligible households of the State.
87 percent of the population is to be covered under the Targeted Public Distribution System of the Act.
Eligible Households are classified as Antyodaya Anna Yojana Household and Priority Households.
AAY house- holds are entitled to receive 35 kgs of foodgrains a month at subsidised rate and each member of Priority Households entitled to receive 5 kgs of foodgrains at subsidised rates.
Speaking at the meet, Commissioner Thamkishore said that the Act is expected to cover more beneficiaries than the erstwhile PDS.
Highlighting the necessity to conduct detailed identification of the beneficiaries under the Act, Y Thamkishore said that the Act could not be implemented unless identification of beneficiaries is completed.
He also stressed on the role of local bodies in the successful and expeditious implementation of NFSA.
CAF&PD Minister M Okendro while speaking at the programme said that the NFSA, a flagship programme of the UPA, is a programme not known in any parts of the World.
He said that ensuring completion of identification of Priority Households within January and implementing the Act from March 3 is not an easy task to achieve.
Acknowledging the lack of awareness among the people on the Act, the Minister stressed on the need to spread awareness among the people while also adding that the Act would not be a success without the participation and cooperation of the public.
It may be highlighted here that the total number of Priority Households proposed to be covered under NFSA in respect of Thoubal district is 72, 730 that included 10, 516 AAY households.
Inclusion criteria under the Act included households with disabled persons; single women living in households as dependent or as head of the households; children living without protection; persons living with HIV; unskilled construction workers, casual daily wage labours, domestic workers, rickshaw drivers etc and any other households having annual income of less than Rs 1 lakh.
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