West Bengal Government Administrative Calendar, 2014
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GOVERNMENT OF WEST BENGAL ADMINISTRATIVE CALENDAR 2014 GOVERNMENT OF WEST BENGAL ADMINISTRATIVE CALENDAR 2014 CHIEF MINISTER, WEST BENGAL January 2, 2014 Foreword For the first time, the Government of West Bengal has brought out an Administrative Calendar on 2nd January, 2014 relating to the work of all Departments. This Calendar is envisaged to be a single-point handy reference for the major activities to be taken up by the various departments during the year. It will also serve the purpose of a useful management tool for continuous monitoring by the ministers, departmental heads and all supervisory officers. The Calendar outlines the major development-related activities of each department and set timelines for achievements during the year. In effect, it documents the plans and commitments of all wings of the government and thus serves as a tool for good governance. This will make the entire process of developmental governance more transparent, accountable and help citizens to participate in the process of development. This Administrative Calendar will be an important part of government’s efforts to streamline the state administration and provide time-bound services to the citizens of the state. It will clearly convey the message that everyone should treat public service with due seriousness. The District Magistrates have also been advised to bring out Administrative Calendars in their respective Districts in a similar manner. This should herald a new phase in the administrative culture of West Bengal. I look forward to further raising the standards of governance and sincerely believe that this Calendar will be an important step towards that goal. (Mamata Banerjee) A Brief Report on the Major Achievements of the Present Government The Administrative Calendar of all the departments, outlining tasks, activities, events and milestones for the year 2014, is expected to be a very useful management tool for planning, implementation, performance, monitoring and service delivery. It will be difficult to list out all that we have done over the past two years or more. However, at this point, it might be appropriate to briefly recall the major achievements of the new government over the past two and a half years. This will enable us to re-assess our work on a continuing basis and enable us to strive ever harder. A land mark law to ensure return of land to the farmers of Singur has been enacted. • Peace has been restored in the Jangal Mahal area, thanks to the massive development thrust. Development activities in Darjeeling have recommenced after a long hiatus. We hope to bring the fruits of sustained development to our brethren in the hill areas. • Five new police commissionerates, twenty new all women police stations, eighty eight fast track courts and three CBI courts have been created. These represent our commitment to a better law and order administration. • The growth of the State Domestic Product has been very impressive as have been the growth rates in the agriculture, industry and the service sectors during 2012-13. We have consistently outperformed the rest of the country. Our GDP/GSDP growth was 7.6% (compared to 4.96% for India), growth in the agriculture & allied sectors was 2.56% (compared to 1.79% for India), industrial growth was 6.24% (compared to 3.12 % for India) and service sector growth 9.48% (compared to 6.59 % for India). • West Bengal has created an all-India record in matters of own tax collection. In 2012-13, the rate of growth of own tax collection was a record-high 31.57%. • When this government came to power, the tax collection was Rs. 21,000 Crores (2010-11). This year, 2013-14, we will collect Rs. 40,000 Crores (double in three years). • Phenomenal growth has been achieved in capital asset creation. The capital outlay grew by a massive 133% from Rs. 2763.75 Crores in 2011-12 to Rs. 6435.44 Crores in 2012-13 (RE) and is expected to reach Rs. 9318.58 Crores in 2013-14 (BE). • More than 20 lakh new farmers have been given Kisan Credit Cards. Three new direct benefit transfer schemes targeted to small and marginal farmers for farm mechanization, small farm equipment and electricity connection have been introduced. Rs.207 crore has been sanctioned. One hundred and seventy six Krishak Bazars along with cold storage facilities are under construction, providing new markets for the primary aggregation of farm produce. Nearly 70,000 tanks have been excavated under the Jal Bharo Jal Dharo initiative. • The government has now covered 3.2 crore out of the total census population of about 9 crore under the Rs.2 / kg foodgrains scheme. • The new government has already formulated a number of important policies viz., Industrial Policy, IT Policy, Land Allotment Policy, MSME Policy, Textiles Policy and Procurement Policy for the MSME sector. New legislation has been made to allow holding of land beyond ceiling under Section 14Y of the West Bengal Land Reforms Act on case to case basis with the specific approval of the Cabinet Committee on Industry & Infrastructure. • Our work culture has improved appreciably. Strikes and lockouts are almost gone. Nearly 78 lakh mandays had been lost due to strikes during the 34 year tenure of the previous regime. It has been brought it down to five thousand over the last two years. This fiscal, so far it is zero. • Backed up by a sound policy framework, focused interventions for inclusive growth through a holistic coverage of all the segments under micro and small enterprises and textiles sectors has been a major plus. More than twelve thousand small enterprises have come up during this period against an average of 4000 per year in the previous years. All this is reflected in Rs. 8890 crore credit lending by banks to the MSME sector in the state in the first six months of the current fiscal, marking an increase of 32% as compared to the same period in the last fiscal. • Marketing Hubs are being set up for minorities, members of the SHGs and others in each of the 341 blocks of the state in order to provide adequate marketing facilities to artisans in the rural areas. Construction is in progress in 212 blocks. This is expected to generate very substantial employment. • The improvement in our performance under NREGS has been nothing short of spectacular. Last year, our govt. was able to spend more than Rs.4000 crore and create 20.18 crore man days. It was the highest in India in terms of expenditure vis-à-vis receipts. Under PMGSY, sanction for 8000 KM work has been received out of which work for 3200 KM has been completed and 4800 KM are under implementation. • A record number of 44.25 lakh students belonging to the minority communities have been covered under the various scholarship and educational support schemes. Forty three thousand Imams and Moazzems have been associated in the governments’ efforts in the pulse polio programme, maintenance of communal harmony, the universalization of education and the protection of Wakf properties. Performance under the MSDP (92% utilization) has been the best in the country. Seventy five lakhs of SC/ ST/OBC students have been provided scholarships. To encourage school attendance, more than 1,60,000 bicycles have been given to girl students, particularly from SC/ST and minority communities. • More than 1,14,000 pattas have been distributed. These include forest pattas, Nija Griha Nija Bhumi and LR pattas. Lakhs of houses are being built under the Gitanjali and Adhikar Schemes for the economically weaker sections of society. • The school education sector has been strengthened through the formalisation of around eighteen thousand informal Shishu Siksha Kendras / Madhyamik Shiksha Kendras. The Mid-day Meal coverage has been universalised. More than sixteen hundred primary and upper primary schools have started functioning since May, 2011. Thirteen hundred schools have been upgraded from Secondary to Higher Secondary. 40,000 additional class rooms have been constructed. • Six new universities have been approved. Of these, four state-aided universities are at Asansol (Kazi Nazrul), Coochbehar (Panchanan Barma), Bankura and Diamond Harbour (Women’s University). Foundation Stone for the new campus and proposed university of St. Xavier’s College has been laid and classes have already commenced at the newly created Techno India University at Salt Lake. As many as 29 new government colleges have been also been sanctioned. • Employment generation of nearly nine lakh people has been a notable success. This is in addition to a prospective employment generation of more than three lakh people on account of investment proposals received so far in the state. • Substantial employment has also been generated through the self-employment programmes like the PMEGP (1,06,580), Swami Vivekananda SKP (2.14 lakhs) in the MSSE and Handloom Sector (2,30,300) and other sponsored programmes. Close to 3 crore additional person-days have been generated in the handloom sector during this period. About 90,000 people have got employment every year in nearly 12,000 new micro and small enterprises set up since May-2011. We have also launched “Yuvashree” scheme to increase employability of our youth. • Skill Development has been accorded priority. The regulatory structure has been streamlined. 32 new ITIs with 4544 additional seats and 24 new polytechnics with 7760 additional seats are on the anvil. The Skill Development Mission has been operationalised. • The pace of rural electrification has picked up substantially and more than 24,361 villages and 19.06 lakh beneficiaries have been covered. 100% coverage in Howrah and Hooghly will shortly be achieved. • Power Banking has been introduced. Our government has also introduced a Land Bank with Land map to facilitate investment and an Employment Bank to provide better and enhanced employment opportunities to the unemployed youth.