60 days and counting

Though it has ben just 2 months in office, the effect of Prime Minister Narendra Modi is being felt on a wide range of affairs beyond just the cosmetic change of coming early to work. There is finally a Prime Minister who is fully engaged in the process of decision making and implementation. The pace and quality of work is the palpable difference.

1. Accountability at the top: There is constant monitoring of all ministries and their political and departmental heads. Every Minister has to  account for their expenses and justify the work accomplished by those expenses. Dinner parties, travel plans...even appropriate attire in public have come under scrutiny.

 

2. National Food Grid: Price rise being the biggest concern all over the country has lead to the creation of the National Food Grid to curb the agricultural mafias. All 3,600 mandis or major produce markets across the country are linked to the grid. The Prime Minister is also keen on fast tracking the Agricultural Corridor from Punjab to West Bengal.

 

3. Green Corridor: A "Green Corridor" along Rajasthan and Gujarat is being proposed to boost economic activity. The corridor would use solar energy to generate significant volumes of electricity. Similar initiatives are also being considered for other parts of the country. This would help enable the transition of people from fossil fuels to cleaner energy sources.  

 

4. National Population Register: Prime Minister is working towards concrete illegal immigration controls. There will be the creation of a national citizen database - the National Population Register. This register will be used to ensure proper right and benefits reach the intended target and not unscrupulous agents.

 

5. National Litigation Data Grid: This will create an online database of all cases in our courts today. This will provide status of cases, information about the case and hearing dates. This will also enable the Supreme Court to measure efficiency in the system. There is also talk of hiring 200 additional judges to clear the current backlog.

 

6. MyGov: The Prime Minister launched MyGov to initiate the process of crowdsourcing the developmental activities of this nation.

 

7.  Women's Bank: Banks meant for women is being proposed to empower and take care of the financial needs of women. Rashtriya Mahila Kosh and Bharatiya Mahila Bank may be merged together to create a new entity.

 

8. Clean the Ganges: An inter-ministerial panel has been formed to oversee the task. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley gave it 20 billion rupees (S$411 million) for the financial year ending March 31.

 

9. Pure Breed Cows: Rs 500 crores has bee allotted to the program of breeding pure bred cows. This will ensure high milk production. There is also provision to use the cow dung and urine for matures and biogas for electricity.

 

10. Forest and Environmental approvals: To fast track the approval of projects from forest and environmental ministry, the process will go online. Rather than freeze or roll back economic activities was the norm in the past decade,  there will be a balanced decision making process in view of the rights and interest of the public.