Update on India’s States: July 20, 2016

 IndiaBanners_CogitAsia_states_Update

Prime Minister Modi meets with chief ministers; Delhi bans old diesel vehicles; Congress government restored in Arunachal Pradesh; Haryana launches tax refund program for land acquisition related to manufacturing; two chief ministers visit Russia; Rajasthan sets a minimum wage for part-time workers; Maharashtra allows farmers to sell some goods directly to buyers, Madhya Pradesh imposes 6 percent e-commerce entry tax.

Center–State relations

Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired the 11th Inter-State Council meeting on July 18. Topics discussed included center-state relations, the use of Aadhaar and Direct Benefit Transfer to provide essential public services, improving quality of education, and intelligence-sharing between states and with center.

Source: Business Standard, Times of India

In Detail: Press Release

Pema Khandu was sworn in as the new chief minister of Arunachal Pradesh after the Supreme Court of India restored Congress rule in the state and allowed the party to prove its majority in the state assembly.

Source: Indian Express


Andhra Pradesh chief minister N. Chandrababu Naidu visited Russia for a five-day tour to promote collaboration between his state and Russia’s regional entities. He signed a memorandum of understanding with the State Marine Technical university of St. Petersburg to promote maritime education and shipbuilding engineering and promised to create a Russian investment hub in the state.

Source: The Hindu, The Hindu


Bihar has signed an agreement with Thailand’s Asian Disaster Preparedness Center to help implement the state’s 15-year roadmap for disaster risk reduction. The roadmap includes improving infrastructure in schools and hospitals, designing disaster-resistant buildings, and conducting workshops and training.

Source: Indian Express


The National Green Tribunal ordered Delhi to revoke the registration of all diesel-powered vehicles that are more than 10 years old. The NGT had previously ordered that diesel vehicles older than 15 years be removed from the roads.

Source: Hindustan Times

The Delhi government approved the fourth phase of the Delhi Metro. New construction will extend the metro to outer areas of the capital and bring total system length to 280 miles.

Source: Economic Times

The center has sanctioned $98 million from the urban development fund for five transportation infrastructure projects in Delhi.

Source: Hindu Business Line

IndiaBanners_CogitAsia_states_Gujarat
Gujarat recorded a growth rate of 7.7 percent in fiscal year 2014-15, among its slowest growth rates ever recorded.

Source: Times of India

State-owned power equipment maker, Bharat Heavy Electric Limited, has commissioned a 250 megawatt (MW) unit in Bhavnagar that will use an environmentally-friendly circulating fluidized bed combustion technology that can employ low quality coal as the primary fuel.

Source: Economic Times

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The United Kingdom has extended its support to Haryana to set up infrastructure for medical colleges in the state and to train paramedic and support staff in government hospitals.

Source: Indian Express

The Haryana government is introducing a scheme to refund tax on land purchases to boost manufacturing in the state. The rebate will apply on land zoned for industrial use, land in state industrial parks/estates, and land purchased by private developers who have begun commercial production. Micro, small, and medium enterprises will receive a complete refund.

Source: Times of India

Alexandre Ziegler, France’s ambassador-designate to India, met with Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar to discuss potential partnerships with the state government in clean energy, transportation, and water management.

Source: Business Standard

Haryana became the second state to form a joint venture company with the Ministry of Railways to undertake rail infrastructure projects in the state.

Source: Economic Times

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The state legislative assembly passed five bills in the latest session. The bills passed include an amendment to the Karnataka Forest Act to increase collection of development funds from mine owners and an amendment to the Karnataka Housing Board Act that exempts the Board from having to apply for permissions for projects under $375,000.

Source: Deccan Chronicle

The Karnataka Region Economic and Trade Organization signed an agreement with the municipal government of Sanya City, in Hainan, China to allow delegations to participate in exchange trips. Source: Hindu Business Line


Madhya Pradesh became the first state to create an official Happiness Department. The department will initially be chaired by Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan.

Source: Times of India

The Madhya Pradesh government is planning to impose a six percent entry tax on goods purchased from e-commerce firms.

Source: Financial Express

IndiaBanners_CogitAsia_states_Maharastra
Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis visited Russia’s International Industrial Trade Fair and signed two memoranda of understanding with Russian regions to promote trade and cooperation on scientific issues. A Russian water management company, Vodakanal, will assist the Maharashtra government to institute innovative solutions in water supply and water disposal technologies.

Source: Indian Express, RBTH

Maharashtra issued an ordinance amending the Agricultural Produce Market Committee Act, allowing farmers to sell vegetables and fruits directly to consumers. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis is seeking to scrap Agricultural Produce Marketing Committees entirely, but faces intense political opposition.

Source: Firstpost

The Maharashtra government is planning a new internal policy research department to evaluate publicly-funded schemes and programs. The department will be called the Institute for Policy Research.

Source: Business Standard

IndiaBanners_CogitAsia_states_Rajasthan
Rajasthan has become the first state in India to set a minimum wage for part-time workers and to bring them under the Minimum Wages Act 1948. Part-time employees who work at least four hours will receive a full day’s minimum wage and those who work less than four hours will be paid half salary.

Source: Indian Express

Rajasthan conducted an auction for 130 MW of solar power which saw winning bids fall to 6.5 cents per kilowatt-hour.

Source: Economic Times

Rajasthan Urban Drinking Water Sewerage and Infrastructure Corporation Limited issued three new orders worth $190 million for design and construction of sewage systems that re-use treated wastewater.

Source: Economic Times

IndiaBanners_CogitAsia_states_TamilNadu
The Asian Development Bank will provide a $100 million loan for irrigation projects, drainage system improvement, and water management at the Cauvery delta in Tamil Nadu.

Source: Economic Times

In Detail: Press release


Telangana has set a goal of 25,000 MW of coal-fired power by the end of 2018. The state’s current thermal capacity is 4,365 MW.

Source: Economic Times

The Telangana government has decided to move polluting factories in the Hyderabad area outside the city limits by the end of 2017.

Source: Economic Times

Telangana has refused to revise land registration values for two years, creating a growing gap between the official and market values of land. The delay may be due to the government’s need to acquire large areas of land in the Hyderabad area for infrastructure projects.

Source: Deccan Chronicle

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The Congress party announced that former Delhi chief minister Sheila Dikshit would be its chief minister candidate in the 2017 Uttar Pradesh assembly polls.

Source: Business Standard

IndiaBanners_CogitAsia_states_WestBengal
Nothing critical to report this week.

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