Prelims Spotlight is a part of “Nikaalo Prelims 2020” module. This open crash course for Prelims 2020 has a private telegram group where PDFs and DDS (Daily Doubt Sessions) are being held. Please click here to register.
20 March 2020
Schemes and Policies for Women
| SCHEME | OBJECTIVES | SALIENT FEATURES | MINISTRY |
| Nirbhaya Fund | -Nirbhaya Fund is an Indian rupee 10 billion corpus announced by Government of India in its 2013 Union Budget. -According to the then Finance Minister P. Chidambaram, this fund is expected to support initiatives by the government and NGOs working towards protecting the dignity and ensuring the safety of women in India. -Nirbhaya (fearless) was the pseudonym given to the 2012 Delhi gang-rape victim to hide her actual identity. |
Earlier Ministry of Home Ministry, Now Ministry of Women & Child | |
| ICDS | -To prevent and reduce young child under-nutrition (% underweight children 0- 3 years) by 10 percentage points, -Enhance early development and learning outcomes in all children 0-6 years of age, -improve the care and nutrition of girls and women and reduce anaemia prevalence in young children, girls and women by one fifth by the end of the 12th five-year plan. |
-It is a centrally sponsored scheme -The engagement of the Anganwadi worker and helper from the same village -It is a universal and self-selecting scheme i.e. anyone can visit the Aanganwadi centre and enrol these services. -Package of six services i.e. o SNP – supplementary nutrition programme o Pre-school education o Health and nutrition education, o Immunization, o Health check-up and o Referral services to the beneficiaries AEC-cum-crèche, AWC-cum counsellor. |
Ministry of Women & Child |
| Mahila Police Volunteer | It envisages the creation of a link between the police authorities and the local communities in villages through police volunteers who will be women specially trained for this purpose. Under this scheme, it is expected to have at least one such volunteer in every village whose primary job will be to keep an eye on situations where women in the village are harassed or their rights and entitlements are denied or their development is prevented. Joint initiative b/w Min. of WCD and Home Min. | Ministry of Women & Child and Home Ministry | |
| UJJAWALA Yojana | A comprehensive scheme for prevention of trafficking and rescue, rehabilitation and reintegration of victims of trafficking and commercial sexual exploitation | Ministry of Women & Child | |
| One-Stop centre scheme | 1. To provide integrated support and assistance to women affected by violence, both in private and public spaces under one roof. 2. To facilitate immediate, emergency and non-emergency access to a range of … support under one roof to fight against any forms of violence against women |
1. These centres will provide immediate access to a range of services including medical, legal, psychological and counselling support to the victims. 2. The OSC will support all women including girls below 18 years of age affected by violence, also for girls below 18 years of age, institutions and authorities established under Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2000 and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 will be linked with the OSC. 3. In addition to this, a single uniform number –181 will provide 24-hour emergency response to all women affected by violence, through referral (linking with appropriate authorities such as Police, OSC or hospital); funding thru’ Nirbhaya fund |
Ministry of Women & Child |
| Swadhar Grehs | Homes for relief and rehabilitation of women in difficult circumstances including survivors of rape/assault etc. Provision for food clothing, counselling. training, clinical and legal aid; long term |
Ministry of Women & Child | |
| She-Box | Online complaint Management System for women working in both public and private organizations to ensure effective implementation of the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace Act | Ministry of Women & Child | |
| Universalization of Women Helpline | Ministry of Women & Child | ||
| The mission for Protection and Empowerment for Women | : To achieve holistic empowerment of women through the convergence of schemes/programmes of different Ministries/ Department of Government of India as well as State Governments |
-It aimed at improving the declining Child Sex Ratio; ensuring survival. & protection of the girl child; ensuring her education, and empowering her to fulfil her potentials social sector welfare schemes for care, protection and development of women. -It will provide an interface for rural women to approach the government for availing their entitlements and for empowering them through training and capacity building. |
Ministry of Women & Child |
| Mahila Shakti Kendra | -Mahila Shakti Kendras will converge all Govt. Schemes for women at National, State, District and Block level Skill Development, Employment, Digital Literacy, Health and Nutrition. -Through this scheme, the government plans to reach 115 most backward districts in the country with 920 Mahila Shakti Kendra… |
Ministry of Women & Child | |
| PRIYADARSHINI SCHEME(discontinued in 2016) | Women’s Empowerment and Livelihoods Programme in the Mid Gangetic Plains | Ministry of Women & Child | |
| Sabla | -Enable the adolescent girls for self-development and empowerment -Improve their nutrition and health status. -Promote awareness about health, hygiene, nutrition, adolescent reproductive and sexual health (ARSH) and family and child care. -To educate, skill and make them ready for life’s challenges |
Nutrition provision – Iron and folic acid (IFA) supplementation – Health check-up and referral services – Nutrition & health education (NHE) -Counselling/guidance on family welfare, ARSH, child care practices and home management. -Upgrade home-based skills, life skills and integrate with the national skill development program (NSDP) for vocational skills. -Mainstream out of school adolescent girls into formal/non-formal education. -Provide information/guidance about existing public services such as PHC, CHC, post office, bank, police the station, etc. |
Ministry of Women & Child |
| Saksham | Ministry of Women & Child | ||
| Mahila Kisan Sashaktikaran Pariyojana | -Empower women in agriculture by making systematic investments to enhance their participation and productivity, -Create and sustain agriculture-based livelihoods of rural women. |
-a sub-component of the Deendayal Antodaya Yojana-NRLM (DAY-NRLM) – Under the Pariyojana, projects are conceived in such a manner that the skill base of the women in agriculture is enhanced to enable them to pursue their livelihoods on a sustainable basis. -Under MKSP sustainable agriculture, 58 projects from 14 States have been sanctioned which will benefit 24.5 lakhs Mahila Kisans during the period. |
Ministry of Rural Development |
| Beti Bachao Beti Padhao | 1.Prevent Female infanticide 2.Ensure Every Girl Child is Protected 3.Ensure every Girl Child is educated Enforcement of PC & PNDT Act, nation-wide awareness and advocacy campaign and multi-sectoral action in select 100 districts (low on Child Sex Ratio) in the first phase. -Under this scheme, there is a strong emphasis on mindset change through training, sensitization, awareness-raising and community mobilization on ground. |
It is a tri-ministerial effort of Ministries of Women and Child Development, Health & Family Welfare and Human Resource Development. | |
| Sukanya samriddhi yojana | 1.(Minor) bank account for girl child below the age of 10. 2.She can withdraw 50% of the money after reaching the age of 18 e.g. for higher education. 18 years deadline will also help to prevent child-marriages. For initial account opening, minimum deposit Rs.1000 required. Later, any amount in multiples of 100 can be deposited, but maximum Rs. 1.5 lakh per year. Interest rate: 9.1% compounded annually. |
Ministry of Women & Child | |
| Pocso-e Box | 1, POCSO e-box is a unique endeavour by NCPCR for receiving an online complaint of Child Sexual Abuse directly from the victim. 2. Through a well-defined procedure, complaints are directly followed up by a team which counsels the victim, providing further guidance for required legal action. Through a short animation film embedded in the e-box, it assures the victim not to feel bad, helpless or confused as it’s not her fault. With the e-box, it is easy to register a complaint through a step-by-step guided process. |
The Ministry of Women & Child It is an initiative of the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR), for Direct online Reporting of Child Sexual Abuse. |
|
| NARI | Due to scattered information on various women-centric schemes/legislations, there is a lack of awareness among people regarding the same. To address this problem the government launched NARI portal as a single window access to information and services |
Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology | |
| e-samvaad Portal | It is a platform for NGOs and civil society to interact with the Ministry of Women and Child Development (MWCD) by providing their feedback, suggestions, put up grievances, share best practices etc. • This will help in the formulation of effective policies and measures for the welfare of women and children. |
Ministry of Women & Child | |
| Stree Swabhiman | -It aims to create a sustainable model for providing adolescent girls and women access to affordable sanitary products in rural areas. -Under this project, sanitary napkin micro manufacturing units (semi-automatic and manual process production unit) are being set up at CSCs across India, particularly those operated by women entrepreneurs. -The product will be sold under the local brand name and marketed by village-level entrepreneurs. -Each facility will employ 8-10 women and educate women of their society to overcome this social taboo. -It also has a menstrual hygiene related awareness generation component and is also expected to reduce drop-out rates in girls on reaching puberty. |
Ministry of Electronics and Information technology (MeITY) |
|
| PROGRAM TO TRAIN ELECTED WOMEN REPRESENTATIVES OF PANCHAYATI RAJ INSTITUTIONS |
-The program aimed at capacity building of EWRs is being organized by the National Institute of Public Cooperation and Child Development (NIPCCD) of the MoWCD. -It is the first-ever initiative which will train approximately twenty thousand EWRs covering nearly 50 EWRs from each district (by March 2018) who will go out and administer the villages professionally. – It will help in creating model villages, ensure their effective participation in the governance process and help preparing women as political leaders of the future. |
Ministry of women and Child | |
| Support to Training and Employment Programme for Women (STEP) |
-To provide competencies and skill that enable women to become self-employed/entrepreneurs. -The scheme is intended to benefit women who are in the age group of 16 years and above across the country. |
Ministry of women and Child | |
| Rashtriya Mahila Kosh | -RMK is a national credit fund for women under the aegis of the Ministry of Women and Child Development. -It was established in 1993 for socio-economic empowerment of women. -It aims to provide financial services with backward and forward linkages for women in the unorganized sector through Intermediary Micro Finance Organizations (IMOs) and Women Self Help Groups (SHGs) and to augment their capacities through multi-pronged efforts. -RMK also extends micro-credit to the women in the informal sector through a client-friendly, without collateral and in a hassle-free manner for income generation activities |
Ministry of women and child |
Functions and powers of the legislature
Loksabha (house of people) + RajyaSabha (Council of states) + President
| LokSabha | RajyaSabha | |||
| Other names | The lower house, house of people | Upper house, the council of states | ||
| Total strength (state+UT+nominated) | 530+13+2 | 29 elected from states + 4 from UTs + 12 Nominated by president | ||
| Maximum strength (state+UT+nominated) | 530+20+2 | 238 +12 | ||
| Mode of election | Direct election – First past the post | Indirect by MLAs – proportional representation by a single transferable vote | ||
| Life cycle | 5 yr or until dissolved | Continuing chamber (6 year of MP) | ||
| Min. age to contest polls | 25 | 30 | ||
| Presiding officer | Speaker | Vice President (Ex officio | ||
| Who can be nominated | 126 Constitutional Amendment Act removed nomination provision for Anglo-Indians |
|
| LS | RS | |
| Money Bill, certification and voting on it | Introduced here, speaker certifies can vote and amend | Can’t be introduced, can’t vote, can only send recommendation within 14 days |
| Estimate committee members | All 30 from LS | No role |
| Joint sitting presided by | Speaker > deputy speaker | Not by VP |
| National emergency discontinuation | Resolution by LS | No role |
| No confidence motion, censure motion adjournment motion | Only in LS |
| RS | LS | |
| Parliamentary law on the state list | Authorizes (Art 249) | |
| Creation of new AIS | Authorizes (Art 312) | |
| Introduction of motion to remove VP | Introduced here and passed by an effective majority | LS – simple majority required |
Presiding officers
Speaker of previous LS vacates post before the first meeting of new LS
President appoints speaker Pro Tem – usually a senior-most member
Presides over a first meeting, the oath to members, the election of the speaker
Speaker is elected and pro tem cease to exist
Speaker fixes the date for the election of deputy speaker
Nominates panel of =<10 chairpersons to preside in his/ deputy’s absence
Election and removal (Speaker, deputy and vice CP) and salary
Election -By the members of particular house by a simple majority
Removal – 14 days notice and the effective majority of the house
Charged on CFI and thus non-votable
Titbits:
- President is part of parliament but not the presiding officer of any house
- VP is not the part of parliament yet presiding officer and ex officio chairperson of RS
- President can not chair joint sitting even in the absence of the speaker and deputy speaker. Deputy CP chairs the sitting in such eventuality
- Being elector of the same state is not a requirement to contest the election of RS or LS (elector in any constituency in India)
- Bills introduced by ministers are public bills, those by other members (including members of the ruling party) are private bills.
Unique provisions
- Question hour and not Zero hours is the first hour of parliamentary proceeding.
- Indian innovation – Zero hour and Calling attention motion
- Not mentioned in the rule of the procedure – Zero hours (calling attention motion is in rules)
- Censure motion should state the reasons and can be initiated against the individual minister as well; no such requirement for the no-confidence motion, only against CoM
- Adjournment motion is an extraordinary device to draw attention to the urgent matter of public importance
| Ordinary Bill | Money bill | CAB | |
| Government approval | No | Required (introduced by minister only) | No |
| Introduction | Either house | Only LS | Either house |
| Passage | Simple majority | Simple | Special |
| Amendments | Simple majority | RS only recommends changes within 14 days | Special majority |
| Deadlock | President can call Joint session after 6 month | LS doesn’t have to accept recommendations, bill is passed as such | No joint sitting |
| Returning by President | Can return once for reconsideration or withhold assent | Can’t return, either assent or reject | Shall assent |
Titbits:
- Only 3 joint sittings so far – dowry bill, banking services bill and POTA bill
- Only 14 private member bills have been passed so far, last bill (supreme court enlargement of jurisdiction bill )was in 1968
- Right of transgender persons bill was passed by RS (1st private member bill to get the nod of the upper house in 45 years)
Budget (Annual Financial Statement, Article 112)
- Presentation of the budget by FM
- General discussion – discuss as a whole
- Scrutiny by departmental committees – for 3 to 4 weeks
- Voting on demand for grants – voting only in LS and only on non-charged expenditure (cut motions at this stage). On last day all remaining demands are put together and put to vote – guillotine
- The passing of appropriation bill – voted demands plus charged expenditure, no amendments can be moved here
- The passing of finance bill – financial proposals (taxes), amendments to reduce taxes can be moved
| Fund | Consolidated fund | Contingency | Public accounts |
| What comes | All receipts and payments | Money comes from CFI to meet unforeseen expenditure | All public money except CFI (provident fund, remittances etc) |
| Parliamentary approval | Yes | No. finance secretary on behalf of the president | Not required, executive operates |
Titbits:
- Charged expenditure can be discussed but not voted
- Salary and allowance of SC judges, UPSC members, CAG, President, VP, Speaker, deputy, vice CP etc are charged on CFI
- Salaries and Expenditure of election commission is not charged on CFI
- Salary of high court judges is charged on CF of states while their pension in charged on CFI
State legislative assembly (Vidhansabha)
Vidhan Sabha is equivalent to LS and Vidhan Parishad to RS
Differences are mentioned below
Vidhan Parishad (legislative council): 7 states, Andhra, Bihar, J&K, K’taka, Maharashtra, Telangana, UP
Creation and Abolition of Vidhan Parishad: Vidhan Sabha passes a resolution by the special majority and Parliament agrees to that resolution by a simple majority
Titbits:
- Bill passed by Vidhan Sabha – Vidhan Parishad can amend w/i 3 months – Vidhan Sabha accepts or rejects amendments – Vidhan Parishad can hold the bill for 1 more month
- Bill passed by Vidhan Parishad – Vidhan Sabha rejects – the bill is killed
- No provision for joint sitting in states
- The maximum strength of Vidhan Parishad ⅓ of Vidhan Sabha, min 40
- ⅚ indirectly elected, ⅙ nominated
Governor can reserve all the bills for presidential assent
Once he reserves the bill, his role is over and the president can assent, hold back, reject or send the bill for reconsideration
Situations where Parliament can pass a bill on state subject
| Condition | Duration |
| National emergency | 6 months after the expiry of emergency |
| President’s rule | Indefinitely but legislature can repeal or modify |
| International treaty/ agreement | Indefinitely |
| RS passes a resolution by ⅔ majority | 1 year of resolution plus 6 months <resolution can be passed again> |
| 2 or more states pass the resolution <applicable only ti those states> | Indefinitely |
Types of majority
Eg. Total seats – 545
Vacancies due to death and resignation – 10
Absence – 20
Total vote cast – 500 ( 15 present did not cast vote)
| Type | Simple | Effective | Absolute | ⅔ majority | Special | Absolute ⅔ |
| Definition | 50% present and voting +1 | 50% of (total – vacancies) +1 | 50% of total + 1 | ⅔ present and voting +1 | Absolute and ⅔ simultaneously | ⅔ of total +1 |
| Example | (500/2) +1 | (545-10)/2 +1 | (545/2) +1 | (⅔*500) +1 | (⅔*545) | |
| Used | Ordinary bill, a money bill | Removal of the speaker, deputy speaker in LS, VP and vice Cp in RS | No where | Art 249, 312, 169 | Art 368, removal of judges of the supreme court, high court, CAG | Impeachment of president |
Parliamentary committees
| Committee | Estimates committee | Public accounts committee | Departmentally related standing committees (24) |
| Membership | 30 (LS) | 22 (15+7) | 21+10 |
| Appointment | Elected every year by proportional representation | Elected every year by proportional representation | Nominated by Speaker and CP |
| Chairperson | Ruling party member | Opposition member from 1967 | |
| Role | Examine estimates included in the budget and suggest economies in expenditure | Examines the audit report of CAG | Demand for grants and bills |
