Keep up-to-date with all that is happening in welfare policy with this curated selection of news, published every fortnight.

Policy News

• According to the National Statistical Office, India’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) contracted 5% in the second quarter of 2020-21, following the 23.9% decline recorded in the first quarter. With two successive quarters of negative growth, India has now entered a technical recession.
• The Madhya Pradesh government plans to establish Mothers’ Cooperation Committees or ‘Matru Sahyogini Samiti’ led by mothers to ensure better monitoring of services delivered at Anganwadis.
• West Bengal government announced that the ‘Swasthya Sathi’ health scheme, the cashless scheme where ₹5 lakh insurance is provided, would cover the entire population of the State.
• Nine states have successfully completed reforms in the Public Distribution System (PDS) and implemented the One Nation One Ration Card System.
• The government has approved Atmanirbhar Bharat Rozgar Yojana at an expenditure of ₹1,584 crore for the current financial year. The scheme would benefit around 58.5 lakh employees.

Others

• To improve the security of digital payment channels and also for convenience for users, the Reserve Bank of India will introduce digital payment security control directions for regulated entities.