opensansad/lok-sabha-qa huggingface dataset:
Lok Sabha Question No. 2173 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2018-01-01
Subject: Promotion of Folk Arts of Jharkhand
Ministry: CULTURE
Asked by: LAXMAN GILUWA

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF CULTURE LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2173 ST

## TO BE ANSWERED ON 1 JANUARY, 2018

## PROMOTION OF FOLK ARTS OF JHARKHAND

## † 2173.   SHRI LAXMAN GILUWA:

## Will the Minister of CULTURE be pleased to state:

- (a) the names of centrally sponsored schemes being run to promote and conserve music of Jharkhand and promote folk artists of Jharkhand at present;
- (b) the details of funds allocated and number of people benefitted from these schemes during the last three years; and
- (c) the names  of States where  folk artists from Jharkhand have performed stage programmes during the last three years?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE (I/C) FOR CULTURE AND MINISTER OF STATE FOR ENVIRONMENT, FOREST & CLIMATE CHANGE

(DR. MAHESH SHARMA)

(a) & (b) The  mandate  of  the  Ministry  of  Culture  is  to  protect,  preserve  & promote various forms of folk art and culture throughout the country and to meet this objective, the Government of India has set up seven Zonal Cultural Centres (ZCCs) with  headquarters  at  Patiala,  Nagpur,  Udaipur,  Allahabad,  Kolkata,  Dimapur  and Thanjavur  to  promote  and  conserve  music  and  promote  folk  artists  in  all  the States/UTs of India including Jharkhand.  These  ZCCs  organize  various  cultural activities and programmes during the year and the folk artists from all over India are engaged  to  perform  in  these  activities  and  programmes.  Annual  grant-in-aid  is provided  to  all  these  7  ZCCs  by  the  Government  of  India  for  carrying  out  these activities.  The  grant-in-aid  released  to  these  ZCCs  during  the  last  three  years  is  as under:

( ` in lakh)

|   Sl. No. | Year    |   Amount |
|-----------|---------|----------|
|         1 | 2014-15 |  3974.88 |
|         2 | 2015-16 |  6834.33 |
|         3 | 2016-17 |  6085.07 |

(c) The folk artists from Jharkhand are engaged by all the 7 ZCCs to perform stage programmes in all the States/UTs of India.
Lok Sabha Question No. 2172 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2018-01-01
Subject: NPAs of Steel PSUs
Ministry: STEEL
Asked by: ARVIND GANPAT SAWANT

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.2172 FOR ANSWER ON 01/01/2018

## NPAs OF STEEL PSUs

2172.  SHRI ARVIND SAWANT:

Will the Minister of STEEL be pleased to state:

- (a) the contribution of Steel Sector in the Gross Domestic Product of the country during the year 2015-16;
- (b) the total percentage contribution of Steel industry in the non-performing assets of public sector enterprises;
- (c) whether the Government has taken some measures to assist Steel companies to pay their debts; and
- (d) if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

THE MINISTER OF STATE FOR STEEL

(SHRI VISHNU DEO SAI)

- (a) As per National Steel Policy, 2017 Indian steel industry contributes approximately 2% to the country's Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
- (b) The share of Gross Non-Performing Assets (GNPA) for Iron and Steel in Basic Metal  and  Metal  Product  category  as  on  30.09.2017  is  23.70%  for  public  sector banks.

(c)&(d):  The  benefit  of  RBI  schemes  namely  5/25  scheme  and  Scheme  for Sustainable  Structuring  of  Stressed  Assets  (S4A)  for  restructuring  of  debts  of stressed companies can be availed by Steel Companies.

********
Lok Sabha Question No. 2170 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2018-01-01
Subject: Promotion of Tribal Art And Culture
Ministry: TRIBAL AFFAIRS
Asked by: RAJESH PANDEY

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## (MINISTRY OF TRIBAL AFFAIRS) LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2170 TO BE ANSWERED ON 01.01.2018

## PROMOTION OF TRIBAL ART AND CULTURE

## 2170:    SHRI RAJESH PANDEY

Will the Minister of TRIBAL AFFAIRS be pleased to state:

- (a) the details of the steps taken by the Government to promote art and culture of different tribal communities of the country, State/UT-wise especially Uttar Pradesh; and
- (b) the  details  of  steps  taken  to  promote  the  products  made  by  the  tribal  communities  is throughout the country?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF TRIBAL AFFAIRS ( SHRI JASTWANTSINH BHABHOR )

(a) Ministry  of  Tribal  Affairs  is  implementing  a  Central  Sector  Scheme  'Support  to  Tribal Research Institutes (TRIs), under which financial assistance is provided to TRIs to carry out various activities to preserve and promote tribal culture across the country including State of Uttar Pradesh through research and documentation, maintenance and preservation of art & artifacts, setting up of tribal museum, exchange visits for the tribals to other parts of the State, organizing tribal festivals etc. Further,  Ministry  of  Tribal  Affairs  has  developed  a  web  page  for  use  as  tribal  repository (www.tribal.nic.in/repository) in which documents, folks songs, photos, videos etc. received from the State  Government have been uploaded. State Government has been asked to provide database of Tribes  of  India  including  their  evolution,  place  of  origin,  lifestyle,  eating  habits,  architecture, education level, traditional art, folk dances and other anthropological details for uploading on the webpage.

During the current year the budget of TRI Scheme has been enhanced from Rs.21.00 Crore 2016-17 to Rs.80.00 Crore in 2017-18. State Government of Uttar Pradesh were provided an amount of Rs.43.26 lakh for the purpose during 2016-2017.

(b) 'The Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India Limited (TRIFED), a multi-state Cooperative Society under the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, is promoting and marketing tribal products, tribal art and crafts within the country and abroad by providing marketing support to tribal products through its network of retail outlets 'Tribes India'. Besides this, it also provides ecommerce platforms to the tribal artisans to sell their products. TRIFED has entered into agreements with e-commerce platforms like Snapdeal and Amazon who will offer their customers various tribal products and produce through their portals www.snapdeal.com and www.amazon.com respectively to facilitate online sale. On the request of the Ministry of Tribal Affairs, Ministry of Commerce has also made provision for sale of Tribal products through TRIFED on www.gem.gov.in.'
Lok Sabha Question No. 2169 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2018-01-01
Subject: Online Database of Tribes
Ministry: TRIBAL AFFAIRS
Asked by: ABHISHEK SINGH

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF TRIBAL AFFAIRS

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2169

TO BE ANSWERED ON 01.01.2018

## ONLINE DATABASE OF TRIBES

## 2169: SHRI ABHISHEK SINGH

Will the Minister of Tribal Affairs be pleased to State:

(a) whether the Government is considering to make a single online database of Tribes of India  to  document    their  evolution,  place  in  history,  lifestyle,  eating  habits,  architecture education level,  traditional  art,  folk  dances  and  other  anthropological  details  and  if  so,  the details thereof;

- (b) if not, the reasons therefor;
- (c) the efforts being taken by Government to promote and conserve the country's rich tribal culture; and
- (d) the details of the tribal research institutes currently in the country?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF TRIBAL AFFAIRS ( SHRI JASTWANTSINH BHABHOR )

- (a) & (b) Ministry of Tribal Affairs has developed a web-page for use as tribal repository (www.tribal.nic.in/repositroy)  in  which  documents,  folks  songs,  photos,  videos  etc. received from the State Government have been uploaded. Further State Government has been asked to provide database of Tribes of India including their evolution, place of origin, lifestyle, eating habits, architecture, education level, traditional art, folk dances and other anthropological details for uploading on the webpage.
- (c) Ministry of Tribal Affairs is implementing a Central Sector Scheme 'Support to Tribal Research Institutes (TRIs),' under which financial assistance is provided to TRIs to carry out various activities to preserve and promote tribal culture through research and documentation,  maintenance  and  preservation  of  art  &artifacts,  setting  up  of  tribal museum, exchange visits for the tribals to other parts of the State, organizing tribal festivals etc. During the current year the budget of TRI Scheme has been enhanced from Rs. 21.00 Crore in 2016-17 to Rs. 80.00 Crore in 2017-18.
- (d)  At  present,  TRIs  are  functioning  in  the  States/UTs  of  Andhra  Pradesh,  Assam, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir, Karnataka, Kerala,  Madhya  Pradesh,  Maharashtra,  Orissa,  Rajasthan,  Sikkim,  Tamil  Nadu, Telangana, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Manipur, Tripura and Andaman & Nicobar Island.

*****
Lok Sabha Question No. 2168 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2018-01-01
Subject: Development of Rural Tourism in Gujarat
Ministry: TOURISM
Asked by: B.V. NAYAK, KIRIT SOMAIYA, MOHANBHAI KALYANJIBHAI KUNDARIYA

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF TOURISM

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.2168 ANSWERED ON 01.01.2018

## DEVELOPMENT OF RURAL TOURISM IN GUJARAT

2168. SHRI B.V. NAIK:

DR. KIRIT SOMAIYA:

SHRI KUNDARIYA MOHAN BHAI KALYANJI BHAI:

Will the Minister of TOURISM be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the scheme of Rural Tourism is being implemented in various  rural  areas  of  the  country  including  Gujarat  and Maharashtra and if so, the details thereof;
- (b) the details of rural tourism projects being implemented in the country along with the status of such projects, State/UT-wise;
- (c) the financial assistance given to States for the development of tourism in rural areas during the last three years;
- (d) whether  the  Government  has  received  proposals  from  the various State Governments in this regard and if so, the details thereof; and
- (e) the  number  of  villages/rural  areas  identified,  developed  and declared  as  rural  tourism  destinations  in  the  country  during the said period, State/UT-wise?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF STATE FOR TOURISM (INDEPENDENT CHARGE) (SHRI K. J. ALPHONS)

(a) to (e): For development of tourism infrastructure in the country, Ministry of Tourism has launched  Swadesh  Darshan  schemeIntegrated Development of Theme-Based Tourist Circuits in 2014-15. Rural  Circuit  has  been  identified  as  one  of  the  fifteen  thematic Circuits for development under the scheme.

## covered under the circuit.

All  rural  sites  in  the  country  having  tourist  potential  are The details of the projects sanctioned under the Rural Circuit

## theme is as under:-

| State/year    | Project                                                                                                                          |   Amt. Sanctioned (Rs. in Crore) |
|---------------|----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------|----------------------------------|
| Bihar 2017-18 | Development of Gandhi Circuit: Bhitiharwa - Chandrahia - Turkaulia in Bihar under Rural Circuit theme of Swadesh Darshan Scheme. |                            44.65 |

Submission  of  project  under  Swadesh  Darshan  Scheme  by State Governments/Union Territory Administrations is a continuous process. The projects under the scheme are identified for development  in  consultation  with  the  State  Governments/Union Territory Administrations and are sanctioned subject to availability of funds, submission of suitable detailed project reports, adherence to scheme guidelines and utilization of funds released earlier.

**********
Lok Sabha Question No. 2166 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2018-01-01
Subject: Status of Classical Language to Marathi
Ministry: CULTURE
Asked by: KAPIL MORESHWAR PATIL

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF CULTURE

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. †2166 TO BE ANSWERED ON 01.01.2018

## STATUS OF CLASSICAL LANGUAGE TO MARATHI

## † 2166. SHRI KAPIL MORESHWAR PATIL:

Will the Minister of CULTURE be pleased to state:

- (a) the  number  of  ancient  languages  granted  status  of  classical  language  by  the Government;
- (b) the  criterion  adopted  by  the  Government  for  granting  classical  language  status  to  a particular language;
- (c) whether  the  Government  has  received  any  proposal  from  Maharashtra  Government and Abhijaat Marathi Bhasha Samiti for grant of classical language status to Marathi; and
- (d) if so, the details thereof and the action taken by the Government thereon?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE (I/C) FOR CULTURE AND MINISTER OF STATE FOR ENVIRONMENT, FOREST & CLIMATE CHANGE

## (DR. MAHESH SHARMA)

- (a): So  far  six  languages  i.e.  Tamil,  Sanskrit,  Telugu,  Kannada,  Malayalam  and  Odia have been given status of classical languages.
- (b): The Criteria adopted by the Government to determine the eligibility of a language for granting classical language status, are as under:
- (i) High antiquity of its early texts/ recorded history over a period of 1500-2000 years;
- (ii) A body of ancient literature/ texts, which is considered a valuable heritage by generations of speakers;
- (iii) The  literary  tradition  be  original  and  not  borrowed  from  another  speech community;
- (iv) The classical language and literature being distinct from modern, there may also be a discontinuity between the classical language and its later forms or its offshoots.
- (c)&(d):  Yes, Sir. A proposal for granting of classical status to Marathi language has been received  from  Marathi  Language  Department,  Government  of  Maharashtra.  The said  proposal  was  placed  before  the  Committee  of  Linguistic  Experts  for  its consideration.  The said Committee recommended the grant of classical status to Marathi  language  and  the  said  recommendations  are  under  consideration  of  the Ministry. However, in the light of several Writ Petitions filed by Shri R. Gandhi in the High Court of Judicature at Madras on the subject, it was decided to wait for the  outcome  of  the  said  Writ  Petitions.  The  Hon'ble  High  Court  of  Judicature  at Madras has disposed of the Writ Petitions vide common order dated 08.08.2016 declining to interfere in the matter and disposed of all the petitions. Consequently, the proposal for grant of classical status to Marathi language is again under active consideration of this Ministry.

*****
Lok Sabha Question No. 2158 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2018-01-01
Subject: Joint Working Group of Oil
Ministry: PETROLEUM AND NATURAL GAS
Asked by: RAM CHARITRA, PONNUSAMY VENUGOPAL

## JOINT WORKING GROUP OF OIL

2158:  SHRI RAM CHARITRA NISHAD

DR. P. VENUGOPAL:

## पैट्रोलियम और प्राक ृ लिक गैस मंत्री

## Will the Minister of PETROLEUM AND NATURAL GAS be pleased to state:

- (a)  whether  Organisation  of  Petroleum  Exporting  countries  (OPEC)  has  agreed  to India's proposal for setting up a joint working group to assess future scenarios for the oil industry as energy in major economies has undergone rapid changes due to expansion in renewable sources and if so, the details thereof;
- (b) whether the benchmark brent crude dropped US $ 1.6 to US $ 52.4 a barrel as the market was disappointed by the fact that OPEC, while indicating that it will extend the output cut deal by nine months did not deepen the reduction to exhaust excess supplies and if so, the details thereof;
- (c) whether the Government has conveyed to OPEC to address concerns of key buyers such as India at a time when there were many options in an over supplied oil market and if so, the details thereof;
- (d) whether the Government has urged the OPEC to remove the Asian premium on the crude oil supplied to Indian and Asian buyers and if so, the details thereof; and
- (e)  whether  the  Government  had  urged  the  OPEC  for  due  acknowledgment  through discount  in  prices  for  the  large  volumes  that  India  imports  as  India  makes  timely payments  and  has  honoured  all  its  contractual  commitments  and  if  so,  the  details thereof along with the response received from OPEC in this regard?

## ANSWER

## पैट्रोलियम और प्राक ृ लिक गैस मंत्रािय में मंत्री ( श्री धमेन्द्र प्रधान )

## MINISTER OF PETROLEUM AND NATURAL GAS (SHRI DHARMENDRA PRADHAN)

- (a) During  the  2 nd India  -  OPEC  Institutional  Dialogue  held  in  May,  2017  in Vienna,  Austria,  Minister  for  Petroleum  &  Natural  Gas  proposed  to  the Secretary General, Organisation of Petroleum Exporting countries (OPEC) to set  up  a  Joint  Working  Group  to  explore  areas  of  cooperation.    This  was agreed to by OPEC.
- (b) Crude  is  an  international  commodity  and  its  price  sensitivity  depends  on various factors such as demand and supply, geopolitics, production plans of major oil producers, sentiment toward oil futures contracts, price speculation and cyclical trends in the commodities market.
- (c) to (e): During the 2 nd India - OPEC Institutional Dialogue, Minister for Petroleum & Natural Gas raised the issue of 'Asian Premium'.  He also emphasized that India  continues  to  be  a  reliable  and  long  term  customer  and  requested OPEC  to  take  necessary  step  to  follow  a  'Responsible  Pricing'  pattern. Responding to the request, Secretary General of OPEC agreed to work with key crude exporters and India in this regard.

*******
Lok Sabha Question No. 2157 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2018-01-01
Subject: Wholesale/Retail Trade
Ministry: COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY
Asked by: APARUPA PODDAR

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMERCE & INDUSTRY

## DEPARTMENT OF INDUSTRIAL POLICY & PROMOTION

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2157.

TO BE ANSWERED ON MONDAY, THE 1 ST  JANUARY,  2018.

## WHOLESALE/RETAIL TRADE

## 2157.   SHRIMATI APARUPA PODDAR:

Will the Minister of COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY be pleased to state:

वाणिज्य

## एवं उद्योग मंत्री

- (a) whether  the  Government  proposes  to  boost  local  wholesale  and  retail  trade  in  the country;
- (b) if  so,  the  details  thereof  and  the  measures  taken  by  the  Government  during  the last three years to boost such trade; and
- (c) whether the liberalisation of Foreign Direct Investment will have an adverse impact on the traders of the country and if so, the reasons therefor?

## ANSWER

## वाणिज् यएवंउद्योग मंत्रालयमेंराज् यमंत्री(श्री सी.आर.चौधरी)

## THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF COMMERCE & INDUSTRY (SHRI C.R. CHAUDHARY)

- (a): No specific proposal is under consideration of the Government to boost local wholesale and retail trade in the country.
- (b) & (c): Government reviews Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) policy on an ongoing basis  with  a  view  to  liberalise  and  simplify  the  FDI  policy  so  as  to  provide ease of doing business in the country leading to larger FDI inflows. With a view  to  promote  foreign  investment  in  Indian  wholesale  and  retail  trade market,  the  Government  has  permitted  a  single  entity  to  receive  FDI  to undertake  both  the  activities  of  Single  Brand  Retail  Trading  (SBRT)  and wholesale  trading  with  the  condition  that  conditions  of  FDI  policy  on wholesale/ cash & carry and SBRT have to be complied by both the business arms  separately.  Further,  an  entity  with  FDI  and  engaged  in  SBRT  and/  or wholesale trading is allowed to undertake sale of goods through e-commerce as well.

FDI  policy  decisions  are  made  after  having  intensive  consultations  with stakeholders  taking  into  consideration  their  views  and  concerns.  Further,  no assessment  has  been  made  regarding  impact  of  FDI  on  the  traders  in  the country.

*****
Lok Sabha Question No. 2156 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2018-01-01
Subject: Financial Difficulties faced by Rubber Board
Ministry: COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY
Asked by: SHASHI THAROOR

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMERCE & INDUSTRY (DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE)

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2156 TO BE ANSWERED ON 01 st  JANUARY,2018

## FINANCIAL DIFFICULTIES FACED BY RUBBER BOARD

## 2156. DR. SHASHI THAROOR:

Will the Minister of COMMERCE & INDUSTRY ( वा ͨणÏय एवं उɮयोग मंğी ) be pleased to state:

- (a) whether  the  Government  is  aware  that  over  10  lakh  people  are  involved  in  the growing of rubber in the State of Kerala;
- (b) whether the Government has reduced the funding for the Rubber Board in 2017-18 and  if  so,  the  details  thereof  along  with  the  reasons  for  reduction  in  financial assistance to the Rubber Board;
- (c) whether  the  Government  is  aware  of  the  financial  difficulties  being  faced  by  the Rubber Board that they did not even have funds to disburse subsidies for planting and replanting trees for the year 2015-16;
- (d) if so, whether the Government will take specific measures to remedy the financial difficulties faced by the Rubber Board; and
- (e) if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor?

## ANSWER

okf.kT; ,oa m|ksx ea=ky; esa jkT; ea=h ¼Jh lh- vkj- pkS/kjh½

THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY (SHRI C. R. CHAUDHARY)

- (a): There are around 13.2 lakhsrubber smallholdings in the country, out of which around 9 lakhs are in the State of Kerala.
- (b) to (e): Due to budget constraints, funding to the Commodity Boards including the Rubber Board,  has  been  reduced  in  the  last  two  years  which  resulted  in  insufficient  funds  for disbursement of subsidies. The matter has been actively taken up with the Ministry of Finance.  For  the  Medium  Term  Framework  (2017-18  to  2019-20),  an  amount  of  Rs. 721.98 crores have been approved for Rubber Board as per details below which includes the amount required for payment of pending subsidies.

## Approved outlay for Medium Term Framework

(Rs. in crores)

|   2017-18 |   2018-19 |   2019-20 |   Total |
|-----------|-----------|-----------|---------|
|    241.07 |    228.73 |    252.18 |  721.98 |