opensansad/lok-sabha-qa huggingface dataset:
Lok Sabha Question No. 5740 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2022-04-06
Subject: Expansion of Warehousing Facilities in Tamil Nadu
Ministry: CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD AND PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION
Asked by: T. R. Paarivendhar

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD & PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION

## DEPARTMENT OF FOOD AND PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.5740

## To BE ANSWERED ON 6TH APRIL, 2022

## EXPANSION OF WAREHOUSING FACILITIES IN TAMIL NADU

## 5740. DR: TRPAARIVENDHAR:

Will the Minister of CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD AND PUBLIC be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the Government has any plans to expand the warehousing facilities for storage of paddy and other vegetables in Perambalur Parliamentary constituency of Tamil Nadu;
- (b) if the details thereof;
- (c) if not, whether such proposal is likely to be considered for implementation in future; and
- (d) if the details thereof?

ANSWE R MINISTER OF STATE FOR MINISTRY OF RURAL DEVELOPMENT AND CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD & PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION (SADHVI NIRANJAN JyOTI)

(a) to (d): Food Corporation of India (FCI) stores Wheat & Rice after procurement for Public Distribution System (PDS) operation and to maintain buffer stock:

FCI continuously assesses and monitors the storage capacity and based on the storage gap assessment, storage capacities are createdlhired through the followving schemes:-

1. Private Entrepreneurs Guarantee (PEG) Scheme
3. Construction of Silo's under Public Private Partnership (PPP) mode
2. Central Sector Scheme (CSS)
4. Hiring of godown from Central Warehousing Corporation (CWCs) State Warehousing Corporations (SWCs)State Agencies
5. Hiring of godown through Private Warehousing Scheme (PWS)

Tamil Nadu being a Decentralized Procurement State, procurement;, storage and distribution under National Food Security Act (NFSAY Other Welfare Schemes (OWS) is handled by State Govt. to the extent of procurement: FCI comes in picture in case of surplus procurement, where stocks are moved out to consuming states or in case of deficit where the stocks are inducted in.

Further, Horticulture Division of Department of Agriculture & Farmers Welfare is implementing Mission integrated Development of Horticulture (MIDH) under which financial assistance is provided for various horticulture activities including setting up of cold storages through State Governments. The component is demandl   entrepreneurdriven from among entrepreneurs, private companies, cooperatives, farmers groups etc through commercial ventures for which financial assistance at the rate of 35 % of admissible project cost in general areas and 50 % in hilly and scheduled area is available as credit linked back ended subsidy: for
Lok Sabha Question No. 5739 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2022-04-06
Subject: Door-to-Door Delivery by Railways
Ministry: RAILWAYS
Asked by: Haji Fazlur Rehman

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 5739 TO BE ANSWERED ON 06.04.2022

## DOOR-TO-DOOR DELIVERY BY RAILWAYS †5739. SHRI HAJI FAZLUR REHMAN:

Will the Minister of RAILWAYS be pleased to state:

- (a) whether Railways is considering to introduce door-to-door delivery in the country;
- (b)
- if so, the details thereof;
- (c) the  objective  of  the  door-to-door  scheme  proposed  by  the Railways; and
- (d) the benefits likely to accrue to people as a result thereof?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF RAILWAYS, COMMUNICATIONS AND ELECTRONICS & INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

## (SHRI ASHWINI VAISHNAW)

(a)  to  (d):  A  'Joint  Parcel  Product'  (JPP)  of  India  Post  and  Indian Railways is being developed, wherein first-mile and last-mile connectivity  will  be  provided  by  the  Department  of  Posts,  and  the intermediate connectivity from station to station shall be done through Railways. The JPP aims to target business-to-business and business-tocustomer  market  by  providing  complete  parcel  handling  solution,  i.e. picking  up  from  the  premises  of  the  sender,  booking  and  door-step delivery to the recipient.

The  JPP  by  Indian  Railways  and  India  Post  has  commenced  on  pilot project basis. The first service of the pilot project has commenced on 31 th  March, 2022 from Surat to Varanasi.

*****
Lok Sabha Question No. 5738 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2022-04-06
Subject: Import of Iranian Apple
Ministry: COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY
Asked by: Pratibha Singh

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

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 5738 TO BE ANSWERED ON 06 th  APRIL, 2022

## IMPORT OF IRANIAN APPLE

## 5738.  SHRIMATI PRATIBHA SINGH:

Will the Minister of COMMERCE & INDUSTRY ( वाणिज्य एवं उद्योग मंत्री ) be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the Government is aware that Iranian apple is being brought into India through Afghanistan without paying import duty in India;
- (b) if so, the steps taken by the Government to control this menace;
- (c) whether  the  Government  of  Himachal  Pradesh,  Uttarakhand  and  the  Union Territory  of  Kashmir  has  brought  this  matter  to  the  notice  of  the  Union Government; and
- (d) if so, the details thereof and the reaction of the Government thereto?

## ANSWER

okf.kT; ,oa m|ksx ea=ky; esa jkT; ea=h ¼Jherh vuqfiz;k iVsy½

## THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY (SMT. ANUPRIYA PATEL)

- (a) & (b):  Duty free imports of apple are allowed from Afghanistan under the South Asia Free Trade Area (SAFTA) agreement, subject to adherence to prescribed Rules of Origin (RoOs). No abnormal imports of apples from Afghanistan have been noticed during the current year, with only 1947.19 tons, valued at USD 1.82 million, having been imported during the period April 2021 to January 2022.
- (c) & (d):  A number of representations were received in this regard. The matter was brought to the notice of the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) for strict compliance to RoOs with respect to apple imports from Afghanistan.

*******
Lok Sabha Question No. 5737 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2022-04-06
Subject: Auction of Coal Mines
Ministry: COAL
Asked by: Uttam Kumar Nalamada Reddy

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COAL LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.5737

TO BE ANSWERED ON 06.04.2022

## Auction of Coal Mines

## 5737.  SHRI UTTAM KUMAR REDDY NALAMADA:

Will the Minister of COAL be pleased to state:

- (a) whether Singareni Collieries Company Limited (SCCL) has put up any coal mines in Naini, Odisha for an auction;
- (b) if so, the details thereof along with the capacity of these mines;
- (c) whether the qualification  requirements  for  the  bidders  is  the  same  as  issued  by  the Coal Ministry in similar cases and if so, the details thereof;
- (d) the number and names of bidders who have submitted bids for this venture and their details thereof;
- (e) whether SCCL has taken all measures to allow maximum possible competitors to take part in the bidding process and if so, the details thereof; and
- (f) whether  SCCL  has  permitted  joint  ventures  like  Western  Coal  Fields  Limited  or Mahanadi Coal Limited or Central Coalfields Limited and if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF COAL, MINES & PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS (SHRI PRALHAD JOSHI)

- (a)  & (b) No, Sir.  However, SCCL has floated enquiry for selection of Mine Developer & Operator (MDO) for its Naini coal mine in the State of Odisha.

The details are as below:-

Name of the Mine :

Naini Coal Mine

Location :

Angul district, Odisha

Rated Capacity :

10 MTPA

Contract Period :

25 years

- (c) As  per  the  Allotment  Agreement  of  Naini  coal  block,  in  case  the  coal  mine  is developed through contractor(s), the selection of the contractor(s) in relation to coal mining operation shall be through a competitive bidding process and allottee has to ensure that the criteria for bidding are not linked to Coal India Ltd.'s notified price.
- (d)       Total five firms submitted bids. The details of the bidders are as follows :-
1. M/s. Ambey Mining Private Limited, Kolkata
2. M/s. Karamjeet Singh and Company Ltd., Delhi
3. M/s. Adani Enterprises Limited, Ahmadabad, Gujarat
4. M/s. Jindal Power Limited, Raigarh, Chhattisgarh
5. M/s. Durga Infra Mining Private Limited, Gujarat

(e) SCCL  is  selecting  MDO  through  competitive  bidding  process.   Five  firms  have submitted Bids for selection of MDO for Naini coal mine. (f) SCCL has intimated that they have permitted single bidder having MDO experience with certain financial and technical credential.  Further, the Bidder is allowed to form SPV with other agencies with a stake up to 49%, retaining 51% stake with the Bidder at the time of Project Agreement.

*******
Lok Sabha Question No. 5736 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2022-04-06
Subject: Vacant Posts of IAS Officers in Telangana
Ministry: PERSONNEL, PUBLIC GRIEVANCES AND PENSIONS
Asked by: Dayakar Pasunoori, Venkatesh Netha Borlakunta, Gaddam Ranjith Reddy

## MINISTRY OF PERSONNEL, PUBLIC GRIEVANCES AND PENSIONS

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA (DEPARTMENT OF PERSONNEL & TRAINING)

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 5736

(TO BE ANSWERED ON 06.04.2022)

## VACANT POSTS OF IAS OFFICERS IN TELANGANA

## 5736. SHRI PASUNOORI DAYAKAR: SHRI VENKATESH NETHA BORLAKUNTA: DR. G. RANJITH REDDY:

Will the PRIME MINISTER be pleased to state:

- (a) whether  it  is  a  fact  that  44  IAS  officer  posts  are  lying  vacant  in  Telangana  as  on  1 January, 2020;
- (b) if so, the status of the same as on 1 March, 2022;
- (c) the number of IAS allotted in 2020 and 2021 CSE to Telangana;
- (d) whether there are any plans to increase the batch size of IAS and if so, the details thereof;
- (e) the reasons for not increasing the batch size of IAS officers since 2012 and the details of efforts being made to increase the size to 250 from the present 180?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF PERSONNEL, PUBLIC GRIEVANCES AND PENSIONS AND MINISTER OF STATE IN THE PRIME MINISTER'S OFFICE (DR. JITENDRA SINGH)

- (a) & (b):   Occurrence and filling up of vacancies is a continuous process. It is the endeavor of Government  to  fill  up  vacant  posts  expeditiously.  The  Union  Public  Service  Commission (UPSC)  conducts  Civil  Services  Examination  (CSE)  for  filling  up  of  vacancies  on  direct recruitment  basis  in  IAS  every  year.  To  fill  up  vacancies  in  Promotion  Quota,  Selection Committee  Meetings  are  held  by  Union  Public  Service  Commission  (UPSC)  with  the  State Governments.
- (c):   A total of 180 Direct Recruit officers were allocated to IAS on the basis of CSE-2020, out of  which  7  IAS  officers  were  allocated  to  Telangana  Cadre.  For  CSE-2021,  a  total  of  180 vacancies  have  been  determined  to  be  filled  for  IAS  and  the  State  Governments/Cadres  have been requested to send requisitions for allocating IAS officers.
- (d) & (e):   The Government has increased the annual intake of IAS officers to 180 through Civil Services  Examination  (CSE)  till  CSE-2021.  Further,  a  Committee  has  been  constituted  for recommending the intake of Direct Recruit IAS officers every year through CSE from CSE-2022 to CSE-2030.

*****
Lok Sabha Question No. 5734 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2022-04-06
Subject: Delay in Data Protection Bill
Ministry: ELECTRONICS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
Asked by: Manish Tewari

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF ELECTRONICS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 5734

TO BE ANSWERED ON: 06.04.2022

## DELAY IN DATA PROTECTION BILL

## 5734. SHRI MANISH TEWARI:

Will the Minister of Electronics and Information Technology be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the Government is aware of the fact that holding of consultations and deliberations on the Data Protection Bill causing an inordinate delay in the introduction of the Data Protection Bill despite the final report of the Joint Parliamentary Committee on the Personal Data Protecting Bill being tabled;
- (b) if so, the details thereof;
- (c) whether the aforesaid facts undermines and contradicts the purpose of the Joint Parliamentary Committee and  if so, the details thereof;
- (d) whether the Draft India Data Accessibility and Use Policy released by the Government proposes the  sale  of  data  and  information  collected  by  the  various  Government  department  and    if  so,  the details thereof;
- (e)  whether  the  Government is  considering to  attach  monetary  incentive  to  data  collection,  if  so, whether it would incentivize departments to collect more and more granular personal data; and
- (f)  whether  the  Government  is  aware  of  the  fact  that  while  the  policy  document  uses  the  phrase 'open data' 12 out of the 13 objectives listed are commercial?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE FOR ELECTRONICS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (SHRI RAJEEV CHANDRASEKHAR)

- (a)    and  (b):  No,  Sir.  The  Joint  Committee  of  Parliament  on  Personal  Data Protection  Bill,  2019 tabled  its  report  in  Parliament  in  December,  2021.  The  report  comprises  93  recommendations including a Bill which is under examination. There have been no deliberations and consultations on the report of JCP.
- (c):  No, Sir.
- (d),(e) and (f):  Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology had published the draft India Data Accessibility and Use Policy for Public Consultation. This policy doesn't envisage any sale of data or incentive for data collection. The objective of the draft policy is not commercialization.

********
Lok Sabha Question No. 5733 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2022-04-06
Subject: All India Services Officers
Ministry: PERSONNEL, PUBLIC GRIEVANCES AND PENSIONS
Asked by: Chandra Sekhar Bellana

## MINISTRY OF PERSONNEL, PUBLIC GRIEVANCES AND PENSIONS

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA (DEPARTMENT OF PERSONNEL & TRAINING)

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 5733

(TO BE ANSWERED ON 06.04.2022)

## ALL INDIA SERVICES OFFICERS

## 5733. SHRI CHANDRA SEKHAR BELLANA:

Will the PRIME MINISTER be pleased to state:

- (a) the number of All India Services Officers in Andhra Pradesh, service-wise;
- (b) the shortage of All India Services Officers in Andhra Pradesh, service-wise;
- (c) whether the Government is planning to address the shortage of the officers;
- (d) if so, the details thereof including the manner in which the shortage would be filled; and
- (e) if not, the reasons therefor?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF PERSONNEL, PUBLIC GRIEVANCES AND PENSIONS AND MINISTER OF STATE IN THE PRIME MINISTER'S OFFICE (DR. JITENDRA SINGH)

- (a):    The details of All India Service officers in Andhra Pradesh as on 01.01.2021  are as under:
- (b) & (c):   Occurrence and filling up of vacancies is a continuous process. It is the endeavor of Central Government to fill up vacant posts expeditiously. The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) conducts Examinations for filling up of vacancies on direct recruitment basis in IAS, IPS and IFS every year. To fill up vacancies in Promotion Quota, Selection Committee Meetings are held by Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) with the State Governments.
- (d) & (e):    The Government has increased the annual intake of IAS officers to 180 through Civil Services  Examination  (CSE)  till  CSE-2021.  Further,  a  Committee  has  been  constituted  for recommending the intake of Direct Recruit IAS officers every year through CSE from CSE-2022 to CSE-2030. Intake of IPS through CSE has been increased to 200 from CSE-2020. Intake of IFS has been increased to 150 in 2022.

| Service   |   Officers |
|-----------|------------|
| IAS       |        194 |
| IPS       |        111 |
| IFS       |         55 |

*****
Lok Sabha Question No. 5732 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2022-04-06
Subject: Survey for Fatehpur-Ratangarh Railway Line
Ministry: RAILWAYS
Asked by: Narendra Kumar

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS

## LOK  SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.  5732 TO BE ANSWERED ON 06.04.2022

## SURVEY FOR FATEHPUR-RATANGARH RAILWAY LINE

† 5732.   SHRI NARENDRA KUMAR:

Will the Minister of RAILWAYS be pleased to state:

- (a)  whether  the  Government  has  conducted  the  survey  for  FatehpurRatangarh railway line and if so, the details thereof;
- (b) the future plan formulated by the Governent in this regard; and
- (c)  whether  the  Government  has  approved  the  survey  for  the  said railway line and if not, the time by which it is likely to be approved?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF RAILWAYS, COMMUNICATIONS AND ELECTRONICS & INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

(SHRI ASHWINI VAISHNAW)

- (a)  to  (c):  Survey  for  Fatehpur-Ratangarh  (39  km)  new  line    was completed  in  the  year  2016-17.    The  project  could  not  be  taken forward being financially unviable.

*****
Lok Sabha Question No. 5729 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2022-04-06
Subject: Achievements in Communication Sector
Ministry: COMMUNICATIONS
Asked by: Sandhya Ray

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMUNICATIONS DEPARTMENT OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 5729 TO BE ANSWERED ON 6 TH  APRIL, 2022

## ACHIEVEMENTS IN COMMUNICATION SECTOR

## 5729. SHRIMATI SANDHYA RAY:

Will the Minister of COMMUNICATIONS be pleased to state:

(a) the  details  of  the  achievements  made  by  the  Government  in  communication  sector during the last three years in Madhya Pradesh, especially in Bhind and Datiya districts;

(b) whether any road map has been prepared by the Government for the communication revolution in the next three years and if so, the details thereof; and

(c) whether  there  is  any  ongoing  project  for  Bhind  and  Datiya  districts  and  if  so,  the details thereof?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE FOR COMMUNICATIONS (SHRI DEVUSINH CHAUHAN)

(a) As per the information provided by the Telecom Service Providers and the field units of  Department of Telecommunications, 3G/4G mobile coverage has been provided in total 48366 inhabited villages of Madhya Pradesh (out of 51,929 inhabited villages as per Census 2011), including 879 villages of Bhind district (out of 890 villages) and 582 villages of Datia district (out of 586 villages). Under BharatNet project, so far total 17586 Gram Panchayats (GPs) of Madhya Pradesh have been made ready for broadband services, including 43 GPs of Bhind district and 280 GPs of Datia district. Further, under Prime Minister - Wireless Access Network  Interface  (PM-WANI)  Framework,  total  2223  wi-fi  hotspots  have  so  far  been deployed  in  Madhya  Pradesh,  including  10  wi-fi  hotspots  in  Bhind  district  and  16  wi-fi hotspots in Datia district.

(b) The government is committed to fulfill the information and communication needs of citizens  and  enterprises  through  establishment  of  a  ubiquitous,  resilient,  secure,  accessible and affordable digital communications infrastructure and services. To realize this commitment,  various  projects  and  schemes  such  as  BharatNet,  Comprehensive  Telecom Development  Plan  (CTDP)  for  North  Eastern  Region,  Scheme  for  Aspirational  Districts, CTDP for Islands, and Provision of telecom towers in Left Wing Extremism affected areas have  been  launched  by  the  government.  Further,  the  government  envisages  to  cover  all uncovered villages with mobile connectivity.

(c) The  ongoing  telecom  projects/schemes  in  Bhind  and  Datia  districts  of  Madhya Pradesh include BharatNet and PM-WANI.

*******
Lok Sabha Question No. 5728 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2022-04-06
Subject: Telecom Infrastructure
Ministry: COMMUNICATIONS
Asked by: Sadashiv Kisan Lokhande

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMUNICATIONS DEPARTMENT OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 5728 TO BE ANSWERED ON 6 TH  APRIL, 2022

## TELECOM INFRASTRUCTURE

## †5728. SHRI SADASHIV KISAN LOKHANDE:

Will the Minister of COMMUNICATIONS be pleased to state:

- (a) whether funds have been allocated under the program related to telecom infrastructure during the last three years; and
- (b) if so, the details thereof, year/State-wise along with its use?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE FOR COMMUNICATIONS (SHRI DEVUSINH CHAUHAN)

- (a) Yes  Sir,  the  Government  allocates  funds  under  various  schemes/projects  for development/provision of telecom network/services.
- (b) Major  scheme-wise  and  year-wise  details  of  funds  allocated  and  their  utilization during the last three years are given below.  State-wise allocation is not made.

## (Rupees in crore)

| Name of Major Schemes / Projects       |   BE 2018-19 |   Actual utilization 2018-19 |   BE 2019-20 |   Actual utilization 2019-20 |   BE 2020-21 |   Actual utilization 2020-21 |
|----------------------------------------|--------------|------------------------------|--------------|------------------------------|--------------|------------------------------|
| USOF - Bharat Net                      |      8175    |                      4315.51 |      6000    |                      1729.27 |         6000 |                      5919.79 |
| USOF Projects other than Bharat Net    |      1825    |                       472.71 |      2350    |                      1196.33 |         2000 |                      1280.21 |
| OFC Based Network for Defence Services |      4500    |                      1927.21 |      4725    |                      4705    |         5000 |                      4000    |
| 5G Test Bed                            |       134.48 |                        59.27 |        38.59 |                        73.84 |           45 |                        54.13 |
| TOTAL                                  |     14634.5  |                      6774.7  |     13113.6  |                      7704.44 |        13045 |                     11254.1  |

*******
Lok Sabha Question No. 5726 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2022-04-06
Subject: EIR Programme
Ministry: SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY
Asked by: Arvind Kumar Sharma

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

## DEPARTMENT OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY LOK SABHA

UNSTARRED QUESTION No. 5726 TO BE ANSWERED ON 06.04.2022

## EIR PROGRAMME

5726.      DR. ARVIND KUMAR SHARMA:

Will the Minister of SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY ǒव£ान और Ĥौƭोिगकȧ मंğी be pleased to state:

- (a) the number of Startups that has been supported under the Entrepreneursin-Residence (EIR) programme of the National Initiative for Developing and Harnessing Innovations (NIDHI) programme by the Department of Science and Technology (DST);
- (b)  whether  grants  has  been  disbursed  under  this  program  to  aspiring entrepreneurs or Startups; and
- (c) if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF STATE (INDEPENDENT CHARGE) OF THE MINISTRY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY & EARTH SCIENCES

(DR. JITENDRA SINGH)

ǒव£ान और Ĥौƭोिगकȧ तथा पृØवी ǒव£ान मंğालय क े राÏय मंğी ( èवतंğ Ĥभार) ( डॉ. ǔजतɅġ िसंह )

- (a) & (b) In  accordance  with  the  objectives  of  National  Initiative  for Developing and Harnessing Innovations (NIDHI) -Entrepreneurs-inResidence (EIR) program, 410 individuals aspiring to be entrepreneur or form  a  startup  have  been  supported  under  this  program.  The  grant  is provided  in  the  form  of  fellowship  to  the  selected  individuals,  aspiring
- entrepreneurs, known as EIR fellows.
- (c) The NIDHI EIR support recipients (aspiring entrepreneurs- EIR fellows) are eligible for a maximum grant up to Rs. 30,000/- per month for a period of 12 months which is extendable up to 18 months in deserving case. The total quantum of support to the selected EIR fellows is limited to Rs. 3,60,000/-. The NIDHI EIR program is operated through a set of Technology Business Incubators across the country.

*****