opensansad/lok-sabha-qa huggingface dataset:
Lok Sabha Question No. 4557 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-08-20
Subject: Railway Recruitment Examinations in Kannada Language
Ministry: RAILWAYS
Asked by: Dr. Prabha Mallikarjun

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 4557

## TO BE ANSWERED ON 20.08.2025

RAILWAY RECRUITMENT EXAMINATIONS IN KANNADA LANGUAGE 4557. DR. PRABHA MALLIKARJUN:

Will the Minister of RAILWAYS be pleased to state:

- (a) the details of the steps taken/progress made on allowing candidates to write Railway recruitment examinations in Kannada;
- (b) the  details  of  the  specific  actions  taken  by  the  Government  to implement  Kannada  as  a  medium  of  examination  in  upcoming Railway Recruitment Board (RRB) exams;
- (c) whether  notifications,  application  forms  and  exam  syllabi  have been  made  available  in  Kannada  to  support  candidates  from Karnataka and if so, the details thereof; and
- (d) the  details  of  the  timeline  for  fully  institutionalising  Kannada  and other regional languages as official options in Railway recruitment examinations to promote linguistic inclusivity?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF RAILWAYS, INFORMATION & BROADCASTING AND

ELECTRONICS & INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

(SHRI ASHWINI VAISHNAW)

- (a)  to  (d):  The  Computer  Based  Tests  (CBTs)  for  direct  recruitment examinations  by  Railway  Recruitment  Boards  are  conducted  in  15 languages including Kannada.

Railways, being a Central Government organization conduct recruitment  on  all  India  basis.  This  is  in  line  with  Constitutional provision  of  right  to  equality  in  matters  of  public  employment.  Every candidate irrespective of gender, language, place of birth, region etc. fulfilling  eligibility  criteria  is  free  to  apply.  All  those  who  apply  in response  to  Centralised  Employment  Notifications  (CENs),  including local  candidates  are  considered  for  recruitment  on  the  Railways,  on equal footing. No preference is given to candidates belonging to any State  or  Region  nor  is  the  recruitment  restricted  to  any  State  or Region. In  order  to  facilitate  candidates  in  direct  recruitment  examinations, Railway  Recruitment  Boards  (RRBs)  conduct  Computer  Based  Tests (CBTs) in English, Hindi and 13 regional Indian languages  viz., Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati, Kannada, Konkani, Malayalam, Manipuri, Marathi, Odia, Punjabi, Tamil, Telugu and Urdu. Accordingly, candidates  must  choose  their  medium  of  examination  from  any  one amongst those listed in the ONLINE application form. CBT questions are displayed in the language opted and in English. Centralized Employment Notice is issued/published in the Employment News/Rozgar  Samachar  and  also  on  official  websites  of  21  Railway Recruitment  Boards.  Participating  RRBs  issue  indicative  notice  in  at least two local newspapers including regional languages covering the entire jurisdiction of RRB.

*****
Lok Sabha Question No. 4555 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-08-20
Subject: New Zonal Railway Headquarters
Ministry: RAILWAYS
Asked by: Shri Rajesh Ranjan

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.4555 TO BE ANSWERED ON 20.08.2025

## NEW ZONAL RAILWAY HEADQUARTERS

†4555. SHRI RAJESH RANJAN:

Will the Minister of RAILWAYS be pleased to state:

- (a)  whether  the  Railway  Board/Ministry  proposes  to  form  a  new zonal  Railway  Headquarters  by  combining  the  rail  network  of Punia,  Saharsa,  Supaul,  Araria,  Madhepura,  Bhagalpur,  Barka, Munger  (Bihar),  Dumka,  Deoghar,  Sahebganj,  Pakur  areas  of Jharkhand  including  Katihar  Railway  Division  under  Northeast Frontier Railway;
- (b) if so, the details thereof; and
- (c) the time by when the said new Zonal Railway Headquarters is likely to start functioning in full existence?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF RAILWAYS, INFORMATION & BROADCASTING AND ELECTRONICS & INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

(SHRI ASHWINI VAISHNAW)

- (a)  to  (c):  Zones  on  Indian  Railways  are  set  up  keeping  in  view factors  like  size,  workload,  accessibilities,  traffic  pattern  and other operational/administrative requirements etc. consistent with the needs of economy and efficiency.

Zones  on  Indian  Railways  are  not  based  on  the  state/district boundaries or on regional consideration. The rail network of

Purnia,  Saharsa,  Supaul,  Araria,  Madhepura,  Bhagalpur,  Banka, Munger,  Dumka,  Deoghar,  Sahebganj,  Pakur  areas  and  Katihar railway division fall under the jurisdiction of Eastern Railway, East Central Railway and Northeast Frontier Railway.

The present arrangement is working satisfactorily and there is no proposal  under  consideration  to  form  a  new  zonal  railway  by combining  the  rail  network  under  these  districts  and  Katihar division.

*****
Lok Sabha Question No. 4554 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-08-20
Subject: Kulasekarapattinam Spaceport
Ministry: SPACE
Asked by: Smt. Kanimozhi Karunanidhi

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA DEPARTMENT OF SPACE

## LOK SABHA

## TO BE ANSWERED ON WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 20, 2025

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 4554 KULASEKARAPATTINAM SPACEPORT

## 4554.  SMT. KANIMOZHI KARUNANIDHI:

Will the PRIME MINISTER be pleased to state:

- (a) the current status of infrastructure development at the Kulasekarapattinam  spaceport  including  the  timeline  for  its full commissioning and the funds allocated and utilised for the project so far;
- (b) the specific advantages of the Kulasekarapattinam launch site in  terms  of  payload  capacity  and  its  comparison  with  the existing launch facility at Satish Dhawan Space Centre SHAR (SDSC-SHAR); and
- (c) the details of upcoming launch missions planned from Kulasekarapattinam including the type of rockets and payloads to be deployed from this spaceport?

## ANSWER

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

****

- (a) The current status of infrastructure development  at the Kulasekarapattinam  spaceport,  including  the  timeline  for  its full commissioning and the funds allocated and utilized for the project so far:
-  Land  acquisition completed  except  for  the  land  for rerouting the East-Coast Road.
-  Site  development  works  completed  and  construction
- works commenced for technical facilities.
-  Fabrication  of  various  equipment  and  structures  is  in progress at different work centres.
-  Commissioning of Kulasekarapattinam spaceport is targeted in FY 2026-27.
-  Funds allocated to Kulasekarapattinam spaceport -₹985.96 Crore.
- Fund utilized for the project so for - ₹389.58 Crore. (As on
-  31st July'25)
- (b) The  specific  advantages  of  the  Kulasekarapattinam  launch site in terms of payload capacity and its comparison with the existing launch facility at Satish Dhawan Space Centre SHAR (SDSC-SHAR) are as under:
-  Kulasekarapattinam launch site will enhance the payload capability  of  satellite  launch  vehicles  in  the  class  of ISRO's  Small  Satellite  Launch  Vehicle  (SSLV),  while launching satellites to polar orbits.
-  Launches to the functionally exceptional SunSynchronous Polar Orbits (SSPO) from  SDSC  SHAR, Sriharikota need maneuvering of the rocket to avoid the
- impact  of  spent  stages  over  landmasses  and  this  will significantly reduce the payload capability.
-  The payload capability of SSLV to SSPO while launching from  Kulasekarapattinam  is  about  300kg  whereas  the capability is inadequate for a useful payload while launching from SDSC SHAR.
- (c) Post  commissioning,  the  launches  of  SSLV  and  equivalent launch vehicles from Non-Government  Entities (NGEs) are planned to be carried out from Kulasekarapattinam spaceport.

****
Lok Sabha Question No. 4550 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-08-20
Subject: Family Pension to Divorced Daughters
Ministry: PERSONNEL, PUBLIC GRIEVANCES AND PENSIONS
Asked by: Shri Anil Firojiya, Shri Alok Sharma

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF PERSONNEL, PUBLIC GRIEVANCES AND PENSIONS (DEPARTMENT OF PENSION & PENSIONERS' WELFARE)

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 4550

(ANSWERED ON 20.08.2025)

## FAMILY PENSION TO DIVORCED DAUGHTERS

## †4550. SHRI ANIL FIROJIYA: SHRI ALOK SHARMA:

Will the PRIME MINISTER be pleased to state:

- (a) the steps taken by the Government to ensure that a divorced daughter of a Government servant is eligible to receive family pension;
- (b) whether the family pension is admissible in case the daughter gets divorced after the death of both parents and if so, the details thereof;
- (c) whether a daughter is eligible to receive family pension if she is widowed or divorced after the retirement of the Government servant; and
- (d) if so, the details thereof?

## 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)  to  (d):  Department  of  Pension  and  Pensioners'  Welfare  (DoPPW)  has  notified  the  Central Civil  Service  (Pension) Rules,  2021.  Various  provisions  have  been  incorporated  in  these  rules and  in  the  Office  Memorandum  No.  F.  No.1/1(1)/2022-P&PW(E)  dated  26.10.2022  issued subsequently to ensure that a divorced/widowed daughter of a deceased Government employee or pensioner covered under these rules gets family pension on her turn. The same provisions as described hereunder are provided under separate Rules for Railway and Defence employees and pensioners. In terms of these rules:

Where a deceased Government employee or pensioner is not survived by a spouse or son or daughter eligible for family pension or if they die or cease to fulfil the eligibility conditions for family pension prescribed in the above mentioned rules and there is no disabled child eligible to receive family pension, the family pension shall be granted or continued to be payable to an unmarried or widowed or divorced daughter beyond the age of twenty-five years for life or until she gets married or re-married or until she starts earning her livelihood, whichever is the earliest subject to the conditions like  the unmarried or widowed or divorced daughter was dependent on her  parent  or  parents  when  he  or  she  or   they  were  alive.   Further,  in  the  case  of  widowed daughter, death of her husband and in the case of divorced daughter, her divorce took place or the divorce proceedings filed in a competent court during the lifetime of the Government servant or pensioner or his or her spouse.

******
Lok Sabha Question No. 4547 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-08-20
Subject: Central Portal to Monitor Financial Transactions of Minority Educational Institutions
Ministry: MINORITY AFFAIRS
Asked by: Shri Trivendra Singh Rawat

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF MINORITY AFFAIRS

## LOK SABHA

UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.

†4547

ANSWERED ON 20/08/2025

## CENTRAL PORTAL TO MONITOR FINANCIAL TRANSACTIONS OF MINORITY EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS

## †4547. SHRI TRIVENDRA SINGH RAWAT:

Will the Minister of MINORITY AFFAIRS be pleased to state:

- (a)  whether  the  Government  is  aware  of  incidents  of  receiving  scholarships  on  the  basis  of  fake documents in 92 Madrasas in Uttarakhand and if so, the details thereof;
- (b)  whether  any  Special  Investigation  Team  (SIT)  has  been  constituted  in  this  regard  and  if  so,  the outcome of the investigation along with the action taken against the culprits;
- (c) whether the Government proposes to introduce a corporate audit mechanism or digital verification system to ensure transparency in the distribution of scholarships and if so, the details thereof; and
- (d) whether the Government proposes to set up a central portal to monitor the financial transactions of all minority educational institutes and if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

## THE MINISTER OF MINORITY AFFAIRS

(SHRI KIREN RIJIJU)

(a) and (b): Yes. Based on red flags raised on National Scholarship Portal, a list of suspicious institutes, which  also  include  Madarsas,  have  been  identified  in  various  States/Union  Territories  including  the State of Uttarakhand. In this matter, vide order dated 24.07.2025, the Government of Uttarakhand has constituted  a  Special  Investigation  Team  (SIT)  to  investigate  cases  pertaining  to  irregularities  in Scholarship Schemes under the Minority Welfare Department.

- (c) and (d) : Under the Scholarship Schemes of this Ministry i.e. Pre-Matric, Post-Matric and Meritcum-Means based Scholarships, Aadhaar based bio-metric authentication system is mandatory along with  Aadhaar  Payment  Bridge  System  (APBS)  to  ensure  transparent  distribution  of  Scholarships through the National Scholarship Portal. The disbursement is done in Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) mode  through  the  Public  Financial  Management  System  (PFMS)  which  is  a  web-based  financial management application developed and implemented by the Government of India.

*****
Lok Sabha Question No. 4544 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-08-20
Subject: Ekadashi Express
Ministry: RAILWAYS
Asked by: Shri Rajabhau Parag Prakash Waje

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## MINISTRY OF RAILWAYS

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED  QUESTION NO. 4544 TO BE ANSWERED ON 20.08.2025

## EKADASHI EXPRESS

## 4544 SHRI RAJABHAU PARAG PRAKASH WAJE:

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

- (a)    whether  the  Government  has  taken  cognisance  of  the  fact  that thousands  of  devotees  from  Nashik  district  and  surrounding  regions travel regularly to Pandharpur especially during Ekadashi and if so, the details thereof;
- (b) whether the Government has received any proposals/ representations for starting a dedicated train, to be named "Ekadashi Express", from Nashik to Pandharpur;
- (c)    if so, the details thereof along with the status of initiation of the train services;
- (d) whether the Government proposes to start train services originating  from  Nashik  to  places  like  Rameswaram,  Tirupati,  Puri, Varanasi,  Ayodhya,  Haridwar,  Ajmer,  Amritsar,  Jammu/SVDK,  Dwarka for pilgrims from Nashik and nearby districts to have direct connectivity to these places and have availability of berths; and
- (e)      if  so,  the  details  thereof  and  the  timeframe  by  when  such  train services will be operationalised?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF RAILWAYS, INFORMATION & BROADCASTING AND ELECTRONICS & INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

## (SHRI ASHWINI VAISHNAW)

- (a)   to  (e)  Representation  from  the  Hon'ble  Member of Parliament, for introduction of a train  from  Nashik  Road  to  Pandharpur  named 'Ekadashi Express' has been received.

To  facilitate  the  devotees  travel  to  Pandharpur  during  Ashadhi Ekadashi festival, Indian Railways operates special trains for Pandharpur.  This  year  86  trips  of  special  trains  were  operated  to facilitate the devotees. Introduction of new trains, increase in frequency of existing trains, extension  of  existing  trains  etc.  on  any  route/section  depends  on various factors which include:  Capacity of that section,  Availability of path,  Availability of required rolling stock,  Availability of matching infrastructure for rolling stock,  Maintenance requirement of railway tracks and other assets

Considering the above factors, presently,  Nashik Road is connected to Varanasi area by 09 pairs of train, to Ayodhya by 04 pairs of trains, to Puri by 2 pairs of trains,  to Haridwar by 2 pairs of trains, to Amritsar and  to Dwaraka by 01 pair of train each, to Delhi area by 05 pairs of trains. To increase the capacity of the rail network and hence to run more trains, Indian Railways have taken up network expansion works in a big

way.

*****
Lok Sabha Question No. 4543 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-08-20
Subject: MTNL-BSNL Integration on Service
Ministry: COMMUNICATIONS
Asked by: Shri Manickam Tagore B

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMUNICATIONS DEPARTMENT OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 4543 ANSWERED ON 20 TH  AUGUST, 2025

## MTNL-BSNL INTEGRATION ON SERVICE

## 4543.   SHRI MANICKAM TAGORE B:

Will the Minister of COMMUNICATIONS be pleased to state:

(a) whether the Government has any plan for the thousands of MTNL employees post functional integration with BSNL, with regard to VRS expansion, redeployment or job losses, if so, the details thereof including the status of employees;

(b) whether the Government has conducted any impact assessment of MTNL-BSNL integration on service quality, billing and complaint redressal for existing landline and FTTH subscribers and if so, the details thereof;

(c) the  reason for significant delay in MTNL's 4G rollout and the manner in which this will impact India's strategic goal of public-sector participation in the telecom sector;

(d) the details of the percentage of MTNL's total subscriber base in Delhi and Mumbai which is currently using 4G along with the targeted user conversion timeline;

(e) the details of the Rs. 6,000 crore financial support in the year 2023-24 that has been allocated specifically for MTNL's 4G infrastructure and the procurement milestones achieved; and

(f) whether the MTNL failed to retain market share in Delhi and Mumbai despite being an early telecom player and if so, the reasons therefor including  the manner in which the Government is addressing private sector dominance?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE FOR COMMUNICATIONS AND RURAL DEVELOPMENT (DR. PEMMASANI CHANDRA SEKHAR)

( a ) & (b) The Union Cabinet approved Revival Packages for BSNL and MTNL in 2019, 2022 &  2023,  including  Voluntary  Retirement  Scheme  (VRS)  for  BSNL  and  MTNL,  among  other measures. To further optimize manpower and lower HR expenses, BSNL and MTNL have been asked to formulate a comprehensive organizational restructuring and rationalization plan, with the inclusion of a comprehensive assessment of the impacts of the VRS already done.

An agreement between BSNL and MTNL has been signed, with effect from 1 st  January 2025, to run MTNL's telecommunication services by taking over maintenance and operational activities of MTNL on EBIDTA neutral basis.

(c) to (f) In  line  with  Atmanirbhar  Bharat  initiative,  BSNL  has  placed  purchase  order  for indigenously developed 4G sites for pan India deployment including Delhi & Mumbai. Supply of 4G equipment has started from September 2023 and as on 31.07.2025, total 96,300 4G sites have been  installed  and  91,281  sites  are  ON-Air.  The  equipment  is  5G  upgradable  from  technology perspective.

Earlier, lack of 4G services, financial constraints and stiff competition in the Telecom Sector are some of the challenges which affected the market share of MTNL.

*****
Lok Sabha Question No. 4542 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-08-20
Subject: Additional allocation of Rice to Kerala
Ministry: CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD AND PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION
Asked by: Shri K Radhakrishnan

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## MINISTRY OF CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD & PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION DEPARTMENT OF FOOD AND PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION

## LOK SABHA

UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 4542

TO BE ANSWERED ON 20TH AUGUST, 2025

## ADDITIONAL ALLOCATION OF RICE TO KERALA

## 4542. SHRI K RADHAKRISHNAN:

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

- (a) whether the State Government of Kerala has submitted a request for additional allocation of rice from the central pool in view of the upcoming C)nam festival;
- (b) if  so, the details of the request received including  the quantity of rice sought and the date on which it was received by the Union  Government;
- (C) whether the Union Government has taken any decision regarding this request;
- (d) if  so, the details of the action taken and the quantity of rice allocated to Kerala for C)nam festival  celebrations;
- (e) if  not, the reasons for the delay or rejection and whether the Government  would  consider urgent allocation to ensure food security and festival  support for the people of Kerala; and
- (f) if  so, the details thereon

## ANSWER

MINISTER  OF STATE FOR MINISTRY  OF CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD & PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION

(SHRIMATI NIMUBEN JAYANTIBHAI BAMBHANIYA)

- (a) &  (b):  Yes Sir, Government of Kerala vide its letter dated 01.07.2025, received on 02.07.2025, requested for additional  allocation of  5 Kg  of Rice at Tide Over rate for Non NFS A  (National Food Security Act)  card holders in  September 2025 and to  relax the monthly ceiling  limit  regarding excess use of Tide over portion in view of C)nam festival.
- (c)  to  (f): Govt. of  Kerala has been informed, vide  letter dated 31.07.2025, that it  may avail additional quantities of rice through OMSS (Open Market Sales Scheme) provisions or through the extant policy  guidelines for  additional allocation of  wheat &  rice on account of festivals, natural calamities and law &  order situation. Accordingly, Govt. of Kerala may submit a request  in  this regard

For relaxing the monthly ceiling limit  in  view  of  C)nam Festival, it  has already been informed that States are permitted to  advance lift  and distribute upto 6 months of the ration allocated under the NFS A.  Therefore, Govt. of Kerala may also explore the provision of advance lifting  as per its requirements in accordance with the extant guidelines.

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