opensansad/lok-sabha-qa huggingface dataset:
Lok Sabha Question No. 628 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-12-03
Subject: Whistleblowers Protection Act, 2014
Ministry: PERSONNEL, PUBLIC GRIEVANCES AND PENSIONS
Asked by: Dr. Sharmila Sarkar

## MINISTRY OF PERSONNEL, PUBLIC GRIEVANCES AND PENSIONS

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

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 628

(ANSWERED ON 03.12.2025)

## WHISTLEBLOWERS PROTECTION ACT, 2014

## 628. DR. SHARMILA SARKAR:

Will the PRIME MINISTER be pleased to state:

- (a) the salient features of Whistleblowers Protection Act, 2014 and the reasons for the delay in operationalising the same;
- (b) whether the Government intends to amend the Whistleblowers Protection Act and if so, the details thereof;
- (c) the timeline by which the Government plans to operationalise the Whistleblowers Protection Act, 2014; and
- (d) the details of measures put in place to protect whistleblowers in the interim?

## 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  (c):  The  Preamble to the  statute  reads as, "An Act to establish  a mechanism to receive complaints relating to disclosure on any allegation of corruption or wilful misuse of power or wilful misuse of discretion against any public servant and to  inquire or cause an inquiry into such disclosure and to provide adequate safeguards against victimisation of the person making such complaint and for matters connected therewith and incidental thereto."

The  Whistle  Blowers  Protection  Bill,  2011  was  debated/passed  by  the  Lok  Sabha  on 27.12.2011 and by the Rajya Sabha on 21.02.2014. It received the assent of the President on the 09.05.2014. The Whistle Blowers Protection Act, 2014 (No.17 of 2014) was published in the Gazette of India on 12th May 2014. In terms of the provisions under sub-section (3) of section 1 of  the  Act,  the  provisions  of  the  Act  shall  come  into  force  on  such  date  as  the  Central Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, appoint. No such notification has been made  by  the  Government  for  the  reason  that the  Act  requires  amendments  aimed  at safeguarding  against  disclosures  affecting  sovereignty  and  integrity  of  India,  security  of  the State,  etc.,  before  it  is  brought  into  force.  To  make  these  amendments  to  the  Act,  the Government  introduced  the  Whistle  Blowers  Protection  (Amendment)  Bill,  2015  in  the  Lok Sabha  on  11th  May  2015  which  was  passed  by  the  Lok  Sabha  on  13th  May  2015  and transmitted to the Rajya Sabha. The Bill has since lapsed upon the dissolution of the Sixteenth Lok Sabha.

(d): The Whistle Blowers' Protection mechanism presently exists in the form of Public Interest Disclosure  and  Protection  of  Informers  (PIDPI)  Resolution,  2004  dated  21.04.2004  and  the Central Vigilance Commission has been designated by the Central Government as the Agency to act on complaints from the 'whistleblowers'. The Commission has been entrusted with the responsibility of keeping the identity of the complainant confidential.

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Lok Sabha Question No. 619 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-12-03
Subject: Expenditure on Advertisement by Government
Ministry: INFORMATION AND BROADCASTING
Asked by: Shri Shafi Parambil

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF INFORMATION & BROADCASTING

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION No. 619

## TO BE ANSWERED ON   03.12.2025

## EXPENDITURE ON ADVERTISEMENT BY GOVERNMENT

## 619. SHRI SHAFI PARAMBIL

Will the Minister of INFORMATION & BROADCASTING be pleased to state:

- (a) the total amount spent by the government on advertisement during each of the last five years;
- (b) the total amount spent by the State Government on advertisement during each of the last five years; and
- (c) the total amount spent by the Union Government on advertisement in print and visual media?

## MINISTER OF STATE FOR INFORMATION & BROADCASTING; AND

## ANSWER PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS

## (DR. L. MURUGAN)

- (a) to (c): The Central Bureau of Communication (CBC) issues advertisements on behalf of various Union Ministries/Departments related to schemes/programmes and other initiatives of Government of India.

The advertisements related to  newspapers are  issued as per the Print Media  Advertisement Policy, and to news channels as per the Audio Visual Policy guidelines. The advertisement are released as per the requirements of the client ministries/departments and the target audience of the campaigns.

The details of the expenditure incurred on these advertisements are available on the website of CBC i.e. www.davp.nic.in.

Details of the expenditures by State Governments on advertisements made are not maintained by the Government of India.

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Lok Sabha Question No. 617 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-12-03
Subject: Developmental Action Plan for SCs and STs
Ministry: PLANNING
Asked by: Shri S Venkatesan

- (a) No. Sir.
- (b) Does not arise in view of reply to (a) above.
- (c) & (d)  NITI  Aayog  has  issued  guidelines  titled  'Guidelines  for  earmarking  of  funds  for Development Action Plan for SCs and STs (DAPSC & DAPST)' in 2017. As per these guidelines, 41 Central Government Ministries/Departments are obligated to earmark funds under  the  relevant  scheme,  and  such  fund  allocation  is  based  on  the  scheme-specific budget  rather  than  the  total  budget  of  the  Ministry/Department.  The  guidelines  also provide that the Nodal Ministries, namely, Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment and Ministry of Tribal Affairs, are responsible for the monitoring and implementation of the DAPSC & DAPST. NITI Aayog is a member of various committees constituted for such purposes. A copy of the Guidelines is available at https://www.niti.gov.in/sites/default/files/201912/NITI\_Aayog\_Guideliens\_for\_SCSP\_TSP\_2017.pdf

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## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF PLANNING

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 617

TO BE ANSWERED ON 03.12.2025

## DEVELOPMENTAL ACTION PLAN FOR SCS AND STS

## 617. SHRI S VENKATESAN:

Will the Minister of PLANNING be pleased to state:

- (a) whether  NITI  Aayog  has  conducted  any  study  on  the  implementation  of  the  schemes regarding mandatory allocations, utilisation etc. for the development of SCs/STs;
- (b) if so, pitfalls which have been identified and suggestions made thereon;
- (c) the details of latest guidelines issued for effective implementation of such schemes; and
- (d) the details of the ambit of NITI Aayog addressing the issues pertaining to the same?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF STATE (INDEPENDENT CHARGE) OF THE MINISTRY OF STATISTICS AND PROGRAMME IMPLEMENTATION; MINISTER OF STATE (INDEPENDENT CHARGE) OF THE MINISTRY OF PLANNING AND MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF CULTURE

## (RAO INDERJIT SINGH)
Lok Sabha Question No. 615 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-12-03
Subject: Sustainable Development Goals
Ministry: PLANNING
Asked by: Shri Kaushalendra Kumar

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF PLANNING

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 615

TO BE ANSWERED ON 03.12.2025

## SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS

## †615.   SHRI KAUSHALENDRA KUMAR:

Will the Minister of PLANNING be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the United Nations declared in September, 2015 to achieve global target of eradicating  poverty  from  the  World  by  the  year  2030  by  adopting  the  Sustainable Development Goals; and
- (b) if so, the details of the steps taken/being taken by the Government to achieve the said target?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE (INDEPENDENT CHARGE) OF THE MINISTRY OF STATISTICS AND PROGRAMME IMPLEMENTATION; MINISTER OF STATE (INDEPENDENT CHARGE) OF THE MINISTRY OF PLANNING AND MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF CULTURE

## (RAO INDERJIT SINGH)

- (a) The  United  Nations  General  Assembly  adopted  the  2030  Agenda  for  Sustainable Development at the UN Summit held on 25-27 September 2015. SDG Goal 1 is related to 'No Poverty'. Targets of this goal, inter-alia, include eradication of extreme poverty for all people everywhere by 2030 and reducing at least by half the proportion of men, women  and  children  of  all  ages  living  in  poverty  in  all  its  dimensions  according  to national definitions.
- (b) The  Government  has  launched  various  schemes  to  reduce  multidimensional  poverty, which include schemes like Saksham Anganwadi & POSHAN 2.0, Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna  Yojana (PMGKAY),  Pradhan  Mantri Poshan Shakti  Nirman  (PM POSHAN), Pradhan Mantri Surakshit Matritva Abhiyan, Pradhan Mantri Sahaj Bijli Har Ghar  Yojana  (Saubhagya),  PM  Ujjwala  Yojana,  Swachh  Bharat  Mission  (SBM),  Jal Jeevan  Mission  (JJM),  Pradhan  Mantri  Jan  Dhan  Yojana  (PMJDY),  Pradhan  Mantri Awas  Yojana  (PMAY)  etc.  Each  scheme  is  designed  and  implemented  by  respective

Ministries/Departments with its unique goals and targets to address specific dimensions of multidimensional poverty.

As a result of these steps undertaken, as per the latest report, 'National Multidimensional Poverty  Index:  A  Progress  Review  2023',  released  by  NITI  Aayog,  the  proportion  of population in multidimensional poverty declined from 24.85% to 14.96% between 201516 and 2019- 21, indicating that about 13.5 crore people have escaped poverty during the period.

Further, as per the discussion paper 'Multidimensional Poverty in India since 2005- 06' published  by  NITI  Aayog,  multidimensional  poverty  in  India  is  estimated  to  have declined from 29.17% in 2013-14 to 11.28% in 2022-23 implying that 24.82 crore people have escaped poverty during this period. The details including methodology are in public domain  and  can  be  accessed  at https://www.niti.gov.in/sites/default/files/2023-08/IndiaNational Multidimentional-Poverty-Index-2023.pdf . The details of the discussion paper can be accessed at https://www.niti.gov.in/sites/default/files/2024-01/MPI-22\_NITI-Aayog20254.pdf

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Lok Sabha Question No. 609 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-12-03
Subject: DAVP Advertisements to Newspapers and News Channels in West Bengal
Ministry: INFORMATION AND BROADCASTING
Asked by: Shri Jagannath Sarkar

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF INFORMATION & BROADCASTING

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION No. 609

## TO BE ANSWERED ON   03.12.2025

## DAVP  ADVERTISEMENTS  TO  NEWSPAPERS  AND  NEWS  CHANNELS  IN  WEST BENGAL

## 609. SHRI JAGANNATH SARKAR

Will the Minister of INFORMATION & BROADCASTING be pleased to state:

- (a) the total amount of Directorate of Advertising and Visual Publicity (DAVP) advertisements released  to  newspapers and news  channels based in West Bengal during each of the last  three financial years, media-wise;
- (b) the list of newspapers and news channels in West Bengal that received DAVP advertisements during the said period along with the quantum of funds allocated thereto;
- (c)  whether  small  and  regional  newspapers  including  those  in  Bengali  language  have  received proportionate advertisement support compared to larger national dailies and channels and if so, the details thereof;
- (d)  the  criteria  adopted  by  DAVP/Central  Bureau  of  Communication (CBC) for distribution of advertisements among West Bengal media houses; and
- (e) the steps being taken by the Government to ensure fair, transparent and equitable allocation of advertisement funds to regional and local newspapers and channels in West Bengal ?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF STATE FOR INFORMATION & BROADCASTING; AND PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS

## (DR. L. MURUGAN)

- (a) to (e): The Central Bureau of Communication (CBC) issues advertisements on behalf of various Ministries/Departments related to schemes/programmes and other initiatives of the Government of India.

The advertisements related to newspapers are issued as per the Print Media Advertisement Policy, and to news channels as per the Audio Visual Policy guidelines. The advertisement are released as per the requirements of the client ministries/departments and the target audience of the campaigns.

The advertisement policies/guidelines, details of the expenditure incurred and newspapers and the news Channels to which advertisements have been given are available on the website of CBC i.e. www.davp.nic.in.

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Lok Sabha Question No. 607 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-12-03
Subject: Strengthening Meteorological, Seismic and Climate Monitoring System
Ministry: EARTH SCIENCES
Asked by: Shri Kanwar Singh Tanwar

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA LOK SABHA

## MINISTRY OF EARTH SCIENCES UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 607 TO BE ANSWERED ON WEDNESDAY, 3 RD  DECEMBER, 2025

## STRENGTHENING METEOROLOGICAL, SEISMIC AND CLIMATE MONITORING SYSTEM

## † 607.  SHRI KANWAR SINGH TANWAR:

Will the Minister of EARTH SCIENCES be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the Government proposes to strengthen meteorological, seismic and climate monitoring system in Amroha  district of Uttar Pradesh to improve disaster preparedness and weather forecasting;
- (b) if so, the details of the monitoring stations established, the technology deployed and the outcome achieved in the said district; and
- (c) if not, the reasons therefor?

## ANSWER

## THE MINISTER OF STATE (INDEPENDENT CHARGE) FOR MINISTRY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY AND EARTH SCIENCES (DR. JITENDRA SINGH)

- (a)-(b)  Yes  Sir.  The  Ministry  has  been  continuously  upgrading  and  strengthening  various meteorological, seismic, and climate-monitoring systems across India, including in the Amroha  district  of  Uttar  Pradesh,  to  enhance  disaster  preparedness  and  improve weather forecasting.

Currently, a total of 24 rainfall observational stations are operational in the district, out of which 19 stations are equipped with temperature and humidity sensors, and five are equipped with wind sensors. At present, 169 seismic stations are operational across the country,  of  which  15  are  located  in  the  state  of  Uttar  Pradesh.  Four  of  these observatories Thakurdwara, Unchagaon, Hapur, and Meerut, are situated in the vicinity of Amroha.

- (c) Does not arise.

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Lok Sabha Question No. 606 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-12-03
Subject: Scholarship Schemes for Students Belonging to Minority Communities
Ministry: MINORITY AFFAIRS
Asked by: Shri Amra Ram

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF MINORITY AFFAIRS

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. † 606

ANSWERED ON 03/12/2025

## SCHOLARSHIP SCHEMES FOR STUDENTS BELONGING TO MINORITY COMMUNITIES

†606. SHRI AMRA RAM:

Will the Minister of MINORITY AFFAIRS be pleased to state:

- (a) the year from which the scholarship for the students belonging to minority community has been discontinued along with the reasons therefor;
- (b) whether the Government proposes to restore it from this year; and
- (c) if so, the time by which it is likely to be restored and if not, the reasons therefor?

## ANSWER

## THE MINISTER OF MINORITY AFFAIRS

(SHRI KIREN RIJIJU)

- (a) : Ministry of Minority Affairs has implemented Pre-Matric, Post-Matric, Merit-cum-Means based Scholarship Schemes for the 6 notified religious minority communities.

Considering the alleged embezzlement of funds under the Scholarship Schemes, the Ministry, on the basis of red flags generated by National Scholarships Portal, requested investigating agency and  States/UTs  for  verification  of  suspicious  institutions  and  to  take  punitive  action  against  the defaulters. The schemes as such have not been approved for implementation beyond 2021-22.

- (b) & (c) : The Ministry is in the process of seeking EFC approval on the scholarship schemes for 16th Finance Commission cycle.

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Lok Sabha Question No. 601 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-12-03
Subject: Coal Mining Development and Production Agreements
Ministry: COAL
Asked by: Shri Kripanath Mallah

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COAL

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO-601 ANSWERED ON 03/12/2025

## COAL MINING DEVELOPMENT AND PRODUCTION AGREEMENTS

## 601.  SHRI KRIPANATH MALLAH:

Will the Minister of COAL be pleased to state:

(a) the  expected  economic  impacts  of  the  recently  executed  coal  mining  development  and production agreements for the Machhakata, Kudanali Lubri and Sakhigopal-B Kakurhi coal mines in Odisha; and

(b) the manner in which these agreements contribute to the Government's goal of achieving Atmanirbharta in the coal sector?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF COAL & MINES (SHRI G. KISHAN REDDY )

(a) On  05.09.2024, Machhakata (Revised), Kudanali Lubri and Sakhigopal-B Kakurhi coal mines have been successfully allocated to NLC India Limited, Gujarat Mineral Development Corporation  Limited(GMDC)  and  Tamil  Nadu  Generation  and  Distribution  Corporation (TANGEDCO), respectively.

Kudanali Lubri and Sakhigopal-B Kakurhi are partially explored blocks, while Machhakata(Revised) coal block is fully explored having reserve of 1525 MT and PRC of 30 MTPA which is expected to generate Annual Revenue of ~Rs. 2,991 crores and estimated investment of ~Rs. 4,500 crores upon operationalization.

(b) The peak-rated capacity of the Machhakata (Revised) coal mine is 30 MTPA while the other  two  mines  are  Partially  Explored  coal  mines.  Once  operational,  these  mines  are expected to reduce the import of coal by the country, substituting it with the domestically produced coal.

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Lok Sabha Question No. 599 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-12-03
Subject: Subsidy to DISCOMs under PM-SGMBY
Ministry: NEW AND RENEWABLE ENERGY
Asked by: Mrs Ruchi Vira

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF NEW AND RENEWABLE ENERGY

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 599

ANSWERED ON 03.12.2025

## SUBSIDY TO DISCOMS UNDER PM-SGMBY

## 599. MRS RUCHI VIRA

Will the Minister of NEW AND RENEWABLE ENERGY be pleased to state:

- (a)  whether the Government proposes to give subsidy under Pradhan Mantri-Surya Ghar Muft Bijlee Yojana (PM-SGMBY) to State Governments through DISCOMs instead of directly reimbursing beneficiaries so as to facilitate the installation of rooftop solar plants in consumer premises and ensure wider utilization of solar energy;
- (b) if so, the details of the proposed procedure for subsidy distribution through DISCOMs along with the timeline for its implementation; and
- (c)   the steps being taken by the Government to ensure achievement of PM-SGMBY targets in solar-rich States such as Uttar Pradesh?

## ANSWER

## THE MINISTER OF  STATE  FOR NEW & RENEWABLE ENERGY AND POWER (SHRI SHRIPAD YESSO NAIK)

- (a) & (b) There is currently no proposal under the PM Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana (PMSG: MBY) to give subsidy to State Governments for installation of rooftop solar plants in the premises of residential consumers.
- (c) The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy has taken following steps to ensure achievement of scheme targets across the country including in solar-rich States such as Uttar Pradesh:
- Online process from registration to disbursal of subsidy directly into the bank account of the residential consumer through National Portal.
- Availability of collateral free loan from nationalized banks at concessional interest rate of repo-rate plus 50 bps i.e. 6% per annum for the present with tenure of 10 years.
- Simplified the regulatory approval process by waiving technical feasibility requirement and introducing auto load enhancement upto 10 kW.
- Included RESCO/ Utility led Aggregation (ULA) Models
- Net metering agreement has been made part of application in the National Portal.
- Simplified process for registration of vendors to ensure sufficient and qualified vendors are available.
- Capacity building and training programmes  being  conducted  for creating skilled manpower.
- Creating awareness about the scheme, through awareness and outreach program such as print  advertising  in  leading  newspapers,  TV  commercials  campaigns,  Radio  campaigns across FM stations including regional channels, etc., in the country.
- Regular  monitoring  of  the  progress  of  the  scheme  at  different  levels  including  with states/DISCOMs.
- Conducting regional review meetings.
- Established  grievance  redressal  mechanism  for  timely  resolution  of  grievances.  A  Call Centre with telephone number 15555 is operational in 12 languages.

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Lok Sabha Question No. 597 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-12-03
Subject: DHRUVA Project
Ministry: COMMUNICATIONS
Asked by: Shri Sanatan Pandey

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMUNICATIONS DEPARTMENT OF POSTS

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 597 ANSWERED ON 3 RD  DECEMBER, 2025

## DHRUVA PROJECT

## †597.   SHRI SANATAN PANDEY:

Will the Minister of COMMUNICATIONS be pleased to state:

(a) whether private technology startups have been given the opportunity to participate in the DHRUVA Project and  if  so,  the  details  of  the  selection  process  and  the  criteria  prescribed  for selection of said startups;

(b) whether  participation  of  private  startups  is  likely  to  boost  innovation  and  promote  local technological developments in the country and if so, the details thereof; and

(c) whether it is proposed to extend the DHRUVA platform to the Panchayat level and  if so, the names of the agencies nominated in this regard along with the estimated impact thereof on rural digital inclusion?

## ANSWER

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

- (a) The national Digital Address Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) under DHRUVA framework is designed to be an open, interoperable and innovation-friendly ecosystem for digital addressing in India. Any entity, including technology startups, can be a part of this ecosystem.
- (b) Yes, participation of private startups will boost innovation and promote local technological development in the country. Startups can build solutions on top of the DHRUVA Digital Address DPI using the 'Address-as-a-Service (AaaS)' model.
- (c) DHRUVA is conceptualized as a nationwide Digital Address DPI without distinguishing between urban  and rural  areas.  Hence,  no  specific  Panchayat-level  agencies  are  nominated.  The Digital Address DPI architecture is expected to enhance rural digital inclusion by enabling precise digital addresses, improving service delivery, and supporting rural governance once operational.

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