opensansad/lok-sabha-qa huggingface dataset:
Lok Sabha Question No. 4171 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2026-03-18
Subject: Postal and Allied Services in Amroha
Ministry: COMMUNICATIONS
Asked by: Shri Kanwar Singh Tanwar

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMUNICATIONS DEPARTMENT OF POSTS

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 4171 TO BE ANSWERED ON 18 TH  MARCH, 2026

## POSTAL AND ALLIED SERVICES IN AMROHA

## †4171. SHRI KANWAR SINGH TANWAR:

Will the Minister of COMMUNICATIONS be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the Government has considered measures to strengthen postal and allied services in Amroha district of Uttar Pradesh including the modernisation of post offices, expansion of banking and insurance services through the postal network and improvement in the delivery time-frame for citizens;
- (b) if so, the details of the initiatives taken by the Government regarding the upgradation of post office  infrastructure,  postal  banking  services,  digital  service  integration,  employment  generation through postal activities and service coverage in the said district during the last three years; and
- (c) if not, the reasons therefor?

## ANSWER

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

(a) & (b) Yes, Sir. During the last three years, infrastructure upgradation has been carried out in two (02) Branch Post Offices (BOs) and two (02) Sub Post Offices (SOs) in Amroha District. Advanced Postal Technology (APT) IT 2.0 was rolled out in the month of August 2025 for smooth functioning of all Post Offices across India, including in Amroha District. All Head Post Office, Sub Post Offices and Branch Post Offices in Amroha District offer Post Office Savings Bank (POSB) services which operates on a Core Banking Solution (CBS) platform, offering modern digital banking services. These services include Automated Teller Machine (ATM) facility, Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) payments, internet banking, mobile banking,

National Electronic Funds Transfer (NEFT)/ Real Time Gross Settlement (RTGS), Payment through  Quick  Response  (QR)  Code,  e-Passbook  facility  and  Unified  Payments  Interface  (UPI) through India Post Payments Bank (IPPB) - Post Office Savings Account linkage. Further, 61 (Sixtyone) candidates have been engaged in the Gramin Dak Sevak (GDS) cadre in various Post Offices of Amroha District during  the  last  three  years,  contributing  to  employment  generation  through postal activities and service coverage in the district.

- (c) Does not arise in view of (a) & (b) above.

*****
Lok Sabha Question No. 4169 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2026-03-18
Subject: Optical Fibre Laid in Gram Panchayats in Rajasthan
Ministry: COMMUNICATIONS
Asked by: Shri Brijendra Singh Ola

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMUNICATIONS DEPARTMENT OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 4169 TO BE ANSWERED ON 18 TH  MARCH, 2026

## OPTICAL FIBRE LAID IN GRAM PANCHAYATS IN RAJASTHAN

## †4169. SHRI BRIJENDRA SINGH OLA:

Will the Minister of COMMUNICATIONS be pleased to state:

- (a) whether any difference is observed in the BharatNet data between the optical fibre laid (in kilometres) and the number of Gram Panchayats where internet services have been made operational;
- (b) if  so,  the  number  of  Gram  Panchayats  in  Rajasthan  where  optical fibre  has  been laid  but internet services have not yet been activated;
- (c) whether district-level data indicate delays in service activation in Jhunjhunu district; and
- (d) whether any provision has been made in the Union Budget for last-mile connectivity and operational support in such cases and if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

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

(a) to (c) BharatNet project is being implemented in a phased manner to provide broadband connectivity to all Gram Panchayats (GPs). Under BharatNet phase I & II, 7,19,241 Kms of Optical Fiber Cable (OFC) has been laid and 2,14,921 GPs have been made Service Ready all across the country.

In Rajasthan, 8,746 GPs including 301 GPs of Jhunjhunu District have been made Service Ready under BharatNet by laying of 30,662 Kms OFC and 57,570 Fiber To The Home (FTTH) connections have been provided.

- (d) Under Amended BharatNet Program, subsidy has been provisioned for providing 1.5 crore home fiber connections through BharatNet by Government for affordable home fiber connections to rural customers.

*****
Lok Sabha Question No. 4166 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2026-03-18
Subject: Deaths due to Starvation
Ministry: CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD AND PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION
Asked by: Smt. Satabdi Roy

## MINISTRY OF CONSUMER AFFAIRS. FOOD & PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA DEPARTMENT OF FOOD AND PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION

## LOK SABHA

UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 4166

TO BE ANSWERED ON 18TH MARCH, 2026

## DEATHS DUE TO STARVATION

## 4166. SMT. SATABDI ROY:

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

- (a): whether the Government has any data on deaths due to starvation;
- (b): if  so, the details of deaths due to starvation during the last eleven years, year-wise and if not, the reasons therefor; and
- (C): the details of the women and children who  died due to starvation, year-wise?

## ANSWER

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

(SHRIMATI NIMUBEN JAYANTIBHAI BAMBHANIYA)

(a) to (c): No Ma'am. Not a single State Government/ Union Territory Administration  has reported any incident of death due to starvation.

The Government has been providing  food grains at highly  subsidized prices to the targeted population through State Governments/Union Territory  Administrations  under the Targeted Public Distribution System (TPDS) in  terms of National Food Security Act,  2013 and Other Welfare Schemes (OWSs). National Food Security Act  (NFSA),  2013 provides for coverage of  upto 75% of the rural population and upto 50% of  the urban population, thus covering about two-third  of the population of the country for receiving foodgrains viz. rice, wheat &  coarse grains under TPDS.

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Lok Sabha Question No. 4163 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2026-03-18
Subject: MATSYA-6000
Ministry: EARTH SCIENCES
Asked by: Shri Dhairyasheel Sambhajirao Mane, Shri Sudheer Gupta, Smt. Sanjna Jatav, Shri Chavan Ravindra Vasantrao, Shri Pratap Chandra Sarangi

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF EARTH SCIENCES LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 4163 TO BE ANSWERED ON WEDNESDAY, 18 TH  MARCH, 2026

## MATSYA-6000

4163 SHRI DHAIRYASHEEL SAMBHAJIRAO MANE:

SMT. SANJNA JATAV:

SHRI CHAVAN RAVINDRA VASANTRAO:

SHRI SUDHEER GUPTA:

SHRI PRATAP CHANDRA SARANGI:

Will the Minister of Earth Sciences be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the indigenous human submersible MATSYA-6000 is on schedule for its 500meter shallow water dive planned for May 2026 and if so, the details thereof;
- (b) the manner in which the successful testing of the deep-sea mining system at 5,270 meters in 2025 influence the current roadmap for commercial mineral extraction;
- (c) whether the Government has established a framework for private sector participation in the sustainable development of "Blue Economy" resources; and
- (d) if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

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

- (a) MATSYA-6000  has  been  successfully  designed  and  completed  wet/harbour  trials demonstrating functionality (including floatation, vehicle stability, manoeuvrability, power, communication, and control devices) and human support and safety systems in January-February 2025. The 500-meter shallow-water dive requires the realisation and integration of several components, including a critical component: custom-designed syntactic foam. This foam is being designed by India and developed by a designated firm  in  Europe.  Unfortunately,  this  component  is  not  yet  ready  due  to  some manufacturing defect. It is expected to arrive in India by the end of May. After the integration  and  testing  of  this  material,  the  shallow-water  dive  is  scheduled  to  be executed in the last quarter.
- (b) The Ministry of Earth Sciences, through the National Institute of Ocean Technology in Chennai, has developed a seabed mining system to collect and crush polymetallic nodules. The mobility and system-powering trials for this system were conducted at a depth of 5,270m in 2021 in the Central Indian Ocean. Therefore, no deep-sea mining system trials have been conducted at 5,270m in 2025. Further, commercial mining is governed  by  the  Exploitation  Code,  which  has  not  yet  been  developed  by  the International Seabed Authority, entrusted with this mandate.
- (c) and (d) The  Ministry  is  actively  engaged  in  promoting  private  sector  participation  in  the sustainable  development  of  'Blue  Economy'  resources.  To  achieve  this  goal,  the ministry employs a variety of methods, one of which is tendering.
Lok Sabha Question No. 4159 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2026-03-18
Subject: 4G based Mobile Services in Andhra Pradesh
Ministry: COMMUNICATIONS
Asked by: Shri Bastipati Nagaraju

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMUNICATIONS DEPARTMENT OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS

LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 4159 TO BE ANSWERED ON 18 TH  MARCH, 2026

## 4G BASED MOBILE SERVICES IN ANDHRA PRADESH

## 4159.   SHRI BASTIPATI NAGARAJU:

Will the Minister of COMMUNICATIONS be pleased to state:

- (a) the details of the total number of villages selected for providing 4G based mobile services, State-wise and district-wise for Andhra Pradesh;
- (b) the details of the number of villages where such towers have been commissioned, State and district-wise particularly Andhra Pradesh and year-wise, since the project's inception;
- (c) the details of amount of funds sanctioned and released to implementing agencies under this project, State and year-wise; and
- (d) the  details  of  the  customer  usage  from  the  commissioned  towers,  State  and  district-wise particularly Andhra Pradesh and year-wise?

## ANSWER

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

- (a) Government has undertaken several projects through Digital Bharat Nidhi (DBN) to provide 4G mobile services to the uncovered villages/locations across the country, including Andhra Pradesh. 5,016 villages/locations of Andhra Pradesh have been selected for providing the 4G mobile services under various projects funded by DBN.

District wise details of villages/locations selected for Andhra Pradesh is available on DBN website (https://usof.gov.in/en/home).

- (b) As on 28.02.2026, 2,035 4G based towers have been made on air in the Andhra Pradesh under the various projects funded by DBN.

District-wise and year wise number of towers made on air in Andhra Pradesh is available on DBN website (https://usof.gov.in/en/home).

- (c) As on 28.02.2026, total fund of Rs. 1,182.88 crore has been released under various mobile projects of DBN in Andhra Pradesh.

Year  wise  fund  released  to  the  implementing  agencies  is  available  on  DBN  website (https://usof.gov.in/en/home).

- (d) A total 4,527 terabyte (TB) data has been consumed by the customers served by DBN funded mobile towers in the month of February 2026 in Andhra Pradesh, which translate to 24.6 gigabyte (GB) data consumed per user for month of February 2026.

District wise details of data consumption by the users for the month of February 2026 for Andhra Pradesh is available on DBN website (https://usof.gov.in/en/home).

*****
Lok Sabha Question No. 4153 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2026-03-18
Subject: Delay in Key Appointments to the National Commission for Minorities
Ministry: MINORITY AFFAIRS
Asked by: Dr. Shashi Tharoor

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF MINORITY AFFAIRS

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION No-4153

ANSWERED ON - 18/03/2026

## DELAY IN KEY APPOINTMENTS TO THE NATIONAL COMMISSION FOR MINORITIES

4153. DR. SHASHI THAROOR:

Will the Minister of MINORITY AFFAIRS be pleased to state:

- (a)  the  specific  reasons  for  the  prolonged  delay  in  appointing  the  Chairperson  and  key members of the National Commission for Minorities despite vacancies and directions from the Delhi High Court; (b) the steps being taken to expeditiously fill all existing vacancies or making arrangements for interim appointments to ensure the Commission functions with its full statutory strength; and (c) whether the Government has a timeline for such appointments and measures in place to avoid any scope of ambiguity and future lapses in the Commission's functioning and if so, the
- details thereof?

## ANSWER

## THE MINISTER OF MINORITY AFFAIRS

## (SHRI KIREN RIJIJU)

(a)  to  (c): As  per  Section  3  (2)  of  the  NCM Act  1992,  Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson  and Members of the Commission is to be nominated by the Central Government from amongst persons of eminence, ability and integrity.

The Central Government has appointed two members in the National Commission for Minorities, vide notification dated 06.03.2026.

*****
Lok Sabha Question No. 4146 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2026-03-18
Subject: Sachar Committee Recommendations
Ministry: MINORITY AFFAIRS
Asked by: Ms. S Jothimani

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF MINORITY AFFAIRS

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 4146

ANSWERED ON 18.03.2026

## SACHAR COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATIONS

## 4146. MS. S JOTHIMANI:

Will the Minister of MINORITY AFFAIRS be pleased to state:

- (a)  the  status  of  implementation  of  the  Sachar  Committee  recommendations  including  key initiatives taken to improve the socio-economic conditions of Muslims;
- (b) whether the Government has undertaken any new surveys or studies to assess the current status of Muslims since the Sachar Committee report and if so, the findings thereof;
- (c) the details of funds allocated and utilised for educational and economic development schemes recommended by the Sachar Committee such as scholarships, skill development programmes and employment opportunities;
- (d)  whether  the  Government  has  introduced  any  alternative  policies  or  schemes  after  the  Sachar Committee report to address the concerns of the Muslim community and if so, the details thereof; and
- (e) the steps taken to improve Muslim representation in Government jobs, public sector enterprises and higher education as recommended by the Sachar Committee?

## ANSWER

## THE MINISTER OF MINORITY AFFAIRS

## (SHRI KIREN RIJIJU)

(a) to (e): The government accepted 72 out of 76 recommendations of the Sachar Committee, and clubbed the similar nature of recommendations and took 43 decisions in the following focus areas:

- i. Education (15 decisions)
- ii. Skill Development of Minorities (2 decisions)
- iii. Access to credit (6 decisions)
- iv. Special development initiatives (2 decisions such as Multi-sectoral  Development Programme and Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission)
- v. Measures for affirmative action (4 decisions such as Setting up of Expert group on Equal Opportunity Commission and Diversity Index; and Setting up of National Data Bank and Assessment and Monitoring Authority)
- vi. Protection and Management of Waqf Properties (4 decisions), and
- vii. Miscellaneous  (10  decisions  such  as  Prevention  of  Communal  Violence,  Delimitation Act, Sensitization, Multi-Media campaign etc.)

The responsibility for implementation of these decisions has been given to Ministry of Minority Affairs and the concerned Ministries/Departments, whereby schemes/programmes were introduced to  improve  socio-economic  conditions  of  the  Muslims.  The  Ministry  of  Minority  Affairs  has adopted multi-pronged strategy by way of implementation of various schemes in pursuance of the Sachar Committee Report, which aim at the socio-economic development of the notified Minority communities  including  employability  through  educational  empowerment,  employment-oriented skill development, infrastructure support, etc. These schemes of the Government have enabled the Minority Communities in securing employment in various organisations including private sectors. The details of funds allocated and utilised is not centrally maintained.

*****
Lok Sabha Question No. 4145 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2026-03-18
Subject: Draft Legal Metrology
Ministry: CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD AND PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION
Asked by: Smt. Shambhavi, Shri Rajesh Verma, Shri Mukeshkumar Chandrakaant Dalal, Dr. Lata Wankhede, Shri Vishaldada Prakashbapu Patil

## 4145.  SHRI RAJESH VERMA:

SHRI VISHALDADA PRAKASHBAPU PATIL:

SMT. SHAMBHAVI:

SHRI MUKESHKUMAR CHANDRAKAANT DALAL:

DR. LATA WANKHEDE:

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

- (a) whether the Government has proposed the Draft Legal Metrology (Packaged Commodities) 2025 to enforce greater transparency and consumer empowerment in the ecommerce sector and if so, the details thereof;
- (b) the specific provisions requiring e-commerce entities to provide "searchable and sortable filters" for Country of Origin to enable consumers to easily identify the source of products;
- (c) the manner in which this strategic amendment strengthens the 'Vocal for Local' and 'Atmanirbhar Bharat' initiatives by  ensuring domestic products are easily discoverable and compete fairly with imported goods;
- (d) the details of the public consultation process undertaken to ensure that the views of all stakeholders are incorporated into this progressive regulatory framework; and
- (e) the manner in which these measures contribute to building a transparent, consumer-centric digital marketplace that safeguards the "Right to Information" for online shoppers?

## ANSWER

## THE MINISTER OF STATE CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD AND PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION (SHRI B.L.VERMA)

(a) to (e) : The draft amendment to the Legal Metrology (Packaged Commodities) Rules, 2011 was placed on the website of the Department of Consumer Affairs on 23.10.2025 inviting public comments from all stakeholders. The consultation period was initially up to 22.11.2025 and on request of stakeholders, was further extended till 08.12.2025.

The Government has amended the Legal Metrology (Packaged Commodities) Rules, 2011 through the  Legal  Metrology  (Packaged  Commodities)  Amendment  Rules, 2026  notified  on  13  February  2026. The amendment will come into force with effect from 1st July 2026 and inserts sub-rule (10A) in Rule 6, as follows:

'(10A)  Every  e-commerce  entity  selling  imported  products  shall  provide  the  product  listings  of  such imported products in a searchable and sortable filter specifying the country of origin.

The e-commerce entities already provide various filters on their platforms for enhancing consumer experience for speedy discovery of product as per consumer's choice.  The amendment ensures that they shall also provide searchable and sortable filters for country of origin.

## Government of India

## Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution

## Department of Consumer Affairs

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 4145

TO BE ANSWERED ON 18.03.2026

## DRAFT LEGAL METROLOGY
Lok Sabha Question No. 511 (STARRED), answered on 2026-03-30
Subject: Pension Calculated on the basis of Actual Basic Salary
Ministry: LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT
Asked by: Shri Giridhari Yadav

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. 511 TO BE ANSWERED ON 30.03.2026

## PENSION CALCULATED ON THE BASIS OF ACTUAL BASIC SALARY

†*511. SHRI GIRIDHARI YADAV:

Will the Minister of LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the pension under the Employees' Pension Scheme (EPS95) is calculated on the basis of basic salary with a maximum limit of Rs.15,000, due to which the employees drawing higher salaries do not receive proportionate pension; and

(b) if so, whether the Government proposes to calculate pension on

- the basis of actual basic salary and if not, the reasons therefor?

MINISTER OF LABOUR AND EMPLOYMENT (DR. MANSUKH MANDAVIYA)

- (a) & (b): A statement is laid on the Table of the House.
*                                                  *****

STATEMENT REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (a) to (b) OF LOK SABHA  STARRED  QUESTION  NO.  511  FOR  30.03.2026  BY  SHRI GIRIDHARI  YADAV  REGARDING  PENSION  CALCULATED  ON  THE BASIS OF ACTUAL BASIC SALARY.

(a) and (b): The  EPS  1995  is  a  'Defined  Contribution -Defined Benefit'  Social  Security  Scheme.  The  corpus  of  the  Employees' Pension Fund is made up of (i) contribution by the employer @ 8.33 per cent of pay and (ii) contribution from Central Government through budgetary  support  @  1.16  per  cent  of  pay  up  to  an  amount  of Rs.15,000/-  per  month.  As  defined  in  EPS-95  "Pay"  means  basic wages, with dearness allowance, retaining allowance and cash value of food concessions admissible.

All  benefits  under  the  scheme  are  paid  out  of  such accumulations.  The  amount  of  monthly  pension  is  calculated  in accordance with the following factors:

Pensionable Service X Pensionable Salary Monthly Pension =   --------------------------------------------------- 70

A new para 11(4) was inserted for existing members as on 01.09.2014 who had been contributing in EPS 1995 on wages above wage ceiling having exercised joint option under erstwhile para 11(3)

for contributing on wages exceeding Rs.6,500/- (then wage ceiling).

Further, w.e.f 01.09.2014, only such members are eligible to  become  EPS  members  whose  wages  at  the  time  of  joining  the scheme are up to Rs 15000/-.

The EPF&MP Act 1952 has been subsumed under Code on Social  Security  (CoSS)  2020  which  has  been  made  effective  from 21.11.2025.

*****