opensansad/lok-sabha-qa huggingface dataset:
Lok Sabha Question No. 1699 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-12-10
Subject: National Food Security Act
Ministry: CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD AND PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION
Asked by: Smt. Harsimrat Kaur Badal

## MINISTRY OF CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD & PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA DEPARTMENT OF FOOD AND PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION

## LOK SABHA

UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1699

## TO BE ANSWERED ON IOT II DECEMBER, 2025

## NATIONAL  FOOD SECURITY ACT

## 1699. SMT. HARSIMRAT KAUR BADAL:

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

- (a) the total number of beneficiaries under the National  Food Security Act (NFS A)  in Punjab as of 2025
- (b) the ratio of beneficiaries per FPS compared  with  the national average;
- (c) whether  the  Government proposes  to  revise  the  FPS-to-be  beneficiary ratio  or  expand inclusion criteria; and
- (d) if so, the details thereon

## ANSWER

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

(SHRIMATI NIMUBEN JAYANTIBHAI  BAMBHANIYA)

- (a): The National Food Security Act  (NFSA) 2013, provides for coverage of  54.79% of the rural and 44.83 % of  the urban population  in the State of  Punjab, for  receiving free of  cost foodgrains, which  at  Census 2011  comes to  141.45 lakh  persons. The  State Government of  Punjab has identified beneficiaries  upto  the  maximum permissible limit i.e. 141.45  lakh  beneficiaries determined under the Act.
- (b) to (d): Targeted Public Distribution System (TPDS) is now governed as per the provisions of the National Food Security Act, 2013 (NFS A), which is operated under the joint  responsibility  of the  Central and State/Union Territory  (UT)  Governments. Central Government is responsible for procurement, allocation and transportation of  foodgrains upto the designated depots of the Food Corporation of  India.  The  operational responsibilities for  allocation  of  foodgrains within  the States/UTs,  distribution  of foodgrains to eligible  beneficiaries under TPDS, issuance of  licenses to Fair Price Shops (FPSs), and supervision over and monitoring of functioning of  Fair Price Shops (FPSs), etc rest with  the concerned State/UT Government. Thus, the ratio of beneficiaries per FPS may vary from  State to State and FPS to FPS.

......2/-

Identification  of  beneficiaries under the Act  is under two  categories- households covered under Antyodaya Anna Yojana (AAY)  to  the extent specified by  the Central Government and the remaining  households as priority households to  be  identified  by  the  State Governments/ Union Territories (UT)  Administrations as per criteria evolved by them, within  the coverage determined for  the  State/UT.  Thus,  the  criteria for  identification of  beneficiaries under  Priority  Households Category may vary  from  State to  State depending upon Socio-Economic, demographic conditions of the State kScScSe SeE
Lok Sabha Question No. 1697 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-12-10
Subject: Maitri-2 Station
Ministry: EARTH SCIENCES
Asked by: Shri Raja A

## 1697. SHRI RAJA A:

Will the Minister of EARTH SCIENCES be pleased to state:

- (a) whether India is planning to replace Maitri research station by a new Maitri-2 station;
- (b) if so, the details thereof along with the funds sanctioned for preparing design and Detailed Project Report;
- (c) whether  it  would  facilitate  research  in  various  fields  like  biology,  earth  science, glaciology etc.,
- (d) if so, the details thereof; and
- (e) the time, by which it is proposed to be operational?

## ANSWER

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

- (a) Yes Sir. India is planning to replace the existing Maitri Research Station with a newly designed Maitri-II Station in Antarctica.
- (b) The Ministry of Earth Sciences has approved ₹29.2 crore for pre-investment activities, including architectural design and preparation of the Detailed Project Report (DPR).
- (c) Yes  Sir.  The  new  station will significantly  enhance  India's ability to  conduct multidisciplinary scientific research in Antarctica.
- (d) The new Maitri-II Station is conceived as a state-of-the-art, year-round research hub that will significantly elevate India's scientific capability in biology, earth sciences, glaciology, atmospheric sciences, climate studies and long-term environmental monitoring.

The upgraded station will feature modern laboratories, advanced ice-core storage and processing systems, a dedicated biological and microbial research suite and expanded atmospheric observation facilities. A stronger and more dependable logistic backbone will ensure uninterrupted scientific operations throughout the year. These enhancements will greatly expand the scope, precision, continuity and international relevance of India's Antarctic research, enabling the country to contribute high-quality data and cutting-edge findings to global polar science for decades to come.

- (e) The projected timeline for Maitri-II to become operational is estimated as seven years with expected completion by 2032.

*****

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## MINISTRY OF EARTH SCIENCES LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1697

## TO BE ANSWERED ON WEDNESDAY, 10 th  DECEMBER, 2025

## MAITRI-2 STATION
Lok Sabha Question No. 1696 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-12-10
Subject: Incentives for Adoption of Renewable Energy
Ministry: NEW AND RENEWABLE ENERGY
Asked by: Shri Ve Vaithilingam

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF NEW AND RENEWABLE ENERGY

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1696

ANSWERED ON 10.12.2025

## INCENTIVES FOR ADOPTION OF RENEWABLE ENERGY

1696. SHRI VE VAITHILINGAM

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

- (a) whether the Government has provided incentives, subsidies or technical support to households, industries and institutions in Puducherry for adoption of renewable energy solutions;
- (b) if so, the details of number of beneficiaries, funds disbursed and renewable capacity added; and
- (c) if not, the reasons therefor?

## ANSWER

## THE MINISTER OF  STATE  FOR NEW & RENEWABLE ENERGY AND POWER

## (SHRI SHRIPAD YESSO NAIK)

(a) to (c) Yes,  Under PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana (PMSGMBY), the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy is providing Central Financial Assistance (CFA) to all residential households for setting up of residential Roof top solar at the rate of Rs.30,000/- for 1 KW, Rs. 60,000/- for 2 KW and  Rs.  78,000/-  for  3  KW  and  above.  Necessary  technical  support  is provided  to  all  types  of consumers such as commercial, industries, institutions etc. including residential households (nonsubsidy) in Puducherry for adoption of renewable energy solution.

Apart from the above, the Ministry provided CFA towards the installation of Rooftop Solar Plants in Residential, Institutional and Social sector category of consumers under Grid Connected Rooftop Solar Programmes.

The details of no. of installations, funds disbursed and renewable energy capacity added, under Grid Connected Rooftop Solar (GCRT) Programmes and PMSGMBY, in the UT of Puducherry, are as under:

|   Total installations (No.) |   Total capacity (MW) |   Fund Released (Rs. in crore) |
|-----------------------------|-----------------------|--------------------------------|
|                        2329 |                13.794 |                          16.21 |
Lok Sabha Question No. 1695 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-12-10
Subject: Foodgrain Supply and Distribution for Internally Displaced Persons
Ministry: CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD AND PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION
Asked by: Dr. Angomcha Bimol Akoijam

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

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

## LOK SABHA

UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1695

TO BE ANSWERED ON 10TH DECEMBER, 2025

## FOODGRAIN SUPPLY AND DISTRIBUTION FOR INTERNALLY  DISPLACED PERSONS

## 1695. DR. ANGOMCHA BIMOL AKOIJAM:

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

- (a) whether the Government has taken any special measures to  ensure regular and adequate supply of  foodgrains and essential commodities to Internally  Displaced Persons (IDPs) living  in relief camps in Manipur since the outbreak of violence in May 2023 ;
- (b) if  so, the details of the quantity  and type of foodgrains allocated and distributed, district  and camp-wise including the mechanism of distribution;
- (c) whether additional allocations have been made under the National Food Security Act (NFS A)  or any other scheme to cover the displaced population and if so, the details thereof; and
- (d) whether the Ministry  has received any reports of  irregularities  or shortage  of  food  supplies in relief camps and if  so, the corrective measures taken?

## ANSWER

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

(SHRIMATI NIMUBEN JAYANTIBHAI  BAMBHANIYA)

(a) to (c): Keeping in view the law and order situation in Manipur, the Government of India, on  30.05.2023, allocated 30,000 MT  of  rice for  the  period from  June 2023 to August  2023, and 1,085.36 MT  of  rice on 13.09.2024 for three months to non-NFS A  (National Food Security Act) beneficiaries, subject to the condition  that payment would  be made by the State Government.

Further, Targeted Public Distribution System (TPDS) is  operated under the joint responsibility of the Central and State/UT Governments. As per the provisions of NFS A, Central Government's responsibility is to provide the food grains to the designated depots in each state. As per section 24 (3) of NFS A,  it  is the responsibility of  State to take delivery of food grains from designated depots and  ensure distribution to  the  beneficiaries. As informed  by  the  State Government, 26,946.20 MT  Rice had been distributed to  relief  camps through the  concerned Deputy Commissioners.

(d): The  Government  is  committed to  ensuring adequate  and  timely supply  of foodgrains (Wheat, Rice and Millets)  under NFS A  and corrective action is taken by the Government as per the extant norms, as and when reports of  irregularities  or shortage of food  grains are received.

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Lok Sabha Question No. 1693 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-12-10
Subject: Allocation of Fortified Rice to Punjab
Ministry: CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD AND PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION
Asked by: Shri Malvinder Singh Kang

## MINISTRY OF CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD & PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA DEPARTMENT OF FOOD AND PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION

## LOK SABHA

UNSTARRED QUESTION NO, 1693

TO BE ANSWERED ON 10TH DECEMBER, 2025

## ALLOCATION  OF FORTIFIED RICE TO PUNJAB

## 1693. SHRI MALVINDER SINGH KANG:

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

- (a) the allocation of fortified  rice to Punjab State under National Food Security Act  (NFS A) and PM-POSHAN, year-wise;
- (b) the number of beneficiaries receiving  fortified  rice in the Punjab State;
- (c) whether any quality-testing  issues or consumer complaints have been reported and if  so, the details thereof; and
- (d) the steps taken by the Government to improve nutritional  quality and monitoring  of fortified rice distributed in Punjab State?

## ANSWER

MrNiSTER OF STATE FOR MINISTRY  OF CONSUMER AFFAIRS. FOOD & PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION

(SHRIMATI NIMUBEN JAYANTIBHAI  BAMBHANIYA)

(a)& (b): Currently, no rice is allocated to Punjab under Targeted Public Distribution System (TPDS). The details of  allocation of  fortified  rice to  Punjab under Pradhan Mantri  Poshan Shakti Nirman (PM POSHAN) in last three years are as below:

| Financial Year   | Allocation (MTs)   |
|------------------|--------------------|
|                  | 15 194.00          |
| 2024-25          | 21002.14           |
| 2023-24          | 21078.61           |

Under PM-POSHAN,  15,58,309 nos. of children approved by the Program Approval  Board (PAB) of  the Department of  School Education &  Literacy for  F. Y. 2025-26 are receiving the midday meals, including  fortified rice.

(c) &  (d): As and when complaints related to Public Distribution  System  (PDS) are received in this Department from  any source, they are sent to State/UT Governments concerned for inquiry  and appropriate action. Further, the Department of  Food and Public Distribution  has formulated and issued a quality control manual to uniformly maintain the quality standards of  food grains from procurement to  its  distribution to  the  eligible beneficiaries  through various social security programmes of Govt. of India.

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Lok Sabha Question No. 1689 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-12-10
Subject: Sanchar Mitra Scheme
Ministry: COMMUNICATIONS
Asked by: Smt. Poonamben Hematbhai Maadam

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMUNICATIONS DEPARTMENT OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1689 ANSWERED ON 10 TH  DECEMBER, 2025

## SANCHAR MITRA SCHEME

## 1689.   SMT. POONAMBEN HEMATBHAI MAADAM:

Will the Minister of COMMUNICATIONS be pleased to state:

- (a) whether the Government has launched the Sanchar Mitra Scheme to promote awareness and engagement on key telecom issues;
- (b) if so, the details thereof;
- (c) the details of the main objectives of the Sanchar Mitra Scheme;
- (d) whether the scheme has been implemented nationwide; and
- (e) if so, the details thereof including the number of institutions currently participating in it?

## ANSWER

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

- (a) Yes
- (b) & (c) The Sanchar Mitra Scheme envisions to engage the Yuva Shakti- India's youth, as catalysts for digital empowerment and societal outreach. The students nominated as Sanchar Mitra are expected to actively conduct awareness drives in communities, educational institutions, public spaces, etc., focusing on key telecom-related issues, like citizen-centric telecom services, prevention of  telecom  frauds  and  mobile  security  -  promoting  digital  safety,  and  foster  responsible  telecom usage.

This  scheme is  open  to  students  from  those  technical  institutes  that  have  active  telecom, electronics,  computers,  cybersecurity  or  similar  programs  and  have  agreed  to  participate  in  the scheme.

(d) & (e) Yes. The scheme has been implemented across all states/ UTs through the LSA field offices of DoT. 222 institutions are currently participating in it.

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Lok Sabha Question No. 1687 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-12-10
Subject: NavIC Navigation System
Ministry: SPACE
Asked by: Shri Bastipati Nagaraju, Shri B K Parthasarathi

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA DEPARTMENT OF SPACE

## LOK SABHA

## TO BE ANSWERED ON WEDNESDAY, 10 DECEMBER, 2025

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1687 NAVIC NAVIGATION SYSTEMS

## 1687.  SHRI B K PARTHASARATHI:

## SHRI BASTIPATI NAGARAJU:

Will the PRIME MINISTER be pleased to state:

- (a) the details of the initiatives undertaken by the Government to promote  the  adoption  of  the  Navigation  Indian  Constellation (NavIC) Navigation System across various sectors;
- (b) the details of pilot projects and number of use cases/services developed  to  expand  NavIC-based  applications  and  services along with their operational status;
- (c) whether the Government has mandated or proposed mandatory inclusion of NavIC capability in devices manufactured by Indian smartphone and electronics companies and if so, the details thereof;
- (d) whether the Government plans to open NavIC for commercial use in the Country and if so, the details of the steps taken by the  Government  for  commercialization  of  NavIC  technology thereof; and
- international or
- (e) whether any foreign Governments or organizations have expressed willingness to adopt collaborate on NavIC services and if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

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

****

- (a) Department of Space (DoS) is constantly engaged in efforts to broaden the use of NavIC in various sectors. Towards this, it has undertaken activities related to pilot projects, technology transfer to Indian industry, technical support, testing support, utilisation programmes, etc. DoS has made efforts for inclusion of NavIC in national/ international industry standards, thereby enabling efficient, consistent, and seamless adoption of NavIC in  the  products  and  solutions.  At  present  60+  smart  phones from various manufacturers support NavIC.
- (b) Pilot  projects  developed  to  expand  NavIC  based  applications include i) Real-time train tracking wherein more than 10,000 trains are equipped  with NavIC  enabled  tracking devices,  ii)  Fishing  vessel  tracking  wherein  30,000+  vessels are equipped with NavIC enabled transponders, iii) Tracking of public  &  commercial  vehicles  wherein  more  than  140  device models  certified  and  fitted  in  more  than  15  Lakhs  vehicles, iv) Setting  up  of  secondary  timescales  with  NavIC  time

transfer receivers for dissemination of common IST throughout India. (c) Government  has  not  mandated  NavIC  yet.  Discussions  are ongoing regarding this possibility. (d) NavIC civilian signals are open to all and can be utilised by any of  the  users  in  the  NavIC  coverage  for  their  Positioning, Navigation and Timing (PNT) applications. (e) International  GNSS  service  providers  regularly  interact  and collaborate  for  interoperability  and  signal  coordination  with

- NavIC.

****
Lok Sabha Question No. 1685 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-12-10
Subject: Measurement of Knowledge Economy
Ministry: STATISTICS AND PROGRAMME IMPLEMENTATION
Asked by: Shri Eatala Rajender, Shri Chamala Kiran Kumar Reddy

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## MINISTRY OF STATISTICS AND PROGRAMME IMPLEMENTATION

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1685

## TO BE ANSWERED ON 10.12.2025

## MEASUREMENT OF KNOWLEDGE ECONOMY

1685. SHRI EATALA RAJENDER:

## SHRI CHAMALA KIRAN KUMAR REDDY:

Will the Minister of STATISTICS AND PROGRAMME IMPLEMENTATION be pleased to state:

- (a)  whether  the  Government  has  initiated  steps  to  develop  the framework for measuring the knowledge economy and conducted a half-day brainstorming workshop and if so, the details thereof;
- (b)  whether  the  brainstorming  workshop  focused  on  developing  a taxonomy of knowledge products and identifying potential quantitative indicators data sources for measuring the contribution of these knowledge products and services to the GDP and if so, the details thereof;
- (c)  whether  the  workshop  also  stressed  upon  the  challenges  in capturing the contribution of indigenous and traditional knowledge items to the knowledge economy and if so, the details thereof;
- (d) whether a group of experts from various domains would help in developing a robust framework for measuring knowledge economy; and
- (e) if so, the details thereof along with the present status of funds sanctioned and spent?

## 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)  to  (c):  With  a  view  to  develop  a  framework  for  measuring  the knowledge  economy,  a  brainstorming  workshop  was  held  on  30 th September 2025 involving the participation from representatives of

concerned Central Government Ministries/ Departments, academia, research, industry and policy think tanks. The workshop deliberated, inter alia, on developing a possible taxonomy of knowledge products, including from traditional knowledge, as well as the data sources and challenges  in  quantifying  different  components  of  the  knowledge economy. (d) to (e): A Technical Advisory Group (TAG) has also been formed to identify key components of knowledge economy,  recommend methodologies for valuing knowledge-based economic activities and for linking knowledge economy  indicators with other macroeconomic  and  social  indicators,  etc.  The  amount  spent  so  far  is limited to only the operational expenses incurred on the conduct of the brainstorming sessions and the TAG meeting.

*** ***
Lok Sabha Question No. 1683 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2025-12-10
Subject: SATCOM Operations in India
Ministry: COMMUNICATIONS
Asked by: Shri Tatkare Sunil Dattatrey

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF COMMUNICATIONS DEPARTMENT OF TELECOMMUNICATIONS

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1683 ANSWERED ON 10 TH  DECEMBER, 2025

## SATCOM OPERATIONS IN INDIA

## 1683.   SHRI TATKARE SUNIL DATTATREY:

Will the Minister of COMMUNICATIONS be pleased to state:

(a) the  timeline  for  rollout  of  SATCOM  (Satellite  Communication  and  Satellite  Internet) operations in the country;

(b) the ways in which this is likely to support the Digital India initiative such as connectivity to far off areas;

(c) the security measures that have been taken and will apply to SATCOM companies operating in the country;

- (d) the ways in which Indian internet users can expect to benefit from this technology; and
- (e) whether this is likely to affect price of internet services in the country?

## ANSWER

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

(a) to (e) Department of Telecommunications grants authorizations under the Unified License (UL)  for  providing  Satellite-based  commercial  communication  services.  The  grant  of  license  to provide  Satellite-based  Commercial  Service  to  an  applicant  is  subject  to  compliance  with  the applicable licensing terms and conditions, including security conditions and relevant national laws. Prior to rollout of operations in India, the licensee is required to successfully demonstrate the system capabilities with respect to security aspects. The security conditions include, inter alia, facility to monitor all telecom traffic, establishment of satellite earth station  gateway(s) in  India, all  traffic originating or terminating in India shall pass through the satellite earth station gateway(s) located in India, creation of buffer zone along the international border.

Further,  DoT  has  sought  recommendations  from  Telecom  Regulatory  Authority  of  India (TRAI) on terms and conditions of spectrum assignment, including spectrum pricing for satellitebased communication services. TRAI has provided its Recommendations dated 08.12.2025 on DoT's Back Reference.

Satellite-based communication services can provide connectivity in rural, underserved and unserved  regions  including  far  off  areas,  which  are  otherwise  difficult  to  be  covered  through terrestrial media such as optical fiber, microwave, etc. This will help in bridging the digital divide, thereby supporting the digital India Initiative.

It is envisaged that with more licensees for providing satcom services, enhanced competition in this segment will lead to better quality and affordable services.

*****