The road to productivity

The commute time for the labour force to the workplace plays a very important role in determining their productivity in cities.

Issue of long travel time to work

Labour market: Cities are labour markets where the labour force exchanges their labour and creates knowledge spillovers.

Relation between commute time and productivity: The commute time for the labour force to the workplace plays a very important role in determining their productivity in cities.

 The longer the commute time in a city, the smaller is its effective labour market and vice-versa.

Difference between nominal and effective labour market: While the nominal labour market of the city refers to all jobs created in the metropolitan area, the effective labour market refers to the jobs accessible within a certain commute.

Importance of effective labour market: The larger a city’s effective labour market, the greater its agglomeration economies and knowledge spillovers will be.

From the viewpoint of enlarging a city’s effective labour market and economic output, it is therefore very important to keep the commute time short and commuting cost cheap within a city as it keeps growing in population.

Way forward

One way in which urban local bodies (ULBs) directly impact the city’s economic output is through their infrastructure.

Increase in tax base: Road length has a positive effect on the city’s tax base.

Motivation to pay texes: This is because roads lead to easy access to jobs and increased economic activity; that also gives the public more confidence and motivation to pay taxes.

Cities should not view investment in road networks as expenditure; rather, roads add to the city’s revenue base which the city can use to improve infrastructure and public services.

Conclusion

Investing in roads not only reduces travel time and enlarges effective labour markets of cities and their economic output, but also improves access to schooling for children as well as healthcare, thereby upgrading human development. This is indeed the road to the $5 trillion economy along with improvement in human well-being.

Centre releases guidelines for Mission Vatsalya

In order to access Central funds and benefits under Mission Vatsalya (an umbrella scheme for child protection services in the country), the centre has issued certain guidelines.

What is Mission Vatsalya?

Mission Vatsalya promotes family-based non-institutional care of children in difficult circumstances based on the principle of institutionalization of children as a measure of last resort.

It is one of the new triad of schemes along with Mission Shakti, and Poshan 2.0, that aims at securing a healthy and happy childhood for every child.

Components under the mission include:

Improve the functioning of statutory bodies;

Strengthen service delivery structures;

Upscale institutional care/services;

Encourage non-institutional community-based care;

Emergency outreach services;

Training and capacity building.

Implementation

It will be implemented as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme in partnership with state governments and UT administrations, with a fund-sharing pattern in a 60:40 ratio.

However, for the eight states in the Northeast — as well as Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand and the UT of J&K — the Centre and state/UT’s share will be 90:10.

The Centre will cover the whole cost in UTs without a legislature.

What are the new guidelines?

(1) Official changes

States will have to retain the official name, as given by the Centre. Only a correct translation to local language is permissible.

The centre detailed the process by which funds will be disbursed to states under various heads by defining institutionalised arrangements.

Funds to states will be approved through the Mission Vatsalya Project Approval Board (PAB), which will be chaired by the Secretary of the Ministry of WCD.

The Secretary will scrutinise and approve annual plans and financial proposals received from states and UTs for release of grants.

(2) Special arrangements

States/UTs have also been directed to focus on special needs children with physical or mental disabilities.

Institutions now have to provide special educators, therapists and nurses to impart occupational therapy, speech therapy, verbal therapy and other remedial classes.

The staff in these special units will have to know sign language, Braille, etc, according to the new guidelines.

(3) Newly shouldered tasks

The guidelines state that Mission Vatsalya will support State Adoption Resource Agencies (SARA), which will support the Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA).

This move aims at promoting in-country adoption and regulating inter-country adoption.

Mission Vatsalya, in partnership with states and districts, will execute a 24×7 helpline service for children, as defined under JJ Act, 2015.

Name change saga: Child Protection Services Scheme

Before 2009, three schemes were being implemented under the WCD Ministry for children in need of protection:

Programme for juvenile justice for children in need of care and protection, and children in conflict with law;

Integrated programme for street children and

Scheme for assistance to homes for children

These were clubbed in 2010 into a single scheme called the Integrated Child Protection Scheme.

It was then renamed “Child Protection Services” Scheme in 2017, and again as Mission Vatsalya in 2021-22.

Sannati and Kanaganahalli Buddhist Sites

Left almost unattended to for 20 years after excavation, the ancient Buddhist site on the bank of Bhima river near Kanaganahalli (forming part of Sannati site) in Kalaburagi district, has finally got some attention.

About Sannati

Sannati is a small village on the banks of the River Bhima in Chittapur Taluka of Kalaburagi (Gulbarga).

It came into prominence after the collapse of the roof of the Kali temple in Chandralamba temple complex in 1986.

The collapse revealed the historically valuable Ashokan edicts written in Prakrit language and Brahmi script at the foundations of the temple, attracting historians from across India.

While the Stupa is believed to be one of the largest of its time.

The stone-portrait is considered to be the only surviving image of the Mauryan Emperor which had the inscription ‘Raya Asoko’ in Brahmi on it.

Significance of Sannati

Further revelations led to the discovery of the magnificent Maha Stupa, which had been referred to as Adholoka Maha-Chaitya (The Great Stupa of the Netherworlds) in the inscriptions.

More importantly, a sculpture-portrait of Ashoka seated on his throne with his queens was also discovered.

Historians believe that the Sannati Ranamandal (war zone) was a fortified area spread over 210 acres, of which only a couple of acres have been excavated so far.

National Internet Exchange of India (NIXI)

Two new Internet Exchange points (IXP) of NIXI were inaugurated at Durgapur and Bardhman.

What is NIXI?

NIXI is a not for profit Organization under section 8 of the Companies Act 2013 and was registered on 19th June 2003.

It’s an initiative under Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) vision 1000 days.

It aims for spreading the internet infrastructure to the citizens of India through the following activities:

Internet Exchanges through which the internet data is exchanged amongst Internet Service Protocols (ISPs), Data Centers and CDNs.

.IN Registry, managing and operation of .IN country-code domain and .भारत IDN domain for India.

Indian Registry for Internet Names and Numbers (IRINN), managing and operating Internet protocol (IPv4/IPv6).

Why NIXI?

NIXI was set up for peering of Internet Service Protocols (ISPs) among themselves for the purpose of routing the domestic traffic within the country, instead of taking it all the way to US/Abroad.

It is thereby resulting in better quality of service (reduced latency) and reduced bandwidth charges for ISPs by saving on International Bandwidth.

NIXI is managed and operated on a Neutral basis, in line with the best practices for such initiatives globally.

Utility of NIXI

The launch of these new NIXI internet exchanges will contribute to the enhancement and improvement of Internet and Broadband services at local level and in neighbouring regions.

The internet service providers connecting at these points will benefit as their broadband services to their end users will improve, bringing about a change in the lives of the people of the region.

It will benefit every sector of the state ranging from health, education, agriculture, startup, and ecosystem to MSMEs & other business verticals.

Accessibility and convenience will increase for citizens in terms of availing government benefits and improving quality of life.