Union Cabinet Approves Green Mobility and Economic Upliftment Schemes, Allots Rs.57,613 Crores
On August 16, the Union Cabinet approved four major initiatives, including the PM Vishwakarma scheme, which aims to benefit lakhs of traditional artisans and craftspeople, and the PM-eBus Sewa, which promotes green mobility while improving city bus operations. The Cabinet also approved extending the Digital India programme and seven Indian Railways multitracking projects. The Vishwakarma scheme, for which Rs 13,000 crore has been set aside over a five-year period, aims to benefit approximately 30 lakh families of traditional artisans and craftsmen such as weavers, goldsmiths, blacksmiths, laundry workers, and barbers.
As many as 10,000 e-buses will be deployed in 169 cities on a public-private partnership (PPP) model at an estimated cost of Rs57,613 crore of which The Centre will bear rs20,000 crore. The scheme will cover cities with a population of three lakh or more and support bus operations for 10 years.
The Union Cabinet has also approved Rs14,903 crore extension of the Digital India programme to boost digital initiatives in skilling, cyber security, high-performance computing, and simplifying technology for the masses, among other areas. The budget has been approved for a five-year period spanning 2021-22 to 2025-26, according to Vaishnaw.
In addition, the program will provide cyber awareness training to 12 million college students. According to Vaishnaw, the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs also approved seven multi-tracking projects of Indian Railways at an estimated cost of Rs32,500 crore.