On October 28, 2020, NITI (National Institution for Transforming India) Aayog and Quality Council of India (QCI) launched the ‘National Program and Project Management Policy Framework (NPMPF)’ to transform the infrastructure sector in India.
- It was launched by Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways and Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Nitin Jairam Gadkari along with Union Minister Piyush Goyal, NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant, and QCI Chairman Adil Zainulbhai.
- Nitin Gadkari also unveiled the Indian Infrastructure Body of Knowledge (InBoK), a book on the practice of program and project management in India. It will serve as a common reference for all practitioners of the infrastructure industry.
- It should be noted that India required an investment of around $4.5 trillion by 2040 to develop the infrastructure for sustaining its economic growth.
3 Action Plans of NPMPF:
- Adopt a program and project management approach to infra development
- Institutionalize and promote the profession of program and project management and build a workforce of such professionals,
- Enhance institutional capacity and capability of professionals
–NITI Aayog, Rockefeller Foundation & Smart Power India Launch Electricity Access & Utility Benchmarking Report
On October 28, 2020, NITI Aayog, Ministry of Power, Rockefeller Foundation, and Smart Power India launched the “Electricity Access in India- Benchmarking Distribution Utilities” Report aiming at capturing insights from both the demand (electricity customers) as well as supply side (electricity distribution utilities).
- The report assessed 25 distribution utilities by conducting a primary survey across 10 states, which represented about 65% of the total rural population of India, and with a sample size of more than 25,000.
- A report also created a satisfaction index to assess the overall satisfaction level of customers with utility services. As per this, a total of 66% of those surveyed were satisfied of which 74% are customers in urban areas and 60% in rural areas.
Key findings of the report:
–92% of customers reported the overall availability of electricity infrastructure within 50 metres of their premises; however, not all have connections.
–Overall, 87% of the surveyed customers have access to grid-based electricity. The remaining 13% either use non-grid sources or don’t use any electricity at all.
–The hours of supply have improved significantly across the customer categories to nearly 17 hours per day.
–Nearly 85% of customers reported to have a metered electricity connection.
–Access to electricity is observed in 83% of household customers.
Click Here for Official Report
Recent Related News:
i.On September 18, 2020 In the wake of the ongoing COVID-19 crisis, a ‘Special Report on Sustainable Recovery’ was virtually launched by Dr Fatih Birol, Executive Director of International Energy Agency (IEA) and Amitabh Kant. The report is part of IEA’s flagship World Energy Outlook series. The report was prepared in cooperation with the International Monetary Fund(IMF).
ii.Atal Innovation Mission (AIM), NITI Aayog and Business Sweden on behalf of India-Sweden Healthcare Innovation Centre signed a virtual Statement of Intent (SoI) to boost the culture of innovation in India.
About Smart Power India:
Chief Executive Officer (CEO)– Jaideep Mukherji
Headquarter– Gurugram, Haryana
About The Rockefeller Foundation:
President– Dr. Rajiv J. Shah
Headquarter– New York, United States (US)
