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The Appellate Tribunal for Electricity blocks Andhra’s moves to harm power PPAs; Delhi government waives water arrears; Australia’s IEEFA expects Gujarat to add 46 GW of renewable power in 10 years; Haryana passes a new Enterprises Promotion Bill; Rajasthan launches a new health insurance program; Rajasthan and Utah sign an energy cooperation agreement; Rajasthan expands water subsidies; Tamil Nadu chief minister visits London; Assam finalizes National Register of Citizens list; Chhattisgarh expands job reservations; Tripura assembly passes Essential Services Maintenance Act; and more.

Center – State relations

Union Home Minister Amit Shah chaired a review meeting, including seven chief ministers of states affected by Left Wing Extremism (LWE) and said that LWE is one of the most significant internal security challenges faced by the nation over the last several decades. Source: DNA

The environment ministry released over $6.54 billion to 27 states for compensatory afforestation and other green activities, including prevention of forest fire, biodiversity management, and soil conservation. Source: Economic Times In detail: Press Release

Following a high-level cabinet meeting, Union Ministers Prakash Javadekar and Piyush Goyal said at a press conference that the government has approved the establishment of 75 new medical colleges in the country. Javadekar said that the addition would lead to the creation 15,700 more Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) seats in India. Source: Business Today In detail: Press Release

Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Himachal Pradesh, and Puducherry topped the charts in the child well-being index, a tool designed to measure and tracks children’s well-being comprehensively. Meghalaya, Jharkhand, and Madhya Pradesh featured at the bottom, as per a report released by the non-government organization World Vision India and research institute IFMR LEAD. The report is an attempt to look at how India fairs on child well-being using a composite child well-being index. Source: The Hindu

Bihar

The Nitish Kumar government banned 12 pan masala brands in Bihar for a period of one year for containing magnesium carbonate which causes health problems, an official said. The decision was taken by the state government following the presence of magnesium carbonate in all the 20 samples of pan masala collected from nine districts by food safety officers. Source: First Post

The Bihar Renewable Energy Development Agency (BREDA) has issued two requests for proposal inviting bidders to develop grid-connected floating solar power projects. While one project of up to 2 megawatts (MW) will be developed on private water bodies, another 2 MW is slated to be developed on a government-owned body of water. Source: Mercom

New Delhi

The Delhi cabinet has approved free rides for women on DTC buses as well as its cluster buses. Women will be able to commute on DTC buses for free from October 29, which is also Bhai Duj. Source: Business Today

In a bid to clean records of consumers and make them pay their pending bills, Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal announced a one-time waiver of water arrears. Source: Live Mint

The Delhi department of excise, entertainment & luxury tax, in a bizarre order, wants bar counters, whether at hotels/restaurants or bars attached to liquor shops, to dispose of the alcohol lying on their shelves un-exhausted or un-served within 3-8 days, depending on the type and price of the drink. Source: Financial Express

Gujarat

The Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA) has identified Gujarat as one of five leading Indian states for renewable energy. The Australia-based think-tank expects Gujarat to add a staggering 46 gigawatts of new renewable energy generation capacity by fiscal 2029-30. Source: Times of India

Haryana

In an attempt to boost the state’s economy, the state cabinet gave its approval to the Haryana Enterprises Promotion (Amendment) Bill, 2019, in a meeting headed by Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar. The proposed bill aims to make the existing Enterprises Promotion Act, 2016 more industry-friendly and increase the scope of services. Source: Times of India

Karnataka

Nothing critical to report this week.

Madhya Pradesh

Nothing critical to report this week.

Maharashtra

Nothing critical to report this week.

Rajasthan

The Ashok Gehlot-led Congress government in Rajasthan has decided to launch a new Health Insurance Scheme in the state by combining the Ayushman Bharat scheme of the Modi dispensation and the Bhamashah scheme brought during former chief minister Vasundhara Raje’s term. Source: India Today

The Rajasthan Government’s Department of Energy and the United States of America’s Utah Governor’s Office of Energy Development signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) as part of the U.S.-India State and Urban Initiative in Jaipur recently. The MOU will ensure cooperation between Utah and Rajasthan for mitigating challenges in the energy sector. As per the MOU, Utah will help Rajasthan in the integration of resources and technology for renewable energy through policy exchanges, facilitating transfer of technology for energy storage, scheduling and forecasting, electric mobility, and strengthening of power transmission networks. Source: eGov

The Rajasthan government decided to provide 70 liters per person per day free water in 13 desert districts of the state via the Public Health and Engineering department, according to an official release. Chief minister Ashok Gehlot has approved the proposal moved by the state finance department, the release said. Source: The Wire

Tamil Nadu

On his visit to London, Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami signed three key partnership agreements in the health sector on skills, tropical diseases, and other elements of healthcare. Source: The New Indian Express In detail: Press Release

Telangana

Start-up incubator T-Hub and Telangana government announced the launch of its three-month accelerator program T-Angel to support technology start-ups in healthcare, real estate, entertainment, sports, education, and finance sectors and to make them investible. Source: Financial Express

The Telangana government has created a digital database of 45,000 job vacancies in several companies and organizations. Telangana labor minister Malla Reddy launched the application DEEP (Digital Employment Exchange of Telangana) to improve the employment ecosystem in the state. “It will allow free interaction between job seekers and job providers on the platform that is powered by artificial intelligence and machine learning technologies,” Telangana IT and industries secretary Jayesh Ranjan has said. Source: The Hindu Business Line

Uttar Pradesh

The ban on plastic with thickness less than 50 microns will come into force in Uttar Pradesh from Sunday with a fine up to $1,392 and six months of imprisonment for violators, according to a state government order. Source: First Post

West Bengal

The West Bengal assembly passed a bill against mob assault and incidents of lynching, with the legislation providing for life imprisonment to those injuring a person and capital punishment for causing death. Source: Business Today

Best of the Rest

Assam

State-run hydro power giant NHPC is likely to begin construction of the 2,000 MW Lower Subansiri power plant in October this year as it has received the requisite approval from the Assam government, an official said. NHPC had inked a memorandum of agreement (MoA) with Arunachal Pradesh for setting up the project in 2010. However, since the project falls in the territories of both Arunachal Pradesh and Assam, the latter’s approval was needed as well. Source: Money Control

Chhattisgarh

The Chhattisgarh government has introduced a rebate on power tariffs to specific units. As per the decision of the state government, mini steel plants operating captive power plants of up to one MW will be eligible for a discount of $0.011 per unit of power consumed. Source: Business Standard

Jharkhand

Supply of domestic Piped Natural Gas (PNG) was launched in Ranchi on Friday, within 15 months of Prime Minister Narendra Modi laying the project’sfoundation .Two Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) stations were also inaugurated for refilling CNG-run private and commercial vehicles in the Jharkhand capital. Supply of domestic Piped Natural Gas (PNG) was launched in Ranchi on Friday, within 15 months of Prime Minister Narendra Modi laying the project’sfoundation .Two Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) stations were also inaugurated for refilling CNG-run private and commercial vehicles in the Jharkhand capital. Source: Energy Infra Post Energy Infra Post

Jammu and Kashmir

Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir are likely to be conducted only after the process of delimitation of Assembly seats is finished, which is expected to take about 14 months. Therefore, the polls are likely to be deferred until 2021according to sources in the Election Commission of India (ECI). Source: News nation

Kerala

Kerala government has approved a proposal to frame a new law for the appointment of women as drivers in State Public Sector Undertakings and various departments of the Kerala Government. According to the Chief Minister of Kerala, Pinarayi Vijayan, the new law will ensure gender equality in driver posts. Source: Jagran Josh

Odisha

The High Level-Clearance Authority (HLCA), the apex body to approve investments in Odisha, has given its go-ahead to five new projects, with a total value of $28.3 billion. Four of the five proposed investments were in non-mineral-based sectors, endorsing the state government’s aspiration to diversify and lure investors beyond its historical strengths of mining, metals and power. Source: Business Standard

Central Electricity Supply Utility of Odisha (CESU) has inked a pact with Smart Power India (SPI), a subsidiary of Rockefeller Foundation, to work on a model to improve electricity access and reliability in rural areas of Odisha. As per the agreement, CESU and SPI will work together to develop and implement a model distribution zone in a selected area to demonstrate improvements in electricity service by enhancing reliability and customer services. Source: New Indian Express

Punjab

The Punjab government rolled out a mega health insurance scheme clubbing the Center’s Ayushman Bharat plan with its own, a combination which it said will benefit 4.6 million families covering 76 percent of the state’s population. Source: Economic Times

The Punjab government inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the UN Development Program (UNDP) for the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Source: Millennium Post

Tripura

The Center has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Bangladesh for transporting 20 liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) bullet trucks through the Mongla port in Bangladesh to cater to the growing petroleum demand in Tripura. Source: Times of India