Shri Arjun Munda E-Inaugurates The First Ever Virtual Aadi Mahotsav – Madhya Pradesh



  • Virtual Aadi Mahotsav to Showcase Rich and Diverse Culture, Crafts of Madhya Pradesh on Tribes India Website Posted On: 01 DEC 2020 4:15PM by PIB Delhi


  • Shri Arjun Munda, Union Minister for Tribal Affairs, launched the virtual edition of Aadi Mahotsav- Madhya Pradesh today. The 10-day long festival, commencing on December 1, 2020, is being hosted on the Tribes India website(www.tribesindia.com). The main focus is on the tribal craft and culture of Madhya Pradesh. Ms. Meena Singh, Minister for Tribal Development, Government of Madhya Pradesh and Shri Ramesh Chand Meena, Chairman, TRIFED were the guests of honour for this online inauguration today.


  • Addressing on the occasion, Shri Arjun Munda said that the Virtual edition Aadi Mahotsav –Madhya Pradesh” is another effort to help in the transformation of tribal lives and livelihoods. Despite the pandemic, the team of TRIFED Warriors have organised this annual tribal festival that celebrates the spirit and richness of tribal culture virtually and are continuing with their efforts to connect the tribals to larger markets this year.


  • He said that he is really happy to be a part of the inauguration of Aadi Mahotsav today projecting the state of Madhya Pradesh. Aadi Mahotsav is a national tribal festival and a joint initiative of Ministry of Tribal Affairs, Government of India & Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India (TRIFED). The festival showcases traditional art and handicrafts and cultural heritage of the country. The ultimate objective of TRIFED is socio-economic development of tribal people in the country by way of marketing development of the tribal products, and under the leadership of Shri Pravir Krishna, MD, TRIFED has really been doing a wonderful job towards the upliftment of the Tribal Community in the Country.


  • Shri Munda expressed his happiness that despite challenging circumstances of Pandemic Covid-19, efforts are being carried out by TRIFED and the Ministry of Tribal Affairs to mitigate the adverse conditions of tribal populations. Extolling the virtues of the simple, sustainable lifestyles of these tribal people, he expressed his concern at the disadvantaged economic state of this section and was happy that with TRIFED’s initiatives, the middlemen have been eliminated and the benefits are directly going to tribal people. He advised that TRIFED should carry on with its initiatives to help empower these tribals and make them Atmanirbhar.


  • Shri Munda said that tribal people have contributed a lot in providing raw materials for Indian silk and fabrics. He represented his concern that despite a population of around 10.5 crores, the tribal people are still away from main stream of economic development. Tribal people know the art of being happy despite their limited resources. Ministry of Tribal Affairs is trying to inculcate the entrepreneurship in them. He called upon the tribal people to follow: “Mera Van, Mera Dhan, Mera Udyam”. He emphasised that the tribal people should be provided skill development training. He opined that the tribal people love their culture and want to preserve their culture, but at the same time they need help to provide interface for their unique products to the market.


  • Ms. Meena Singh, Minister for Tribal Development, Madhya Pradesh in her address welcomed the idea of Ministry of Tribal Affairs, Government of India to organise National Tribal Festival “Aadi Mahotsav” all over India.


  • Shri Ramesh Chand Meena, Chairman, TRIFED congratulated TRIFED and its team for providing such a viable alternative available to the tribal artisans and hoped that this virtual Aadi Mahotsav would be a successful event.


  • In his welcome address, Shri Pravir Krishna spoke about the entire concept of Aadi Mahotsav and the current online version and how it will only help in popularising tribal culture to national and international audiences. With the onboarding of more than 3500 tribal artisans on to the Tribes India Marketplace, this virtual event offers the tribals a new avenue for popularising their culture and arts and will go a long way in helping the economic situation of these tribal artisans and make them self-reliant.


  • The highlights of the virtual launch included a virtual tour of the artisans’ work place and glimpses of the tribal dance and music from Madhya Pradesh. It was also announced that the next focus state from the 11th December would be Gujarat, following which the spotlight would shift to Bengal from the 21st December, 2020.


  • The Aadi Mahotsav – A Celebration of the Spirit of Tribal Culture, Crafts, Cuisine and Commerce – is a successful initiative that was commenced in 2017. The festival was an attempt to familiarise the people with the rich and diverse craft, culture of the tribal communities across the country, in one place. Held between 16-30 November, 2019 in New Delhi, the 15-day festival featured an exhibition-cum-sale of tribal handicrafts, art, paintings fabric, jewellery. More than 400 tribal artisans and producers from across India enriched the festival with their participation and it received tremendous response.


‘Ramayan Cruise Service’ will be launched soon on the river Saryu in Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh



  • First-ever luxury Cruise service on the holy Saryu river


  • Project aims to give the mesmerizing experience of the divine journey to devotees visiting holy city Ayodhya Posted On: 01 DEC 2020 3:51PM by PIB Delhi


  • ‘Ramayan Cruise Tour’ on the Saryu river in Ayodhya will be launched soon. Shri Mansukh Mandaviya, Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways today chaired a review meeting for the implementation of cruise service.


  • It will be the first-ever luxury Cruise service on the Saryu river (Ghagra/National Waterways-40) in Ayodhya, Uttar Pradesh. It aims to give mesmerizing experience to devotees with one-of-its-kind spiritual journeys while cruising through the famous ghats of the holy river Saryu.


  • 3D DESIGN (ARTISTIC IMPRESSION) OF PROPOSED CRUISE VESSEL The cruise will be equipped with all luxury comfort and facilities along with all essential safety and security features at par with the global standard. The interiors of the cruise and the boarding point will be based on the theme of Ramcharitmanas. The fully air-conditioned 80-seater cruise will have large glass windows for experiencing the scenic beauty of Ghats. The cruise will be equipped with kitchen and pantry facilities for the comfort of the tourists. The cruise contains bio toilets and hybrid engines system for the ‘zero effect’ on environment.


  • Tourists will be taken on the ‘Ramcharitmanas Tour’, of 1-1.5 hour duration, featuring an exclusively made video film of 45-60 minutes duration, based on Ramcharitmanas by Goswami Tulsidas, covering the period from the birth of Lord Ram to his Rajyabhishek. The entire tour will cover the approximately 15-16 Km distance.There will be several activities and selfie points inspired by different episodes of Ramayan. The tour will be followed by Saryu Aarti, in which every member will be able to actively participate.


  • Ayodhya is the birthplace of Lord Ram, as mentioned in in the great Indian epic Ramayan. It is also the first of the seven most important pilgrimage sites (Mokshdayini Sapt Puris) for the Hindus. Approximately, 2 crore tourists visit Ayodhya every year as per the data of UP tourism, for the year 2019.After completion of the Ram Mandir, it is to be believed that the inflow of the tourists will be increased.


  • The ‘Ramayan Cruise Tour’ will not only attract a large number of tourists but it will also generate direct and indirect employment opportunities in the region. Ministry of ports, Shipping and Waterways will provide all necessary infrastructural support for the smooth operation of the cruise service.


Indian growth story continues as is demonstrated by the trends in FPI, FDI and Corporate Bond Market flows



  • • FPI inflows stood at Rs 62,782 crorefor November 2020


  • • FDI equity inflows touch US$30,004 millionup to September 2020 in FY2020-21-which is 15% more than the corresponding period of 2019-20


  • • In H1 FY21, the total corporate bond issuances amount to Rs. 4.43 lakh crore, 25% higher than Rs. 3.54 lakh crore in the same period last year Posted On: 01 DEC 2020 4:32PM by PIB Delhi


  • COVID-19 has drastically affected the investment climate in all economies of the world, causing a sharp decline in the demand and supply equilibrium everywhere. India has been no exception to this unprecedented economic shock. Yet, investment sentiment in the Indian economy has been buoyed by the frequent and active intervention of the Government of India despite being hit by a world-wide pandemic.


  • The Indian growth story continues to expand as is demonstrated by the trends in FPI, FDI and Corporate Bond Market flows that indicate and underline the beliefs of investors in the strength and resilience of Indian economy.


  • Foreign Portfolio Investment The last two months, i.e October and November 2020, have witnessed a significant resurgence in FPI inflows driven primarily by equity inflows resulting in the highest ever FPI inflows for a month for India. As of 28th November 2020, FPI inflows stood at Rs 62,782 crore. Of this, equity inflows amounted to Rs 60,358 crore while FPI net investment in debt and hybrid was to the tune of Rs2,424 crore.


  • Regarding the equities segment, the inflows in November 2020 is the highest amount of money invested ever since FPI data has been made available by the National Securities Depository Ltd.


  • FPI flows are known to be less resilient and more sensitive to changing market conditions. Investment through the FPI route are therefore gauged through the metric of net inflow and outflow. In October and November 2020, FPIs primarily witnessed inflows into India.


  • There has been a secular trend of positive net flows in the equity segment in November without any reversal till date. The highest inflow in total FPI investment was witnessed on 12th November, marking a single day peak of Rs 11,056 crore.


  • Foreign Direct Investment Total Foreign Direct Investments (FDI) inflows into India during the second quarter of financial year 2020-21 (July, 2020 to September, 2020) have been US$ 28,102 million, out of which FDI equity inflows were US$ 23,441 million or Rs. 174,793 crore.This takes the FDI equity inflows during the financial year 2020-21upto September 2020 to US$30,004 million which is 15% more than the corresponding period of 2019-20. In rupee terms, the FDI Equity inflows of Rs 224,613 crore are 23% more than the last year. August, 2020 has been the significant month when US$ 17,487 Million FDI equity inflows were reported in the country. Both FDI equity inflows and total FDI inflows into India have shown a secular rise over the years, with 2019-20 the year with the highest FDI in the last six years. The measures taken by the government on the fronts of FDI policy reforms, investment facilitation and ease of doing business have resulted in increased FDI inflows into the country.


  • Bond Market In H1 FY21, the total corporate bond issuances amounted to Rs. 4.43 lakh crore, 25% higher than Rs. 3.54 lakh crore in the same period last year. The narrowing spread with GSecs stands testimony to the improved risk perception of corporate bonds. Further, the cost of funds also moderated for both the Government and the corporate, on the back of RBI’s monetary easing and liquidity infusion, thereby bringing down yields in the various segments of the debt markets.