Rajouri, Apr 8: Ekta Nagar Tourist Hub at Kevadiya in Gujarat is showing a new road map to the country which has implemented the idea of not only safeguarding the interest of local population but ensuring their holistic improvement in life.

In Ekta Nagar, entire development has been done in a way in which the interest and protection of local community was put on first  priority in order to ensure there safe living at a time when this population was facing threat of displacement due to development activities.

Not only safeguarding the interest of local population but women centric approach has also been trademarked in Ekta Nagar giving big employment opportunities to local tribal women.

Ekta Nagar in Kevadiya is a tourist city established at a distance of around 190 kilometres from Ahmedabad with Sardar Sarovar Dam and Statue of Unity are main attractions in the hub.

However, in the planning stage of this tourist hub, a prime focus was paid on holistic development of the local population for which a separate road map was prepared which has made it possible that the local population is not only living a dignified life but the Ekta Nagar project has also transformed living of local population which is a man stakeholder in this esteemed project.

The planning of Ekta Nagar was done keeping in view necessary upliftment of local population in 19 villages that are located in its vicinity.

The prime concerns were local community involved in the planning of Ekta Nagar included generation of employment for locals, education of population, social upliftment and better health facilities.

In order to achieve these aims, it was mandated that majority of the manpower at Ekta Nagar will be drawn from local areas only where many tribal communities are also living since centuries.

Minute planning for local population during primary stage has made it possible that the Ekta Nagar is showing a road map to entire country by which we can ensure that interest of local communities are not harmed at the time of development.

Presently, almost 90% of total manpower working in different sectors of Ekta Nagar is drawn from local population with 1770 locals are getting direct employment that include 145 tourist guides, 160 bus drivers, 70 ferry operators, 20 e-bicycle operators, 125 food court operators, 35 consultants, 500 housekeeping and cleaning staff, 350 construction workers, 325 animal keepers, 40 fire and safety officials.

Alongside, 6950 locals are also getting indirect employment with 5000 people working in hotels and restaurants, 250 working as tour operators, 200 working as street vendors, 500 as event organisers and 1000 as construction workers.

To train the local population including the local tribals for working expertise in different sectors of Ekta Nagar, the authority looking after the affairs of this place is also running multiple skill development centres to promote free education and training among local youth.

Due to involvement of local population in this project as main stakeholders, the economy of local population is now dependent upon this esteemed tourism project thus ending the employment as well as social upliftment issues of local population before the start of project as earlier the local population was having a tribal economy which was purely depended upon agriculture as well as animal husbandry.

Large scale involvement of local population as manpower at Ekta Nagar can be gauged from the fact that all the E-rickshaws run in the internal road network for ferrying tourists are run by local women while local men drive e-buses and other means of transportation.

Furthermore, the children of local population living in the area are also given free transportation facility on buses meant for ferrying tourists and every business unit and other establishment at Ekta Nagar has to give first priority to local population in manpower needs and outsiders can only be recruited for some selected positions.

The first woman operated McDonald, a commercial food outlet, at Ekta Nagar is also having 85% staff of local women whereas 120 guides on sell and ride basis in Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Zoological park are also mostly locals.

Local women steer change, drive e-rickshaws at Ekta Nagar

To boost internal transportation in Ekta Nagar and to facilitate tourists to visit from one tourist attraction point to other, a number of e-rickshaws are run inside the tourist hub and all the environment friendly vehicles are run by local women who are now able to live a dignified life and are earning livelihood for their families.

The women belong to local families who were fearing displacement at the time of start of project but adjustment of families was prioritised in planning.

Organisation dealing with management of affairs of Ekta Nagar has included a fleet of hundreds of environment friendly vehicles to ply on internal roads of Ekta Nagar that include these e-rickshaws driven by local women only who pay some meagre amount to authority and get rest of the share to feed their families.

Mayur Singh Raul, Mittal Tadvi: Local guides emerge as faces of Ekta Nagar

Mayur Singh Raul and Mittal Tadvi are two main guides of Ekta Nagar who have also served as guides with main international personalities and delegations and both have indepth knowledge of entire tourist hub.

Both Mayur and Mittal are also icons of empowerment of local communities who were fearing displacement due to development of this mega  tourism project but these communities have not only been empowered through smart planning but have also been made main stakeholder in overall working.

Mayur Singh Raul has been guide with a number of important personalities including President of India and with Prime Ministers as well as Presidents of many other countries also.

He is known to have informed and knowledge of every tourist attraction point of Ekta Nagar.

He was earlier working in area outside and earning livelihood but was able to get employment at this tourist hub and rose to the fame.

Similar, 28 years old local girl Mittal Tadvi belonging to Tadvi tribal community is also a main guide at Ekta Nagar.

Mittal among hundreds of other local girls were trained and stared working at this tourist hub only and now she is a main guide who also accompanied journalists from Jammu and Punjab Chandigarh who visited Ekta Nagar recently under a tour organised by PIB Jammu in coordination with PIB Gujarat.

New Delhi, Apr 8: The Informal Group of Ministers (IGoM), headed by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, took stock of India’s readiness in view of the recent developments in West Asia during its third meeting at Kartavya Bhawan-2 in New Delhi on Wednesday.

Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs Nirmala Sitharaman; Minister of External Affairs S Jaishankar; Minister for Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare and Rural Development Shivraj Singh Chouhan; Minister of Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal; Minister of Chemicals and FertilisersJagat Prakash Nadda; Minister of Petroleum and Natural Gas Hardeep Singh Puri; Minister of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution Prahlad Joshi; Minister of Railways, Information and Broadcasting, Electronics and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw; Minister of Parliamentary Affairs KirenRijiju; Minister of Civil Aviation KinjarapuRammohan Naidu, and Minister of State (Independent Charge) of the Ministry of Science and Technology Jitendra Singh attended the meeting.

In his remarks, the Defence Minister directed all departments to continue focusing on preparedness, coordination, and resilience building to stay ready to deal with any eventuality.

In a post on X, he said that the government was ensuring continued availability of LPG, petrol and diesel, fertilisers for farmers and facilitating supply of essential commodities in the country.

“The government, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has been doing exceptional work in safeguarding the citizens from the impact of the conflict,” he said.

The iGoM was informed that India has ensured the evacuation of the highest number of vessels than any other country, from the Strait of Hormuz over the past 40 days.

It was told that a total of 8 LPG vessels, carrying approximately 340TM, equivalent to around 11 days of India’s import requirement have successfully transited the Strait, reinforcing the country’s energy security and supply stability.

It was informed that there have been no reports of dry-out at LPG distributorships, and delivery of domestic LPG cylinders continues despite all across the country.

The IGoM was told that to support the vulnerable communities including migrant labourers, the supply of 5 kg Free Trade LPG cylinders had been doubled beyond the 20 percent allocation earmarked for priority segments on April 7.

It was informed that the oil PSU retail pump outlets continue to dispense auto LPG to support the public transportation requirements.

It was told that some supply constraints were being faced by private operators due to their procurement challenges, causing increased footfall in PSU outlets.

The IGoM was informed that a major decision was taken on Wednesday to further ease supply of LPG to industrial segments by allocating 70 percent of fuel demand to non-domestic bulk consumers with supply prioritised for key sectors such as pharma, food, polymers, agriculture, packaging, paints, steel, and defence-related materials. It was told that this measure is expected to prevent supply-chain disruptions, avoid shortages of essential goods, and ensure continuity of industrial operations despite the ongoing global crisis.

The meeting was informed that the Piped Natural Gas (PNG) was being actively promoted wherever feasible.

It was told that owing to the increased awareness from the PNG connection campaign launched to reduce LPG dependence, 3.16 lakh new PNG connections were added, representing a three fold increase over March 2025 levels.

The IGoM was informed that the campaign has also resulted in the surrender of over 16,700 LPG connections by citizens, indicating a growing shift toward PNG adoption.

It was also briefed about the easing in energy prices in the light of the ceasefire. The ministers were informed that key sectoral parameters will continue to be closely monitored and appropriate measures will be taken.

The IGoM was also apprised about the adequate measures taken by the Department of Food and Public Distribution.

Food Security Preparedness

It was told that adequate buffer stocks of rice and wheat are available, ensuring sufficient supply for PDS as well as to meet any emergency requirements and that the National Food Security Act ensures continued access to foodgrains for vulnerable populations.

Market Intervention: OMSS (D)

The meeting was informed that the government monitors foodgrain prices and, when necessary, undertakes market intervention through OMSS (D).

It was told that the Food Corporation of India (FCI) releases surplus wheat and rice in the open market to augment supply, stabilise prices, and contain inflation.

The IGoM was told that adequate stocks are available with FCI for such interventions.

It was informed that the scheme also enables the sale of rice to the state governments at subsidised fixed prices for additional requirements.

Procurement: RMS 2026-27

The meeting was told that the procurement of wheat under MSP operations had started, primarily through state government agencies.

It was informed that the department was regularly reviewing preparedness in coordination with etates and that adequate packaging material was being ensured for procurement operations.

Foodgrain Packaging

The IGoM was informed that proactive steps had been taken to ensure the availability of packaging materials during RMS 2026-27.

It was told that the department, in consultation with the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas and Department of Chemicals and Petrochemicals, was diversifying packaging sources and maintaining contingency measures to address any shortfall.

Edible Oil Scenario

The meeting was informed that the domestic availability of edible oils remains comfortable despite global uncertainties. Imports from key partners (Indonesia, Malaysia, Argentina, Brazil) continue steadily. It was told that improved mustard production had strengthened domestic supply.

The IGoM was informed that the overall supply remains stable; the Government continues close monitoring and will intervene if required.

Sugar Sector

It was told that adequate sugar buffer stock was available and sugar production in 2025-26 was expected to remain sufficient.

The meeting was informed that 15.80 lakh metric tonnes of sugar had been permitted for export, with 3.73 LMT exported so far. The IGoM was told that exports were primarily to Sri Lanka, West Asia, and East Africa.

It was informed that retail prices remain stable, with low inflation (3 percent) over the past three years.

The ministers were told that the Department of Consumer Affairs was monitoring the daily prices of 40 food commodities reported from 578 centres across the country.

It was told that price trends were closely monitored for unusual volatility consequent to the outbreak of war in the Middle East.

The IGoM was informed that till now, no unusual volatility was observed and prices were stable for most commodities, except moderate increase in prices of edible oils.

It was told that domestic production of mustard oil was expected to improve with 5 percent higher output, partially offsetting import dependence.

It was informed that procurement of onion for price stabilisation buffer would begin shortly, which would provide support to the mandi prices.

The IGoM was told that the National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India Limited and National Cooperative Consumers’ Federation of India Limited had started preparation for the procurement.

It was informed that onion export during the Financial Year 2025-26 at 15.40 LMT was more than previous year and was expected to further improve this year.

New Delhi, Apr 08: The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) on Wednesday approved a sharp increase in the cost of the Rajasthan oil refinery project to Rs 79,459 crore, alongside additional equity support from Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL), as the government pushes to expand domestic refining and petrochemical capacity.

The revised project cost of HPCL Rajasthan Refinery Ltd (HRRL) marks a significant jump from the earlier estimate of Rs 43,129 crore, according to an official statement.

HPCL will invest an additional Rs 8,962 crore, taking its total equity contribution to about Rs 19,600 crore in the project.

“The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has approved the revision of HRRL project cost,” it said.

The refinery-cum-petrochemical complex, located in Rajasthan’s Balotra district, is designed as a 9 million tonnes per annum facility with a strong petrochemical focus, reflecting India’s strategy to boost value-added output and reduce import dependence.

Prime Minister Modi will inaugurate the refinery on April 21. The project is scheduled to begin commercial operations from July 1, 2026.

Once operational, the complex will produce fuels, including petrol and diesel, along with petrochemicals such as polypropylene, polyethylene variants and key industrial chemicals like benzene and butadiene.

These products are widely used across sectors ranging from transportation and packaging to pharmaceuticals and construction.

The project is expected to play a key role in improving India’s energy security by processing domestically produced crude, including supplies from the Mangala fields in Rajasthan, while helping cut reliance on imported petrochemicals.

It also aligns with New Delhi’s broader push to position the country as a regional refining and manufacturing hub.

HRRL is a joint venture between HPCL, which holds a 74 per cent stake, and the Government of Rajasthan with the remaining 26 per cent.

The development has already generated significant employment during construction, with about 25,000 workers engaged across various project activities.

The cost escalation reflects rising input prices and the addition of complex petrochemical units, underscoring the capital-intensive nature of next-generation refining projects as India seeks to meet growing energy and materials demand.