Latest Union Cabinet Decisions

Cabinet approves the big increase in the authorized capital of Food Corporation of India from Rs. 3,500 crore to Rs.10,000 crore:

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has approved to increase the authorized capital of Food Corporation of India (FCI) from existing Rs.3,500 crore to Rs.10,000 crore.
 
With the increase of authorized capital, additional equity capital can be infused in FCI through Union Budget, to fund the foodgrains stock, perpetually held by FCI. This will reduce the borrowings of FCI, save interest cost of FCI and reduce food subsidy in consequence.

Cabinet approves a waiver of repayment of loan and interest thereon, worth over Rupees Four crore, outstanding against the Sikkim Mining Corporation:

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has accorded its approval for waiver of repayment of a loan of Rs.54 lakh and interest thereon, amounting to Rs.370.40 lakh, totaling Rs. 424.40 lakh plus the amount of interest that will accrue on the total amount, from 01.04.2019 till this approval outstanding against the Sikkim Mining Corporation.
 
Benefit:
Further accumulation of interest on the principal loans will get extinguished and the liquidation process of the Corporation will get completed.

Cabinet approves the extension of norms for mandatory packaging in jute materials:

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi has accorded its approval for mandatory packaging of foodgrains and sugar in jute material for the Jute Year 2019-20.

The Government has retained the scope of mandatory packaging norms under the Jute Packaging Material (JPM) Act, 1987 as per last year. The decision of the Cabinet mandates that 100% of the food grains and 20% of the sugar shall be mandatorily packed in diversified jute bags.
 
Benefits:
 
The decision to pack sugar in diversified jute bags will give an impetus to the diversification of the jute industry. Further, the decision also mandates that initially 10% of the indents of jute bags for packing foodgrains would be placed through a reverse auction on the GeM portal. This will gradually usher in a regime of price discovery.

The approval will benefit farmers and workers located in the Eastern and North-Eastern regions of the country particularly in the states of West Bengal, Bihar, Odisha, Assam, Andhra Pradesh, Meghalaya, and Tripura.

Cabinet approves Post Facto the Agreement on the establishment of Strategic Partnership Council between India and Saudi Arabia:

The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi today approved Post Facto the Agreement signed by Prime Minister on 29th October 2019 for the establishment of the Strategic Partnership Council between India and Saudi Arabia.
The Agreement will enable the leadership at the highest level in both countries to meet regularly and monitor progress in the ongoing initiatives/projects under the strategic partnership. It will help identify new areas for forging strategic engagement and will define the goals to be achieved and benefits to be derived.

Benefits

The proposal aims to benefit the citizens with improved economic and commercial linkages with Saudi Arabia irrespective of any gender, class or income bias.
This Agreement with Saudi Arabia will open new avenues of partnership in strategic areas like defense, security counter-terrorism, energy security, and renewable energy.