State Cabinet on Saturday approved bicycle sharing system in Public Private Partnership (PPP) mode for city area under Smart City plan which will see as many as 120 bicycle renting points to start in the first phase. In the meeting which unusually took place other than routine Tuesdays, the Cabinet also gave its nod to 20 other proposals including a monthly Rs 1,000 compensation to famous artists of above 60 years in State who are no more in position to carry on their profession due to age and/or prolonged ailments.
The bicycle renting system, an age-old system in many developed countries, speically in Europe, the USA and Mexico, daily commuters to their offices or for some other works get down from public transport like buses or trains, pick a cycle from cycle stand on rent which is mostly at hourly rates, go fetch their works, come down to cycle stand, deposit cycle, pay the fees and go back to their home via public transport. The system has worked wonders in its existing markets, as health freaks and environment loving commuters use this system day in and day out.
However, the civic bodies will have to dance to the tunes of their own ignorance and lethargy in implementing pro-people plans in a city which has been pathetically suffering for even good footpath.
The Cabinet also agreed on proposal of exempting commercial vehicles of Ram Krishna Mission Ashram (Morhabadi) running within boundaries of city from yearly commercial tax which amounts to over Rs 35 lakhs.
The Cabinet also approved Health department proposal of generating 649 para-medical staff for 18 Sadar hospitals in State. Notably, the Chief Minister Raghubar Das had said on Friday that the government had been working to convert all Sadar hospitals in State into state-of-the-art ones in order to offload pressure on RIMS.
In a major relief to Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe populace, the Cabinet accepted Welfare Department proposal to set up Emergency Fund for compensation of SC/ST in State under 47 types of cases of harassments and distresses including extreme poverty. The move is aimed to reach out to those people and provide immediate relief at a time when they struggled with no other hope to get any support from any other means.
However, the Cabinet also decided to displease handful of retired senior officials who have been appointed on Director, Chairman or equivalent posts in any government board, organisation or institution in State, by streamlining their perks. The Cabinet approved reduction of their post retirement pension from their existing remuneration against the posts they held.