Category Policy Update

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High Impact Community Development Projects (HICDPs) (2024), MEA: Strengthening India’s Community-Centered Development Partnerships

India’s neighborhood diplomacy and South–South development cooperation have undergone a major strategic transformation over the past two decades. Central to this evolution is the paradigm of High Impact Community Development Projects (HICDPs)—formerly known as Small Development Projects (SDPs)—which operationalize India’s commitment to demand-driven, community-centric grant assistance. Unlike mega-infrastructure projects that often carry extended gestation periods and complex financing terms, HICDPs are designed to directly target grass-roots socio-economic needs in rural, semi-urban, and border regions. Grounded in India's foundational diplomatic ethos of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam ("the world is one family"), these initiatives prioritize local human capital, essential public utilities, and basic social infrastructure across South Asia and the Indian Ocean Region.

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India Cooling Action Plan (ICAP), 2019: Bridging the Gap Between Sustainable Cooling and Climate Resilience Background

As India's cooling needs continue to increase, the challenge for policy is at a crossroads between climate change, public health, energy security and economic development. With the rising temperature and the fast urbanisation, the expansion of infrastructure, rising household income, and growing cold-chain networks, cooling is becoming a crucial need in residential, commercial, agricultural, healthcare, transportation and industrial sectors.

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National Commission for Women’s NRI Cell (2009): Addressing Grievances and Protecting Indian Women Abroad

The National Commission for Women (NCW) NRI Cell was established to address the growing challenges faced by Indian women in marriages involving Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) or overseas Indians. In view of the seriousness of issues involving violation of women’s rights in NRI marriages, the NCW was nominated as the Coordinating Agency at the national level for dealing with issues pertaining to NRI marriages vide Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs (now part of the Ministry of External Affairs) Order dated 28 April 2008. This nomination followed the recommendations of the Parliamentary Committee on Empowerment of Women (14th Lok Sabha, 2006–2007) on the subject “Plight of Indian Women Deserted by their NRI Husbands” (National Commission for Women, 2009). The NRI Cell of the Commission formally came into existence on 24 September 2009 (National Commission for Women, 2009).

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Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Programme (2026): Expanding Micro-Enterprise Finance Amid Credit Access and Implementation Challenges

Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) play an important role in India's economic development by generating employment, encouraging entrepreneurship, supporting local production and creating opportunities for income generation. However, starting a small business remains difficult for many aspiring entrepreneurs, particularly those from rural areas, economically weaker sections and communities with limited access to formal finance.

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Merchandise Exports from India Scheme (MEIS), 2015: Promoting Indian Exports and Enhancing Global Competitiveness 

Merchandise exports play an important role in economic growth by generating employment, earning foreign exchange, encouraging industrial development and integrating domestic producers into global value chains. However, Indian exporters have historically faced challenges such as high logistics costs, inadequate infrastructure, procedural complexities and competition from international producers. These constraints can reduce the price competitiveness of Indian goods in international markets, particularly for micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs)

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Mission Mausam(2024-26): From Weather-Aware to Weather Ready Nation

India’s tropical climate makes it highly vulnerable to extreme meteorological events, complex monsoon patterns, high humidity, and rapidly changing weather conditions, making accurate weather prediction particularly challenging. To strengthen the country’s forecasting capabilities, the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) introduced Mission Mausam, a central sector scheme approved by the union cabinet on 11 September 2024 with an outlay of ₹2,000 crore over two years (2024-26). It was formally inaugurated on 14 January 2025, the 150th anniversary of the India Meteorological Department (IMD) (MINISTRY OF EARTH SCIENCES, 2024).

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Digitalising Press Regulation: Assessing the Performance of the Press and Registration of Periodicals Act (PRP Act), 2023

The Editors Guild of India has said the Press Registrar’s emphasis must stay on “registration” and not “regulation” (Exchange4media, 2023). That line captures what is at stake in press law reform. Press registration in India began under colonial rule. The Press and Registration of Books Act, 1867 governed the print and publishing industry for well over a century (Press Information Bureau [PIB], 2023). It covered books, newspapers and periodicals under one law (PIB, 2023). Over time, the Act fell out of step with the changing media landscape (PIB, 2023).

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