By IANS
New Delhi : The union cabinet Monday approved the setting up of a paper mill project in Jagdishpur in Uttar Pradesh’s Sultanpur district, which lies in the parliamentary constituency of Amethi of Congress member of parliament Rahul Gandhi, who is also the newly-appointed AICC general secretary.
It also decided to merge the National Disaster Response Fund with the National Calamity Contingency Fund and amend the Indian Council of World Affairs Act, 2001, to make the minister of external affairs as the ICWA’s president ex-officio, in place of the Vice-President of India.
The cabinet provided for an additional secretary-level officer assuming the charge of director general. His tenure will be for not more than three years and no person attaining the age of over 65 years will be eligible to hold the office, Minister for Information and Broadcasting Priya Ranjan Dasmunsi said.
The cabinet also decided to withdraw the University Grants Commission (Amendment) Bill, pending since 1995 in the Rajya Sabha. This is being done on the advice of an experts committee which suggested that in view of the changed education scenario in the country, a new bill is needed to regulate the universities.
The cabinet decided to create two posts of additional solicitors general of India for conducting taxation matters and to upgrade one post of additional secretary to special secretary in the department of legal affairs in the law ministry, the minister said.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh presided over the cabinet meting.