New Delhi Jan 27 PTI The Union Housing and Urban Affairs HUA Ministry on Thursday launched the Swachhata Start-Up Challenge to provide an impetus to innovative start-ups to come forward and drive catalytic transformation in the sanitation and waste management sector a statement said The Challenge was launched in partnership with the Department of Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade DPIIT and the Agence Franaise de Dveloppement AFD In the statement the ministry said the Challenge which is open to start-ups registered in India and French actors collaborating with an Indian start-up as a joint venture invites solutions across four thematic areas --- social inclusion zero dump solid waste management plastic waste management and transparency through digital enablement The Challenge provides a prominent platform to participating enterprises to showcase their innovative products and services along with significant monetary and mentorship incentive Top 10 awardees stand to receive Rs 25 lakh along with one year of dedicated incubation support from French Tech the French governments initiative to promote start-ups the statement said Apart from these eligible startups will get additional incentives which includes up to Rs 50 lakh follow-on investment from Villgro the implementation partner of the Challenge and up to 100000 USD worth credits and technology support from technology partner Amazon Web Services to each winner it stated The Challenge was launched by HUA Secretary Manoj Joshi along with HE Emmanuel Lenain Ambassador of France to India and HE Ugo Astuto Ambassador of the European Union to India and Bhutan the ministry said in the statement Joshi said The Swachhata Startup Challenge launched today is a step towards ensuring innovation and smart governance in SBM-U 20 by incentivising the startup ecosystem to help realise our vision of Garbage Free Cities Elaborating on the French governments role in promoting innovations in the waste management space in India Lenain added France and India are committed to taking joint action against plastic pollution and the AFD-MoHUA Swachhata Startup Challenge is a concrete step in this direction The French Development Agency will provide seed funding to the tune of 25 lakh rupees and one year of customised support to each of the 10 selected start-ups This initiative also comes at a time when France and the EU are looking to work closely with India on the international stage to negotiate a global treaty on plastic pollution the statement quoted Lenain as saying at the event Swachh Bharat Mission-Urban 20 launched on October 1 last year aims to achieve the vision of Garbage Free Cities over the next five years through remediation of legacy dumpsites construction and demolition waste and plastic waste management PTI BUN AQS AQS

New Delhi Oct 22 PTI Union minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Friday flagged off five high-tech ambulances under the CSR initiative of the Housing and Urban Development Corporation HUDCOAccording to an official statement at the event the housing and urban affairs minister said handing over of these ambulances to hospitals by HUDCO reflects the best in the CSR corporate social responsibilityPuri handed over the keys of ambulances to Atal Bihari Vajpayee Institute of Medical Sciences Dr Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital Vardhman Mahavir Medical College and Safdarjung HospitalThe ministry said the state-of-the-art ambulances provided at a cost of Rs 4213 lakh per vehicle are fitted with critical life supporting equipmentHUDCO has sanctioned three such vehicles to ABVIMS and Dr Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital and two to VMMC and Safdarjung Hospital statement saidIt added that medical equipment in the ambulance include auto loading stretcher wheel chair-cum-stair chair transport ventilator syringe infusion pump multi parameter monitor with EtCO2 USFDA Certified fully automated external defibrillator vacuum splint portable oxygen cylinder with regulator emergency kits rescue tools etcHUDCO has already provided 10 ambulances to various states and has supported medical infrastructure projects the ministry said PTI BUN TDS TDS