The Public-private Partnership (PPP) model is usually associated with the infrastructure sector, where investments are huge and therefore, the Government gets into a partnership with private sector companies to make projects economically viable. Of late, however, it has become popular in other sectors as well.

In the education sector, for instance, the Government has got into a tie-up with Non Governmental Organisations to implement the Mid-day Meal Scheme (MDMS), the Government of India’s ambitious school lunch programme, as a part of which a nutritious meal is provided to over 100 million school children every day.

How Non Governmental Organisations Come Into the Picture

Now the implementation of MDMS has been nothing short of a Herculean task for State Governments, and that shouldn’t really come as a surprise, considering that it is the largest school lunch programme in the world. Therefore, in order to make it viable, several State Governments have forged a partnership with not-for-profit organisations with sound financial and logistical credentials.

Many State Governments of India has got into a partnership with a not-for-profit organisation to provide mid-day meals to school children. They are many well-known not-for-profit organisations in India that are assisting the states to implement the ambitious programme.

How the Government-Non Governmental Organisation Partnership is Enhancing the Mid-day Meal Scheme

The Government – Non Governmental Organisation partnership system has helped several states to iron out the wrinkles in MDMS. Earlier, the teachers were entrusted the task of preparing mid-day meals, as a result of which they were not able to focus on their primary role, i.e., teaching. With nonprofit organisations taking care of the cooking part now, the teachers don’t have to worry about it. Similarly, as cooking is now carried out in centralized kitchens away from the school premises, it has ruled out the chances of mishaps, thus making the premises safer for children.

There are several areas where it has helped in making a positive impact, no doubt, but the most important benefit of Non Governmental Organisations joining the Government is the fact that it has helped the latter to reach out to more children.

That is not to say the Government is a passive spectator. It does its bit by providing land for the construction of kitchens, providing food grains, and even helps Non Governmental Organisations to raise funds by putting forth provisions like 100% tax deduction. (In addition, in several areas, it helps schools run their own mid-day meal kitchens.)

The Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Policy framed under the New Companies Act, 2013, has also come as a blessing in disguise for this programme. This policy makes it mandatory for ‘qualifying companies’ to spend at least 2% of their average net profit for 3 preceding financial years on CSR initiatives to facilitate socioeconomic development.

This has made it easier for Non Governmental Organisations to raise funds for both, sustainability and expansion.

It also means more attention can be paid to the quality of food by using funds to procure latest technology. State-of-the-art food laboratories are now being used to monitor the quality of food and ensure basic standards of food safety.

The involvement of Non Governmental Organisations in the implementation of this programme has not just helped in improving the quality of meals served, but has also provided an opportunity to encourage community participation; the latter by means of fund raising, volunteering, etc.

Now that it has been quite some time since the Government and Non Governmental Organisations have got into a public-private partnership, the benefits of this tie-up have already started to surface. The quality of meals has enhanced, the number of beneficiaries has increased, and most important of all, the battle against hunger and malnutrition has found a new lease of life.

Local Open government software arrangements are intended to fill the demanding needs of clients, for example, city, province and state governments who require help with center concerns identifying with everyday management. These clients can utilize such answers for help them all the more effectively deal with an extensive scope of key practices.

The government is able to get an easy feedback for the proposals made and see the areas for improvement. Open source software has its source code un-inhibitedly accessible to people in general, to utilize, modify and redistribute it without paying an eminence to the first engineer. So engineers in various industry fragments, be it co-ordinations or assembling or healthcare, can utilize the source code as a stage to create applications suiting to their specific needs.

Stability

Business software sellers doing their business with a few traps, which move advances the client to buy or redesign his/her current software? Their regular traps are – pull back specialization support after a brief period, enhancing file system or file arrange, and so on.

Opportunity of customization

That implies you can change, reconstruct, redistribute, and modify the software or bundle; for that – designers of that software don’t charge you anything. You have finish control over your software.

Support

The vast majority of the open source extend has overall group based emotionally supportive network, which is most capable than whatever other business emotionally supportive network.

Major points

For clients of this generally utilized technology, the capacity to download and utilize software at no cost is a major positive. Open government software designers don’t feel an indistinguishable weight to benefit from those working with bigger organizations. Consequently, improvements made to their code can be more engaged toward what every client may need, and less to what will speak to the mass market.

The advantage to engineers is that additional time can be spent on the improvement of existing software. This can mean substantially less hazard for bugs, as time can be taken in tackling issues before the software is released to the market as opposed to being immediately adjusted for soundness preceding release.

Another advantage is that sources and different variations can be found rapidly and replaced. Since individuals can take a gander at it, they can without much of a stretch make sense of where the bug or variation is. This makes something of a disincentive for noxious software engineers to put secondary passages, Trojan Horses, and different sorts of malignant coding in their projects.

Historically speaking, there have been eighteen government closures. On midnight of Thursday September 30th, 1976, the federal government shut down for ten days. On midnight of Saturday, September 1978, the government shut down for even longer: it took seventeen days until that fiasco was resolved. Following a five-day government shutdown that ended on Friday November 13, 1995, a twenty-one day government shutdown was followed close on its heels, beginning on midnight of Friday December 15.

It is 2018 and the current federal government’s stalemate on key political issues has created a virtual frenzy in the Capitol, housed in Washington, D.C. Day number three of the government shutdown has Democrats and Republicans locked on serious political issues with no end currently in immediate sight.

For the National Flood Insurance Program, the situation does not bode well. Included in many of the funding terminations resulting from a non-functioning governing body, the repercussions could spell a virtual emergency for home buyers and real estate industry as a whole. While some states would not be affected, potential buyers in the official roster of flood zones would not benefit from financial strength offered by the program. During the duration of a government shutdown, the National Insurance Program will not be selling flood insurance to those interested in buying homes in places at risk of flood damages.

“Essentially, what this means is dark times for housing market,” says a home and business property mortgage specialist. “Most mortgage lenders will withhold funding if there is no flood insurance. Should the shutdown initiate a longer term cessation of the National Flood Insurance Program, it could mean thousands of home sales would be threatened.”

What then?

The private insurance sector has the answer.

“In the event the National Flood Insurance Program has been rendered ineffective,” says one successful insurance broker, “there are other viable flood coverage options.”

Offered by an experienced independent agency, this type of primary flood protection can substitute for what the National Flood Insurance Program offers – without the associated fees or surcharges!

What is even more attractive about the option is that it comes together with fast underwriting administering and all flood zones are eligible.

Targeted risks incorporate the following:

• Pre or post firm primary or secondary dwelling

• One, two, three or four family dwellings

• On a replacement cost basis

• Loss of use is also available

• Excess flood is also available

It is essential to discuss the particulars of this flood coverage option, as well as any package option with a qualified professional before proceeding with acquiring a policy.

The purpose of this article is to expose the government’s effort to better school systems in the United States of America. Though the government faces its challenges, the positive stride to better the school through reforms is overwhelming. For many years schools in wealthy neighborhoods had the advantage over schools in poor neighborhoods when comparing educational levels. Therefore, there has been a sense of urgency on the government’s side to close the gap between schools in wealthy neighborhoods and schools in poor neighborhoods. The goal is not to improve schools in one major area of the United States, or to improve school subjects. The goal is to improve schools everywhere in the United States of America.

Through many years, the government has tried to form reforms that will better schools in low income areas. The federal government has passed laws that forced local government to better schools through their districts regardless of the school and district sizes. There have been funds available for schools to improve in many areas such as math, science, and reading. Also, teachers are given incentives to teach in low income areas to help improve students’ test scores. The No Child Left Behind (NCLB) not only challenges schools to better their teachers and students, but the federal government has put pressure on themselves to better the school system overall.

People have been focused on the negative aspect of government reforms to better the school systems in the United States. The government has been heavily criticized for practicing bias in the school systems toward African Americans and Hispanics. History has shown that the government is trying very hard to better the school systems through implementing reforms and alternative funds to help better the school system in every subject. This research is to bring forth the positive effect of the reforms to better students by providing each of them the equality to learn regardless of their background or their socioeconomic status. The reforms are to force the schools to act and rely on the resources proved by the federal, local, and state government. The problem is that not enough good is being said about the efforts by the government to better the school system. Instead many have criticized every reform. Though there is no such thing as perfect reforms, but the good outweighs the bad. The research will briefly mention some of the major changes in school financing to show the government efforts to help close the achievement gap between students in low income areas and students in high income areas.

A very high percentage of students who live in low income areas are African Americans. This is due to the history of this country’s segregation. African Americans were not allowed to learn to read or have anything to do with books. Also, African Americans were forced to live together as a culture and were put in a position of working low wage jobs. These are the reasons why we have a high percentage of African American who lives in low income areas. Therefore, there is now an achievement gap among students who live in low income areas and students in high income areas. The government is now trying to do their best to close the achievement gap.

For the government employees, the Shri Saibaba Sansthan Trust (SSST) steps up the swiftness of Darshan (virtual heavenly visit). They get quick access to the sanctum sanctorum. This is a worth welcoming move taken by the Saibaba temple management. The Indians working in various departments of central or state administrations will not have to stand in long queues anymore. They are simply allowed to enter Shirdi Temple directly. Such persons will not at all have to line up for the Saibaba shrine entry even in future.

For retired government employees or senior citizen, the SSST takes responsibility of serving them water, tea, coffee, milk and biscuits from time to time during the time they stand in line for darshan. This facility is being made available to those pensioners devoted to SaiBaba only who are unable to stand longer in queues.

Henceforth, entering Saibaba Shrine would not be any problem for people working in different public sector institutions. They can apply for special darshan pass. These special Shirdi Darshan for Government Employees and VIP passes are obtainable from P.R.O. (Public Relation Office) located nearby the temple. The new facility is going to help government servants skip queues and get direct entry into temple.

Shirdi is one of the India’s 10 richest shrines in the Ahmednagar district of Maharashtra. Lucky ones can snap up opportunity to go along their elderly retired government family member as the SSST gives permission to one person escort her/him. The gate no. 3 is serving special purpose. Such devotees enter through the gate on the left hand side which brings to Mukh Darshan as well. Another entrance on the right side is used for the senior citizens of any type Indians or non-Indians or public sector servants. This entry is special during peak periods in particular. Devotees get direct entry into the Samadhi shrine through a special gate opposite the former Udhi Distribution Room.

They go for darshan with disabled persons, citizens and other VIPs. All through festival seasons, including weekends i.e., Saturday and Sunday, they get special entry pass to go in the temple through gate meant for VIPs/senior citizens/Disabled/Government employees.

A majestic Palkhi (Palanquin) program is pulled out on every Thursday at 09:15p.m.

In normal periods, when there is not much rush, the Darshanathree (devotee/s) are allowed directly inside the main temple through the entry opposite to the Announcement Room next to the old shoe stand area. This is a special entry gate for VIPs. Step a few stairs down where other pass holders join you to reach Baba’s Samadhi Sanctum.

For darshan passes and guidance, contact to the PRO office. The official working beings at a specific timing. The timings of purchasing passes are:

· 07:30-11:00a.m.

· 02:30- 05:00 p.m.

· 07:30-10:00p.m

With these special passes, Shirdi Darshan for government employees get darshan opportunity as they are given direct entry to the temple from a separate gate by which they cut out the long standing in queues. So Shirdi Darshan for government employees is simple and easy.

If you’re seriously considering going to a government auto auction to buy a vehicle, you’ve taken the first step. If you’re still not convinced that auctions are right for you, read the information below to learn three advantages of purchasing a vehicle at a government auto auction.

Huge Savings

It’s no revelation that buying a car is expensive. Even used vehicles can cost a lot of money and put a strain on the budget. For this reason, many people are taking advantage of the huge cost savings and purchasing their vehicles at a government auto auction.

Since these government vehicles are no longer in use, they’re offered for sale at a public auction. Government entities want to get rid of these vehicles as quickly as possible as it’s costing them money to store the cars. By placing the vehicles in an auction, they can sell many of them at once and clear them out.

The bidding on these cars and trucks begin at a price that’s way below the retail value of the vehicle. The price only goes up if there are several people who are bidding on the same automobile. Many bidders stop placing bids right away once the price increases. When all the bidders have dropped out, except the last one, this person gets the vehicle for the amount of their last bid.

Reliable Vehicles

It’s no secret that the government has the resources to take very good care of their vehicles and it’s essential that the employees who drive these vehicles have a safe and reliable car. Government vehicles have regular maintenance checks and mechanics quickly repair any issues with the vehicles.

The government doesn’t sell these cars at auction because they’re worn out, they sell them when they replace the vehicle, which is normally when the odometer reaches approximately 25,000 miles. In some instances, the vehicle may have close to 40,000 miles, but this is still low mileage for a used car or truck.

The maintenance schedule and any repairs are documented in a log book and kept with the vehicle. Potential buyers can view these documents to see what’s been done to the car.

No Car Payments

When you purchase a vehicle at a government car auction, you must pay for the vehicle in full before you take it off the premises. Once you pay for the auction car it’s yours and you don’t have to worry about making an expensive car payment every month.

When you finance a car through a lender, you also have to pay interest along with the loan. This added cost drives the price of the vehicle up even more. Monthly car payments can also put a strain on finances, especially if the payments are high.

After purchasing and paying for a government auction car, you own the vehicle. This saves you money every month because it’s one less bill you have to pay.

Getting a great deal, owning a reliable used car and not having an extra bill each month are three great reasons for visiting a government car auction. This information should tell you that purchasing a government vehicle at an auction is a smart decision.

As per the current economic scenario in India it is evident that the government has been unable to maintain economic harmony, rather it has made a serious damage by eradicating people’s spending power. The manufacturing output is at its low and import-export are struggling at a two year low. It is evident with the economic indicators that businesses are at its all time low and businessmen have lost confidence in bringing the money out in the market again.

As per the GDP formula now we can clearly see that consumption is at its all time low as residents of India are not having enough spending power in their hands and imports and exports figures are already bleeding. The best thing to be taken care by the government for reviving GDP is Government spending and Investment.

Government spending requires additional capital in the economy. This additional capital can be taken care by either printing, new currency, increasing the tax revenue or increasing foreign capital in the form of investment.

However, all these mechanisms have drawbacks which will have to be beared by the residents of the country. By printing more currency notes the liquidity in the market will increase which will cause inflation figures rise which might backfire the long term goals of the country. Secondly, if the tax bracket is increased it will pressurize the tax payers which will lead to negative sentiments for the economy. Lastly, if the foreign investments are increased it will lead to more debt on the country which will have to be beared by the coming generations.

Also, the timing of the stimulus package by the government is of utmost importance in the present condition. Indian economy is trying to settle off the after shocks of demonetization and GST implication and an early stimulus is going to act as another quake. Government spending on infrastructure projects is at such crucial position that it might increase the liquidity in the market, but may not be able to induce the spending psychology of the people of India.

Thus, additional stimulus if induced in the economy at this stage might only increase the fiscal deficit of the country and not have a meaningful impact in uplifting the Indian economic condition. The higher fiscal deficit will lead to higher bond yields in the long run and the condition of the Indian economy will become worst than the present condition.

As per the present condition it is required that the government of India lets the dust settle first and then after reviewing the conditions should act thereof. An absurd step like a stimulus programme will only deteriorate the present condition and have a long term negative impact on the economy. This will also degrade the international rating of the country which might affect the international investments in India. The overall credit rating might also get declined, which will be hard to compensate even in the long run.

Our Federal Government should stay out of regulations that purposely and adversely affect one competitor in industry for the benefit of another – unfortunately with our lobbyists in Washington DC, that’s just not what happens. We need standardization for our civilization, but must be very careful how we legislate that, or determine such parameters.

All too often those closest to the power base get their way over their marketplace competition. It’s free-enterprise and the consumers who lose, while one group of investors and executives get rich – then are all too willing to return the favor in campaign contributions to keep that gravy train hovering its Maglev Track to future profits.

Not long ago we were discussing this issue at our Think Tank and think tanker Andrew stated:

“The reason why I believe this is such an important issue is a very simple concept. The Federal Government is constantly flip flopping back and forth from one party to another, and it could actually be toxic for a business – absolutely a nightmare. When centralized governments flip flop back and forth, it creates uncertainty for business owners.”

True enough, still, if our Federal Government was running its business with integrity, we wouldn’t have to worry about that. Today, we have too much crony-capitalism and hijacking of the political process. The Obama Administration is quite troubling in that regard, from a business person’s perspective, unless you are on the inside track I suppose, then you get all the juice and your competitors get crushed, as they pick winners and losers.

Are things better at the state level? Yes and no, overall perhaps, however, some states are completely arbitrary with how they enforce the laws. So, we never sold a franchise in TX to anyone who wasn’t and Aggie! We are not stupid, we know the drill. Wait, we once did sell a franchise to a non-Aggie, but he didn’t last long.

Perhaps the worst thing in business is uncertainty, because if you don’t know what you are dealing with it’s hard to allocate large amounts of capital, because you simply cannot ascertain if you can ever achieve a reasonable ROI, and the uncertainty adds to the risks, thus, lessens the potential rewards.

Having some standardization regulations help alleviate uncertainty, and all market players know what they are dealing with, as long as there is trust in the stability of those standards moving forward. Business, both small and large, and entire industries must be able to trust the government at all levels and the political apparatus – if not all bets are off. Of course this is part common sense, part warning, and part philosophy. Be Great, Don’t Hesitate.

A special needs trust (SNT) is a trust designed to supplement the needs of an individual whose necessary medical or living expenses are paid through programs such as Medicaid or SSI. Because these programs are "means tested" – based in part on income – an SNT enables the beneficiary to continue receiving aid despite an increase in income or assets. In general, the excess funds are placed into the SNT which then pays for the beneficiary's supplemental needs such as recreation and consumer goods not otherwise covered by government benefits. Here are a few examples:

Divorce and the disabled child . Disabled children who receive SSI risk a reduction or termination of benefits when one parent is required to pay child support. Receipt of child support can reduce SSI benefits by one third for children under age 18 and dollar for dollar for children age 18 and older. Instead of the funds being transferred outright, the child support can be placed into an SNT which diverts the income away from the child. Because SSI provides for food, shelter and utility expenses, the SNT can pay for other life enhancing benefits such as vacations, electronics or specialized vehicles – all while maintaining the child's entitlement to government benefits.

Personal Injury Settlements . Personal injury settlements are designed in part, to cover the individual's future medical expenses and needs. A portion of the settlement may also be awarded as a "punishment" for the defendant's wrongful conduct. However, disabled individuals receiving SSI and Medicaid risk disqualification upon receipt of a lump sum settlement. In addition, Medicaid may have a right of recovery against the portion of settlement earmarked for medical care. To aviod disqualification from these important government benefits, an SNT can be established to accept the net settlement proceeds. The money placed in the SNT can then be used to purchase supplemental goods and services that enhance, rather than replace government benefits. Similar to the example above, SNT funds can be used to plan vacations for the disabled individual, to purchase specially equipped vehicles and to provide other comforts including consumer goods or beauty services.

Third Party SNTs . A third party special needs trust involves the same concepts as outlined above. However, the SNT is funded with the assets of a third party for the benefit of the disabled individual. For example, a grandparent, friend or other indvidual who is not legally responsible for the beneficiary can establist an SNT to pay for the supplemental needs of another. In addition to helping the disabled individual, a grantor who funds a third party SNT for the benefit of their disabled child may be able to partially avoid the five year lookback period for their own Medicaid qualification.

Worth Considering . Special needs trusts can be a powerful tool in planning for the continued care of a disabled individual or for helping the grantor achieve their own Medicaid eligibility. You may want to explore whether an SNT is right for you or for someone you love.

It's that time of year where we review the impact of government debt on individual tax payers. It is important to remember who is on the hook for government reckless spending binges.

Whenever we hear politicians make campaign promises, they sound like they are spending their money. But government doesn't have any money, so the only way they can implement their expensive ideas, is to tax their citizens and companies, as that is their only source of revenue.

What is really troubling is that when the US government (and most others) planned their budget for the current fiscal year, they budget to spend more than they knew they will receive in tax revenue. In fact since 1970, the US has only balanced their budget four times. France has not had a balanced budget since 1974.

When governments overspend, they need to fund those deficits by issuing bonds. As the debt keeps rising, more and more of the budget goes to paying the interest on those bonds. Last year the US government spent over $ 250 billion on just the interest payments to service the Federal debt. They spent over $ 430 billion if we include the State and Local Government (SLG) securities.

Every election, candidates claim they will not add to the debt, yet except for four years in the past 45 years, every year the US government has significantly added to the debt. In Obama's eight years in office, the US debt has exploded higher, by almost $ 10 trillion to $ 19.86 trillion.

The almost $ 20 trillion is the official debt figure, but there is also a massive amount of 'unfunded liabilities'. Future obligations such as Social Security, Medicare, Veteran Affairs, and Federal employee benefits are not funded. The total of those 'unfunded obligations' totals over $ 100 trillion.

Here are the current numbers for the US debt:

1. Official US debt = $ 19.86 trillion
– debt per citizen = $ 61,133
– debt per taxpayer = $ 166,240

2. Total unfunded liabilities = $ 104 trillion
– liability per citizen = $ 320,749
– liability per taxpayer = $ 872,205

Add it all up and each taxpayer's share of the national debt, and the 'unfunded liabilities' = $ 1,038,445. That's is not a misprint. Each taxpayer's share of the debt is over $ 1 million!

And every year that the government spends more that they have, adds to these totals. When the government spends, it is the taxpayer who must cover the costs.

Stay tuned!