Parliament Watch: Satellite tolling faces security review, 1,096 trained in drone skills, and more

Satellite Tolling Faces Security Review
Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari said that ahigh-level committee set up to explore the rollout of a satellite-based highway toll collection system has recommended further deliberations on security and privacy concerns. “It has been decided to proceed with corridor/stretchbased projects using the Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) FASTag System (AFS) for barrier-free, free-flow tolling,” he said in response to a question in the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday.

1,096 Trained in Drone Skills
A total of 1,096 candidates were trained in drone related skills under the Craftsman Training Scheme (CTS) during 2023–24 and 2024–25 as part of the Drone Shakti initiative, Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship Jayant Chaudhary said in response to a question in the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday.

55 NHAI Project Failures in Five Years, says Govt
A total of 55 cases of collapses or damages were reported on roads, bridges, and tunnel projects executed by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) over the past five years, Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari said in response to a question in the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday.


India Gets LMIC Tag from World Bank
The World Bank has classified India as a lower-middle-income country based on its revised international poverty lines, with the threshold for lowermiddle-income countries (LMICs) set at $4.20 per day using 2021 purchasing power parities (PPPs), Planning Minister Rao Inderjit Singh said in response to a question in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday. Based on the revised definition, India’s LMIC poverty rate stood at 23.9% in 2022–23, down from 57.7% in 2011–12, he said.