National War Memorial near India Gate gets Cabinet approval

New Delhi: The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved the construction of National War Memorial and Museum near the famed India Gate in the national capital.

Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari after the Cabinet meeting told the media here that the memorial will be built in the memory of 22,500 soldiers, who sacrificed their lives while in the line of duty post-independence.

The Cabinet also cleared three new All India Institutes of Medical Sciences. They will be established at Nagpur in Maharashtra, Manglagiri in Andhra Pradesh and Kalyani in West Bengal under the Pradhan Mantri Swasthya Suraksha Yojana. The cost for this will be nearly Rs. 5,000 crore.

The other important decision taken by the Cabinet include amendment to India-Vietnam and India-Israel for double taxation avoidance agreements for prevention of tax evasion.

Union Power Minister Piyush Goyal said that the amended agreements are part of the government's efforts to curb black money.

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs also approved National Watershed Management Project-Neeranchal with an outlay of Rs. 2142 crores. It will ensure access to irrigation to every farmland and help achieve the objectives of Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai Yojana for efficient use of water.