General Awareness

NATIONAL AFFAIRS - July 2015

Jul 2015

Jul 23, 2021

Historic Urban Landscape Project Launched for Gwalior, Orchha

In the state of Madhya Pradesh, the cities of Orchha and Gwalior have been selected by UNESCO under its 'Historic Urban Landscape Project.' This project was started in the year 2011.
UNESCO's Historic Urban Landscape project for the cities of Orchha and Gwalior was launched through video conferencing by Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh Shivraj Singh Chouhan.
Six cities of South Asia, including Indian cities of Varanasi and Ajmer are already involved in this project. Gwalior and Orchha have been included as the 7th and 8th cities of South Asia.
UNESCO will prepare the management and development of these cities.
This project will help in boosting the tourism of the state of Madhya Pradesh. Along with this additional employment opportunities will be created.
These cities will be jointly developed by UNESCO, the Government of India and the state of Madhya Pradesh by putting primary focus on their cultural and historical improvement.
By implementing this project of UNESCO, full care of the history, culture, traditions, nature as well as heritage of the cities will be sustainably developed.
This project of UNESCO was started in the year 2011 with the primary aim of well-planned and all inclusive development of the fast-growing historical cities around the world, while keeping in mind to preserve the heritage and the culture.

Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi Appointed Deputy Leader of House in Rajya Sabha

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) announced the appointment of Union Minister for Minority Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi as the deputy leader of the House in the Rajya Sabha. Naqvi took over from Piyush Goyal who was elevated as the leader of the house in the Upper House.
A former minister of state for parliamentary affairs minister, Naqvi is well versed in Parliamentary affairs. He is also known for his cordial relations across party lines. At parliamentary affairs ministry, he had a good working relation with various political parties. He knows how to engage with the opposition, especially when there are tricky issues before the house.
Both Goyal and Naqvi have their job cut out for them. They will have to handle the opposition in the Upper House and ensure that the house proceedings are conducted smoothly to allow the passage of bills.

Abdulla Shahid Visits India in His First Foreign Visit as UNGA President

The President-elect of the 76th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) Abdulla Shahid was in India for his first foreign visit in that capacity. He won the elections of UNGA President in June.
Shahid, who is the Foreign Minister of Maldives, held talks with External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla also hosted the Minister.
Minister Shahid was accompanied by Member of Parliament Hussain Shaheem, and Joint Secretary Mariyam Midhfa Naeem from the Maldives Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

BJP Appoints Prem Shukla, Shazia Ilmi as National Spokespersons

The BJP appointed Prem Shukla and Shazia Ilmi as its national spokespersons.
Both the BJP members have been visible in the media in defending and promoting the party's stand on a variety of issues.
The party currently has 25 national spokespersons, including its media department head and chief spokesperson Anil Baluni.

Jul 22, 2021

Gagandeep Singh Wasu is NIA's Special Public Prosecutor for Punjab, Haryana

The Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has issued a gazette notification appointing senior advocate Gagandeep Singh Wasu as the special public prosecutor for representing cases on behalf of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) before special courts for Punjab (Mohali) and Haryana (Panchkula) for three years with effect from July 20.
It said he would also represent the NIA in cases before the special court and High Court established by law in the territory of the Union Territory (UT) of Chandigarh. According to the order, Wasu will now handle all terrorism-related cases, which are being investigated by the NIA in Punjab and Haryana.

Perumkulam is Kerala's First 'Book Village'

Perumkulam, in Thiruvananthapuram District, has been bestowed with the title Kerala's first 'Book Village'. This claim to fame results from years of concerted efforts aimed at encouraging the habit of reading. Perumkulam is a small village in Kulakkada near Kottarakkara in Kollam district. Bapuji Smaraka Grandhasala', a library in the village is at the forefront in this effort of making it the first book village of the State.

NMGC Approves New Projects for Rejuvenation of 6 Rivers in Uttarakhand

The National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) in its 36th Executive Committee has approved new projects for the rejuvenation of six rivers in Uttarakhand. According to the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), there are a total of nine polluted stretches in Uttarakhand and six of them are in the Udham Singh Nagar district on various tributaries or small rivers such as Bhela, Dhela, Kichha, Nandor, Pilankha and Kosi.
The projects shall cover the six polluted river stretches in the Kumaon region. Out of the rest three polluted stretches, the project of Ganga at Jagjeetpur, Haridwar has already been commissioned and on the remaining two, Namami Gange projects are already under execution. It also approved Sewerage (I&D) scheme (Dhela River) Phase-1 of District Udham Singh Nagar, Uttarakhand under Namami Gange Programme at a sanctioned cost of Rs. 199.36 crore.

Jul 21, 2021

Kunariya Village Holds Successful Balika Panchayat

The Kunariya village of Kutch district in Gujarat has come out with a unique idea of holding Balika Panchayat. The first-ever elections of this Balika Panchayat were successfully. Inspired by the TV series, Balika Vadhu, the Kunariya village in Kutch district held elections for the unique Balika Panchayat, which aims to develop leadership qualities in the girls for Future Panchayat polls.
Young females aged between 10 and 21 years contested elections for this unique Panchayat which will take up issues pertaining to adolescent girls and women in the village.
This Panchayat will be run by the girls and for the girls.
The separate sitting arrangements will be given to these girls, and they will be given to use the budget of gender sensitivity.
This unique step by a small village like Kunaria aligns with PM's vision of enhancing young women's participation in the political process.

Karnataka to Provide Reservation for 'Transgender' Community in All Govt. Services

Karnataka has become the first state in the country to provide one per cent reservation for the 'transgender' community in all the government services.
The government submitted a report to the High Court in this regard informing that a notification had already been issued after amending the Karnataka Civil Service (General Recruitment) Rule, 1977.
Whenever a notification is published inviting applications for the government jobs, 'others' column must be added along with male and female columns. The notification also underlines that there should not be any discrimination to the transgender in the process of selection.

Jul 20, 2021

Goa Govt Signs MoU With Mineral Corp

The Goa government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Mineral Exploration Corporation Ltd (MECL), a Union government-owned public sector undertaking, to build an inventory of Goa's minerals -- mainly iron ore.
Goa chief minister Pramod Sawant, who is currently on a two-day visit to New Delhi, oversaw the signing of the agreement along with Union minister of coal and mines Pralhad Joshi.
The MoU will help the government assess its mineral resources and establish its mineral inventory. The MoU is seen as a step towards the government restarting mining through its own state-run corporation after the Supreme Court ruled that if mining is to restart, fresh leases will have to be allotted, which now involves an auction.

Jul 19, 2021

Sonia Gandhi Reconstitutes Congress' Parliamentary Hierarchy

In a major reshuffle in the Congress party's parliamentary hierarchy, Congress president Sonia Gandhi has reconstituted the parliamentary groups in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, bringing in senior faces such as former Union ministers P Chidambaram, Manish Tewari, Ambika Soni and former chief minister Digvijaya Singh.
Gandhi, in a letter said, "As the chairperson of the CPP (Congress Parliamentary Party), I have decided to reconstitute the following groups to facilitate and ensure the effective functioning of our party in both Houses of Parliament. These groups will meet daily during the session and can meet during the inter-session periods as well where Parliament issues are concerned."
The letter makes it official that Bengal MP Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury will continue as the Leader of the Party (LoP) in the Lok Sabha. But inclusion of Manish Tewari and Shashi Tharoor in the group underlines that Gandhi wants more heads in the party's parliamentary decision-making process. Interestingly, both Tewari and Tharoor were perceived as a possible replacement for Chowdhury.

PM Modi Addresses Parliament, Marks the Start of Monsoon Session

The 26-day long monsoon session of Parliament begins with the opposition preparing to corner the government over issues like the Covid-19 pandemic, farmers' protest, inflation and surging fuel prices.
Ahead of the monsoon session, Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government stated that it is ready to face any debate.
The monsoon session - the second in a year where elected representatives meet in the House - will conclude on August 13. "Subject to exigencies of government business, the session is likely to conclude on August 13," a Lok Sabha release said.
This is the first session of Parliament where newly elected representatives from the assembly polls in Assam, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Puducherry will be taking part.

Delhi Police Meeting with Farmers Inconclusive

Ahead of the march planned by farmers near Parliament during the monsoon session, the Delhi police's meeting with the farmer unions remained inconclusive.
A senior police officer said they had requested the farmers to reconsider their protest call citing the DDMA guidelines and the outbreak of COVID-19 third wave.
Samyukt Kisan Morcha leaders have given assurances of "peaceful" protest.

326 Sedition Cases Filed in India from 2014 to 2019; only 6 Convicted: Govt Data

More than 300 cases were registered under the controversial, "colonial" era sedition law across the country from 2014 to 2019.
Of the total 326 cases registered under sedition in the six-year period, only six people were convicted, it further said.
According to the data, Assam reported the highest number of such cases, at 54. Of these, charge sheets were filed in 26 cases, while trials were completed in 25. However, none of these cases resulted in a conviction, the data showed.
Jharkhand and Haryana were next, with 40 and 31 cases, respectively. In Jharkhand, charge sheets were filed in 29 cases and trials completed in 16, while the corresponding figures for Haryana were 19 and six respectively. However, both the states recorded one conviction each.

Common High Court of J-K

A notification has been issued by the Ministry of Law and Justice informing that the 'long-winding and cumbersome' nomenclature 'Common High Court of UT of Jammu and Kashmir and UT of Ladakh' have been changed to 'High Court of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh'. President Ram Nath Kovind has signed the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation (Removal of Difficulties) Order, 2021, to effect the change.
"Present nomenclature is found to be rather long-winding and cumbersome. The said nomenclature may be substituted as High Court of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh, which besides being convenient would also be in consonance with the name pattern followed in other common HCs," the notification read.

Jal Jeevan Mission: 10 Million Homes in Encephalitis Hot Spots Get Tap Water Access

The country's flagship programme to provide rural households with piped drinking water, Jal Jeevan Mission, has expanded rapidly to cover more than 10 million homes in 61 districts notorious for Japanese Encephalitis-Acute Encephalitis Syndrome, a brain fever in children that needs a multi-pronged approach for treatment, according to health experts.
The 61 districts spread over five states are endemic to various forms encephalitis. Years of repeated outbreaks have contributed to poor health of outcomes for children, particularly in states such as Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.

Sidhu named Punjab Congress Chief with 4 Working Presidents

The Congress appointed Navjot Singh Sidhu as the president of its Punjab unit after days of intense tussle in the state where the chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh resisted the elevation.
The party also announced the appointment of four working presidents, Sangat Singh Gilzian, Sukhwinder Singh Danny, Pawan Goel and Kuljit Singh Nagra, which paves the way for a significant revamp of the organisational setup disbanded by the Congress president in January, 2020. The state is scheduled to go to polls early next year.
"Congress president has appointed Navjot Singh Sidhu as the president of Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee with immediate effect," according to a statement by All India Congress Committee. "The party appreciates the contributions of outgoing PCC president Sunil Jakhar," it added.

A.P. Govt Announces 10% Reservation for EWS

The Andhra Pradesh government announced 10% reservation for the Kapu community and other Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) for appointments in the initial posts and services in State government in accordance with the Constitution (103rd Amendment) Act, 2019
As per a G.O. issued by the Chief Secretary on Wednesday, the 10% reservation in employment will benefit Kapus who are neither benefited under BC quota nor under EWS quota and other Open Competition (OC) sections who are deprived of the benefits of reservation thus far due to non-implementation of the EWS quota.

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