General Awareness

NATIONAL AFFAIRS - September 2015

Sep 2015

Sep 28, 2018

Nod to New Electric Vehicle Manufacturing Policy

In a decision aimed to rid Uttarakhand of vehicular pollution, the Cabinet gave its approval to the electric vehicle manufacturing and battery charging infrastructure promotion policy. Under the plan, a number of exemptions and incentives would be provided to entrepreneurs to set up electric manufacturing units.

Under the policy, term loans ranging from Rs. 10 crore to Rs. 50 crore each would be provided to Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) interested in manufacturing electric vehicles.

Panel to Recommend Names for Lokpal

The government constituted an eight-member search committee to recommend names for chairperson and members of the anti-corruption ombudsman, Lokpal.

The committee would be headed by former Supreme Court judge, Ranjana Prakash Desai.

As per the guidelines, the search committee would recommend the names to a selection committee headed by the Prime Minister and having as its members the Lok Sabha speaker, leader of the opposition in the lower house, the chief justice of India or a judge of the apex court nominated by him, and an eminent jurist who could be nominated by the president or any other member.

Friendship Agreement with Pune

The City of Austin, Texas, became the latest city to sign a friendship agreement with Pune.

This tie up will help us to look beyond technology and focus on universities, student exchange as well as stronger cultural exchange. Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) is also looking at infrastructure development exchange with Austin.

Sohrai Paintings to Adore Trains

After trains in Bihar were painted in Madhubani art, now Sohrai paintings from Jharkhand is all set to adore trains running from Jharkhand. The development came after railway board chairman Ashwani Lohani accepted a proposal by Jamshedpur MP Bidyut Baran Mahato to decorate trains with the local art.

Union urban development (UDD) ministry also appreciated Jharkhand's initiative to decorate the walls of houses being built under Pradhan Mantri Shahri Awas Yojna (PMSAY) with Sohrai paintings.

BSF Gets New Chief

Senior IPS officers Rajni Kant Misra and S. S. Deswal have been appointed Director General of the Border Security Force (BSF) and the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) respectively.

He has been tasked to head the BSF for a period up to his superannuation on August 31, 2019, in place of K. K. Sharma, who retires this month end.

Telecom Policy Cleared

The government today approved the new telecom policy and named it "National Digital Communications Policy (NDCP) 2018", which is aimed at ensuring availability of at least 50 mbps broadband speed to every citizen of the country and at the same time attract $100-billion investment, which will create 40 lakh jobs in the sector by 2022.

Sep 27, 2018

Medical Council of India Dissolved

The government dissolved the Medical Council of India (MCI), the apex body that regulated medical education in the country, and replaced it with a seven-member Board of Governors (BoG) by bringing an ordinance.

The BoG has been appointed initially for a period of one year, and will be the sole decision-making body till the National Medical Commission (NMC) Bill, 2017 -- meant to replace the MCI -- is cleared in Parliament.

Patna Airport to Get a Facelift

Patna airport is set to be upgraded as the Cabinet approved the construction of a new domestic terminal building in Bihar's capital, the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) also approved the construction of other allied structures at the Patna Airport.

The Cabinet also approved disinvestment for completion of incomplete projects. CCEA approves transfer (disinvestment) of incomplete projects of Hotel Gulmarg Ashok, Gulmarg and Hotel Patliputra Ashok, Patna to the State Governments of Jammu & Kashmir and Bihar respectively

Umbrella Scheme of Border Infrastructure and Management

The Centre has approved Rs. 8,606 crore for 60 projects being implemented under the umbrella scheme of Border Infrastructure and Management (BIM) to meet special development needs of people living in those areas.

The projects are being implemented in 17 states having the international borders with Pakistan, China, Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar and Bangladesh.

Air-to-air Missile Astra

A pre-induction trial of India's indigenously developed beyond visual range air-to-air missile (BVRAAM) 'Astra' was successfully conducted over Bay of Bengal near Chandipur in Odisha.

So far Astra has undergone more than 20 developmental trials.

SC Verdict on Aadhaar Welcomed

Retired Justice K. S. Puttaswamy, one of the first to question the legality of Aadhaar, welcomed the landmark Supreme Court judgement upholding its validity but restricting it to disbursement of social benefits.

A five-judge bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra held that Aadhaar would be voluntary and not mandatory with an option to exit.

List of services where Aadhaar will be required:

Aadhaar will be mandatory for PAN linking, required for filing ITRs and will be required for availing government welfare services like PDS.

List of services where Aadhaar will be not required:

Not compulsory for Central Board of Secondary Examination, National Eligibility cum Entrance Test for medical entrance and the University Grants Commission, for school admissions, for opening a bank account. No mobile company can demand Aadhaar details. Private companies can't seek Aadhaar data. It is not mandatory for mobile phone connections or new SIM cards and for financial services like PPF, NSC.

Sep 26, 2018

First World-class Educational Institute to be Built in Alwar

As per Union Minister for Minority Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, the foundation stone of the first world-class educational institute for poor, backward and minorities will be laid at Alwar in Rajasthan in October. He also said that the educational institution will start functioning in 2020.

Waiting Period for Bail Reduced

The Allahabad High Court has amended a three decade old rule which provided that bail could not be granted on an application unless 10 days had expired as prior notice of application is given to government advocate.

The High Court issued a notification earlier this month amending the rule, thereby allowing the grant of bail in two days after notice of bail application is given to the government advocate.

After the notification, no arrested person applying for bail in UP will have to compulsorily suffer 10 days of imprisonment.

Committee to Look into Jail Reforms Constituted

The Supreme Court constituted a three-member committee, headed by its former judge Justice Amitava Roy, to look into jail reforms across the country and suggest measures to deal with them.

The panel will look into various matters including over-crowding in prisons and the issues concerning women prisoners.

Best States to Live

According to the "Ease of Living Index" released by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA), Andhra Pradesh topped the chart in terms of ease of living followed by Odisha and Madhya Pradesh.

The three states were awarded as the best performing states at the National Dissemination Workshop on Ease of Living Index 2018.

Ankit Agarwal Gets UN Invite

Ankit Agarwalof Kanpur is among the 17 young leaders from across the globe selected by the United Nations for its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) initiative-2018.

He and the others have been invited for the ongoing Social Good Summit that began in New York.

Agarwal, the co-founder of HelpUsGreen, earned the UN invite for his work in using floral waste to manufacture incense sticks and generating employment for marginalised women. His venture is a social enterprise that has pioneered India's flower-recycling technology to prevent the river Ganges from becoming a sewer.

Sep 25, 2018

Sikkim's First Airport at Pakyong

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated Sikkim's first airport at Pakyong and said that it is the development of the 100th airport.

Pakyong Airport is also one of the five highest airports in India.

Pakyong project is one of the tallest reinforced soil structures in the world.

Abhilash Tomy Rescued

Injured Commander and Golden Globe Race (GGR) skipper Abhilash Tomy has been rescued by a French vessel. Tomy is in a conscious state and has been shifted to the French Fishing Vessel Osiris.

Golden Globe Race is a sailing race around the world that started on July 1 from France.

The naval officer is the only Indian to have circumnavigated the globe non-stop on the legendary sail Yacht INSV Mhadei. He was awarded Kirti Chakra in 2013 by the then President of India, Pranab Mukherjee. He is also a recipient of the Tenzing Norgay National Adventure Award.

Instagram Co-founders Resign

Co-founders of Facebook Inc`s Instagram, Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger, have resigned as chief executive officer and chief technical officer, respectively.

Systrom and Krieger did not specify a reason for their departure.

Zika Virus in Rajasthan

After the first case of zika virus infection was confirmed in Jaipur and a spurt in seasonal diseases, health minister Kali Charan Saraf called a meeting to review the status of seasonal diseases.

He directed the department officials to keep a watch on seasonal diseases and cancelled leaves of all medical personnel across the state.

There have been 1,539 cases of swine flu and 152 deaths between January 1 and September 23. Also, 2406 cases of dengue cases, 3056 cases of malaria, 147 cases of chikungunya and 832 cases of scrub typhus have been confirmed.

Pension Scheme for Elderly Spinsters

The Madhya Pradesh cabinet approved a pension scheme for elderly women who are unmarried in order to provide them with financial assistance.

The Shivraj Singh Chauhan government cleared the way for an amount of Rs. 300 to be given as pension to unmarried women between the ages of 50 and 79 while those above 80 years of age would be entitled to get Rs. 500 as pension.

Apart from the pension scheme called 'Mukhya Mantri Avivahit Yojna', a number of other proposals were cleared by the state cabinet as well.

Sep 24, 2018

Interceptor Missile Tested Successfully

India successfully conducted an interceptor missile test off the Odisha coast, achieving a major milestone in developing a two-layer Ballistic Missile Defence system.

This Prithvi Defence Vehicle (PDV) mission is for engaging the targets in the exo-atmosphere region at an altitude above 50 km of the earth's atmosphere.

Both the PDV interceptor and the target missile were successfully engaged.

Ayushman Bharat Scheme Launched

Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched his government's flagship Ayushman Bharat-Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojna (AB-PMJAY) billed as the world's largest public health insurance scheme in Ranchi.

Modi who also launched 10 wellness centres in Jharkhand and laid the foundation stones of medical colleges in Chaibasa and Koderma.

India and Egypt Defence Cooperation

As per reports, India and Egypt have decided to ramp up their defence and security ties which will include boosting counter-terror cooperation and carrying out joint exercises by their militaries.

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