General Awareness

NATIONAL AFFAIRS - September 2015

Sep 2015

Jul 21, 2017

SIT to Close 1984 Riots Case

The Special Investigation Team (SIT) has decided to close a 1984 anti-Sikh riots case in which two men were killed by a mob in central Delhi as no evidence regarding any accused could be collected during its reinvestigation.
The police told Metropolitan Magistrate Abhilash Malhotra that it has been decided to close the case, which was re- opened following the decision of the SIT.

Pact to Revive River Saraswati

The Centre and the Government of Haryana inked a pact to revive the long lost River Saraswati and provide water to the drought-prone areas of India.
The Haryana Government and ONGC have signed a Memorandum of Agreement for drilling of 10 water wells along the Petro Channel of Saraswati River up to a depth of 400-500 meters, which will aim at providing water in drought-prone areas.

India's Next President

National Democratic Alliance's candidate Ram Nath Kovind has been elected the 14th President of India after he defeated combined opposition candidate Meira Kumar in a straight fight by a huge margin.
Ran Nath Kovind defeated the former Lok Sabha Speaker after garnering 65.65 per cent of the votes in the electoral college.
He was Governor of Bihar from 2015 to 2017 and a Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha from 1994 to 2006.

Jul 20, 2017

Government Considering Two Time Zones

The government said it is pro-actively considering the matter of having two time zones in the country. The issue was raised in the Lok Sabha by Biju Janata Dal (BJD) member B Mahtab, who highlighted that there was a gap of nearly two hours in sunrise timings between the eastern and western parts of the country. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ananth Kumar said the government has taken Mahtab’s suggestion very “seriously”.

TR Zeliang Appointed as Chief Minister of Nagaland

Nagaland Governor PB Acharya appointed Nagaland People’s Front (NPF) legislator TR Zeliang as the new Chief Minister after dismissing Shurhozelie Liezietsu, who failed to attend the Assembly session convened today to test majority of the Cabinet headed by him. The session was convened by the Speaker at the Governor’s direction in order to give Liezietsu a chance to take a floor test in the wake of rebellion against him by Zeliang, who claimed support of 44 MLAs, including 37 from ruling NPF and seven Independents. The Governor on receipt of the Speaker’s report appointed Zeliang as the CM and he took oath of office and secrecy at a function held at Durbar hall, Raj Bhavan, Kohima. Zeliang is the 19th Chief Minister of the North eastern state.

Man who `saved' Bapu from bid on life in 1944 dies at 98

Veteran freedom fighter Bhilare Guruji, who is credited in certain accounts with having saved Mahatma Gandhi from an attempt on his life by Nathuram Godse in Panchgani in 1944, passed away in Bhilar near the hill station on Wednesday . He was 98.Born on November 26, 1919, Bhilare was active in the “parallel government“ movement in Satara district run by revolutionary Nana Patil and others. After Independence, Bhilare represented Jawali assembly constituency in the state legislature for 18 years.

Right to Privacy is NOT Absolute

A rare nine-judge bench of the Supreme Court said the right to privacy is not absolute, making its first observations on Wednesday as it began a hearing on a matter that could have a sweeping impact on the Aadhaar scheme and the law criminalising homosexuality. Led by the Chief Justice of India, JS Khehar, the Constitution bench said that if the right to privacy is defined as a fundamental right, the top court’s 2013 ruling upholding Section 377 — which criminalises homosexuality — “falls”.

The bench began the process to decide if privacy can be regarded as a fundamental right guaranteed to all Indians, a question that arose from the legal challenge to the Aadhaar programme that activists say impinges on the right to privacy. If privacy is about right to make a choice, then choice in what areas? Family, sexual orientation, gender identity, surveillance, what all?

The judges will revisit previous rulings by the Supreme Court — one by an eight-judge bench in 1954 and the other by a six-judge bench in 1962 — to study if they were the correct interpretations of constitutional provisions. Both the rulings rejected the idea that privacy was a fundamental right.

Privacy was one of the grounds on which the Delhi High Court struck down Section 377 in 2012, but its ruling was overturned by the top court a year later.

Jul 19, 2017

Karnataka Government Forms Panel on Separate Flag for State

The Karnataka government has initiated a move for separate flag for the state with Chief Minister Siddaramaiah stoutly defending this step after it came under attack from rival parties. A nine-member committee has been formed by the Congress government and tasked with submitting a report on designing a separate flag for the state and provide a legal standing for it. If the flag comes into being, Karnataka will be the second state to have its official flag after J&K, which enjoys a special status under Article 370 of the Constitution. There was no legal bar on a state having a separate flag, but it represents people and not the government. A separate flag that Karnataka already has represents “people and not the government” and was not used at ceremonies like Republic Day or Independence Day but on occasions like the state’s foundation day.

Sarai Kale Khan Set to be the Largest Transport Hub in Delhi

Three high-speed trains connecting Delhi airport, Gurgaon, Ghaziabad, Meerut, Panipat and Alwar; a metro station providing a link to all other lines; a railway station and an interstate bus terminus — Sarai Kale Khan is going to be the biggest transport hub of Delhi.The existing ISBT will be revamped with a budget of ₹550 crore. The underground Metro station is coming up on the Mukundpur-Shiv Vihar Metro line — the longest of the network. Both of these would be seamlessly connected with the planned Rapid Rail Transit System corridors between Delhi and Panipat, Alwar and Meerut. The Delhi-Meerut corridor is expected to be completed by 2024.The Delhi government is also decongesting the area and working on making it more accessible. A loop has been constructed at Barapullah exclusively for interstate buses, so that they don’t get stuck in jam. The new structure that will come up will be directly connected with the loop. To reduce congestion on the Ring Road, another flyover will be constructed.

Mayawati Quits Rajya Sabha

Upset over not being allowed to to speak on Anti-Dalit violence, at Shabbirpur village in Uttar Pradesh, BSP Supremo Mayawati tendered her resignation from the Rajya Sabha. Taking on the BJP over alleged ‘atrocities on Dalits’ she said she had no “right” to continue in the House where she was not allowed to speak in favour of those she represented. Accusing BJP of “discrimination against Dalits”, she termed as “dramatics”, the saffron party’s decision to nominate Ramnath Kovind (a dalit) for the President’s post. The BJP meanwhile, dismissed her action as “pure politics” saying her Rajya Sabha term was in any case going to expire in April. The decision on accepting Mayawati’s resignation lies with the Chairman.

Nine-Judge Bench to rule if Privacy is Fundamental Right

The Supreme Court has referred to a nine-judge constitution bench a case to determine if the right to privacy is a fundamental right. The question pertains to pleas that challenge Aadhaar for violating privacy. The question, which forms the basis of petitions that challenge Aadhaar for violating privacy, will be answered by a nine-judge constitution bench. The Supreme Court said the constitution bench would revisit its rulings that said the right to privacy was not a fundamental right and then hear petitions against the 12-digit biometric identity number. The determination of this question would essentially entail whether the decision recorded by an eight-judge bench in 1954 and also by a six-judge bench in 1962 that there is no such fundamental right is the correct expression of constitutional provisions. It decided to refer the matter to a larger bench after the Centre cited the two judgments to argue that the right to privacy was not a fundamental right.

Change in property act to save govt money

The housing and urban affairs ministry introduced amendments to the Requisitioning and Acquisition of Immovable Property (RAIP) Act in the Lok Sabha, which will help the government save crores of rupees in compensation linked to disputes involving land acquired for defence purposes in the past.

The amendment proposes that the government will pay the compensation as per the old rate as applicable when land was originally acquired along with interest, irrespective of any court order and that too the law will have retrospective effect from March 14, 1952. The original law was enacted to empower the Central government to acquire land. The amendments have been triggered by a Supreme Court judgment of 2014, which quashed the acquisition of 296 acre land in Jodhpur for defence purposes. It was acquired from Maharaja Hari Singh Charitable Trust in 1993. The defence ministry had earlier told the government that in this case itself, the amendment may help the government save Rs 8,000 crore in compensation.

RSS Meet Begins

RSS meeting began this morning at Ved Mandir Complex on the outskirts of Jammu city, chaired by RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat , along with sarkaryavah (General Secretary) Suresh Bhaiyyaji Joshi. RSS on the day one of its three-day highest apex body meeting, endorsed economic and political decisions taken by the Narendra Modi government. On the first day of Akhil Bhartiya Prant Parcharak meeting, the RSS leadership deliberated on prevailing political situation in the country. RSS exuded confidence that the new tax regime (GST) would strengthen the fiscal integrity of the nation. The meeting reviewed decisions taken in the Akhil Bhartiya Pratinidhi Sabha which was held in March this year at Coimbatore. As many as 195 pracharaks of the RSS and its affiliated organisations have been invited to the meeting. The meeting also alleged atrocities on Sangh workers in West Bengal and Kerala. The meeting also discussed economic and military threats from China.

Jul 18, 2017

SC Refers Plea against Article 35A to Larger Bench

The Supreme Court referred to a larger bench a petition challenging Article 35A of the Constitution that provides special rights and privileges to permanent residents of Jammu and Kashmir and debars rest of Indians from acquiring immovable property, obtaining state government jobs and settling in the state. A bench of CJI JS Khehar and Justice DY Chandrachud Venugopal sent it to a three-judge bench after Attorney General KK Venugopal said it was a very sensitive matter which would require a larger debate. Delhi-based NGO has challenged the constitutional validity of Article 35A on the ground that the President could not have amended the Constitution by an order in 1954 and it was to be a temporary provision. The state government has filed an affidavit defending Article 35 A terming it a permanent feature of the Indian Constitution.

Property Maps just a Click away

Property maps will be available at the click of a mouse for people in the state by December 31, following a completion of the special project given to the Punjab Remote Sensing Centre of Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana. The digitisation will involve superimposition of the master file of land records following a verification and will serve as an authentic record for all purposes in court. In a small benefit, those seeking permission to get their property from agricultural to industrial will now be able to save energies on account of getting genuine maps.

Cabinet’s Nod to set up Rights Commission

The cabinet gave nod for setting up a full-fledge State Human Rights Commission, work of which was being looked after by the Himachal Pradesh Lokayukta till now and paved way for creation of about 2,500 posts in the Health and Animal Husbandry Departments. The Cabinet at its meeting chaired by CM Virbhadra Sing, gave nod for setting up of full-fledged State Human Rights Commission, having a chairman and a Member. The Cabinet also gave approval for 29 posts of various categories in the State Human Rights Commissions. The Supreme Court had directed all the state governments to set up human rights commission.

Naidu Announced as the Party-led NDA’s Choice for Vice-Presidential Election

Amit Shah announced the name of Union Minister Muppavarapu Venkaiah Naidu as the party-led NDA’s choice for the August 5 vice-presidential election. The BJP’s top decision making body- parliamentary board- took this call at a meeting attended by PM Narendra Modi and a day before the last date of filing the nomination papers. Naidu tendered his resignation from both portfolios he was holding in the Modi Cabinet- Information and Broadcasting and Housing and Urban Affairs.

Multi-Member Committee Constituted for Child Abduction Bill

The Union Minister of Women and Child Development has constituted a multi-member committee , which is soliciting public opinion on civil aspects of the International Child Abduction Bill. The move gives the common man the power to express public opinion on issues involving international child abduction. The committee, headed by Justice Rajesh Bindal of the Punjab and Haryana High court, has been constituted to study and analyse the draft bill. It has already formed a concept note, which along with the copy of Hague Convention and draft bills prepared by the ministry and the Law Commission, has been uploaded on various official websites. The development is significant as protecting the rights of parents and children has over the years become a critical issue of national and international importance due to rise in trans-national marriages.

President poll sees over 99% voting

Over 99% of elected representatives -MPs and MLAs -across the country cast their votes on Monday to elect the next President in a direct contest between NDA candidate Ram Nath Kovind and the opposition's Meira Kumar. Counting of votes will take place on Thursday .Voting was held in 32 polling stations, including one in Parliament House (Room No.62) and one each in every state assembly . Ballot boxes from the states will be brought to Delhi for counting.

Arunachal Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Assam, Gujarat, Bihar, Haryana, Himachal, Jharkhand, Nagaland, Uttarakhand and Puducherry recorded 100% voting while in Parliament House, the voting percentage was 99%

Australia’s Foreign Affairs Minister arrives in the Capital

India and Australia will work together towards strengthening the bilateral relationship when Australia’s Foreign Minister Julie Bishop arrives in the capital for a two-day visit. Bishop will meet her counterpart Sushma Swaraj and also call on PM Narendra Modi. With Swaraj, the Australian foreign minister will hold the Foreign Minister’s Framework Dialogue. Her meeting will Modi will primarily focus on taking many of the bilateral issues, discussed by Australian PM Malcolm Turnbull on his visit to India, earlier this year. Bishop will also deliver the second Indo-Pacific Oration, setting out how India and Australia can work together to build peace, prosperity, and a rules based order in the Indo-Pacific.

Jul 17, 2017

Odisha starts air-dropping of food packets in flood-hit Rayagada district

Odisha government started air-dropping food packets in flood-hit even as operations to rescue people stranded in marooned pockets in Odisha’s Rayagada district on Monday.
“We have already dropped 3,000 food packets by helicopter in flooded areas. Free kitchens have been set up in worst-hit Kalyansinghpur and Rayagada blocks,” said Bishnupada Sethi, State Special Relief Commissioner. Mr. Sethi said Odisha Disaster Rapid Action Force, National Disaster Response Force and State Fire Service personnel were deployed at vulnerable points to shift people to safer places.
Chief Minister, Naveen Patnaik, however, told reporters that the flood situation in Rayagada and Kalahandi districts, was improving, while administration made provision for setting up free kitchens for flood-affected people. Heavy rainfall was recorded across Kalahandi district during past 24 hours.

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