General Awareness

NATIONAL AFFAIRS - October 2015

Oct 2015

Aug 11, 2020

Jagdalpur Country's First Municipal Corporation to Provide Forestland Right Certificates to Peopl...

Chhattisgarh's Jagdalpur has become the first municipal corporation in the country where people of an urban area have been provided forest land right certificates.
On the occasion of the International Day of World's Indigenous Peoples, Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel commenced the distribution of forestland right certificates by giving away the certificates to four beneficiaries of Jagdalpur via video conferencing.
Jagdalpur is among the few municipal corporations, jurisdiction areas of which includes forestlands. Nearly 1,777 applications have been received for forestland right certificates, which will be resolved as per the rules.
Baghel said the Forest Rights Act has the provision of allotting forestland lease to the eligible forest dwellers in forestland of urban areas. But till date, this provision was not enacted.
Enactment of this provision has started in Chhattisgarh in public interest.
On the occasion, the Chief Minister approved sanction of Rs. 6 crores and allotment of 5 acres of land to the Koya Kutma community on the request of MLA Chitrakote Rajman Benham.
He also approved a community hall for Koya Kutma community and a museum for preserving the historical and archaeological heritages, art and culture of Bastar.

Modi Launches Submarine Optical Fibre Cable to Andaman & Nicobar Islands

Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched a submarine optical fibre cable connecting Andaman & Nicobar Islands with the mainland that would give residents of the islands faster Internet connection.
At the launch held through videoconferencing, he said the connectivity enabled by the cable would bring new opportunities for the islands' residents. The laying of the 2,300-km-long cable before the deadline of the project deserved praise.
The Prime Minister laid the foundation stone for the project in Port Blair on December 30, 2018.
The Indian Ocean and the Andaman & Nicobar Islands had been important centres for trade and strategic cooperation. The Andaman & Nicobar Islands had an important role to play in India's "Act East" policy.

Shah Faesal Quits as Chief of J&K People's Movement

Former bureaucrat-turned-politician Shah Faesal resigned as president of J&K People's Movement, a political party which he launched in 2019 after quitting as an IAS officer.
Businessman and party's VP Peerzada Feroze was nominated as interim president. Faesal's resignation comes at a time when New Delhi, with the appointment of a new Lieutenant Governor in Manoj Sinha, has hinted at resuming J&K's political process.
Incidentally, the Centre hasn't yet accepted Faesal's resignation from the IAS. Faesal himself has remained tightlipped about his future course of action after being released in June this year. But his frequent trips to New Delhi over the past few weeks hints at his efforts to chalk out a strategy for his future endeavours.

Aug 10, 2020

Government Forms Panel Under RoDTEP Scheme for Exporters to be Headed by G. K. Pillai

The Government of India under the Ministry of Finance, Department of Revenue has set up a three-member committee headed by Secretary (retired) G. K. Pillai for determination of ceiling rates under Remission of Duties and Taxes on Exported Products (RoDTEP) scheme.
The two other members are Y. G. Parande, retired Central Board of Indirect Taxes & Customs member and Gautam Ray, retired chief commissioner of custom and central excise.
The Remission of Duties and Taxes on Export Products (RoDTEP) scheme aims to reimburse taxes and duties incurred by exporters such as Duty on power charges, Value Added Tax on fuel in transportation, farm sector, captive power generation, mandi tax, stamp duty and central excise duty which are not compensated under any other scheme.
It is a World Trade Organization (WTO) compliant scheme.

Meghalaya Cabinet Approves Policy on Reservation of Seats for Women in Village Employment Councils

Conrad Kongkal Sangma, Chief Minister of Meghalaya informed the cabinet's approval for the passage of the "Policy on Reservation of seats for Women in Village Employment Councils(VECs)", the policy of reserving 50% seats for women in the village level community institutions.
This policy ensures the empowerment of Women by establishing a forum for women to exercise their leadership and freedom.
The VECs are a political organisation established to implement the works of Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA).
Under MGNREGA, in 2006 VECs were constituted in Every village of the state.
The VECs consist of all male and female heads of every household with a headman as a head of the council.
The available data states that only a few VEC's have female members in chairperson Secretaries positions (112 and 260 respectively).

Rajnath Singh Bans Import of 101 Defence Items,

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said that India is now ready for the big push to the atma nirbhar or self-dependent initiative announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The defence ministry has decided to put 101 items put on embargo to boost indigenisation of defence production.
The embargoed items include high technology weapon systems like artillery guns, assault rifles, corvettes, sonar systems, and transport aircraft.
The list of items was prepared after consultations with the armed forces, state-owned and private companies to assess current and future capabilities of the Indian industry for manufacturing various ammunition & equipment within India.

Aug 09, 2020

Centre to Introduce New Law to Protect Land Rights of J&K Natives

The Centre is considering to bring a law to protect the land rights of the people of Jammu and Kashmir. As per reports, the new law is expected to be enacted in the Parliament.
A bill to this effect will be introduced in Parliament as there is no legislature in the newly created Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir because no election was held since the bifurcation of the erstwhile state.
The fears of Jammu and Kashmir domicile people about the settlement of outsiders in the Union Territory arose after the government abrogated Article 370 on August 5, 2019, which ended the exclusive rights of locals over lands or immovable property and jobs.

Indus Water Treaty: World Bank Expresses Inability to Appoint Neutral Expert or Court of Arbitration

The World Bank has expressed its inability to take an independent decision on the appointment of a neutral expert or a Court of Arbitration for the settlement of a long-pending water dispute between India and Pakistan, saying the two countries will have to bilaterally choose one option.
India and Pakistan signed the treaty in 1960 after nine years of negotiations, with the Washington-based World Bank being a signatory.
The treaty sets out a mechanism for cooperation and information exchange between the two countries regarding their use of the rivers. However, there have been disagreements and differences between India and Pakistan over the treaty.
"Both India and Pakistan should come together as to which option to take forward," Patchamuthu Illangovan, the World Bank's former Country Director of Pakistan, said.
Pakistan had made a request for the appointment of a Court of Arbitration (COA) while India had sought a neutral expert to resolve the dispute on two hydroelectric projects.

Aug 08, 2020

Centre Engages NSCN-IM in the Last Leg of Naga Peace Talks

The Centre resumed negotiations with the NSCN (IM) leadership as part of the last leg of talks for Naga peace, as the efforts are on to resolve the three contentious issues — flag, constitution and territory — and ink a final settlement before Independence Day.
As per reports, the talks between the senior officials and the NSCN-IM leaders, led by its 86-year-old general secretary Thuengaleng Muivah, are being held at an undisclosed location in the national capital, where representatives of Assam, Manipur and Arunachal were also present.
The NSCN-IM has all along been demanding for territorial integration of all Naga inhabited areas of the North East region of the country.
The Naga National Political Groups (NNPG), a conglomerate of seven other organisations, which is also part of the dialogue process, has successfully closed its negotiations with the Centre.

Conclave on Transformational Reforms in Higher Education under NEP

Prime Minister Narendra Modi gave the inaugural address at the Conclave on Transformational Reforms in Higher Education under National Education Policy. The conclave has been organised by Ministry of Education along with the University Grants Commission (UGC). The Prime Minister joined the conclave through video-conferencing.
The Prime Minister urged all to work towards implementation of new national education policy.
Union Human Resource Development Minister Ramesh Pokhriyal and Union Minister of State for Communications Sanjay Dhotre participated in the event along with a number of dignitaries, including, Chairman and Members, Committee for Draft NEP as well as eminent academicians/scientists.
PM Modi in his inaugural address said that today the new education policy is widely discussed across the country. People from different fields, ideologies are giving their views and reviewing the policy. This is a healthy debate that will benefit the country's education system. National Education Policy has been approved after a long brainstorming session with millions of suggestions and after 3-4 years of extensive deliberations.
Talking about the multi-disciplinary programmes and multiple entry and exit options, the PM said that every student should get an opportunity to follow their passion. They can pursue any degree or course and can leave according to their convenience and requirement without any loss of credits.

Aug 07, 2020

Manoj Sinha Takes Oath as New Lieutenant Governor of Jammu and Kashmir

Former Union minister Manoj Sinha was sworn in as the new lieutenant governor of Jammu and Kashmir, the first political leader to take charge of the Union Territory.
Sinha known for his connect with people, particularly in rural areas, was administered the oath of office by Jammu and Kashmir Chief Justice Gita Mittal at a simple function in the Raj Bhavan.
Known as 'vikas purush' (development man), Sinha is a three-time Lok Sabha MP who was minister of state for communication in 2016 when the telecom industry was engaged in the sale of spectrum. He was elected to the lower house for the first time in 1996 and then in 1999 and 2014. However, he lost the election from Ghazipur in 2019.

Punjab CM Launches 'Pride of Punjab' Partnership of State Govt. YuWaah for Youth Development

Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh launched the 'Pride of Punjab' programme through video conferencing.The programme is a partnership programme between the Department of Youth Services and Sports and YuWaah – a joint initiative of UNICEF, other UN agencies, civil society organisations and the private sector.
The launch was attended by Minister for Department of Sports & Youth Services Rana Gurmeet Singh Sodhi, United Nations Children's Fund Special Representative for Young people Mr. Ravi Venkatesan, Mr. Abhishek Gupta, Chief Operating Officer YuWaah(Generation Unlimited India) and others.
The programme is aimed at enabling best opportunities for the Youth of Punjab.
The Programme will help the youth of Punjab to realize their aspirations, to support their community and to support other young people.
The programme will start with a survey using U-Report to hear about the challenges and aspirations of the youth of Punjab.
U-Report is a social messaging tool and data collection system supported by YuWaah and UNICEF to improve citizen engagement.
YuWaah is a multi-stakeholder alliance that aims to facilitate youth to gain relevant skills for productive lives and the future of work.
It is supported by the United Nations Children's Fund.
India was one of the first countries to launch this initiative.
YuWaah is aimed at imparting skills among the youth of India and provide employment to more than 300 million young Indians.
It is targeted at young people aged 10-24 years.

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