General Awareness

NATIONAL AFFAIRS - February 2016

Feb 2016

Jan 03, 2021

Suvendu Adhikari's Brother, 14 Councillors of TMC Join BJP

The New Year started on a disappointing note for West Bengal's ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) as another member of Kanthi's influential Adhikari family left the party and joined the BJP.
Soumendu Adhikari, who was removed from the post of Kanthi Municipality administrator by Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, joined the BJP following in the footsteps of his elder brother Suvendu Adhikari.
Fourteen others, who were councillors of the municipality having a total strength of 21, also joined the BJP along with Soumendu.

India Begins its Two-year Tenure as Non-permanent Member of UNSC

India, which has been at the forefront of the years-long efforts to reform the UN Security Council, began its two-year tenure as a non-permanent member of the powerful organ of the world body on Friday.
India will sit in the 15-nation United Nations Security Council (UNSC) for the 2021-22 term as a non-permanent member—the eighth time that the country has had a seat on the powerful horseshoe table.
On Friday, India, Norway, Kenya, Ireland and Mexico joined non-permanent members Estonia, Niger, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Tunisia and Vietnam and the five permanent members China, France, Russia, UK and the US.

Jan 02, 2021

Harsh Vardhan Nominated to the Board of 'GAVI', The Vaccine Alliance

Union Health Minister Dr. Harsh Vardhan was named as the board member of the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunisation (GAVI). The seat was held by Myint Htwe of Myanmar. Dr. Vardhan will represent the South East Area Regional Office (SEARO)/ Western Pacific Regional Office (WPRO) constituency on the GAVI Board. Dr. Vardhan assumed the charge with effect from January 1, 2021, and serve till December 31, 2023.
The vaccine alliance GAVI is an international organisation that provides a forum for balanced strategic decision-making, innovation and partner collaboration.
It was created to improve access to new and underused vaccines for numerous vaccine-preventable diseases for children who live in the world's poorest countries.
The GAVI board is responsible for the strategic direction and policy-making oversees the operations of the Vaccine Alliance and monitors programme implementation.

India's First Pollinator Park Opens in Uttarakhand

The country's first pollinator park with over 40 species of butterflies, honeybees, birds and insects has been developed over four acres at Haldwani, Uttarakhand.
The objective behind developing the park is to conserve various pollinator species, create awareness among people in general about the importance of conservation of these species and to promote further research on various aspects of pollination, including a threat to habitat and impact of pollution on pollinators.
There are at present 40 species of pollinators at the park, including common jezebel, common emigrant, red pierrot, common sailor, plain tiger, the common leopard, the common moron, common grass yellow, common blue bottle, common four-ring, peacock pansy, the painted lady, pioneer white, yellow-orange tip and lime butterfly.

Jan 01, 2021

Republic Day Paraded Likely to be Shorter

The Republic Day celebrations at Rajpath next month are likely to witness a number of changes including smaller marching contingents, shorter distance for the parade and fewer spectators compared to the previous years in view of the coronavirus pandemic.
Every year, India displays its military might, rich cultural diversity and socio-economic progress during the Republic Day celebrations at the Rajpath, the city's centrepiece boulevard.
As per reports, around 25,000 spectators will be allowed to witness the celebrations as against a normal crowd of around 100,000 people and that children below 15 years of age will not be allowed entry.
Similarly, the size of the marching contingents is likely to be brought down from around 144 in each contingent to around 96.
The parade is likely to be of shorter distance. It will start from Vijay Chowk and end at the National Stadium instead of the Red Fort.

TMC MPs Seek Removal of Bengal Governor

Trimoonal Congress MP Sukhendu Sekhar Ray submitted a memorandum to President Ram Nath Kovind demanding the immediate removal of West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankar.
The other signatories demanding the removal of West Bengal Governor are: Sukhendu Sekhar Ray, MPs Sudip Bandyopadhyay, Derek O'Brien, Kalyan Banerjee, and Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar.
The letter said that Dhankar had been inducing divisive politics, because ruling parties at the center and the state are political opponents.

Dec 31, 2020

Odisha 7th State to Complete Ease of Doing Business Reforms

Odisha has become the 7th state in India to successfully undertake the 'Ease of Doing Business' reform stipulated by the Ministry of Finance. The state is now eligible to mobilise additional financial resources of Rs. 1,429 crores through Open Market Borrowings.
The Department of Expenditure gave permission for the same on December 30, 2020. Odisha has now joined the six other states namely, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, and Telangana, who have completed this reform.

Karnataka Rejects Kasturirangan Panel Report on Western Ghats

Karnataka has decided to reject the K Kasturirangan committee report on protecting Western Ghats and will convey the same to the Union government.
"The report is unscientific and there are plenty of ambiguities which makes it difficult to implement. The report is opposed everywhere right from the gram panchayat level to an assembly segment," Revenue Minister R Ashoka said, adding that if the government goes ahead and implements the report, it will create uncertainties for people in the Western Ghat villages.
The cabinet sub-committee formed to study the K. Kasturirangan report on Western Ghats chaired by Forest Minister Anand Singh held its last meeting and decided to outrightly reject the recommendations. The state will now communicate its stand to the Centre as the National Green Tribunal has set December 31 deadline to implement the report.
The report has identified more than 1,500 villages in Karnataka as ecologically sensitive areas (ESAs), and if the government were to implement the Kasturirangan panel recommendations, it would prohibit developmental activities in those villages.

Dec 30, 2020

Gujarat MP Vasava Resigns from BJP, to Quit LS Too

Gujarat BJP MP and former Union Minister Mansukh Vasava quit the party and said he would also resign from Lok Sabha in the Budget session of Parliament.
In his resignation letter, Vasava did not specify any reason for quitting the party. But as per reports, the six- time MP, who is vocal on tribal issues, had been critical of BJP's policies after he was dropped as Union Minister in 2016.

Harsh Vardhan Opens New IMD Centre in Ladakh

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) will now provide specialised weather forecasts for traffic movement on highways, agriculture, and defence personnel from its Ladakh centre. Located at 3,500 metres above sea level in Leh, it will be the highest Meteorological Centre (MC) in India.
The centre was virtually inaugurated by Minister for Earth Sciences (MoES) Harsh Vardhan. After Itanagar in Arunachal Pradesh, the Leh centre is the second MC located in the Himalayas.
The UT is a geo-strategic location from the security point of view.
Even though there are only two districts, Kargil and Leh, the Union Territory has varying micro-climatic zones ranging from plains, cold desert, hills and extreme dry places. "All these micro-climatic regions require specific and localised weather monitoring and information.

New Phase of Electoral Bonds in January

- With Assam and West Bengal Assembly elections coming up, the government announced a 10-day window from January 1 for the 15th phase of sale and encashment of electoral bonds.
- The bonds will be valid for 15 days from the date of issue and no payment shall be made if political parties deposit them after the validity period.
- Only the State Bank of India is authorised to issue and redeem the electoral bonds through 29 branches. The previous window was opened for 10 days from October 19 during which electoral bonds worth Rs. 282.29 crore were sold, half of them in Mumbai though the polls were held in Bihar and Hyderabad municipal corporation.

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