General Awareness

NATIONAL AFFAIRS - July 2016

Jul 2016

Oct 05, 2020

Shreyasi Singh Joins BJP

Commonwealth Games gold medallist shooter Shreyasi Singh, whose father Digvijay Singh was a seasoned socialist leader from Bihar, joined the Bharatiya Janata Party and may fight the state assembly elections.
She joined the BJP at the party headquarters in the presence of its general secretaries Bhupender Yadav, who is in charge of its Bihar affairs, and Arun Singh. She later met party president J. P. Nadda.
The 29-year-old Arjuna Awardee, who won a gold medal in the 2018 Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast, is likely to be fielded by the BJP in the assembly polls.
Her father was elected to Lok Sabha several times from Banka and had also served as a member of Rajya Sabha.
His wife Putul Singh also represented Banka as an independent in Lok Sabha following his death in 2010. She later joined the BJP but was expelled from the saffron party during the Lok Sabha polls last year after she filed her nomination as an independent from Banka as the seat was allocated to the JD(U).

Assam BJP Banks on its Schemes to Make Inroads into Minority Areas

The ruling BJP in Assam is targeting to win at least seven Muslim-dominated seats even as it trains its sights on winning 100-plus seats in the assembly polls slated for early next year.
State BJP president Ranjeet Kumar Dass said that we are surveying and strategising to field Muslim candidates in 7-8 constituencies. Accordingly, we will send the proposal to the Central leadership." BJP has only a single Muslim legislator in the present Assam assembly.
The Muslim community has benefited from the housing scheme, social welfare and developmental schemes launched by our government. The government has rolled out the 'Orunodoi' scheme which proposes to alleviate the financial problem of improvised families through substantial income support. This scheme will cover every community."
Meanwhile, the Congress and the All India United Democratic Front, which has substantial support among the Muslims, is inching closer for seat sharing for the 2021 assembly polls.
Muslims comprise 34% of the 3.12 crore population in Assam.

LJP Walks Out of NDA in Bihar, But Ready to Back BJP-led Govt.

After months of bickering with Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's JD-U, NDA ally Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) finally made public its decision to exit the alliance and contest independently in Bihar.
The decision did not come as a surprise to the BJP, which was aware of LJP president Chirag Paswan's plan ahead of its Central Election Committee meeting held later in the day. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah and party president JP Nadda were present.
The BJP may now end up contesting a larger chunk of seats than the JD-U, which also has to accommodate Jitan Ram Manjhi-led HAM(S) from its quota of seats. Amid speculation over a fixed match between the BJP and LJP, the latter gave a hint with its public assurance of support to the BJP in case it forms the government in Bihar under its own CM.
The LJP said that it would contest 143 seats, mostly the ones the JD-U was contesting, and at the same time it would continue to be part of the NDA at the Centre.

India and Bahrain Discus on Bilateral Cooperation in Financial Sector

India's new Ambassador to Bahrain, Piyush Srivastava and Bahrain's Minister of Finance and National Economy Shaikh Salman bin Khalifa Al Khalifa held a meeting in October 2020 and discussed bilateral cooperation between the two nations. They discussed several ways to strengthen India-Bahrain cooperation in the financial and business sectors. Both the countries reviewed the economic partnership and ways of strenghten it in order to provide to provide more promising investment opportunities. They also had a discussion on issues of common interest and the latest global economic developments.
India is a close ally of Bahrain. The share political, socio-economic, military and cultural ties between them. Bahrain along with its GCC partners are amongst the world's most prominent supporters of India's candidacy for a permanent seat on the UN Security Council.
Relations between India and Bahrain goes back to 5000 years ago. Origins of the relation lies to the period of Dilmun Civilization in Bahrain and era of Indus valley civilisation in India. It is believed that Ancient Bahraini traders have carried out trade of Bahraini pearls with Indian spices from India. Further, many of Bahrain's most prominent figures share close ties with India. For instance, poet Ebrahim Al-Arrayedh was grew up in Bombay.
Developments
December 2007- Bahrain India Society was launched in Manama in order to promote ties between the two countries. It was headed by the former Minister of Labour Abdulnabi Al-Shoala. Society is aimed at taking advantage of the development in civil society
2014- Bahrain's ruler Sheikh Hamad Bin Isa Al-Khalifa visited India. The two countries then signed a number of MOUs including a US$450 million of bilateral trade and investment. India provided its support for Bahrain's bid for a non-permanent seat in the Security council for 2026-27.
Recently, in August 2019, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Bahrain. This was the first an Indian Prime Minister visited the country. 3 MoUs on space, culture, the International Solar Alliance and the RuPay card were signed in the meeting. PM of India also inaugurated a US$ 4.2 million project to redevelop the Shreenathji temple complex in Manama. Further, Bahrain issued pardons to 250 Indian citizens imprisoned there.

Oct 04, 2020

NSO Time Use Survey In India

The National Statistical Office operating under Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation conducted the Time Use Survey in India for the first time between January and December, 2019.
The main objective of the survey is to measure participation of women and men in unpaid and paid activities. The survey also provides information on time spent on volunteer work, caregiving activities, unpaid domestic works. Also, it provides information on socializing, learning, leisure activities and self-care activities.
An India- women spends 19.5% of her time in unpaid care giving services or unpaid domestic work. This is over four hours a day on an average. On the other hand, an Indian man spends 25 minutes a day in these activities. Thus, women spends 10 times more on these activities as compared men
Indian women of age 60 years and above see a sharp fall in their domestic work burden. On the other hand, men of this age devote greater time towards domestic work
The survey has found an inverse relationship between amount of time spent by women on household chores and age.
Around 2% of Indians of age six years and above were engaged in employment related activities in 2019
Around 57.3% of males and 18.4% of females were engaged in employment related activities.
The proportion of males engaged in gainful employment related activities is higher in cities as compared to rural areas. In cities, the employment related activities was 59.8% and in rural areas 56.1%.

NITI Aayog Releases Data Governance Quality Index

The NITI Aayog and Development Monitoring and Evaluation Office (DMEO conducted the Data Governance Quality Index Survey. According to the survey, the Department of Fertilizers that works under Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers was ranked third. The department scored 4.11 out of 5 on Data Quality Index. Around 65 departments and ministries were surveyed.
The main aim of the index is to bring in healthy competition among the ministries and departments. It also intends to promote the habit of learning and adopting the best practices from each other. Thus, the index will help improve efficacy in implementing government schemes, policies and programmes. It will in turn drive to achieve target goals on time and with ease.
The themes of the index are as follows
Use of Technology
Data Quality
Data Generation
Data Analysis, use and dissemination
Data Security
Human Resource Capacity and case studies
The index classified the ministries into six categories such as strategic, administrative, infrastructure, economic, social and scientific.

CT Ravi Quits Yediyurappa Cabinet

C.T. Ravi, Karnataka Minister for Kannada, Culture and Tourism, tendered his resignation, days after being appointed BJP national General Secretary.
The four-time MLA from Chikkamagaluru submitted his resignation to Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa.
The 53-year-old's decision to quit the Cabinet was not unexpected.
Ravi's resignation also comes in the midst of reports that the Chief Minister may go in for a Cabinet reshuffle and expansion soon.

As LJP Remains Undecided, JD(U), BJP Seal 50:50 Seat-sharing Formula

Union Home Minister Amit Shah and BJP national president JP Nadda chaired a meeting over Bihar assembly election at the latter's residence in New Delhi.
Also present at the meeting were Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Modi, MoS MHA Nityanand Rai and BJP's in-charge for Bihar Bhupender Yadav.
BJP and Nitish Kumar's JD(U) have not yet announced the seat-sharing agreement for the Bihar Assembly elections. However, as per reports, they have reached a seat-sharing agreement in principle with an almost even split - days before the October-November state election. An announcement on the same is expected soon, said sources.
According to sources, the JD(U) will contest on 124 seats in the House of 243 whereas BJP will fight on 119 seats. The Hindustani Awam Morcha (HAM) of former Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi will be allocated the remaining seats.
According to sources, the JD(U) has asked BJP to take a call on Ram Vilas Paswan's Lok Janshakti Party. Paswan is currently admitted to a Delhi hospital where he underwent heart surgery.

Tejashwi Yadav to Lead Alliance; RJD to Contest on 144 Seats, Congress Gets 70

Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tejashwi Yadav has been backed as the face of the multi-party coalition and unanimously chosen as the Chief Ministerial candidate of the opposition alliance in Bihar Assembly Election 2020, the Congress announced.
According to the seat-sharing agreement that has been agreed upon by the alliance partners ahead of the three-phase election starting on October 28, the RJD will contest on 144 seats, while the Congress will contest from 70 seats. Notably, the 70 seats which Congress have been given is nearly twice as many as it had contested in the 2015 assembly polls in alliance with the RJD and Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's JD(U).
Announcing the seat-sharing formula in presence of leaders of Congress, CPI(ML), CPI and CPI(M), Tejashwi said his party will accommodate old alliance partner Vikashheel Insaan Party (VIP) and JMM its ally in adjoining Jharkhand from its quota of 144 seats in the 243-strong assembly.

Oct 03, 2020

AYUISH Grid to Integrate with National Digital Mission

The AYUSH Grid emerging as the IT backbone of AYUSH Sector is to be integrated with National Digital Health Mission. This will help the public in availing varied options for their health needs. Also, it will accelerate the mainstreaming of AYUSH disciplines of health care.
The AYUSH Grid project was initiated by the Ministry of AYUSH in 2018 to create an IT backbone for AYUSH. The project aims to bring all facilities of AYUSH such as Ayurveda, Naturopathy, Yoga, Sidha, Unani and Honeopathy onboard. The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology and Ministry of AYUSH have collaborated to digitalise the AYUSH sector under the project.
The AYUSH Health Management Information System (AHMIS) is the most significant part of AYUSH Grid. It aims to improve patient care, improve work efficiency, improve research, effective documentation, and eliminate chances of errors in AYUSH hospitals and to collect data on National AYUSH morbidities.
The AHMIS captures data in real time. It integrates all the AYUSH systems. Also, it has inbuilt standards such as National AYUSH Morbidity Code. It is highly secured and integrates all AYUSH systems. It is based on THERAN. THERAN is THE Research Application Nexus.
The AHMIS provides effective clinical documentation and data management including retrieval of medical data. It supports full range of Data Management functions.
It was introduced by PM Modi while he addressed at the celebrations of the 74th independence day. It was a part of three digital announcements of the PM. The other two are optical fibre connectivity and cyber security policy.
The Mission was launched with four key features namely Digi Doctor, Health ID, Personal health records and health facility registry. The mission is to include telemedicine services and e-pharmacy at later stages.
The mission is implemented by National Health Authority which is also implementing Ayushman Bharat.

Data Governance Quality Index: Department of Fertilizers Ranked 2nd amongst the 16 Economic Minis...

A Survey was conducted by the Development Monitoring and Evaluation Office (DMEO), NITI Ayog in order to assess performance of different Ministries or Departments' on the implementation of Central Sector Schemes (CS) and Centrally Sponsored Schemes (CSS).
Department of Fertilizers under the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers has been ranked 2nd amongst the 16 Economic Ministries or Departments and
It has also been ranked 3rd out of the 65 Ministries or Departments.
The total score of the department was 4.11 on a scale of 5 in the Data Governance Quality Index (DGQI),
The DMEO, Niti Aayog has undertaken DGQI exercise "Self-assessment based review of data preparedness levels" to produce a DGQI score card.
Survey was initiated with an objective to assess data preparedness of Ministries or Departments on a standardised framework.
The survey was also meant to drive healthy competition among them and promote a cooperative peer learning from best practices.
For the survey, an online questionnaire was prepared under six major themes of DGQI:
1. Data Generation;
2. Data Quality;
3. Use of Technology;
4. Data Analysis, Use and Dissemination;
5. Data Security and
6. HR Capacity and Case Studies.
Development Monitoring And Evaluation Office (DMEO) office was constituted in September 2015 by merging the Program Evaluation Office (PEO) and the Independent Evaluation Office (IEO). It is an office under NITI Aayog. DMEO's vision is to improve the sustainable outcomes and impacts of the government. It is aimed at enabling the high-quality monitoring and evaluation of government programs in order to improve effectiveness, efficiency, sustainability and equity of the service delivery, outcomes and impacts.

PM Modi Inaugurates World's Longest High-altitude Tunnel

Atal Tunnel which reduces the travel time between Manali to Leh by four to five hours, was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The world's longest highway tunnel by altitude connects Manali to Lahaul-Spiti valley throughout the year. The valley was earlier cut off for about six months every year due to heavy snowfall. The decision to construct the tunnel was taken by Atal Bihari Vajpayee-led government back in June of 2000. It was previously referred to as Rohtang Tunnel. The Narendra Modi-led government later decided to name it Atal Tunnel in memory of the former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
The 9.02-kilometre long tunnel is built with ultra-modern specifications in the Pir Panjal Range of Himalayas at an altitude of 3,000 metres from the Mean Sea Level (MSL).
The tunnel, built at a cost of about Rs. 3,300 crore, is extremely significant from the point of view of the country's defence. The most difficult stretch was the 587-metre Seri Nalah Fault Zone. The breakthrough from both ends was achieved on October 15, 2017.

Oct 02, 2020

Congress Not a Reliable Ally, No Tie-up in Future: H. D. Kumaraswamy

A day after Congress leaders including leader of opposition in the Assembly, Siddaramiah said that there would be no tie-up with the regional Janata Dal (Secular) to take on the ruling BJP in Karnataka, former Chief Minister H. D. Kumaraswamy hit out at the national party saying that it was not a reliable ally and worthy of a tie-up.
The Congress leaders had ruled out any kind of alliance with JDS for the upcoming bypolls to two assembly constituencies Sira and RR Nagar as well as for four graduates and teachers constituencies for the upper house Vidhana Parishat. While the assembly polls are scheduled for November 3, the election for the four seats in Vidhana Parishat will be held on October 28.

NCRB Releases Crimes in India Rerport

The National Crime Record Bureau(NCRB) released a report titled "Crime in India", 2019. According to the report, crimes against women increased by 7.3% between 2018 and 2019.
Uttar Pradesh reported highest number of cases in both the categories, crimes against women and crimes against scheduled castes
Assam reported the highest rate of crimes against women
Rajasthan had the highest rate of crimes against scheduled castes
The crimes registered against women were as follows
9% of the cases were registered under "Cruelty by husband or his relatives".
8% were registered by "assault on women with intent to outrage her modesty"
9% were kidnapping and abduction cases
9% were rape crimes.
The crime rate against women according to the report increased in 2019 as compared to 2018. In 2018, the crime rate was 58.8 and it increased to 62.4 in 2019. Crime rate is the number of crimes registered per lakh women population.
Uttar Pradesh accounted to highest number of crimes against women. Around 14.7% of crimes against women were registered in the state. Uttar Pradesh was followed by Rajasthan and Maharashtra.

India-Myanmar Review Trade and Border Cooperation

India and Myanmar carried out a comprehensive review of their multi-faceted relationship that is underpinned by deepening cooperation in areas of trade and investment, power, energy and healthcare.
At a virtual meeting of India-Myanmar foreign office consultations, the two sides also held extensive discussions on ways to mitigate the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.
The Indian delegation at the meeting was led by Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla while the Myanmarese team was headed by Permanent Secretary U Soe Han.
Myanmar is one of India's strategic neighbours and shares a 1,640 km long border with a number of northeastern states including militancy-hit Nagaland and Manipur.
In the talks, the MEA said the foreign secretary reiterated the priority India attaches to its partnership with Myanmar in accordance with its ''Neighborhood First'' and ''Act East'' policies.
India remained committed to enhancing its multifaceted cooperation with Myanmar and also to explore new avenues of cooperation.

Meghalaya Democratic Alliance Reshuffle: Two Ministers Dropped, Portfolios Redistributed

Conrad K. Sangma-led Meghalaya Democratic Alliance (MDA) reshuffled the council of ministers dropping two ministers and inducting two. Governor Satya Pal Malik administered the oath of secrecy to legislator Renikton L. Tongkhar from the Hill State People's Democratic Party (HSPDP) and mla Dasakhiat Lamare of the National People's Party (NPP).
Public Health and Engineering Minister Samlin Malniang of HSPDP and Fisheries Minister Comingone Ymbon of NPP were dropped.
The Chief Minister said that cabinet rejig was taken up in consultation with the MLAs. MDA is ruling the state for two and half years. " There was an agreement that cabinet reshuffle will taken in two and half years."
There was also redistribution of portfolios. James Sangma who is elder brother of Conrad was removed from Food, Civil Supplies & Consumer Affairs portfolio but was given the Forests and Environment Department. He will continue holding the Information & Public Relations, Law, Power and Taxation Departments.

Oct 01, 2020

BJP to Contest Bihar Election with JD(U), LJP

Amid pressure exerted by alliance partners ahead of the Bihar polls, the BJP announced that it would go to the electoral battle in the state with its allies — the JD(U) and LJP.
The party deputed senior functionaries Bhupender Yadav and Devendra Fadnavis to work out the seat-sharing details with Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who is also president of the JD(U).
The two leaders will report back to the BJP leadership. Yadav said that the NDA would contest the elections under the leadership of Nitish Kumar.
It has been learnt that the JD(U) will contest more number of Assembly seats than the BJP so that the party can accommodate the outfit led by former state Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi.

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