General Awareness

NATIONAL AFFAIRS - November 2016

Nov 2016

Dec 27, 2022

Jai Ram Thakur Recognised as Leader of Opposition in Himachal Assembly

Former Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur, named leader of the BJP legislative party in Himachal Pradesh, was recognised as the Leader of Opposition by Protem Speaker Chander Kumar.
The Congress wrested Himachal Pradesh from the BJP in the November state polls winning 40 seats in the 68-member assembly. The saffron party won 25 seats while three went to Independents.

Former Central Railway GM Lahoti Appointed Railway Board CEO and Chairman

Anil Kumar Lahoti was appointed as the Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of the Railway Board. The former General Manager of Central Railway was appointed as Member (Infrastructure) of the board a week ago, and will be taking over the chairmanship from Vinay Kumar Tripathi on January 1.
Lahoti belongs to the 1984 batch of Indian Railway Service of Engineers (IRSE), and his appointment is a part of an overhaul at the top management of the railway board.

Santosh Yadav is New NHAI Chief

Senior bureaucrat Santosh Kumar Yadav was appointed as chairman of National Highways Authority of India (NHAI).
Yadav is a 1995-batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of the Uttar Pradesh cadre.
Subhasish Panda, a 1997-batch IAS officer of the Himachal Pradesh cadre, was appointed as Delhi Development Authority (DDA) vice chairman.
Ganji Kamala V Rao was named Chief Executive Officer, Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), Ministry of Health and Family Welfare.
Rao is a 1990-batch IAS officer of the Kerala cadre.
He has served as the Chairman and Managing Director of India Tourism Development Corporation Ltd in the rank and pays Of Additional Secretary by the Appointment Committee of Cabinet. He has also served as the Principal Secretary of, the General Administration Department, Government of Kerala in Trivandrum.
FSSAI stands for Food Safety and Standard Authority of India. It is a statutory body under the Ministry of health and family welfare, the Government of India. The FSSAI was established under the Food Safety and Standards Act, of 2006.

Garuda Aerospace Receives Type Certification and RTPO Approvals from DGCA

Drone manufacturer Garuda Aerospace received the Type Certification and RPTO (Remote Pilot Training Organisation) approvals from the Director General of Civil Aviation for the indigenously designed kisan drones. DGCA Type certification is provided on the basis of the quality check and is issued after a rigorous testing process of the unmanned aerial vehicles.
The kisan drones are developed for agricultural purposes and with the Type Certification received for the GA-AG model, Garuda Kisan drones were eligible for Rs. 10 lakh unsecured loans from the agri-infrastructure fund offered by the Centre.
According to DGCA, a remote pilot training organisation is an organisation authorised by the DGCA to impart remote pilot training to any individual seeking for a remote pilot certificate under Rule 34 of Drone Rules 2021.

Dec 26, 2022

Goyal Launches Right to Repair Portal, National Consumer Helpline Premises

Food and Consumer Affairs Minister Piyush Goyal launched a host of new initiatives, including the right to repair portal and an NTH mobile app and opened new premises of National Consumer Helpline centre in the national capital.
A memorandum of understanding was also signed between the Consumer Affairs Department and IIT (BHU), Varanasi as well launched a capacity building programme of consumer commissions.
On the 'right to repair' portal, manufacturers will share the manual of product details with customers so that they can either repair by self, by third parties, rather than depend on original manufacturers. Initially, mobile phones, electronic, consumer durables, autombile and farming equipments will be covered.

Cabinet Approves Pending One Rank One Pension (OROP) Revision for Retirees from Armed Forces

The Union Cabinet approved a pending pension revision for pensioners from the armed forces and their families under the One Rank One Pension (OROP) scheme, which has been delayed since July 2019. Arrears will be paid from July 1, 2019 to June 30, 2022 which is approximately Rs. 23,638 crore as per the applicable dearness relief.
Armed forces personnel with a retirement date up to June 30, 2019, excluding premature retirees with effect from July 1, 2014, will be covered under this revision.
OROP implies uniform pension to personnel based on rank and length of service, and irrespective of the date of retirement.
Pension for those drawing above the average shall be protected and the benefit would also be extended to family pensioners, including war widows and disabled pensioners.
Arrears will be paid in four half-yearly instalments. However, all the family pensioners, including those in receipt of special, liberalised family pensions, and gallantry award winners, shall be paid arrears in one instalment.

Dec 23, 2022

Suhel Ajaz Khan Named India's New Ambassador to Saudi Arabia

Indian Foreign Service official of 1997 batch, Suhel Ajaz Khan who is presently the Ambassador of India to the Republic of Lebanon was appointed as the next Ambassador of India to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. He will replace Ausaf Sayeed, a 1989 batch IFS officer. Khan is expected to take up the assignment shortly.

Dec 22, 2022

Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal Rolls out Govt e-Marketplace Services

Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal rolled out Government e-Marketplace services, (GeM) through Common Service Centres, CSC, and India Post, Department of Post in New Delhi.
The integration of India Post and CSC with GeM will prove to be beneficial for last-mile buyers, sellers and service providers in public procurement.
Goyal said that GeM engineered one of the biggest change management processes in the country by triggering a massive transformation in procurement processes and bringing the much needed transparency in public procurement.
The Minister also launched the Government e-Marketplace Seller Samvaad Booklet. The booklet is a compilation of testimonials from sellers and service providers based on their experience on the GeM portal.

Odisha CM Launches 'Drink from Tap' Facility in 19 Cities, Towns

Noting that safe drinking water provision at every Odisha home has long been his dream, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik launched the Drink From Tap' project in 19 cities and towns of the state.
Earlier, the facility was unveiled in Puri and Gopalpur.
Under the project, drinking water will be supplied round the clock through taps installed in households.
Patnaik said that at least 5.55 lakh people in the 19 cities and the towns would benefit from the project.

Dinesh Kumar Shukla is New Chief of AERB

Senior nuclear scientist Dinesh Kumar Shukla was appointed as the chairperson of the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) for a period of three years.
Shukla, who has been the executive director of the AERB, succeeded G. Nageswara Rao to the top post.
A graduate in mechanical engineering from the Jabalpur University, Shukla joined the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) in 1981.
He has been associated with the commissioning of high-flux research reactor Dhruva and later, held the positions of reactor superintendent of the Dhruva Research Reactor and the head of the Reactor Operations Division (ROD) at the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC). As the head of the ROD, BARC, he was responsible for the safe and efficient operation of the research reactors at Trombay.

Dec 21, 2022

Shankar Chaudhary Elected Unopposed as Speaker of Gujarat Assembly

Bharatiya Janata Party MLA Shankar Chaudhary was elected unopposed as the Speaker of the newly-formed Gujarat Legislative Assembly.
Besides, senior BJP MLA Jetha Bharwad was elected unopposed as the Deputy Speaker during the first session of the 15th state Assembly in Gandhinagar.
The opposition Congress as well as the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) supported the nominations of ruling party legislators Chaudhary and Bharwad.

Gaya and Nalanda Selected for Development under Swadesh Darshan 2.0

Gaya and Nalanda in Bihar were selected for development under Swadesh Darshan 2.0.
Union Tourism Minister G. Kishan Reddy also said the Punaura Dham site in the Sitamarhi district of Bihar has been identified for development under the Pilgrimage Rejuvenation and Spiritual Heritage Augmentation Drive (PRASHAD) Scheme of the ministry.
The ministry under its Swadesh Darshan, PRASHAD and Assistance to Central Agency for Tourism Infrastructure Projects schemes provides support to state governments, Union Territory administrations and central agencies for the development of tourism infrastructure in the country.
The projects for development under the schemes are identified in consultation with the states, Union territories, and central agencies and are sanctioned subject to the availability of funds, submission of suitable detailed project reports, adherence to scheme guidelines and utilisation of funds released earlier.
The ministry has now revamped its Swadesh Darshan scheme as Swadesh Darshan 2.0 with the objective to develop sustainable and responsible tourism destinations, following a tourist and destination-centric approach.

Govt. Accords in-principle Approval for Setting up of 21 Greenfield Airports

The Government accorded in-principle approval for setting up of 21 Greenfield Airports across the country. So far nine Greenfield airports have already been operationalised and the tenth Greenfield airport at Mopa, Goa was inaugurated in December 2022.
This information was given by Minister of State for Civil Aviation General V. K. Singh (Retd) in a reply to a question in Rajya Sabha.
The Minister said that during the pre-covid period, in the year 2018-19 the number of passengers footfall at airports across the country had increased by 11.6 per as compared to 2017-18.
Passenger footfall had decreased during pandemic era. However, post-covid, in the year 2021-22, the trend shows an increase of 63.7 percent over the year 2020-21.

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