General Awareness

NATIONAL AFFAIRS - December 2016

Dec 2016

Mar 29, 2018

EPFO Launches Portal For Pensioners

EPFO launched the pensioner's portal through which all EPFO pensioners may get the details of pension-related information. The pensioner's portal is a recently launched service where details like pension payment order number, payment order details, passbook information and other related information are available. The enhanced "Track eKYC" facility for the convenience of members have also been launched to check the status of Aadhaar seeded against their UAN. The facility has been made available at EPFO's website www.epfindia.gov.in

NITI Aayog Launches Baseline Ranking Of 115 Aspirational Districts

The NITI Aayog launched the baseline ranking for 115 aspirational districts based on 49 indicators across five sectors that include health and nutrition, education, agriculture and water resources, financial inclusion and skill development, and basic infrastructure. This would be followed by delta ranking of these districts from May 2018 based on their incremental progress.

Indu Bhushan Appointed As CEO Of Ayushman Bharat Mission

Indu Bhushan was appointed as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Union Government's ambitious Ayushman Bharat National Health Protection Mission (ABNHPM). Bhushan, the Director General of East Asia Department, Asian Development Bank (ADB) in Manila, Philippines appointed to the post for a period of two years.

Union Government Approves Amendments To National Medical Commission Bill, Removes Provision Of Br...

The Union Cabinet approved amendments to the National Medical Commission (NMC) Bill including removing the contentious provision of Bridge Course which would have allowed practitioners of alternative medicines to pursue allopathy. Observing the need to act strictly against unqualified practitioners, the government approved an amendment to make the punishment for any unauthorized practice of medicine severe by including a provision for the imprisonment of up to one year along with a fine extending to up to five lakh rupees. The cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi also approved that the final MBBS examination will be held as a common exam throughout the country and will serve as an exit test to be called the National Exit Test (NEXT). Thus, students would not have to appear in a separate exam after MBBS to get a license to practice and 'NEXT' would serve as the screening test for doctors with foreign medical qualifications in order to practice in India. all and technical courses.

Mar 28, 2018

India and China agree to a roadmap for addressing trade imbalance

The eleventh session of the China-India joint-group on Economic Relations, Trade, Science & Technology was held in New Delhi. The session was co-chaired by the Union Minister of Commerce & Industry and Civil Aviation, Suresh Prabhu and the Minister of Commerce of the People's Republic of China, Zhong Shan. The two Ministers agreed to continue to take forward the initiatives identified in the Five Year Development Programme for Economic and Trade Cooperation between China and India signed in September 2014.

Surat becomes 1st district to have 100% solar powered Health Centres

Gujarat's Surat district become the first district in the country to have 100 percent solar powered Primary Health Centers (PHC). There are a total of 52 PHCs in the district and all of them are now powered by the solar system. This initiative will not only bring down the electricity bill by 40 percent but also help fight global warming.

Around 3 lakh houses affordable houses sanctioned for urban poor under PMAY

Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs approved the construction of 3,21,567 more affordable houses for the benefit of urban poor under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Urban) with an investment of Rs18,203 crore with central assistance of Rs4,752 crore. The approval was given in the 32nd meeting of the Central Sanctioning and Monitoring Committee (CSMC) held in New Delhi. The projects were sanctioned across 523 cities in the states of Haryana, West Bengal, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Mizoram, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Kerala, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab & Goa. Haryana gets maximum (70,671) Houses while Goa got the least (60). With the participation of Goa in the 32nd CSMC, all 35 States/UTs, having urban statutory towns and cities are now covered under the PMAY(U) Mission.

Ministry of Power joins hands with Skill India to support Saubhagya Scheme

Ministry of Power partnered with the Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship to train the manpower in six states (Assam, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand, Odisha and Uttar Pradesh) for speedy implementation of its SAUBHAGYA scheme. SAUBHAGYA (Pradhan Mantri Sahaj Bijli Har Ghar Yojna) aims to achieve universal household electrification in all parts of the country in a time-bound manner. Around 4 crore households are expected to get electricity connections under the scheme. A special project under the PMKVY has also been launched in these Six States.

Mar 27, 2018

CCEA approves integrated scheme for development of silk industry

The Central Government took a big step in making India self-sufficient in silk production. The decisions taken by the cabinet will lead to the formation of a first-ever inter-ministerial panel to boost R&D and technology transfer in the silk sector with a 1,000 crore rupee fund. The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has approved Integrated Scheme for Development of Silk Industry for the next three years from 2017-18 to 2019-20. The scheme will help to increase productive employment from 85 lakhs to 1 crore persons by 2020. The scheme aims to achieve self-sufficiency in silk production by 2022. The scheme will be implemented by the Ministry through Central Silk Board.

World's oldest city Varanasi goes wireless

Eighty-six years after the city got electricity, overhead power cables in world's oldest city 'Varanasi ' is being dismantled after a project to lay underground lines over 16 sq-km has been finally completed. Laying cables for 50,000 consumers through the serpentine lanes and congested markets in one of the world's oldest cities was quite a challenge for Powergrid, the company conducting the integrated power development scheme (IPDS) project.

India becomes 3rd largest electricity producer in the world

India become the 3rd largest electricity producer in the world as its electricity production grew 34% over seven years to 2017. The country now produces more energy than Japan and Russia, which had 27% and 8.77% more electricity generation capacity installed, respectively, than India seven years ago. Electricity production stood at 1,003.525 Billion Unit between April 2017-January 2018, according to a February 2018 report by India Brand Equity Foundation (IBEF), a trust established by the commerce ministry. With a production of 1,423 BU in FY 2016, India was the third largest producer and the third largest consumer of electricity in the world, behind China (6,015 BU) and the United States (4,327 BU). The top 3 Producers of Electricity in the world are- 1. China 2. The USA 3. India.

India becomes fourth largest auto market in the world

India overtaken Germany to become the fourth largest automobile market in the world, According to the latest global data. Automobile sales, including passenger and commercial vehicles, in Asia's third-largest economy, grew 9.5%. It is the fastest among major global markets, last year to more than 4 million units, outpacing Germany's 3.8-million vehicle sales, which rose by a modest 2.8% in the same period.

Mar 26, 2018

PM launches renewed farmer, Dalit outreach

Prime Minister Narendra Modi promised that the cost of every input will be factored in while calculating the minimum support price (MSP) for farm produce and said his idea of a New India by 2022 was aligned with Bhim Rao Ambedkar's, signalling an effort to reach out to the Dalit and farmer communities ahead of next year's general elections.

World TB Day Health Ministry launches new initiatives

At the function in New Delhi, the Health Secretary Smt. Preeti Sudan released the TB INDIA 2018 Report and National Drug Resistance Survey Report. She also launched the 'NikshayAushadi Portal' and shorter regimen for Drug-Resistant TB. She further stated that the global target to end TB is 2030 but India will end it by 2025.

First International Exhibition of Graphic Prints 'Print Biennale India 2018' inaugurated

The country's National Academy of Art, the Lalit Kala Akademi hosted the first-ever International Print Biennale in the country with a record number of 17 countries taking part in it. The first-ever International Exhibition of Graphic Prints 'Print Biennale India 2018' opened, at the Rabindra Bhavan Galleries of the Lalit Kala Akademi in New Delhi. The eminent Artist-Printmaker, Shakti Barman was the Chief Guest. The event comprising a total of 200 original prints are created by Indian and international artists of impeccable competence and is a window view into the giant strides in printmaking that is taking place in India and the world.

Mar 25, 2018

NCERT launches dedicated portal for CBSE books

National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) decided to supply the required number of textbooks to all Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) affiliated schools for the academic session 2018-19. Discussing the issue of publishing and providing textbooks with the CBSE, NCERT has launched a dedicated web portal (www.ncertbooks.ncert.gov.in) for the supply of textbooks to schools and individuals.

Navy warship INS Ganga decommissioned

INS Ganga, an indigenously built frigate of the Indian Navy, was decommissioned in Mumbai after over three decades of service. It was Commissioned in December 1985, the ship represented a big step forward in the nation's warship building capability. The special guest of honor for the ceremony was Vice Admiral (Retd) K K Kohli, the first Commanding Officer of INS Ganga.

Indian Railway encompass 90 stations revamping in world class transit hub

Redevelopment and renovation have always helped in encompassing an image that elaborates new creativity and innovation. The Indian Railway has been keen on welcoming changes and revamping the railway stations that will be made feasible for the passengers. The Indian Railways sights to convert stations into world-class 'airport-like' transit hubs! The Railway Ministry has decided to redevelop 90 railway stations into world-class transit hubs.

Andhra Pradesh government launches multi-utility vehicle 'Naipunya Ratham'

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu launched the Naipunya Ratham, a multi-utility vehicle. Also known as 'World on Wheels (WoW)', Naipunya Ratham is aimed at taking technology and innovation to the remote corners of the State. As part of the 'Smart Village Smart Ward Programme' of the state, the Naipunya Rathams will facilitate and look to improve digital literacy and digital skills. The State Government has allotted Rs. 300 crore for the project.

Chhattisgarh bags 'Water Digest Award' for best water conservation and irrigation facility

Chhattisgarh bagged the National 'Water Digest Award' for Water Conservation-Diversion and for increasing the irrigation capacity in the State. This is the first time that Chhattisgarh Water Resources Department had been given national Award during the past 17 years. The Union Minister of State for Water Resources Arjun Ram Megwal presented the award to Chhattisgarh Water Resources Department Secretary Sonmani Bora. The Award is presented every year by the globally renowned magazine 'Water Digest'-which focuses mainly on water resources. Chhattisgarh State bagged the award for increasing the irrigation capacity, community participation, water management - water diversion, water conservation, efforts towards inter-linking of rivers, better techniques utilized in irrigation facilities.

Union Agriculture Minister addresses 5th India Maize Summit 2018

Union Agriculture Minister, Radha Mohan Singh had addressed the 5th India Maize Summit in New Delhi. The aim of the summit was to harness the potential of maize, technological innovations, promoting producer aggregation and linkages that are required.

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