General Awareness

NATIONAL AFFAIRS - February 2017

Feb 2017

Nov 05, 2021

TMC's O'Brien Hints at 'Working Together' to Defeat BJP in Goa Polls

In an apparent hint to the Congress, Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Derek O'Brien said that his party could work with others to defeat the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the Goa assembly elections.
"The mindset has to change - we are equal partners in the opposition. Let's work together on this, rather than talk down to us. There is no need to fight. Our single goal is to defeat the BJP," O'Brien said in a statement.
The appeal came as leaders of the two parties have been involved in a war of words after the TMC said it cannot wait indefinitely for the Congress to bring the opposition parties together against the BJP. The Congress has also questioned the TMC's intention of fighting the Goa election due next year.

Assam Congress Plans Party Revitalisation after Assembly Bypolls Debacle

The Congress party won eight assembly and one Lok Sabha seat in the concluded bypolls to 30 assembly and three Lok Sabha seats spread across the country. However, the party returned a blank in Assam, where all the five assembly seats contested went to the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its ally the United Peoples' Party Liberal (UPPL). The state unit of the Congress is now planning to reorganise itself and review the reasons for the loss.
While candidates from the BJP and its ally UPPL won by huge margins ranging from 25,641 votes (Bhabanipur) and 57,059 (Tamulpur), Congress candidates, who came second on three seats, failed to garner enough votes. Congress was the only party to have fielded candidates on all five seats and had declared that it will win at least two seats.
Incidentally, two of the three winning BJP candidates, Rupjyoti Kurmi (Mariani) and Sushanta Borgohain (Thawra), had won on Congress tickets in May 2021 before they switching sides to the ruling party, barely months after the assembly polls.

Nov 04, 2021

Haryana Launches 'Uttam Beej' Portal

Chief Minister (CM) of Haryana, Manohar Lal Khattar launched the 'Uttam Beej' Portal which will benefit the farmers of Haryana by providing quality seeds with transparency. The portal will provide transparency in the seed production programme arranged by both the Government and private seed producing agencies and ensure the quality of certified seeds.
This seed portal has been linked with Meri Fasal Mera Byora Portal and Family Identity Card ID. Meri Fasal Mera Byora Portal offers particulars to all these farmers who've land or who've given their land on contract and should promote their crop. Farmers will now get good high-quality seeds, which can improve their manufacturing and revenue.

R.K. Singh Inaugurates Diversion of Marusudar River at Pakal Dul HE Project

Union Minister of Power, New & Renewable Energy, R.K. Singh inaugurated the Diversion of Marusudar River of Pakal Dul Hydro Electric Project.
This project is located in Kishtwar district of Jammu & Kashmir.
Accelerated development of hydropower projects is significant for grid balancing and generating peak power.
Pakal Dul H.E. Project will help in fulfilling the target of 450 GW Renewable energy by 2030.
Through this project, investment of Rs. 8212 crores is being made in this region. Investment will in turn provide direct & indirect employment opportunities. It will help in overall development of local inhabitants.
Pakal Dul HE Project is a 1000 MW project. It is being constructed by Chenab Valley Power Projects [P] Ltd. It is a joint venture company of JKSPDC (Govt of J&K) and NHPC Ltd (Govt of India Enterprise). CVPPPL has been charged with 3094 MW Hydro Power Projects for construction in J&K. The dam will divert water to the south using a 10 km long headrace tunnel. This project was awarded to a consortium of domestic & foreign countries comprising Bharat Heavy Electricals, AFCONS and Jay Prakash Associate, in February 2014.

IREDA Launches 'Whistle Blower' Portal

The Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency Ltd. (IREDA) launched a 'Whistle-blower Portal' as a part of the celebration of 'Vigilance Awareness Week 2021'. The portal was launched by Pradip Kumar Das, Chairman & Managing Director (CMD), IREDA.
The Whistle-blower Portal has been developed by the IT Team of the company and will help the IREDA employees to raise concerns related to fraud, corruption, abuse of power among other things. The IREDA is a PSU under the Ministry of New & Renewable Energy (MNRE) established as a Non-Banking Financial Institution.

Akhilesh Not to Contest UP Assembly polls, Announces Tie-up with RLD

Samajwadi Party supremo Akhilesh Yadav will not contest the coming Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections himself even as he announced that an alliance between his party and the Rashtriya Lok Dal is now final.
Yadav said that his uncle Shivpal Singh Yadav, who broke away from the SP to form the Pragatisheel Samajwadi party Lohia (PSPL) will get the due honour from his party.
The RLD enjoys support among farmers of Western Uttar Pradesh and is on the same page with the SP on the issue of opposing the Centre's three farm laws.
The SP has already announced an alliance with Om Prakash Rajbhar's Suheldev Bhartiya Samaj Party (SPSP).

'One Sun, One World One Grid': PM Modi Calls for Global Solar Grid at COP26

Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the Green Grids Initiative—One Sun One World One Grid (GGI-OSOWOG), the first international network of global interconnected solar power grids, jointly with his UK counterpart Boris Johnson, at COP26.
One Sun, One World & One Grid will not only reduce storage needs but also enhance the viability of solar projects. This creative initiative will not only reduce carbon footprints and energy cost but also open a new avenue for cooperation between different countries and regions.
Modi and Johnson also released the One Sun declaration, which stated, "Realising the vision of One Sun One World One Grid through interconnected green grids can be transformational, enabling all of us to meet the targets of the Paris Agreement to prevent dangerous climate change.

Nov 03, 2021

Amarinder Resigns from Congress, Announces Name of his Party

Former Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh resigned from the Congress and announced the name of his party--Punjab Lok Congress--just months before the Assembly polls.
The party will be formally launched later and the Election Commission has no objection to its name.
The move by the former CM came days after he dismissed reports of back-end talks with the Congress, saying the time for rapprochement is over.

TMC Wins in all 4 by-polls in Bengal

The ruling Trinamool Congress steam-rolled the opposition to score a 4-0 clean sweep in by-elections held on October 30, leaving the opposition in tatters.
In a major setback to BJP, the saffron camp's candidates lost their deposits in three constituencies Dinhata, Gosaba and Khardaha as they failed to win the one-sixth of valid votes polled.
The BJP candidate from Santipur was the only one who managed not to lose his deposit by polling over a fifth of the votes cast. The Left Front's candidates managed to secure third spots in all constituencies.
The TMC, in total, bagged 75.02 per cent of the votes cast, whereas the BJP got some 14.48 per cent votes, in the four assembly segments.

Former Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh Arrested

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrested former Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh under criminal provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
The arrest was made after over 12-hour questioning in a case linked to an alleged extortion racket in the Mumbai police establishment.
The NCP leader was produced in a special court in Mumbai that remanded him in ED's custody till November 6.
The ED registered the PMLA case against Deshmukh and others after the CBI booked him in a corruption case related to Rs. 100-crore bribery allegations levelled by Mumbai ex-top cop Param Bir Singh.

Nov 02, 2021

Congress Launches Nation-wide Membership Drive

The Congress launched its membership drive across the country that will culminate in organisational elections, including electing a new president.
Heads of Congress State units launched the drive along with an online membership campaign "JoinCongressSaveIndia" to urge people to join the party in order to protect the country from forces that is "trying to destroy constitutional values".
The membership drive will continue till March 31, 2022 and will be followed by organisational elections. It includes election of State unit presidents, vice-presidents, treasurers, executives and AICC members by the Pradesh Congress Committee general body. It will be held between July 21 and August 20, 2022.
The election for the new Congress president will be held between August 21 and September 20 next year.

Mumbai-Karnataka Region to be Renamed as Kittur Karnataka

Bengaluru Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai reiterated that the state government would rename Mumbai-Karnataka region as 'Kittur-Karnataka', saying that the former title holds no meaning since there were no ties between the two after the restructuring of states in 1956.
While Karnataka celebrates Kannada Rajyotsava on November 1, the Maharashtra Ekikaran Samiti (MES), a group of native Marathi speakers, observe a black day as they claim to have been forcibly separated from their parent state 66 years ago during the reorganization exercise. The renaming has two benefits- one is to shrug off any ties to Mumbai and Maharashtra as well as naming the region after 19th century ruler, Kittur Rani Chennamma, the followers of whom are now the Panchamasalis, the largest subsect within the Lingayats.

Nov 01, 2021

Justice Ashok Bhushan is New NCLAT Chairperson

Over 19 months after the post was left vacant by the retirement of the then chairperson, Justice S. J. Mukhopadhaya, in March 2020, the Centre appointed retired Supreme Court Judge, Justice Ashok Bhushan, as the full-time chairperson of the National Company Law Appellate Tribunal (NCLAT).
Justice Bhushan, who retired from the Supreme Court in July 2021, was appointed for a period of four years, or "till he attains the age of 70 years, or until further orders.
The government also appointed retired Chief Justice of the Manipur High Court, Justice Ramalingam Sudhakar, as the chairperson of the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), for a period of five years, or till he attains the age of 67 years, or until further orders. His appointment as the full-time chairperson of NCLT comes nearly 21 months after its first chairperson, Justice M. M. Kumar, retired in January 2020.

Centre Invites Applications for SEBI Chair Post

The government has invited applications for the chairperson position of market regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI). The tenure of the current chair Ajay Tyagi ends in February 2022.
The chairman shall hold office for such a period not exceeding 5 years and shall not hold office beyond 65 years of age, whichever is earlier, and will be eligible for re-appointment.
In February 2020, Tyagi was given a six-month extension. Later in August 2020, the government had granted an 18-month extension amid the outbreak of the covid-19 pandemic.
Tyagi took over as SEBI chief in 2017 for a three-year term.

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