General Awareness

NATIONAL AFFAIRS - February 2017

Feb 2017

Feb 16, 2021

BJP cannot Form Political Entity in Sri Lanka

Sri Lanka's Election Commission Chairman Nimal Punchihewa shot down reports of India's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) planning to set up a political unit in the island nation, saying the country's electoral law does not permit such an arrangement.
Punchihewa said that any Sri Lankan political party or group is permitted to have external links with any party or group overseas. But, our electoral laws do not permit overseas political parties to work here.
Punchihewa's comments came after media reports quoted Tripura Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb as saying that the BJP was planning to extend its footprint in Sri Lanka and Nepal.

India and Japan Pitch for Assam to be Hub of Connectivity with Southeast Asia

India and Japan made a strong pitch for Assam to be a hub for connectivity and economic activities with Southeast Asia, with Japanese funding playing a key role in taking forward infrastructure and development projects.
External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar and Japanese ambassador Satoshi Suzuki visited the north-eastern state to review projects being implemented with Japanese support, and outlined a vision of Assam playing a crucial role in India's efforts to link up with and benefit from new markets in Southeast Asian countries such as Myanmar and Vietnam.

Centre Deregulates Geospatial Data and Map-making in India

India liberalised its regulations on geospatial data, allowing private companies to conduct surveying and mapping without prior government approvals and sharing the data for various everyday applications, from logistics and transport to road safety and e-commerce.
Under the new policy, geospatial data from government agencies such as the Survey of India and the Indian Space Research Organisation will also be made available to public and private companies.
The new guidelines will allow to increase the scale, speed, and accuracy of mapping. Indian entities will require no prior approvals, security clearances, licences for acquisition and production of geospatial data and geospatial data services, including maps.

Feb 15, 2021

BJP fields 22 Muslim Candidates for Vadodara Municipalities, District and Taluka Panchayats

The Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) has fielded 22 candidates from Muslim community for the elections to district and taluka panchayats, and municipalities in Vadodara.
The BJP announced names of candidates for 34 seats of Vadodara district panchayat, 167 seats of taluka panchayat and 88 seats of municipalities of Karjan, Dabhoi, Savli and Padra.
The party has given tickets to a total of 22 Muslim candidates –14 tickets in the district panchayat and municipalities and seven seats in various taluka panchayats. Of these, five Muslim candidates have been fielded from Savli Municipality alone.

Kerala NCP on Verge of Split

The Kerala unit of the NCP, a long-time ally of the ruling CPI(M)-led LDF, is all set for a split ahead of the assembly elections with a faction led by party legislator Mani C Kappan deciding to join the Congress-led UDF.
The move is a fallout of the CPI (M) decision to hand over Kappan's seat Pala to the Kerala Congress (M), a new entrant in the LDF.
Ever since the CPI(M) decided to give the Kerala Congress (M) the Pala seat, which Kappan had won for the LDF in a 2019 bypoll, a group led by him has been pulling apart from the ruling alliance. Contending that denial of the seat as unfair, Kappan had tried to convince the NCP's national leadership to quit the LDF. With the national leadership delaying a final decision in his favour, Kappan said that he would join the UDF.

Bill to Modify List of SCs in Tamil Nadu Introduced in House

In a move that gathers significance in poll-bound Tamil Nadu, the Union government introduced a Bill in the Lok Sabha to group seven Scheduled Caste groups in the state under a common nomenclature as Devendrakula Vellalars.
Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment Krishan Pal Gurjar introduced the Bill to recognize Devendrakulathan, Kudumban, Pannadi, Kaalaadi, Kadayan, Pallan and Patharian, predominantly agrarian castes, collectively as Devendrakula Vellalars.
Despite the common nomenclature, the seven caste groups will continue to be accorded the same reservation in education and jobs as SCs.

Govt. Introduces J&K Reorganisation (Amendment) Bill, 2021 in Lok Sabha

A bill to replace an ordinance to merge the Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) cadre of civil services officers with the Arunachal Pradesh, Goa, Mizoram Union Territory (AGMUT) cadre was introduced in the Lok Sabha.
Introducing 'The Jammu and Kashmir Reorganization (Amendment) Bill, 2021', Minister of State for Home Affairs G Kishan Reddy said the government was working to take Jammu and Kashmir on the path to development.
He said around 170 central laws are being implemented in Jammu and Kashmir after abrogation of Article 370 of the Constitution that gave a special status to the erstwhile state.

PM Dedicates Kochi Petrochemical Complex to Country

Prime Minister Narendra Modi dedicated to the nation Rs. 6000 crore petrochemical complex of oil major Bharat Petroleum and Ro-Ro vessels of Inland Waterways at Willingdon Islands in Kochi, asserting that these projects will fuel the country's growth.
The Prime Minister also inaugurated the International Cruise Terminal "Sagarika" at Cochin Port; Marine Engineering Training Institute, Vigyana Sagar, Cochin Shipyard Limited and laid the foundation stone of Reconstruction of South Coal Berth at Cochin Port.

Feb 14, 2021

President Kovind to Open 'Udyanotsav'

President Ram Nath Kovind will open Rashtrapati Bhavan's annual 'Udyanotsav' and the Mughal Gardens will be thrown open for public from February 13, but only with prior online booking.
Besides the Mughal Gardens, visitors will also be allowed in the Rashtrapati Bhavan and Rashtrapati Bhavan Museum. Visitors will also be able to witness the Change of Guard Ceremony.

Nitin Gadkari Launches India's First CNG Tractor

India's first-ever diesel tractor, converted to Compressed Natural Gas (CNG), was formally launched by the Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways, Nitin Gadkari.
The conversion, carried out jointly by Rawmatt Techno Solutions and Tomasetto Achille India, will help farmers increase their income, by lowering the costs and help to create job opportunities in rural India.
CNG is a clean fuel as it has the lowest content of carbon and other pollutants. It is economical as it has zero lead and is non-corrosive, non-dilutive and non-contaminating which helps in increasing the life of the engine, and it requires less regular maintenance. Also, it is the future as at present around 12 million vehicles are already powered by natural gas throughout the world and more companies and municipalities are joining the CNG movement every day.

Feb 13, 2021

TRS Wins Mayoral Posts with AIMIM Extending Last-minute Support

Telangana elected its first female mayor to the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC), since the creation of the state in 2014.
The ruling Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) candidate Gadwal Vijayalakshmi along with deputy mayor Mothe Srilatha Reddy, also from the TRS, won a tightly contested election. Vijayalakshmi defeated the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP's) candidate Radha Dheeraj Reddy.

Odisha Files Contempt against Andhra Officials for Invading its Territory

The Odisha government has approached the Supreme Court seeking contempt action against officials of the Andhra Pradesh government for notifying Panchayat polls in three villages controlled by it and allegedly violating a status quo ordered by the SC in 1968 on three villages claimed as their territory by the two states.
The dispute over the territorial jurisdiction of 21 districts, popularly known as Kotia Group of villages, first reached the Supreme Court in 1968, when the Odisha government accused the Andhra Pradesh government of trespassing its territory.

India's Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla to Visit Russia

India's Foreign Secretary Harsh Vardhan Shringla will visit Russia next week and this visit will be for a couple of days which will see a number of bilateral meetings. The visit comes even as both sides have been engaged at multiple levels, from cooperation against COVID-19 pandemic to defence.
The visit, in the works for some time, will be the first foreign visit of the top Indian diplomat in 2021. The focus will be on the India-Russia annual summit in 2021, with Russian President Vladimir Putin's India visit. Russia and India have an annual bilateral summit level mechanism that alternates between the two countries.

Karnataka Gets 31st District

Karnataka got its 31st district with the state government issuing an official gazette notification carving out a new Vijayanagara district from the mine-rich Ballari.
The new district will have six taluks and Hosapete will be its headquarters.
Kudligi, Hagaribommana halli, Kotturu, Hoovina Hadagali, and Harapanahalli are the other five taluks.
Ballari district will have five taluks- Ballari, Kurugodu, Siraguppa, Kampli, and Sanduru.
Ballari taluk will remain its headquarters.
On November 18 last year, the state cabinet had given in principle approval for creation of Vijayanagara district.

Feb 12, 2021

Odisha Govt. Approves Re-promulgation of Farm Reform Ordinance

Even as the agitation by farmers demanding repeal of three farm laws rages on across the country, the Naveen Patnaik government decided to re-promulgate the ordinance to reform the Odisha Agricultural Produce Markets Amendment Act to enable geographically restriction-free trade and transaction of agricultural produce including livestock across the state.
The state cabinet which met under the chairmanship of chief minister Naveen Patnaik, gave assent to the re-promulgation of the Odisha Agricultural Produce and Livestock Marketing promotion and facilitation) Ordinance for the third time, enabling the state to move ahead with the abolition of notified market area in so far as enforcement of regulation by Agricultural Produce and Livestock Market Committee (APLMC) was concerned.
The ordinance would also help the government create an environment for setting up and operating private market yards and farmer consumer market yards (Krushak Bazar), sub-market yard and market sub yard with the aim to enhance competition for the farmer's produce to the advantage of farmers.

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