General Awareness

NATIONAL AFFAIRS - February 2017

Feb 2017

Jul 08, 2020

New Building of IARI, Jharkhand Named after Dr.Shyama Prasad Mukherjee

The new administrative and academic building of the Indian Agricultural research Institute (IARI), at Gouria Karma in Hazaribagh, Jharkhand was named after Dr. Shyama Prasad Mukherjee the founder of Bharatiya Jan Sangh, on the event of his birth anniversary.
In the 2020-2021 Budget, The government has allocated Rs. 2.83 lakh crores (highest allocation ever) for activities related to agriculture, irrigation and rural development.
The 16 point action plan announced in the budget is targeted to double the income of the farmers by the end of 2022.
For the development of rural and agriculture sector, new schemes under Atma Nirbhar Bharat Abhiyaan like the Rs. 1 lakh crore infrastructure fund for the agricultural sector and the growth packages for fisheries, animal husbandry, herbal farming, beekeeping etc. were announced.

Prasar Bharati to Get Five New Board Members

Public broadcasters Prasar Bharati is set to get five new part-time members on its boards including music composer Salim Merchant, BJP leader Shaina NC and media personality Sanjay Gupta after months of running at a truncated strength.
Veteran journalist Ashok Tandon, who has been on the board earlier as well, and corporate personality Alok Agarwal are the other person who will be on the board that oversees the functioning of Doordarshan and the All India Radio. Tandon has also been the media advisor to former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. "A committee headed by Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu chooses the names of those who are appointed on the Prasar Bharati board. These five names have been approved. However, there is still discussion on who will be the chairman.
According to the Prasar Bharati Act, there can be six part-time members on the board apart from other ex-officio members.

India's First Private Jet Terminal to Open in Delhi

India's first general aviation terminal for private jets is set to become operational in New Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport. The facility promises faster turnaround of business jets and chartered planes, shielding them from the clutter of general passenger terminals, where they now compete for taxiing slots with commercial flights.
It is the first such independent facility at any Indian airport to handle general aviation passengers. While the new terminal will be commissioned as an interim facility it will be equipped with state-of-the-art features and facilities including world class passenger lounges, retail, food and beverage (outlets) etc.
The terminal has been designed in such a manner that it will have parking space for a maximum 65 jets of all sizes. The terminal also has the capacity to handle a maximum of 150 business jet movements a day. The average movement capacity of the terminal is 75 jets per day. This makes it a general aviation terminal with the highest capacity in entire south Asia.

Jul 07, 2020

One more Month to Centre for Providing Permanent Commission to all Serving Women Officers in Indi...

The Supreme Court gave one more month to the Union Ministry of Defence to implement its February verdict in which the apex court had directed the Centre to provide permanent commission to all serving SSC women officers in the Army.
The SC passed the order after Centre, through the Ministry of Defence (MoD), said that the decision-making process in this matter is at the final stage and only formal orders remain to be issued.
On February 17, 2020, the SC had upheld Delhi High Court order on giving command positions to women officers and had criticised the Centre for failing to implement the judgment of the Delhi HC which had held that women SSC officers should be granted permanent Commission at par with male counterparts.
The top court had also said that the nature of arguments in the written submissions of the Centre was contrary to its own policy framed in 2019 regarding Permanent Commission for women.

DRDO to Establish a Research Cell at IIT-H

Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) will establish a research cell at Indian Institute of Technology Hyderabad (IIT-H), 'DRDO – IIT-H Research Cell' to meet the future defence technological requirements of the country. The research cell is established as an extension of the DRDO Research and Innovation Centre (RIC), Chennai.
An MoU was signed by the Director, Directorate of Futuristic Technology Management (DFTM), DRDO, K.K. Pathak, Director General, MSS, DRDO M. S. R. Prasad and IITH Director Prof. B.S. Murty to establish the research cell.
The research cell will undertake basic and applied research programs in identified technology areas. It will ensure seamless execution of different projects between DRDO and IIT-H.
It is expected to become a Centre of Excellence for conducting scientific and applied research in advanced technologies for defence.
It will help to grasp resources of knowledge in the basic science and technology industries, which are interdisciplinary in nature and spread across multiple institutions.

Ladakh LG Launches Mission Organic Development Initiative & Greenhouse Project

Lieutenant Governor of Ladakh, Radha Krishna Mathur, launched Mission Organic Development Initiative(MODI) and Greenhouse Project, to lead the Union Territory on a sustainable path, over a virtual platform from Raj Niwas, Ladakh.
MODI, a special development project was initiated by LAHDC Leh in 2019.
A budget of Rs. 500 crore was allocated for this initiative.
This initiative will help to achieve Carbon Neutral Ladakh and will increase 40% additional income of the farmers of Ladakh region.
MODI will be implemented in three phases,
Phase I: Around 66 villages in the region of Leh and Kargil will be converted into organic villages by the end of March 2021.
Phase II: Around 85 villages of Ladakh will get the certification by 2023.
Phase III: The remaining 90 villages of the Leh and Kargil district will be declared as organic by 2025.
The Greenhouse project is targeted to increase the availability of vegetables throughout the year through deep winter and to establish around 1676 greenhouses in the Leh and Kargil districts over a 2 years of time.

NHRC Constitutes 11-Member Committee to Assess Covid-19 Impact on Human Rights

The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has set up an 11-member expert committee headed by Dr. K. S. Reddy, president of Public Health Foundation of India to study impact of coronavirus (Covid-19) on human rights of individuals, particularly marginalised and vulnerable sections of the society, together with migrant labourers and will also study the future response of the government.
The panel would additionally suggest the future policy for the Centre and state governments.
The skilled panel would study intimately the migrant crisis that had unfolded at beginning of pandemic from the general public well being perspective and the way it was addressed by the states.
Other members of the panel include Dr. Nimesh G. Desai, director Institute of Human Behaviour and Allied Sciences; Dr Abhey Shukla, national convenor, Jan Swasthya Abhiyan; Maja Daruwala, special monitor (police and prison reforms) NHRC; Rajive Raturi, special monitor (rights of persons with disabilities) NHRC; HImanshu Rath, founder and chairman, Agewell Foundation; N. B. Sarojini, director SAMA; Enakshi Ganguly, co-founder HAQ; Dr. Dipa Sinha of Right to Food Campaign; Dr. Sandeep Chachra, executive director , Action Aid Association; Viraf Mehta business and human rights expert.

Indian Railways Sets up Solar Plant in Bina

The Ministry of Railways has decided to install solar power plants on its vacant unused lands on mega scale and to utilise solar energy for meeting its traction power requirements to become a complete 'Green mode of transportation'.
The use of Solar Power will accelerate the mission of Piyush Goyal, the Union Minister of Railways to achieve 'Net Zero' Carbon Emission Railway.
The solar project will fulfill the present demand of the Indian Railways.
The Indian Railways will become the first transport organisation to be energy self-sufficient, which makes Indian railways green and 'Atma nirbhar'.
The Indian Railways has started energy Procurement from various solar Projects like 3 MWp solar plant set up at MCF Raebareilly (Uttar Pradesh).
About 100 MWp rooftop solar systems have already been installed in various stations and buildings of Indian Railways.
The 1.7 MWp project at Bina, Madhya Pradesh which is connected directly to the overhead Traction System has been installed and is in extensive testing. It eill be commissioned in 15 days.
The Indian Railways and the Bharat heavy Electricals Limited (BHEL) has commissioned the first of its kind project in the world.
The power plant has been established near the Bina Traction Sub System (TSS).
The project was undertaken by BHEL under its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) scheme.
The project agreement was signed on 9th October 2019.

Jul 06, 2020

Websites with SFJ Links Banned

As per reports, the Centre blocked 40 websites linked to the banned Sikhs For Justice (SFJ) group which were being used to propagate anti-India sentiment across the world and for trying to recruit young Sikhs to join militant ranks.
The ministry of electronics and information technology took down the websites on a recommendation from the Ministry of Home Affairs after it was found that SFJ, primarily operating from the United States, was aggressively using them to push its anti-India agenda.
SFJ was banned by the government in July 2019 while its leader, Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, was declared an "individual terrorist" under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. Both MHA and the IT ministry refused to disclose details of websites that have been blocked. One of the key websites associated widely with the group — www.referendum2020.org — through which it sought support from Sikh youth for the formation of a separate Khalistan state, could not be accessed as it has been blocked by the Department of Telecommunications.
SFJ is in close touch with the militant outfits and activists, and is supporting violent form of extremism and militancy in Punjab and elsewhere to carve out a sovereign Khalistan out of territory of Union of India; SFJ is encouraging and aiding the activities for secession of a part of the Indian territory from the Union of India and supporting separatist groups fighting for this purpose in India and elsewhere by indulging in activities and articulations intended to disrupt the sovereignty and territorial integrity of India.

India and Afghanistan Ink 5 Agreements

India and Afghanistan signed five agreements for developing educational infrastructure in four Afghan provinces, with the move seen as a reiteration of New Delhi's support to Kabul at a time when the war-torn country's peace process is confronting challenges.
The five memorandums of understanding were signed under the high impact community development projects programme being implemented by India to further strengthen the bilateral development partnership.
Since 2001, India has undertaken projects worth $3 billion in Afghanistan, including $1 billion pledged in 2016 under the "new development partnership" scheme over a period of five years. These projects are part of India's commitment to assisting Afghanistan emerge as a peaceful, united, prosperous and pluralistic nation.
The projects to be taken up under the five MoUs include the construction of classrooms, a higher education building and a road within the campus of Albironi University. The projects are spread across the four provinces of Nooristan, Badakhshan, Farah and Kapisa.
Since 2005, the Indian government has committed $200 million to support more than 550 high impact community development projects across Afghanistan.
The ceremony in Kabul for the signing of the MoUs was presided over by the Afghan Minister of Economy, Mustafa Mastoor. Tripartite agreements were signed between the Indian government, the Afghan Ministry of Economy and the implementing ministries, such as the Ministry of Education.
Two MoUs were signed by Indian ambassador Vinay Kumar and ministers Mustafa Mastoor and Abdul Tawab Balakarzai, while three were signed by Kumar and ministers Mastoor and Rangina Hamidi.
The government of India remains committed to take forward the India-Afghanistan Development Partnership based on the national priorities of the government and people.

Jul 05, 2020

Anil Baijal Inaugurates World's Largest COVID-19 Care Facility

The world's largest, 10,000-bed Sardar Patel's COVID Care Centre and Hospital (SPCCCH) at Radha Soami Satsang Beas in Chhatarpur area became operational in the national capital.
Lieutenant Governor of Delhi, Anil Baijal, inaugurated the facility. The facility has been created on an emergency basis by the South Delhi District Administration with support of the Ministry of Home Affairs in a record time of 10 days.

AIR Starts Weekly Sanskrit 'News Magazine' Programme 'Sanskrit Saptahiki'

The All India Radio (AIR) broadcasted its first- ever 'News Magazine' programme in Sanskrit on Saturday which has news from the world of Sanskrit and prominent developments of the week.
The programme titled, 'Sanskrit Saptahiki', is aired for 20 minutes duration. It can be heard on All India Radio FM News Channel (100.1 MHz frequency) every Saturday with a repeat broadcast on Sundays.
Its components will be Sukti, Prasang, Saptahiki, Sanskrit Darshan, Gyan Vigyan, Bal Vallari, Ek Bharat-Shreshtha Bharat and Anvikshiki.

Jul 04, 2020

Government Launches 'Swachh Survekshan 2021'

Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri launched the 'Swachh Survekshan 2021' -- the sixth edition of the annual cleanliness survey -- and said that the exercise this year will focus on wastewater treatment and other parameters. According to the Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry, state ranking will also be announced under the survey, to be measured based on their fund utilisation and support to respective local bodies, among others.
As per Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Puri, every year, the 'Swachh Survekshan' is redesigned innovatively to ensure the process becomes more robust with focus on sustaining the behaviour change.
The minister also announced new category of awards titled 'Prerak Daaur Samman' as part of 'Swachh Survekshan 2021'.
The Prerak Daaur Samman has five additional sub-categories -Divya (Platinum), Anupam (Gold), Ujjwal (Silver), Udit (Bronze), Aarohi (Aspiring) - with top three cities being recognised in each.

Union HRD Minister and Union Health Minister Launch Drug Discovery Hackathon 2020

Ramesh Pokhriyal 'Nishank', the Union Minister of HRD (Human Resource Development) and Dr. Harsh Vardhan, Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare and minister of Science and Technology launched the Drug Discovery Hackathon (DDH 2020) through an online platform in the presence of Shri Sanjay Dhotre, Minister of State (HRD). It is a first of its kind national initiative supporting the Drug Discovery Process.
The objective of DDH 2020 is to identify drug candidates against SARS-CoV-2 by in-silico drug discovery through the hackathon and follow up by chemical synthesis and biological testing utilizing computational methods such as machine learning, AI and big data.
The DDH2020 is a joint initiative of the Ministry of HRD, All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) and Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) and is supported by Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (CDAC), My Gov, Schrodinger and ChemAxon.

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