General Awareness

NATIONAL AFFAIRS - August 2018

Aug 2018

Mar 03, 2023

Power Regulator CERC Gets New Chairperson

Jishnu Barua became the new chairperson of power regulator Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC). Union Minister for Power R. K. Singh administered the oath of office and secrecy to Jishnu Barua, chairperson, Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC).
Barua was chief secretary of Assam from October 2020 to August 2022. Prior to this, he was additional chief secretary to Assam looking after various departments of the state from August 2017 to October 2020.
Post-retirement, Barua held the charge of chairperson of Assam Power Distribution Company Ltd.
The CERC has been established by the government of India under the provisions of the Electricity Regulatory Commissions Act, 1998. CERC is the central commission for the purposes of the Electricity Act, 2003 which has repealed the ERC Act, 1998.
The commission consists of a chairperson and four other members, including Chairperson, Central Electricity Authority, who is the ex-officio member of the commission.

All Chhattisgarh BJP MLAs Suspended from Assembly

All the 13 BJP MLAs were suspended for protesting in the well of the Chhattisgarh Assembly over the alleged targeted killings of the party's leaders. The proceedings had to be adjourned thrice within two hours.
The Opposition MLAs submitted a notice for an adjournment motion demanding a discussion on the murders of three BJP leaders by maoists earlier this year. But the request was denied, following which the MLAs protested alleging the BJP leaders had been targeted because they had spoken against religious conversions.

Nagaland Gets its First Women MLAs

Two women created history in Nagaland, becoming the first two women to win the Assembly polls. Hekani Jakhalu and Salhoutuonuo Kruse are both from Nagaland Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio's Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party (NDPP).
Hekani Jakhalu won the Dimapur III seat by defeating Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) leader Azheto Zhimomi by 1,536 votes.
Salhoutuonuo Kruse won the Western Angami 8 constituency by a slender margin of just seven votes. She defeated Keneizhakho Nakhro, who contested as an Independent candidate.
No woman was elected an MLA in Nagaland, though the state has witnessed 14 Assembly elections since its formation.
The NDPP, led by Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio, has been in an alliance with the BJP since the last elections in 2018. The alliance, which had won 30 seats in the previous election, has won or is currently leading in 37 seats and is set to retain power in Nagaland. The majority mark is 31 in the 60-seat Nagaland Assembly.

BJP and its Allies Win the Assembly Elections in Tripura and Nagaland

Maintaining the status quo in the North-eastern states of Tripura, Meghalaya and Nagaland, the BJP and its allies returned to power in the results declared.
The party overcame a Left-Congress alliance and the TIPRA Motha, which had emerged as a force to reckon with in tribal seats, to bag 32 seats in Tripura, two more than the halfway mark. It retained power in Nagaland along with senior alliance partner Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party (NDPP). In Meghalaya, BJP's senior ruling ally National People's Party (NPP) emerged as the single-largest party – both are expected to tie up again after fighting the elections separately.
The Tripura result underlined the party's popular acceptance in the erstwhile Left bastion that it won for the first time in 2018 even though its seat tally came down from 36 five years ago to 32. As the final numbers emerge in Meghalaya, it will be 45-year-old Conrad Sangma, the son of former Lok Sabha Speaker P. A. Sangma, who will call the shots on the final seat-sharing arrangement. In Nagaland, the NDPP-BJP alliance increased its tally from 29 to 37 and Neiphiu Rio is poised to return as CM for the fifth term.

Mar 02, 2023

PM Modi Inaugurates 3-Day Raisina Dialogue

The eighth edition of the annual Raisina Dialogue, the flagship conference on geopolitics and geo-strategy, began in New Delhi. It was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni was the chief guest and keynote speaker at its inaugural session, according to the Foreign Ministry which is organising the event in collaboration with the Observer Research Foundation from March 2-4.
The conference, organised under the theme "Provocation, Uncertainty, Turbulence: Lighthouse in the Tempest?", will witness the participation of representatives from over 100 countries.
The Raisina Dialogue is India's flagship conference on geopolitics and geo-strategy. During the past eight years, the Raisina Dialogue has consistently grown in stature and profile to establish itself as one of the leading global conferences on international affairs.

Kejriwal Forwards Names of Atishi, Saurabh Bharadwaj to L-G for Appointment

After two jailed ministers of the Aam Aadmi party (AAP) -- Manish Sisodia and Satyendar Jain -- stepped down, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal forwarded the names of two party leaders for their appointment to the Cabinet to Lt. Governor V.K. Saxena.
Kejriwal recommended the names of party' MLA Atishi and Saurabh Bharadwaj for the induction into the cabinet to L-G Saxena. Atishi and Bharadwaj are supposed to take the seat of Manish Sisodia and Satyendar Jain in the Delhi Cabinet.

Mar 01, 2023

Karnataka and Gujarat are among the Major States Making the Most Progress in Transition to Clean ...

According to a recent assessment from the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA) and Ember, Gujarat and Karnataka are two states that are progressing the fastest in terms of overall preparedness and commitment for the switch to clean electricity.
The paper examines 16 Indian states across four dimensions, which together supply 90% of the nation's yearly electricity needs. The aspects measure a state's readiness to move away from fossil fuel-based energy, its capacity to encourage greener market participation, the dependability of its power system, and its policies supporting the decarbonisation of the power sector. The States' Electricity Transition (SET) scoring system, which evaluates how well each state is doing in making the switch to clean electricity, was created by the report's authors using the results of this investigation.

UK Foreign Secretary in India, to Launch Scheme for Young Professionals

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar on 1 March, 2023 held a bilateral meeting with UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly, holding discussions on the commencement of the Young Professional Scheme.
During a visit to the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) in Delhi on 1 March, 2023, the Foreign Secretary marked the opening of the Young Professionals Scheme, an ambitious new partnership between the UK and India which allows up 3,000 Brits and 3,000 Indians a year the right to live and work in the other country for up to two years, read a release from the UK Embassy.

Feb 28, 2023

Karnataka, Gujarat Make most Progress in Clean Energy Transition

According to a new joint report from the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA) and Ember, Karnataka and Gujarat are the Indian states making the most progress in overall preparedness and commitment in the transition to clean electricity.
The report analysed 16 Indian states, which together account for 90 per cent of the country's annual power requirement, across four dimensions.
The dimensions track a state's preparedness to shift away from fossil fuel-based power, its ability to incentivise greener market participation, its power system's reliability and policies pushing for power sector decarbonisation.

Shailesh Pathak Appointed FICCI Secretary General

Former bureaucrat Shailesh Pathak was appointed as the new Secretary General of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI). He will take charge from March 1.
In a career spanning 37 years, Pathak has spent time in government as an IAS Officer as well as helmed large companies in the private sector. His extensive international exposure includes an Eisenhower Fellowship in 2000 as an emerging Indian Leader, an EU Visitor Program hosted by the European Commission 2003, and a Chevening scholarship at the University of Oxford in 2011.
FICCI also announced that Arun Chawla, Director General, will superannuate on June 30, 2023.
Established in 1927, on the advice of Mahatma Gandhi by G.D. Birla and Purshottamdas Thakurdas, it is the largest, one of the oldest and the apex business organisation in India. It is a non-government, not-for-profit organisation.

Union Government Approves Renaming of Aurangabad & Osmanabad in Maharashtra

The Modi government's nod to the Maharashtra government's proposal to formally rename Aurangabad and Osmanabad is likely to help the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena score points ahead of civic polls in some of the state's major cities including Aurangabad, scheduled later this year.
The state government had proposed that Aurangabad and Osmanabad — named after Islamic rulers Aurangzeb and Mir Osman Ali Khan — be renamed as Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar and Dharashiv, respectively.
The move came days after the Election Commission (EC) officially recognised the Shinde-faction as 'Shiv Sena' and allotted it the party's traditional 'bow and arrow' symbol.

Feb 27, 2023

Bhopal Gets State's First Women and Child-friendly Police Station

Madhya Pradesh's first women and child-friendly police station was set up in Jahangirabad, Bhopal.
The newly designed police station has all the basic requirements.
This police station building has been re-designed, with arrangements like a waiting room, reception window, feeding room and place for children to play have been made in the garden for visitors.
This is the first women and child-friendly police station in that state, that provides all the facilities to a mother and her child.

Kerala, UN Women Sign Pact to Boost Women-friendly Activities in Tourism

The Kerala government entered into an agreement with the United Nations (UN) Women to boost women-friendly activities in the State's tourism sector.
A memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed by Kerala Tourism and UN Women India agreed to work towards promoting gender-inclusive tourism sites in the state.
The MoU was signed by Kerala Tourism Director P. B. Nooh and UN Women India representative Susan Ferguson and it would be implemented by the Responsible Tourism Mission.
As per the pact inked at the first-ever Global Responsible Tourism Summit in Kumarakom, both parties will promote women-friendly tourism in Kerala.

In Nagaland, PM Narendra Modi's 3P Formula for State's Development

Prime Minister Narendra Modi addressed a poll rally in Chumoukedima district to campaign for the February 27 Nagaland assembly elections. The Prime Minister lashed out at the Congress and said that the grand old party remote-controlled Nagaland from Delhi and used the north-eastern states like an ATM.
As per PM Modi, BJP's mantra for Nagaland has been - peace, progress and prosperity and this is the reason why people's trust in BJP is rising. He said that the NDA is striving to bring permanent peace in Nagaland so that the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958 is completely lifted from the state.

Aramane Giridhar Gets Extension as Defence Secretary

Defence Secretary Aramane Giridhar was given extension in service. Giridhar is a 1988-batch Indian Administrative Service officer of the Andhra Pradesh cadre. The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet approved his extension in service as Secretary, Department of Defence, beyond the age of superannuation for a period up to October 31, 2024
He was due to retire in June after completing 60 years of superannuation.

Union Minister Inaugurates International Biotech Conclave in Northeast

Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science & Technology; Minister of State (Independent Charge) Earth Sciences, Jitendra Singh inaugurated the "International Biotech Conclave", the first-ever in Northeast, of such high scale and such futuristic as well as global themes.
He said that for the first time since Independence, the North Eastern Region organised an event involving over 700 International and national delegates, representing over 35 countries from across the world.
"International Bio-resource Conclave" along with the 22nd Congress of the International Society for Ethno-pharmacology and the 10th Congress of Society for Ethno-pharmacology (ISE SFEC-2023) was held from February 24-26, 2023 at the City Convention Centre, Imphal, Manipur with the theme "Reimagine Ethnopharmacology: Globalisation of Traditional Medicine".

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