General Awareness

GOVERNMENT POLICIES AND SCHEMES - January 2019

Jan 2019

Nov 28, 2019

Lok Sabha Passes Bill to Merge 2 UTs

A Bill which seeks to merge two Union Territories Daman and Diu, and Dadra and Nagar Haveli into one was passed by Lok Sabha.
The Bill was passed by voice vote with the government asserting that the merger will fast-track development of the two union territories.

Lok Sabha Passes SPG Bill

The Lok Sabha passed a bill to amend the Special Protection Group (SPG) Act.
The amendment says the SPG will now protect only the Prime Minister and members of his immediate family residing with him at his official residence.
The bill was passed amid a walkout by the Congress. Several opposition members also wanted changes in the bill which were defeated by voice votes.
It will also provide security to former prime ministers and their immediate family members staying with them at the residence allotted for a period of five years from the date on which they cease to hold the office.
The BJP-led central government recently removed the elite cover given to the Gandhi family and replaced it with Z+ security, which created a controversy and saw protests by Congress workers.
In a debate in the Lok Sabha, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said that the elite protection unit was raised for securing only the Prime Minister and amendments brought in by the government will restore the original intent of the Act. He accused the previous governments of diluting the law governing the SPG.

Nov 27, 2019

Transgender Persons Rights Bill Passed in RS

The Rajya Sabha passed a bill which seeks to provide a mechanism for social, economic and educational empowerment of transgenders.

The Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Bill, 2019, was moved for consideration and passage in Rajya Sabha by Social Justice Minister Thawar Chand Gehlot on November 20, 2019.

At the time of introduction, Samajwadi Party MP Jaya Bachchan had requested for the revision of the bill, saying that it segregates transgender from other people.

The bill seeks to define the expression "transgender person", prohibit discrimination against them, confer them right to self-perceived gender identity and provide that no establishment shall discriminate against them in matters of employment, recruitment, promotion and other related issues.

It also provides for grievance redressal mechanism, establishing a National Council for Transgender Persons and providing punishment for contraventions of the provisions of the proposed legislation.

The bill was first introduced in Lok Sabha in July 2019 and was passed on August 5, 2019.

National Institute of Design (Amendment) Bill Gets Nod

The parliament gave its nod to a Bill which seeks to declare four National Institutes of Design in Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Assam and Haryana as institutions of national importance.
Several amendments to the Bill moved by opposition members were defeated by voice vote.
The National Institute of Design (Amendment) Bill, 2019 was passed by the Lok Sabha by a voice vote.
The Rajya Sabha had cleared the Bill during the previous session. Earlier, these institutes came under the Societies Registration Act and did not have the power to issue degrees or diplomas.

Nov 26, 2019

Apex Court Allows Ravidas Temple in Tughlaqabad

The Supreme Court allowed the construction of a permanent temple dedicated to Guru Ravidas at Tughlaqabad in south Delhi.
A plea filed by Congress leader Ashok Tanwar seeking modification of the court's earlier order was allowed by a Bench of Justices Arun Mishra and Surya Kant.
As per the court's earlier order, the new structure which was proposed to be built in place of the demolished structure was to be a porta cabin made of wood. The court has now agreed to the proposal that the new structure can be a permanent one.
This new temple will come up at the same spot where the earlier temple demolished by DDA, was located.

Nov 25, 2019

Maharashtra Becomes the Only State to Protect Scribes

Even as the political slugfest in Maharashtra continues, President Ram Nath Kovind has given his assent to the Maharashtra Media Persons and Media Institutions (Prevention of Violence and Damage or Loss to Property) Bill, 2017, one of the first laws in the country which ensures protection for journalists.
The Bill, passed by the Devendra Fadnavis government, has been pending for two years with the Centre and recommends punishment up to three years or a fine of up to ₹50,000 or both in case of attack on mediapersons on duty. Acts of violence against mediapersons will be treated as cognizable, nonbailable and cases under this law will be investigated by an officer not below the rank of DySP/ACP.
As per the Maharashtra legislation, the offender shall be liable to pay compensation for damage or loss caused to the property of the mediaperson or the media house as determined by court. The assailant would be liable to reimburse the medical expenditure incurred by the mediapersons in the attack.
According to the World Press Freedom Index 2019, India dropped two places on a global press freedom index to be ranked 140th out of 180 countries in the annual 'Reporters Without Borders'.

Nov 23, 2019

Bill to ban e-Cigarettes introduced in Lok Sabha

Union health minister Harsh Vardhan introduced a bill in the Lok Sabha that seeks to prohibit the production, manufacture, import, export, transport, sale, distribution, storage and advertisement of electronic cigarettes.
Vardhan said the Prohibition of Electronic Cigarettes (Production, Manufacture, Import, Export, Transport, Sale, Distribution, Storage and Advertisement) Bill, 2019, is aimed at protecting people from the harmful effects of e-cigarettes.
E-cigarettes are battery-operated devices that produce aerosol by heating a solution containing nicotine. These include all forms of Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems (ENDS), Heat Not Burn Products, e-hookah and the likes. Harsh Vardhan said 30 countries have banned e-cigarettes, while 98 have regulatory mechanisms in place for the same.
About 18 states and two Union territories in India--i.e. Gujarat, Punjab, Karnataka, Haryana, Mizoram, Kerala, Jammu & Kashmir, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Jharkhand, Himachal Pradesh, Puducherry, Rajasthan, Meghalaya, Nagaland and Odisha--have already banned the use and sale of e-cigarettes, vape pens and e-hookah over health concerns.

Odisha Govt Asks Employees to take Online Courses on Better Governance

Odisha government has asked its 3 lakh-odd employees to enrol into policy-oriented online courses offered by institutions like IMF, World Bank and Abdul Latif Jameel Poverty Action Lab for a grounding on fiscal policy, financial markets and institutions and macroeconomic management among several other subjects.
The finance department in a letter asked all the departments to order the Group-A, B and C employees to get themselves registered for the online courses offered by these institutions as part of the holistic development of the skills of the employees.

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