General Awareness

NATIONAL AFFAIRS - August 2019

Aug 2019

Dec 24, 2021

Goyal, Australian Trade Minister Holds Talk to Expedite FTA Negotiations

Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal and his Australian counterpart Dan Tehan held talks to expedite talks for the proposed free trade agreement, which aimed at enhancing economic ties between the countries.
The ministers appreciated the progress made in various rounds of talks between the chief negotiators of both sides and discussed the way forward for an early conclusion of interim agreement.
Both sides also directed the officials to speed up the negotiations to pave the way for a comprehensive agreement, which is officially dubbed as Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA).

Dec 23, 2021

Ex-BJP MLA Carlose Almeida Joins Congress in Goa

Former BJP MLA in Goa Carlos Almeida joined the Congress in Panaji, a day after resigning from the ruling party and the legislative Assembly, a switch over coming just a few months before polls.
Almeida joined the opposition party in presence of All India Congress Committee in-charge of Goa Dinesh Gundu Rao, Goa Pradesh Congress Committee President Girish Chodankar and Leader of Opposition Digambar Kamat, among others.
Almeida, who was elected to the Assembly from Vasco, became the second sitting BJP legislator to quit after Alina Saldanha.

Dec 22, 2021

Karnataka Announces Reservation for Transgenders in Police

In what can be termed as good news for transgenders in Karnataka, the state government has decided to give 1 per cent reservation to them across all the ranks in the police department.
This move will help in changing the perception towards transgenders. It will bring them into mainstream and remove all the prejudices against them in society.
Karnataka police department is also recruiting both men and women by giving them equal opportunities.
There was reservation for women in police department, three-four decades back. But now the department aims to reach 25 per cent of women in the police force.
The police department has kept five of 70 seats reserved for transgenders, the notification for which was issued.

Haryana Launches New Integrated Command and Control Center in Karnal

Haryana Chief Minister, Manohar Lal Khattar opened the new Integrated Command and Control Center (ICCC) under the Karnal Smart City project. The new Command and Control Center will enable the functioning of advanced systems such as adaptive traffic control, automatic number plate recognition, detection of red-light violation and speed violation.
With the inauguration of ICCC, a slew of smart traffic management systems in the city went alive. Over 500 CCTV cameras at various locations now enable the functioning of advanced systems such as adaptive traffic control, automatic number plate recognition, detection of red-light violation and speed violation.
The inauguration also marks the rolling out of the public address system, various web and mobile apps related to the city administration, building management systems, environmental management systems, among others. Integrated with IT systems of different government departments, ICCC would act as the city's emergency and disaster management centre enhancing safety, security and providing better public services in the city. It will also help the police in maintaining law and order.

Nagaland Creates 3 New Districts

The Nagaland government created three new districts bringing the total number of such administrative units in the state to 15.
The state Cabinet decided on the formation of Tseminyu, Niuland, and Chumukedima districts.
While the Tseminyu sub-division in Kohima district was upgraded to a district, Niuland and Chumukedima were carved out of Dimapur district.
Though there were demands from at least 11 tribes for the creation of new districts, the Cabinet could consider only three of them as some districts are inhabited by only one tribe and those cannot be divided.

Dec 21, 2021

Diplomat Pradeep Rawat Made Next Envoy to China

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said that diplomat Pradeep Kumar Rawat will be India's next Ambassador to China. Rawat, who will succeed Vikram Misri, had earlier served in Hong Kong and Beijing.
At present, Rawat, an Indian Foreign Service (IFS) officer of 1990 batch, is serving as the Indian ambassador to the Netherlands.
Rawat's appointment comes in the midst of a lingering dispute with China along the border in eastern Ladakh.
Rawat had served as ambassador of India to Indonesia and Timor-Leste from September 2017 to December 2020.

CM Patnaik Inaugurates Odisha's Longest Bridge over Mahanadi

Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik inaugurated the state's longest bridge over Mahanadi River at Gopinathpur in Cuttack district.
The 3.4-km-long bridge, connecting Singhanath Pitha and Baideswar in Cuttack district, reduces the distance by 45 km, benefitting around five lakh people.
The bridge, constructed in T-shape, is built at a cost of Rs. 111 crore.
Patnaik had laid the foundation stone of the bridge on February 28, 2014.

Nagaland Assembly Unanimously Adopts Resolution Demanding Repeal of AFSPA

The Nagaland Assembly unanimously adopted a resolution demanding that the Government of India repeal the AFSPA from the Northeast, especially Nagaland, while also urging the negotiators of Indo-Naga political dialogue to bring the talks to their logical conclusion for peace to prevail in the restive state.
The resolution moved by Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio was adopted by voice vote during the one-day special session of the Assembly held to discuss the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA), 1958, and its application to Nagaland in the aftermath of the killing of 14 civilians by security forces earlier this month.

Dec 20, 2021

TMC Appoints Pawan Varma as National Vice-president

The Trinamool Congress appointed former Janata Dal (United) MP Pawan Varma as its national vice-president.
Mr. Varma was an adviser to Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, but parted ways with the JD(U) in 2020 and later joined the TMC.
He was also a former Indian Foreign Service officer.

India's First International Arbitration and Mediation Centre Opens in Hyderabad

India's first International Arbitration and Mediation Centre (IAMC) was jointly inaugurated by Chief Justice of India, N.V. Ramana, and Telangana Chief Minister, K. Chandrasekhar Rao in Hyderabad.
Life trustee of the centre, Justice R.V. Raveendran, Supreme Court judges L. Nageswara Rao, Hima Kohli and judges from the Telangana and Andhra Pradesh high courts attended the event.

Congress Announces Pre-poll Alliance with GFP

The Congress and the Goa Forward Party (GFP) announced a pre-poll alliance for the upcoming state Assembly elections due in February next year. Notably, the GFP had earlier shared power with the BJP in Goa, but withdrew its support in July 2019 after its all three MLAs, including party president Vijai Sardesai, who was then Deputy Chief Minister in the Pramod Sawant-led government, were dropped from the cabinet.
All India Congress Committee in-charge for Goa, Dinesh Gundu Rao said that he is confident the Congress-GFP alliance will oust BJP in the state.

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