General Awareness

NATIONAL AFFAIRS - May 2022

May 2022

Feb 03, 2024

PM Narendra Modi Inaugurates India's First Global Mobility Expo

Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the Bharat Mobility Global Expo, a groundbreaking event in India's automotive landscape. The expo took place in the national capital, this expo aimed to highlight India's emergence as a global hub for mobility. With over 800 exhibitors and 50 overseas participants, the event covered the entire mobility value chain.
India, one of the largest vehicle markets, aims to increase the export share from the current 14% to 25% of all passenger vehicles by 2030.
Representatives from 47 countries joined the expo, emphasizing its global significance.
The event focused on fostering collaborations and partnerships between domestic and international stakeholders.

India, Maldives Agree to Phased Replacement of Military Personnel from Island

The governments of India and Maldives agreed to a phased replacement of the Indian military personnel posted in the South Asian archipelago. The development came amid New Delhi's emphasis on 'mutually workable solutions' after newly-elected pro-China President Muizzu called upon New Delhi to pull out its personnel from the island nation.
A total of 77 Indian military personnel are posted in the island nation primarily to operate two helicopters and an aircraft used for medical evacuations and humanitarian missions. The ties between New Delhi and Male have faced challenges since pro-China President Muizzu assumed power in November 2023.
India, Maldives agreed that India will replace the military personnel in one of the three aviation platforms by 10 March 2024, and will complete replacing military personnel in the other two platforms by 10 May 2024.
From the looks of the second core group meet readouts and outcomes, the development appears to be a win-win achievement by both sides, with replacement of Indian military personnel with Indian civilian personnel.

Feb 02, 2024

Mera Yuva Bharat (MY Bharat) Portal Surpasses 1.45 Crore Youth Registrations

The Mera Yuva Bharat (MY Bharat) portal garnered over 1.45 crore youth registrations within a remarkable three-month period, attesting to its widespread popularity. Launched by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi on October 31, 2023, the platform has swiftly become a crucial driver of youth development and engagement.
The portal offers diverse opportunities, events, and volunteering activities, including collaborations with Police, Urban Local Bodies (ULBs), and various Ministries.
Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi acknowledged the overwhelming response to MY Bharat, emphasizing its status as the largest platform for the twenty-first-century youth of Bharat. The platform's swift and impactful outreach was highlighted during a conversation with NCC and NSS Volunteers on January 27, 2024.

Bhutan Gets Lion's Share in MEA Development Aid

Bhutan, Nepal, Maldives, and Mauritius got the lion's share of the Ministry of External Affairs' development assistance for 2024-25. The MEA's total development assistance to various countries and regions such as Latin America and Eurasia was pegged at Rs. 4,883 crore.
The ministry was allocated a total of Rs. 22,154 crore for the 2024-25 fiscal in the Interim budget as against last year's outlay of Rs. 18,050 crore.
In line with India's 'Neighbourhood First' policy, the largest share of aid portfolio for 2024-25 went to Bhutan with an allocation of Rs. 2,068 crore as against Rs. 2,400 crore in 2023-24.
Nepal was provided Rs. 700 crore against Rs. 650 crore in 2023-24. The assistance to the Maldives was kept at Rs. 600 crore as against Rs. 770 crore in 2023-24, despite recent strain in the bilateral ties. The allocation for Chabahar Port was maintained at Rs. 100 crore, underlining India's focus on connectivity projects with Iran.
In continuation with India's special relationship with the people of Afghanistan, a budgetary aid of Rs. 200 crore was set aside. In 2023-24, it was Rs. 220 crore. An amount of Rs. 120 crore will be provided to Bangladesh against Rs. 130 crore in 2023-24. As per budget documents, Sri Lanka will get development aid worth Rs. 75 crore (up from Rs. 60 crore in 2023-24), Mauritius to receive Rs. 370 crore (up from Rs. 330 crore), while for Myanmar it is at Rs. 250 crore (down from Rs. 370 cr in 2023-24).

India's First Beachside Start-up Fest in Mangalore

India's first beachside start-up fest, the Mangalore Beachside Start-up Fest is set to unfold from February 16 to 18, marking a significant milestone in the region's entrepreneurial landscape. With a focus on nurturing and promoting nascent ventures, this event promises to be a catalyst for the burgeoning start-up ecosystem in Mangalore.
Taking cues from the acclaimed South Summit held in Spain, the organizers of the fest aim to replicate its success in Mangalore. By adopting proven strategies and best practices, they seek to infuse the local start-up scene with fresh energy and enthusiasm.
Under the banner of Tapasya Beach Festival (TBF), the Mangalore Beachside Start-up Fest is poised to become a hub of creativity and innovation. Beyond merely showcasing startups, it endeavors to foster meaningful connections, spark innovation, and cultivate an entrepreneurial spirit among participants.

Tamil Actor Vijay Names His Political Party as 'Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam'

Tamil Actor Vijay announced his entry into politics ahead of Lok Sabha elections 2024. The actor named his party Tamilaga Vetri Kazham.
Vijay said that his party will not contest the 2024 elections and support any party.
Vijay's entry into politics marked another high-profile entry in Tamil Nadu politics from cinema after the likes of Kamal Haasan, M. G. Ramachandran, Sivaji Ganesan, etc.

Champai Soren Takes Oath as Jharkhand CM

Champai Soren of the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha took oath as the Chief Minister of the state after Governor C. P. Radhakrishnan, invited the loyalist of JMM leader Hemant Soren to Raj Bhavan to form the government. Champai Soren has mandated to demonstrate his majority in a floor test, which will be held within the next 10 days.
The invitation came hours after Champai Soren urged the governor to accept his claim to form the government at the earliest amid political uncertainties in the state since the resignation of Hemant Soren.
The ruling JMM-Congress-RJD alliance of Jharkhand has 47 MLAs in the 81-member house, where the majority mark is 41.

Feb 01, 2024

IAS Officer Radha Raturi Appointed First Woman Chief Secretary of Uttarakhand

Senior IAS officer Radha Raturi was appointed as the first woman Chief Secretary of Uttarakhand.
Raturi, an Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of the 1988 batch, replaced Sukhbir Singh Sandhu whose tenure ended. She is the first woman to hold the top administrative post in Uttarakhand.
During her long administrative career, Raturi has held several important positions. She has worked as a bureaucrat both in undivided Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, which came into existence in November 2000.

FM Nirmala Sitharaman Presents Her Sixth Straight Budget

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman equalled the record of former Prime Minister Morarji Desai as she presents her sixth straight budget on February 1. Nirmala Sitharaman has presented five full budgets since July 2019 and is the first full-time woman Finance Minister of the country. With the presentation of interim budget on February 1, Nirmala Sitharaman surpassed the records of her predecessors- Manmohan Singh, Arun Jaitley, P. Chidambaram and Yashwant Sinha- who presented five budgets in a row.
Morarji Desai, as Finance Minister, presented five annual budgets and one interim budget between 1959-1964. He holds the tag of presenting 10 budgets- the maximum by any Finance Minister.
After the PM Modi government came to power in 2014, Arun Jaitley took charge of the finance ministry and presented five budgets in a row from 2014-15 to 2018-19.
Piyush Goyal presented the interim budget for 2019-20 on February 1, 2019.
After the 2019 general elections, Nirmala Sitharaman was given the charge of the finance portfolio, becoming the second woman to have presented budget after Indira Gandhi, who had presented the budget for financial year 1970-71.
The interim budget is presented when general elections are due in the country. The new government, which is likely to be formed around June, will come up with a final budget for 2024-25 sometime in July.

ED Arrests Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren

Hemant Soren, the Jharkhand Chief Minister and head of the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM), was arrested after more than seven hours of questioning by the Enforcement Directorate over alleged ownership of a piece of land. The agency had also seized Rs. 36 lakh in cash and a luxury SUV from his Delhi residence a day earlier.
Not long before his arrest, Soren submitted his resignation to Governor C. P. Radhakrishnan at Raj Bhavan.

Jan 31, 2024

Anil Kumar Lahoti is New TRAI Chairman

The government appointed former railway board Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Anil Kumar Lahoti as Chairman of Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI). The post was lying vacant for nearly four months since the retirement of P. D. Vaghela on September 30, 2023.
During his more than 36 years of career in railways, Lahoti worked in various capacities over Central, Northern, North Central, Western and West Central Railways and in Railway Board.
Telecom Regulatory Authority of India was established on February 20, 1997 by an Act of Parliament to regulate telecom services and tariffs in India. Earlier, regulation of telecom services and tariffs was overseen by the Central Government.

Rajya Sabha Chairman Revokes Suspension of 11 Opposition MPs

The Rajya Sabha Privileges Committee held 11 suspended opposition MPs guilty of breach of privilege and contempt of the Council of States, but Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar revoked their suspension allowing them to attend the Budget session.
The MPs held 'guilty of breach of privilege and contempt of the Council' of States were Jebi Mather Hisham, L. Hanumanthaiah, Neeraj Dangi, Rajmani Patel, Kumar Ketkar, G. C. Chandrashekhar, Binoy Viswam, Sandosh Kumar P, M. Mohamed Abdulla, John Brittas and A. A. Rahim.

Jan 30, 2024

Nitish Kumar Forms Govt. in Bihar with NDA

Nitish Kumar, who resigned as Bihar Chief Minister, formed a government in the state once again in alliance with the BJP.
In the aftermath of the alliance with the BJP, two Deputy Chief Ministers were appointed—Vijay Sinha and Samrat Choudhary. A total of 8 leaders took oath as cabinet ministers in the new government led by Nitish Kumar. The newly formed Cabinet includes members from both the BJP and JD(U), along with representatives from other parties. The list of ministers who took oath includes Samrat Choudhary, Vijay Kumar Sinha, Dr. Prem Kumar, Vijay Kumar Choudhary, Bijendra Prasad Yadav, Shravan Kumar, Santosh Kumar Suman, and Sumit Kumar Singh.

IREDA Releases Vigilance Journal 'Pahal'

Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency (IREDA), Government of India enterprise under the administrative control of Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, released 'Pahal'- the insightful house journal of its Vigilance Department. The journal was unveiled by Chairman & Managing Director of IREDA, Pradip Kumar Das. The ceremony took place at the registered office of IREDA in New Delhi, where Chief Vigilance Officer Ajay Kumar Sahani and other senior officials graced the occasion. The initiative marked a significant step towards transparency, accountability, and the promotion of renewable energy initiatives by IREDA.

Centre Extends Ban on SIMI under UAPA for another 5 Years

The Centre extended ban on the Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) as an 'unlawful association' for five years under the UAPA.
The Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) was first banned on February 1, 2014 by the Indian government. The ban was extended by five years in 2019. Founded in 1977 in UP's Aligarh with Mohammad Ahmadullah Siddiqi, professor of Journalism and Public Relations at the Western Illinois University Macomb as its founding president, this organisation operates on the agenda to convert India into an Islamic nation. SIMI was first declared as an outlawed outfit in 2001 and has been banned on several occasions.
SIMI operated in states including Uttar Pradesh, Kerala, Delhi, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Assam, West Bengal, Maharashtra and parts of Gujarat.

Beating Retreat Ceremony 2024

Beating retreat ceremony that officially marked the end of Republic Day festivities was held at Vijay Chowk.
The ceremony began with the massed band's 'Shankhnaad' tune, which was followed by the enthralling tunes such as 'Veer Bharat', 'Sangam Dur', 'Deshon ka Sartaj Bharat', 'Bhagirathi', and 'Arjuna' by Pipes and Drums band. The CAPF bands will play 'Bharat Ke Jawan' and 'Vijay Bharat' among others.
The principal conductor of the ceremony was Lt Col Vimal Joshi. While the Army Band conductor was Subedar Major Moti Lal, MCPO MUS II M Antony and Warrant Officer Ashok Kumar was the Conductors of Indian Navy and Indian Air Force respectively. The conductor of CAPF band was Constable G. D. Ranidevi. The Buglers performed under the leadership of Naib Subedar Umesh Kumar, and Pipes and Drums band was played under the instructions of Subedar Major Rajender Singh.
President Droupadi Murmu, Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Defence Mister Rajnath Singh were among the dignitaries who attended the ceremony.

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