NATIONAL JUNE 2015
- New record set on International Yoga day
India created two world records on International Yoga Day with the yoga performance at Rajpath led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi
The record for largest yoga class, with 35,985 people, and the record for most nationalities participating in a single yoga event -- 84.
The UN had announced June 21 as the International Day of Yoga last year after PM Modi's appeal at the General Assembly.
Narendra Modi proposed this date, because it is the longest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere and has special significance in many parts of the world.
On 11 December, India's Permanent Representative Asoke Mukherji introduced the draft resolution in UNGA. The draft text received broad support from 177 Member States who adopted the text without a vote. This initiative found support from many global leaders. A total of 175 nations co-sponsored the resolution and had the highest number of co-sponsors ever for any UNGA Resolution of such nature. - Nathu La opens for Kailash Mansarovar Yatra today
Forty Indian pilgrims, bound for the Kailash Mansarovar pilgrimage will, on 22nd June, cross over from the Nathu La pass that links Sikkim and Tibet, inaugurating a new route that expands connectivity between India and China.
Nathu La is a mountain pass in the Himalayas. It connects the Sikkim with China's Tibet Autonomous Region. The pass, at 4,310 m (14,140 ft) above mean sea level, forms a part of an offshoot of the ancient Silk Road. Nathu means "listening ears" and Lameans "pass" in Tibetan. On the Indian side, the pass is 54 km (34 mi) east of Gangtok, the capital of Sikkim.
Nathu La is one of the second open trading border posts between China and India; the next is Shipkila in Himachal Pradesh and Lipulekh (or Lipulech) in Nepal is also an other way. Sealed by India after the 1962 Sino-Indian War, Nathu La was re-opened in 2006 following numerous bilateral trade agreements - Centre directs nine states to immediately implement Forest Rights Act
Centre has asked nine states to expeditiously implement the Forest Rights Act which recognizes the rights of scheduled tribes living in the forests for generations. Tribal affairs secretary Arun Jha has written to the chief secretaries of Bihar, West Bengal, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Uttarakhand, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh and Jharkhand to implement the act immediately.
The Ministry has also asked these states to set up special cells to monitor the implementation along with setting targets and time-lines for the same. The move comes in the backdrop of Prime Minister Narendra Modi directing the Ministry to implement the Act in a campaign mode and give land rights to tribals over the next two months. The Act is aimed at ensuring that forest-dwellers, including Scheduled Tribes, get their rights over forest land and non-timber forest produce - Govt to set up 100 centers to boost employability of youths
The central government will establish 100 National Career Counseling Centers across the country to boost the employability of the youths. Two of such centres will be established in Lucknow and Ghaziabad. According to the union Labour and employment minister Bandaru Dattatreya, these centres will be equipped with modern technology where employees and employers both will get best facilities.
Union minister said that these ultramodern Career centres will gradually replace the Employment Exchanges which have become redundant in the current scenario.
The Government is about to launch a unique U-WIN card (Unemployed workers identification Number) to the labourers of unorganised sector which will help them change their place of work and companies without compromising their interests and giving them all the benefits of schemes of labour welfare.
The central government has also consented to establish a 300 bedded hospital for labourers in Kanpur. The zonal labour conference of north central region was attended by J&K, Haryana, Punjab, Uttrakhand, Delhi, Chhattisgarh and host state UP. - Yoga compulsory in Schools
A day after the world celebrated International Yoga Day with nearly unprecedented enthusiasm, the HRD Ministry has decided to incorporate Yoga in school syllabus in govt-run schools
On 21st of June India displayed the power of Yoga to the world. The celebrations transcended boundaries. A two -day International Conference on Yoga for Holistic Health was also organised in the national capital on the occasion.
To mark the event, a two-day Rashtriya Yoga Shikshak Sammelan was inaugurated by HRD Minister Smriti Irani at Talkatora Indoor Stadium in New Delhi.
On the occasion, The HRD Minister also released the syllabus and course material for yoga studies. Yoga will now be taught as a compulsory subject not only from class VI to X in central government run schools but also as a training module in teacher education programmes.
Yoga will be introduced to students in government run schools across the country soon. The states are free to adopt it into their state level syllabus as well and to link with their course curriculum. A national-level competition on yoga will also be organised in Delhi next year where the best student will receive a cash prize of five lakh rupees - Yoga compulsory subject in SAI
Government has decided to include Yoga as compulsory subject in all Sports Authority of India (SAI) centers and Youth clubs. According to the Union Sports and Youth Affairs Minister, Sarbananda Sonowal the importance of Yoga in human life style and its impact on the society. - 82nd sahitya sammelan in Raichur from October 9
The 82nd Akhil Bharat Kannada Sahitya Sammelan will be held between October 9 and 11 on the campus of University of Agricultural Sciences, Raichur.
It was decided to form various subcommittees for the sammelan. Referring to the 52 subcommittees formed during the 78th sammelan at Gangavathi in Koppal district, district Kannada Sahitya Parishat president Mahantesh Maski proposed to reduce their number to 32. He proposed to have a single main stage for literary deliberations and performances.
Two main stages were set up for the 81st sammelan at Shravanabelagola. The second stage did not attract much audience. Let us arrange a single stage to avoid such an inconvenience
It was also decided to convene meetings of major subcommittees, including the one on finance, once every two weeks for ensuring the smooth conduct of the sammelan. - Govt cancels licences of over 2,000 NGOs
In a fresh move, government has cancelled the licences of over two thousand Non-Governmental Organisations, NGOs across the country. In the wake of the cancellation of their registrations, the NGOs would not be able to receive foreign funds. According to official data, Maharashtra tops the list with the cancellation of licences of 964 NGOs followed by Uttar Pradesh with 740 and Karnataka with 614. The licences of 88 NGOs were cancelled in Tamil Nadu.
The decision to cancel the registration of these entities under the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act was taken by the Union Home Ministry after the NGOs allegedly failed to submit their annual returns and in view of other anomalies. All the organisations were given proper notice by the Foreigners' Division of the Home Ministry with adequate time to reply. In two earlier rounds of crackdown this year, licences of nearly 13 thousand NGOs were cancelled for alleged violation of Foreign Contribution Regulation Act, FCRA - Mobile app to aid Clean Ganga Mission
The Centre has started a mobile application, where the public can upload pictures of pollution sources of the Ganga river for further action by the authorities concerned. According to a statement, Union Water Resources Minister Uma Bharti, launched the Bhuvan Ganga Mobile Application and web portal after signing of an MoU between the National Mission for Clean Ganga and the National Remote Sensing Centre, ISRO.
The App has been launched to effectively plan and monitor the Centre's flagship Clean Ganga Mission. It will be used as a tool to support decision making and planning for the Clean Ganga Mission. Bhuvan Mobile App is a user-friendly application to enable public to collect and report information on various pollution sources that affects the water quality of river Ganga. - Government clears setting up of six new IIMs
Cabinet on 24th June approved setting up of six Indian Institute of Management, IIMs. These IIMs will be set up in Vishakhapatnam, Bodh Gaya, Sirmaur, Nagpur, Sambalpur and Amritsar. It has also given its nod to renewal of long term agreements for supply of high grade iron ore to Japan and South Korea till March, 2018 through Metals and Minerals Trading Corporation, MMTC.
Cabinet also approved signing of an agreement for cooperation between Department Of Industrial Policy and Promotion, DIPP and Japan Patent Office to jointly work on intellectual property, human resource development, and capacity building. - National memorial in memory of Jai Prakash Narayan: Union Cabinet clears proposal to set up national memorial in memory of socialist leader Jai Prakash Narayan at his birth place in Bihar. Cabinet gives nod to supply of high grade iron ore to Japan and South Korea for three years.
- National board mooted for ‘Swachh Bharat’
The sub-group of the Chief Ministers on Swachh Bharat Mission has mooted creation of a national technical board for the mission. The national board would be a central agency to assist, advice and guide urban local bodies/municipalities/corporations besides recommending the right kind of technology that could be adopted for a given situation on solid, liquid waste and sanitation management.
The meeting held in Bangalore and presided over by Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu deliberated on solid and liquid waste management technologies as also the technologies recommended addressing the challenges posed by these wastes.
The group which shared their experiences gained during visits to waste to energy plants and water treatment facilities reviewed the best practices and emerging technologies in waste management. Three separate working sub-groups relating to technologies (to be chaired by NITI Ayog CEO), Behaviour change (to be headed by additional secretary, NITI Ayog) and another sub-group for exploring revenue models for operation and maintenance of community and public toilets were formed.
The sub-group lamented that the urban local bodies were lacking the capacity to evaluate and take decisions relating to waste management. The scope for formation of sanitation management cells comprising technical and supervisory staff for solid and liquid waste management also figured in the deliberations - Three flagship schemes launched
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 25th June launched three programmes to uplift the urban sector in the country. They are...- Housing for All in Urban areas
- Smart Cities Mission and
- The Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT).
Under the Housing for All scheme, the centre plans to provide about 2 crore houses in cities in next seven years.
He also launched NDA governments flagship programme to create 100 smart cities which will have better infrastructure and better quality of life through a forty eight thousand crore rupees investment.
The third programme is for Upgradation of urban infrastructure including providing drinking water, better transport and sewage management for 500 cities in a 50,000 crore rupees project. It has been named Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation, AMRUT. - Govt exempts educational institutions from prior green nod
The Government has exempted builders from obtaining prior green nod for construction of Universities, School, College and Hostel facilities provided they follow sustainable environment practises. In a circular, the Environment Ministry clarified that, for construction of Medical Universities and institutes having hospital facilities, prior environment clearance is required.
The Ministry exempted school, college and hostel for educational institutions from obtaining prior environment clearance under the provisions of the Environmental Impact Assessment, EIA Notification, 2006 subject to sustainable environmental management. The exemption granted for construction of what type of educational structures in the notification issued on December 22, 2014.
Besides, educational institutes, the Government has exempted builders from obtaining prior green nod for construction of industrial sheds. Industrial sheds are being used for keeping plant and machinery of industrial units. The Ministry said that they also include godowns and buildings connection with production related and other associated activities of the unit in the same premise - 38% of rural, 16% of urban households hold BPL cards
While a national list of the actual number of poor in India, based on the socio-economic CASTE survey, 38 per cent of rural and 16 per cent of urban households currently possess 'below poverty line' (BPL) cards, according to a new report from the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation.
BPL cards are given to households below the poverty line to give them access to subsidised food through the public distribution system (PDS). Further, five per cent of rural and two per cent of urban households have Antyodaya ration cards.
The report, based on the 68th national sample survey round carried out during 2011-12, finds that 56 per cent of households employed as casual labour in agriculture possessed BPL cards. The proportion of households possessing Antyodaya was the highest for casual labour in agriculture and non-agriculture households.
Households with the lowest levels of land ownership had the highest proportion of households with no ration card, estimated at 21 per cent. The possession of Antyodaya as well as BPL cards was seen to fall with increase in size of land possessed.
In both rural and urban areas, the possession of BPL cards was relatively high in the states of Andhra Pradesh (85 per cent rural, 49 per cent urban), Karnataka (64 per cent rural, 29 per cent urban) and Chhattisgarh (59 per cent rural, 33 per cent urban).
The report also estimates that 46 per cent of rural and 23 per cent of urban households purchased rice through PDS. However, the PDS share in total household rice consumption was roughly 28 per cent in the rural areas and about 20 per cent in urban areas. This suggests that PDS is unable to meet the basic household requirements and households are increasingly relying on markets to buy rice.
Purchase of rice from the PDS in the rural areas was observed to be the highest in Tamil Nadu (89 per cent), followed closely by Andhra Pradesh (87 per cent), Kerala (78 per cent) and Karnataka (75 per cent). In urban areas, states with the highest proportion were Tamil Nadu (67 per cent) followed by Kerala (61 per cent), Andhra Pradesh (about 45 per cent) and Chhattisgarh (42 per cent).
A similar trend is observed in wheat. At the all-India level, the proportion of households purchasing wheat through PDS stood at 34 per cent in rural areas and 19 per cent in urban areas. But the share of PDS in overall wheat consumption was 17.3 per cent in the rural sector and 10.1 per cent in the urban.
Purchase of wheat in rural areas was observed to be the highest in Maharashtra (40 per cent), Madhya Pradesh (36 per cent), and Gujarat (32 per cent). In urban areas, Madhya Pradesh (23 per cent) reported the highest incidence of purchase.
In the case of kerosene, 76 per cent of rural households and 30 per cent of urban households reported purchasing kerosene from PDS, while 22 per cent rural households and 16 per cent urban households reported buying kerosene from other sources. - CBI to probe foreign fund transfer to Teesta-linked firm, freezes account
Government on 26th June ordered a CBI probe into transfer of funds by US-based Ford Foundation to Sabrang Communication and Publishing Pvt Limited with which social activist Teesta Stelvad is associated. The firm is allegedly in violation of rules of rules of Foreign Contributions Regulation Act (FCRA) in accepting a donation of 2.9 lakh US dollars from Ford Foundation without getting clearance of the Home Ministry.
According to rules, an organisation or a private firm can accept donations from overseas only after it is registered under FCRA. This donation was, therefore, a serious violation of FCRA provisions which mandate funding from a foreign source to only those recipients who have FCRA registration.
A bank account of the firm located in Mumbai, has been frozen at the instruction of the Home Ministry. Gujarat government had asked the Home Ministry to take action against Ford Foundation, alleging that the US-based organisation was interfering in internal affairs of the country and also abetting communal disharmony through an NGO run by Setalvad.
The fund transfer from Ford Foundation has, at present, to be cleared by a nodal official in the Home Ministry. In April, the government had ordered that funds from Ford Foundation should not be released by any bank to any Indian NGO without mandatory permission from the Home Ministry. - AP and Telangana Governor meets Rajnath Singh
Andhra and Telangana Governor ESL Narasimhan meets Rajnath Singh over the tussle between Chief Ministers of the two states over powers and the cash for votes scam
The two Chief Ministers have been lashing out at each other ever since the cash-for-votes scam broke in the Telagu States.
Reports say that Attorney General communicated to the Governor to invoke section 8 of the AP Reorganisation Act.
Section 8 empowers the Governor to take over law & order powers in Hyderabad which is the joint capital of AP and Telengana for 10 years.
The AP Government has been seeking invocation of section 8 ever since the cash-for-votes scandal broke. The Telangana government has been opposing it saying law & order is a state subject.
The row ranging between the CMs has led to the registration of a case of sedition against Andhra CM Chandrababu Naidu and 5 other TDP leaders.
A local court ordered the lodging of the FIR over charges of making provocative remarks against Telangana CM K Chandrashekhar Rao and the Governor. - WHAT IS CASH FOR VOTES SCAM?
Cash for votes scam is the bone of contention between the two Chief Ministers. The scam surfaced in the wake of legislative council elections in Telangana.
The Telangana Anti-Corruption Bureau reportedly caught TDP MLA A Revanth Reddy red-handed while attempting to bribe nominated MLA Stephenson for his support. AP CM Chandrababu Naidu got embroiled in the controversy with the surfacing of an controversial phone conversation recording.
The audio led to the AP Govt charging Telangana CM of getting Naidu's phone tapped illegally triggering a full blown clash. Clearly, a tug of war for power between political rivals has led to a situation which cannot auger well for relations between two neighbouring states. - Barring Odisha & Punjab, no state acquired land under UPA law
Except for Odisha and Punjab, no state has acquired land under the land acquisition Act of 2013, according to data furnished by 20 states to the Joint Committee of Parliament examining contentious amendments to the law.
The states were asked by the panel to furnish the details of land acquired after the 2013 law came into force. So far, while 20 states and Union Territories have furnished the related information to the panel.Of these, 18 states have acquired no land since the 2013 Act came into force.
States and Union Territories which have acquired "nil" land include Northeastern states of Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Sikkim and Tripura, besides Goa, Chandigarh, Lakshadweep, Puducherry, Daman and Diu and Dadra and Nagar Haveli.
The BJD government in Odisha has acquired 303.564 acres of private land under Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition Rehabilitation and Resettlement (RFCTLARR) Act, 2013.The panel has asked the state governments to confirm whether the land has been acquired under RFCTLARR Act since the rules have not been notified yet.
In Punjab, ruled by SAD and BJP, the government has acquired only 26.54 acres of land under the 2013 Act.No land has been acquired under the 2013 Act in Andhra Pradesh till now.
However, compensation has been paid there for acquiring 86.07 acres of land in Visakhapatnam initiated under old land acquisition Act of 1894 where award had not been passed.This is being done as per Section 24(1) of the 2013 land acquisition Act and the amount of compensation is about Rs 18.49 crore. - Tourism Ministry to set up a National Medical and Wellness Tourism Board
Tourism Ministry will set up a National Medical and Wellness Tourism Board to boost medical tourism in India. The Board will help to bring together and showcase on an international platform the various streams of medicine available in India including Ayurveda, Yoga, Naturopathy, Unani and low-cost Allopathic treatments. He said this would give an organized structure to medical tourism in India with the participation of various stakeholders including the private ones.
The Help line 1363 or 1800-111-363 would be available in 12 foreign languages within a month. Currently, the Help line is available in Hindi and English. He said this would facilitate the foreign tourists and guide them on their arrival in India. - Govt launches mobile app to locate nearest blood bank
Government has launched a mobile application for easy access of information regarding the nearest blood bank in the country. According to Ministry of Health, the National Blood Transfusion Council has made available directory of all 2760 licensed blood banks at National Health Portal.
It also said that data of all 76 blood banks in Delhi NCR and 524 blood banks from across the country has been made available. The process of uploading data of remaining licensed blood banks in the country is under process and will be made available soon. - AP Govt launches ‘Mee Bhoomi’, a digital depository of land records
Andhra Pradesh Government has launched `Mee Bhoomi', a digital depository of land records. The portalmakes all land details along with Adangal/Pahani and 1-B details available for people.
It also enlists details of land owners, area, assessment, water source, soil type, nature of possession of the Land, Liabilities, Tenancy and Crops grown, etc. One can also view Individual/Village Adangal and 1B details on the website. - SIPRI report on armaments
India and Pakistan are reportedly expanding their nuclear arsenal, despite a global trend towards disarmament, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) has said.The SIPRI on 15th June published the findings in its ‘Yearbook 2015’, which assesses the current state of armaments, disarmament and international security in the world.
The disarmament report prepared by the Swedish institute said that though the number of warheads fell from 22,600 to 15,850 between 2010 and 2015, India (90 to 100 warheads) and Pakistan (100 to 120 warheads) undertook “extensive and expensive long-term modernisation programmes”.
According to the report, at the start of 2015, nine states – the United States, Russia, the United Kingdom, France, China, India, Pakistan, Israel and North Korea — possessed approximately 15,850 nuclear weapons, of which 4,300 were deployed with operational forces. The total number of nuclear warheads in the world is declining, primarily due to the US and Russia continuing to reduce their nuclear arsenal, albeit at a slower pace compared with a decade ago, the report says. - Govt launches website to connect employers, job seekers
Union Minister for Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, MSME Kalraj Mishra on 15th June launched a website for job seekers in the private sector which connects with the employers. - Housing for All scheme launched, interest relief for urban poor
Government on 17th June launched its 'Housing for All by 2022' mission and approved a substantial increase in interest relief on loan for the urban poor to promote affordable homes
The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi accepted the recommendations of an Inter-Ministerial Committee to increase interest subvention to 6.50 percent on housing loans to beneficiaries belonging to economic weaker section (EWS) including slum- dwellers and low income groups (LIGs).
The Cabinet's decision benefits urban poor by an amount of Rs 2.30 lakh each and, as a result, this the monthly EMI would come down to Rs 2,852 per month.
At present, with the interest rate of 10.50 percent, current EMI on admissible loan component of Rs 6 lakh, over 15-year loan duration works out to be Rs 6,632 per month.
With Cabinet deciding on credit-linked subsidy to 6.50 percent, EMI comes down to Rs 4,050 per month, benefiting the urban poor by Rs 2,582 per month
On the whole, central assistance in the range of Rs 1 lakh to Rs 2.30 lakh per beneficiary would be provided under different components of the National Urban Housing Mission in urban areas to build 2 crore new houses to meet the housing shortage, over the next 7 years. As per the earlier approval of the Union Cabinet, there are four components to the National Urban Housing Mission.
Under the redevelopment plan of slums with the participation of private developers using land as a resource component, a central grant of Rs 1 lakh on an average per beneficiary would be provided. States/Union Territories are at liberty to use this grant for any slum redevelopment schemes to be taken up to make such projects viable, if required.
In the second caetgory, affordable housing through credit- linked subsidy scheme, an interest subsidy of 6.50 percent on each housing loan to EWS and LIG beneficiaries would be provided by the central government.
Under third component of affordable housing in partnership with private and public sectors, central assistance of Rs 1.50 lakh to each beneficiary would be provided to promote housing stock for urban poor with the involvement of private and public sectors, provided 35 percent of dwelling units of the projects proposed are earmarked for EWS category.
For the fourth category of subsidy for individual beneficiary-led construction or enhancement of houses, a central assistance of Rs 1.50 lakh would be provided to each eligible urban poor beneficiary to enable him build his own house or undertake improvements to existing houses.
The housing stock demand may further increase further to the demand assessment to be made by the states and UTs based on online registration through integration of Adhaar Number of Jan Dhan Yojana accounts. - NDDB inks MoU with DD Kisan channel
The National Dairy Development Board and DD Kisan have launched a partnership to create meaningful content for the farm and dairy sector on 16th June.The partnership has the potential to take the dairy and farm sector to new heights
World's only news channel dedicated to farmers, DD Kisan continues its efforts to widen its content base. It has signed a memorandum of understanding with the National Dairy Development Board to provide meaningful content related to farm and dairy sector.
The MoU aims at dissemination of up-to-date technical know-how to farmers, improving their livelihood and income by enhancing their knowledge, and providing information on various technical issues related to farming in the broader sense. - Social media penetration in rural India grows faster than urban
Social Media penetration in rural India has doubled in the past year, compared with urban areas, which witnessed around 35 per cent growth year-on-year, says a report published by IMRB International and Internet and industry body Mobile Association of India (IMAI).
Of the 143 million social media users in the country (as of April 2015), 118 million are from urban areas while 25 million are from hinterlands.
Since June 2014, rural India saw a 33 per cent increase in the number of internet users compared to the previous year. For urban India, the growth was 28 per cent, reveals the study.
The study that covered 35 locations across seven states said there are about 257 million internet users in the country as of April 2015 of which 180 million are from urban areas, whereas 77 million belong to rural places. The primary reason for the increase in internet penetration in the country was due to a rise in social media usage, it claimed.
The study points out that 84 per cent of the internet users in 35 cities in India, including four metros New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Kolkata, use internet primarily to access social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter. This figure stands at 85 per cent for rural India.
The four metros continue to account for almost half of the social media users in urban India. Usage from non-metros and small towns is somewhere around five per cent of the overall social media users in 35 cities.Only 18 per cent of the social media users access internet from office, whereas another 18 per cent constantly access these through their smartphones or tablets. About 75 per cent access it from their homes. The study is from the period after December 2013. - Parl Panel mulls holding general, assembly polls together
A Parliamentary Standing Committee on public grievances, law and justice is considering the suggestion of holding simultaneous polls for parliament and state assemblies as one of the electoral reforms. The standing committee chairman Dr. E.M. Sudarshan Natchiappan said he has invited opinion on this idea from all national and regional parties.
According to him there is a possibility that simultaneous election could be held in two phases. - Govt launches web portal and weather alert system for farmers
The government has launched a web portal and weather alert system for the benefit of farmers. Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh launched the the Crop Insurance Portal
According to, the insurance portal will have essential information about National Agriculture Insurance Scheme, Modified National Insurance Scheme and Weather based Crop Insurance Scheme. Through the service, the farmers can also know about the insurance providing companies and premium applicable for the crop schemes.
The portal will also help the farmers to address their queries on insurance related schemes. The NOWCAST service will provide information on adverse weather condition to farmers through SMS by Kisan portal. Under the services, farmers can receive weather alerts so that they can take steps to protect their crops. So far, one crore farmers are registered with the portal for receiving alerts through SMS. - Punjab celebrates 350th years of foundation of Sri Anandpur Sahib
Punjab is celebrating the 350th years of foundation of Anandpur Sahib. The holy city was founded by the Ninth Guru Sri Guru Tegh Bahadur Ji in 1665. Later, Khalsa Panth was created here in 1699 by the Tenth Guru Sri Guru Gobind Singh. - Assam govt to introduce Right to Health Services
According to Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi, the state government has decided to introduce Right to Health Services to offer free health care to poor people.The Right to Health Services, which the government is contemplating to bring in, will ensure basic health care to everybody
Providing affordable, accessible, accountable and quality health care services to all sections of the people has been a long cherished commitment and the government is working persistently to achieve this
The spectrum of health services would be gradually scaled up to cover all sections of people in the state. The government has already instructed the health and family welfare department to ensure better treatment and better medicines to reduce maternal mortality rate, infant mortality rate and improve the overall health scenario of the state. - Nalsar issues gender-neutral certificate
A little over a month after Oxford English Dictionary announced that it would include gender-neutral honorific Mx (instead of Mrs, Mr, Miss or Ms) in its next edition, Nalsar University of Law, Hyderabad, has used the honorific in a graduation certificate for a student who didn’t want to be identified by gender.
Mx, pronounced mix, presents a viable option to both transgenders as well as those who do not want to be identified by gender. The decision was taken by the Hyderabad-based institute after the student requested the administration to change the title in the transcript.
The honorific Ms was introduced by the American Heritage School Dictionary in 1972 for women who did not want to be addressed in a way that identifies their marital status. But even now, Mrs and Miss continue to be widely used. - Heaviest June rain in 10 years drowns Mumbai
Mumbai's wettest June day since 2005 brought it to its knees on 19th June, with the suburban train network getting crippled, roads getting water-logged, most office-goers not even venturing out of their homes, and the few who did getting fleeced by taxi and rickshaw-wallahs.
Santacruz recorded 283.4mm of rainfall in the 24 hours from 8.30am on Thursday to 8.30am on 19th June, higher than the 209.6mm on June 24, 2007, which had been the record for the month in the past decade. The season's required total rainfall for Colaba is 2,230mm while for Santacruz it is 2,558mm, so over 10% of this was received by the city in a single day. From 8 am to 5.30pm on Friday, Colaba recorded 74.4mm of rainfall and Santacruz 111.8mm. - Punjab villages just a click of a mouse away
All the 13,040 villages in Punjab are just a click of the mouse away. According to Punjab’ Rural Development Minister Sikander Singh Maluka the computerization of all gram panchayats under Panchayati Raj Institution Accounting Software (PRIASoft), a national e-gram panchayat programme, has been completed. Training has been provided to all panchayat secretaries.
Websites of all zila parishads and block samitis have been linked with of the state panchayat department website. Each panchayat websites contains details of famous personalities, popular and historical places, while the panchayat department website has contact numbers, educational qualifications of its members and related information.
Other information available on panchayat websites include elected members of rural and urban local bodies, latest data of gram panchayats, mapped villages and distance of the village from the main cities. - Kerala to have India's first elephant hospital
India's first exclusive hospital for elephants will come up in Kerala, according to noted elephant veterinarian Jacob Cheeran. The hospital will have an in-patient treatment facility for 10 elephants at a time. Besides, the state-of-the-art laboratory facilities would be there.
In-patient facility has become very essential as in the coming years, majority of 500 captive elephants in Kerala will be aged over 50 years and would require augmented healthcare support. The hospital will be set up on a five-acre plot in the Kerala Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Mannuthy. It is expected to cost Rs.10 crore. - NJAC not against basic structure of Constitution:Govt
The Central government on 8th June told the Supreme Court that it was the will of the people to have transparent, accountable and criteria-based appointment of judges through the National Judicial Appointment Commission (NJAC) instead of the collegium system whose working was shrouded in mystery.
The Parliament and the 20 state assemblies, which have backed the NJAC, represented the people, Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi told the constitution bench of the Apex Court that it was the people who wanted the change in the method of judges appointment. The Attorney General defended the NJAC Act saying it doesn't affect the basic structure of Constitution as alleged by the petitioners.
The Apex Court asked the Center whether any decision of the President regarding appointment of Judges under Article 124 with the consultation of CJI, was his discretionary decision or based on aid and advice of the Government. - Railways sign MoU with IIT-BHU for research work
A Memorandum of Understanding has been signed between Railways and Banaras Hindu University. This MOU is part of Malaviya Chair for Railway Technology, Varanasi. The MOU envisages research and development work for up gradation of Railway tracks for High speed trains. - Railway to set-up separate JV companies for completion of rail projects
Railway ministry to set up separate joint venture companies with at least 20 states for completion of rail projects in a time-bound manner. Joint Venture (JV) companies will be formed with around 20 states and will be between the Railways and the state concerned having separate nodal officers from the two sides. The criteria of the company, he said, would be completion of project in a time-bound manner. - NID sets up Railway Design Centre for coaches, stations
National Institute of Design (NID) has set up a center for designing passenger friendly coaches and stations for the Indian Railways. In April, a MoU was signed between Rail Ministry and NID for setting up of Railway Design Center at the institute's Ahmadabad campus with a corpus of Rs 10 crore.
Over the next 10 years, the center is "expected to bring in revolutionary changes in passenger and freight transport facilities through sustained design research and development exclusively dedicated to the Indian Railways," a Commerce and Industry Ministry statement. It said, the Indian Railways will get a fresh lease of life itself as NID takes on the onerous task of designing passenger friendly coaches and stations. The statement also said that design will act as a catalyst in 'Make in India' initiative by benefiting micro, small, cottage and medium industry clusters across the country by design intervention strategies through the Design Clinic Scheme. Last year, NID was declared as an 'Institute of National Importance'. Meanwhile, four new NIDs are coming up at Vijayawada, Jorhat, Kurukshetra and Bhopal, the statement said. - More districts come under the NCR
Jind and Karnal districts of Haryana and Muzaffarnagar district of Uttar Pradesh have been included in the National Capital Region, a statement from the Ministry of Urban Development said on 9th June. The decision was taken at the National Capital Region Planning Board (NCRPB) meeting. It was also decided that a set of criteria will be evolved for considering new proposals for inclusion in NCR from the member states keeping in view the level of infrastructure development in the region.
It was also decided to constitute a committee for delineation of NCR with the objective of promoting development along growth corridors like National Highways, State Highways and Railways as against the current practice of including whole districts in NCR. - Delhi Law Minister sent to 4-day Police custody in alleged fake degree case
Delhi Law Minister Jitendra Singh Tomar arrested in an alleged fake degree case was remanded in four-day police custody by a city court today. Hours after his arrest, he was produced in Saket court by Delhi police who sought his custody for interrogation.
Earlier, opposing the police's plea, defense counsel said that police has arrested the Minister without compliance of the provisions of the law and no notice was served to him prior to his arrest. - Government cancels licences of over 4000 NGO's
The government has canceled licenses of 4470 NGOs for violation of Foreign Contribution Regulation Act. Home Ministry officials confirmed the decision. The Ministry had issued notices to the NGOs for not filing annual returns.
In March this year, government banned 30 NGOs from receiving foreign funds after adverse reports about their activities. These are part of 69 NGOs which have been prohibited by the government from receiving foreign funds under Foreign Contributions Regulation Act. - CELA to train teachers to improve their skill sets
The broad understanding between Cambridge English Language Assessment (CELA) and TS government is to work for both the students as well as the knowledge providers in English. The CELA, which is already working closely in similar fields in Tamil Nadu and Gujarat, would be playing a vital role in chalking out ways and means to make students improve their language skills and even train the teachers and improve their skill sets. - Cabinet approves motor vehicle pact with neighbors
The Union Cabinet on 10th June approved the signing of the Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Nepal (BBIN) Motor Vehicle Agreement for ease of transport between the four countries.
According to Nitin Gadkari, Minister for Road Transport and Highways, the Cabinet has also approved a proposal to facilitate seamless road transport between Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Nepal. The Minister said the agreement will be signed in Bhutan later this month.
The agreement will regulate passenger, personal and cargo vehicular traffic between the countries. Each country will bear its own cost for the implementation of the agreement.
The Cabinet also agreed to ratify the International Labour Organisation’s convention number 185, which requires the Seafarer’s Identity Document to be bio metric based. In another decision, the Cabinet approved the Ministry for Shipping’s proposal for India’s accession to the International Convention on Civil Liability for Bunker Oil Pollution Damage. The convention ensures effective compensation is provided for damage caused by oil spills from fuel in ships’ bunkers. - Insurance implication
The registered owner of every vessel has to maintain compulsory insurance cover which allows claim for compensation for pollution damage to be brought directly against the insurer.
In India, the Directorate General of Shipping will issue the certificate and in foreign countries the respective maritime authority will issue it. No vessel will be permitted to enter or leave India without this certificate.
Further, the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs also approved two proposals for four-laning of two stretches of highways for a cumulative cost of close to Rs. 5,000 crore. The stretches are in Telangana and Madhya Pradesh.. - Yadgiri Warangal 4 lane road gets Centre’s nod
The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs, chaired by the Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, has given its approval for development of a four lane road of the Yadgiri- Warangal section of the National Highway – 163 in Telangana. This work will be under the National Highways Development Project (NHDP) Phase- IV.
The approval is on Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) basis. The cost is estimated to be Rs.1,905.23 crore which includes cost of land acquisition, resettlement and rehabilitation and other pre-construction activities. The total length of the road will be approximately 99 km
The main object of the project is to expedite the improvement of infrastructure in Telangana State and also in reducing the time and cost of travel for traffic, particularly heavy traffic, plying on the Yadgiri-Warangal sector. After expanding this stretch to four lane, the whole stretch from Hyderabad to Warangal would be four-laned. - Assam: Incessant rain inundates 700 villages, 3 lakh affected
In Assam, flood caused by incessant rain has affected over 3 lakh people in more than 700 villages spread over 15 districts. State Disaster Management Authority has issued Low Flood Situation alert in parts of Karimganj, Dhubri, Sivsagar and Karimganj district for the next 24 to 48 hours. Brahmaputra river is flowing above the danger level at Nematighat and Dhubri. Around 200 villages have been inundated in Barpeta district only. District administrations have set up 6 temporary relief camps and necessary food items are being provided. - Government scraps import duties on AIDS drugs
Government has scrapped customs import duties for drugs and test kits used to treat AIDS in an effort to cut prices across the country. More than a third of India's 2.1 million HIV/AIDS patients depend on getting their daily anti retrovirals for free from state-run distribution centres, but many of them have been facing shortages.
The exemption, which will remain in effect until March 2016, is the national AIDS control department's latest effort to deal with the shortage of HIV/AIDS drugs at home. - Debroy panel submitted report
A committee headed by BibekDebroy on restructuring of the country’s railways, presented its final report to the ministry on 12th June.
The regulator, as envisioned by the committee, would be independent of the ministry and have quasi-judicial powers on rates, safety rules, fair access, service standards, licensing and setting technical standards.
The panel has also recommended giving non-discriminatory access on new tracks being built under the Dedicated Freight Corridor (DFC) to both Indian Railways (IR) and private operators. For this purpose, DFC Corporation should be made autonomous and separated from IRit has said.
The committee proposed to merge the various railway service cadres. According to Debroy, the silo structures of the eight Group-A services within IR has hit team work. He has suggested either amalgamation of all eight existing services into a unified Railways Service or merging these into an IR Technical Service and IR Logistics Service
The panel has also recommended lateral flow from elsewhere — chartered accountants, bankers, financial management experts, research assistants and scientists.
According to Debroy, the railways have given little attention to revising the norms for apportionment of joint costs and the system also neither tracks assets nor assesses the liabilities.
The committee has drawn a time line for implementation of the proposed recommendations for the first five years. This will involve a transition to commercial accounting, greater decentralisation to the zones and cleaning up of finances between the government and the railways in the first two years. Then, setting up the Railways Regulatory Authority of India and implementing human resource changes in the next three years. - Railway Ministry decides to run Suvidha trains
Railway Ministry has decided to run Suvidha trains from July with dynamic fares to address the rush during peak travel seasons. These trains will have dynamic fare system and there will not be any downward movement of the fare. Depending upon the demand, these trains may be run during peak seasons like winter rush, summer rush, Dussehra rush, Holi rush and on other occasions. It said that only confirmed and RAC tickets will be issued for these trains and there will be no waiting list. No concession will be available on these trains.
The maximum advance reservation period will be 30 days while the minimum advance reservation period will be of 10 days. It said, there shall be no First AC, First Class, Executive Class, General Class and 2nd Sitting Coach in the train composition of Suvidha Trains. - Internet and broadband connections to households
Andhra Pradesh has succeeded in Geo-tagging 3.6 lakh electricity poles to enable laying of aerial fibre network to provide internet and broadband connections to households in the State. The State government intends to complete rolling of broadband connections by December this year. - Migrant resource center in Chennai
The Union Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs (MOIA) along with the Tamil Nadu Government on 11 June 2015 launched the Migrant Resource Centre (MRC) in Chennai. The MRC in Chennai is the fourth such MRC in India set-up by MOIA. The MRC will provide information, guidance, advise and counselling on all aspects of overseas employment including legal and regulatory requirements; documentation and procedures; policies; and problems faced while working aboard to intending migrants and overseas Indian workers. - Cross border military operation by Indian Army
Special Forces of the Indian Army in coordination with the Air Force on 9 June 2015 carried out surgical operations (cross-border operation) inside Myanmar to target militant groups. In this one of the first-of-its-kind cross-border operation about 50 militants of groups namely NSCN (K) and KYKL were killed. They were hiding along the Nagaland-Myanmar and Manipur-Myanmar border
The move for such a surgical operation was taken after militant groups killed 18 jawans of 6 Dogra Regiment of Indian Army in an ambush in Chandel district of Manipur on 4 June 2015.
The operation was guided by specific and precise intelligence input. The strike was carried out inside Myanmar with the coordination of local authorities. The preparedness and finesse of the operation could be gauged from the fact that Indian Army did not suffer any sort of casualty. - Jal kranthi Abhiyan launched
Union Minister of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejunivetion Uma Bharti on 5 June 2015 launched nationwide Jal Kranti Abhiyan (campaign) from Jaipur, Rajasthan. The aim is to consolidate water conservation and management in the country through a holistic and integrated approach involving all stakeholders, making it a mass movement. - 22 pilgrims killed in Andhra Pradesh
As many as 22 persons, including seven children, were killed on 13th June when their vehicle fell off a bridge over Godavari river at Dowleswaram, Rajamundry. The tragedy occurred as a group of pilgrims was returning in an SUV after a visit to the Tirupati temple, police said, adding that the ill-fated travellers hailed from Achyutapuram near Visakhapatnam. - India Will buy only 36 Rafale jets
India has decided to buy only 36 Rafale fighter jets scrapping the earlier plan to acquire 126 of the French aircraft on grounds of huge cost.
According to Defence Minister ManoharParrikar, the previous UPA government's deal for 126 Rafales was too expensive and it would have hampered other modernisation plans of the Indian military. Parrikar termed the deal "economically unviable". He added, the deal would have required around Rs 1.3 lakh crore over a period of 10-11 years. Defence Minister said, it was not required. - Alligations on TDP MLA, in cash for vote incident
In Telangana, Telugu Desam deputy floor leader in the Assembly, Revanth Reddy has been questioned by the Central Investigation Unit of the Anti Corruption Bureau on 31st May in Hyderabad in an alleged horse trading incident in the wake of 1st June MLC elections.
Revanth Reddy has been reportedly picked up red handed from the residence of son of a nominated MLA, Steffen while offering huge amount. According to ACB sources, the TDP MLA has offered cash to Steffen for casting his vote in favour of TDP candidate. However, the official announcement is still awaited over the issue. - India launches virtual memorial wall to honour peacekeepers in UN missions
India has launched a virtual Memorial Wall to honour its soldiers who laid down their lives while serving in UN peacekeeping operations, a precursor to the eventual construction of a permanent memorial wall at the world body’s headquarters proposed by the country.
The wall was unveiled by India’s Ambassador to the UN AsokeMukerji at a solemn ceremony to mark the International Day of UN Peacekeepers on 31st May
The wall of honour includes details of 161 Indian peacekeepers who were killed in the line of duty in 16 UN Peacekeeping Missions so far. The wall will be hosted on the website of the Permanent Mission of India to the United Nations. The initiative is a precursor to the eventual construction of a UN Peacekeepers Memorial Wall on the premises of the UN headquarters, a proposal given by India “as an appropriate way to commemorate all the troops from member states of the United Nations who had given their lives while on duty under the Blue Flag of the United Nations,” the Mission said.
The proposal for the Memorial Wall has been recommended by the Special Committee on Peacekeeping Operations and is under consideration in the Special Political and Decolonisation Committee as a part of draft proposals. Mukerji also paid homage to the 126 UN military, police and civilian personnel who were posthumously awarded the prestigious Dag Hammarskjold Medal this year for their supreme sacrifice in various peacekeeping operations in 2014. Two Indians – Lance NaikNand Ram, who served with the UN OrganisationStabilisation Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) and Raju Joseph, who had served in a civilian capacity with the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) were among those awarded the Dag Hammarskjold Medal. - Kayakalp suggested to compete with bigger nations
The Ratan Tata-headed innovation council called Kayakalp, formed by Railway Minister Suresh Prabhu, has decided to benchmark Indian Railways against the train networks of four global giants – the US, China, Russia and Germany.
The idea is to compare financial and operational performance indicators and work out a strategy for turning around the railways by using the best-suited model of innovation and development.
The council has asked the railway board for inputs on the railway systems operating in the four countries. India is similar to the nations on the list — except for Germany — in being a member of the 1-billion tonne freight club. India, the US, Russia and China are the only four countries in the world which carry more than a billion tonnes of freight on their railway networks annually.
However, India lags far behind the other nations in terms of structural and operational reforms, particularly in the freight segment. The US, China, Germany and Russia have already adopted significant degrees of privatisation and corporatisation of their railways over the past decades.
Of the two countries with railway systems most comparable to India, the US and China, the US has traditionally had a privately owned rail freight operations system. China has had a departmental system historically but has now progressively reorganised its structure to the point where there is now no Ministry of Rail. It has a national rail corporation and a number of regional operators and specialised private railway operators especially in dedicated freight haulage.
According to Indian Railways’ recently released white paper, NTKM per employee is 1.81 million in Russia, 1.23 million in China and 0.44 million in India. Similarly, PKM per employee is 0.15 million in Russia, 0.38 million in China and 0.66 million in India. This indicates how India fares better on the passenger indicator and worse on freight performance.
In the US, 28 per cent of the railways’ revenue goes into labour costs and 20 per cent is channelised to source fuel. For comparison, in India, 32 per cent of operating revenue goes into staff wages while fuel costs eat up 18 per cent of earnings. The two nations are also similar in earning 40-45 per cent of freight earnings from coal transport alone. - Centre launches website to help trace missing children
A web portal to be used as social medium for people to share information about missing children was launched on 2nd June by the government in New Delhi.Women and Child Development Minister Maneka Gandhi and IT Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad jointly launched the website -- 'Khoya-Paya', a platform for citizens to report children sighted as abandoned, lost or with suspicious person. - Govt steps in and order probed on Maggi noodles
The two minute instant noodles Maggi continues to be at the centre of a storm. The controversy around its food safety standards that raised its head in Barabanki in UP 15 months ago has spread across the country. Delhi too is part of the nationwide crackdown on Nestle's product.
The Delhi govt has banned the sale of Maggi for the next 15 days and asked Nestle to withdraw the existing stock even as other states are conducting tests to ascertain if it is fit for consumption. It said that the government will carry out lab testing of all other noodles brands available in the city too and will take action based on the reports. - SushmaSwaraj lays foundation stone of South Asian University campus
External Affairs Minister SushmaSwaraj laid the foundation stone of the campus of the South Asian University at Maidangarh in New Delhi on 3rd June. The aim of South Asian University bringing students of all SAARC countries closer with regard to academic discourse. - Secretaries' panel clears litigation policy
The proposed National Litigation Policy (NLP), which seeks to reverse the trend of the government being the biggest litigant, has been cleared by a committee of secretaries and will now go to a ministerial panel.The Committee chaired by Cabinet Secretary Ajit Seth, which met on 2nd June, cleared the law ministry proposal.
It has now been referred to a high-powered informal group of ministers comprising Home Minister Rajnath Singh, Finance Minister ArunJaitley, Transport Minister NitinGadkari, Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad and Law Minister D V SadanandaGowda
After being approved by the ministers' panel, NLP 2015 will be sent to the Union Cabinet for a final nod..Soon after the NarendraModi government came to power in May last year, it had identified reducing of government litigation as one of its priorities, in a bid to streamline the judicial system of the country.
The proposed policy, which seeks to replace the one brought by the previous United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government, will bring in, a mechanism to reduce government litigation and make it an efficient and responsible litigant.
The UPA government had launched the policy in 2010 but could not implement it in totality. The present government is working to reduce the burden of the courts for better deliverance. The policy will help all the Union Ministries and Departments define types of cases to be pursued in courts and those which need to be dropped after review.The policy suggests a mechanism to reduce filing of cases by or against the government. - Green police station opens in North Delhi
Green Police Station was inagurated in New Delhi on 5th June. The police station is armed with green facilities like recycled paper for complainants to register their complaints, and bio-toilets.
A unique blend of modern technology and ancient practices used in palaces of Orcha in Madhya Pradesh and Jaisalmer in Rajasthan, the ‘green’ police station is going to be the first of its kind in the country.
The project, which has been supervised by Additional DCP (North) Brijendra Kumar Yadav, has also taken inspiration from ancient cooling mechanisms used in medieval palaces to beat the scorching heat of the Indian summer. In this regard, the police station’s roof has been coated with slaked lime for cooling and earthen pots fitted with sprinklers have been installed to keep the roof and structure cool. - Center orders Nestle to withdraw nine approved variants of Maggi brand from market
The Center has ordered Nestle to withdraw nine approved variants of Maggi brand from the market. Union Health Minister J. P. Nadda announced the decision after receiving food analysis reports from all the states and the FSAI.
The Maggi controversy is taking far more than 2 minutes to clear up. The situation has only got worse for the instant noodles brand and its manufacturers Nestle india with bans being imposed in Gujarat, Uttarakhand and Jammu and Kashmir. In addition, the product remains under the scanner in most states with just a couple of them giving it an all clear.
The Central govt has now said stricter action will be taken if more states report presence of lead and MSG in Maggi samples beyond permissible limits.
Asserting that the product was "completely safe", the company in a statement late tonight said, "We promise that the trusted Maggi Noodles will be back in the market as soon as the current situation is clarified." The ban on sale of Maggi in Delhi for 15 days has triggered off imposition of similar restrictions in other states.
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