NATIONAL SEPTEMBER 2015

NATIONAL SEPTEMBER 2015

• Expert panel to review civil services exam pattern
  An expert committee has been formed by the NDA government to examine various issues related to age relaxation, eligibility, syllabus and pattern of civil services examination to select Indian Administrative Services and Indian Police Services officers. 
  
  Based on the report of the committee, further changes in the civil services exam pattern will be contemplated with the primary objective of providing a level-playing field to aspirants from diverse streams of curriculum like mathematics, engineering, medicine or humanities
  
  Till such time as the recommendations of the committee are received and the government takes a decision on the same, the General Studies Paper-II (also known as CSAT) in the civil services preliminary examination will remain a qualifying paper with minimum qualifying marks fixed at 33 per cent. 
  
  The government's decision last year to exclude the English portion consisting of 22 marks in the General Studies Paper-II of the civil services preliminary examination from tabulation will continue to remain in force. The panel has been formed as a follow-up to the decision taken by the government in May this year to form such a committee. 
  
  It will be headed by former Chhattisgarh-cadre IAS officer, BS Baswan and will consist of leading academicians, technocrats and senior bureaucrats. 
  
• Air India to fly non-stop to San Francisco
  Air India announced three-days-a-week non-stop Delhi-San Francisco flight from December 2 even as some airline officials said this proposal was yet to be cleared by the airline's board of directors. Also, they said an economic feasibility study has not been conducted till now though the airline went ahead with the announcement to coincide with World Tourism Day. 
  
  The new flight will be a first between Delhi and the West Coast of the United States and AI expects passengers from other Indian cities to come to Delhi via the Air India network for their journey onward to SFO
  
  The flight will be a boon to the Indian diaspora on the US West coast. It will make travel easy and convenient for students and parents of NRIs... Passengers from seven cities, all IT hubs in India i.e Bengaluru, Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kochi, Ahmedabad and Pune will have seamless connections to the flight from Delhi. Likewise, the return flight from San Francisco will provide onward connections to nine cities i.e. Bengaluru, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Hyderabad, Kochi, Ahmedabad, Pune and Bhubaneswar. 
  
• Centre to provide AP Rs. 1,000 cr to upgrade two highway links
  The Union Surface Transport Ministry has indicated that it was agreeable to convert and upgrade couple of State Highways into National Highways in Andhra Pradesh with an investment of Rs. 1,000 crore. 
  
  According to Nitin Gadkari, Union Surface Transport Minister, the State Government has expressed the Centre’s willingness to support the State’s request to convert roads connecting Anantapur with the new capital city of Amaravati via Kurnool on the National Highway 65, spanning a stretch of 452 km. 
  
  It is also proposed to facilitate construction and upgradation of Kurnool, Kadapa and Anantapur road connecting National Highway 40 and NH 65 spanning a stretch of 132 km. The proposal is to convert existing four-lane roads into six and 8 lanes depending on the viability in these locations. 
  
  While the land acquisition process will be handled by the State Government, the Centre was willing to meet the required funding of Rs. 1,000 crore for upgradation and expansion. 
  
  After securing the necessary approvals from the State Government with regard to land clearance, the NHAI will start work and take up the construction under the public-private partnership mode. 
  
  The Transport Ministry has also in principle approved the proposed 186 km Outer Ring Road project around the new capital city of Amaravati. 
  
  The connecting theme for the upgradation of these roads is to provide connectivity to the State capital within 4-5 hours from Srikakulam, Anantapur, Kurnool and Kadapa. The funds for the roads will be allocated from the NHAI budget, the State was informed. While the Union Minister has accorded clearance, the approval from the state Government is awaited. 
  
• Government spends Rs 2.7 lakh a month per MP
   According to new official data, India paid Rs.176 crore to its 543 Lok Sabha members in salaries and expenses over the last year, or just over Rs. 2.7 lakh a month per Member of Parliament (MP). 
  
  MPs are entitled to Rs.50,000 per month as salary, Rs.45,000 as constituency allowance, Rs.15,000 as office expenses and Rs.30,000 for secretarial assistance. When Parliament is in session, they get a daily allowance of Rs.2,000. MPs are also reimbursed for 34 flight trips and unlimited rail and road travel for the year on official business. 
  
  The Lok Sabha Secretariat releases information on the amount claimed by and reimbursed every month to MPs on these expense heads. MPs are also entitled to other perks, including free housing, limited free water, electricity, telephone facilities and medical treatment. This does not reflect in the expenses paid out every month by the Lok Sabha. 
  
  Travel reimbursements and daily allowances, grouped together, account for the biggest chunk of public spending on MPs, or nearly half of all expenses, at Rs. 83 crore for the year, the data show. The differences in travel claims largely drive differences between MPs’ expenses. 
  
  New commission on MP Salaries: Ministry proposal: The parliamentary affairs ministry has proposed an independent commission to recommend salaries and allowances for MPs. Even as Parliamentary Affairs Minister Venkaiah Naidu expressed hope that such a commission (if agreed to by parliamentarians) would bring in a "transparent and equitable" mechanism to ensure that salaries are not so low that they defer suitable candidates; questions are being raised about the entire issue of MP emoluments itself. 
  
  MP salaries are governed by the Salary, Allowances and Pension of Members of Parliament Act, 1954 which has been amended over the years to revise the pay of MPs. 
  
• TG Govt sticks to 150 wards in GHMC
  The Telangana state government on 28th September decided not to increase the number of wards under the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) from the present 150. 
  
  The Telangana state government in a GO on the delimitation of wards in GHMC limits stated that the state government had found it difficult to identify and fix natural boundaries and hence the government felt that it should restrict the wards to the present 150 only. 
  
  The government said that any attempt at this stage to increase the number of wards would put huge pressure on the existing manpower at circles and sub-circle offices. It said that the co-ordination at head office would be easier for 150 wards instead of 200. 
  
• Govt unveils Green Highways Policy to create clean, green and pollution free India
  Government on 29th September launched Green Highways policy to promote greening of Highway corridors with participation of farmers, private sector and government institutions. Launching the scheme, Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari said in New Delhi that the scheme is a step towards creating clean, green, and pollution free India. 
  
  The policy aimed to strike a balance between highways development and environmental protection. According to Gadkari, this will help in providing employment to 5 lakh people of the rural areas. The Minister emphasised on the transparency during the tree plantation and said advance technology will be used to monitor plantation. 
  
  The Minister said, one per cent of the total project cost of all highways projects will be kept aside for the highway plantation and its maintenance. He said that about Rs 1000 crore per year will be available for plantation purpose. Mr Gadkari also asked the state governments to start programmes on similar lines. He said that 1200 road side amenities will also be established. 
  
• Murals at Parthasarathy temple conserved
  Three beautiful murals and a relief sculpture made of lime, which were discovered on the top portion of a wall of a mantapa of Sri Parthasarathy temple at Triplicane, Chennai in June this year, have been conserved after three months of sustained effort. The murals will soon be displayed in the temple for the public. 
  
  According to estimations the paintings could belong to the late Gingee Nayak period (17th century CE). Two of the murals, which are similar, depict a scene from the Kurukshetra war, with a row of horse-drawn chariots and fiercely moustachioed charioteers. There are warriors, with weapons, lined up behind the chariots. Leading the charioteers is Arjuna, with a big bow in his hand. The head of the bow has a blade like that of a spade. The horses are full-blooded animals, and they are draped with cloth. 
  
  The third mural is a novelty. It depicts a warrior seated in his horse-drawn chariot, holding a long weapon in his hand. He wears a helmet as worn by the Roman warriors of yore. A syce is tending to the horse in this mural. The syce too has an exotic look and he wears a knee-length gown. In the backdrop are drawn a row of hills. The small lime relief sculpture shows Lord Ranganatha reclining on Adisesha and the four-headed Brahma emanates from Ranganatha’s navel. 
  
  Inexplicably, all the murals had been coated with cement plaster and only a portion of one of the two murals depicting the Mahabharatha war was visible. So a team set to work revealing and conserving the murals. 
  
  After the paintings were brought down, they were fixed on a fibre-mat. Then the muslin and cotton cloth, protecting them, were removed. The murals were given a highly diluted polyvinyl acetate coating to preserve them. 
  
• Mamata makes cabinet papers on Netaji public
   After the declassification of files on Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose, the West Bengal government on 28th September made public the cabinet papers on Netaji and allied subjects from 1938 to 1947. 
  
  She also released a CD containing information about those papers of 401 cabinet meetings during that period which had witnessed among other events ‘Quit India’ movement, the great ‘Bengal Famine’ and Partition of Bengal. 
  
  The government had declassified 64 Netaji files earlier this month. She said that those papers would be available at the state archive, state information centre and state central library for the public, researchers, historians and students. 
  
  The work for digitisation of the files started in 2013, she said adding that currently work is going on to digitise cabinet papers of the next 10 years after 1947. 
  
• In a first, live telecast of HC proceedings
  For the first time in the history of Indian judiciary, the 150-year-old Madras High Court on September 30th allowed live telecast of contempt proceeding against two Madurai advocates. 
  
  Amidst heavy security arrangements, the proceeding in the Court Hall No. 4 was beamed live on a large television placed near the media parking area of the High Court. The telecast was witnessed by hundreds of lawyers and public litigants. 
  
• SC awards life imprisonment to Hizbul Mujahideen militant Ghulam Nabi
  The Supreme Court on September 30th awarded rigorous life imprisonment to Pak national and Hizbul Mujahideen militant Ghulam Nabi in a case relating to 1995 serial blasts at Republic Day function in Jammu. The apex court's judgment was made on an appeal of the Jammu and Kashmir Government against a trial court's decision, which had earlier acquitted Nabi. 
  
  Three bomb explosions had taken place at the Maulana Azad Memorial Stadium in Jammu aimed to kill the then Governor General K.V. Krishna Rao while he was addressing on the occasion of Republic Day in 1995. Mr Rao had a narrow escape but eight people were killed in the blasts. 
  
• Centre releases commemorative postal stamp on Dr Ambedkar
  Government on September 30th released a commemorative postal stamp on Dr B R Ambedkar and said it will come out with a coin in his honour. The government is celebrating 125th birth anniversary of Dr Ambedkar this year. 
  
• Farmers suicides in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh
  The debts are claiming the lives of framers in the Telangana and Andhra Pradesh regions. A farmer namely Mallesh from Medak district has committed suicide in Hyderabad. This is the second incident of a farmer taking his own life in Hyderabad — the first being on September 9 when a Nizamabad farmer hanged himself. 
  
  Mallesh owned a little less than two acres of agricultural land at Ramsagar village, Medak disrict. The cotton and corn crops grown by Mallesh failed due to drought. 
  
  On the other hand, three farmers committed suicide in Kurnool, Nizamabad and Nalgonda districts unable to bear the burden of mounting debts.
  
  Kurnool police said Obaiah, 50, resident of Alagiri village in Aspari mandal, consumed pesticide after the nine borewells he had dug failed to yield water. In the process, he suffered a loss of Rs 5 lakh. 
  
  Ramesh, 28, who owned five acres of agricultural land in Kunkuduchettu thanda of Tripuraram mandal of Nalgonda district, ended his life by consuming pesticide. He had an agricultural debt of Rs 3 lakh. In yet another incident, Ramesh Goud, 45, native of Armoor village in Nizamabad, ended his own life following the failure of his crop.
  
  TS Govt hikes ex-gratia: Telangana government on 20th September decided to enhance the ex-gratia being paid to families of farmers who have committed suicide due to distress like low crop yield or indebtedness to Rs 6 lakh from Rs 1.5 lakh. 
  
  The 'Kalyana Lakshmi' scheme of providing help for the marriage of young women would be extended to the families of farmers who committed suicide.
  
  According to state government, 141 farmers have committed suicide so far and that ex-gratia was being paid to them. 
  
  According to Deputy Chief Minister Kadiam Srihari the government also waived farmers' loans to the tune of Rs 17,000 crore, he also said that the government would wait till September 30 to announce various mandals as drought-hit as per Centre's norms. 
  
  He said the Cabinet has decided to appoint 1,000 agriculture extension officers in the state in addition to 1,100 such officers who are working to serve about 41 lakh hectares of cultivable land in the state. 
  
• Indian Railways Develops Hybrid Vacuum Toilets
  Development Cell of the Railway Board has come up with a design that combines the advantages of Vacuum toilets and those of Biotoilets to create a new design of “Hybrid Vacuum Toilet”. 
  
  A prototype has been made by modifying the standard flushing protocol of a vacuum toilet so as to create water seal and additional post flush cycles and this concept has been converted into a working prototype by Indian Railways as a first ever system of its kind to have been developed and built by any railway system in the world. This newly developed toilet has been fitted in one coach that is running in Dibrugarh Rajdhani for trail. 
  
  The prototype consists of a custom designed Vacuum toilet adapted from a commercially available vacuum toilet that is used in aircrafts which evacuates its discharge into a bio-digester tank which is now successfully proven in the bio-toilets of Indian Railways. 
  
  The bio-digester tank is fitted underneath the coach and contains anaerobic bacteria that convert human fecal matter into water and small amount of gases before discharging the same on the ground/track. 
  
  Typically, a conventional toilet or Biotoilet uses 10 – 15 liters of water per flush whereas the vacuum toilet consumes only appx. 500 ml of water for flushing. 
  
  Water is a very precious natural resource therefore this innovation shall save water to the tune of at least 1/20th of the quantity that is used in the current design of bio-toilets/conventional toilets. 
  
• Women and Child Development ministry signs MoU with Vedanta to build 4000 modern Anganwadis 
  Women and Child Development (WCD) Ministry on 21st September signed a MoU with Vedanta to develop 4000 modernized Anganwadi centers across the country with a total investment of Rs 400 crore. The MoU was signed by Joint Secretary Dr. Rajesh Kumar, and Mayank Ashar, Managing Director, Cairn India a subsidiary company of Vedanta, to develop 'next generation' Anganwadis. 
  
  Anganwadis that will be built in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Assam, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha, Rajasthan, Telengana and Uttar Pradesh. 
  
  These model Anganwadis will be built in clusters of 25-30 in a particular district with multi functional capabilities. The land for the Anganwadis will be provided by the Gram Panchayats. The Anganwadis are proposed to be run as a shared space in which 50 per cent of the time will be devoted to children's education and the remaining half will support women's skill development. 
  
  The model Anganwadis will be equipped with solar power, television for e-learning, hygienic toilets and pure drinking water supply. Construction of these centres will be done by Vedanta, using prefabricated eco-friendly structures. Post construction, the new Anganwadi centres will be handed over to the respective Panchayat or local urban body. These centers will also have access to medical vans provided by Vedanta to meet the need for primary medical services to children and women. 
  
• Government exempts Whatsapp, social media from purview of encryption policy
  Immediately after a controversy erupted over government's proposal to investigate on every message that an individual will send via WhatsApp, SMS, or Google Hangouts, the Department of Electronics and Information Technology clarified in a draft that social media websites and applications will be exempted from the purview of the Encryption Policy. 
  
  According to the draft posted by Deity, there are certain categories of encryption products that will be exempted from the purview of the draft national encryption policy. 
  
  The mass-use encryption products, which are currently being used in web applications, social media sites, and social media applications such as WhatsApp, Facebook, Twitter etc are being exempted from the purview of the draft National Encryption Policy, said a proposed addendum to the policy posted on the department's website. 
  
  Encryption products used in Internet banking and payment gateways, and those used for e-commerce and password-based transactions will also be exempted. 
  
  Deity had earlier stated that all messages sent through encrypted messaging services such as WhatsApp (Android version supports encryption), Google Hangouts or Apple's iMessage, must be stored for 90 days. 
  
• Countries suffer malnutrition
  According to Global Nutrition Report 2015, released every country in the planet suffers from malnutrition, be it in the form of extreme hunger or obesity. The report was released by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) on on 21st September in New York City.
  
  According to report one in three members of the global population is malnourished in all its forms…yet the strategies available to resolve it are not being implemented due to lack of money, skills, or political pressure.
  
  Expressing concern over lack of proper data on nutrition in most countries, the report said healthy children are the minority in at least five large countries. Citing the example of India, it said the country undertook 14 major nutrition surveys between 1992 and 2014, “but taken together these surveys provide few opportunities for consistent tracking over time at the national level.”
  
  The report said over 160 million children worldwide under five years old are too short for their age (stunted), while more than 50 million don’t weigh enough for their height (wasted). However, it noted that countries are increasingly meeting goals for combating stunting and wasting, but adult obesity — another form of malnutrition — is growing. 
  
  The report, which assessed the progress made by 193 countries, comes ahead of the meeting of United Nations member-states this month-end to adopt the Sustainable Development Goals.
  
  It calls for policy interventions to tackle serious health problems linked to the consumption of “either too little nutrient-rich food or too much energy-dense food,” suggesting a set of core nutrition outcome indicators and a mechanism for frequent data collection at the national, state, and district levels. It also calls upon government and businesses to increase funding. 
  
• Govt releases National Health Profile
  Union Health Ministry on 22nd September released the National Health Profile, which provides comprehensive information related to health sector. The NHP focuses on key information regarding the nation's overall health status, financing, infrastructure and human resources in health. 
  
  Every government hospital serves an estimated 61,000 people in India, with one bed for every 1833 people, new official data shows. 
  
  In undivided Andhra Pradesh, every government hospital serves over 3 lakh patients while in Bihar, there is only one bed for every 8800 people.
  
  Every government allopathic doctor serves a population of over 11,000 people, with Bihar and Maharashtra having the worst ratios. 
  
  The number of qualified allopathic doctors registered with medical councils fell in 2014 to 16,000, or less than half the previous year’s number; the data was however provisional. 
  
  India now has cumulatively 9.4 lakh allopathic doctors, 1.54 lakh dental surgeons, and 7.37 lakh AYUSH doctors of whom more than half are Ayurvedic doctors. 
  
  India’s 400 medical colleges admit an estimated 47,000 students annually.
  
  The Centre’s share of total public expenditure on health has fallen over the last two years, and India spends less of its GDP on health than some of the world’s poorest countries. 
  
  Among all States, undivided Andhra Pradesh had the highest public expenditure on health in 2012-13. Goa and the north-eastern States spent the most on health per capita while Bihar and Jharkhand spent the least.
  
  Out-of-pocket private expenditure on health has risen steadily over the years, with the cost of medicines, followed by that of hospitalisation accounting for the largest share of the household expenditure. 
  
  Absolute spending, as well as its share in total non-food expenditure, rises with income levels. Kerala spends the most privately on health.
  
  Deaths from most communicable diseases have been falling steadily in India. Despite recording over 10 lakh cases, deaths from malaria are officially down to just over 500 annually; Odisha accounted for over one in three cases of malaria in 2014. 
  
  The number of recorded chikungunya cases has fallen since a 2010 outbreak, but Maharashtra accounts for nearly half of all cases. 
  
  Just over 40,000 cases of dengue were officially reported in 2014 and 131 deaths. While the number of cases of Acute Diarrhoeal Disease has risen every year to 1.16 crore in 2014, mortality from the disease has been steadily declining.
  
  However, 2014 saw a sharp spike in cases and deaths due to Acute Encephalitis Syndrome, a disease concentrated in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Assam, and West Bengal. Japanese Encephalitis, concentrated in Assam and Uttar Pradesh also rose last year. 
  
  Pulmonary tuberculosis remains the biggest communicable disease killer in India, accounting for over 63,000 deaths in 2014. Since disease data is largely reported from government health facilities only, it is likely to be heavily underestimated
  
  Non-communicable diseases are on the rise with cardiovascular diseases according for a quarter of deaths from non-communicable diseases and cancer accounting for six per cent. 
  
• Govt withdraws draft encryption policy
  The Government withdrew its draft encryption policy overnight as concerns grew over intrusions into privacy. The Department of Electronics and Information Technology will now come out with a fresh draft. The now-withdrawn draft restricted users from deleting their messages — SMS, e-mail, WhatsApp, Viber, Line, Google Chat, Yahoo Messenger and the like — for 90 days. The messages had to be kept in a plain text format and had to be produced on demand to security agencies.
  
  It also wanted all vendors of encryption products to “register their products with the designated agency of the government”. 
  
  The policy proposed imprisonment for failure to store and produce on demand the encrypted messages sent from any mobile device or computer. 
  
  It applied to everyone, including government departments, academic institutions and citizens, and for all kinds of communications, official or personal. 
  
• Centre proposes to raise rehab aid for bonded labour
  To rehabilitate millions of bonded labour in the country, the Labour Ministry proposes to raise the existing scheme of assistance from Rs. 20,000 to Rs. 1 lakh per adult male. It also proposes Rs. 2 lakh aid for special category beneficiaries, such as orphans, girl children forced into prostitution and beggars, out of which Rs. 1.25 lakh will be deposited in an annuity scheme and the rest in the beneficiary’s account.
  
  The scheme also includes disabled persons working as bonded labour, who will get Rs. 3 lakh as aid, of which, Rs. 2 lakh will be deposited in an annuity scheme and the rest in the bank account.
  
  Labour Ministry also proposes to make this a Central scheme, as opposed to the existing system wherein the Centre and the States equally share the financial burden. It has asked States to set up their own funds for the purpose.
  
  The draft also proposes Rs. 4.5 lakh assistance for survey of bonded labourers across States. 
  
• States agree on green construction norms in urban areas
  States have broadly agreed to ensure compliance with the proposed environmental guidelines for construction projects in urban areas, according to the Ministry of Urban Development said. This emerged at a consultative workshop on ‘Climate Change Mitigation in Urban Sector’ organised by the Ministry to sensitise States and other stakeholders to the need for green construction.
  
  A consensus has emerged on major provisions, which include that at least one per cent of connected applied load of power shall be met from renewable energy sources
  
  Regular energy audit will be conducted by Bureau of Energy Efficiency-certified auditors and one tree shall be planted for every 100 sq.m of land.
  
  Apart from this, States must design a rainwater harvesting plan that provides one recharge bore for every 3,000 sq.m of land, and sewage treatment plant shall be installed to ensure treatment of all solid waste generated. 
  
• Rajasthan passes two Bills on reservation
   The Rajasthan Assembly on 22nd September passed two Bills providing five percent reservation to Gujjars and some other communities under special backward classes (SBC) and, in a one of its kind legislative attempt in India, a 14 per cent quota to economically backward classes (EBC) of unreserved categories.
  
  The two Bills are Rajasthan Special Backward Classes (Reservation of Seats in Educational Institutes in the State and of Appointments and Posts in Services under the State) Bill 2015 and Rajasthan Economically Backward Classes (Reservation of Seats in Educational Institutes in the State and of Appointments and Posts in Services under the State) Bill 2015.
  
  The Rajasthan Assembly passed resolutions requesting the state government to make efforts to get both the Bills included in the Ninth Schedule of the Constitution.
  
  The criterion for reservation in the EBC category will be purely economic and not caste-based, enabling the poor among upper castes to be eligible for quotas in government jobs and educational institutions.
  
  After a prolonged Gujjar agitation that had left about 70 dead, the Raje government in 2008 had brought a single Bill that had provided for five per cent reservation to Gujjars and 14 per cent to EBCs. 
  
  But the High Court had stayed that Bill.
  According to experts, the current attempt, too, might have the same fate as the quantum of quota in Rajasthan will now cross the Supreme Court-fixed limit of 50 per cent cap on reservations.
  
  But the state government plans to ask Parliament to include the Rajasthan quota formula in the Ninth Schedule of the Constitution for it to pass judicial scrutiny. States such as Tamil Nadu already have quotas beyond 50 per cent, but are included in the Ninth Schedule. The Supreme Court has from time to time asked such states to review their reservation policy. 
  
• Rare Manuscript of Bindla caste people found
  A manuscript of Bindla caste people was found accidentally to a school going girl at Kondamallepally village of Devarakonda mandal. It proved to be very precious one since for the first time in the history of Telugu literature, the archaeologists found literature regarding to Bindla caste people, a Scheduled Caste sub-caste and written by one of them.
  
  After going through the manuscripts, the archaeology officials said that they had never found literature that exclusively belonged to the Bindla caste so far in the department’s history.
  
  Bindlas also acts as priests and perform marriages of other SCs. They are also known to play ‘jammidika,’ a musical instrument to narrate the folklore stories. 
  
  Since the Telugu was written in ‘Golusu Kattu’ style with Indian ink on palm-leaf-manuscripts, Archaeology officials concluded that it was probably written between late 19th century and early 20th century. It meant the manuscripts were at least 100 years old. 
  
  However, the writer of the manuscript, Karampudi Mallaiah, had rewritten the literature found on some manuscripts since the ones he found were degenerating slowly, but he did not mention who had actually written the original manuscripts.
  
  Since the archaeologists believed that Karampudi Mallaiah belonged to the Bindla caste, the discovery of manuscript also helped them to know there were Dalit writers a few centuries ago in Telangana. 
  
  The writer compiled Pancha Kathalu, which the Bindlas used to narrate to entertain the people while playing ‘jammidika,’ on this manuscript. The stories include Amaraveerula Chandrika Charitha , Vaikuntapura Charitha , Raghunama Puradeesha , Mandatha Divvya Charithavali , Mala Yella Rajula Divvya Vali , Kambojaraja Diptha Patham . In Mandtha Divvaya Charithavali , the writer wrote about Bindla King Mandatha, but archaeologists could not come to a conclusion on the king’s period, area and dynasty. 
  
• Financial assistance to Telugu writers
  Telugu University will get Rs. 25 lakh financial assistance to help the writers get their books published, announced Kadiam Srihari, Deputy Chief Minister and Minister for Education. On the occasion of Literary Awards by Telugu University, Kadiam Srihari also announced that permission would be given to the university for utilising Rs 5 crore from UGC funds towards construction of library building. 
  
  Elluri Siva Reddy, Vice-Chancellor disclosed that Telangana Government has adopted the university from September 11 this year. 
  
  Rallabandi Kavitha Prasad was posthumously awarded for his book titled Sapthagiri Dhama Kaliyuga Sarvabhoum.
  
  The other awardees include Ponnala Balaiah (free verse), Alaparthi Venkata Subba Rao (children’s literature), Palamaneru Balaji (short story), Peddinti Ashok Kumar (novel), K Vidmahe (criticism), KVLN Sarma (play) Govindaraju Ramakrishna Rao (translation),
  
  Sunkireddy Narayana Reddy (others category) and K Kusuma Reddy (best book among female writers). The awardees were presented with a citation, shawl and Rs 20,116. 
  
• 3 MLC seats increased in Telangana
  The MLC seats in Telangana have been increased to 14. The Central Government on 22nd September issued orders to increase three MLC seats in the state. All the three new seats have come up in Mahbubnagar, Rangareddy and Karimnagar districts under the local body quota. Eight MLC seats will be increased in AP. After bifurcation, Andhra Pradesh is left with 50 seats and it can be increased to 58 as per the constitutional law. 
  
• NITI Aayog recommends toilets for contesting polls
  Swatch Bharat Sub-Group of NITI Aayog, recommended achieving Swatch Bharat Goals within 5 years. It also recommended not allowing a person in elections, in whose house toilets are absent
  
  The Sub Group has discussed held on 23rd September, attended by 6 Chief Ministers from Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Uttarakhand, Mizoram and Haryana. It is 4th meeting of the sub group. 
  
  The other important recommendations include, providing financial assistance of 15,000 rupees to construct toilets, and imposing of special cess on mineral wealth, petroleum and telecommunication products, to overcome the finance constrains. Sub group also recommended celebrating one day in every month as Swachh Bharat day at local level and a week as Swachh Bharat week on national level. 
  
• Centre announces Special Assistance of 1000 crore rupees to Andhra Pradesh 
  The Centre on 25th September announced Special Assistance of 1000 crore rupees during the current financial year to the Andhra Pradesh. According to Ministry of Finance, Central Government will provide special assistance of 350 crore rupees for the development of 7 backward districts of Rayalaseema and North Coastal region. 
  
  It added that the Centre will provide Special Assistance of 350 crore rupees for the new capital of Andhra Pradesh and 300 crore rupees for the Polavaram Irrigation Project. 
  
• Tourism set to get a boost in Telangana
  Telangana Tourism, in the first year of its existence, is all set to get a boost, with a whopping Rs. 600-crore of assistance pouring in from the Government of India funds, through the NITI Ayog and a pro-active State government
  
  There was a quantum jump in projects and qualitative jump in tourist arrivals, with Telangana now standing at No. 6. Significant projects that had come to the State include Rs. 100-crore for eco-tourism, exclusively for Mahabubnagar district, apart from a Rs. 100-crore project to develop the Nallagutta and Pandavulagutta caves near Bhoopalapalli of Warangal district as integrated tourist resorts. 
  
• UK High Commission, NGO join hands for women safety
  The Hyderbad based NGO VOICE 4 Girls is partnering with the British Deputy High Commission to conduct a safety audit of public spaces in the city. The audit is part of a three-month project to spread awareness on gender-based violence. The team will be working closely with the SHE teams to help map unsafe areas for women and recommend measures to improve safety.
  
  “This project, working with VOICE 4 Girls, is focused on college students and adolescents and will deliver a series of five events designed to increase knowledge and awareness of issues like gender discrimination and sexual harassment, especially in schools and colleges. 
  
• Indo-Bangla pact: SC notice to Centre on affected persons
  The Supreme Court on 24th September sought responses from the Centre and the West Bengal on a plea alleging omission of around 597 persons, affected by the recent pact between India and Bangladesh to exchange territories, from the list of citizens. The petition was filed by an NGO.
  
  The NGO's counsel alleged that there were some persons who are neither citizens of India or Bangladesh and there is gross violation of rights to life and basic human dignity of the families residing in the Bangladeshi enclaves located in India and Indian enclaves in Bangladesh. The plea has sought a direction to the Centre to disclose the list of eligible residents of the enclaves on both sides of the border and give an opportunity to those who claim that their names have been illegally and wrongly omitted to make a representation to the authorities. 
  
• Health scheme for Telangana govt employees from Oct 2
  Telangana government will launch Employees Health Scheme designed for government employees and pensioners on October 2 by establishing special Out Patient (OP) clinics at all the government hospitals.
  
  Along with Nizam's Institute of Medical Sciences (NIMS) and non-National Accreditation Board for Hospitals (NABH) accredited hospitals across the state would provide medical services without pre-authorisation. Earlier, the hospitals had to take authorisation from the Aarogysari Trust. The hospitals will have separate free clinics for these patients from afternoon 2 pm to 4 pm. 
  
• Singareni workmen to get 21 pc share in profit
  The Telangana State government decided to give 21 per cent share of its profits earned this year to the workers. Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao further directed the officials not to collect Professional Tax from coal miners henceforth. Singareni reaped Rs 491 crore profits this year. Out of this 21 per cent i.e. Rs 103.11 crore benefit would be passed on to the workers.
  
  The official sources mentioned that each of the 60,000 work force would be getting a bonus amount of Rs 15,000 to Rs 20,000. As regards Professional Tax, Rao waived of Rs 175 crore of arrears which the workers owed as Professional Tax from 1990 onwards. 
  
• CBI registers corruption case against Himachal CM 
  CBI has registered a corruption case against Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh. Teams of CBI and Enforcement Directorate raided at 11 locations including Delhi and Shimla. Searches were also conducted at the places of close associates of Chief Minister.
  
  The case relates to accumulating wealth disproportionate to the known sources of income during his tenure as a Cabinet Minister in the previous UPA regime.
  
  Virbhadra Singh earned the dubious distinction of being raided by CBI while in office
  
  In previous instances of CBI acting against a sitting chief minister, as in the case of RJD chief Lalu Prasad, the leader had resigned before arrest by the agency. 
  
  The FIR that was registered on September 23 includes the names of Singh's wife and former Mandi MP Pratibha Singh, his apple orchard manager and LIC agent Anand Chauhan and businessman Chuni Lal. The four have been booked for an illegal transaction of Rs 6.5 crore. 
  
  CBI had informed the Delhi high court last year itself that a disproportionate assets probe against Singh was in the offing as there was prime facie evidence of irregularities. 
  
  The agency had registered a preliminary enquiry in the matter and Singh was examined in Delhi by CBI officials last year. 
  
  In searches CBI had recovered incriminating documents, property and investment papers, hard disks and pen drives. 
  
  The probe, initiated in October 2013, found Singh had amassed illegal assets worth Rs 6.03 crore when he was Union steel minister from 2009 to 2012, as also reflected in his income tax returns and bank documents. 
  
  The raids on Singh have come two weeks after he was reportedly examined by income tax department sleuths, "where he couldn't explain the source of these assets". 
  
  Singh had filed IT returns for assessment years 2009-10, 2010-11 and 2011-12 showing agricultural income of Rs 735,000, Rs 1,500,000 and Rs 2,500,000 respectively. In 2012, in order to explain the unaccounted money, Singh filed revised IT returns for assessment years 2009-10, 2010-11 and 2011-12. 
  
  The agency, in its preliminary enquiry had said that the documents showed revised agricultural income, showing an 18 to 30-fold increase in income in the three years which was Rs 2.21 crore, Rs 2.8 crore and Rs 1.55 crore respectively (total Rs 6.10 crore). 
  
• NCC gets its name registered in Limca Book of Records
  National Cadet Corps (NCC) was presented with the certificate of Limca Book of Records for the 'Largest Yoga performance’ simultaneously by a single uniformed youth organisation at multiple venues on International Day of Yoga. The certificate of Limca Book of Records was presented by Vijaya Ghose, Editor Limca Book of Records to Lt Gen A Chakravarty in the presence of Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar. 
  
• Central forces to guard all polling stations in Bihar
  According to Election Commission of India In a first, central paramilitary forces will be deployed at all 62,779 polling stations during the five-phase Bihar assembly polls. 
  
  Besides, as many as 323 observers — 243 general observers and 80 expenditure observers — will be deployed to check the flow of illegal money and to ensure that the elections are conducted in free and fair manner. Solar lamps will also be used at polling stations so the power cuts do not affect the exercise in the state, which faces frequent power outages and erratic supply. 
  
  There will be 62,779 polling stations in Bihar for the five-phase Assembly polls beginning October 12. The decision to deploy central forces has been taken after due consultation with all the parties. 
  
• Assam records lowest number of deaths on roads in 2014
  Assam has recorded the lowest number of deaths caused by potholes, speed breakers and humps on roads among all the states in the country in 2014. According to the Road Accident Report -2014 published by the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, Assam recorded the lowest deaths of 43 caused by potholes, speed breakers and humps on roads. 
  
  Other States with a high number of casualties on these counts included Karnataka (970), Madhya Pradesh (915), Bihar (867), Tamil Nadu (636), West Bengal (375), Maharashtra (368), Gujarat (280) and Andhra Pradesh (216). 
  
• 1965 Indo-Pak War: 'Shauryanjali' exhibition inaugurated
  Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar inaugurated 1965 War Exhibition ' Shauryanjali' in New Delhi; remembering the martyrs, the exhibition celebrates the victory of India over Pakistan and remembers the supreme sacrifice of Indian soldiers. The Finance Minister also unveiled commemorative coin on the occasion. 
  
• AP: Godavari, Krishna rivers formally linked
  In an historic step in the mission to inter-link rivers, the Godavari was formally connected with the Krishna in Andhra Pradesh on 16th September. Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu inaugurated a pylon at Ibrahimpatnam near Vijayawada where the Godavari's water, flowing from the neighbouring West Godavari district, was linked to Krishna. 
  
  About 80 TMCs of 3000 TMCs of water from Godavari would flow into River Krishna which previously went waste into the sea every year. The delta region of river Krishna faces acute shortage of water for irrigation from June to August. The State government has plans to divert the waters to the drought prone Rayalaseema region through Srisailam reservoir on River Krishna. 
  
  To mark the occasion Krishna-Godavari confluence was named as ‘Krishna - Godavari Pavitra Sangamam’ meaning holy confluence in Telugu. 
  
• Cabinet approves SPMRM to provide urban facilities in rural areas
  The Union Cabinet on 16th September approved a Scheme to spur social, economic and infrastructure development in rural areas. The government has earmarked over Rs 5,000 crore for the Scheme named as Shyama Prasad Mookerjee Rurban Mission, SPMRM. 
  
  The mission, 300 clusters will be developed over next three years across the country. The States will prepare the Integrated Cluster Action Plans for the Mission. The Cabinet also gave approval for 150 days employment per household under Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act in the drought hit areas of the country. 
  
  The government has declared Nationalist Socialist Council of Nagaland-Khaplang, NSCN-K, as an unlawful organization for five years. The Cabinet committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) also approved setting up of committee to propose Exim bank scheme to offer concessional finance to companies bidding for infra projects abroad. The CCEA has also approved doubling of 284 kilometres Hotgi-Kudgi-Gadag Railway line costing Rs 2,058 crore. 
  
  The cabinet has also approved the creation of four posts of directors for four new National Institutes of Design (NIDs) at Kurukshetra in Haryana, Bhopal in Madhya Pradesh, Assam's Jorhat and Vijayawada in Andhra Pradesh. 
  
• Megalithic burial site unearthed
  The Archaeology Department of Telangana which recently found Megalithic (1000 BC and 200 AD) burial site near Siddipet in Medak district has got a shot in arm with the government giving a go-ahead with the work. The excavations are intended for re-constructing the historic patterns towards filling the gaps in different periods. 
  
  At Pullur Banda village near Siddipet, there are nearly 50 Megalithic burials. These are classified into three types, Menhir, Cairns (pit burials) and Dolmens. With a view to understand the culture and traditions of the Megalithic communities of this region, three burials have been selected for excavation. 
  
  Menhir is a huge vertical stone kept to the north of the big burial. Bruisings are seen on its north side in the centre. These bruisings are stick type human forms with weapon in their hands. To know the foundations of the Menhir, a trench is laid and excavated upto 15 cms. 
  
  At one of the burial sites, iron implements like dagger, arrowheads, iron forcep, knife, javelin, black and red ware, black ware and red ware pottery, a small broken ring made of clay were recovered. In other two burials, clay utensils were recovered. Anthropomorphic (human) statue is being considered to be an important artefacts amongst the items recovered from a Dolmen type burial. 
  
  Discovery of cruciform monoliths in male and female forms known as Statue-Menhirs on the Mallugrugutta (Warangal) and Galabha in Kanchanapally (Khammam) is unique feature in the megalithic culture of mid-Godavari valley. 
  
  Amongst other historic artefacts recovered in the State include a treasure trove consisting of 40 gold coins in Garla Bayyaram, Khammam district, and palm leaf manuscripts found by Krishnaveni, a class IX student, during Swachh Bharat programme in Kondamallepally village of Devarakonda mandal in Nalgonda district. 
  
  The small gold coins, which were enclosed in brass pot are inscribed with Sri Pratapa Krishna Raya (1506 – 1530) and and Sri Pratapa Achyta Raya (1530 - 1542) are considered to be of Tuluva dynasty. 
  
• Foundation for Water Grid Project in Telangana
  Telangana IT Minister KT Rama Rao laid foundation stone for the prestigious Water Grid project at Nagasala village near Jadcherla, Mahabubnagar district. 
  
  The Telangana government has designed the Telangana Water Grid - a mammoth project intended to provide a sustainable and permanent solution to the drinking water woes. 
  
  The objective of Telangana Water Grid is to provide 100 liters of clean drinking water per person in rural households and 150 liters per person in urban households. This project aims to provide water to about 25000 rural habitations and 67 urban habitations. 
  
• Telangana State to introduce Rythu Bandhu scheme
  Telangana Marketing Minister T Harish Rao on 16th September said that the State government has decided to introduce Rythu Bandhu Scheme to provide interest-free loans of Rs 2 lakh to farmers for six months who store their produce in storage houses or godowns. 
  
  To provide remunerative prices and storage capacity, the government was spending Rs 1,024 crore for construction of adequate number of godowns in the State. Besides giving them remunerative prices, the government would provide either loan amount equivalent to 75 per cent of the produce stored or Rs 2 lakh. Harish Rao said high technology gadgets, internet, WhatsApp and sound system were being used to strengthen the market yards and monitor for better functioning by receiving complaints from the farmers. 
  
  He said Rs 80 crore was being spent to provide all facilities at market yards, set up cotton purchase centres through CCI from October 10 to 30 and increased their number to 90 from 80. Steps were being taken to construct at least one godown in a mandal headquarter. 
  
• DD celebrates anniversary 
  Doordarshan celebrates its 59th anniversary of starting terrestrial transmission operations in India. In 1959, 15th sept saw, Doordarshan (DD) the country's national public service broadcaster being launched in New Delhi with a small transmitter and a makeshift studio. 
  
  This fledgling effort bore fruit when regular daily transmission started in 1965. Doordarshan began a five-minute news bullet in the same year, even then Doordarshan was a part of the mother-ship All India Radio. It was only on 1st April 1976 that the umbilical cord with AIR was cut. And Doordarshan got its own identity. 
  
  Up until 1975, only seven Indian cities had a television service and Doordarshan remained the sole television broadcaster in India. 
  
  1982 saw Doordarshan, the national broadcaster emerging as a colour channel, coinciding with the 9th Asian Games held in New Delhi that ushered in a major revolution in broadcasting in the country. 
  
  Krishi Darshan was the first program to be telecast on 26th January 1967 making it the longest running program on Indian television. DD National channel is the largest terrestrial network in the world covering about 92% population and 81% land area of the country. 
  
  The Doordarshan Network today at present of 5 National Channels, 11 Regional Language Satellite Channels, 11 regional State Networks and 1 International channel. With several milestones marking the journey from the telecast of test signals on 15th September, 1959 to today has indeed been a historic one. 
  
• SC stays amendments to Haryana Panchayat Law
   In a fillip to “grassroots democracy”, the Supreme Court on 17th September stayed the operation of a new panchayat law in Haryana prescribing minimum educational qualifications for contesting in local bodies' elections. 
  
  The apex court's decision to stay the function of the Haryana Panchayati Raj (amendment) Act 2015 serves a blow to the State government which notified the changes in conditions of eligibility only on September 8, a day prior to the opening of nominations for the panchayat elections. 
  
  In an urgent mentioning, a bench led by Justice J. Chelameswar issued notice to both the Haryana government and the State Election Commission on petitions filed by some poll aspirants. 
  
  According to the amendments, general category candidates require a minimum qualification of Class 10 pass, men contesting in Scheduled Caste category and women in general category need to be Class 8 pass, while women in the Scheduled Caste category need to be Class 5 pass to be eligible. 
  
  The amendments also required that candidates should not have any dues in co-operative banks, electricity bills should be paid up and there should be a functional toilet at home. The stay by the Supreme Court came shortly after the Punjab and Haryana High Court refused to intervene with the law. 
  
  The Supreme Court's intervention is however preceded by its refusal, in January this year, to entertain a similar challenge against the Rajasthan Panchayati Raj (Second Amendment) Ordinance, 2014. 
  
  The Rajasthan Ordinance, promulgated on December 20, 2014, also prescribed minimum educational qualifications to contest in local body elections, and effectively kept out illiterate persons from the democratic process. 
  
• Rajasthan first to amend mandatory promotions up to Class VIII
  Rajasthan on 17th September became the first state to pass a bill to amend the Right To Education Act of 2009 to do away with the no-detention policy up to Class VIII in government and private schools. The bill aims at restoring the standard of school education by replacing the provision of not failing students till Class VIII with the new provision that children may not be promoted in higher classes unless they acquire the 'class appropriate learning level'. 
  
  Besides the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (Rajasthan Amendment) Bill 2015, two private universities' bills and the Rajasthan secondary education (amendment) bill, 2015, were also passed by the House. 
  
• Broadband fibre laid in 68,000 village panchayats: Ravi Shankar Prasad 
  According to Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad the government has laid down 90,000 kms of optical fibre network for high speed broadband connection, covering about 68,000 village panchayats till date. Government is connecting about 2.5 lakh village panchayats. 
  
  The Modi government has remodelled the project as BharatNet. The new models proposed under BharatNet will be implemented after Cabinet approves it. Prasad said that 18 states have expressed interest to roll out BharatNet project using special purpose vehicles. 
  
• Centre launches PMKKKY for mining affected people
  The Centre has launched the Pradhan Mantri Khanij Kshetra Kalyan Yojana (PMKKKY) for the welfare of people affected by mining related operations. The scheme aims at mitigating the adverse impacts due to mining operation on the environment and health and ensuring long-term sustainable livelihoods for the affected people in mining areas. 
  
  According to Mines Ministry, 60 per cent of the funds will be spent on high priority areas including drinking water supply, health care, sanitation, education and skill development of the affected people. Besides, the rest of the funds will be spent on making roads, bridges, railways, waterways projects, irrigation and alternative energy sources. The government has also notified the rates of contribution payable by miners to the District Mineral Foundations, DMFs. 
  
  According to the notification, miners will have to contribute 30 per cent of the royalty payable by them to DMFs in case of mining leases executed before 12th of January this year and 10 per cent of the royalty where mining leases are granted after 12th January. The funds generated by the District Mineral Foundations will be spent on implementation of the scheme. 
  
• MP Govt launches M-Shiksha-Mitra mobile app for teachers
  In Madhya Pradesh, the state government has launched M-Shiksha-Mitra mobile app to provide various services and teaching-related work to teachers in simple and easy way. Perhaps Madhya Pradesh is the first state to develop such mobile for teachers. 
  
  A number of facilities have been given in the Shiksha-Mitra mobile app, which has been developed by the NIC. Teachers can use this app to browse salary slips, funds sent to school under various heads, scholarships, different circulars and GPF statement. 
  
  They can send SMS about their problems and know status of their redressal. The app will also be used for applying for leave and e-attendance. Facility of free 200 SMSs has been given in the app. Teachers can download the app from Google Play Store in their android mobile phone. 
  
• UP govt to end old rotation based reservation system in Village panchayats
  The Uttar Pradesh government has decided to end the old rotation based reservation system in Village panchayats in the state. The State cabinet has taken this decision on 17th September
  
  The new reservation system in village panchayat is being made effective through cabinet -by- circulation. After implementation of this rule the reservation process for Village panchayat head (pradhan ) and member will now be changed. 
  
• PM launches IPDS in Varanasi to ensure 24 hour power supply to every house
  Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched National Integrated Power Development Scheme IPDS in Varanasi on 18th September. According to him 45 thousand crore rupees scheme will enlighten not only the people of Kashi but the entire urban population of the country. This will insure 24 hours power supply to every house. 
  
  Under IPDS Varanasi will get 572 crore rupees. To start the scheme in Varanasi foundation stone of two power substation has been laid. 
  
• WB declassifies 64 files on Subhash Chandra Bose
  West Bengal government on 18th September declassified 64 files related to the last days of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. All the 64 files, which contain 12744 pages, have been kept in Kolkata Police Museum in their original form for public viewing
  
  The files have been digitised and were distributed among Bose family members and public. Netaji kin expressed happiness over the decision. 
  
  Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had said that the files available with the State Government would be made available to the public in a systematic manner. Netaji is a national icon, people must know about him, she had said. 
  
• Forest cover in Gundia river catchment down 
  According to the research by Indian Institute of Science, area under forests in the Gundia river catchment in the Western Ghats has reduced from 70.74 per cent to 61.15 per cent in the last one-and-half decade, The Yettinahole is a tributary of the Gundia. 
  
  The report titled “Environmental Flow Assessment in Yettinahole. Where is 24 tmcft to divert?” has also pointed out that water yielding area in the Gundia river catchment has shrunk from 0.63 per cent to 0.46 per cent during the same period. 
  
  It said that the Gundia is formed by two streams — the Yettinahole and the Kempuhole. Then, Gundia is joined by two more streams — the Kadumanehole and the Hongadahalla — to form a river course. The Gundia catchment region is surrounded by the Hemavathi river watershed on its right, the Barapole river catchment on its left and the Netravati in the downstream. 
  
  The report, released in April, said that the area under forests in the Gundia river catchment has been reduced by 61.37 sq km that is from 452.80 sq km in December 2000 to 391.43 sq km in December 2014. Water yielding area has shrunk by 0.94 sq km, from 4.05 sq km to 3.11 sq km, during the same period. At the same time, the report pointed out that the area under plantation went up by 46.68 sq km in area, from 11.66 per cent (74.61 sq km in area) to 18.95 per cent (121.29 sq km in area). 
  
  It said that a sustainable option to meet the water requirements of arid regions is through decentralised water harvesting (through tanks, ponds, lakes, etc.), rejuvenation or restoration of existing lakes/ponds, recharging groundwater resources, planting native species of herbs and plants in the catchment, and implementation of soil and water conservation through micro-watershed approaches. 
  
• Centre drops two contentious clauses on NGOs
  The Union government has decided to drop a contentious clause in the Foreign Contribution Regulation Rules (FCRR), 2015, which would have made it mandatory for NGOs receiving foreign contributions to declare their social media accounts like their Twitter handle and Facebook pages with the government. It will be made optional instead. The government has also dropped the clause which required NGOs to post their returns and activities on a weekly basis. It will now be done quarterly. 
  
  The government will also help NGOs in hosting their own websites since it proposes to make all official communication and dealings online now. 
  
  The move comes ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the United States later this week as the government wants to shed its image of being one that is clamping down on foreign donors like the Ford Foundation, which has been put along with 16 others in the prior-permission category. 
  
  Earlier this month, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) cancelled the registration of Greenpeace India and also that of the Gujarat-based social activist Teesta Setalvad’s Sabrang Trust, which received funds from the Ford Foundation. 
  
  The MHA is all set to notify the amended Foreign Contribution Regulation Rules (FCRR), which will govern foreign contributions received by NGOs. 
  
  Through its draft amendment rules, which were made public in June this year, the Home Ministry had proposed making all dealings with NGOs online. After the draft rules were put up for comments, many NGOs wrote to the MHA that the ones working in the interiors of the country did not have access to the Internet or the wherewithal to create a website of their own. 
  
  The MHA has, however, decided to stick to the clause where banks have to inform it about all foreign funds coming to an NGO account within 48 hours. The MHA has also reduced the number of forms to be filled in by the NGOs. 
  
• SC launches portal on pendency of cases
  Inviting the public to keep tabs on the burgeoning case pendency rates in their local courts, the Supreme Court on 19th September launched the public access portal of the National Judicial Data Grid district courts in a step towards demystification of the judicial process for the ordinary citizen. 
  
  With this, the ambitious effort to digitise court system through the eCourts Project has reached the public, encouraging the litigants and the public to watch the pendency graphs and, may be in the future, suggest solutions against delayed justice. 
  
  The NJDG already has information of 1.94 crore pending cases out of about 2.7 crore cases in district courts, except those in Madhya Pradesh and Delhi, where case data is being migrated to national version of case information software. 
  
  The public access portal will disseminate for the public national, State, district and court-wise information about disposal of cases on a monthly basis. 
  
• PM Modi inaugurates much-awaited Badarpur-Faridabad Metro
  Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 6th September inaugurated the much-awaited Badarpur-Faridabad Metro that will connect the national capital with the satellite town and hoped that it would give impetus to economic growth in the region. 
  
  Prime Minister also highlighted how the newly built section is using clean energy in the form of solar power to generate Peak electricity of around 2 Megawatts to help run its operations. He said, in the coming days, how clean and environment-friendly railway stations can be created, is the direction in which the Metro is running a successful campaign. He said, at a time when the entire world is worried about global warming, Delhi Metro is making its contribution to the green movement. 
  
  The 14 kilometer long Badarpur - Faridabad Metro corridor has nine stations from Sarai to Escorts Mujesar. It is an extension of the presently operational ITO - Badarpur section of the Delhi Metro and has been built at an estimated cost of 2500 crore rupees. 
  
  The DMRC has installed solar panels at all the stations to generate nearly 2 megawatt power. The estimated ridership on the corridor is expected to be around two lakh per day and a major portion of the road users are likely to shift to this mode of transport. 
  
  To tackle the rush, DMRC is pressing into service fiv six-coach-trains and the rest four coach train will also be converted into six coach gradually. 
  
• Armed forces personnel retiring prematurely to be covered under OROP Scheme: PM Modi
  Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced that the armed forces personnel who have retired prematurely will be covered under the One Rank One Pension, OROP Scheme. Modi said that there is no need to be misled as those who have to compulsorily retire after 15 to 17 years will be benefited the most from the decision. Referring to the one member Commission proposed to be set up, the Prime Minister said that the armed forces should not be misled on the issue also as this is not a pay commission but to address any shortcomings as the issue is complex. 
  
• International Film Festival for persons with disabilities in December
  As part of its efforts to create awareness about issues facing the differently-abled, the government would soon organise an International Film Festival for persons with disabilities. A first-of-its-kind initiative by the Centre, the three-day International Film Festival For Persons with Disabilities is being jointly organised by the Union Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment and the National Film Development Corporation (NFDC) in Delhi from December 1 to 3. 
  
  The festival will be dedicated to promoting awareness about and appreciation of the lives, stories and artistic expressions of differently-abled people. 
  
  The focus of the festival will be on how to change the way the community thinks about disability, sources said, adding that some of the best new releases from around the world narrating the real-life experiences of people with disabilities would be screened as part of the event. 
  
• New numbering to check counterfeit notes
  A new numbering system and seven new security features will be incorporated in all currency notes, especially in high denomination Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 notes, in order to check the menace of Fake Indian Currency Notes (FICN). 
  
  The Bhartiya Reserve Bank Note Mudran Pvt Limited (BRBNMPL) and Security Printing and Minting Corporation of India Limited (SPMCIL) have initiated steps for introduction of the revised number pattern. Initially, it will be made part of Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 currency notes and, by May next year, currencies of all other denominations will have this feature, they said. Besides, the government has approved seven new security features, details of which are not yet known, in the bank notes RBI has also asked the banks to stamp fake notes detected over the counter as "COUNTERFEIT NOTE" and impound them immediately. Banks found not following the procedure will be penalised. They have also been instructed to issue a receipt for counterfeit notes to the tenderer of the FICN
  
  As per the estimates, fake Indian currency notes of face value of Rs 30 crore have been seized. National Investigation Agency (NIA) has been made the nodal agency for FICN cases as the government treats this menace as ‘economic terrorism’. 
  
  Gujarat tops states with fake currency seizures
   Gujarat tops the list of five Indian states that are considered the "safest" for circulating counterfeit currency notes - allegedly pushed in by Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agency - according to the latest data released by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) 
  
  Of the 30,354,604 counterfeit notes seized across the country, 87,47,820 were recovered from Gujarat in 2014. Chhattisgarh followed close on the heels with the seizure of 7,386,900 fake notes, while Andhra Pradesh, Punjab and Haryana saw recoveries of 5,437,600, 3,249,000 and 1,696,850 counterfeit notes. 
  
  Police officers monitoring the circulation of fake notes suspect that the ISI is pushing such notes in India which have a greater resemblance to India's high denomination Rs.1,000 and Rs.500 notes. 
  
  Of the 30,354,604 counterfeit notes seized across the country, those in the Rs.1,000 denomination was the highest at 19,895,000. The recovery of notes in the Rs.500, Rs.100 and Rs.50 denominations across India was9,490,500; 938,800 and 25,000. However, the seizure of other fake Indian currency was was a mere 5,304 pieces. 
  
  The NCRB data said that Chhattisgarh is the state from where highest 7,224,000 fake notes of Rs.1,000 denomination were recovered. 
  
  Gujarat was on the second highest with the recovery of 2,441,000 notes of the same denomination, followed by Punjab (3,179,000 notes) and Andhra Pradesh (2,441,000 notes). 
  
  Indian intelligence agencies are worried that despite some traditional smuggling routes of Fake Indian Currency Notes (FICN) being neutralized, the flow has not slowed. The traditional route is the India-Pakistan border and several means are employed, including travel by road. Apart from the road and railway routes, the air route via Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and the United Arab Emirates, as also China and Holland, are being used for smuggling in fake notes. 
  
• Gigantic 120-meters Vishnu statue coming-up in Bali
  A gigantic statue of Hindu Lord Vishnu is being built in Bali (Indonesia), which is claimed to be “one of the tallest and largest modern day sculptures”, and will reportedly be ready by 2017. 
  
  This 120 meters high and 64 meters wide statue is claimed to be bigger than Statue of Liberty in New York and Christ the Redeemer statue in Brazil, and will be visible from 20 kilometers away. 
  
  It will be the main attraction of Garuda Wisnu Kencana Cultural Park in Ungasan, currently run by PT Alam Sutera Realty Indonesia. 
  
  Being created by renowned Indonesian sculptor I Nyoman Nuarta, it shows Lord Vishnu sitting on Garuda. Some core parts of the statue will be gold layered. From his workshop in Bandung (West Java), Nuarta carves the statue in several parts, consisting of 24 segments and formed with 754 modules made of copper and brass coated patina acid, which are then transported to Southern Bali, reports suggest. 
  
• AP in MoU with TISS to increase employability
  The Andhra Pradesh government signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) on 5th September on the occasion of Teacher's Day in the presence of chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu and state HRD minister Ganta Srinivasa Rao. 
  
  The MoU envisages implementation of the Andhra Pradesh University Students Employability Skill Development Programme, a flagship initiative of the AP government. 
  
  The MoU involves strategic partnerships with civil society organisations, public sector bodies, private sector institutions and social entrepreneurship organisations to complement the efforts of the AP State Knowledge Mission and accelerate its progress. 
  
  The comprehensive skill development model will focus on English communication and soft skills, digital/computer skills, analytical skills, financial literacy, legal literacy, entrepreneurship, leadership development and also add specialisation in a specific domain to make the graduating youth employable. 
  
  The programme will be carried out through the Jawahar Knowledge Centres (JKC) across the state and will also include some of the best courses and practices from the National University Students Skill Development Programme. 
  
  The objectives of the MoU are to ensure significant and measurable increase in employability of students studying in universities and degree colleges in AP, to form collaborations with higher institutes and industries for implementing employability skill development programme, apart from designing curriculum by identifying local industrial needs to develop employable skills of youth in colleges, particularly for rural SC and ST youth. 
  
  During the three year graduation period, students can earn a certificate in management and soft skills (on completion of 1st year), certificate in domain (on completion of 2nd year) and diploma (on completion of 3rd year). 
  
  The certificate programme and the diploma provided by TISS for this programme is approved by the Academic Council of TISS and will be recognised by the industry. 
  
• TU inks pact with Chicago University
  In a significant development, Telangana University has entered into an agreement with prestigious Chicago State University for student and staff exchange programmes. Chicago University vice-president David Kanis and TU in-charge Vice Chancellor C Parthasarathi signed the MoU in the presence of Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao and Nizamabad MP K Kavitha on 6th September. 
  
  This pact is applicable to Computer Science and Technical Education sectors initially and it will be extended to Pharma, Nursing and Chemical Technology disciplines in the near future. This is a boon to engineering students since they can now enrol for higher studies in this university without GRE and TOEFL tests that are mandatory for studies in US. 
  
• Water storage available in 91 reservoirs: Govt
  As per the report released by Ministry of Water Resources, the Water storage available in 91 important reservoirs of the country as on September 03, 2015 was 92.922 Billion cubic metres (BCM) which is 59% of total storage capacity of these reservoirs. This storage is 84% of the storage of corresponding period of last year and 84% of storage of average of last ten years. 
  
  States having better storage than last year for corresponding period were Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Rajasthan, West Bengal, Tripura, Gujarat, Uttarakhand and Madhya Pradesh. States having lesser storage than last year for corresponding period were Jharkhand, Odisha, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, and Telangana. 
  
• 6 Army men get life term in Machil encounter case
  An Army court martial has awarded life sentence to six of its personnel found guilty in the Machil fake encounter case of 2010. In a statement on 7th September, a Northern Command spokesman said those sentenced were Colonel Dinesh Pathania; Captain Opendra; Havildar Devender Kumar; Lance Naik Lakhmi; Lance Naik Arun Kumar; and rifleman Abas Hussain. This is the first time Army personnel are being punished for human rights abuse in the Valley. 
  
  The Army verdict came in December 2013, but remained unconfirmed so far for procedural reasons. A court of inquiry, headed by Major-General G.S. Sangah, a Brigadier of the 68 Mountain Division in 2010, ascertained the role of the accused and ordered a court martial. 
  
  The decision came two years after the Army sought the transfer of the case to a court martial on the ground that the accused were on active duty and the Army could exercise discretion to initiate proceedings before any court. 
  
  On April 29, 2010, the Army killed three youths in the Machil sector of Kupwara district on the ground that they were foreign militants. However, a police investigation found out that the dead, Reyaz Ahmad, Mohammad Shafi and Shahzad Ahmadas, were residents of Nadihal Rafiabad of Baramulla district. They were made to come to Machil by a former special police officer, Bashir Ahmad Lone, and his accomplices with the offer of jobs and later handed over to the Army personnel for Rs. 50,000 each. The bodies were exhumed on May 28, 2010. 
  
  A colonel, two majors, five soldiers, one Territorial Army man and two civilians were named by the Jammu and Kashmir Police in a charge sheet filed before the Chief Judicial Magistrate in 2010. 
  
• Government sets March 2016 target of 100 % literacy in villages
  The government on 8th September set a target of achieving 100 per cent literacy in villages adopted under the Sansad Adarsh Gram Yojana by March 2016. The announcement came as President Pranab Mukherjee regretted that India still lagged behind some of its neighbours in achieving 100 per cent literacy. 
  
  Noting that there are 410 districts where villages have identified under the Sansad Adarsh Gram Yojana, HRD Minister Smriti Irani expressed confidence of accomplishing the target. From 18 per cent in 1951 to 72.5 per cent in 2011, India is still behind. 
  
• Haryana sets minimum qualification for candidates in Panchayati Raj polls
  Haryana Assembly has passed a bill, fixing matriculation as minimum educational qualification for elections to Panchayati Raj institutions. The bill also laid down other conditions including making it mandatory for the candidates to have functional toilets. 
  
  The Assembly on the concluding day of its Monsoon session passed the Haryana Panchayati Raj (Amendment) Bill, 2015 after debating it for over an hour, amid a walkout by the Congress while main opposition INLD also raised concern on some points concerning the amendment. 
  
  The bill fixes, matriculation as essential qualification for general candidates contesting the Panchayat elections while the qualification for the women (general) and Scheduled caste candidate will be middle standard or class 8th. The House was informed that Haryana has become the second state after Rajasthan to fix educational and other qualifications for the candidates contesting Panchayat elections. 
  
• Andhra Pradesh launches e-Pragati bringing all govt services under one roof
  In Andhra Pradesh, a comprehensive architecture to leverage the latest advances in e-governance tools has been launched by the State government. e-Pragati, the AP State Enterprise Architecture, will bring all the government services under one roof. 
  
  Designed with an estimated investment of Rs. 2,358 crore of which the state will share Rs. 1,528 crore over a period of three years, the project is aimed at bringing together 745 government to businesses, government to citizens, government to employees and government to governments services offered by 33 departments and more than 300 government agencies. 
  
  The basic objective of e-Pragati is to move away from the piecemeal approach and provide an integrated ‘One Governance’ that will be citizen-centric, transparent and effective. As many as 72 projects of various departments have been grouped under 14 packages. 
  
• Electronic version of Mahatma Gandhi's work launched
  Information & Broadcasting Minister Arun Jaitley on 8th September unveiled the electronic version of Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi at Gandhi Peace Foundation, New Delhi. This contains all the words Gandhiji spoke and wrote, day after day, year after year, beginning from 1884 till his assassination on January 30, 1948. 
  
  The work will maximise the reach of Gandhian philosophy at a time when the world is facing number of manmade crises. These books represent the history and ideology of a man who the world remembers as Mahatma Gandhi from more than 130 years ago. 
  
  The Collected Works of Mahatma Gandhi (CWMG), published by the Publications Division, is a monumental document of Gandhiji's words which he spoke and wrote, day after day, year after year, beginning from 1884 till his assassination on January 30, 1948. It took 38 years for Prof. K. Swaminathan to compile it. 
  
• Center to give 33 % reservation to women in all para-military forces
  Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh has said that CISF will be the first among Central Armed Police Forces to achieve 33 percent reservation for women. 
  
  According to him, women represent 5.04 per cent of CISF force and the Centre had issued a circular to Union Territories wherein they have been directed to recruit 33 per cent women in police forces and similarly participation of women should increase in central paramilitary forces. 
  
  The Home Minister said that if any force which will be the first to achieve the target of 33 per cent reservation for women, it will be CISF. 
  
  The Home Minister attended the event at the National Industrial Security Academy (NISA) of the paramilitary force where 48 freshly inducted and trained Assistant Commandants, eleven promotee ACs and 478 Sub-inspectors have passed. 
  
• Amend CAG Act to make it part of legislature: PACs conference suggests 
  The Comptroller and Auditor General should be a part of the legislature, the Public Accounts Committees of Parliament and state legislatures have recommended. 
  
  At an all-India conference of Public Accounts Committees of Parliament and states and Union Territories held after 15 years, the chairpersons recommended that CAG should be made accountable to the legislature, like in the UK and Australia. 
  
  Highlighting a suggestion made by Parliament's PAC during 15th Lok Sabha, the conference suggested that the committee, which examines CAG reports, should be consulted before the appointment of CAG 
  
  According to Public Accounts Committee chairman KV Thomas, the two-day conference, recommendations would be further examined by a sub-committee and would be forwarded to the government to initiate necessary changes in CAG Act of 1971. 
  
  The conference recommended that public private partnership projects should be examined by CAG as public money is spent on them. Examining the changing role and responsibility of PAC, chairpersons at the conference recommended that PACs should take up suo motu cognisance of public issues and government's flagship programmes and examine financial wrong-doings. 
  
  At present, PACs findings are in the form of recommendations and are not binding on the government. Thomas said we have recommended that these should be made mandatory. The chairpersons also pointed out problems PACs face in examining CAG re-ports. 
  
  Though Parliament has been resisting attempts to open up proceedings of parliamentary committees to the media, the conference recommended that PAC proceedings should be open to the press except in sensitive matters. 
  
• Bihar to go to polls in 5 phases from Oct 12; Counting on Nov 8
  Bihar Assembly will go to polls in five phases between 12th of October and 5th of November. The 1st phase will be held on 12th October, 2nd on 16th October, 3rd on 28th October, 4th on 1st November and 5th phase on 5th of November. Counting will take place on 8th November. 
  
  Bihar has a total of 243 assembly seats, of which 38 are reserved for Scheduled Castes and 2 for Scheduled Tribes. 47 constituencies are affected by Left Wing Extremism. A total of 62779 polling stations will be set up for 6.68 crore electorates. 
  
  The Chief Election Commissioner said for the first time EVMs will be carrying photos of the candidates in any general election to prevent the namesake problem. 
  
• HRD ministry launches national web portal of NATS
  The Human resources development ministry on 10th September launched the national web portal of its recently launched National Apprenticeship Training Scheme. Union HRD Minister Smriti Irani launched the portal in the capital. The website was launched in English, Hindi, Tamil, Bengali and Marathi. 
  
• Bachchan, Ratan Tata join fight for a TB-free country
  The U.S. Ambassador to India, Richard Varma, on 10th September launched the ‘Mumbai Dialogue: Towards a TB-free India,’ along with Bollywood legend Amitabh Bachchan and Ratan Tata, Chairman, Sir Ratan Tata Trusts. 
  
  Aiming to engage the corporate sector to strengthen the government of India’s ‘Call to Action for a tuberculosis-free India,’ a group of corporate leaders joined the trio for a dialogue. 
  
  TB is one of the deadliest diseases in India. As per the figures from the World Health Organisation (WHO) global TB report 2014, around 2.40 lakh Indians die every year and 61,000 suffer from multidrug-resistant TB. 
  
  The United States has invested close to $100 million in the last 18 years to prevent and control TB. It has helped over 15 million people. But still a lot needs to be done and government alone cannot do it, public and private partners need to collaborate. 
  
  The ‘Call to Action for a TB-Free India’ is an initiative led by government to engage the corporate sector, civil society and community leaders to combat the disease. The call to action will culminate in a national summit in March 2016. 
  
• MCOCA court convicts 12 accused in 2006 Mumbai train blast case
  A special court in Mumbai on 11th September convicted 12 accused in the 2006 serial bomb blasts that rattled Mumbai and killed 188 people. Delivering the verdict, the Special Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act - MCOCA court held the accused guilty of various charges under IPC, Explosives Act, Unlawful Activities Prevention Act, Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act and Indian Railway Act apart from various MCOCA sections that could attract death penalty. 
  
  The chargesheet filed by ATS in November 2006 had named 30 people: 17 Indians and 13 Pakistani nationals. It had said that Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) were made in a room in Govandi in suburban Mumbai and some Pakistani nationals were also present during the bomb-making. However, the agency could arrest only 13 Indian accused of trial. Among the 17 people who are absconding is Azam Cheema, the alleged mastermind of the blasts. 
  
• Indian woman with alleged ISIS link deported by UAE
  An Indian woman, allegedly involved in carrying out recruitment for the dreaded ISIS terror outfit, was on 11th September deported by UAE after which she was arrested. 
  
  Afsha Jabeen alias 'Nicky Joseph' hails from Hyderabad but had been portraying herself as a British national while luring youth for ISIS through social media. She was deported along with husband and children. 
  
• World Conference calls for more steps to popularize Hindi to make it world language
  Scholars participating in the Tenth World Hindi Conference have said that steps will have to be taken to popularize Hindi among youths to make it a world language. In the three day event, being organized in Bhopal, topics like Hindi in foreign policy, science, information technology and administration and use of pure Hindi in journalism and mass communication were discussed. 
  
  Experts have expressed opinion that internet has strengthened Hindi as a Language. They also stressed on the need of Hindi key boards in computers. Experts have also taken exception on the Hindi being used in private FM radio channels. Some scholars said that a country can only progress when its language has international recognition. 
  
• Ancient twin caves discovered in Nalgonda
  In a significant discovery, the Department of Archaeology and Museums has come across naturally formed ancient twin caves which pre-historic man could have made his habitation in Nalgonda district of Telangana on 10th September. According to experts in the Department of Archaeology, the 200-metre-deep caves, a rare find, are probably the oldest-ever discovered in both Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. 
  
  The caves are at Gajubeda Tanda, a hamlet under Kacharajupally grama panchayat in Chandampet mandal. The place is just a couple of km from Nagarjunasagar backwaters and very close to Dindi rivulet. 
  
  The twin caves have 15-metre radius at the entry point but the size narrows down. One of the twin caves is 50 feet deep and the other 200 metres. 
  
• Centre earmarks Amaravati as heritage city
  Historical Amaravati, once the capital region of ancient Satavahana Kings, will be preserved as a heritage city. The marks and foot prints of history of the bygone era will be revived for the benefit of history and heritage lovers. 
  
  The Central government has earmarked Rs 100 crore and the Union Ministry of Urban Development has selected Amaravati along with 11 other historical cities in the country by sanctioning Rs 100 crores each to enliven the cities and to enable history lovers to go down the memory lane and delve into the past glory. 
  
  However, to avail of the Central assistance, the State government has to upgrade the present Amaravati Village Panchayat into Nagara Panchayat. For the village to be upgraded, it needs to have a minimum population of 25,000. As of now, the population in the village is pegged around 13,400. 
  
  So, the government is planning to merge the surrounding villages of Dhanyakataka, Muttayapalem, Lingapuram, Nadukullapadu, Yenikipadu, Thedamatturu and Yakuntapuram to get the tag of Nagara Panchayat. 
  
  The Heritage City development involves laying of new roads, development of Buddhist theme park, in 500 acres, museum, pilgrim amenities, tourist kiosk and a foot-over-bridge from Dhana Buddha to Amareshwara temple. Life-size statues of eminent Telugu personalities will also be installed on the Krishna river bund. 
  
  Meanwhile, the Endowments department under the 'Prasadam Scheme' also sanctioned Rs 70 crores for the development of temples and infrastructural facilities for the devotees who come from far off places. 
  
  Already, many of the Japanese firms and associations have evinced interest to contribute their mite for the development of Amaravati. The historical city is destined to shine on the international tourist map along with the new capital region christened as 'Amaravati'. 
  
  The twin Amaravati’s would gain popularity in different ways- one reflecting the ancient glory, while the other showcasing ultra-modern civilisation. 
  
  Buddha sculpture found at Nidamarru: A survey conducted in and around Nidamarru, a village in the CRDA, close to Mangalagiri town, yielded yet another image of Buddha of the Vajrayana phase. The team involved in the survey was led by E. Sivanagi Reddy, archaeologist and CEO of The Cultural Centre of Vijayawada. 
  
  The ancient find is an Amitabha sculpture of Buddha in dyana mudra in Padmasana. Amitabha’ means ‘infinite light’; it is also called ‘The Buddha of Immeasurable Life and Light’. 
  
  Practitioners of the Pure Land Schools of Buddhism (found in China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Japan) believe that reciting the holy name of Amida (Amitabha) Buddha with devotion will direct their consciousness into his “pure land after death”. The 4-ft-high and 3-ft-wide sculpture is carved out of black basalt stone. 
  
  The unique feature of this image lies in the Ushnisha , the flaming décor on the head of Buddha, symbolising the enlightenment
  
  Pointing to the position of the sculpture’s arms which indicate that the hands are held on the lap in a gesture of meditation, he says it suggests that this sculpture represents Amitabha, a celestial Buddha who presides over the pure land of paradise of Sukhavati in the western quadrant of the cosmos. 
  
• 10th World Hindi Conference concludes
  The Tenth World Hindi Conference concluded in Bhopal on 12th September. Addressing the concluding session, Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh said that Hindi is not only Rajbhasha (official language) but it is also language of communication in the country. 
  
  In the conference a resolution was unanimously passed in the conference to organize the 11th World Hindi Conference in Mauritius in 2018. The recommendations of different parallel sessions of the conference will be sent to a review committee which will forward them to different ministries of the government. 
  
  These recommendations include setting up of a language Lokpal to stop discrimination on linguistic basis, making Hindi typing in school curriculum compulsory and establishment of children literature academy. Home minister Rajnath Singh felicitated 38 scholars with Hindi Samman on this occasion. 
  
• Centre launches SAHAJ scheme for online release of new LPG connections
  As parts of its consumer friendly initiative, the government on 30th August launched a scheme SAHAJ for online release of new LPG connections for the consumers. Under the scheme, people can apply online for new connection and they need not visit to the LPG distributors for it. 
  
  The cities where scheme launched are Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Bhopal, Bhubaneswar, Chandigarh, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Lucknow, Mumbai, Patna and Pune. The distributors cannot force the consumer to purchase gas stove from their stores and it will depend on customer's choice. The scheme will be extended to other parts of the country in near future. 
  
  SAHAJ facility will enable the prospective customers to post online request for a new connection by filing Know Your Customer, KYC form, uploading photographs and bank account details. After submission, the customer will receive the registration number to know the connection status. The customer may opt for online or offline mode of payment for connection. Electronic subscription voucher will be mailed to the customer and physical delivery of the Gas cylinder, regulator with hose pipe will be made by the distributor. 
  
• Police station 'by women, for women' opened in Haryana on Raksha Bandhan
   On the eve of Raksha Bandhan, a police station solely for women and to be run by women employees on 30th August was opened in Gurgaon by Union Minister Rao Inderjit Singh. Currently, 30 women police personnel have been deputed and given two new vehicles. 
  
• Supreme Court stay on ban of Santhara
  The Supreme Court of India on 31st August has decided to stay Rajasthan High Court's ban on Santhara. Calling Santhara akin to suicide, the HC had termed it illegal and banned it. Following the ban, there were protests by Jain organisations in the city and in Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh, where the population of Jains is large. 
  
  Among Jain groups, messages have been moving around; asking community members to make sure that they turn up in big numbers to get the ban lifted and put the issue up before the court in a better way as it will be the last stop. 
  
• Law commission recommends abolition of death penalty 
  Law commission has recommended abolition of death penalty for all crimes other than terrorism related offences and waging war against the state. Chairman of the Commission Justice A P Shah said, in the last decade the Supreme Court has on numerous occasions expressed concern over the arbitrary sentencing in death penalty cases. 
  
  Justice Shah said the apex Court has noted that it is difficult to distinguish cases where death penalty has been imposed from those where the alternative of life imprisonment has been applied. Justice Shah has recommended establishing a witness protection scheme and victim compensation scheme expeditiously. 
  
  In the report he also suggested for a provision for police reforms for better and more effective investigation and prosecution. Justice Shah said the commission feels that this report will contribute to a more rational, principled and informed debate on the abolition of the death penalty for all crimes. He said, Commission hopes that the movement towards absolute abolition will be swift and irreversible. 
  
  The recommendation by the nine member panel was, however, not unanimous, with three members dissenting and supporting retention of capital punishment. 
  
• Union Minister Harsh Vardhan launches web-based system for DBT projects
  Minister for Science and Technology and Earth Sciences Dr. Harsh Vardhan on 31st August launched web enabled project management information system for the Department of Biotechnology (DBT) projects. While inaugurating the DBT Strategy meet at Faridabad, he also unveiled a mobile app for the purpose. 
  
  These applications will help registration of new investigators, online submission of proposals, upload project related documents and even online tracking of projects, reviewing the proposals and intimation of release of grants. This is expected to avoid delay in processing project proposals and access of information to the applicants on their proposals from anywhere. 
  
• India pitches for finalisation of CCIT at UN
  Asserting that no country could be immune to the threat of terrorism especially with emergence of Islamic State, India made a strong pitch for finalisation of the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism at the UN. 
  
  During talks with President-elect of the UN General Assembly Mogens Lykketoft, who is in New Delhi on a two-day visit, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj stressed on the need for UN Security Council reforms on the occasion of 70th anniversary. She said UN reform should reflect current geopolitical realities and increasing role of developing nations. 
  
  India also strongly pitched for early finalisation of the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism, a treaty proposed by India in 1996 to ban terrorists and make it binding for countries to deny funds and safe haven to them. 
  
  She also conveyed to the visiting leader that India was already in the process of implementing 11 out of 17 Sustainable Development goals which also match with government's flagship programmes such as 'Make in India' and 'Beti Bachao'. 
  
  Mr Lykketoft of Denmark was elected by the General Assembly as the President of the 70th Session on 15th of June and he will assume the office on 15th of September. 
  
  Meeting with PM Modi 
  Prime Minister Narendra Modi met President-elect of the UN General Assembly Mr Mogens Lykketoft in New Delhi. Prime Minister also called for securing concrete outcome on the long-pending issues of UN Security Council reforms and a proposed treaty to counter terrorism at the upcoming session. 
  
  Prime Minister noted that many of the Sustainable Development Goals, which form the core of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, were already being implemented through flagship programmes of India, such as Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan, Make in India, Digital India, Skill India, Smart Cities and Jan Dhan Yojna. 
  
• Haryana opens Sakhi, one stop center for women in distress
  Haryana Women and Child Development Minister Kavita Jain on 31st August inaugurated state’s first One Stop Centre, known as “Sakhi”, at Karnal to help the women in distress. This is the second such centre in the country after Chhattisgarh. 
  
  The Center, opened under a Central Government scheme, would provide help to sexually, mentally and emotionally harassed women and others. Mrs Jain said that the state government is committed to provide security to women. She said that Women police stations in all the 21 districts of the state have also started functioning. 
  
• India to join UN-based cash less alliance to achieve financial inclusion
  India is joining the UN-based Better than Cash Alliance. The new partnership with the Alliance is an extension of Indian Government’s commitment to reduce cash in its economy. The alliance is made up of Governments, companies, and international organizations that accelerate the transition from cash to digital payments in order to reduce poverty and drive inclusive growth. 
  
  The announcement coincides with the first anniversary of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s flagship financial inclusion programme Pradhan Mantri Jan-Dhan Yojana under which about 180 million new accounts have been opened, with deposits totaling more than 3.4 billion dollars. 
  
  The financial inclusion programme, along with Aaadhar biometric Unique Identity cards that make it easier for the Government to identify social benefit recipients and the widespread use of mobile phones, are driving financial inclusion in India. It is also resulting in cost savings. According to a new paper by Columbia University, the fuel subsidy programme, which is the world’s largest cash transfer programme, saved 2 billion dollars by paying cooking gas consumers directly into their bank accounts. 
  
• Doon to have world’s first centre for conservation of natural heritage
  India on 2nd September signed an agreement with the Unesco to establish the world's first centre for the conservation of 'natural' World Heritage sites at the Wildlife Institute of India (WII), Dehradun. The Institute will cater to the entire Asia-Pacific region for not just conserving existing sites but also identifying potential natural heritage sites across 50 countries. 
  
  This is for the first time that an existing institute (WII) has been accorded such recognition by the Unesco. It is also the first centre which will be established for management and training in the field of 'natural' heritage in the world. 
  
  Though a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to this effect was signed last year, a formal agreement was signed only on 2nd September in presence of the Union environment, forests and climate change minister Prakash Javadekar. The Union Cabinet had approved it last month. 
  
  The centre will function as an integral part of the WII by sharing its campus, management and human resources. Its governing council will have participation of Unesco, which will also provide advice from global experts. South Africa, Spain, Italy, China, Bahrain, Brazil, Mexico and Norway too have similar centres. But, these centres are meant for conservation of only 'cultural' heritage sites. The Dehradun centre will, on the other hand, work for conservation of 'natural' heritage. 
  
  Though not legally part of the UN body, these institutes and centres are associated with Unesco through formal arrangements approved by the general conference. They have been selected on the basis of the strength of their specialization in one of Unesco's fields of competence. 
  
• Cabinet approves MFP for development of hydrocarbon discoveries
  The Cabinet on 2nd September approved Marginal Fields Policy, MFP, for the development of hydrocarbon discoveries by national oil companies like Oil and Natural Gas Corporation and Oil India. 
  
  According to the Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, 70,000 crore rupees worth of resources will be monetised after the Cabinet decision to auction the oil fields. He said, the license granted would cover all hydrocarbons found in the field instead of being restricted to one item. 
  
  Revenue sharing model is being introduced for the first time in oil sector and Government will receive a share of gross revenue instead of profit- sharing in earlier formula. 
  
  A unified license policy has been brought about by present decision covering both conventional and unconventional hydrocarbons. The Cabinet also cleared reimbursement of 113 crore of rupees losses on pulses imported between 2006 to 2011 by National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India Limited, NAFED, PEC, STC and MMTC. This will enable the Central Public Sector Undertakings to be financially sound to intensify trading activities to cool down prices of essential commodities. 
  
  The Cabinet also gave its nod to import of 5000 tonnes of Tur Dal and 5000 tonnes of Urad Dal by MMTC for retail distribution to consumers by 5th of this month. 
  
• Govt to wind up 115-yr old natural calamity trust IPNCT
  Government has decided to wind up 115-year-old natural Indian People's Natural Calamity Trust (IPNCT) and transfer the balance corpus fund of Rs 91 lakh to the Prime Minister’s Relief Fund. The Indian People's Natural Calamity Trust (IPNCT) was created by former Ruler of Jaipur in 1900 with an objective to provide relief to the people during famine. 
  
  The Trust is being administered under the chairmanship of Agriculture Minister Radha Mohan Singh with 27 nominated members and two officers. The Agriculture Ministry said in a release that since its last meeting held in August 1995, the Trust has no significant activity except giving donations through PM Relief Fund in case of natural disasters. 
  
• Delhi HC allows permanent commission for women in Navy
  Delhi High Court on 4th September allowed permanent commission for women in Navy. In a major relief for women naval officers, the court allowed a bunch of pleas seeking permanent commission for them in the force. The court said that sexist bias and service bias will not be allowed to block progress of women. The court, while granting their plea, said the women are to stay and since they work shoulder to shoulder with their male counterparts, it would not allow any endeavour to restrain the progress of women. 
  
  While the Army and Air Force allow permanent commission for women, the Navy has limited women officers to short service commission of 14 years only. A two judge bench also allowed women naval officers' plea seeking retirement benefits like pension. Women naval officers were not eligible for pension as it required 20 years of service. 
  
• PM releases commemorative coins in honour of former President S Radhakrishnan
  Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 4th September released two commemorative coins of Rs 125 and Rs 10 in the memory of former President Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan. On the eve of Teachers' day, Mr Modi released the coins at a function ahead of his interaction with central school students at Zorawar hall, Manekshaw Centre in New Delhi. 
  
• Entire Cable TV network to be digitised by 2016
  The Entire Cable TV network will be digitised by the end of 2016. According to the Joint Secretary, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting R. Jaya, the third phase of digitisation programme is in progress under which all the cities of with population of more than one lakh shall be covered by end of this year. Outlining the benefits of digitisation she said consumers can get channels of their own choice with good picture and sound quality. 
  
• Wheeler Island renamed as Abdul Kalam Island
  The Odisha government on 4th September announced renaming of Wheeler Island that houses India’s foremost missile testing facility as Abdul Kalam Island. The island assumes great significance in view of its strategic location. Situated in the district of Bhadrak on the coast of Bay of Bengal, Wheeler Island has been used as the launching pad of India’s missile defence system. 
  
• AP Assembly Passes Special Courts Bill Amid Opposition Walkout
  Andhra Pradesh Assembly passed ‘AP Special Courts Bill- 2015’ to deal sternly with financial fraud cases besides approving eight other key bills in a single day on 3rd September 
  
  The key bill proposes to empower the State government to constitute Special Courts for the speedy trial of certain class of offences and confiscate the properties involved in these cases. The State decided to prosecute the persons involved in acquiring properties by way of corrupt practices and to confiscate such ill-gotten properties for the welfare of the State. 
  
• Govt announces to implement OROP
  Giving relief to lakhs of ex-servicemen, Union Government has announced the implementation of 'one rank one pension' for the armed forces. It will be implemented from the first of July, 2014 with the base year as 2013. 
  • Despite its huge financial implications of about Rs.10,000 crore, Government went ahead with OROP
  • Pension will be re-fixed every five years.
  • Personnel who voluntarily retired will not be covered by OROP.
  • The benefit of OROP will be given from 1 July 2014.
  • Arrears will be paid in four half-yearly installments.
  • However, War widows will get full arrears in one installment.
  
  Government estimates that Rs 10000-12000 crore will be the cost of OROP arrears. However, The UPA Government announced the implementation of OROP with the budgetary allocation of a mere 500 crore rupees but did not announce a deadline for implementing it. 
  
  One rank one pension means that all armed forces personnel who retire at the same rank after the same length of service will draw the same amount of pension irrespective of the date of retirement. 
  
  The demand of the veterans that is over 4 decades old and was continouslly neglected by successive governments is finally implemented giving a sigh of relief and a smile to millions of brave soldiers.