Current Affairs – July 1, 2011

Rights To Disabled: Final draft submitted to the Central Government

• Final draft of “The Rights of Persons with Disabilities Bill, 2011” to Union Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment by a Committee appointed by the Ministry
  
• Expert Committee’s Chairperson: of Dr (Mrs) Sudha Kaul, Vice Chairperson, Indian Institute for Cerebral Palsy, Kolkata
  

Objective:

1. Proposed new legislation ensures wide-ranging rights to disabled persons as per International Standards
   
2. The new legislation to replace the existing: ‘Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act,1995’
   
3. The suggested Law attempts to revoke the 1995 Act to substitute it with a comprehensive rights based law as per the provisions of the UNCRPD (United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities)
   

• Union Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment: Mukul Wasnik
  

Peter Burleigh: Interim USA Ambassador in India

• Peter Burleigh took the charge of the USA Mission in India as an Interim US Ambassador
  
• Assumed duties as the Chargé d’Affaires of the U.S. Mission in India
  till a permanent Ambassador is appointed
  
• To succeed Mr. Timothy J Roemer, who completed his term
  
• Mr. Peter Burleigh is fluent in Bengali, Hindi, Nepali, and Sinhalese
  

“Adopt a Tree” Campaign of World Wide Fund (WWF) to start July 4, 2011

• WWF (World Wide Fund) to start its yearly “Adopt a Tree Campaign” July 4, 2011
  
• Vigorous involvement of diverse institutions, corporate houses, resident welfare associations and Students
  
• In 2005 the Campaign was initiated
  
• Objective: Promoting plantation of native species in Delhi as they are more favorable to local environment
  
• WWF to extend the reach of the campaign reach to other states from this year
  
• WWF provides tree saplings free of cost, with only one commitment
  –’ to nurture the sapling into a tree‘
  
• About 3,000 saplings adopted in the year 2010
  
• Database of the saplings distributed maintained and periodical follow-ups done in order to keep the track of the Trees and ensure that the sapling is well nurtured
  

New Chairman of the Railway Board: Vinay Mittal

• Vinay Mittal took over as the new Chairman of the Railway Board
  
• 1975 batch Officer of Indian Railway Traffic Service
• Mr. Mittal succeeded Mr. Vivek Sahai

‘Mission Mode Programme for reduction of pendency of arrears in courts’ launched

• Launch of ‘Mission Mode Programme for reduction of pendency of arrears in courts’ in the country by Mr. M. Veerappa Moily
  
• Launched on the occasion of 150^th year of establishment of the Calcutta High Court, the oldest court in India
  
• Rs 13,000 Crore to be spent this year for the project out of total allocation of Rs 21,000 Crore rupees for 3 years
  

Objective:

1. Fast disposal of pending Cases
   
2. To dispose off 40% of cases in subordinate courts
   
3. To refurbish the infrastructure in the Courts
   
4. Introduction of modern facilities in courts
   
5. Extending insurance cover, provident fund, health policy and other benefits to improve quality of life for Lawyers and others involved in the Legal Profession
   
6. Target to reduce pending cases in all the High Courts in the country from 15 years to 3 years besides sub-ordinate courts
   

• Union Law Minister: Mr. M. Veerappa Moily
  

e-Payment of Tax introduced in Puducherry

• Puducherry Chief Minister: N Rangasamy
  
• Mr. N Rangaswamy inaugurated e-payment of tax in Puducherry
  

BM Sharma: New RPSC Chairman

• Mr. B M Sharma appointed the Chairman of the Rajasthan Public Service Commission(RPSC)
  
• Mr. B.M.Sharma: Noted scholar in Political Science
  
• To succeed: Mr. Mahendra Kumawat
  
• Mr Sharma was working as Vice Chancellor of the Kota University
  

‘Holiday Courts’ for employees by Himanchal Pradesh

• Himachal Pradesh High Court proclaimed establishment of ‘Holiday Courts‘ the year-end
  
• Special ‘holiday courts’ to be set up in Shimla, Baddi, Paonta Sahib and Amb towns
  
• ‘Holiday Courts’ to work on weekly off days (Sundays and second Saturday every month) and on gazetted holidays – both State and Central
  

Objective:

1. To assist litigants employed either in Government or semi-Government offices to attend to their legal matters on their off days
   

‘Holiday Courts’ part of the High Court’s Mission Mode Programme

‘Mobile Traffic Magistrate Courts’ in Himanchal Pradesh

• The High Court of Himanchal Pradesh directed the subordinate courts to establish ‘mobile traffic magistrate courts’ in Shimla, Mandi and Dharamsala towns
  

Objective:

1. To dispose of cases pertaining to petty offences and those under the Motor Vehicles Act
   
2. No pre-2005 case to remain pending in the high court by the end of this year
   

• ‘Mobile Traffic Magistrate Courts’ part of the High Court’s Mission Mode Programme
  

Cricket Board of Sri Lanka dissolved

• Sri Lankan Govt dissolved the country’s Cricket Board
  
• Reason: In the midst of claims of corruption and mismanagement
  
• The Board run by political appointees on a temporary basis
  
• Board’s debts rose over $15 million after co-hosting this year’s world cup with India and Bangladesh
  

New Commandant of OTA: Maj Gen Rajavelu

• Major General U M Rajavelu, Sena Medal took the command of the OTA (Officers Training Academy)
  
• OTA: India’s premier Defence Training establishement
  
• Succeeded Commandant Lt Gen Gautam Banerjee
  

Gita instructions in Schools of MP

• Gita instructions to be taught in Madhya Pradesh Schools
  
• Earlier Surya Namaskaar (Sun Salutation) and singing of the National Song: Vande Mataram was initiated
  
• Implemented in Classes I to X in the current academic session
  
• Both Surya Namaskaar and Vande Mataram voluntary and the minorities exempted from it in MP
  

National Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed Award for Krishi Vigyan Kendra

• Bastar division’s Krishi Vigyan Kendra selected for the National Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed Award, 2010-11
  
• Reason for Awarding: For promotion and transfer of agricultural technology in tribal areas
  
• Composition of Award: Rs 2,00,000 and a Citation, presented by theICAR (Indian Council of Agricultural Research)
  

New Union Home Secretary: Raj Singh

• Mr. Raj Kumar Singh took over as the new Union Home Secretary
  
• Mr. Singh to succeed G. K. Pillai 
  
• Mr. Raj Kumar Singh: Bihar cadre IAS officer of the 1975 batch
  

Public Library opened in Kashmir in the memory of 17^th Century Poet Gani Kashmiri

• The Department of Libraries and Research (DL&R) opened a Public Library and reading room in Kashmir
  
• Library devoted to the memory of the legendary Persian poet of the 17th century Kashmir, Gani Kashmiri
  
• Inaugurated at Rajouri Kadal in the old Srinagar city
  
• Minister for Tourism & Culture, Nawang Rigzin Jora
  

Aquaculture Mission to be launched by the Meghalaya Government

• An Aquaculture Mission to be launched by the Meghalaya Government
  
• NFDB (National Fisheries Development Board) to provide all essential support and aid to the Meghalaya Government in terms of grants, infrastructure, human resource development to both officials and Fish Farmers
  

Objective:

1. Integrated Basin Development and Livelihood Programme
   
2. To make livelihood in the rural areas attractive by creating and ensuring opportunities thereby minimizing the migration of the rural population to the urban areas
   

• Chief Minister of Meghalya: Mukul Sangma
  

Passport Seva Kendras and Mini Passport Seva Kendras for speedy issuance of passports

• Passport Seva Kendras (PSK)/Mini Passport Seva Kendras introduced by the Union Ministry of External Affairs
  

Objective:

1. To facilitate speedy disbursement of passports
   
2. Huge increase in the number of applications in the recent times throughout the country in view of a number of people travelling abroad
   

• Anil K Sobti: Project Director, Passport Seva Project, Ministry of External Affairs
  
• To open 77 PSKs across the country under public-private partnership mode by the Union Ministry of External Affairs
  
• 15 Mini Passport Seva Kendras also to be opened, one of which would be located in Puducherry
  
• All the PSKs to be functional by January 2012
  
• Ministry signed MOU with Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), which would offer front end operations like collection of applications, recording of bio-metric details and photographs of the applicants in the PSKs
  

Women’s panel renamed by Pakistan

• Pakistan’s National Commission on the Status of Women to be known as the ‘National Commission for Women’
  
• An autonomous body following the devolution of the ministry of women’s development
  

Kerala Chief Minister’s Office to go LIVE on Internet

• Chief Minister of Kerala: Oommen Chandy
  
• Chief Minister’s Office to go LIVE on Internet
  
• One can Log onto www.keralacm.gov.in any time of the day and see the live footage of the Kerala Chief Minister’s chamber and Office
  

Objective:

1. To ensure Transparency
   
2. All meetings and press conferences and cabinet briefing to be available live on the site
   
3. A person wishing to send any information can log on and upload what they want and the advice would be further be looked
   
4. An IDEA-BANK named ‘Vision 2030‘ there on the website to invite Ideas from people
   

• 4 cameras have been placed inside office and chamber.
  
• Facility to be extended to other Minister’s office also
• In 2004 also when Mr. Chandy was CM, he went for the facility but it was operational only when he was in his chamber

Nakul Patil, CIDCO Chairman passes away

• CIDCO: City and Industrial Development Corporation
  
• CIDCO Chairman and former MLA Nakul Patil passed way
  

Iken School Eco System in Orissa by Mexus Education

• ”The Iken School EcoSystem” launched by Mexus Education
  
• Under the The Educate India 2011 programme by Mexus Education
  

Objective:

1. To present a platform to capitalize on the participation of students in academics and learning in and beyond the school
   
2. To deal with the most vital classroom challenge, running different Intelligence activity of their class at ease in the brief 40 minutes of their session
   
3. To build up products that would assist teachers deal with disparity in aptitude of students while students remain occupied in subject topics through entertaining media like videos
   

• The Govt also encouraged the initiatives and supported for growing the corporate
  
• Mexus established across Orissa in less than 3 months
  
• Mexus united across the schooling domain from the oldest missionary school to upcoming international institutions

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