NITI Aayog to replace Nehruvian 5-year plans with 15-year vision documents

NDA government at the Centre, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has decided to get rid of the Nehruvian five-year plans, and replace them with 15-year vision documents.

• The NITI Aayog has been directed to prepare a vision document at the earliest.
• The current 12th Five-Year Plan will be terminated in the current financial year, 2016-17. The first 15-year vision document will start from 2017-18, along with a seven-year National Development Agenda which will lay down the schemes, programmes and strategies to achieve the long-term vision. 
• The National Development Agenda will be reviewed after a gap of every three years to ensure that it was aligned with financial needs and requirements.
• For the first Development Agenda, the review would be done in 2019-20, in line with the termination year of the 14th Finance Commission.
• “The National Development Agenda will also deal with issues related to internal security, defence and external affairs.
• The Five-Year Plans first started in 1951 under the country’s first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru.

NITI Aayog:

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chairperson
• Amitabh Kant, CEO
• Shri Arvind Panagariya, Vice Chairperson

President presents National Florence Nightingale awards

 President Pranab Mukherjee has presented the National Florence Nightingale Awards to thirty-five nursing personnel from across the country at Rashtrapati Bhavan on the occasion of International Nurses Day (May 12). 

• The National Florence Nightingale Awards are given by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Government ofIndia as a mark of recognition for the meritorious services rendered by the nurses and nursing professionals in the country. 
• The International Nurses Day is celebrated all over the world on May 12 every year to commemorate Florence Nightingale’s birthday.

Florence Nightingale :

• Florence Nightingale, (12 May 1820 – 13 August 1910) was a celebrated English social reformer and statistician, and the founder of modern nursing.
• She came to prominence while serving as a manager of nurses trained by her during the Crimean War, where she organised the tending to wounded soldiers.
•  She gave nursing a highly favourable reputation and became an icon of Victorian culture, especially in the persona of "The Lady with the Lamp" making rounds of wounded soldiers at night.

MP Tourism wins Lonely Planet’s Best Indian Destination for Wildlife Award

The Madhya Pradesh Tourism (MPT) won the Lonely Planet Group’s Best Indian Destination for Wildlife Award. 

• The award was handed over to MPT at a function in Mumbai by actress Amy Jackson. 
• Madhya Pradesh located in Central India has 25 wild life sanctuaries including 9 National Parks. 
• Among them Bandhavgarh, Kanha and Pench are ideal habitat for tigers. 

Sanjay Mitra committee to prepare policy framework for taxi operators

 The Union Government has constituted a three member committee to prepare a policy framework for taxi and other transport operators. 

• The committee will be headed by Sanjay Mitra, Secretary of Union Ministry of Road Transport & Highways. The committee was constituted after taxi and other transport operators had appraised the situation emerging from Supreme Court’s order and directions of Environment Pollution Control Authority of banning diesel taxis in the National Capital Region (NCR).
•  It will look into these issues and come up with appropriate recommendations to address the same in a time bound manner.

Mauritius investors to be taxed from Apr 2017

 The government has gained the right to tax capital gains arising in Mauritius from sale of shares acquired on or after April 1, 2017, in Indian companies.

•  India and Mauritius signed a protocol for amendment of a three-decade-old double taxation avoidance agreement. 
• The agreement was signed in Port Louis.

Atma Ram Nadkarni appointed as Additional Solicitor General

Senior advocate of Bombay High Court Atma Ram Nadkarni on 9 May 2016 was appointed as Additional Solicitor General (ASG). 

• The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) approved the appointment of Nadkarni as Additional Solicitor General in Supreme Court for a period of three years.

Parliament Passes Anti-Hijacking Bill, 2016

 Parliament has passed the Anti-Hijacking Bill, 2016 to widen ambit of law dealing with this anti-hijacking crime.

•  The Bill was first passed in the Rajya Sabha and later in the Lok Sabha in May 2016. 
• Now the Bill will go for Presidential assent as per Article 111 of Indian Constitution. 
• The Bill provides for the death penalty for hijackers even if ground airport personnel and handling staff are killed during such acts.

Govt allows 100% ‘automatic’ FDI in ARCs

The Centre has allowed 100 per cent foreign direct investment (FDI) in asset reconstruction companies (ARCs) under the automatic route. 

• So far, foreign investment was automatic only up to 49 per cent; beyond that government approval was needed. 
• FII/FPIs have been permitted to invest up to 100 per cent of each tranche in security receipts issued by ARCs, subject to RBI directions/guidelines. 
• Allowing 100 per cent FDI would come as big boost for companies which are struggling for funds, as banks refuse to give steep discounts on stressed assets and the ARCs have to make upfront payment of 15 per cent of the cost of the asset.

President Mukherjee presents gallantry awards to defence personnel

President Pranab Mukherjee presented the Gallantry Awards and the Distinguished Service Decorations to defence personnel and martyrs posthumously at a ceremony at the Rashtrapati Bhavan.

•  Sepoy Jagdish Chand who made the supreme sacrifice during terror attack at Pathankot Air Base was awarded Kirti Chakra posthumously. 
• Subedar Mahendra Singh who displayed exemplary leadership despite grievous injury was also awarded Kirti Chakra. 

Single emergency number ‘112’ to be operational throughout India from January 1, 2017

 

The single emergency number ‘112’ will be operational throughout India from January 1, 2017 to help people reach immediate services of police, ambulance and fire department. 

• In this regard, Union Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad approved the provision of a single number for various emergency services. 
• The single emergency number will be similar to the ‘911’ all-in-one emergency service in the United States and 999 of United Kingdom (UK). 
• It will be accessible even through those SIMs and landlines whose outgoing call facility has been stopped or temporarily suspended. 
• A person in distress will need to call only 112, which will direct the call to concerned departments immediately for help.

Vice Admiral Sunil Lanba appointed as Chief of the Naval Staff

 Vice Admiral Sunil Lanba has been appointed as next Chief of the Naval Staff. 

• He will be 23rd chief of Indian Navy and 21st as an Indian. 
• He will assume the charge on 31 May 2016 and shall have full three-year-term in office till 31 May 2019.
•  He will succeed incumbent Navy Chief Admiral Robin K. Dhowan, who will superannuate from the post on 31 May 2016.

Kotak Mahindra Bank opens IFSC banking unit at GIFT City

Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd became the fourth bank to open its IFSC Banking Unit (IBU) at India’s first and only International Financial Services Centre (IFSC) at Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT) City.

• The private sector banking and financial major offers a range of financial services, including transaction banking.
•  At IBU, the bank expects a balance sheet of $one billion in the next three years.

Andhra Pradesh Harita-Priya Agriculture Project wins 2016 WSIS Prize

Andhra Pradesh Agriculture Project  has won the prestigious World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) 2016 prize in the e-Agriculture category. 

• Harita-Priya (Harmonized Information of Agriculture, Revenue and Irrigation for a Transformation Agenda – Precision Technology for Agriculture) Project is meant to collect very specific climate data from farms and give farmers personalised information through SMS. 

About  Harita-Priya Agriculture Project :

• The Harita-Priya Project uses wireless sensor networks to collect micro-climatic information from farms. 
• The data is used to create advisories and alerts on irrigation schedules and pests and plant diseases.
•  Based on this state agriculture officers disseminate personalised crop advisories in Telugu language to farmers by way of SMS. 
• The Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (CDAC) in Hyderabad has developed the project and is having a pilot run in Anantpur district.
•  Andhra Pradesh government, Central Research Institute for Dryland Agriculture (CRIDA), Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) station and Acharya N G Ranga Agricultural University also have partnered for the project.

Radha Binod Barman took over as Chairperson of National Statistical Commission

Renowned statistician Dr Radha Binod Barman took over as the part-time Chairperson in the National Statistical Commission (NSC).

•  Besides, Professor Rahul Mukherjee, Professor S. Mahendra Dev, Dr Rajiv Mehta and Dr Manoj Panda also took over as other part-time members of the commission.

 About National Statistical Commission:

•  The Commission is an advisory body on all statistical matters, set up to enhance public trust in official statistics.
•  It was established in 2006 based on the recommendation of C. Rangarajan Commission to reduce problems faced by statistical agencies in the country in relation to collection of data.
•  The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the NITI (National Institution for Transforming India) Aayog is the ex-officio Member in the Commission.

President Pranab Mukherjee presents 63rd National Film Awards 2015

President Pranab Mukherjee has conferred 63rd National Film Awards for the year 2015 in various categories at the function held at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi.

•  Legendry actor Manoj Kumar was conferred 2015 Dada Saheb Phalke Award, highest official recognition (award) in Indian cinema.
•  Baahubali: The Beginning (Tamil, Telugu film) directed by S. S. Rajamouli was bestowed with the Best feature film award.
•  Bajrangi Bhaijaan (Hindi) directed by Kabir Khan was awarded as the Best Popular film providing wholesome entertainment. 

The 63rd National Film Awards in the various categories :

•  Best Actor: Amitabh Bachchan (Piku).
•  Best Actress: Kangana Ranaut (Tanu Weds Manu Returns).
•  Best Direction: Sanjay Leela Bhansali (Bajirao Mastani). 
• Best Film on Social Issues: Niranayakam (Malayalam) directed by V. K. Prakash.
•  Best Supporting Actor: Samuthirakani for the film Visaranai (Tamil). 

Gujarat conferred with 'Most Film Friendly State' award

Gujarat has emerged as the "Most Film Friendly State" in the country at 63rd National Film Awards in New Delhi.

• Gujarat tourism was conferred with the national award for "Most Film Friendly State".
• Notably, Gujarat has become the first state ever to have received such an award, which is specially conceived to promote film tourism in States.
• The award was received by Jayesh Radadia, Minister of State for Tourism, Government of Gujarat, from the President of India, Pranab Mukherjee.
• Gujarat tourism is playing the role of a nodal agency to develop film tourism in the state of Gujarat. 

Gujarat :

Capital -Gandhinagar

Districts- 33

Government

 • Governor- Om Prakash Kohli

 • Chief Minister- Anandiben Patel

 • Legislature- Unicameral (182 seats)

 • Parliamentary constituency- 26

ComMin launches webbased dashboard for export, import data

 The Commerce Ministry  launched a web-based dashboard to provide an easy access to detailed trade data of the country.

• The dashboard would give an accurate perspective to the general public on the facts around the trade performance in India, Commerce and Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said while inaugurating the dashboard. 
• 'EXIM Analytics' would provide data graphically exposing patterns, trends and correlations that might go undetected in text based data. 
• It also gives a graphical collection of exports and imports from India for example the export turnover of the country, how it performs over time and what are the export destinations. 

1,020 families hit by 1984 riots to be given Rs 2 lakh

As many as 1,020 families, who were hit by the 1984 anti-Sikh riots and migrated to Punjab from different parts of the country, will be given Rs 2 lakh as part of a centrally-sponsored rehabilitation scheme.

• Home Minister Rajnath Singh has approved reopening of the scheme for providing rehabilitation grant of Rs 2 lakh each to 1,020 families who had migrated to Punjab from Delhi and other parts of the country following 1984 riots.

About 1984 anti-Sikh riots :

• The 1984 anti-Sikh riots or the 1984 Sikh Massacre or the 1984 genocide of Sikhs was a series of pogroms directed against Sikhs in India, by anti-Sikh mobs, most notably by members of the Congress party, in response to the assassination of Indira Gandhi by her Sikh bodyguards.
•  Official Indian government reports admit to about 2800 deaths across India, including 2100 in Delhi.
• Other independent sources estimate the number of deaths to be around 8,000.

EPFO launches One Employee-One EPF Account drive

Employees' Provident Fund organisation , EPFO has launched a special drive to encourage EPF members to consolidate their multiple accounts. 

• The members whose accounts are scattered face many inconveniences such as approaching multiple employers located at multiple locations for settlement of claims.
• The initiative of launching the Mission consolidation One Member One EPF Account is a step towards encouraging EPF members to access enhanced IT enabled services through Universal Account Number that are linked with Aadhaar.
• This drive will result in EPF members having just one EPF account and multiple conveniences. The success of this drive will not only reduce the burden of members but would also result in ease of work for EPF employees.

Employees' Provident Fund Organisation :

• The Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO), is a statutory body of the Government of India under the Ministry of Labour and Employment.
•  It administers a compulsory contributory Provident Fund Scheme, Pension Scheme and an Insurance Scheme. 
• It is also the nodal agency for implementing Bilateral Social Security Agreements with other countries on a reciprocal basis.

Ajay Mittal takes charge as I&B Secretary

Himachal Pradesh cadre IAS officer of 1982 batch Ajay Mittal today took charge as the Information and Broadcasting secretary. 

• Mittal, succeeds Sunil Arora, who retired on April 30. 
• Mittal has joined the I&B ministry at a time when it is planning to conduct the next batch of radio auctions, streamlining the film certification processes and also the remaining phases of the digitisation of cable sector drive.
• During a career span of more than 33 years, Mittal has served in various capacities in his cadre state of Himachal Pradesh. 

Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (India) :

• The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (Ministry of I&B) is a branch of the Government of India is the apex body for formulation and administration of the rules and regulations and laws relating to information, broadcasting, the press and films in India.
• The Ministry is responsible for the administration of Prasar Bharati-the broadcasting arm of the Indian Government.