Current Affairs : August 19, 2011

Lok Sabha passes Indian Medical Council Amendment Bill 2011

Lok Sabha passed the Indian Medical Council Amendment Bill 2011

The bill seeks to provide better health facilities in the country

Government committed to add 15,000 Medical Post Graduation seats in the span

of five years

Government has formulated policies to give incentives to private sector to set up

Medical colleges

Government also taking effective measures to encourage medical practitioners in

rural areas across the country

Juvenile Justice Amendment Bill introduced in Rajya Sabha

The Juvenile Justice Amendment Bill 2010 was introduced in the Rajya Sabha

Objective: To ensure proper care and protection of children. To create a proper atmosphere for a balanced growth of the children. Children

will also be properly treated for diseases as per the provision of bill.

The Bill omits a provision from the Act which provided for the separate

treatment of juveniles or children suffering from leprosy, sexually transmitted

disease, Hepatitis B, Tuberculosis, or children with unsound minds.

The Bill also replaces a provision which gave competent authorities in special

homes or children’s homes the power to move children suffering from leprosy,

unsound mind, or drug addiction to special facilities for such children.

Under the Bill, the competent authority can move children who are mentally ill

or addicted to alcohol or drugs, only if such condition leads to a behavioural

change in the children. He can then order their removal to a psychiatric

hospital or psychiatric nursing home.

In case the child has been removed to a psychiatric facility, the competent

authority can remove the child to an Integrated Rehabilitation Centre on the

basis of the discharge certificate issued by the psychiatric facility.

The Inter-State Migrant Workmen (Regulation of Employment and

Conditions of Service) Bill, 2011

The Inter-State Migrant Workmen (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of

Service) Bill, 2011 introduced in Rajya Sabha by the Ministry of Labour and

Employment

Objective:

1. To replace the word “workman” with “worker” in the 1979 Act

2. To make inter-state migrants regulation gender neutral

West Bengal to be named Paschim Banga

West Bengal state to be named: “Paschim Banga”

A unanimous resolution to this effect was adopted at an all-party meeting chaired

by the Chief Minister Ms Mamata Banerjee

The same name to be used in English als

The proposal to be sent to the Centre for its approval after ratifying it by the state

assembly

SC lifts ban imposed by Uttar Pradesh Government on

screening of “Aarakshan”

Supreme Court quashed the ban imposed by Uttar Pradesh

Government for the Screening of ‘Aarakshan’

A bench of justices Mukundakam Sharma and A R Dave lifted the

state’s two-month ban on the film in UP holding that the

restriction would go against the democratic value of free

speech and expression

Punjab and Andhra Pradesh, which had also stopped the film’s release

The apex court passed the order while upholding the writ petition filed by film

maker Prakash Jha challenging the decision of UP, Punjab and Andhra Pradesh to

suspend the screening of the film.

INS Satpura commissioned in Indian Navy

INS Satpura: India’s second Shivalik class indigenous stealth

frigate

INS Satpura commissioned in Indian Navy

The Shivalik class frigate are conceived and designed by Indian Naval

Team and would be frontline frigates of the Indian Navy in future

INS Satpura will considerably heighten Indian Navy’s strike capabilities due to

versatile control system with signature management and missile capabilities.

Common Examination for Technical UG courses to be delayed by the

Government till 2013

The Government to have common examination for different under-graduate

programmes across the nation from 2013

Candidates to qualify for the prestigious institutes as per the merit

Government to also crack down on fake universities, practice of taking capitation

fee, misleading advertisements and other actus reus

The National Institutes of Technology (Amendment) Bill, 2010 amends

the National Institutes of Technology Act, 2007, which declares certain institutions

of technology as Institutions of National Importance and provides for instruction

and research in these institutions

The Act has a schedule of institutions declared as institutions of national

importance

The Bill adds another schedule to include 5 Indian Institutes of Science Education

and Research (established in Kolkata, Pune, Mohali, Bhopal and

Thiruvananthapuram) as institutions of national importance

The Bill specifies the members of the Board of Governors of each institute

The members include Secretary, Department of Higher Education, Director of the

Institute ex officio, Director of one of the Indian Institutes of Technology, and

three Secretaries to the Government of India.

A Council shall be established for all the Indian Institutes of Science Education and

Research. It shall consist of specified members including Minister in charge of

technical education, Secretary of technical education, chairperson of every Board

of the Institutes, and Chairman, University Grants Commission.

As per Mr. Sibal the bill has the objective to establish an independent mechanism

to accredit the quality of higher education institutions

A National Knowledge Network, is being set up to overcome the deficiency of

faculty

Pains being made to provide equal opportunities to both rural and urban students

India inks TIEA Agreement with Switzerland

India inked an agreement with Switzerland for sharing banking information on

demand

The Agreement likely to come into force by September

Objective : It will assist in sharing banking information of Indians having accounts

in Switzerland

Swiss Parliament had ratified the agreement but as per rules all states of that

country have to ratify it

India’s Tax Information Exchange Agreement (TIEA) with 4 sovereign entities,

namely Bahamas, Bermuda, British Virgin Islands and Isle of Man already

in force

India inked TIEA with Cayman Islands but it is yet to come into force

Zoroastrian New Year ‘Navroz’ celebrated by the Pasi families

‘Nav’ means new and ‘roze’means day

The Parsi families in Mumbai celebrated the Zoroastrian New Year ‘Navroz’

with great ebullience

They thronged the Agiyary and sought blessings for the year ahead

As per to a legend, 3000 years ago Shah Jamshed of the Peshadian dynasty

rose to the throne on the Navroz day