CURRENT AFFAIRS JULY1, 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 followups

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

Current Affairs – July 1, 2011

2011-07-01 16:07:30 GKToday

www.gktoday.in

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 150th 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

‘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 17th 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