Indian Polity - Current Affairs for July, 2016

Sharad Pawar has indicated he would step down following six months as the Mumbai Cricket Association president following the ruling of the SC on age cap of 70 years for cricket administrators.

• Lodha Committee has recommended there be caps on age and duration of tenure of elected office bearers of the BCCI and state associations.
• Lodha Committee is entrusted with the task of overseeing the implementation of the recommendations and secretary Gopal Sankaranarayanan had warned if BCCI or any other cricket control board disobeys the report, they will be guilty of contempt of court.
• Pawar was chairman of the BCCI from 2005-2008 and president of the ICC from 2010-2012.

Union Cabinet chaired by PM Shri Narendra Modi has approved the amendment in the relevant clause of the Central Agricultural University 1992 to include Nagaland under the jurisdiction of, CAU, Imphal.

• After inclusion of State of Nagaland under jurisdiction of the Central Agricultural University, Imphal, the College of Veterinary Sciences in Nagaland will produce the much-needed professional manpower in the fields of animal husbandry, which will facilitate socio-economic growth in the region.
• The new college will help familiarise the farmers with new techniques, thereby contributing to the production and productivity of domestic animals in the State of Nagaland.
• CAU Imphal is for the benefit of the entire NE region.

Union Cabinet chaired by PM Shri Narendra Modi has approved the policy for awarding waterfront and associated land to port dependent industries in major ports and its operationalisation.

• Policy will result in transparency in the procedure for awarding captive facilities.
• As per the policy, concessions will be granted to Port Dependent Industries for setting up dedicated facilities in major ports for import or export of cargo and storage before transportation to destination for a period not more than 30 years.

Union Cabinet under PM Modi has approved the raising of foreign shareholding limit from 5 to 15 percent in the Indian Stock Exchanges for the following category of bodies:

• Stock exchange
• Depository
• Banking Company
• Insurance Company
• Commodity Derivative Exchange
• The Cabinet has also approved the proposal and enable FPI to acquire shares through initial allotment besides secondary market in the stock exchanges.
• Move will help in enhancing global competitiveness of Indian stock exchange by acceleration of technology and international best practices leading to development of the Indian Capital Market.

Backing away from an earlier government decision to set up Concurrent Evaluation Office for managing Concurrent Evaluation Network in the Ministry of Rural Development, the Union Cabinet has decided to rescind the decision.

• CEO was envisaged to undertake concurrent evaluation of rural development programmes along with Independent Evaluation Office of the former Planning Commission.
• Decision has paved the way for strengthening of the Economic and Monitoring Wing of the Ministry of Rural Development for managing and carrying out evaluation studies of Rural Development programmes.

Andhra Pradesh CM Chandrababu Naidu along with Kalraj Mishra and Venkaiah Naidu laid the foundation of MSME technology centre in Pudi, Vishakhpatnam district.

• Centre has decided to locate world class technology centre with investment of INR 140 crore.
• The centre will be set up under Technology Centre Systems Programme (TCSP) at Pudi village near here in Atchutapuram mandal which is a World Bank-funded project being implemented by Union Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME).

Kerala government launched the first ever water metro project in the country- the Kochi Water Metro Project.

• It was launched by Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan in Kochi.
• Project is associated with provision of water connectivity to people on islands in Kochi area and city.
• Project proposes development of existing and new access roads providing increased accessibility to jetties and enhanced mobility within the islands.
• It also stresses on better constructed and safe infrastructure active and well lit streets equipped with CCTV cameras.
• New boats will be procured for this project providing the same transportation experience as the Metro and will be called Water Metros.
• Kochi Water Metro is an integrated water transport project developed as a feeder service to the Kochi Metro Rail.
• It will be operational in 2 years.

BJP MP and BCCI President Anurag Thakur has been appointed as an officer of the Territorial Army.

• 41-year-old Thakur became a regular officer of the TA becoming the first serving BJP MP to join the military force.
• As a regular officer, the LS member from Hamirpur in HP will under training.
• Territorial Army is the second line of defence after the regular army.
• It comprises volunteers who receive military training for a month in a year so in case of emergencies they can be mobilised for the defence of the nation.
• This is not a employment or profession and is only meant for those persons who are already in civilian professions.
• Gainful employment or self employment in a civil profession is a prerequisite for joining the Territorial Army.

Uttarakhand CM Harish Rawat has confirmed reports of an incursion by Chinese troops in the state’s Chamoli district.

• Chinese have not touched the canal but vigilance has been increased.
• ITBP on July 19 sent a report to MHA for incursion of the state by Chinese forces.
• Minister of State for Home Affairs Kiren Rijiju has indicated government will have to ascertain if it is an intrusion or not.

Government approved the abolition of existing guidelines for establishing joint venture companies by Defence PSUs to meet the goal of indigenous manufacturing.

• Department of Defence Production concluded that increasing participation in the defence sector and transformation in defence acquisition eco system have made separate JV guidelines for DPSUs no longer necessary.
• The abolition of the existing JV guidelines will provide a level playing field between DPSUs and private sector and permit Defence PSUs to establish partnerships in an innovative manner.
• There are currently 9 defence PSUs namely Mazgaon Dock Limited, Goa Shipyard Limited, Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Limited, Hindustan Shipyard Limited, Bharat Electronics Limited, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited, Bharat Earth Movers Limited, Bharat Dynamics Limited and Mishra Dhatu Nigam.

Manipuri rights activist Irom Sharmila has been demanding the repeal of the controversial Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act and fasted for 16 years in protest.

• Sharmila will now break her fast in August and fight the elections instead.
• She indicated that as the government had failed to give any positive response, elections will be fought to resolve the issue.
• Sharmila has been on a hunger strike since November 2000 demanding the repeal of AFSPA.

PM Narendra Modi inaugurated the second phase of the Rashtrapati Bhavan Museum marking the opening of a museum aimed at enhancing implementation of democratic principles and understanding the role of the Presidency.

• This coincides with the fourth anniversary of assuming the role of the country’s first citizen by President Mukherjee.

To enhance the ease of doing business, Commerce and Industry Minister Nirmala Sitaraman indicated that a start up would now require only a certificate of recognition from the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion and will not be required to go through the inter-ministerial board to proceeder IPR benefits.

• This announcement was made at the Start Up India States Conference under which the government announced a three year tax holiday and other benefits for entrepreneurs.
• Ministry has lined up meetings with different stakeholders including investors to resolve startup issues.
• Investors, industry and journalists will also be involved in the action plan to facilitate young entrepreneurs.

Ministry of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation has formed a committee to prepare the draft Ganga Act headed by Justice (Retd) Girdhar Malviya

• Tenure of the panel will be for another three months extended by an additional three months.
• Panel has been asked to prepare Drat Act on Ganga ensuring the wholesomeness of the river.
• Act should have provisions to ensure cleanliness (nirmalta) and uninterrupted flow (aviralta) of the Ganga.
• Members of the committee include VK Basin, Prof A Gosain and Prof Nayan Sharma. The Member Secretary will be Sundeep, Director, National Mission for Clean Ganga.
• Act will also help the Centre to implement the inter-state nature of works in a coordinated fashion.

Union Government has provided clearance for the plan to set up Sagarmala Development Company to provide equity support to port led economic development projects with initial authorised share capital of INR 1000 crore and subscribed share capital of INR 90 crore.

• SDC will identify port led development projects and assist SPVs in project development.
• It will also be responsible for approval and clearances for port projects.

BJP leader and nominated RS member Navjot Singh Sidhu resigned from the upper house of the Parliament.

• Sidhu’s resignation has been accepted by RS chairman Hamid Ansari.
• Cricketer turned politician Sinhu was nominated to the RS in April this year.
• In the 2014 LS elections, FM Arun Jaitley contested from Amritsar, a constituency Sidhu used to contest from.

Government of India is planning to increase the share of coastal shipping to 10 percent in the modal cargo mix by 2020, reducing the toll on rails and roads.

• Share of waterways transportation mode in the modal cargo mix is around 7 percent now.
• Government envisions increasing the share of coastal shipping in modal cargo mix to 10 percent by 2020 from the current share so as to lower dependance on rail and road sectors for domestic cargo transportation.
• Government has also provided in-principle approvable for setting up of 4 new ports in Tamil Nadu, West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh and Maharashtra.
• India has 12 major ports under the control of the Centre besides 205 non-major ports under the state government/UT.
• Percentage share of cargo handled by major ports in 2015-2016 stood at 56.5 percent as against 43.5 percent by non major ports.
• Government’s recent estimate has indicated promotion of coastal shipping of six commodities resulting in annual saving of INR 40,000 crore.
• Sagarmala project aims to double the share of coastal and inland waterways in transport.
• Government can expand port capacity, build new ports and ports in relation to industrial and manufacturing clusters as well.

The Union Government has notified the UIDAI (Terms and Conditions of Service of Chairperson and Member) Rules to provide legal shape to Unique Identification Authority of India.

• The rules have been framed as per provisions of Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and other subsidies, benefits and services) Act 2016 for the appointment of chairperson and members.
• The UIDAI chairman will be selected on the basis of recommendation of a committee headed by the Cabinet Secretary.
• UIDAI was set by by GoI in January 2009 under the control of the Planning Commission.

Union Cabinet chaired by PM Narendra Modi has approved the revised cost estimate of INR 7290 crore for an 1020 MW Punatsangchhu- II Hydroelectric Project in Bhutan.

• Total cost escalation for the project at this stage is pegged at INR 3512 crore.
• Bilateral agreement was signed by India and Bhutan in April 2010 with funding from GoI as 30 percent grant and 70 percent loan at 10 percent annual interest will be paid back in thirty equated semi,annual instalments.

Khandu was chosen as the new leader of the Congress Legislature party following the resignation of Tuki from the post.

• Khandu is at odds with rebel Congress leader Kalikho Pul who took charge as CM with outside support from BJP.
• Tuki was restored as CM on 13th July 2016 after the SC ruled that governor Rajkhowa had acted beyond the limits of his powers in advancing the Assembly session in which Tuki had been removed.
• Pema Khandu is the son of former Arunachal Pradesh CM Dorjee Khandu who died in a chopper crash in 2011.

Congress on 14th July, 2016 announced Sheila Dikshit as the CM candidate for the next year’s assembly polls in critical important UP.

• The announcement of the same was made by senior Congress leader Janardan Dwivedi.

In an important judgement on 13th July, SC indicated that Arunachal Pradesh governor Jyoti Prasad Rajkhowa’s decision advancing session of state assembly by a month is violative of the Constitution and is liable to be quashed.

• SC indicates steps and decisions taken by the legislative assembly pursuant to the governor’s December 2015 order are unsustainable and likely to be quashed.
• New AP government headed by Kalikho Pul would have to step down now to make way for Congress government headed by Nabam Tuki
• SC also struck down removal of speaker Nabam Rebia and said he would be restored back as Speaker of the House.
• This marks the first time the apex court has put back a state government dismissed by the Centre under the President’s rule.

Tripura Governor Tathagata Roy has sworn in as the acting Governor of Arunachal Pradesh, in the Darbar Hall of Raj Bhavan in Itanagar.

• With this he becomes 18th Governor to be sworn in as Governor of this Himalayan State.
• He has been given the additional charge of Governor of Arunachal Pradesh.
• With this, Mr.Roy will discharge the function of the Governor of Arunachal Pradesh during the absence on leave of Jyoti Prasad Rajkhowa.

Ahead of the Assembly elections in UP next year, the Congress on 12th July 2016 appointed actor and senior party leader Raj Babbar as the State Party president replacing Nirmal Khatri who will now chair the screening committee.

• The party has not announced the CM candidate yet, saying the name would emerge during the campaign.

Union ministers Najma Heptullah and Gowdara Mallikarjunappa Siddeshwara on 12th July resigned from the Union council of ministers. Their resignations were accepted by the President.

• Minister of state Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi has been given independent charge of ministry of minority affairs.
• Babul Supriyo, who was earlier minister of state for urban development, has now been given the charge of the ministry of heavy industries and public enterprises.
• The reshuffle saw the induction of 19 new faces in the ministry and key changes in portfolios of several ministers.

Shri Mansukh L. Mandaviya is from Gujarat, new Minister of State in Chemical and Fertiliser Ministry was elected to the Rajya Sabha in April 2012. He had been a member of Gujarat Legislative Assembly from 2002-2007.

• Shri Hansraj Gangaram Ahir assumed charge as Minister of State for Home Affairs. He belongs to state of Maharashtra and is elected to the 16th Lok Sabha from Chandrapur constituency. He is an agriculturist by profession.
• Shri Jaswantsinh Sumanbhai Bhabhor took over as new Minister of State in the Ministry of Tribal Affairs here in New Delhi.
• Shri Haribhai Parthibhai Chaudhary took over as new Minister of State in MSME.

Shri Sudarshan Bhagat took over as the new Minister of State for Agriculture & Farmers Welfare. The focus will be to increase the production of food grains with less production cost as well as dairy products so farmers may receive doubled income.

• Ministers represent Lohardaga (Jharkhand) Parliamentary constituency in LS.
• Shri Bhagat was member of the 15th LS and the Jharkhand Legislative Assembly (2000-2005).
• Shri Bhagat has also held various ministerial posts in Government of Jharkhand.

Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis expanded his CoM including 11 ministers and 10 fresh faces.

• With this Cabinet expansion, the CoM now stood at 39 with 42 being the maximum number permitted.
• Newly inducted ministers included 6 ministers from BJP, 2 from Shiv Sena and 1 from Rashtriya Samaj Party as well as Swabhiman Shetkari Sanghatana.
• The BJP also got a maximum share of cabinet rank ministers in state assembly- 4 new cabinet ministers were appointed and 1 MoS was promoted to cabinet rank.
• BJP leaders newly inducted as cabinet rank ministers include Subhash Deshmukh, Pandurang Phundkar, Jaikumar Raval and Sambhaji Patil-Nilangekar.
• Ministers of State from the BJP include Madan Yerawar and Ravindra Chavan.
• Sena’s Gulabrao Patil and Arjun Khotkar were made ministers of state.
• Sadabhau Khot of BJP ally Swabhimani Shetkari Sanghatana were sworn in as MoS

Union Water Resources Minister Uma Bharti indicated 231 projects will be inaugurated at numerous locations in UP, Bihar, Uttarakhand, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Haryana and New Delhi.

• Projects include technology demonstration initiatives sourced from France, Australia and India.
• This deals with commissioning and improving sewage treatment plants, redevelopment of ghats and cremation areas, growth of sewage infrastructure and treatment, afforestation, tree plantation, pilot drain project, trash skimmers and conservation of biodiversity.
• 112 of the 231 projects are in UP set to go to polls next year.
• Ms. Bharati added that close to 400 villages along River Ganga will be developed at Ganga Gram in phase 1 with IIT involvement
• 8 biodiversity centres would also be developed along the Ganga for restoration of priority species.

Sinha is a BJP MP from Jharkhand. He has been Union Minister of State for Finance since November 2014.

• Shri Narendra Singh Tomar took over as Minister for Rural Development, Panchayati Raj and Drinking Water and Sanitation.
• Dr. Mahendra Nath Pandey took charge of office of MoS (HRD) while Shri Prakash Javadekar is the new HRD minister.
• Shri Piyush Goyal took over as New Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Mines in addition to current charge as Minister of State for Power, Coal and New & Renewable Energy.
• Cabinet Minister Shri Ananth Kumar took over the charge of Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs.
• Manoj Sinha was appointed MoS (Independent charge) Ministry of Communications in addition to MoS Charge for State of Railways.
• Shri Rajen Gohain assumed the charge of new Minister of State for Railways.
• Chaudhary Birender Singh took over as new steel minister while Shri Ajay Tamta took over as MoS, Ministry of Textiles.

Union Cabinet chaired by PM Shri Modi has given approval for signing an MoU between India and Mozambique on Drug Demand Reduction and prevention of illicit trafficking in narcotic drugs, psychotropic substances and precursor chemicals as well as associated matters.

• MoU is aimed to enhance mutual cooperation in battling illicit trafficking in narcotic drugs, psychotropic substances and precursors through exchange of information, capacity building and expertise.

Chhattisgarh CM Dr. Raman Singh has inaugurated the country’s first commercial dispute resolution centre and commercial court in the state capital of Raipur.

• The commercial court is located in Naya Raipur area of the city.
• Court comprises arbitration centre and meditation centre.
• Court also comprises facilities for litigants through a new system called video- conferencing, e-court, e-library, e-filing and e-summons
• Ultra modern facilities available at court will boost investors in commercial dealings and help improve the judicial system.
• Chattisgarh is one of the richest mineral wealth endowed states in India with 28 types of minerals found here including iron ore, bauxite, limestone, coal, diamond and gold.
• State accounts for around 23 percent of the iron ore deposits of India.
• With a total of 44 percent of the state covered by forests, this is a green state.
• Three national parks form part of the state namely Indravati National Park, Kanger Valley National Park and Guru Ghasidas National Park.
• This state also has 11 wildlife sanctuaries as well.
• Hindi and Chattisgarhi are the main languages spoken in the state.

PM Narendra Modi headed to Africa on July 7, seeking to boost Indian economic power in a region dominated by Asian power China.

• In 2015, India held a major summit of African heads of state.
• PM Modi will head to Mozambique marking the first visit by an Indian PM in 34 years.
• He will also travel to S. Africa, Kenya and Tanzania

With an aim to provide adequate representation from states for BJP, 4 MPs from Rajasthan and 3 MPs from UP, MP and Gujarat on July 5, 2016 secured berths in the Modi government

• 19 MPs joined the government in the second expansion and reshuffle by PM Narendra Modi
• It saw record number of Dalit and OBC leaders being given ministerial posts
• 3 MPs from UP- Mahendra Nath Pandey, Krishna Raj and Anupriya Singh Patel elected from Mirzapur were made ministers
• PP Chaudhary, Vijay Goel, Arjun Ram Meghwal and CR Chaudhary MPs from Rajasthan joined the government
• 3 faces were from Gujarat namely Mansukh Madaviya, Purushottam Rupala and Jaswant Sinh Bhabhor
• Madhya Pradesh MPs- Anil Madhav Dave, Faggan Kulaste and MJ Akbar also became ministers
• Dalit leader from Almora Ajay Tamta was inducted into the CoM from Uttarakhand
• Ramdas Athalawale leader of the Republican Party of India, an ally of BJP also joined the government
• MPs from other states like SS Ahluwalia from Darjeeling in WB, Ramesh Jigajinagi from Bijapur in Karnataka and Rajan Gohain from Nowgong in Assam have also become ministers
• All with the exception of Vijay Goel and Faggan Kulaste are new faces while few have been ministers in BJP ruled state governments
• Minister for Environment and Forests Prakash Javadekar was elevated to Cabinet rank in a ceremony held in Rashtrapati Bhawan’s Durbar Hall

Union Government on 28th June 2016 revised the financial limits of departments and ministers for appraisal and approval of Non-Plan Schemes or Projects by competent authorities.

• With this, appraisal and approval process in the Central Government Ministries and Departments will be expedited.
• As per the revised delegation, the Committee on Non-Plan Expenditure (CNE) will now appraise proposals involving expenditure of 300 crore rupees and above. The earlier limit for this was 75 crore rupees.