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By admin: Sept. 19, 2022

Deputy Prime Minister of Singapore, Lawrence Wong meets the Prime Minister Modi

Tags: National Person in news

The Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister of Singapore Lawrence Wong met the Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi on 19 September 2022. He was accompanied by Singapore’s Minister for Trade and Industry Mr. Gan Kim Yong and the Indian Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.

The leaders discussed ways to boost bilateral ties between India and Singapore, especially in emerging sectors like digital connectivity, green hydrogen, and Fintech.

Mr Lawrence is on his first visit to India from 17 -21 September 2022.

During his India visit he also participated in the first India-Singapore Ministerial Roundtable (ISMR) held on 17 September in New Delhi with Nirmala Sitharaman. The ISMR is a new mechanism between the two countries to boost economic cooperation between the two countries.

The Deputy Prime Minister Wong also visited Gujarat during his India visit.

IMPORTANT FACTS -

Singapore :

• It is a city state located in SouthEast Asia.
• It was a British colony which joined Federation of Malaysia on its formation in 1963 but later seceded to become an independent state on August 9, 1965.
• Singapore‘s Changi airport is considered as one of the best airports in the world.
• Capital: Singapore
• Currency: Singapore Dollar
• Prime Minister: Lee Hsien Loong

Army Day parade to be held in different parts of India

Tags: National Defence

The Indian Army has announced that the annual Army Day Parade will be held in different parts of India as per the Prime Minister's vision to move significant events and festivities out of the national capital.

Army Day is observed every year on 15 January. 

Till date the Army day parade was held in New Delhi. In the next year it will be held in the Southern Command area.

The Indian Air Force had also recently moved out its annual fly-past and parade from the Hindon Air Base (Uttar Pradesh) near Delhi to Chandigarh this year.

IMPORTANT FACTS -

Indian Army Day :

• It was on this day that for the first time an Indian took over the command of the Indian Army from the Britishers. 
• On 15 January, 1949 Field Marshal Kodandera Madappa Cariappa (K. M. Cariappa), took over as the Chief of Army Staff (COAS) from General Francis Robert Roy Bucher. 

Judgment delivered by larger bench to prevail irrespective of number of judges in majority: Supreme Court

Tags: National

A 5 member Supreme Court Constitution Bench on 19 September 2022 held that “a judgment delivered by a larger bench would prevail irrespective of the number of judges that are constituting a majority”. The Court, giving an example, said that the judgment of a 7-judge bench delivered with a 4:3 majority will prevail over a unanimous 5-judge bench.

As per the Bench, under Article 145(5), the concurrence of the majority of judges is viewed as the court’s judgment.

The bench of Justices Indira Banerjee, Hemant Gupta, MM Sundresh, Surya Kant and Sudhanshu Dhulia passed this ruling while answering the second issue in Trimurthi Fragrances Pvt Ltd versus the Government of NCT of Delhi.

What was the issue ?

• In 2017 a division bench of Justices RF Nariman and SK Kaul referred the matter to the constitutional bench.
• The question was “if a unanimous five Bench is overruled by a seven-judge Bench where in four judges are speaking for the majority and where three judges are speaking for the minority, then can it be said that a five-judge Bench has been overruled.”

IMPORTANT FACTS -

What is a Constitution Bench of the Supreme Court ?

• Article 145(3) of the constitution provides for setting up a constitutional bench of the Supreme Court. The constitutional bench is set up by the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. 

Members of the Constitutional Bench :

• A constitution bench consists of at least five or more judges of the court

When is the constitutional Bench setup ?

• It can be set up in the following cases;
• (i) When two or three-judge benches of the Supreme Court have delivered conflicting judgments on the same point of law. 
• (ii) When the President of India has sought the Supreme Court’s opinion on a question of fact or law under Article 143 of the Constitution. 
• (iii) When a case involves a substantial question of law pertaining to the interpretation of the Constitution Article 145(3).

What is a division Bench of the Supreme Court ?

• It normally consists of 2 or 3 Judges which hear most of the cases in the Supreme Court.

Total number of Judges in the Supreme Court :

• At present the maximum number of judges in the Supreme Court is 34 including the Chief Justice of India.
• Chief Justice of India: Justice U U Lalit.

Andaman and Nicobar Islands declared India’s first Swachh Sujal Pradesh

Tags: National State News National News

The Union Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat  has declared Andaman and Nicobar Islands as India's first Swachh Sujal Pradesh, by handing over the certificate to the Lieutenant Governor Admiral DK Joshi.

IMPORTANT FACTS -

• All  villages of Andaman and Nicobar Island have been certified as Har Ghar Jal and  also verified as open defecation free - ODF plus.

• In order to be certified as a Swachh Sujal Pradesh, the State or the Union Territory has to be certified Har Ghar Jal as well shall be open defecation free.

• Certified Har Ghar Jal means that the Gram sabha of every village in the state or  the Union Territory has to pass a resolution  certifying that all households in the villages have access to safe drinking water through taps.

• The villages also have to confirm through a resolution of the Gram Sabha, that every household is getting regular supply of water of prescribed quality and not a single household is left out. 

• They  have to also  confirm that all schools, anganwadi centres and other public institutions are also getting tap water.

Open Defecation Free (ODF) :

• 'Open Defecation Free' (ODF) is a term used to describe communities that are using toilets instead of open defecation.

• A village that maintains Open Defecation Free (ODF) status, ensures solid and liquid waste management and is visually clean is called "ODF Plus Village".

• Toilet facilities should be ensured in all households, primary schools, panchayat houses and Anganwadi centres in these villages.

• At least 80% of households should manage their solid and liquid waste effectively and have minimum litter and minimum stagnant water.

• ODF Plus villages have been divided into three categories -Aspiring, Rising and Model.

Note : 

• Burhanpur district of Madhya Pradesh is the first certified Har Ghar Jal District in India.

• Goa is the first state to be certified as Har Ghar Jal state.

• Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu are the first Har Ghar Jal certified Union Territory(UT) in the country.

22 September State legislature proceedings to be dedicated to female legislators: CM Yogi

Tags: State News

The Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has said that 23 September 2022 proceedings of the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Assembly and the Legislative Council will be dedicated to the women members of both the houses.

This is for the first time that a day’s proceedings has been solely dedicated to the women members of the state legislature.

According to the speaker of the legislative assembly Satish Mahana only the women members of the house will be allowed to speak after the question hour.

Currently the Uttar Pradesh legislative Assembly has 47 women members and the Legislative Council has 6 members.

The Monsoon session of the Uttar Pradesh legislature will be from 19 -23 September 2022.

No reason has been given by the chief minister why this day has been chosen for the occasion. 

IMPORTANT FACTS -

Uttar Pradesh legislature :

• Uttar Pradesh has a bicameral legislature. The upper house is called the Legislative Council and the Lower House is called Legislative Assembly.
• The Legislative council consists of 100 members and Kunwar Manvendra Singh is the chairman of the legislative council.
• Total women member in the present Legislative council is 6.

Legislative Assembly :

• The first legislative Assembly was constituted on 8th March, 1952.
•  The present assembly is the Eighteenth Legislative Assembly, which was constituted on 11th March, 2022.
• The total members in the house is 404, highest in the country. The total number of women members in the current house is 47.
• Shri Satish Mahana is the Speaker of Legislative Assembly.

Bajrang Punia wins Bronze medal at the 17th Wrestling World Championship 2022

Tags: Sports Person in news

The Tokyo Olympic Bronze medallist Bajrang Punia won a bronze medal at the 17th Wrestling World Championships 2022 by defeating Puerto Rico’s Sebastian Rivera in the men’s 65kg freestyle category on 18 September 2022.

The 17th Wrestling World Championships 2022 was held at Belgrade, Serbia from 10 -18 September 2022.

This was the fourth medal for Bajrang Punia in the Wrestling World Championships.

Earlier, he won bronze at Budapest (Hungary) 2013, silver at Budapest 2018 and bronze at Nur-Sultan (Kazakhstan) 2019.

IMPORTANT FACTS -

• Other Medal winners for India :
• In the 17th Wrestling World Championship 2022, India won two medals. 
• Apart from Bajrang Punia, Vinesh Phogat won a bronze medal in women's 53kg freestyle.

Niti Aayog-like body to be set up in Maharashtra

Tags: State News

Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on September 18 announced that an institute on the lines of NITI Aayog would be set up in the state for comprehensive data analysis and decision making after in-depth study in various areas.

IMPORTANT FACTS -

• A delegation led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde met the Chief Executive Officer and other officials of NITI Aayog on 18 September.

• It was proposed that an institute on the lines of NITI Aayog will be set up in the State for comprehensive data analysis and decision making after in-depth study in various fields.

• Monetization of assets, technology in agriculture, transportation for alternative fuels or EV policy, non-conventional energy, health care, etc., were discussed during the meeting between NITI Aayog officials.

• NITI Aayog has also conducted a comprehensive study on similar issues and developed a tool where a comprehensive analysis of data of various departments is done for better decision making process.

• Maharashtra is aiming to become a trillion dollar economy in the coming years.

• The state government had also prepared a five-point agenda while presenting the budget for 2022-23 in March.

NITI Aayog :

• It is the apex public policy think tank of the Government of India and responsible for bringing ideas and focus to key areas through policy formulation.

• It is also responsible for promoting cooperative federalism in the country through the participation of state governments in the economic policy-making process.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION -

About Maharashtra :

• Establishment - 1st May 1960

• Official Language -  Marathi

• Neighbouring States - Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Goa, Dadra And Nagar Haveli, Chhattisgarh

• Members of Parliament - Lok Sabaha 48 (Rajya Sabha seats 19)

• Legislature - Bicameral ( Assembly 289 and council 78 seats)

• Literacy - 82.91%

• Districts - 36

• Major Rivers - Tributaries of Tapti, Bhima, Godavari and Krishna

• Capital - Mumbai

• Population - 11.23 crore (2011 census)

Union Agriculture Minister Narendra Tomar inaugurates the 9th Session of Governing Body of the ITPGRFA

Tags: place in news Summits Person in news

Union Agriculture and Farmer Welfare minister Narendra Singh Tomar inaugurated the 9th Session of the Governing Body (GB9) of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (ITPGRFA) in New Delhi on 19 September 2022. The 9th session will be held from 19-24th September, 2022.

IMPORTANT FACTS -

• The 8th Session of the Governing Body (GB9) of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture (ITPGRFA) was held in Rome, Italy in 2019.
• The theme of the 9th Session of the Governing Body (GB9) of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture: Celebrating the Guardians of Crop Diversity: Towards an Inclusive Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework”.
• Kindly also see 16 September 2022 post

1000 Khelo India center to be set up by 2023: Anurag Thakur

Tags: Sports

Speaking at a function in Mumbai, the Union Ministry for Youth Affairs and Sports, Anurag Thakur on 18 September 2022 said that one thousand Khelo India sports centers will be set up in the country by 2023. He said that the government has so far approved 590 centers.

IMPORTANT FACTS -

Khelo India Sports Center Scheme :

• The Khelo India Centers have been launched by the Union Sports Ministry in partnership with the state governments to ensure the availability of grassroots-level sports infrastructure across the country.
• In June 2020 the Union Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports had announced plans to set up 1000 new Khelo India Centers, all over India. At least each district of the country will have one Khelo India Sports Center. 
• An exception has been made for the North-East states, Jammu & Kashmir, Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Lakshadweep and Ladakh where two centers are to be established per district.

What will the Khelo India Sports Center Do ? 

• The center will focus on developing sports infrastructure and provide training to the sportsperson in one discipline.
• The respective state governments will have to hire former athletes to facilitate the management of these centers in a proposed low-cost and effective sports training mechanism.
• The central government will provide financial assistance for the remuneration of the past champion athletes as coach, support staff, purchase of equipment, sports kits, consumables, participation in competition and events.

Vice President asks media to be extra careful while reporting about judiciary

Tags: National State News National News

Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar, in his address as the Chief Guest at the first 'Justice JS Verma Memorial Lecture' held in Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh on September 18, urged the media to be extra careful while reporting about the judiciary.

IMPORTANT FACTS -

• He said that we must uphold the dignity of the judges and respect for the judiciary, as these are the fundamental principles of the rule of law and constitutionalism.

• He said that a strong, fair and independent justice system is the guarantee of democratic values to flourish and be effective.

• In the first 'Justice JS Verma Memorial Lecture', the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul delivered the keynote address.

• After the memorial lecture, the Vice President paid homage by garlanding the statues of Raja Shankar Shah and Kunwar Raghunath Shah.

Justice J S Verma :

• Justice Jagdish Sharan Verma  was the Chief Justice of India from 25 March 1997 to 18 January 1998.

• He was appointed Chief Justice of Madhya Pradesh High Court on 14 June 1986.

• He was transferred to the Rajasthan High Court as its Chief Justice on 1 September 1986.

• He was appointed Acting Governor of Rajasthan twice. 

• In 2013, the Justice JS Verma committee recommended sweeping changes to the laws relating to sexual harassment at the workplace.

• The panel was formed in 2012 after the December 16 Nirbhaya gangrape, which submitted its report in 2013.

6th edition of maritime exercise ‘JIMEX’ concludes

Tags: Defence

The sixth edition of the Japan India Maritime Exercise, JIMEX 22 hosted by the Indian Navy concluded in the Bay of Bengal 17 September. It started on 11 September in the Bay of Bengal.

IMPORTANT FACTS -

• Indian Navy ships led by Rear Admiral Sanjay Bhalla, Flag Officer Commanding Eastern Fleet and Japan Maritime Self Defence Force (JMSDF) ships Izumo and Takanami participated in the week-long exercise.

• In the exercise some complex exercises were jointly conducted by both the navies.

• Advanced level anti-submarine warfare, weapon firing and air defence exercises were conducted by both sides.

• The Indian Navy was represented by three indigenously designed warships, - the Sahyadri, the anti-submarine frigates Kadmat and Kavaratti.

• Shipborne helicopters, fighter aircraft and submarines also participated in this exercise.

About JIMEX 2022 :

• This present edition of JIMEX 22 marks the 10th anniversary of JIMEX, which debuted in Japan in 2012.

• It was celebrated to mark the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between both the countries India and Japan.

• It seeks to strengthen the high level of interoperability between the maritime forces of the two countries through complex exercises in surface, sub-surface and air domains.

• Its aim was to enhance interoperability and streamline seamanship and communication processes.

• The exercise is part of the ongoing efforts between the two navies towards ensuring safe international shipping and trade in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR).

MAS and IFSCA sign agreement to advance cross-border fintech innovations

Tags: Economy/Finance International News

The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and the International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA) on 18 September signed a FinTech Co-operation Agreement (CA) to facilitate regulatory collaboration and partnership in FinTech. 

IMPORTANT FACTS -

• This formal treaty is called the Fintech Cooperation Agreement (CA).

• Sopanedu Mohanty, Chief Fintech Officer, MAS and Joseph Joshi, Chief Technology Officer, IFSCA were present at the signing of the agreement.

Objectives of agreement :

• Through the CA, the two collaborating bodies aim to overlook sandbox collaboration and promote objectives such as the dissemination of information.

• MAS and IFSCA will maximise the use of existing sandboxes in their respective jurisdictions.

• This is to support the use of technological innovations.

What steps will be taken to achieve this ?

• Both bodies will refer and connect companies to each others’ sandboxes. 

• They will  innovatie cross-border experimentation in both jurisdictions.

• This agreement will allow IFSCA and MAS to determine suitable use cases which could benefit from these kinds of cross-border experiments.

• Inviting relevant jurisdictions to participate in this global regulation would be another initiative taken under this agreement.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION -

What is Financial Technology (Fintech) ?

• Fintech refers to the integration of technology by financial services companies to improve their use and delivery to consumers.

• Fintech is used to help companies, business owners and consumers to better manage their financial operations and processes etc.

• Examples of fintech applications are - robo advisors, payments apps, peer-to-peer (P2P) lending apps, investment apps, and crypto apps etc.

Defence Minister reaches Cairo on two-day official visit to Egypt

Tags: International Relations International News

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh reached Cairo on 19 September on a two-day official visit to Egypt. 

IMPORTANT FACTS -

• During the visit, Rajnath Singh will hold bilateral talks with the Minister of Defence and Defence Production, General Mohammad Zaki.

• Rajnath Singh's visit aims to further strengthen defence cooperation and friendship between India and Egypt.

• The two ministers will review bilateral defence ties, explore new initiatives to intensify military ties and focus on deepening cooperation between the defence industries of the two countries.

• An MoU will also be signed to promote defence cooperation between India and Egypt.

• Singh will also meet Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi.

India - Egypt Relations : 

• Egypt is one of the largest investment destinations for India with the current Indian investment of USD 3.15 billion.

• Indian companies are working on several projects in Egypt.

• To strengthen defence cooperation between the two countries, an Indian Air Force team arrived in Egypt on 22 June to participate in a bilateral 'Strategic Leadership Program' with the Egyptian Air Force.

• Earlier in November last year, Chief of Air Staff Chief Marshal VR Chowdhury had gone to Egypt for his five-day visit to attend the Air Power Symposium and Defence Exhibition (EDEX) in Cairo.

• The year 2022 has special significance as it marks the 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations between India and Egypt.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION -

About Egypt :

• Capital - Cairo

• President - Abdel Fattah al-Sisi

• Official Language - Arabic

• Official Religion - Islam

• Currency - Egyptian pound 

World Bamboo Day

Tags: Important Days

World Bamboo Day is celebrated every year on 18 September to raise awareness about the bamboo industry.

IMPORTANT FACTS -

• According to the World Bamboo Organisation, while bamboo grows naturally in many parts of the world, they are not used in a sustainable way.

• The organisation aims to spread awareness about the potential of bamboo.

• The purpose of celebrating this day is to highlight its sustainable use, and to promote the cultivation of bamboo for new industries around the world.

• It also promotes local and traditional uses for the economic development of the community.

• The theme of 2022 is 'Plant Bamboo'.

Background of the day :

• The World Bamboo Organisation declared 18 September as World Bamboo Day at the Eighth World Bamboo Congress held in Bangkok in 2009.

• The event was attended by representatives from about 100 countries, and they all agreed to mark World Bamboo Day.

• This day is also marked as Royal Thai Forestry Day.

• The World Bamboo Organisation was established in the year 2005. Its headquarter is in Antwerp (Belgium).

India Overtakes China To Become Sri Lanka's Largest Lender

Tags: International Relations International News

According to a media report, India has emerged as the largest bilateral lender to Sri Lanka, overtaking China in the process, with a total loan of USD 968 million in the four months of 2022.

IMPORTANT FACTS -

• In the last five years from 2017-2021, China has been the largest bilateral lender to Sri Lanka.

• Asian Development Bank (ADB) has been the largest multilateral lender in the past five years and disbursed funds amounting to 610 million dollars in year 2021. 

• India's Permanent Representative to the United Nations Ruchira Kamboj had said that India has provided food and financial assistance of about $ 4 billion to Sri Lanka.

• On 22 August, India provided 21,000 tonnes of fertilizers to the beleaguered Sri Lanka.

• India has been at the forefront of providing financial assistance to Sri Lanka as per requirements of this country and is one of the countries which has provided maximum assistance in times of need.

• Since the beginning of 2022, Sri Lanka has been grappling with an economic crisis.

Nanmadol Typhoon wreaks havoc in Japan, high alert issued

Tags: International News

Due to the Nanmadol typhoon in Japan, people living in the southwest have been warned to move to safer places.

IMPORTANT FACTS -

• Due to the storm, there has been heavy rain with strong winds throughout the night of 19 September and landslides have also occurred at many places.

• One person was killed and fifty others were injured as the storm passed through the island of Kyushu.

• Government sources have said that Prime Minister Fomyo Kishida was to attend the UN General Assembly but has stopped to take stock of the damage caused by the storm and will now go a day later.

• Nanmadol is the 14th Pacific hurricane of the season, and the largest to hit Japan.