1. Mallika Sarabhai became the Chancellor of Kerala Kalamandalam Deemed University
Tags: Person in news
The Kerala Government on 6 December appointed well known classical dancer Mallika Sarabhai as the chancellor of the Kerala Kalamandalam deemed university.
Important facts
Last month the government amended the rules of the university to remove Governor Arif Mohammad Khan from the post of its chancellor.
Since it is deemed to be university, norms of the University Grants Commission will not be applicable to it.
The amended rules of the deemed university also stated that the governance system and management structure of the Kerala Kalamandalam shall be in accordance with the decision of the state government.
Born as the daughter of renowned dancer Mrinalini Sarabhai and space scientist Vikram Sarabhai, Mallika Sarabhai is a world renowned Bharatanatyam and Kuchipudi performer.
Apart from being a dancer, she has also proved her mettle in the fields of theatre, film and television and has also established herself as a writer, publisher and director.
2. EGramSwaraj and Audit Online of Ministry of Panchayati Raj wins Gold Award under the National Awards for e-Governance
Tags: Awards
E-Panchayat Mission Mode Project (eGramSwaraj and AuditOnline) of Ministry of Panchayati Raj has won the Gold Award under the category "Excellence in Government Process Re-engineering for Digital Transformation" of the National Awards for e-Governance.
The award is a recognition of the excellent and exemplary work done by Team eGovernance and supported by Team NIC-MoPR.
The prestigious National Award was handed over to Shri Alok Prem Nagar, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Panchayati Raj Union by Union Minister of State, and Dr. Jitendra Singh during the 25th National Conference on e-Governance at Jammu on 26 November 2022.
3. Government to hold the 25th National e-Governance Conference in Jammu
Tags: place in news National Summits
The 25th National e-Governance conference will be held at the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi University at Kakryal in Katra town of Reasi district in Jammu region on 25 and 26 November 2022. The 24th National e-Governance conference 2021 was held on 7 &8th January 2021 at Hyderabad, Telangana.
The conference will be inaugurated by Dr. Jitendra Singh, Union Minister of State (Independent Charge), Ministry of Science and Technology, Ministry of Earth Sciences, Minister of State in the Prime Minister’s Office, Minister of State of Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions, Department of Atomic Energy and Department of Space, Government of India.
26th November is celebrated as the Constitution Day in the country to commemorate the adoption of the Constitution of India. As part of the celebrations Union Minister, Dr. Jitendra Singh will administer reading of the Preamble to the Constitution with all participants on 26th November 2022.
Who is organising the Conference
The Department of Administrative Reforms· & Public Grievances (DARPG) and Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology (MeitY), in association with the Union Territory Government of Jammu and Kashmir is organizing the conference.
Nearly 2000 officers from across the country are likely to attend the two-day long conference.
Theme of the Conference
The theme of the 25th National e-Governance conference is “Bringing Citizens, Industry and Government Closer”.
The application and use of Information technology and communication (ICT) in governance is known as e-governance. It is makes governance transparent and efficient. Some of the examples of e-governance are Digital India, Aadhaar, and National Portal of India etc.
4. India moves up 6 place to be ranked 61st on the Network Readiness Index 2022
Tags: INDEX National Science and Technology
India has improved its rank by 6 places to be ranked at 61 place in the recently released Network Readiness Index 2022 (NRI 2022). The report prepared by the US-based non-profit body Portulans Institute compliments India and says that “India has a greater network readiness than would be expected given its income level”.
The Network Readiness Index ranks the 131 countries on 58 variables across four pillars of four different pillars: Technology, People, Governance, and Impact.
India’s Performance
- India improved its score from 49.74 in 2021 to 51.19 in 2022.
- India has secured 1st rank in “AI talent concentration”,
- 2nd rank in “Mobile broadband internet traffic within the country” and “International Internet bandwidth”,
- 3rd rank in “Annual investment in telecommunication services” and “Domestic market size”, 4th rank in “ICT Services exports” and
- 5th rank in “FTTH/Building Internet subscriptions” and “AI scientific publications”.
- India is ranked 3rd out of 36 in the group of lower-middle-income countries after Ukraine (50) and Indonesia (59).
Top three countries on the Network Readiness Index
The United States topped the list with an overall score of 80.3. It was followed by Singapore with a score of 79.35 and Sweden with a score of 78.91.
In the Asia Pacific region, the list was led by Singapore, followed by South Korea and Japan.
Full Forms
FTTH: Fiber to the Home
ICT: Information Communication Technology
AI: Artificial Intelligence
5. Blackstone launches its Asian Data center business from India
Tags: place in news Economy/Finance Science and Technology
American multinational private equity investor Blackstone has started its data centre business in Asia from India. It plans to increase it to 600 MW over the next two years through presence in five locations in the country.
Blackstone launched its data center platform Lumina CloudInfra on 15 November 2022. The Lumina CloudInfra is owned and managed by Blackstone’s Real Estate and Tactical Opportunities funds.
Initially the data center will be set up in Mumbai and Chennai, and later on it will be set up in Delhi-NCR, Hyderabad and Pune.
National Data Center
The government data center has been set up and managed by the National Informatics Centre (NIC).The first Data Centre was launched in Hyderabad in 2008, followed by NDC Pune in 2010, NDC Delhi in 2011 and NDC Bhubaneswar in 2018.
It operates 37 small Data Centres at various State Capitals to provide services to the Government at all levels.
National Data Centre (NDC) at Bhubaneswar is a Cloud-enabled Data Centre which has been offering cloud services to Government Departments since its inception.
The National Data Centres form the core of e-Governance Infrastructure in India by providing services to various e-Governance initiatives undertaken by the Government of India.
What is a Data Center?
A data center is a facility that centralizes an organization’s shared IT operations and equipment for the purposes of storing, processing, and disseminating data and applications. Because they house an organization's most critical and proprietary assets, data centers are vital to the continuity of daily operations.
6. Panchayat Extension to Scheduled Areas (PESA) Act implemented in Madhya Pradesh to protect the rights of tribals
Tags: State News
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The Madhya Pradesh government implemented the Panchayat Extension to Scheduled Areas (PESA) Act in the state on 15 November.
Important facts
It was formally announced by President Draupadi Murmu at a function organised by the state government in Shahdol district on the occasion of the birth anniversary of tribal freedom fighter Birsa Munda.
On this occasion, Madhya Pradesh Governor Mangu Bhai Patel, Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and several tribal ministers from the state and the center were present.
It aims to protect the tribal population from exploitation with the active participation of Gram Sabhas.
Panchayat Extension to Scheduled Areas Act, 1996
The Parliament enacted a special law called the Panchayat Extension to Scheduled Areas Act (PESA) in 1996 and came into force on 24 December 1996.
The Act is currently in force in areas included in the Fifth Schedule of the Constitution, which deals with the administration of districts dominated by tribal communities, and is applicable to 10 states in the country.
These 10 states are Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan and Telangana.
The Objective of the Act is to ensure self-governance through Gram Sabhas for people living in the Scheduled Areas.
7. MoU to set up effective governance systems under DAY-NRLM
Tags: National National News
Ministry of Rural Development (MoRD) has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Gurugram-based Veddis Foundation to support setting up of effective governance systems under the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana - National Rural Livelihood Mission (DAY-NRLM) on 10 November, 2022.
Important facts
The partnership with MoRD and Veddis Foundation is for three years and is a non-financial partnership.
The MoU was signed by Joint Secretary, Rural Livelihoods, Nita Kejrewal from MoRD and Murugan Vasudevan, CEO, Veddis Foundation in a meeting chaired by Secretary, Rural Development, Nagendra Nath Sinha.
As per the MoU, Vedis Foundation will set up a PMU in the Rural Livelihoods (RL) Division of the Ministry of Rural Development for the next five years.
The MoU will also strengthen the state's capabilities, establish innovative models and implement a national strategy for convergence of Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) and SHGs.
One of the initial focuses as part of the MoU is an annual report on the status of SRLMs in which the various SRLMs are expected to be evaluated on the basis of 'Governance Index'.
About Veddis Foundation
Vedis Foundation has set up Project Management Units-PMUs in the State Rural Livelihood Missions (SRLMs) of Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Manipur.
It will work on a 360-degree approach for effective implementation of the top level priorities of the government in Rajasthan in future.
Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana - National Rural Livelihood Mission (DAY-NRLM)
It was launched by the Ministry of Rural Development in June 2011.
It aims to reduce rural poverty by increasing livelihood opportunities through skill development and better access to financial services for rural poor households in the country.
With an annual budget outlay of over Rs 13,000 crore, the program covers 7.15 lakh villages in 723 districts, and covers over 8.6 crore rural households.
8. LS Speaker Om Birla inaugurated annual Convention of Central Information Commission
Tags: National Summits National News
Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla inaugurated the annual convention of the Central Information Commission on 9 November, 2022 at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi.
Important facts
The Central Information Commission organises an annual conference every year during October-November.
The title of the convention is Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav: Citizen-centric Governance through RTI.
Transparency, governance, right to information and other important issues will be discussed in the convention.
This conference also contributes significantly in widening and deepening the RTI regime.
Right to information means participation of people in the process of governance and administration which becomes inevitable.
Right to Information Act, 2005
The Act makes it mandatory to respond to citizens' queries for government information in a timely manner.
Its main objective is to empower citizens, promote transparency and accountability in the working of government, prevent corruption and work for the people in a democracy.
Central Information Commission (CIC)
It was established by the Central Government in the year 2005 under the provisions of the Right to Information Act, 2005. It is not a constitutional body.
It consists of a Chief Information Commissioner and a maximum of ten Information Commissioners.
The commissioners are appointed by the President on the recommendation of a committee consisting of the Prime Minister as the Speaker, the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha and a Union Cabinet Minister nominated by the Prime Minister.
The Commission inquiries from the concerned person in case of complaints received on any subject under the Right to Information Act, 2005.
9. Sanjeev Chopra assumes charge as Secretary, Dept of Food and Public Distribution
Tags: Person in news
Sanjeev Chopra has assumed charge as the Secretary, Department of Food and Public Distribution with effect from 31 October 2022. He is a 1990 batch IAS officer of Odisha cadre.
Important facts
Sanjeev Chopra completed his B Com Honours and MBA from FMS, Delhi University. Later, he completed his LLB from Utkal University Bhubaneswar and MSc from the London School of Economics & Political Science.
He started his career as Sub Collector in Baripada (Odisha).
He served as District Collector and District Magistrate in Koraput, Odisha from 1995 to 1997.
He served as Director/Deputy Secretary in the Department of Technical Education and Training during 1999-2000.
He served as the Managing Director of State Co-operative Banks during 2000-2004.
He has also served as Secretary in departments like Industry, General Administration, Agriculture and Home.
He has been awarded the National e-Governance Award by the Government of India for Excellence in Government Process Re-engineering for Digital Transformation in the year 2020 and 2021.
10. Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina confers ‘Friends of Liberation War’ honour on Edward M Kennedy
Tags: Awards International News
Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina posthumously awarded the prestigious 'Friends of Liberation War' honour to former US Senator Edward M Kennedy in Dhaka on 31 October for his contribution to the liberation of Bangladesh.
Important facts
The honour was handed over to his son Edward M. Ted Kennedy Jr.
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina remembered with gratitude the contribution of Edward Kennedy Sr.
He said Kennedy Sr. took a bold step against the genocide committed by Pakistan on innocent Bengali people despite the role of the US government during the 1971 Liberation War.
She said Kennedy Sr. had worked hard to suspend military and economic aid to Pakistan until the end of the war.
Liberation War of 1971
In the 1950s, Pakistan was ruled by a military-bureaucratic rule that ruled the entire country (East and West Pakistan) in an undemocratic manner.
The Bengalites had no political representation in this system of governance.
This dominance of West Pakistan was challenged by the Bengalis during the general elections of 1970.
In the general election of 1970, the Awami League of East Pakistan's Sheikh Mujibur Rahman got a clear majority.
West Pakistan was not ready for any leader of East Pakistan to rule the country.
On March 26, 1971, West Pakistan launched Operation Searchlight in East Pakistan.
As a result, lakhs of Bangladeshis had to take refuge in India.
The Pakistani army had to face defeat due to the bravery of the 'Muktiwahini Sena' and Indian soldiers who fought for the independence of Bangladesh.
On 6 December 1971, a new nation Bangladesh was born out of 13 days of war with the intervention of India.
