1. Bihu performance in Guwahati creates Guinness World Record
Tags: State News
Bihu, a beloved cultural event in Assam, was performed in front of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other dignitaries at the Suraszai Stadium in Guwahati on 14 April.
News Overview
The festival is known for bridging differences and symbolising harmony between human beings and nature.
More than 11,000 folk dancers and drummers performed the Bihu dance and played the dhulia (drum) at one place, creating two Guinness World Records.
The performance set a new record for the largest Bihu dance at a single venue, while the dhol players set a record for the highest number of drummers performing at a single venue.
The Assam government announced an appreciation of Rs 25,000 for each artist.
About Assam:
Location: It is a state located in the northeastern region of India. It is bounded by Bhutan in the north, Arunachal Pradesh in the east, Nagaland in the northeast, Manipur in the southeast, Mizoram in the south and West Bengal in the west.
Wildlife: Contains Kaziranga National Park, Manas National Park and Nameri National Park.
Language: Assamese is the official language of the state, but several other languages are also spoken, including Bengali, Bodo, and Hindi.
Formation (as a state) - 26 January 1950
Capital - Dispur
Chief Minister - Himanta Biswa Sarma
Governor - Gulab Chand Kataria
Rajya Sabha - 7 seats
Lok Sabha - 14 seats
Official Animal - Indian Rhinoceros
Official Bird - White-winged Duck
Official Dance - Bihu Dance
Official flower -Rhynchostylis retusa
Official river -Brahmaputra
2. AFSPA removed from most areas of North Eastern states
Tags: National National News
Centre has decided to further reduce the jurisdiction of ‘disturbed areas’ under the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958 (AFSPA) in Assam, Nagaland and Manipur.
An overview of the news
The decision has been taken in view of the significant improvement in the security situation in North-East India.
Compared to 2014, there has been a 76 percent reduction in extremist incidents in 2022.
During this period, there has been a 90 percent reduction in the deaths of security personnel and 97 percent in the deaths of civilians.
Earlier, in a historic move, the Center brought down the disturbed areas in Nagaland, Assam and Manipur from April 2022 under AFSPA.
What is AFSPA?
Armed Forces Special Powers Act, (AFSPA),1958, gives armed forces the power to maintain public order in “disturbed areas.”
It came into force decades ago in the context of insurgency in the northeastern states.
It provides "special powers" to the army, air force and central paramilitary forces.
The Act provides that if "reasonable suspicion exists", the armed forces may also arrest any person without warrant; May enter or search premises without warrant and prohibit possession of firearms.
What are the Disturbed Areas?
A disturbed area means which is declared by notification under Section 3 of the AFSPA.
A region may be disturbed because of differences or disputes between members of different, racial, religious, language or regional groups or castes or communities.
The Central Government or the Governor of the State or administrator of the Union Territory have power to declare the whole or part of the State or Union Territory as a disturbed area.
3. Hekani Jakhalu became the first female MLA of Nagaland Assembly
Tags: State News
On March 2, Hakani Jakhalu of the Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party (NDPP) became the first female MLA to be elected to the Nagaland Legislative Assembly.
An overview of the news
Jakhu won the Dimapur III seat by defeating Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) leader Azheto Jhimomi by 1,536 votes.
Another NDPP female candidate, Salhunuonu Cruce defeated her independent rival by just seven votes in the Western Angami constituency. Both became the first female MLA from Nagaland.
About Hekani Jakhalu
She studied in Lady Shri Ram College for Women and Law Faculty of Delhi University and has done LLM from the University of San Francisco.
He later worked in a law firm in Delhi.
In 2005, she returned to Nagaland to start an NGO called Youthnet, with "Youth Empowerment".
In 2019, she won the Nari Shakti Puruskar from the Ministry of Child and Women Development.
Nagaland State
Nagaland was formally recognized as a separate state on December 1, 1963, with Kohima declared as its capital.
It is bounded by Arunachal Pradesh in the northeast, Manipur in the south and Assam in the west and northwest and Myanmar (Burma) in the east.
Mithun (Gyal) is the state animal of Nagaland and Arunachal Pradesh.
Blyth's Tragopan is the state bird of Nagaland.
The Konyaks are the largest tribe, followed by the Aos, Tangkhul, Semas and Angami.
Other tribes include the Lotha, Sangtam, Phom, Chang, Khim Hungama, Yimchungar, Zeliang, Chakhesang (chokri) and Rengma.
4. Mizoram Statehood Day
Tags: State News Important Days
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has greeted the people of Mizoram on the state's foundation day on February 20.
An overview of the news
Every year 20 February is celebrated as the Statehood Day of Mizoram.
The state of Mizoram was formed on 20 February 1987 following the 53rd Amendment to the Constitution of India, 1986.
At the time of independence, the Mizo Hills region became the Lushai Hills district within Assam.
In 1954 it was renamed Mizo Hills District of Assam.
Mizoram was granted union territory status in 1972 following the signing of an important accord with the moderates of the Mizo National Front (MNF).
It became the 23rd full state of India on 20 February 1987.
Geographical Situation
International Border - Myanmar and Bangladesh
State boundary - Tripura (North-West), Assam (North) and Manipur (North-East).
Demography
It is the second least populous state in India after Sikkim.
Sex ratio - 975 females per 1000 males (at national level it is 943).
The literacy rate of the state is 91.58%. (National rate - 74.04%).
Protected Areas
Murlen National Park
Phawngpui National Park
Dampa Tiger Reserve
Ngengpui Wildlife Sanctuary
Tawi Wildlife Sanctuary
Important Festivals
Chapchar Kut
Christmas Festival
Anthurium Festival
Lyuva Khutla Festival
5. President Draupadi Murmu appoints new governors in 13 states
Tags: National National News
President Droupadi Murmu appointed 13 new Governors while accepting the resignations of Bhagat Singh Koshyari as Governor of Maharashtra and of Radha Krishnan Mathur as Lt. Governor of Ladakh on 12 February.
The fresh appointments
Lt. General Kaiwalya Trivikram Parnaik, (Retired) Governor of Arunachal Pradesh
Lakshman Prasad Acharya, Governor of Sikkim
C P Radhakrishnan, Governor of Jharkhand
Shiv Pratap Shukla, Governor of Himachal Pradesh
S. Abdul Nazeer, Governor of Andhra Pradesh
Gulab Chand Kataria, Governor of Assam
Change of states of some current governors
Justice (Retd) Biswa Bhusan Harichandan, Governor of Andhra Pradesh appointed as Governor of Chhattisgarh.
Anusuiya Uikye, Governor of Chhattisgarh appointed as Governor of Manipur.
La. Ganesan, Governor of Manipur appointed as Governor of Nagaland.
Phagu Chauhan, Governor of Bihar appointed as Governor of Meghalaya.
Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar, Governor of Himachal Pradesh appointed as Governor of Bihar.
Ramesh Bais, Governor of Jharkhand appointed as Governor of Maharashtra.
Brig (Dr) B D Mishra (Retd), Governor of Arunachal Pradesh appointed as Lt. Governor of Ladakh.
How are Governors appointed?
Article 153 of the Constitution says “There shall be a Governor for each State.”
According to Article 155 "the Governor of a State shall be appointed by the President by warrant under his hand and seal".
Under Article 156, "the Governor shall hold office during the pleasure of the President", but his term shall be five years.
Articles 157 and 158 lay down the qualifications and terms of office of the Governor.
The Governor must be a citizen of India and must have completed 35 years of age.
The Governor should not be a member of Parliament or State Legislature, and should not hold any other office of profit.
The position of Governor is envisaged as a political head who has to act on the advice of the Council of Ministers of the State.
Related Constitutional Articles
Article 153- Governors of states
Article 154- Executive power of state
Article 155- Appointment of Governor
Article 156- Term of office of Governor
Article 157- Qualifications for appointment as Governor
Article 158- Conditions of Governor’s office
Article 159- Oath or affirmation by the Governor
Article 160- Discharge of the functions of the Governor in certain contingencies
Article 161- Power of the Governor to grant pardons and others
Article 162- Extent of executive power of state
Article 163- Council of ministers to aid and advise the Governor
6. Govt appoints two new Supreme Court judges
Tags: Person in news National News
The Central Government has approved Justice Rajesh Bindal and Justice Arvind Kumar as judges of the Supreme Court.
An overview of the news
Chief Justice of Allahabad High Court Rajesh Bindal and Chief Justice of Gujarat High Court Arvind Kumar have been made judges of the Supreme Court.
The total number of judges in the Supreme Court has gone up to 34, which is also the sanctioned number of 34 judges.
On January 31, the six-member collegium of the Supreme Court sent the names of these two judges to the government for approval.
Earlier on December 13, 2022, the names of five judges were recommended. These five judges were sworn in as judges of the Supreme Court on 6 February.
These include the names of Rajasthan High Court Chief Justice Pankaj Mithal, Patna High Court Chief Justice Sanjay Karol, Manipur High Court Chief Justice PV Sanjay Kumar, Patna High Court Justice Ahsanuddin Amanullah and Allahabad High Court Justice Manoj Mishra.
Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud has to finalise 19 judicial appointments in his tenure till November 2024.
7. Collegium System: Supreme Court
Tags: National National News
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5 New Judges to be appointed Soon in the Supreme Court according to the Government of India.
An overview of the news
The Supreme Court collegium led by Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud on December 13, 2022 recommended the names of five judges for appointment as apex court judges and three for elevation as Chief Justices (CJ) of High Courts (HC).
The five judges recommended to the government for appointment as Supreme Court judges are Rajasthan High Court Chief Justice Pankaj Mithal; Patna High Court Chief Justice Sanjay Karol; Manipur High Court Chief Justice P.V. Sanjay Kumar; Patna High Court judge Justice Ahsanuddin Amanullah; and Allahabad High Court judge Justice Manoj Misra.
Once the five take oath as judges of the Supreme Court, its working strength will go up to 32.
The sanctioned strength of the top court is 34, including the Chief Justice of India. Its present working strength is 27.
Collegium System in India
The collegium system in India refers to the process of appointment and transfer of judges in the higher judiciary, which includes the Supreme Court and the High Courts.
Under this system, a collegium of the Chief Justice of India and four senior-most judges of the Supreme Court recommend appointments and transfers to the President of India, who has the power to make the appointments.
The system was established by a 1993 judgement of the Supreme Court and has been the subject of controversy and criticism.
Some have criticized it for lack of transparency and accountability, while others have defended it as necessary to ensure the independence of the judiciary.
National Judicial Appointments Commission
The National Judicial Appointments Commission (NJAC) was a proposed body in India that was intended to replace the existing collegium system for the appointment and transfer of judges to the higher judiciary.
The NJAC Act was passed by the Indian Parliament in 2014, but it was later struck down by the Supreme Court of India in 2015 on the grounds that it violated the basic structure of the Indian Constitution.
The court held that the NJAC Act sought to undermine the independence of the judiciary and the basic feature of separation of powers between the executive and the judiciary.
As a result, the collegium system was restored and continues to be used for the appointment of judges to the higher judiciary in India.
8. Padma Awards 2023: Mulayam Yadav, Ustad Zakir Hussain, Dilip Mahalanabis among 6 awarded Padma Vibhushan
Tags: Awards
The Centre has announced the Padma Awards on the eve of Republic Day 26 January.
An overview of the news
Of the total 106 Padma Awards announced, six are Padma Vibhushan, nine are Padma Bhushan and 91 are Padma Shri.
Nineteen of the awardees are women.
Oral Rehydration Solution (ORS) pioneer Dilip Mahalanobis will be posthumously awarded the Padma Vibhushan in the field of medicine (paediatrics).
He pioneered the widespread use of ORS, which is believed to have saved more than five crore lives globally.
Former Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav will be posthumously awarded the Padma Vibhushan in the public sector.
Tabla player Zakir Hussain will also be awarded the Padma Vibhushan.
Those who will be awarded the Padma Bhushan include Kannada novelist and screenwriter S L Bhairappa, industrialist Kumar Mangalam Birla and author and philanthropist Sudha Murthy.
The prominent names among Padma Shri awardees include stockbroker Rakesh Jhunjhunwala, Rasna founder Areez Khabatta, former union minister and Manipur BJP president Thounaojam Chaoba Singh, former Tripura minister and Indigenous Peoples Front of Tripura president Narendra Chandra Debbarma, RRR music composer M M Keeravani.
Ghazal singers Ahmed Hussain and Mohd Hussain, and Bollywood actor Raveena Tandon are also among Padma Shri awardees.
Padma Vibhushan
Mulayam Singh Yadav (posthumously)
Balkrishna Doshi (posthumous)
Zakir hussain
SM Krishna
Dilip Mahalanabis (posthumous)
Srinivasa Vardhan
Padma Bhushan
SL Bhairappa
Kumar Mangalam Birla
Deepak Dhar
vani jairam
swami chinna jiyar
Suman Kalyanpur
Kapil Kapoor
Sudha Murthy
Kamlesh D Patel
Padma Shri
Sukma Acharya
Jodhaiyabai Baiga
Premjeet Baria
Usha Burle
Munishwar Chandawar
Hemant Chauhan
Bhanubhai Chitra
Hemoprova Chutiya
Narendra Chandra Debbarma (posthumous)
Subhadra Devi
Khadar Valli Dudekula
Hem Chandra Goswami
Pratikana Goswami
Radha Charan Gupta
Modadugu Vijay Gupta
Ahmed Hussain and Mohammad Hussain (pair)
Dilshad Hussain
Bhikhu Ramji Idate
C I Issac
Ratan Singh Jaggi
Bikram Bahadur Jamatia
ramkuiwangbe jane
Rakesh Radheshyam Jhunjhunwala (posthumous)
Ratan Chandra Kar
Mahipat Kavi
M M Keeravani
Arez Khambatta (posthumous)
Parshuram Komaji Khune
Ganesh Nagappa Krishnarajnagar
Maguni Charan Kunar
Anand Kumar
Arvind Kumar
Domar Singh Kunwar
Rising Bor Kurklang
Hirabai Lobi
Moolchand Lodha
rani machaiya
Ajay Kumar Mandavi
Prabhakar Bhanudas Mande
Gajanan Jagannath Mane
Antaryami Mishra
Nadoja Pindipapanahalli Munivenkatappa
Pro. (Dr.) Mahendra Pal
Uma Shankar Pandey
Ramesh Parmar and Shanti Parmar (Pair)
Nalini Parthasarathy
Hanumantha Rao Pasupuleti
Ramesh Kites
Krishna Patel
K Kalyanasundaram Pillai
V P Appukuttan Poduval
Kapil Dev Prasad
S R D Prasad
Shah Rashid Ahmed Qadri
C V Raju
Bakshi Ram
Raman of Cheruvayal
Sujata Ramadorai
Abbareddy Nageswara Rao
Pareshbhai Rathwa
B Ramakrishna Reddy
Mangala Kanti Rai
K C Runremsangi
Vadivel Gopal and Masi Sadaiyan (Pair)
Manoranjan Sahu
payat sahu
Ritwik Sanyal
Kota Satchidananda Shastri
Shankurtri Chandra Shekhar
K Shanathoiba Sharma
Nekram Sharma
Gurcharan Singh
Lakshman Singh
Mohan Singh
Thounaojam Chauba Singh
Prakash Chandra Sood
Nihunuo Sorhi
Dr. Janam Singh Soy
Kushok Thiksey Nawang Chamba Stanzin
S Subbaraman
moa subong
Palam Kalyana Sundaram
Raveena Ravi Tandon
Vishwanath Prasad Tiwari
Dhaniram Toto
Tula Ram Upreti
Gopalasamy Veluchamy
Ishwar Chand Verma
Coomi Nariman Wadia
Karma Wangchu (posthumous)
Ghulam Muhammad Jazz
9. Foundation Day of Manipur, Meghalaya and Tripura
Tags: State News Important Days
The foundation day of the three northeastern states Tripura, Manipur and Meghalaya is being celebrated on 21st January.
An overview of the news
Tripura, Manipur and Meghalaya were granted full statehood on January 21, 1972 under the North Eastern Areas (Reorganisation) Act, 1971.
Merger of Manipur with India:
Manipur became a part of India from 15 October 1949 after the merger treaty on 21 September 1949.
Manipur was made a Union Territory in 1956.
Merger of Tripura with India:
Tripura was a princely state until its merger with the Indian Union on 15 November 1949.
After the death of Bir Bikram Singh, the last Maharaja of Tripura on 17 May 1947, Maharani Kanchan Prabha (wife of Maharaja Bir Bikram) represented the state of Tripura and merged it with India.
Merger of Meghalaya with India:
The rulers of the Garo and Khasi regions acceded to the Indian Union in the year 1947.
Meghalaya was created as an autonomous state within Assam under the Assam Reorganisation (Meghalaya) Act, 1969.
10. 120-feet-tall Polo Statue Inaugurated by Amit Shah in Manipur
Tags: State News
On 6 January 2023, Union Home Minister Amit Shah unveiled a 120 feet tall statue of a Polo player at the Merging Polo Complex in Imphal East district of Manipur. Various project launched by Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
An overview of the news
On this occasion, Chief Minister N Biren Singh presented a Polo mallet and a painting of the game to Amit Shah.
The first Medical College and Hospital of Manipur's hill district Churachandpur was also inaugurated.
He laid foundation stone of Rs 1,300 crore project.
He laid the foundation stone for construction of 40 police posts, of which 34 are located along the India-Myanmar International Border and 6 along National Highway 37.
Projects to be launched by him include the Manipur Olympian Park at Sangaithel, a private ward at the state-run Jawaharlal Nehru Institute of Medical Sciences, the Moreh town water supply scheme, the Nongpok Thong Bridge and Cave on the eastern side of Kangla Fort and tourism projects at Kangkhui Cave is included.
Polo game in Manipur
Manipur is known as the birthplace of Polo in India; The modern game of Polo is derived from Manipur. This game was earlier known as 'Sagol Kangji', 'Kanjai-Baji' or 'Pulu'.
The oldest polo ground in the world is the Imphal Polo Ground in Manipur.
The history of the Polo Ground is established in the royal chronicle "Cheethrol Kumbaba" starting from 33 AD.
About Manipur
Capital: Imphal
Governor: La Ganesan
Chief Minister: N. Biren Singh
