1. No International flights from India
Tags: National News
The Government cited concerns over the Omicron variant of the coronavirus and indefinitely postponed the full resumption of scheduled international flights from December 15.
- The international flights will continue to operate on a smaller scale and only with the countries with which India has air bubble agreements.
Move by Maharashtra Government:
The Maharashtra government has issued strict guidelines for international passengers, requiring all those arriving from “at-risk” countries from December 3 to undergo mandatory institutional quarantine for one week.
Air Transport Bubble “Transport Bubbles” or “Air Travel Arrangements” are temporary arrangements between two countries aimed at restarting commercial passenger services when regular international flights are suspended as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. They are reciprocal in nature, meaning airlines from both countries enjoy similar benefits. |
Countries with which India Has Air Bubble agreements | ||||
Afghanistan | Bahrain | Bangladesh | Bhutan | Canada |
Ethiopia | Finland | France | Germany | Iraq |
Japan | Kenya | Kuwait | Maldives | Mauritius |
Nepal | Netherlands | Nigeria | Oman | Qatar |
Russia | Rwanda | Seychelles | Singapore | Sri Lanka |
Tanzania | Ukraine | UAE | UK | USA |
Uzbekistan | - | - | - | - |
2. Center appoints committee to review EWS criteria
Tags: National News
The Union Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment has appointed a three member committee to review the criteria for 10% reservation for Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) in educational institutions and government jobs in terms of the provisions of the Explanation to Article 15 of the Constitution (103rd Amendment) Act 2019.
The Central government gave an undertaking to the Supreme Court on a petition regarding EWS reservation in NEET(National Eligibility cum Entrance Test) to explain the reason behind fixing the criteria for EWS.
- The panel members are
- Ajay Bhushan Pandey, former Finance Secretary
- V.K. Malhotra ; Member Secretary,Indian Council of Social Science Research, and
- Sanjeev Sanyal Principal Economic Adviser to the Government of India.
Constitutional Provision for Economically Weaker Section (EWS)
The main points of this amendment act are as follows:
Current Central government criteria for determining EWS
Who cannot avail the benefit of EWS
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Union Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment : Mr. Virender Kumar
NEET The National Eligibility Entrance Test (NEET), formerly the All India Pre-Medical Test (AIPMT), is the qualifying test for MBBS and BDS programmes in Indian medical and dental colleges. It is conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA) |
3. Supreme Court to allow setting up of medical board for Jayalalitha Death inquiry
Tags: National News
The Supreme Court said it will pass orders to allow the setting up of a medical board of AIIMS doctors to help Justice A. Arumugasamy Commission of Inquiry to gather the facts on the death of former Tamil Nadu Chief MinisterJayalalithaa at Apollo Hospital in Chennai in 2016.
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4. Accidental Death and Suicided Report 2020
Tags: National News
The National Crimes Records Bureau (NCRB) released its report on ‘Accidental Deaths and Suicides in India’ (ASDI) for 2020.
Highlights of the report:
- The road accidents and related deaths fell in the pandemic year, the number of deaths by suicides rose by 10% from 2019, taking the total figure to an all-time high of 1,53,052.
- The coronavirus lockdown led to a fall in deaths caused by accidents. Accidental deaths fell by 11% from 2019 to 2020 to 374, 397, the lowest figure since 2009.
- The number of deaths by suicide per lakh population in 2020 stands at 11.3%, up from 10.4% in 2019.
- Daily wage earners made up the largest proportion of people who died by suicide in the country in 2020 at 24.6%, according to the ASDI report.
- Tamil Nadu was the state with the highest number of deaths by suicides among daily wage earners with 6,495, followed by Madhya Pradesh (4,945), Maharashtra (4,176), Telangana (3,831) and Gujarat (2,745).
National Crime Records Bureau(NCRB)
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5. Admiral R. Hari Kumar takes charge as the new Chief of Naval Staff
Tags: National News
Admiral R Hari Kumar became the 25th Chief of Naval Staff succeeding Admiral Karambir Singh. Admiral Kumar was the commander of the Western Naval Command before he was made the Navy chief.
Indian Navy It is the Naval branch of the Indian Armed forces and the President of India is the supreme commander of the Navy. The Chief of Naval Staff, a four-star admiral commands the Navy. Headquarters: Integrated Defence Headquarters, Ministry of Defence, New Delhi. Motto(s): “शं नो वरुणः” (sham noVarunah). Translation: May the Lord of Water be Auspicious to us. Taken from Taittiriya Upanishad. Established: 26th January 1950, Indian Navy Day: 4 December Indian Navy Day is celebrated every year on December 4 to commemorate the attack on the Karachi harbour during the India-Pakistan war 1971 under operation Trident. |
Commands of Indian Navy:
Commands | Headquarters |
Western Naval Command | Mumbai |
Eastern Naval Command | Visakhapatnam |
Southern Naval Command | Kochi |
Andaman and Nicobar (tri-service) | Port Blair |
