Delhi Assembly passes Delhi Jan Lokpal Bill, 2015
i. The Delhi Assembly has unanimously passed the Delhi Jan Lokpal Bill,
2015 for establishment of statutory anti-corruption ombudsman.
ii. The Bill provides powers to Lokpal to act against any government
functionary including those of the Centre and in the national capital territory
(NCT) of Delhi through its own investigation wing.
Key provisions of Jan Lokpal Bill, 2015
Composition:
- Janlokpal will be a three
member body with Chairperson and two members. They would be appointed by
on recommendation of selection committee consisting of Chief Minister,
Leader of Opposition and Speaker of Delhi Legislative Assembly.
- Jurisdiction: On receiving
corruption complaints from the government or from members of public
Janlokpal is empowered to investigate an allegation of corruption in the
NCT including the Chief Minister’s office.
China 1st manned electric
aircraft gets licence for production
i. China has granted a license for production of first manned two
seater electric aircraft RX1E known as RX1E by the Civil Aviation
Administration of China.
ii. The aircraft has been designed by Shenyang Aerospace University
and Liaoning General Aviation Academy in northeastern Liaoning province.
Key facts:
- RX1E electric light-sport
aircraft and it is China’s first manned electric light aircraft. This
plane is powered by lithium batteries and is capable of flying a maximum
altitude of 3000 meters.
- The plane has a 47-foot
wingspan and has a charging time of 90 minutes enables it to fly for 45 to
60 minutes.
- The plane can take the
maximum takeoff weight of 480 kg.
India's forest & tree cover
increased by 5,081 sq km: ISFR 2015
i. According to the recently released India State of Forest Report (ISFR)
2015, India’s forest and tree cover has been increased by 5081 Square
kilometre.
ii. The report was released by the Union Environment Minister Prakash
Javadekar in New Delhi.
South Western Railway Zones
introduces Biodiesel for trains
i.The South Western Railways (SWR) Zone with headquarters in Hubli,
Karnataka has introduced biodiesel for trains, operating under its zone.
ii. In this regard, SWR’s first train Hubballi-Bengaluru Janshatabdi
Express powered by five per cent biodiesel blended with High Speed Diesel was
flagged off from Hubli.
iii. The main aim of the initiative is to reduce greenhouse gases
(GHGs) emission and carbon footprint and also to make fuel consumption more
efficient.
iv. To meet its biodiesel demand, SWR zone has set up Biodiesel filling
centres at Hubli, Bengaluru and Hospet. In next one year all the 13 railway
depots within the zone will have their own filling units and the biodiesel
blending will be gradually increased to ten percent.
CEA Dr Arvind Subramanian
Committee suggests GST rate of 17-18%
i. Chief Economic Advisor Dr Arvind Subramanian led Committee has
recommended standard rate for Goods and Services Tax (GST) at 17 to 18 per
cent.
ii. The Committee has submitted its report to Union Finance Minister
Arun Jaitley in New Delhi.
Recommendations of Dr Arvind Subramanian
Committee
- Standard GST rate of 17 to
18 per cent. It is the rate at which most products would likely be taxed.
Not to specify GST rate in Constitutional Amendment Bill.
- Revenue-neutral rate of 15
to 15.5 per cent. It is a single rate at which there will be no revenue
loss to the centre and states in the GST regime. Eliminate all taxes on
inter-state trade including one per cent inter-state tax on transfer of
goods.
- Two options for states:
Single rate of 1 per cent or a range of 17-18 per cent. Allocation to
states will depend on revenues raised by Centre and states. Three-tier GST
rate structure: Essential goods will be taxed at a lower rate of 12 per
cent.
Himachal Pradesh becomes 1st state to launch
Rotavirus vaccination project
i. Himachal Pradesh has become the first state in the country to start
Rotavirus vaccination project under the Universal Immunisation Programme
(UIP).
ii. The project was launched by Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh from
Dharamsala in district Kangra by administering the Rotavirus vaccine drops to
the children aged less than 5 years.
iii. Rotavirus vaccination project is based on the analogy of the polio
vaccine. Under it Rotavirus drops would be administered to the children at 6,
10 and 14 weeks after birth. The vaccination project will help in controlling
the deaths amongst small children due to Diarrhoea.
Uttar Pradesh Govt launches 1st
Intrnational festival on Birds
i. Uttar Pradesh Government has launched International festival on Birds in
a bid to promote state as an international bird-watching destination.
ii. The first-of-its-kind festival was inaugurated by Chief Minister
Akhilesh Yadav at the National Chambal Sanctuary (NCS). It has been jointly
organised by the State Forest department in collaboration with Federation of
Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI).
iii. The three-day international festival (from 4 to 6 December 2015)
on birds will be held the National Chambal Sanctuary (NCS) in Agra. Over 80
Indian ornithlogists and around 25 top international bird experts and are
participating in the first-of-its-kind festival.
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