ASSAM
- Centre restructures Brahmaputra Board
- Finally, the Union Government has restructured the Brahmaputra Board by providing it with the required teeth to cover all the NE states and North Bengal under its operational jurisdiction, so as to effectively handle all tributaries of the Brahmaputra and the Barak. The Board will now have nine regional offices at the capital cities of each of the NE states and at Siliguri in North Bengal. All these offices will be run by the officers of the rank of either the Deputy Chief Engineer or Superintending Engineer.
- Moreover, the North Eastern Hydraulic and Allied Research Institute (NEHARI), the institute set up under the Brahmaputra Board, as per the provisions of the Assam Accord, will also be upgraded by improving its infrastructure and laboratories under this restructuring plan.
- The Board was set up in 1982 under the Brahmaputra Board Act, 1980. It was mandated for planning and integrated implementation for control of flood and bank erosion in the Brahmaputra and Barak Valleys and for the matters connected therewith. It has been functioning with its headquarters located in Guwahati.
- The people of the NE region, particularly the people of Assam, have been demanding restructuring the Brahmaputra Board for making it effective in tackling the Brahmaputra and the Barak and their tributaries.
INTERNATIONAL
- India accounts more than half leprosy cases globally: WHO
- World Health Organization (WHO) stated more than half of the leprosy cases globally was reported by India although there is a steady decline worldwide in the number of leprosy cases which is estimated to be 2 around Lakh.
- Significant leprosy cases has been detected in South-east Asia region, Brazil, Sub-Saharan Africa and Pacific apart from India.
- WHO said leprosy related ‘discrimination, stigma, and prejudice’ were the most powerful barriers in ending the disease.
- It also stated that disease is 100% curable if detected early.
- Leprosy is a chronic infectious disease which mainly affects the skin, the peripheral nerves, mucosal surfaces of the upper respiratory tract and the eyes.
NATIONAL
- Cabinet to approve relief package for farmers
- The Union Cabinet is to approve a relief package for farmers grappling with falling prices and to tackle distress in the farm sector. The relief package is seen as an attempt to assuage the farming community’s discontent ahead of the general elections.
- The Agriculture Ministry has recommended several options to provide both short and long-term solutions to address agrarian distress. It has also proposed is waiving interest on crop loans for farmers who pay on time, which will cost an additional 15,000 crore to the exchequer.
- There is also a proposal to completely waive premium for insurance on food crops. The Centre is also evaluating the scheme followed by the Telangana and Odisha governments wherein a fixed amount is transferred directly into the bank account of farmers.
- Ministry of Defence launched RDP INDIA 2019 app
- Ministry of Defence launched ‘RDP INDIA 2019’ app was launched on the 70th Republic Day. Using the mobile application, people can watch the highlights of this year’s Republic Day parade at the Rajpath.
- The new initiative is in sync with the Digital India campaign of the government. The app included the information including the order of the march, details of the tableaux presented by different States and Ministries, cultural performances by children, fly past and names of recipients of Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar, 2019.
- Indian Railways has named Train 18 as Vande Bharat Express
- Minister of Railways & Coal, Shri Piyush Goyal announced the name Vande Bharat Express for Train 18, acknowledging its made-in-India status.
- This train set has been manufactured by Integral Coach Factory (ICF) in the period of 18 months under ‘Make in India’ program.
- Vande Bharat Express is India’s first semi-high speed train equipped with world class passenger amenities.
- It can achieve high speeds (max speed of 160 kmph) due to faster acceleration & deceleration and will reduced journey time to 8 hours between New Delhi & Varanasi.
- Rashtriya Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan Launched on – 2013
- It aims at providing strategic funding to eligible state higher educational institutions and improves the overall quality of state institutions.
- The funding would flow from the central ministry through the state governments/union territories to the State Higher Education Councils
- Civil aviation ministry launches first GI store
- The Civil Aviation ministry launched the country’s first Geographical Indication (GI) store at Dabolim International Airport in Goa.
- The store will display and sell original and authentic products recognized as GIs under the Geographical Indication of Goods (Registration and Protection) Act, 1999.
- Union Civil Aviation Minister Suresh Prabhu said that all the airports in the country will soon have ‘Geographical Indication Stores’.
- The Union Minister informed that currently there are 270 GI registered products in the country and the store will be a boon for the global tourists.
- Reserve Bank of India to inject Rs 37,500 crore through OMO in February
- Reserve Bank of India it will inject Rs 37,500 crore into the system through the purchase of government securities in February to increase liquidity.
- Reserve Bank of India has been monitoring the evolving liquidity conditions and durable liquidity requirements of the system.
- The government to conduct the purchase of government securities under Open Market Operations (OMOs) for an aggregate amount of Rs 375 billion in the month of February 2019 through three auctions of Rs 125 billion each during the 2nd, 3rd and 4th week.
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