Current Affairs 9th April 2015

Current Affairs 9th April 2015 - Important Points

• Who has recommended establishment of Integrated Emergency Communication & Response System - TRAI

• 20th Law Commission submitted Report on Eliminating Discrimination Against - Leprosy-affected Persons

• Which veteran singer has died at Chennai - EM Hanifa

• Which two personalities are conferred with Sahitya Shiromani Samman of Uttar Pradesh - Gopaldas Neeraj and Uday Pratap Singh

• With how much % Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) cap in Insurance Sector has increased - 23%

• Who is appointed as Chief Election Commissioner of India - Dr. Nasim Zaidi

• Who is elected as the President of Confederation of Indian Industry for the year 2015-16 - Sumit Mazumder

• Which Jnanapith awardee Tamil writer who has passed away - Jayakanthan

Current Affairs 9th April 2015 - Details

Who has recommended establishment of Integrated Emergency Communication & Response System - TRAI

On 7th April 2015, the establishment of Integrated Emergency Communication and Response System (IECRS) in the country is recommended by Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI). This system can be retrieved through a single emergency number 112 from a landline or mobile phone/device for all emergency phone-calls across the country.

The recommendation with respect to setting up of IECRS was made in exercise of its power conferred under section 11 (1)(a)(ii) and (vii) of the TRAI Act, 1997 which empowers TRAI to make recommendations, either suo motu or on a request from the licensor.

Main recommendations are :

• Wherever there is more than one PSAP in a State/UT, they should act as primary and secondary PSAPs to each other so that overflow traffic of one PSAP can be handled by another in the State/UT.
• There should be a multi-sectoral agency which can coordinate and help in setting up of IECRS in the country.
• The multi-sectoral agency will have representations from Ministry of Home Affairs, Department of Telecommunications (DoT), Department of Electronics and Information Technology (DEITY), Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Ministry of Women and Child Development and other concerned Centre and State agencies.
• IECRS can be accessed from the SIMs of those mobile phones/devices and from landline/mobile telephones where the outgoing call facility has been debarred or the service is temporarily suspended; however, such access to emergency facility should not be allowed from mobile handsets/devices which do not have a SIM.
• SMS based access to IECRS should be provided and Telecom Service Providers (TSPs) may be asked to provide location information in the case of SMS based access to IECRS also.
• PSAP (Public Safety Answering Point) operators should be able to handle calls in Hindi, English and the local language.
• Four regional databases, one each in metro city, containing subscriber details of TSPs should be set up in the country. These regional databases will be interconnected.
• Number 112 should be adopted as the single emergency number for India which may be popularised extensively through a public awareness campaign by the Government
• Existing emergency numbers 100,101,102 and 108 can be continued as secondary numbers. The calls made to the these secondary emergency numbers should be re-routed to the new single emergency number for termination of calls on the IECRS.
• Access to the regional databases will be provided free of charge, so that all the TSPs and PSAPs connect their respective systems to these databases.
• The number of PSAPs in a State/UT should be decided by the respective State Governments/UTs; however there should be at least one PSAP in a State/UT
• There should be one independent PSAP for every city with a population of more than two million as per Census-2011.

20th Law Commission submitted Report on Eliminating Discrimination Against - Leprosy-affected Persons

On 7th April 2015, Report No 256 titled Eliminating Discrimination Against Persons Affected by Leprosy has been submitted by the 20th Law Commission headed by Justice (retd) Ajit Prakash Shah to the Union Ministry of Law and Justice.

Immediate repeal, amendment or modification of certain specific provisions in the laws applicable to leprosy-affected people in order to make their application more amenable to the present-day developments in the treatment of Leprosy has been recommended by the Law Commission.

Main recommendations

• The use of the term leper under State beggary prevention laws is derogatory and contributes to the stigma associated with the disease and hence such a term should be removed from the statute book and all government records.
• It recommends repealing of The Lepers Act, 1898 in entirety and amending The Legal Services Act, 1987 and The Motor Vehicles Act, 1988.
• It recommends the enactment of legislation under Article 253 of the Constitution of India that promotes the social inclusion of Persons affected by Leprosy and their family members through affirmative action.
• An infection of Leprosy affecting either spouse should not by itself constitute a ground for divorce, annulment of marriage or separation as provided in the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955, Special Marriage Act, 1954 and Hindu Adoption and Maintenance Act, 1956.
• The term Leprosy-cured defined in The Persons with Disabilities Act, 1995 and Rights of Persons with Disabilities Bill, 2014 needs to either be removed or broadened to cover all categories of Persons affected by Leprosy. In its present form it does not cover Persons affected by Leprosy who are undetected or undergoing treatment.
• Recommends doing away with the restrictions on eligibility of Persons affected by Leprosy to stand for civic posts as required under various State Municipality and Panchayat Raj legislations.

Which veteran singer has died at Chennai - EM Hanifa

On 8th April 2015, Noted singer EM Hanifa whose voice transcended religious lines passed away at Chennai at the age of 97. Hanifa was known for his song Iraivanidam Kaiyenthungal (look up to God he never says no) was an evergreen liked by all crossing across religious barriers.

Hanifa was a well known singer for popularizing the Dravidian ideals and lent his voice for religious songs. In 2002, he did contest as a DMK Candidate from Vaniyambadi but could not win.

Which two personalities are conferred with Sahitya Shiromani Samman of Uttar Pradesh - Gopaldas Neeraj and Uday Pratap Singh

On 8th April 2015, Uttar Pradesh Government conferred Sahitya Shiromani Samman on noted Hindi poet Gopaldas Neeraj and veteran Hindi litterateur Uday Pratap Singh. Along with the award, the duo was given a cash prize of 21 lakh rupees.

Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh Akhilesh Yadav conferred the award on Uday Pratap Singh and Gopaldas Neeraj. Gopaldas Neeraj, for his lifelong service to Hindi literature, will be honoured with the Rashtra Ratn-Sitara-e Hind award. Excluding this, the poetry book of Gopal Das Neeraj named Geetsri was also disclosed by CM in Lucknow.

With how much % Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) cap in Insurance Sector has increased - 23%

On 8th April 2015, FDI (Foreign Direct Investment) limit in Insurance Sector has moved upto 49% as noticed by RBI. The approval of Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) with FDI will be allowed beyond 26% and up to 49% and FDI below 26% will be under automatic route.

The notification of RBI is adapted with March 2015 decision of Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) regarding operationalisation of increased FDI limit in the insurance sector.

Who is appointed as Chief Election Commissioner of India - Dr. Nasim Zaidi

On 9th April 2015, Dr. Nasim Zaidi has been appointed as the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) by Pranab Mukherjee, President of India. From 19th April 2015, Dr. Nasim Zaidi will handle the charge of office of the CEC.

Zaidi is the 20th CEC of India and will replace Harishankar Brahma who will demit his office on 18th April 2015. He will have tenure up to 65 years of age ie. July 2017, the upper age limit under the Constitution for holding the post.

Following Harishankar Brahma, Zaidi is the senior-most Election Commissioner and was appointed as CEC following the convention in which the senior-most EC is appointed as the CEC.

Who is elected as the President of Confederation of Indian Industry for the year 2015-16 - Sumit Mazumder

On 7th April 2015, Sumit Mazumder was elected as the President of Confederation of Indian Industry (CII). He is the Managing Director and Chairman of the India’s largest manufacturer of material handling equipment, TIL Limited.

Mazumder is also the Executive Chairman of distributor for Caterpillar, USA, Tractors India Pvt. Ltd. in Bhutan, Nepal and India for mining equipment, construction, power systems and earthmoving.

Which Jnanapith awardee Tamil writer who has passed away - Jayakanthan

On 8th April 2015, literary critic, short story writer and Tamil novelist Jayakanthan died in Chennai at the age of 81 years. The main idea of Jayakanthan writings were mainly against economic inequality and social injustices in our surroundings. He was presented with Padma Bhushan in 2009, Jnanpith in 2002 and Sahitya Akademi Award in 1972.

In 1953, he started writing in Tamil magazines such as Saraswathi, Thamarai, Grama Uzhiyan and Anantha Vikatan and went on to author about 40 novels and novellas along with several short stories, poems, and articles.