Current Affairs 21st December 2017

Current Affairs 21st December 2017 - Important Points

• Lower House passes Requisitioning and Acquisition of Immovable Property (Amendment) Bill, 2017 on - 20th December 2017
• Parliament passes Companies Amendment Bill on - 19th December 2017
• Cabinet approves MoU between India, Cuba on cooperation in Health and Medicine field on - 20th December 2017
• SAMEEP to take foreign policy to classroom launched  by - MEA 
• Parliament passes Indian Institutes of Management Bill, 2017 on - 19th December 2017
• Indian Navy conducted Exercise Naseem-Al- Bahr with Oman Navy on - 20th December 2017
• Lok Sabha passes Indian Forest (Amendment) Bill, 2017 on - 20th December 2017

Current Affairs 21st December 2017 - Details

Lower House passes Requisitioning and Acquisition of Immovable Property (Amendment) Bill, 2017 on - 20th December 2017

The Requisitioning and Acquisition of Immovable Property (Amendment) Bill, 2017 was passed by the Lower House of the Parliament, Lok Sabha on 20th December 2017. The bill would be amending regulations governing compensation amount payable for acquisition of immovable property by the central  government for defence and security purposes. Newly appointed Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs, Hardeep Singh Puri moved the bill.

Bill's key provisions

• It seeks to amend a provision to allow the Centre to re-issue the acquisition notice in order to ensure that the property's owner gets an opportunity to be heard.
• The bill will be having retrospective effect from 1952.
• The government intends to pay fair and just compensation to the land owner, through this amendment.
• Incase of the reissuance of the notice, the property owner will be entitled to an interest on the compensation payable to them.
• The re-issue of notice will not be applying to cases where the compensation has already been awarded and accepted by the claimants.

Importance

• The amendment is done in the interest of the security of the nation.
• It will be helping corrupt elements from taking undue advantage by misusing the litigation process.

Parliament passes Companies Amendment Bill on - 19th December 2017

The Companies (Amendment) Bill, 2017 that aims to bring about major changes in the Companies Act, 2013, was passed by Rajya Sabha on 19th December 2017 by a voice vote. The Bill was passed by the Lok Sabha in July 2017 previously during its Monsoon session. It will now be receiving the assent of the President of India to become a law.

Important Highlights

• The Bill is to amend the companies law to strengthen corporate governance standards, initiate strict action against defaulting companies and help improve ease of doing business in the country.
• It also provides over 40 amendments to the Companies Act, 2013, which was passed during the previous UPA regime.

The major changes possibly brought on by the bill’s adoption will be including:

• Private placement process simplification.
• Rationalization of provisions related to loans to directors.
• Aligning disclosure requirements in the prospectus with the regulations made by SEBI.
• To provide for maintenance of register of significant beneficial owners.
• To make offence for contravention of provisions relating to deposits as non-compoundable.

Cabinet approves MoU between India, Cuba on cooperation in Health and Medicine field on - 20th December 2017

The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 20th December 2017 gave its ex-post- facto acceptance for the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between India and Cuba on cooperation in the area of Health and Medicine.  The MoU was signed on 6th December 2017 in New Delhi.
Following are the areas of cooperation covered under the MoU:-

Interchange &training of medical doctors, officials, other related health professionals and experts.
Assistance in development of human resources, setting up of health care facilities and health services.
Short duration training of human resources in health.
Regulation of pharmaceuticals, medical devices and trading of information.
Promotion of business development chances in pharmaceuticals and others recognized by parties.
Obtaining generic and crucial drugs and assistance in sourcing of drug supplies.
Obtaining health equipment and pharmaceutical products.
Apart from this, the accordance would cover any other area of cooperation that is finalized and mutually agreed upon by both the countries.
A Joint Working Group will be formed to further elaborate the details of the cooperation and to oversee the execution of this MoU.

 SAMEEP to take foreign policy to classroom launched  by - MEA 

The Ministry of External Affairs has initiated a new program SAMEEP- Students and MEA Engagement Program, to make the student understand India's position in the world and its global ambitions, and also to look at diplomacy as a career prospective. 
It’s an outreach program by MEA to take India’s foreign policy and its worldwide commitments to students across the nation.
SAMEEP (Students and MEA Engagement Program)

• Under this new project SAMEEP, the Ministry of External affairs has asked all its public-servants, undersecretary and above, to go their native places and particularly their alma mater while on vacation. 
• There they would engage and communicate with students in the schools and colleges and inform how the MEA works, India’s foreign policy, how they do diplomacy so that the student consider about this as a career choice.
• SAMEEP is a voluntary program and it facilitates foreign officials the option of going back to any school or college in their native place or to their alma mater.

Working of MEA

• The MEA would supply them a standardized presentation and public-servants would be free to make the alterations for the betterment of it can sum their personal experiences. 
• The aim of SAMEEP is not only to get the common student to take an interest in India's foreign policy with its neighbors and other nations but also to consider diplomacy as a career choice.
• A same program has had IAS officers also going back to the place of their 1st posting to assess its development and make guidance.

Parliament passes Indian Institutes of Management Bill, 2017 on - 19th December 2017

The Indian Institutes of Management Bill, 2017 was approved by the Parliament with Rajya Sabha, the Upper House, passing it on 19th December 2017.
The Lower House of the Parliament, Lok Sabha had already approved the bill in July 2017 during its monsoon session. It will now have to get the assent of the President of India to become a law.
Key Provisions of the Bill

• The Bill announces the IIMs as institutions of national importance.
• The bill focuses to extend large autonomy to IIMs by limiting the Union government’s role in their functioning.
• It allows statutory powers to the IIMs in their running including the appointment of directors and faculty members.
• It also allows them the power to grant degrees to their graduates.
• It looks forward to empower IIMs to attain standards of global excellence in management, management research and associated areas of knowledge.
• It also commits to grant administrative, academic and financial autonomy to these B-Schools.
• It also initiates coordination Forum of IIMs as advisory body.
  Additional Powers given to the Board
• The board will have significant participation of experts and alumni.
• It will choose Chairperson and Director of IIM.
• It will also incorporate women and members from Scheduled Castes/Tribes.
• It will also make planning for periodic review of the performance of IIM by private agencies and their results will be displayed in public domain.

Indian Navy conducted Exercise Naseem-Al- Bahr with Oman Navy on - 20th December 2017

Indian Navy on 20th December 2017 organized the joint naval exercise Naseem-Al- Bahr with the Oman Navy.  The exercise is also known as Sea Breeze. This is the eleventh edition of the exercise which has been a biennial feature since 1993.
Indian Naval Ships Trikand and Teg entered Muscat, Oman on 16th December 2017 for the harbor phase. A Pre-sail meeting for the exercise was organized at Said Bin Sultan Naval Base, Wudam on 17th Dec 2017. 
The Indian Navy ships with 4 Royal Navy of Oman ships Al Rasikh, Khassab, Al Mubashir and Al Bushra are presently sailing for the sea phase of the exercise. For the 1st time, an Indian Navy submarine along with versatile long range maritime aircraft P8I is taking part in the exercise. 
Bilateral relations between Indian and Oman 

• India has an old maritime tradition with Oman which dates back to over 4000 years B.C.
• Bilateral alliance between Indian and Oman were formally confirmed with signing of a 1953 Indo-Oman Treaty of friendship, Navigation and Commerce, which was also the 1st between India and an Arab nation.
• The 1st exercise between Indian Navy and Royal Navy of Oman was organized in 1993. Both the nations also signed a MoU on Defense Cooperation in December 2005 and a MoU on the Joint Military Cooperation in March 2006.

Lok Sabha passes Indian Forest (Amendment) Bill, 2017 on - 20th December 2017

Lok Sabha on 20th December 2017 approved the Indian Forest (Amendment) Bill, 2017. The Bill looks forward to amend the Indian Forest Act, 1927.
The Bill was initiated in Lok Sabha by Union Minister of Environment, Forest, and Climate Change Harsh
Vardhan on 18th December 2017.  The Bills restore the Indian Forest (Amendment) Ordinance, 2017.
In the Indian Forest Act, the definition of tree containing palms, bamboos, stumps, brush-wood, and canes.  The Bill amends this definition of tree to separate the word bamboos.
The bamboo, though taxonomically a grass, is regarded as tree under the Indian Forest Act, 1927. The transit of bamboo allures the requirement of permit under the said Act. 
The farmers have been facing problems in getting the permits for felling and transport of bamboos within the State and also for the inter-state transport. This has been placed as major obstacle by farmers for the cultivation of bamboos on their land. 
Once the amendment bill becomes an Act, the transportation of bamboos growing in non-forest areas will not require any permission.
Did you know?

• Bamboo grows extensively in areas outside forests with an approximately growing stock of 10.20 million tonnes. 
• About 20 million people are connected in bamboo related activities. The present demand of bamboo in India is approximated at 28 million tonnes.
• According to the UN’s Industrial Development Organization, the bamboo occupation in the North-East Region itself has a potential of about Rs 5000 crores in the coming 10 years.  Considering this, government inaugurated the amendment to improve the economy of the entire nation.
  India, Myanmar sign MoU to develop Rakhine state for Rohingya community’s
  safe return India on 20th December 2017 signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Myanmar to enlarge Rakhine state, the region from where thousands of Rohingya Muslims had escaped to Bangladesh following a military crackdown, resulting in one of the world’s biggest refugee disaster.
  The accordance was signed by India’s Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar and Myanmar's Deputy Minister for Social Welfare, Relief and Resettlement U Soe Aung.
• As per the India’s External Affairs Ministry, the MoU is the 1st government to government accordance signed by the Ministry of Social Welfare, Relief and Resettlement of Myanmar with a cooperation partner focused on socio- economic development and livelihood capability in the State of Rakhine.
  Main Objective
• The MoU focuses to help the government of Myanmar achieve its aim of restoring normalcy to the Rakhine region and permit the safe return of the displaced Rohingya community.
• In the MoU, the Indian government has suggested to take up, among others, a project to construct prefabricated housing in Rakhine State, so as to meet the immediate requirements of returning people.
  Did you know?
• The visit by India’s Foreign Secretary Jaishankar to Myanmar is of great deliberated importance, as more than 650,000 Rohing as had escaped to neighboring country Bangladesh ever since violence exploded in Rakhine in August 2017.
• The minority Rohingya fraternity does not enjoy citizenship in Myanmar.
• Human rights detectors have accused Myanmar's military of atrocities opposing the Rohingyas.
• The UNs entitle the violence against the Rohingyas in Rakhine, as ethnic cleansing.