WWW.VIDYARTHIPLUS.COM February 2015 Current Affairs INTERNATIONAL Zoe Konstantopoulou Elected As new President Of Greece Greece Parliament has elected Zoe Konstantopoulou, a member of the left wing party Syriza as its new President on 6 February. She was elected after receiving a record number of 235 of 300 deputies’ votes in the Parliament. With this win, she has the record of more votes a President of parliament received after the restoration of democracy in Greece in 1974. This will be the second time that a woman is elected as the Greece Parliament President, with the first being Anna Psarouda-Benaki in 2004. However, Konstantopoulou also set another record, since the 38-year-old politician is the youngest Parliament President that has ever been elected in Greece. Australia’s Prime Minister Tony Abbott Survives Confidence Vote Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott on 9 February survived a vote of confidence motion on spilling the top leadership of Liberal Party. Tony Abbott was elected as the Prime Minister of Australia in September 2013. Russia – Ukraine Signed Ceasefire Agreement The leaders of Russia, Ukraine, Germany and France signed a Ceasefiredeal on 12 February after marathon talks at Minsk, the capital of Belarus. Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko hosted these talks which were held in the background of new attacks in eastern Ukraine’s Donetsk and Luhansk regions on 12 February. At the end of the talks, both Russia and Ukraine agreed to bring into effect a ceasefire in the warring zone of eastern Ukraine from 15 February 2015. Sri Lanka Parliament Enacts witness Protection Law Sri Lankan Parliament has passed the Assistance to and Protection of Victims of Crime and Witnesses Bill on 20 February. This bill aims at protecting the rights of criminal victims and witnesses especially in human rights accountability. INDIA & WORLD India and China Jointly Launched Visit India Year In China India and China on 2 February jointly launched the Visit India Year in China in Beijing. The initiative is aimed at enhancing the flow of tourists from China to India and to strengthen the people to people bond. China will support the promotion of Indian tourist resources in its country. India Ranked 29th On Intellectual Property Index India has been placed at 29th rank among the 30 countries in the international intellectual property (IP) index released by U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s Global Intellectual Property Center (GIPC) on 4 February. US has been placed at the top in the list and Thailand at last position. India Ranked 136 In World Press Freedom Index (WPFI) 2015 WWW.VIDYARTHIPLUS.COM V+TEAM WWW.VIDYARTHIPLUS.COM India was ranked 136 out of 180 nations worldwide in terms of press freedom in 2015, which marks an improvement from its rank of 140 in 2014, even though its absolute score declined from 40.34 to 40.49. In the top of the list were three Scandinavian countries: Finland on the 1st position followed by Norway and Denmark. India and Sri Lanka Signed 4 Agreements Including Civil Nuclear Cooperation Sri Lanka’s newly-elected President Maithripala Sirisena on 16 February held talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi.After the talks, India and Sri Lanka signed bilateral agreements on civil nuclear cooperation, cultural cooperation and cooperation in the field of Agriculture. Besides, an agreement was also signed for Sri Lanka’s participation in the Nalanda University Project.India and Sri Lanka also agreed to expand defence and strategic cooperation, including a trilateral format with the Maldives. US To Provide Work Permits For H-1B Spouses Visa Holders The United States on 24 February announced that it would allow work permits to spouses of H-1B visa holders from 26 May 2015. Under existing US laws, spouses of H-1B visa holders are not eligible to work. This announcement is expected to benefit thousands of talented and professional spouses who have settled in US but are unable to work. NATIONAL 31 Major Minerals To Be Notified As Minor Minerals The Union government has on 5 February decided to notify 31 major minerals as minor ones.This is being done to devolve more power to the states and, consequently, expedite the process of mineral development in the country. State governments are allowed to make rules to regulate the grant of quarry leases, mining leases or other mineral concessions in respect of minor minerals. Telecom Subscriber Base Reaches To 97 crore Telecom regulator Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) on 7 February released a report on subscriber base. India telecom subscriber base reaches all-time high at 970 million at the end of December 2014.The number of telephone subscribers in India increased from 964.20 million at the end of November 2014 to 970.97 million at the end of December 2014. This surpasses the previous record of 965.5 million reached in June 2012. Teledensity in the country, which means connection per 100, reached 77.58. PM Constituted 3 Sub-groups Of Chief Ministers within NITI Aayog The first meeting of the Governing Council of NITI (National Institution for Transforming India) Aayog was held in New Delhi on 8 February. The meeting was presided by NITI Aayog’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi.During the meeting, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has constituted three sub-groups of Chief Ministers within National Institution for Transforming India (NITI) Aayog. * First sub-group - It will study the 66 centrally-sponsored schemes and recommend which schemes should continue, which should be transferred to states, and which to discontinue. * Second sub-group – It will focus on skill development and creation of skilled manpower within states. WWW.VIDYARTHIPLUS.COM V+TEAM WWW.VIDYARTHIPLUS.COM * Third sub-group – It will decide on the institutional mechanisms to be evolved for Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan, so that cleanliness becomes a part of life in perpetuity. PM Narendra Modi Launched ‘Soil Health Card’ scheme Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the centrally sponsored nation-wide ‘Soil Health Card’ (SHC) scheme on 19 February in Suratgarh town of Sriganganagar district, Rajasthan. The nationwide scheme will help farmers to scientifically analyse the soil of farms in the country. The scheme aims at helping farmers in improving productivity by appropriate use of nutrients or fertilisers. STATES Maharashtra Govt Planning To Revamp Jeevan Amrut Yojana Maharashtra Government is planning to revamp the Jeevan Amrut Yojana (blood-on-call) scheme to make it more beneficial to people. State government is seeking to strengthen the network of blood storage units in rural areas instead of current mechanism of transporting blood through motorcycles. It is first of its kind scheme in the country, launched in 2014. It aimed at facilitating blood supply to patients scheduled to undergo surgeries and medical procedures in remote areas. Adani To Set Up Country’s Largest 10,000 MW solar Plant In Rajasthan Adani Enterprises Ltd on 9 February signed a pact with the Rajasthan government to develop the country’s largest solar park in the state with 10,000 MW capacity over the next 10 years at an estimated investment of about Rs 40,000 crore. The company will set up solar power project of 5000 MW on its own in the next five years. The Adani Group will also develop solar manufacturing units and power evacuation systems. Delhi Assembly Elections 2015 Results Declared The Election Commission of India (ECI) on 10 February declared the results of Delhi Legislative Assembly Elections 2015. Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) headed by social activist turned politician Arvind Kejriwal with 67 seats has emerged as the largest party in the house of 70 seats. Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) – Won record 67 seats with record vote share of 54.2% percent. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) – Won 3 seats with vote share of 32.3% percent. 2015 Delhi Legislative Assembly elections were held on 7 February 2015 to elect 70 members of the Sixth Delhi Legislative Assembly. Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Launched CCTNS Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh on 11 February launched the Crime and Criminal Tracking Network System (CCTNS) project in the state. This 19 crore rupees project will be completely funded by the Union Government. It will help in connecting 177 sites and 114 police stations in the state besides 13 district headquarters, 26 sub-divisional police officers and three police ranges along with state crime records bureau. CONFERENCES 15th Delhi Sustainable Development Summit The 15th Delhi Sustainable Development Summit was held from 5-7 February 2015 in New Delhi.The theme of the summit was Sustainable Development Goals and Dealing with Climate Change.The summit WWW.VIDYARTHIPLUS.COM V+TEAM WWW.VIDYARTHIPLUS.COM was organized by The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI). The summit witnessed a pool of distinguished speakers from a wide spectrum of backgrounds. Politicians, Diplomats, Corporates, Government Officials, media, NGOs and activists attended the summit.During the summit, two reports namely, Global Sustainable Development Report and Energy Security Outlook were also launched.Issues like the need for mitigation in Energy supply sector, generating finances for projects focusing on Sustainable Development, and educating the youth about sustainable development were discussed. Stress was laid on collective actions of both public and private sectors in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). AWARDS & HONOURS Eminent Marathi Writer Bhalchandra Nemade Selected For Jnanpith Award 2014 Eminent Marathi writer Bhalchandra Nemade on 6 February was chosen for the Jnanpith Award 2014 by the Jnanpith Selection Board. He is the 4th Marathi writer to receive the honour and is the 50th recipient of Jnanpith award.His novel Kosala (Cocoon) published in 1963 was not only instrumental in changing the dimensions of the Marathi novel, but also the world of Marathi fiction was transformed with its advent.