Recently, the 60th Public Enterprises (PE) Survey 2019-20 was released by the Department of Public Enterprises (DPE), Ministry of Finance. It is the single largest source of information on Central Public Sector Enterprises (CPSEs) and acts as a basis for informed policy making. The government has reallocated the Department of Public Enterprises (DPE) to the finance ministry from the ministry of …

Recently, Mauritius has denied a report that it has allowed India to build a military base on the remote island of Agalega. Earlier it was reported by a news broadcaster that an airstrip and two jetties to house an Indian military base on Agalega island is under construction. Important points: In 2015, …

Recently, the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister (EAC-PM) released the Quality of Life for Elderly Index. The share of elders, as a percentage of the total population in the country, is expected to increase from around 7.5% in 2001 to almost 12.5% by 2026, and surpass 19.5% by 2050. EAC-PM is a non-constitutional, non-statutory, independent …

Recently, the President addressed the commemoration of the 100th year of the Tamil Nadu Assembly, formerly known as the Madras Legislative Council (MLC) in Chennai. Important points: The Madras Legislative Council was set up in 1921 under the Government of India Act 1919. The term of the Council was for a period of three years. It consisted …

Recently, West Africa’s first case of the extremely contagious and deadly Marburg virus was confirmed in Guinea. Its first case was first identified just two months after the country was declared free of Ebola Both the Marburg case and this year’s Ebola cases were detected in Guinea’s Gueckedou district. The first cases of the 2014-2016 Ebola epidemic, the …

Recently, the Prime Minister has announced a new national initiative on palm oil production to help increase farm incomes. The scheme, called National Edible Oil Mission-Oil Palm (NMEO-OP), for self-reliance in edible oil involves investment of over Rs. 11,000 crore (over a five year period). Important points: To harness domestic edible oil prices that are …

Recently, the Prime Minister launched the second phase of Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY) or Ujjwala 2.0 Scheme. He mentioned plans to promote “gobar dhan” – tapping cow dung for energy on the occasion of World Bio Fuel Day (10th August). Ujjwala is part of the ambitious agenda for behavioural change that will help India transit to …

For the first time, the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) inducted women officers in the combat role. Two women officers joined it as Assistant Commandants (AC). Indo-Tibetan Border Police Force ITBP is a Central Armed Police Force functioning under the Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India. The ITBP was raised on 24th October, 1962 during the India-China War and is a border guarding …

Recently, the fourth round of Global Youth Tobacco Survey (GYTS-4) was released by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW). Important points: GYTS-4 was conducted in 2019 by the International Institute for Population Sciences (IIPS) under the MoHFW. IIPS, Mumbai, formerly known as the Demographic Training and Research Centre (DTRC) till 1970, was established in July 1956 under …

Recently, the National Commission for the Protection of the Rights of the Child (NCPCR) conducted a Nationwide Assessment of Minority Schools. The report was titled “Impact of Exemption under Article 15 (5) with regards to Article 21A of the Constitution of India on Education of Minority Communities”. The aim was to assess how the 93rd Amendment to Indian Constitution, …