HISTORY

Digital Bharat Digital Sanskriti

GS PAPER - 01 ART AND CULTURE - Indian culture will cover the salient aspects of Art Forms, Literature and Architecture from ancient to modern times.

Context :

Union Ministry of State for Culture & Tourism has launched the E-Portal of CCRT ‘Digital Bharat Digital Sanskriti’ and CCRT YouTube Channel.

Digital Bharat Digital Sanskriti:

The ‘Digital Bharat Digital Sanskriti’ is an E-portal that will enable dissemination of cultural education through digital interactive medium into classrooms all over the country.
The portal will provide a platform for specifically dropout children so that they can join the mainstream and pursue their dreams by making a career out of be it music, painting, or any other art forms.
For this initiative,CCRT has tied up with Routes 2 Roots,an NGO for connecting seamlessly all the CCRT Regional Centres.

Centre for Cultural Resources and Training (CCRT) :

It is an autonomous organisation under the Ministry of Culture of the Government of India.
It works in the field of linking education with culture.
It was established in 1979 pioneered by Smt. Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay and Dr. Kapila Vatsyayan.
At the philosophical core of the CCRT lies a commitment to holistic education, encompassing the cognitive, emotional and spiritual development of children.
To this end the CCRT conducts education grounded in cultural knowledge and understanding as conducive to clarity, creativity, independence of thought, tolerance and compassion.
CCRT’s main thrust is to make a variety of training programmes for in-service teachers, teacher educators, educational administrators and students throughout the country.
It also organizes special training programmes for physically and mentally challenged children.
The training programmes provide an understanding and appreciation of the philosophy, aesthetics and beauty inherent in Indian art and culture and focus on formulating methodologies for incorporating a cultural component in curriculum teaching.
It organises theoretical and theme-based academic programmes on Indian art and culture for teachers and students.

Source :- PIB

76th Year of Formation of Azad Hind Government

GS PAPER - 01 HISTORY - Modern Indian history from about the middle of the eighteenth century until the present significant events, personalities, issues

Context :

The Union Minister of State for Culture & Tourism attends the 76th anniversary of the formation of the Azad Hind Government at Delhi’s Red Fort.

Azad Hind Government :

On 21st October 1943, Subhash Chandra Bose announced the formation of the Provisional Government of Azad Hind (Free India) in Singapore, with himself as the Head of State, Prime Minister and Minister of War.
Bose was also the Head of State of the provisional government.
It was established with financial, political and military support from Imperial Japan. This political movement was spearheaded by Bose, who was called Netaji by the Azad Hind members, and it meant to take sides with the Axis powers (including Nazi Germany, Italy and Japan) in order to wrest India of British rule (who were part of the Allied Forces during World War II).
The Indian National Army (INA) was the army of the Azad Hind government.
The Provisional Government not only enabled Bose to negotiate with the Japanese on an equal footing but also facilitated the mobilisation of Indians in East Asia to join and support the Indian National Army (INA).
- The struggle for independence was carried on by Subhash Chandra Bose from abroad. He found the outbreak of the Second World War to be a convenient opportunity to strike a blow for the freedom of India.
- Bose had been put under house arrest in 1940 but he managed to escape to Berlin on March 28, 1941. The Indian community there acclaimed him as the leader (Netaji). He was greeted with ‘Jai Hind’ (Salute to the motherland).
- In 1942, the Indian Independence League was formed and a decision was taken to form the Indian National Army (INA) for the liberation of India.
- On an invitation from Ras Bihari Bose, Subhash Chandra Bose came to East Asia on June 13, 1943. He was made president of the Indian Independence League and the leader of the INA popularly called ‘Azad Hind Fauj’.
- He gave the famous battle cry ‘Chalo Dilli’. He promised independence to Indians saying, ‘tum mujhe khoon do, main tumhe Azadi dunga’ (You give me blood, I will give you freedom).

Source :- PIB

POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

Centre all set to revamp British era Indian Penal Code

GS PAPER - 02 POLITY - Separation of powers between various organs dispute redressal mechanisms and institutions.

Context :

Recently the Ministry wrote to all States and Union Territories seeking suggestions to amend various sections of the IPC.
Two committees comprising legal luminaries have also been constituted by the Ministry to revamp ‘British-era’ IPC.

Need for Amendment :

It is believed that rebooting the code introduced by the British in 1860 is necessary as it is primarily based on the spirit of “master and servant”.
Thomas Babington Macaulay, in the five years he had on the Governor General’s Council, changed the face of India forever. He gave the IPC (Indian Penal Code).
The Independence movement knew the IPC well. The nationalist leaders suffered day in and day out from it. It was repressive. But when they came to power, they did nothing to remove the IPC or even amend its worst features.
The British have reformed their laws and their penal system. But India continues to follow this rusty 19th-century law.
The Criminal justice system based on century-old outdated laws has led to harassment of people by the government agencies and also put pressure on the judiciary.
There is uneven punishment for crimes of grievous nature. In some cases, the punishment is not commensurate with the gravity of the crime.
The Penal legal system that was established by the British Rule in India has still not undergone any substantial changes even after 70 years of independence while the entire Code of Criminal Procedure (Cr.P.C.) was amended in 1973. The biggest example could be Section 124A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) that defines sedition and provides for its punishment.

Malimath Committee recommendations :

The Committee, headed by Justice V.S. Malimath, former Chief Justice of the Karnataka and Kerala High Courts. It began its work in 2000, when it was constituted by the Home Ministry, and submitted its report to Deputy Prime Minister L.K. Advani, who was also in charge of the Home portfolio, in 2003.
Task of examining the fundamental principles of criminal law so as to restore confidence in the criminal justice system.
This involved reviewing the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), 1973, the Indian Evidence Act, 1872, and the Indian Penal Code (IPC), 1860.

Key recommendations :

The 158 recommendations of the committee, arrived at after examining several national systems of criminal law, especially the continental European systems, essentially propose a shift from an adversarial criminal justice system, where the respective versions of the facts are presented by the prosecution and the defence before a neutral judge, to an inquisitorial system, where the objective is the “quest for truth” and the judicial officer controls the investigation of offences.
Its report has suggested the dilution of many of the pre-trial safeguards against violence in police custody that an accused has.
- For instance, it seeks to double the 90-day period available for filing a charge-sheet after which an accused can be released on bail.
- It also recommends that the permissible 15-day police remand of an accused be doubled for grave offences.
Malimath Committee seems to have concentrated on the rights of the victim. It mentions the need to formulate a witness protection programme, reclassify offences, and involve the victim in all stages of the trial.
On the question of making investigations more effective, it suggests the setting up of a State Security Commission, as recommended by the NPC, to insulate the police from political pressure.
It has expanded the definition of rape to include all forms of forcible penetration, are eclipsed by the indifference to most of the concerns of the women’s movements. The committee does not favor the death penalty for rapists. In fact, the report states that wherever the death penalty is a possible punishment it should be replaced with life imprisonment without commutation or remission.

Source :- The Hindu

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

India, Maldives to take defence ties forward

GS PAPER - 02 INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS - India and its neighborhood- relations.

Context :

With the recent improvement in relations, India and the Maldives will take forward several pending measures to promote defence cooperation in the next few months.

More in the news:

India had gifted the Maldives two ALHs in 2013 and each was operated by the Indian Coast Guard and the Indian Navy. However, a controversy broke out in 2018 after the previous Maldives government refused to extend the visas of Indian military personnel and asked India to take back the helicopters.
Maldives is currently looking to transform its military in a big way, and the cooperation would be beneficial to the island nation.
Measures to promote defence cooperation include:
- The lease of a Dornier aircraft is being finalised.
- Bringing the Maldives under India’s coastal radar chain network: Two of the stations are already functional and the third is in an advanced stage. Mauritius, Seychelles and Sri Lanka have already been part of the network.
- A broad-based humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HADR) exercise.
Terrorism is a major threat to the Maldives, and maritime security is the top-most concern. At the Goa Maritime Conclave, hosted recently by the Navy for Indian Ocean littoral states, the major focus was on information-sharing. India offered to share real-time movement of maritime traffic.

Source :- The Hindu

Rohingya refugees agree to move to island

GS PAPER - 02 INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS - India and its neighborhood- relations ; population and associated issues

Context :

Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh have agreed to be relocated to the newly built camp on the Bhashan Char Island.

Background :

Some 7,40,000 Rohingya fled Myanmar in August 2017 in the face of a military crackdown, joining 2,00,000 refugees already in makeshift tent settlements at Cox’s Bazar, a town on the southeast coast of Bangladesh.
Dhaka has long wanted to move 1,00,000 refugees to the muddy silt islet, saying it would take pressure off the overcrowded border camps where almost a million Rohingya live.

Rohingyas :

Rohingya are an ethnic group, largely comprising Muslims, who predominantly live in the Western Myanmar province of Rakhine.
In Myanmar, they are they are classified as resident foreigners or as associate citizens.
Lakhs of Rohingyas have fled to neighbouring countries like Bangladesh and India after facing religious and ethnical persecution in Myanmar.
- This has led to a historic migration crisis and a large humanitarian crisis.

Bhashan Char Island:

The Bhashan Char is an uninhabited island around 30 kilometre east of Hatiya island in the South East Bangladesh.
Bhashan Char island was formed about two decades ago on the mouth of river Meghna.
The Island falls in an ecologically fragile area prone to floods, erosion and cyclone.
However,the Bangladesh government has built a three metre high embankment along its perimeter to keep out tidal surges during cyclones.

Source :- The Hindu

ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY

Anthrax scare at Assam’s Pobitora sanctuary after death of 2 buffaloes

GS PAPER - 03 ENVIRONMENT AND ECOLOGY - Conservation, environmental pollution and degradation, environmental impact assessment

Context :

Recently,Veterinarians have confirmed anthrax as the cause of death of two Asiatic water buffaloes in central Assam’s Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary.

Anthrax :

Anthrax is an infectious disease caused by the bacterium Bacillus anthracis.
The bacteria live in soil and usually infects wild and domestic animals such as goats,cattle and sheep.
However,humans,pigs and dogs are comparatively less susceptible and only get infected if exposed to copious amounts of spores.
Anthrax responds well to antibiotic treatment but vaccines are necessary as the infection can cause death within two-three days leaving no scope for diagnosis and treatment.
Anthrax does not spread directly from one infected animal or person to another as it spread by spores.These spores can be transported by clothing or shoes.
In 2001,these spores were used as agents of bio-terrorism when letters containing anthrax spores were sent to some people in America leading to widespread panic.

Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary :

Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary is a wildlife reserve in the Morigaon district of the state of Assam in India.
It is located about 30 km east of Guwahati.
Pobitora was declared a reserved forest in 1971 and a wildlife sanctuary in 1987.
It covers flat floodplains and a hillock (Raja Mayong).
The Sanctuary is mainly famous for its great Indian one-horned rhinoceros. Besides rhinoceros, the other animals are a leopard, wild boar, Barking deer, wild buffalo.

Source :- The Hindu

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21st OCTOBER 2019 DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS

HISTORY

Digital Bharat Digital Sanskriti

GS PAPER - 01 ART AND CULTURE - Indian culture will cover the salient aspects of Art Forms, Literature and Architecture from ancient to modern times.

Context :

Union Ministry of State for Culture & Tourism has launched the E-Portal of CCRT ‘Digital Bharat Digital Sanskriti’ and CCRT YouTube Channel.

Digital Bharat Digital Sanskriti:

The ‘Digital Bharat Digital Sanskriti’ is an E-portal that will enable dissemination of cultural education through digital interactive medium into classrooms all over the country.

The portal will provide a platform for specifically dropout children so that they can join the mainstream and pursue their dreams by making a career out of be it music, painting, or any other art forms.

For this initiative,CCRT has tied up with Routes 2 Roots,an NGO for connecting seamlessly all the CCRT Regional Centres.

Centre for Cultural Resources and Training (CCRT) :

It is an autonomous organisation under the Ministry of Culture of the Government of India.

It works in the field of linking education with culture.

It was established in 1979 pioneered by Smt. Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay and Dr. Kapila Vatsyayan.

At the philosophical core of the CCRT lies a commitment to holistic education, encompassing the cognitive, emotional and spiritual development of children.

To this end the CCRT conducts education grounded in cultural knowledge and understanding as conducive to clarity, creativity, independence of thought, tolerance and compassion.

CCRT’s main thrust is to make a variety of training programmes for in-service teachers, teacher educators, educational administrators and students throughout the country.

It also organizes special training programmes for physically and mentally challenged children.

The training programmes provide an understanding and appreciation of the philosophy, aesthetics and beauty inherent in Indian art and culture and focus on formulating methodologies for incorporating a cultural component in curriculum teaching.

It organises theoretical and theme-based academic programmes on Indian art and culture for teachers and students.

Source :- PIB

76th Year of Formation of Azad Hind Government

GS PAPER - 01 HISTORY - Modern Indian history from about the middle of the eighteenth century until the present significant events, personalities, issues

Context :

The Union Minister of State for Culture & Tourism attends the 76th anniversary of the formation of the Azad Hind Government at Delhi’s Red Fort.

Azad Hind Government :

On 21st October 1943, Subhash Chandra Bose announced the formation of the Provisional Government of Azad Hind (Free India) in Singapore, with himself as the Head of State, Prime Minister and Minister of War.

Bose was also the Head of State of the provisional government.

The Indian National Army (INA) was the army of the Azad Hind government.

The Provisional Government not only enabled Bose to negotiate with the Japanese on an equal footing but also facilitated the mobilisation of Indians in East Asia to join and support the Indian National Army (INA).

The struggle for independence was carried on by Subhash Chandra Bose from abroad. He found the outbreak of the Second World War to be a convenient opportunity to strike a blow for the freedom of India.

Bose had been put under house arrest in 1940 but he managed to escape to Berlin on March 28, 1941. The Indian community there acclaimed him as the leader (Netaji). He was greeted with ‘Jai Hind’ (Salute to the motherland).

In 1942, the Indian Independence League was formed and a decision was taken to form the Indian National Army (INA) for the liberation of India.

On an invitation from Ras Bihari Bose, Subhash Chandra Bose came to East Asia on June 13, 1943. He was made president of the Indian Independence League and the leader of the INA popularly called ‘Azad Hind Fauj’.

He gave the famous battle cry ‘Chalo Dilli’. He promised independence to Indians saying, ‘tum mujhe khoon do, main tumhe Azadi dunga’ (You give me blood, I will give you freedom).

Source :- PIB

POLITY AND GOVERNANCE

Centre all set to revamp British era Indian Penal Code

GS PAPER - 02 POLITY - Separation of powers between various organs dispute redressal mechanisms and institutions.

Context :

Recently the Ministry wrote to all States and Union Territories seeking suggestions to amend various sections of the IPC.

Two committees comprising legal luminaries have also been constituted by the Ministry to revamp ‘British-era’ IPC.

Need for Amendment :

It is believed that rebooting the code introduced by the British in 1860 is necessary as it is primarily based on the spirit of “master and servant”.

Thomas Babington Macaulay, in the five years he had on the Governor General’s Council, changed the face of India forever. He gave the IPC (Indian Penal Code).

The Independence movement knew the IPC well. The nationalist leaders suffered day in and day out from it. It was repressive. But when they came to power, they did nothing to remove the IPC or even amend its worst features.

The British have reformed their laws and their penal system. But India continues to follow this rusty 19th-century law.

The Criminal justice system based on century-old outdated laws has led to harassment of people by the government agencies and also put pressure on the judiciary.

There is uneven punishment for crimes of grievous nature. In some cases, the punishment is not commensurate with the gravity of the crime.

Malimath Committee recommendations :

Task of examining the fundamental principles of criminal law so as to restore confidence in the criminal justice system.

This involved reviewing the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), 1973, the Indian Evidence Act, 1872, and the Indian Penal Code (IPC), 1860.

Key recommendations :

Its report has suggested the dilution of many of the pre-trial safeguards against violence in police custody that an accused has.

For instance, it seeks to double the 90-day period available for filing a charge-sheet after which an accused can be released on bail.

It also recommends that the permissible 15-day police remand of an accused be doubled for grave offences.

Malimath Committee seems to have concentrated on the rights of the victim. It mentions the need to formulate a witness protection programme, reclassify offences, and involve the victim in all stages of the trial.

On the question of making investigations more effective, it suggests the setting up of a State Security Commission, as recommended by the NPC, to insulate the police from political pressure.

Source :- The Hindu

INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS

India, Maldives to take defence ties forward

GS PAPER - 02 INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS - India and its neighborhood- relations.

Context :

With the recent improvement in relations, India and the Maldives will take forward several pending measures to promote defence cooperation in the next few months.

More in the news:

India had gifted the Maldives two ALHs in 2013 and each was operated by the Indian Coast Guard and the Indian Navy. However, a controversy broke out in 2018 after the previous Maldives government refused to extend the visas of Indian military personnel and asked India to take back the helicopters.

Maldives is currently looking to transform its military in a big way, and the cooperation would be beneficial to the island nation.

Measures to promote defence cooperation include:

The lease of a Dornier aircraft is being finalised.

Bringing the Maldives under India’s coastal radar chain network: Two of the stations are already functional and the third is in an advanced stage. Mauritius, Seychelles and Sri Lanka have already been part of the network.

A broad-based humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HADR) exercise.

Terrorism is a major threat to the Maldives, and maritime security is the top-most concern. At the Goa Maritime Conclave, hosted recently by the Navy for Indian Ocean littoral states, the major focus was on information-sharing. India offered to share real-time movement of maritime traffic.

Source :- The Hindu

Rohingya refugees agree to move to island

GS PAPER - 02 INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS - India and its neighborhood- relations ; population and associated issues

Context :

Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh have agreed to be relocated to the newly built camp on the Bhashan Char Island.

Background :

Some 7,40,000 Rohingya fled Myanmar in August 2017 in the face of a military crackdown, joining 2,00,000 refugees already in makeshift tent settlements at Cox’s Bazar, a town on the southeast coast of Bangladesh.

Dhaka has long wanted to move 1,00,000 refugees to the muddy silt islet, saying it would take pressure off the overcrowded border camps where almost a million Rohingya live.

21^st OCTOBER 2019 DAILY CURRENT AFFAIRS