State Current Affairs December 2016
Maharashtra became First State to Launch Cyber Police Stations in All Districts
- Maharashtra became the first State in the country which will have a cyber police station in each district simultaneously on November 3, 2016.
- The State government’s cyber crime wing is setting up 51 cyber crime labs in Maharashtra. These include the 34 labs at the district level, seven at Inspector General’s offices, nine at Commissioner of Police offices and one lab at the State police headquarters.
- Maharashtra is facing increased cyber crime cases in tier-II cities and also in rural areas. Many such cases remain pending for investigation and the new initiative will take care of this shortcoming.
Prime Minister Launched ‘Saur Sujala Yojana’ in Chhattisgarh
- Prime Minister Narendra Modi launched the Saur Sujala Yojana in Chhattisgarh that would provide solar powered irrigation pumps to farmers at a subsidised price on November 2, 2016.
- Chhattisgarh would be the first State to implement the scheme. The Centre is taking – all necessary measures to promote farmers, villager and poor people.
- Under the scheme, solar powered irrigation pumps of 3HP and 5HP capacity worth Rs 3.5 lakh and Rs 4.5 lakh respectively would be distributed to the farmers by March 31,2019. The beneficiaries would get the pumps at the subsidised price.
Kerala and Himachal Pradesh Declared India’s Open Defecation Free State
- The State of Kerala was declared Open Defecation Free (ODF) on November 1, 2016. Kerala became third State as ODF, before it the State of Himachal Pradesh was declared ODF, making it the second State in the country (after Sikkim) on October 27, 2016.
- As per UNICEF report Around 564 million people, which is nearly half the population of India, defecate in the open. India accounts for 90% of the people in South Asia and 59% of the 1.1 billion people in the world who practice open defecation.
- About 43% of children in India suffer from some degree of malnutrition. Diarrhoea and worm infection are two major health conditions that affect school-age children impacting their learning abilities.
Rajasthan High Court Dissolved OBC Commission
- The Rajasthan High Court on October 23,2016 ordered dissolution of the State Other Backward Classes (OBC) Commission, saying it was constituted without the State Assembly enacting any legislation for it.
- The Bench, comprising Justice KS Jhaveri and Justice Mahendra Maheshwari, passed the order while hearing a writ petition moved by Samata Andolan, which had challenged the OBC Commission’s establishment through an executive order.
- A survey report on the condition of Jats in the two districts was to be submitted to the Commission shortly.
See Also – Forest Exam Question Papers
Global Conference to Strengthen Arbitration and Enforcement in India Began
- The first ever global conference to strengthen Arbitration and Enforcement in India will begin in New Delhi on October 23, 2016.
- The three-day conference titled—National Initiative on Strengthening Arbitration and Enforcement is being held to change the face of dispute resolution in India.
- For the first time six leading international arbitral institutions and all major industry associations will come together to drive this initiative.
- The Conference seeks to provide impetus to commercial arbitration in the country, which fast gaining pace across the world, for faster and efficient dispute resolution outside the court room.
