November 2024

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Daily Current Capsules
08th July 2022

Polity
Election of the Vice President of India.
What's the NEWS

  • The Election Commission of India on July 5 issued the notification for the election of the Vice President of India.
  • The term of office of Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu comes to an end on August 10.
Know! about the Constitutional provisions
  • Article 63 of the Constitution states that "there shall be a Vice-President of India".
  • Under Article 64, the Vice-President "shall be ex officio Chairman of the Council of the States" (Rajya Sabha).
  • Article 65 says that "in the event of the occurrence of any vacancy in the office of the President by reason of his death, resignation or removal, or otherwise, the Vice-President shall act as President until the date on which a new President...enters upon his office".
Election of the Vice-President
  • Article 66 lays down the process of the election of the Vice-President.
  • It says the Vice-President "shall be elected by the members of an electoral college consisting of the members of both Houses of Parliament in accordance with the system of proportional representation by means of the single transferable vote and the voting at such election shall be by secret ballot".
  • Article 66(3) says "No person shall be eligible for election as Vice-President unless he - (a) is a citizen of India; (b) has completed the age of thirty-five years; and (c) is qualified for election as a member of the Council of States".
Nominated Members of the Rajya Sabha
What's the NEWS
  • Legendary athlete P T Usha , music maestro Ilaiyaraaja, Philanthropist and administrator of the Dharmasthala temple Veerendra Heggade and noted screen writer V Vijayendra Prasad were nominated to Rajya Sabha.
  • The Rajya Sabha had vacancies in the nominated category.
  • Twelve members are nominated to the Rajya Sabha by the President of India for six-years term for their contributions towards arts, literature, sciences, and social services.
  • This right has been bestowed upon the President according to the Fourth Schedule (Articles 4(1) and 80(2)) of the Constitution of India.
DERECHO
What's the NEWS
  • States of Nebraska, Minnesota and Illinois in the US were hit by a storm system called a derecho.
Know! about the storm
  • As the storm hit, it turned the skies green, with even many experienced storm chasers claiming to have never witnessed such atmospheric optics.
  • Being a warm-weather phenomenon, a derecho generally - not always - occurs during summertime beginning May, with most hitting in June and July.
  • For a storm to be classified as a derecho it must have wind gusts of at least 93 km per hour; wind damage swath extending more than 400 km. The time gap between successive wind damage events should not be more than three hours.

 

Sub-categorisation of Other Backward Classes (OBCs)
What's the NEWS

  • The Centre extended the tenure of The Commission to Examine Sub-categorisation of Other Backward Classes (OBCs) headed by Justice G Rohini, former Chief Justice of Delhi High Court.
Know! about the committee
  • The Commission, constituted nearly five years ago, has got 10 extensions so far, and now has until January 31 next year to submit its report.
  • The idea of sub-categorisation of OBCs is to create sub-categories within the larger group of OBCs for the purpose of reservation.
  • OBCs are granted 27% reservation in jobs and education under the central government.
  • For OBCs, the debate arises out of the perception that only a few affluent communities among the over 2,600 included in the Central List of OBCs have secured a major part of the 27% reservation.
  • The argument for creating sub-categories within OBCs is that it would ensure "equitable distribution" of representation among all OBC communities.
UNESCO PANEL ON INTANGIBLE CULTURAL HERITAGE
What's the NEWS
  • India has been elected to the Intergovernmental Committee of UNESCO's 2003 Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) for the 2022-2026 cycle.
  • Know! about the Panel
  • India has served as a member of the ICH Committee twice - from 2006 to 2010 and from 2014 to 2018.
  • India will now be a part of two prominent Committees of UNESCO - Intangible Cultural Heritage (2022-2026) and World Heritage (2021-2025).
  • According to UNESCO, the core functions of the Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage are to promote the objectives of the convention, provide guidance on best practices and make recommendations on measures for the safeguarding of the intangible cultural heritage.
  • The Intergovernmental Committee of the 2003 Convention comprises 24 members and is elected in the General Assembly of the Convention according to the principles of equitable geographical representation and rotation.
  • States Members to the Committee are elected for a term of four years.
COLOMBO SECURITY CONCLAVE
What's the NEWS
  • The sixth Deputy National Advisers' meeting of the Colombo Security Conclave held recently resolved to combat jointly the increasing threats related to maritime safety, terrorism, trafficking and organised crime affecting partner nations.
Know! about the conclave
  • A road map for cooperation was discussed at the meeting attended by India, the Maldives, Mauritius, and Sri Lanka. Representatives of Bangladesh and the Seychelles - the two observer nations in the conclave - also shared their views on the occasion.
The five broad areas of cooperation to strengthen regional security are -
  • maritime safety and security,
  • countering terrorism and radicalisation,
  • combating trafficking and transnational organised crime,
  • cyber security and protection of critical infrastructure and technology, and
  • humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.

 

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