As part of multi-pronged strategy to address rural poverty, Ministry of Rural Development (MoRD) is undertaking two initiatives in skill development under the National Rural Livelihoods Mission (NRLM):
Placement linked skill development program called Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Grameen Kaushalya Yojana (DDU-GKY) which allows skilling and assured wage employment.
Skill development through 587 Rural Self Employment and Training Institutes (RSETI) in the country, which provides skilling, thereby enabling the trainee to take bank credit and start his/her own Micro-enterprise.
The Ministry today celebrated 4th RSETI Diwas in recognition of outstanding performance of RSETIs in various states.
A total of 88 awards were given for the years 2014-15 and 2015-16 to best performing States, lead Banks administering RSETIs.
Top performing States in different categories include Jharkhand, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Odisha and Chhattisgarh.
Rutland Island
The country’s long-range missile test facility at South Andamans’ Rutland Island has finally secured the clearance of the National Board of Wildlife, which has been held up since 2012.
The island is very rich in marine life and was once home to the indigenous Andamanese group ‘Jangil’ or Rutland Jarawa.
As of now, long-range missile tests are being carried out from the Odisha coast and are tracked by naval vessels.
DRDO requires a land-based test area as well to accurately track its longrange missiles, with the island in the Andamans being ideally located due to its distance from mainland.
The state Chief Wildlife Warden has recommended the project with conditions such as preparation of a specific marine and terrestrial wildlife conservation plan and installation of essential deflectors and anti-radiation screens around satellite antennas to reduce the impact of radiation on biodiversity in the proposed area.
No forest material of fire wood is to be collected from forest area and no effluent or domestic sewage (liquid or solid waste) shall be disposed into the sea or nearby forest area.
Vatsalya – Maatri Amrit Kosh
The Secretary (Health and Family Welfare) has inaugurated the ‘Vatsalya – Maatri Amrit Kosh’, a National Human Milk Bank and Lactation Counselling Centre at Delhi.
It is opened in collaboration with the Norwegian government, Oslo University and NIPI Newborn Project, is a national human milk bank and lactation counseling centre that will collect, pasteurize, test and safely store milk that has been donated by lactating mothers and make it available for infants in need.
In addition, this facility will protect, promote and support breastfeeding of their own healthy mothers by providing lactation support to mothers through dedicated lactation counsellors.
This project will not only act as a dedicated centre to support breastfeeding and improve infant survival but also act as the teaching, training and demonstration site for other milk banks to be established under the Ministry Of Health and Family Welfare, Government of India.
Election to the Office of President of India, 2017
The President is elected by the members of the Electoral College consisting of:
elected members of both Houses of Parliament, and
elected members of the Legislative Assemblies of all States including National Capital Territory of Delhi and the Union Territory of Puducherry.
The nominated members of either Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha or Legislative Assemblies of the States are not eligible to be included in the Electoral College and therefore, they are not entitled to participate in the election.
Similarly, members of the Legislative Councils are also not electors for the Presidential election.
Article 55 (3) of the Constitution provides that the election shall be held in accordance with the System of Proportional Representation by means of single transferable vote and the voting at such election shall be by secret ballot.
Animal Discoveries & Plant Discoveries 2016
Animal Discoveries 2016, New Species and Records, brought out by the Zoological Survey of India on Monday, and Plant Discoveries 2016, by the Botanical Survey of India, bring the glad tidings.
313 species of animal and 186 of plants have been discovered from various areas of the country last year.
Animal Discoveries 2016 says that for the first time, the number of animal species in the country, including protozoa, has crossed one lakh — 1,00,693 is the exact count.
The geographical distribution of the new plant species reveals that most discoveries were made in the Western Ghats (17%), followed by the Eastern Himalayas (15%).
New species of flying squirrel discovered
Scientists have discovered a new species of flying squirrel known as Humboldt’s flying squirrel, in North America.
The new flying squirrel species inhabits the Pacific Coast region of North America.
The Humboldt’s flying squirrel— a species that was previously thought to be another, known species because the two look similar.
This new discovery is the 45th known species of flying squirrel in the world.
