GK and Current Affairs Updates

The Government of India on 14 April 2016 reconstituted the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA) Trust with immediate effect.
Senior Journalist Ram Bahadur Rai was selected as President of IGNCA. Veteran dancer SonalMansingh, film maker ChandraprakashDwivedi and lyricist Prasoon Joshi are included as members of the 20 member reconstituted body.
• Ram Bahadur Rai is a renowned Hindi Journalist and former news editor of Jansatta newspaper.
• He has also authored books on VP Singh named Manjil se Jyada Safar and RahvarikeSawal on Chandrashekhar.
• He was a close associate of Jayaprakash Narayan, and was also part of the 11-member Steering Committee that led the JP Movement.
• He was the organising secretary of AkhilBharatiyaVidyarthiParishad (ABVP) during the 1974 Bihar movement led by JP Narayan against the misrule and corruption in the government of Bihar.
• He was one of the first journalists to report about the 1991 Hawala Bribery scandal while working with Hindi daily Jansatta.
• Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts is a premier government-funded arts organization in India.
• It is an autonomous institution under the Union Ministry of Culture.
• It was established in the memory of Indira Gandhi, the late Indian Prime Minister, with KapilaVatsyayan as its Founding Director.
• The IGNCA was launched on 19 November 1985 by former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi.

PM Narendra Modi on 14 April 2016 launched 'Gram Uday Se Bharat UdayAbhiyan' at Mhow, Madhya Pradesh. The Abhiyan (campaign) was launched on the 125th birth anniversary of BabasahebAmbedkar at his birthplace to strengthen Panchayati Raj in villages and ensure social harmony in villages.
The campaign also seeks to promote rural development and foster farmers’ welfare and livelihoods to poor.
The 11-day campaign (from 14 April to 24 April 2016) will focus on generating nationwide efforts on promoting the aim of the programme. The campaign will be run jointly by the Ministries of Rural Development, Agriculture, Social Justice, Labour and Information and Broadcasting along with the States.
• It will be conducted across the country, beginning with the Birth Anniversary of Dr. BR Ambedkar on 14 April 2016, culminating in “National Panchayati Raj Day” on 24 April 2016.
• The aim of this campaign is to make nationwide efforts to strengthen Panchayati Raj and through it, boost social harmony in the villages, promote rural development and foster farmers’ welfare & livelihoods of the poor.
• Prime Minister will address all Gram Sabhas on 24 April 2016 and the address will be telecast and aired to all villages across the country, and villagers will gather together to hear it.
• During the campaign, various Panchayat level and national level programmes will be held across the country.
 (1) Social Harmony Programme:   14 to 16 April 2016
I. On the occasion of the 125th Birth Anniversary of Dr. BR Ambedkar, in all Gram Panchayats, people will pay homage to Dr.Ambedkar and villagers will resolve to strengthen social harmony in the village.
II. Dr.Ambedkar's life and his views about National unity will be discussed, and literature regarding Dr.Ambedkar will be distributed.
III. On this day, information about the schemes run by the government to promote social equity will be given.  Exhibitions will also be organized.
(2)  Gram Kisan Sabha from 17 to 20 April 2016
Meeting of farmers will be organized in every Gram Panchayat.  Information regarding schemes in the agriculture sector will be given in the farmers’ meetings. Suggestions to improve agriculture will be invited from farmers.

(3)  Gram Sabha or Village Assembly from 21 to 24 April 2016
To celebrate the National Panchayati Raj Day, Gram Sabhas will be held in each Gram Panchayat on any day between these four days. 
(4)  As preparatory activities, the following would be undertaken:
I.    PrabhatPheri
II.    Clean Drinking Water and Sanitation Campaign
III.    Cultural Programmes
IV.    Sports competitions

Author and poet Padma Sachdev on 12 April 2016 was selected for the prestigious SaraswatiSamman for 2015 for her autobiography titled Chitt-Chete, written in Dogri language.
The book, published in 2007, links the personal trials and tribulations of the author with issues concerning society, nation and the world at large.
• Born in Jammu, Padma Sachdev is first modern woman poet of Dogri language.
• She has published her several poetry collection including Meri Kavita Mere Geet that has won the SahityaAkademi Award in 1971.
• She has also received the Padma Shri, the Indian fourth highest civilian award in 2001, and the KabirSamman for poetry for the year 2007-2008, given by Government of Madhya Pradesh.
• The SaraswatiSamman is an annual award for outstanding prose or poetry literary works in any 22 Indian language listed in Schedule VIII of the Constitution of India.
• It is named after Goddess Saraswati, Indian goddess of learning.
• It is considered to be among the highest literary awards in India.
• The award was instituted in 1991 by the K. K. Birla Foundation.
• It consists of 10 lakh rupees, a citation and a plaque.
• The inaugural award was given to HarivanshraiBachchan for his four volume autobiography, Kya Bhooloon Kya YaadKaroon, NeedaKaNirmanPhir, Basere Se Door and Dashdwar se SopanTak.
• The SaraswatiSamman for 2014 was given to VeerappaMoily for his work Ramayana Mahanveshanam.

International Day of Human Space Flight was observed on 12 April 2016. The day is celebrated to commemorate Soviet Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin’s journey into outer space.
•    The 55th anniversary of First Human Space Flight was commemorated at United Nations on 12 April 2016. Since Gagarin, 536 individuals have left Earth on a voyage into space.
•    Gagarin on 12 April 1961 became the first human to leave Earth’s atmosphere and open the way for space exploration for the benefit of all humanity. 
•    He on 12 April 1961 completed an orbit of the Earth with Vostok spacecraft.
•    The UN General Assembly on 7 April 2011 declared 12 April as the International Day of Human Space Flight to celebrate each year at the international level the beginning of the space era for mankind and its role in achieving sustainable development goals, well-being of peoples and maintaining outer space for peaceful purposes.

The Maharashtra Legislative Assembly on 12 April 2016 unanimously passed the Dance Bar Regulation Bill 2016. The bill has provisions for stringent actions against the violators.
State Legislative Council cleared the Bill on 11 April 2016 which paved the way for reopening of the dance bars.
Maharastra State Home Minister Ram Shinde tabled the Bill in the Assembly and it was passed unanimously without debate.
The Bill will be sent for State Governor’s assent to make it as a law.
• The new Bill fixes accountability on the owner in case of violation of rules, exploitation of women employees, or in cases of obscenity.
• There will be prison upto five years and fines of up to 25000 rupees if the bar owners or operators violate the rules.
• According to the new conditions, dance bars must be at least a kilometre from any education or religious institution, their timings restricted between 6 PM and 11:30 PM, and liquor not to be served in the performance area.
• It bans running bars in the residential buildings and permits them in semi-residential ones only if the three-fourths residents consent.
• It also has a provision to repeal amendments to Section 33 (A) of the Maharashtra Police Act that were struck down by the Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court struck down two amendments through which the Maharashtra government banned dance bars during its hearings between October 2015 and March 2016.
However, the court clarified the Maharashtra government has power to contain obscenity and safeguard women who work at the bars.
With this, the Maharashtra Cabinet decided to bring in a new law to regulate dance bars.

Delhi government on 12 April 2016 launched PoochhO Carpool app to help people explore carpooling options during the 15-day exercise during the odd-even car-rationing scheme. The second phase of the scheme set to begin from 15 April 2015.
• Upon downloading, the users will have to register themselves to find carpooling options within a radius of 1 to 5 kilometers.
• Those having cars would be required to give their vehicle number. For instance, someone, who has an even-numbered car and wants to carpool on an odd date, can search for odd-numbered cars. He will immediately get a list of odd-numbered cars in the vicinity.
• To ensure safety, especially of women, users are not required to mention their mobile number and also can communicate with the car driver through a chat feature in the app.
• The app is also targeted at fathers who would pick their wards from schools in the afternoon, as women with children aged up to 12 years and in school uniform have been exempted from the scheme.
• Sub-Divisional Magistrates (SDMs) will be asked to approach representatives of RWAs and orangisations to download the app.
PoochhO Carpool app was developed by Delhi Integrated Multi-Modal Transit System (DIMTS). It can be downloaded on Google Play store for Android users.

Investigative journalist Khadija Ismayilova of Azerbaijan on 8 April 2016 was chosen for the UNESCO or Guillermo Cano World Press Freedom Prize 2016.
•    The Prize will be awarded during the celebration of World Press Freedom Day 3 May 2016 hosted by Finland.
•    An independent international jury of media professionals recommended Ismayilova in recognition of her outstanding contribution to press freedom in difficult circumstances.
•    Ismayilova, a freelance journalist and contributor to the Azerbaijani service of Radio Free Europe, was detained in December 2014, and, in September 2015, was sentenced to seven and a half years’ imprisonment on charges relating to abuse of power and tax evasion.
•    The Prize was established by UNESCO’s Executive Board in 1997 to honour a person, organization or institution that has made an outstanding contribution to the defence and, or promotion of press freedom anywhere in the world, and especially when this has been achieved in the face of danger.
•    It is funded by the Cano Foundation (Colombia) and the HelsinginSanomat Foundation (Finland). 
•    The prize includes 25000 US dollars cash Prize in honour of Guillermo Cano Isaza, a Colombian journalist who was assassinated in front of the offices of his newspaper, El Espectador, in Bogotá, on 17 December 1986.

New Zealand’s Kane Williamson on 13 April 2016 was named the Wisden's Leading Cricketer in the World for the year 2015.
On the other hand, White Ferns captain Suzie Bates was named the Leading Women's Cricketer in the World for 2015.
For the first time two New Zealand players - Williamson and Brendon McCullum - were named among the Wisden Almanack's Five Cricketers of the Year. England's Ben Stokes and Jonny Bairstow, and Australia's Steve Smith completed the list of Five Cricketers of the Year.
Williamson and Bates were chosen by Wisden editor Lawrence Booth for the award, which has been handed out in various formats since 1889.
The principal criterion is excellence or influence on the previous English summer. No one can be chosen more than once, although exceptions were made for Englishmen Plum Warner and Jack Hobbs early in the 20th century.
In 2014, Sri Lanka’s Kumar Sangakkara was the winner of the prestigious accolade.
• Kane Stuart Williamson is currently the captain of New Zealand. He is a right-handed batsman and occasional off-spinner.
• As of April 2016, he is the number third ranked batsman in Test cricket.
• He made his first-class debut in December 2007.
• He made his U-19 debut against the touring Indian U-19 team the same year and was named captain of the New Zealand U-19 team for the 2008 U-19 Cricket World Cup.
• He made his international debut in 2010.

The Union Cabinet has given its approval for extension of Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between India and Bangladesh on cooperation in the field of Fisheries. 
•    The MoU was signed in September 2011 to enhance bilateral cooperation in the field of Fisheries and aquaculture and allied activities between two neighbouring countries. With this extension, the MoU will remain in force for a period of next five years i.e. 2021 unless either of the parties terminate it. 
•    This MoU can be extended for further period as may be mutually agreed upon. Since it came in to force, the MoU has strengthened the friendly relations between India and Bangladesh. 
•    It had played important role in promotion of development of cooperation in fisheries and aquaculture and allied sectors through mutually agreed activities and procedures.
•    The MoU has strengthened the friendly relations between India and Bangladesh and promote development of cooperation in fisheries and aquaculture and allied sectors through mutually agreed activities and procedures. 
•    The MoU will remain in force for a period of five years unless either of the Parties give prior written notice of at least six months in advance to the other Party of its intention to terminate the MoU. This MoU could be extended for further period as may be mutually agreed upon.

Union Ministry of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation and German International Cooperation (GIZ) on 13 April 2016 signed an Implementation agreement for Ganga Rejuvenation under the NamamiGangeProgramme in New Delhi.
The agreement was signed in the presence of the German Ambassador to India, Dr. Martin Ney and Secretary, Union Ministry of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation, Shashi Shekhar.
The project will closely cooperate with other National and international initiatives including Indo-German bilateral projects like Support to National Urban Sanitation Policy (SNUSP) and Sustainable Environment-friendly Industrial Production (SEIP).
The project duration is three years that is from 2016 to 2018 and the German contribution in the project will be to the tune of 22.5 crore rupees.
• It will enable responsibility of stakeholders at National and State level to apply integrated river basin management approach for the rejuvenation of the river Ganga.
• This will be based on Indo-German Knowledge exchange and practical experience on strategic river basin management issues, effective data management system and public engagement.
• Initial actions will focus on the State of Uttarakhand, with scope of expansion to other upstream Ganga States. 
• The ultimate goal is to adopt the successful river basin management strategies used for Rhine and Danube and replicate the same, wherever possible for attaining the pristine status of river Ganga.
The Union Government gave its nod for implementation of NamamiGangeprogramme (NGP) on 13 May 2015.
It is a flagship programme of Union Government with a renewed impetus to decrease river pollution and to rejuvenate the Ganga.
In order to achieve this Indian Government has solicited support from various countries to conserve the revered river Ganga.
Germany Government, with its vast experiences in cleaning and rejuvenating European rivers such as Rhine, Elbe and Danube was keen to join hands for collaboration with Union Government of India.