Headlines at a Glance – 21st December 2021
LS passes electoral reforms bill that links Aadhaar to voter ID
A Bill to link electoral roll data with Aadhaar ecosystem was passed in Lok Sabha on Monday after a brief debate amid continuous protest by opposition members over various issues, including the Lakhimpur Kheri violence.The Election Laws (Amendment) Bill 2021, piloted by Law Minister Kiren Rijiju, was passed by a voice vote after a brief discussion during which some opposition members demanded that it be referred to a parliamentary panel for scrutiny. After the Bill’s passage, Lok Sabha was adjourned for the day amid continuous protest by opposition members.
SOURCE: Business Standard
HADR Exercise – PANEX-21 countries being conducted in Pune
Pune will host a multilateral and multi-agency exercise for the member countries of BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) between December 20 and 22, which will focus on Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) operations. A curtain raiser event for the HADR exercise titled, PANEX-21, was held at Kothari Auditorium DRDO Bhawan in New Delhi Tuesday. The exercise will witness participation from subject matter experts and delegates from India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Thailand. The culmination of the event will be with the capability demonstration by Indian Industries in association with FICCI to showcase their capabilities, innovations and range of products available to assist government agencies in planning, preparation and conduct of Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief operations.
SOURCE: The Indian Express
ADB to provide $350 million loan to improve access to urban services in India
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) will provide USD 350 million loan to improve access to urban services in India by accelerating policy actions and reforms to enhance service delivery and promote performance-based central fiscal transfers to urban local bodies (ULBs). The ADB will provide knowledge and advisory support to the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs in programme implementation, including monitoring and evaluation, the multilateral agency said in a statement. It will also support urban local bodies particularly in selecting low-income states to implement policy reforms, prepare investment plans, and provide recommendations on cross-cutting issues like climate change, environmental and social safeguards assessment, and gender equality and social inclusion.
SOURCE: Hindustan Times
J&K delimitation: 6 more seats proposed for Jammu, one for Kashmir
The Delimitation Commission on Jammu and Kashmir has proposed six additional assembly seats for Jammu region and one for Kashmir while reserving 16 constituencies for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, triggering strong protests from parties such as the National Conference which made it clear that it would not sign the report in its present form. The party, within hours of the meeting, made it clear that it “will not be a signatory to this report.” Kashmir division currently has 46 seats and Jammu 37. The population of Jammu region is 53.72 lakh and Kashmir division 68.83 lakh, according to the census of 2011.
SOURCE: Business Standard
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