Constitution day
- The Samvidhan Diwas or the Constitution Day of India is being observed on 26th November to spread awareness of Indian Constitution.
- On this day in 1949, constitution of India was adopted and came into force on January 26, 1950 marking the beginning of a new era in the history of free India.
- The Union Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment (MSJE) is the nodal Ministry for the celebration of Constitution Day.
- This year it is second edition of the Constitution Day. On this occasion Prime Minister Narendra has released two books on Constitution ‘Making of Constitution’ and ‘New Version of Constitution of India‘.
Indian Navy’s seventh landing craft utility L-57 launched by GRSE
- Indian Navy’s seventh landing craft utility (LCU) L-57 was launched by Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Ltd (GRSE) in Kolkata, West Bengal.
- LCU L-57 is the largest ship of this kind built anywhere in the world. It is the seventh vessel in the series of eight LCU Ships being designed and built by GRSE for the Indian Navy.
- LCU L-57 is fully designed in-house by GRSE.
- It is designed for a maximum speed of 15 knots with an endurance of more than 1,500 nautical miles.
- It has a capability to transport two tanks or four special vehicles and 160 Army troops for landing in remote area.
- It can be deployed for multirole activities like beaching operations, humanitarian and disaster relief operations and evacuation from distant islands.
- It will be extremely useful for joint operations carried out by the Indian Navy and Indian Army for ensuring maritime security and protection of remote islands.
- It is best suited for protection of India’s island territories of Lakshadweep islands in the Arabian Sea as well as Andaman and Nicobar in the Bay of Bengal.
Union Government constitutes Amitabh Kant Committee to push cashless transactions
- The Union Government has constituted a new committee to form a strategy to expedite the process of transforming India into a cashless economy.
- The committee will be headed by Niti Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant.
- It has been tasked with identifying various bottlenecks affecting access of digital payments.
- Terms of Reference of Committee Identify and operationalise in the earliest possible time frame user-friendly digital payment options in all sectors of the economy.
- Identify various digital payment systems appropriate to different sectors of the economy and coordinate efforts to make them accessible.
- Engage regularly with Central ministries, state governments, regulators, local bodies, district administration, trade and industry associations to promote adoption of digital payment systems.
- Estimate costs involved in various digital payments options and oversee implementation of measures to make such transactions between citizens and government cheaper than cash transactions.
- Implement an action plan on advocacy, awareness and hand-holding efforts among public-, micro-enterprises and other stakeholders.