The Daily Brief – 27th October 2019

The 58^thraising day of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) was observed on 24^th October, 2019. Raised on 24^th October, 1962 under the CRPF Act, the ITBP is one of the seven Central Armed Forces. There are 56 service battalion and specialist battalions that constitute the ITBP on the whole. THE ITBP guards the Karakoram Pass in Ladakh to Jachep La in Arunachal Pradesh, which is over 3,488 km on the Indo-China border.

Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) and Power Grid Corporation of India Limited have been accorded the ‘Maharatna’ status by the Department of Public Enterprises, under the Union Ministry of Heavy Industry and Public Enterprises. It will impart greater operational and financial autonomy, thus enhancing powers to their Boards to take financial decisions. Incorporated in 1974, the HPCL is an Indian oil and natural gas company which is headquartered in Mumbai, Maharashtra. Founded in 1989 with headquarters in Gurugram, Haryana, the Power Grid Company is India’s largest electric power transmission utility firm.

India, Nepal and Bhutan have drafted a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to create a trans–boundary wildlife conservation ‘Peace Park’. This park will have biodiversity-rich landscapes in adjoining areas of the three countries. It will be an extension of the Manas National Park which is a UNESCO Natural World Heritage site, a Project Tiger reserve and a biosphere reserve.

The Sakharov Prize for Human Rights 2019 has been awarded by the European Union (EU) Parliament to Uighur intellectual Ilham Tohti (49), who has been jailed and sentenced to life imprisonment in China for separatism. He has worked for more than 20 years on the situation of the Uighur minority and on fostering inter-ethnic dialogue and understanding in China. Constituted in the memory of Soviet physicist and dissident Andrei Sakharov, the prize is awarded annually for free speech.

‘Report from Ground Zero’, a report on Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh after setting aside of Article 370 & 35A, was presented to Dr. Jitendra Singh, Union Minister of State (MoS) in the PMO by a delegation of the Group of Intellectuals and Academicians (GIA). As per the report, common man across religions, sections and various professional backgrounds in J&K has expressed happiness about the decision of the Government to scrap Article 370. Founded in 2015, the GIA aims to become the voice of the most silent and underprivileged section of our nation with legal and academic support.

The Bureau of Police Research and Development’s (BPRD) flagship publication “Data on Police Organizations (DoPO 2018)” has been released by the Union Minister of State Home Affairs, G. Kishan Reddy. The strength of Woman Police in the State Police Forces has increased by 20.95% to 1,69,550 since 2017. The total share of women police personnel in the Indian Police is 8.73%. The Police Population Ratio (PPR) is 192.95 policemen per lakh population. The strength of the Police Personnel and Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) has increased by 19,686 and 16,051 respectively.

Indian Railways launched the ‘one touch ATVM’ at 42 suburban stations in Mumbai on 24^th October, 2019 to render fast ticketing. The Automatic Ticket Vending Machines (ATVM), built on Linux platform, has reduced the six-step process to getting a ticket to a two-step process.

The Odisha Government signed a 165 million USD loan agreement with the World Bank to implement “Integrated Irrigation Project for Climate Resilient Agriculture”, which aims to support farmers to reduce the current emphasis on food grains, especially paddy and wheat, and help them to increase the share of high-value and more nutritious products like fruits and vegetables. The scheme will be implemented in rural areas that are largely rain-fed and vulnerable to droughts. In 2019, about 70% of the agricultural land in Odisha is prone to droughts as compared to 40% in 1970s.