Kerala Affairs
Kerala government’s industrial water supply scheme hit as NHAI denies approval
The state governments flagship project that started in 2016 to provide water to industries atKanjikode Kinfra Parkis held up as theNational Highway Authority of India(NHAI) rejected sanctions to use its service road at Kanjikode to lay 1,600mpipelinein its final lap.
The project aimed at drawing 10MLD water fromMalampuzhareservoir and should have been commissioned in February this year.Kerala Water Authority(KWA) laid a 16km pipeline for the Rs 32-crore project till Kanjikode. But to reach the industrial park it has to pass through the service road of NH-544 from Kinar stop to Government High School Junction and towards Walayar. The difficult portion, the NHAI road, has been crossed at Kanjikode High School Junction through the trenchless method.
National and International Affairs
Launch of ITAT e-DWAR
Union Law Minister launches ITAT e-DWAR.
ITAT e-DWAR is the Appellate Tribunal’s e-filing portal (ITAT). The portal would allow parties to electronically file their Appeals, Miscellaneous Applications, documents, paper books, and so on.
The portal will improve accessibility, accountability, and transparency in the ITAT’s day-to-day operations.
It will not only reduce the use of paper, resulting in cost Savings, but it will also rationalise case fixation, resulting in faster case disposition.
National Population Register – NPR
According to a Union Home Ministry manual, migrants from six non-Muslim minority communities in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Bangladesh can also produce National Population Register (NPR) enrolment slips as proof of the duration of their stay in India when applying for long-term visas (LTVs).
The NPR number is one of more than ten documents that could be provided to apply for an LTV, which is a prerequisite to acquiring Indian either by naturalisation or registration under Sections 5 and 6 of the CITIZENSHIP ACT, 1955, for the six non-Muslim communities.
These communities are: Hindus, Sikhs, Parsis, Christians, Jains, and Buddhists.
For the first time, a special provision for LTVs for Hindus and Sikhs from Pakistan and Afghanistan was made in 2011.
It was also claimed that the awareness campaign has nothing to do with the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019, which is intended to help undocumented migrants from the six groups who entered India before the 2014 cut-off date.
The CAA has not yet been implemented.
Results of Ganga Quest 2021 – Ganga Dussehra
Ganga Quest, a national online quiz on Ganga, rivers, and the Environment, was first conceived in 2019 as an educational programme to sensitise children and youth towards the River Ganga in order to strengthen the Namami Gange programme of the Ministry of Jal Shakti, Government of India.
Ganga Quest is a competitive knowledge-building platform, an awareness initiative, and a scientific baseline determination exercise designed to assess knowledge gaps and Attitude orientation toward the Ganga and Rivers.
Ganga Quest is an international bilingual (Hindi and English) online quiz about Ganga organised by the National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) and the TREE Craze Foundation (TCF), a non-profit organisation dedicated to Ganga, Rivers, and the Environment.
Tax Inspectors Without Borders – TIWB
Bhutan launched the Tax Inspectors Without Borders (TIWB) programme in collaboration with India.
It is a collaborative effort between the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) (OECD).
The programme has been launched in Bhutan, with India serving as the Partner Jurisdiction.
The Tax Expert for this programme has been provided by India.
This programme, which is expected to last about 24 months, aims to assist Bhutan in strengthening its tax administration by transferring technical know-how and skills to its tax auditors and sharing best audit practises in collaboration with the UNDP and the TIWB Secretariat.
The program’s primary focus will be on international and Transfer Pricing.
The TIWB Initiative aims to facilitate the sharing of tax audit knowledge and skills with developing-country tax administrations through a targeted, real-time Learning by doing approach.
Selected experts will work directly with local tax officials on current audits and audit-related issues pertaining to international tax matters as well as general audit practises applicable to specific cases.