HARYANA

Haryana passes bill to provide death penalty for rape

The Haryana Assembly unanimously passed a Bill which provides for death penalty to those found guilty of raping girls aged 12 years or less.

After Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, Haryana has become the third State where the Assembly has approved the provision of capital punishment for such sexual offenders, the State Assembly was informed.

The Criminal Law (Haryana Amendment) Bill, 2018, moved by the Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ram Bilas Sharma, was passed on the concluding day of the Budget session.

The Bill was passed unanimously with INLD and Congress members also lending their support.

“After Section 376-A of the Penal Code, the following Section shall be inserted, namely 376-AA,” the Bill stated.

Under section 376-AA, in case of rape of a girl up to 12 years of age, there will be a punishment of death or rigorous imprisonment of not less than 14 years which may extend to imprisonment for life that is for remainder period of person’s natural life, according to the legislation.

A provision 376-DA has also been added after section 376-D of the penal code.

Under section–376-DA, if a girl upto 12 years of age is raped by one or more persons constituting a group, each of those persons shall be deemed to have committed the offence of rape and will be punished with death or rigorous imprisonment for a term which will not be less than 20 years, but which may extend to life along with a fine.

The Bill also provides for making the existing criminal laws related to other sexual offences more stringent. The punishment under section 354 of the IPC (Assault or criminal force against woman with intent to outrage her modesty) will not be less than two years (earlier not less than one year) but may extend up to seven years (earlier up to five years).

INTERNATIONAL

The first ever Indo-French Knowledge Summit ends successfully

The first ever Indo-French Knowledge Summit ended successfully with a landmark agreement on mutual recognition of educational qualifications between the two countries and a record 15 other MoUs between universities and research institutions on joint initiatives and partnerships.

The two-day summit was held in New Delhi and coincided with the state visit of French President Emmanuel Macron to India.

The summit was organized by the French Embassy in India and co-hosted by the Ministry of Human Resource Development, Government of India.

PM Modi, French President inaugurate International Solar Alliance

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and French President Emmanuel Macron inaugurated the first International Solar Alliance (ISA) Summit on Sunday at the Rashtrapati Bhavan Cultural Centre.

Both Macron and PM Modi addressed the plenary session of the Summit.

PM Modi said that of the 121 countries which the ISA aims to cover, 61 have joined the alliance and 32 have ratified framework agreement.

Besides the heads of 23 nations, 10 ministerial representatives of different countries attended the Summit.

Apart from being a founding-member, India plays a significant role in the alliance in terms of being a host as well as a major contributor to the achievement of the target. The ISA is the first international body that will have a secretariat in India. India, with a target to produce 100 GW of solar energy by 2022, would account for a tenth of ISA’s goal. “India will produce 175 GW electricity from renewable sources by 2022 and 100 GW will be from solar energy,” Mr. Modi said, addressing the ISA.

India Won “Best Exhibitor Award” at ITB – Berlin

India has won the “Best Exhibitor Award” at ITB – Berlin on its last day. ‘ITB- Berlin World Tourist Meet’ was convened at Berlin, Germany from 7th March to 10th March, 2018.

India was represented by the Minister of State (Independent charge) for Tourism Mr K. J. Alphons along with couple of Tourism Ministry officials.

More than 100 countries participated in the ITB- Berlin meet with their respective Tourism Ministers.

India’s Incredible India (Ministry of Tourism) presented a short film named “Yogi of the Racetrack ” in the meet. The said short film has got 3.2 million hits in 60 hours.

Amol Palekar receives ‘Godavari Gaurav’ award

Noted actor Amol Palekar was honoured with the ‘Godavari Gaurav’ award at an event in Nashik.

The 73-year-old actor, known for his performance in films like “Gol Maal” , “Choti Si Baat”, “Chitchor” among others, was presented with the award, which has been instituted by city-based ‘Kusumagraj Prathishthan’

Classical singer Pandit Satyasheel Deshpande also received the ‘Godavari Gaurav’ award.

· Worlds Best Airport: Delhi And Mumbai Airports Tie At No. 1

Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) and Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport have beaten 1,952 other airports from 176 countries to tie at number one for world’s best airports, as per Airports Council International (ACI) ASQ 2017 rankings.
The Airport Service Quality Awards 2017 was announced by the Airports Council International (ACI), which conferred the ranking on the basis of a worldwide programme in which passengers were surveyed across airports for their feedback on 34 key performance indicators.

NATIONAL

NCRB releases “Citizen Services” Mobile APP

National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) celebrated its 33rd Inception Day, on March 11, 2018 in their newly constructed Complex at Mahipalpur, New Delhi and released “Citizen Services” Mobile APP.

This single App is a bouquet of various essential police related services to the citizen.

The App can be used by citizen for various services such as Complaint Registration & Status Check, View FIR Detail, SOS – Stay Safe, Locate Police Stations, Vahan-Samanvay, Emergency Contact List, Police Stations Telephone Directory etc.

Sanitary pad dispenser installed in Rajdhani Express

On the occasion of International Women’s Day, for the first time in the country a sanitary pad dispensing machine was installed in a coach of Mumbai-New Delhi Rajdhani Express.

It has been installed on a trial basis and the move would be extended to other trains as well.

The decision has been well received by the women passengers too.

· I- Metros -An Association Of All Indian Metro Rail Companies Launched By Cabinet Secretary

The Union Housing Ministry launched ‘I-Metros’, an association of all-India metro rail companies, which will act as a forum of exchange of ideas and innovations.
The association was launched by Cabinet Secretary P.K. Sinha at an event “Indian Metros: Collaborating for Excellence”in the presence of Delhi Metro Rail Corporation Managing Director Mangu Singh in New Delhi.

· Union Government makes passport mandatory for bank loans of Rs. 50 crore and above

The government has made providing passport details mandatory for taking loans of 50 crore rupees and above to ensure a swift action in case of fraud and prevent fraudsters from fleeing the country.
Financial Services Secretary, Rajiv Kumar in a tweet for all existing loans of over 50 crore rupees, banks have been asked to collect passport details of borrowers within 45 days.
The Passport details will help banks to take timely action and inform the relevant authorities to prevent fraudsters from fleeing the country.
Last week, the Cabinet has approved the Fugitive Economic Offenders Bill to impound and sell assets of escapees with a view to quickly recover dues.
The proposed law will also apply to defaulters who have an outstanding of Rs 100 crore or more and have escaped from the country.
Several big defaulters like Nirav Modi, Mehul Choksi, Vijay Mallya and Jatin Mehta have fled the country putting the recovery mechanism in quandary.

· Karnataka To Become 2nd State In Country To Unveil Its Own Flag

The Karnataka government unveiled the State flag (nada dhwaja ) for the state.
If approved by the Centre, Karnataka will be the second State to have a flag after Jammu and Kashmir.
The yellow-white-red flag has the State emblem at the center. The proposal will be now sent to the Union Home Ministry for approval since a State has no powers to announce its own flag.

· GST Council Approves Rollout Of E-Way Bill From April

For intra-State movement, the e-way bill will be rolled out in a phased manner beginning April 15 and will cover all the States by June 1.
Businesses will continue to file summary sales return GSTR-3Buntil June as the GST (Goods and Services Tax) Council has extended the present system of return-filing by three months.
Electronic way or e-way bill for movement of goods between States would be implemented from April 1.
However, for intra-State movement, the e-way bill would be rolled out in a phased manner beginning April 15 and would cover all the States by June 1.

· Rajasthan Passes Bill To Award Death Penalty For Those Who Rape Girls Under 12 Years Of Age

Rajasthan assembly passed an amendment bill awarding death penalty for convicts involved in the rape of girls below 12 years of age.
State Home Minister Gulab Chand Kataria introduced ‘The Criminal Laws (Rajasthan Amendment) Bill, 2018’ in the assembly, which was passed in the House by a voice vote following a debate.
The new amendment added sections 376-AA and 376-DD to the Indian Penal Code, 1860.
The amendment says that a person who is convicted of raping/gang-raping a girl up to twelve years of age will be given a death sentence or rigorous imprisonment, which shall not be less than fourteen years and 20 years, respectively.

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