Rajya Sabha Cleared Amendment in Mining Act 1957
- The Rajya Sabha cleared the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill of 2016 on May 2, 2016. The Bill amends the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957.
- The Bill adds a new Fourth Schedule to the Act. It includes bauxite, iron ore, limestone and manganese ore and are defined as notified minerals.
- The Bill creates a new category of mining license i.e., the prospecting license-cum-mining lease, which is a two stage-concession for the purpose of undertaking prospecting operations (exploring or proving mineral deposits ), followed by mining operations.
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Agreement Signed to Plant Trees alongside Railway Track
- On May 2, 2016 Indian Railways signed a Memorandum of Understandings (MoU) with forest departments of Haryana and Punjab to plant trees alongside Railway Track on Railway Land Boundary.
- The plantation along the railway track will be done by without declaring such land as protected forest with the provision for resumption of such land at any time by railways.
- All zonal railways have been asked to execute similar agreement between their zones and concerned State forest departments as early as possible.
Supreme Court Appointed Lodha Panel to Monitor MCI
- The Supreme Court has set-up a three-member committee, headed by former Chief Justice of India RM Lodha, to oversee the functioning of the Medical Council of India (MCI) for at least a year on May 3, 2016.
- The Justice Lodha committee will have the authority to oversee allstatutory functions under the MCI Act. All policy i decisions of the MCI will require approval of the Oversight Committee.
- The Committee will be free to issue appropriate remedial directions. The Committee will function till the Central government puts in place any other appropriate mechanism after due consideration of the Expert Committee Report.
- The court has exercised its extraordinary | powers under Article-142 of the Constitution. It empowers the Supreme Court to pass such “decree or order as may be necessary for doing complete justice between the parties”.
Railways Launched e-Enabled Application to Monitor Project
- The Railways Ministry launched Management & Information System project for proper monitoring of all the Railway projects throughout the country on May 3, 2016.
- It is a web-enabled IT-application to create a technology and knowledge platform to manage the entire lifecycle of complex railway projects.
- It will contain all the information about the’ongoing projects which will help in reducing the completion time of the project. It will empower railways & stakeholders in transforming the way projects are designed, built and commissioned.
‘Pradhan Mantri UjjwalaYojana’ Launched
- The Prime Minister on May 1, 2016 launched Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana at Ballia (Uttar Pradesh) to provide cooking gas. connections to 5 crore below-poverty-line beneficiaries over the next 3 years.
- He also launched Rs 8000 crore scheme to provide 5 crore free LPG connections to Below Poverty Line (BPL) using the money saved from 1.13 crore cooking gas users pledge on ‘Give it Up’ campaign. He also launched solar powered boats and distributing 1000 e-rickshaws to people in Varanasi.
- The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA), in March, 2016, had given its approval to Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana. The scheme is being implemented by the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas.
Real Estate Act came into Force
- Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016 comes into force on May 1, 2016 to protect homebuyers from real estate developers who fail to deliver on time, and regulate the real estate sector.
- The developers need to deposit 70% of the collections from buyers in separate accounts towards the cost of construction including that of land. It also imposes a 10% project cost penalty and up; to 3 years in jail.
- Real Estate Regulatory Authority will be formulated within one year as per the mandate of Act. Regulatory Authorities will have to dispose of complaints in 60 days and Appellate Tribunals will be required to adjudicate cases in 60 days.
UJALA Scheme Launched
- The Union government launched National LED programme— Unnat Jyoti by Affordable LEDs for All (UJALA) in Madhya Pradesh on April 30, 2016.
- The scheme is being implemented by Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL), a joint venture of PSUs under the Union Ministry of Power.
- Under this Programme, 3 crore LED Bulbs will be distributed in the next 6 months in the State. People of Madhya Pradesh will get energy efficient 9W LED bulbs at an upfront payment of just Rs 85 per LED bulb.
