State PCS

• 10 Nov 2023

Reservation Amendment Bill-2023 Passed in Assembly

Why In News?

• Reservation Amendment Bill-2023 was passed in Bihar Assembly on November 9, 2023. Once it comes into existence, the scope of reservation for SC, ST and backward classes will increase.

Key Points:

• The Bihar Assembly unanimously approved amendments to the Bihar Reservation in Vacancies in Posts and Services (For Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Castes & Other Backward Classes) Act & Bihar (In Educational Institutions) Reservation Act.
• Under the amended Act, there will be a total of 65 percent reservation in both the cases, including 20 percent for Scheduled Castes, 2 percent for Scheduled Tribes, 18 percent for Backward Classes and 25 percent for Extremely Backward Classes. Apart from this, EWS (people from economically weaker general category) already approved under the Central Act will continue to get 10 percent reservation.
• Both these bills will be presented in the Bihar Legislative Council on November 10. After passing in the Legislative Council, there will be 75 percent reservation in enrollment in government jobs and educational institutions of Bihar.

Legend League Cricket Trophy Tour Starts from Bhopal

Why In News?

• The Legends League Cricket Trophy Tour was launched by Vande Bharat train at Rani Kamlapati Station, Bhopal in the presence of Union Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnav on November 9, 2023. The objective of this tour is to promote sports culture in India at the national level.

Key Points:

• Veteran cricket players Jonty Rhodes, Syed Kirmani, Monty Panesar and Ishwar Pandey left for Hazrat Nizamuddin by this train. In this 15-day journey, this trophy will pass through 17 different states.
• It is being organized by Legends League Cricket in partnership with Indian Railways.
• Cricket legends like Gautam Gambhir, Suresh Raina, Irfan Pathan, Chris Gayle, Kevin Pietersen, S Sreesanth, Parthiv Patel, Shane Watson, Praveen Kumar, Jhulan Goswami will be participating in this prestigious event. All of them will board the Vande Bharat Express spread across five railway zones namely North, South, Central, East and West.
• It is worth mentioning that the second edition of Legends League Cricket will take place from November 18 to December 9 and will be organized in five cities – Ranchi, Dehradun, Jammu, Vizag & Surat.
• Six teams India Capitals, Manipal Tigers, Gujarat Giants, Urban Risers Hyderabad, Southern Superstars, Bhilwara Kings will compete for the coveted trophy to be unveiled through this tour.
• The first match will be played between Bhilwara Kings captained by Irfan Pathan and India Capitals captained by defending champion Gautam Gambhir.

Abujhmad Malkhamb Dance Group of Chhattisgarh won the Title of India's Got Talent 10

Why In News?

• Recently, Malkhamb Academy of Abujhmad, one of the most backward areas of Chhattisgarh, won the title of Season 10 of India's biggest talent reality show 'India's Got Talent'.

Key Points:

• As the winner of India's Got Talent, Abujhmad Malkhamb Academy has been given a trophy along with a cash prize of Rs 20 lakh and a Maruti Suzuki Ertiga.
• Rapper and singer Badshah, Kirron Kher and Shilpa Shetty took over as judges on the popular reality show India's Got Talent season. The reality show is hosted by Arjun Bijlani.
• The six finalists- Abujhmad Malkhamb Academy, Zero Degree Crew, Nagaland Women's Band, Golden Girls The A. R. T. (The Art) and Raga Fusion, Abujhmad Malkhamb Academy captured the trophy.
• After winning the title of Season 10 of 'India's Got Talent', the team of Abujhmad Malkhamb Academy reached Chhattisgarh. Now he is preparing to perform on America's Got Talent and win it.

Haryana Government Launches "Mission Karmayogi Haryana' Program

Why In News?

• On November 7, 2023, Haryana Chief Secretary Sanjeev Kaushal launched the 'Mission Karmayogi Haryana' (MKH) programme. This is an unprecedented initiative of the state government aimed at providing training to more than 3 lakh employees.

Key Points:

• The 'Mission Karmayogi Haryana' programme will sensitize all state government employees and stakeholders on the importance of ethical behaviour, values and principles in governance.
• The initiative, run by Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal, aims to develop ethical governance and enhance the skills and competencies of government employees. The programme aims to enhance public service delivery and accountability while delivering tangible benefits to the citizens of Haryana.
• Chief Secretary Sanjeev Kaushal urged the administrative secretaries and heads of departments to regularly attend the training sessions organized at the Haryana Institute of Public Administration (HIPA) under the 'Mission Karmayogi Haryana' programme.
• He also called for considering the extraordinary contribution made by the young officers in implementing the state's flagship schemes and district-level indicator area while nominating candidates for good governance awards.
• Haryana Institute of Public Administration (HIPA) Director General Chandralekha Mukherjee said the MKH programme will adopt a hub-and-spoke model. Experienced officers of the Haryana government will be hired as master trainers. First, these master trainers themselves will undergo intensive training at HIPA, Haryana Police Academy and Divisional Training Centre Panchkula.

SJVN will Provide Cheap Electricity to UPCL

Why In News?

• On November 8, 2023, SJVN Chairman and Managing Director Nandlal Sharma informed that SJVN will give 200 MW power from its solar power plant to Uttarakhand Power Corporation Limited (UPCL). For this, a letter of intent has been received from UPCL.

Key Points:

• Nandlal Sharma said that UPCL is willing to buy power from SJVN's 1000 MW Bikaner Solar Project at a tariff of Rs 2.57 per unit.
• The allocation of solar energy from the project will be as per the power purchase agreement to be signed between SGEL and UPCL in the near future.
• On January 3, President Draupadi Murmu laid the foundation stone of Bikaner Solar Project. The project will be commissioned by June 2024.
• This solar project is being developed through SGEL, a wholly owned subsidiary of SJVN in Rajasthan under CPSU Scheme.
• The Bikaner solar project is likely to generate about 56,838 million units of electricity cumulatively over 25 years, while reducing carbon emissions by 27,85,077 tonnes.