• 18 Nov 2023

Deoghar Airport Becomes the First Airport in the Country to Land Commercial Aircraft in Low Visibility

Why in News?

On November 16, 2023, DGCA issued a press release stating that Deoghar Airport has become the first airport in the country to land a commercial aircraft even in a visibility of just 3200 meters. Special VFR operations are being started for commercial flights for the first time from Deoghar Airport.

Key Points

• According to DGCA, special VFR operations mark a paradigm shift in airline service, which will eliminate the problem of flight delays and cancellations due to low visibility. It will also pave the way for increasing connectivity for other such small airfields, which will also give a boost to the UDAN project.
• Now A-320 aircraft with a capacity of 180 passengers will be able to land easily at Deoghar Airport in visibility of 3200 meters. There will also be take off visibility of 3600 meters. Also, ATR-72 aircraft with a capacity of 78 passengers will be able to land in a visibility of 2800 meters and take off in a visibility of 3200 meters.
• It may be noted that the plane was not able to land at Deoghar Airport in the first five thousand visibility, due to which many flights were cancelled. Now special VFR operations are being started for commercial flights for the first time.
• Control zone and approach control unit were established at Deoghar for VFR operation. During this period, special training was given to pilots and ATC officers. After the training, the aircraft was trialled in low visibility at Deoghar Airport without passengers to establish procedures and coordination between airline operators, pilots, ATC and Air Force. After finding this trial completely satisfactory, DGCA has approved landing and takeoff special VFR at Deoghar Airport.

Now in Jharkhand, Buying and Selling of CNT Land Can be Done on the Basis of District and Police Station Area of 1950

Why in News?

In the meeting of the Tribal Advisory Council (TAC) chaired by Chief Minister Hemant Soren on November 16, 2023, under the CNT Act, the districts and police stations that existed within the state on January 26, 1950, will be considered as districts and police stations. Under Section 46, approval was given for the purchase and sale of land.

Key Points

• It may be noted that in 1950, there were only 7 districts in the Jharkhand region of undivided Bihar. Santhal Pargana, Hazaribagh, Ranchi, Palamu, Manbhum, Dhanbad and Singhbhum. If the government moves forward on the TAC proposal, then after the division of these districts, people of the districts will also be able to purchase land in different districts as per the provisions of the CNT Act.
• Presently 24 districts have been formed by dividing these districts. In such a situation, the scope of buying and selling of land between SC and OBC categories under CNT will increase.
• What can happen next in the case of CNT Act-
  • The TAC can prepare a unanimous proposal after taking opinion from legal experts and send it to the state government.
  • The TAC will not refer the matter to the Governor, as the Governor is separated from the TAC.
  • Under the Fifth Schedule, the custodian of the TAC is the Governor, but the state government has prepared new rules.
  • If the government makes any amendment in the CNT Act, it will have to be passed by the Assembly. It can be given concrete shape only after it is passed by the Assembly.

‘Voter Turnout App’

Why in News?

According to the information received from the media on November 16, 2023, in view of the Chhattisgarh Assembly elections, the updated status of voting percentage can be obtained on November 17 through the Election Commission of India's mobile application 'Voter Turnout App'.

Key Points

• This application has been launched by the Election Commission of India to increase citizen participation in elections and to provide instant information about voter turnout on the voting day.
• The Election Commission has launched 'Voter Turnout App' for the first time in the assembly elections. With this, any person will be able to easily know the voting percentage of any assembly constituency. Earlier, this app was used for the first time in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. It was launched on April 18, 2019.
• Voter Turnout App is used to display real time voter turnout details including Male, Female and Third Gender in each Assembly Constituency/Parliamentary Constituency. This app can be used by citizens to capture live voter turnout data.
• The Voter Turnout app allows citizens to get information about the estimated voter turnout for each state separately. The app also allows users to share voting percentage with their contacts via Facebook, Twitter, Gmail and WhatsApp. That means any person can share the percentage of real-time voting in his social media account.
• No data can be pre-fed in the Voter Turnout App. The Voter Turnout App is designed to show estimated voter turnout for each state and can be used up to the district and assembly constituency level. On the day of voting, state wise, district wise and assembly constituency wise voter turnout updates can be seen.

Millet Bakery Outlet Inaugurated in State Secretariat

Why in News?

On November 16, 2023, Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami inaugurated the Millet Bakery outlet in the Secretariat premises with the aim of promoting products based on millets in the state and enhancing the livelihood of women self-help groups.

Key Points

• It may be noted that local grains like Mandua, Jhangora, Jowar, Amaranth etc. are being produced on a large scale by self-help groups of rural women in the state. To add value to these products, two millet product bakeries have been started in Raipur block of Dehradun and Pauri block of Pauri district.
• Biscuit, bread, pizza base and other products are being prepared by processing Mandua and Jhangora in Millet Bakery.
• The Chief Minister said that continuous efforts are being made by the state government to promote the local products of the state. Under the International Millet Year 2023, many programs are being organized in the state to encourage the production and consumption of local millets.
• He said that a target has been set to make 1.25 lakh women Lakhpati Didi by the year 2025. Till now 40,270 women have been made Lakhpati Didi.
• Women of selected self-help groups are being provided training for bakery products through bakery experts, so that more groups can prepare high quality and nutritious bakery products as per the market demand and make them available to the people.