Current Affairs For SSC CGL Exam - 02 January, 2014

Current Affairs For SSC CGL Exam

India terminated the Rs. 3,726-crore, scam-ridden VVIP chopper deal with AgustaWestland International Limited (AWIL) on the grounds of breach of pre-contract integrity pact (PCIP).
The deal for supply of 12 choppers, of which three have already been delivered, came under the scanner following allegations of kickbacks to senior Indian Air Force officers and others to the tune of nearly Rs. 360 crore.
While reports about the government scrapping the deal surfaced soon after Defence Minister A.K. Antony met Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in the morning, the Defence Ministry confirmed the cancellation only around 5.30 p.m; it added that the arbitration route would be taken. Justice B.P. Jeevan Reddy will be the arbitrator for the Ministry.
Earlier, the government had maintained ,on the basis of the opinion of the Attorney-General, that “integrity-related issues are not subject to arbitration”. However, with AWIL pressing for arbitration, the Defence Ministry followed suit after getting a fresh opinion from the AG.
In February 2013, the Ministry of Defence decided to scrap the contract for supply of 12 AW101 three-engine helicopters for VVIP use and freeze all payments.
An attempt to constitute a JPC to probe the chopper scam was aborted as a resolution adopted in the Rajya Sabha, after the BJP walked out, was not pursued in the Lok Sabha.

The much talked-about Lokpal and Lokayuktas Bill, 2013, got President Pranab Mukherjee’s assent.
The Bill, which was passed by Parliament in the just-concluded winter session, provides for creation of anti-graft ombudsman to investigate corruption charges against public functionaries including Prime Minister, Ministers and Members of Parliament.
Among other provisions, the Bill makes it incumbent upon States to make within a year their own law for setting up Lokayuktas on the lines of the Lokpal Bill.
The Bill was passed by the Lok Sabha in 2011 and was taken up in the Rajya Sabha but could not be voted upon. It was referred to the Parliamentary Standing Committee. Later the Bill was tabled in the Rajya Sabha and referred to the select committee. The amended Bill was again tabled in the Rajya Sabha on December 16 and passed by voice vote. The following day, it was passed by the Lok Sabha without debate.

With the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013 replacing the vintage Land Acquisition Act, 1894 , as many as 13 existing central pieces of legislation will have to be amended within the year to bring their R & R and compensation provisions at par with those of the new regime on buying land across the country.
Union Minister for Rural Development Jairam Ramesh flagged the Coal Bearing Areas Acquisition and Development Act, 1957, the National Highways Act, 1956, and the Land Acquisition (Mines) Act, 1885 in particular at his press conference. The coal and mining-related laws have assumed significance in view of the ongoing agitations in Jharkhand and Odisha. Proper implementation of the new land acquisition law in the Maoist areas, he opined, could break the rebels’ stranglehold.
The other laws that have to be amended are: the Atomic Energy Act, 1962; the Indian Tramways Act, 1886; the Railways Act, 1989; the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958; the Petroleum and Minerals Pipelines (Acquisition of Right of User in Land) Act, 1962; the Damodar Valley Corporation Act, 1948; the Electricity Act, 2003; Requisitioning and Acquisition of Immovable Property Act, 1952; the Resettlement of Displaced Persons (Land Acquisition) Act, 1948 and the Metro Railways (Construction of Works) Act, 1978.

New Zealand all-rounder Corey Anderson scored the quickest century ever in international cricket on Wednesday, taking just 36 balls against West Indies to break the record long held by Pakistan's Shahid Afridi.
Afridi scored a 37-ball hundred against Sri Lanka in 1996 and had remained the fastest across all formats of the international game since.
Anderson, 23, brought up the mark with his 12th six of the innings after the third one-day international in Queenstown was reduced to a 21-over match due to rain.

Sale of tickets for the Hero Hockey World League (HWL) final, to be held at the National Stadium here from January 10 to 18, has started.
Tickets, which can be booked online at www.ticketgenie.in, have been priced at Rs. 50 each for general admission and Rs. 1000 for VIP seating.
Fans can also buy tickets from 16 ‘Twenty Four Seven’ retail stores and 14 Mobile Stores across Delhi and the National Capital Region.
India has been grouped with Germany, England and New Zealand in Pool ‘A’. Australia, Netherlands, Belgium and Argentina are placed in Pool ‘B’.
India will open its campaign against England (January 10), followed by New Zealand (January 11) and Germany (January 13).