Latest Current Affairs- May 2013
Prepared by: Currentaffairs4examz team
Prepared by: Currentaffairs4examz team
Q1. Name the charges on which Indian fast bowler S. Sreesanth and his two team mates from Rajasthan Royals viz. Ajit Chadila and Ankeet Chavan were arrested by Delhi Police on 16 May 2013?
Q2. Name the Legendary Footballer and Former England captain who announced his retirement on 16 May 2013 from professional football and gave an end to his illustrious career of more than two decades?
Ans. David Beckham
Q3. Union Government of India on 16 May 2013 revised the criteria for creamy layer of Other Backward Classes (OBCs) from 4.5 lakh rupees to …………………..?
Ans. 6 lakh rupees
Note: Creamy layer is the income limit beyond which OBCs are not eligible for quotas. OBCs within Creamy Layer can avail benefits of reservations in government jobs and admissions to central educational institutions.
Q4. On 16 May 2013, the Finance Ministry approved payment of ……………. per cent interest rate on PF (Employees Provident Fund) Deposits for 2012-13?
Ans. 8.5%
Q5. In Pakistan, who has been headed back to power and set for becoming PM for the third time after its first democratic transition from one elected government to another, marking a landmark for Pakistan's political history hobbled by frequent military dictatorships?
Ans. Nawaz Sharif
Q6. Name the Hollywood actress who on 14 May 2013 revealed that she has undergone double mastectomy for reduction of her chances of getting Breast Cancer?
Ans. Angelina Jolie
Q7. Who was sworn in as the 22nd chief minister of the state of Karnataka on 11 May 2013?
Ans. Siddaramaiah. (Leader of the Indian National Congress)
Q8. On 15th May 2013, from which state Prime Minister Manmohan Singh filed his nomination papers for seeking re-election to the Rajya Sabha for the fifth successive time?
Ans. Assam
Q9. Union government on 14 May 2013, formed a GoM (Group of Ministers) to draft a law to protect the CBI from external interference, after facing the wrath of the Supreme Court for having failed to ensure functional autonomy to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). Who is heading this GoM?
Ans. P. Chidambaram
Q10. Cottage and Village Industry Department of the Madhya Pradesh Government on 16 May 2013 bagged which award of United Nations?
Ans. United Nations Public Service Award for year 2013 for their initiative named Graamin Haat.
Note: The initiative of Graamin Haat was started in the state with the aim of strengthening and empowering the women's self-help groups. The initiative has helped the self-help group in becoming more self-reliant economically and ensured participation of women in social decisions.
Q11. Name the Union Minister for Women and Child Development?
Ans. Krishna Tirath
Q12. Who has been appointed as the new governor of Arunachal Pradesh on 16 May 2013?
Ans. Nirbhay Sharma
Q13. Which launch vehicle will be used by ISRO to place the Communication Satellite GSAT-14 in Orbit which is planned for July 2013?
Ans. GSLV D5
Q14. Name the new movie channel launched by Star India in the month of May 2013?
Ans. Star Movies Actions
Q15. Union government on 16 May 2013 slashed the import tariff value of gold and silver. New tariff values are?
Ans. 466 Dollars per ten grams for gold and 761 Dollars per kg for silver
Q16. India Brazil South Africa (IBSA) Women’s Forum Resolution held recently in?
Ans. New Delhi
Q17. Government of India decided to launch Direct Benefit Transfer for LPG (DBTL) scheme in 20 high Aadhaar coverage districts from 1 June 2013. What is the aim of the scheme?
Ans. The scheme aims to curb leakages and prevent black-marketing and provide subsidy to consumers in their bank accounts.
Q18. World Telecommunication and Information Society Day?
Ans. May 17
Q19. The RBI (Reserve Bank of India) on 15 May 2013 decided to launch Inflation Indexed Bonds (IIBs). What is the maturity period of these bonds?
Ans. 10 years
Q20. Who was named on 14 May 2013 as the England cricketer-of-the-year for 2012-13?
Ans. Matt Prior
Q21. Name the indigenously developed Rotavirus Vaccine unveiled by India on 14 May 2013?
Ans.Rotavac
Q22. President of India Pranab Mukherjee presented National Florence Nightingale Award 2013 to 35 nursing professionals for their services on 12 May 2013 on the occasion of international Nurses Day. Florence Nightingale Award was instituted by?
Ans. Health Ministry.
Note: To appreciate the selfless services rendered by Nurses with devotion, sincerity, dedication and compassion. The Award carries 50000 rupees cash, a certificate, a citation certificate and a Medal.
Q23. Winners of Madrid Open 2013?
Ans. Rafael Nadal & Serena Williams in men’s & women’s singles respectively
Q24. India on 15 May 2013 got the observer status in which council along with four other nations - China, Italy, Singapore and South Korea?
Ans.Arctic Council
Q25. Who has been named as the first chief executive officer (CEO) of AirAsia India by the company in a statement on Wednesday, 15 May 2013?
Ans.Mittu Chandilya
Civil Services Exam Score made public by UPSC for the first time
Scores of civil services exam made public by UPSC for the first time
Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) on 16 May 13, for the first time in the history of the elite civil services examination, made public the final marks of all successful candidates who were recently recommended for appointment to IAS, IFS, IPS and other key central services. Out of the total score of 2250, interestingly, only four of them, including two women, obtained more than 50% marks; clearly indicating how tough Civil Service Exam was. Three of those four are from Kerala. UPSC made public the final marksfollowing a direction from the Central Information Commission (CIC). Normally UPSC used to send the marks to all candidates individually.
* List published shows, first rank holder, Haritha V Kumar from Kerala, scored 53% marks (1193 out of 2250).
Written Total- 1013
Personality Test-180
Total- 1193
In the 'general' category, the minimum cut-off was 42% while in other categories, it went as low as 35%. However, a number of SC, ST and OBC candidates scored much higher marks which put them in the bracket of toppers along with 'general' category candidates. The marks of successful candidates, which were a closely guarded secret for long, were made public is believed to bring in transparency to the civil services examination which is conducted in three stages - preliminary test, mains examination and personality test.
Click here to view- Marks obtained by recommended candidates
Your Smartphone is destroying your memory
Your Android and iOS phones are killing cognitive thinking and declarative memory, say experts
Dr Hozefa A Bhinderwala, psychiatrist at Saifee and Prince Aly Khan Hospital, received a call from his brother last week. "He said, 'You are the doctor, but I performed a surgery today'."
The specialist's brother was referring to having managed to get his nine-year-old son to let go off his smartphone, which he was worried had grown into "an extended limb". "As soon as my brother would get back home, his son would grab the phone and stay glued to it right until bedtime, playing games and fiddling with apps," says the psychiatrist.
This is not a lone case. Dr Sangeeta Ravat, Head of the Department of Neurology at Seth G S Medical College and KEM Hospital, says the co-relation between mild Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (significant difficulties of inattention and impulsiveness or a combination of the two) among young adults and the excessive use of gadgets has been the subject of debate at recent medical conferences.
And if the Indian smartphone user study is accurate, we have reason to worry. The survey conducted by AC Nielsen across 46 cities in September and October 2012 revealed that the number of smartphones had touched 40 million, and almost half of the users were under 25. The dramatic growth was driven by a desire 'to stay connected and have instant access to social networking sites', it said.
Although the gadgets are designed to make life easier, and the user, work-smart, experts warn that their unrelenting pings and blitzkrieg of updates can throw the brain into overdrive, affecting its cells and blunting the mind over time. Here's all that's at stake:
Declarative memory reduced
Culprit: Reminder features Declarative memory refers to data that can be consciously recalled, such as important phone numbers, date and time of important meetings, and critical dates like your birthdays that we store in our brain. "While earlier, we'd easily remember at least 10 important phone numbers by rote, today we can't recall any other than our own. Our mind is not challenged. Everything is fed in the phonebook, and under categories — family, work, miscellaneous. Sometimes, there are so many, we can't recall the face to the name and number," says Dr Ravat.
Underdeveloped human intelligence
Culprit: Absence of external stimuli Shraddha Shah, clinical psychologist with the Department of Neurology at KEM, is most concerned about the smartphone's impact on children. She discusses Piaget's Theory of Cognitive Development — a comprehensive theory about the nature and development of human intelligence, which deals with the nature of knowledge itself and how humans gradually acquire, construct and use it. Shah explains, "This mental process of awareness, perception, reasoning and judgement can only be built if the child experiences something physical, like playing with clay, blocks or a bat and ball. It isn't possible if s/he is staring into a screen and conquering angry birds." Physical activities, she adds, help build a child's motor skills (a learned sequence of movements that combine to produce a smooth, efficient action in order to master a task) that can range from cutting a paper with a scissor to running and jumping. Phones can't play a role here.
Human mind not meant to multi-task
Culprit: Multi-tasking features Dr Ravat is critical of the Internet which none of us can do without. Our increasing dependency on search engines like Google is making us poor thinkers, she argues. "Our minds are getting lazy because gadgets ensure we don't use them enough," she says.
In another interesting argument by neuro experts, the very advantage of smartphones becomes a cause for worry. Smartphones encourage you to carry out multiple tasks at once. Clifford Nass, professor of communication at Stanford University, reckons, "It is not physiologically healthy for you because (humans) are not built to do a multitude of tasks at one time. Your phone makes you feel like you have to respond, which then increases your stress and harms your cognitive thinking."
Dr Bhinderwala agrees. Multitasking, he says, lessens our ability to focus on what is relevant, and rewires the brain to make us shallow thinkers. Varied communication features (SMS, video, Whatsapp, BBM, Facebook, Twitter) available on our finger tips, makes us less responsive to the immediate environment.
Dr Sandy Chapman, chief director for the Center for Brain Health in Dallas, who has studied the effects of technology on the brain, was quoted in nbcdwf. com, saying: "It's really keeping us at this distracted level, so everything that we're thinking about tends to be quicker, less synthesised, and that's what's making us dumber."
Dr Hozefa A Bhinderwala, psychiatrist at Saifee and Prince Aly Khan Hospital, received a call from his brother last week. "He said, 'You are the doctor, but I performed a surgery today'."
The specialist's brother was referring to having managed to get his nine-year-old son to let go off his smartphone, which he was worried had grown into "an extended limb". "As soon as my brother would get back home, his son would grab the phone and stay glued to it right until bedtime, playing games and fiddling with apps," says the psychiatrist.
This is not a lone case. Dr Sangeeta Ravat, Head of the Department of Neurology at Seth G S Medical College and KEM Hospital, says the co-relation between mild Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (significant difficulties of inattention and impulsiveness or a combination of the two) among young adults and the excessive use of gadgets has been the subject of debate at recent medical conferences.
And if the Indian smartphone user study is accurate, we have reason to worry. The survey conducted by AC Nielsen across 46 cities in September and October 2012 revealed that the number of smartphones had touched 40 million, and almost half of the users were under 25. The dramatic growth was driven by a desire 'to stay connected and have instant access to social networking sites', it said.
Although the gadgets are designed to make life easier, and the user, work-smart, experts warn that their unrelenting pings and blitzkrieg of updates can throw the brain into overdrive, affecting its cells and blunting the mind over time. Here's all that's at stake:
Declarative memory reduced
Culprit: Reminder features Declarative memory refers to data that can be consciously recalled, such as important phone numbers, date and time of important meetings, and critical dates like your birthdays that we store in our brain. "While earlier, we'd easily remember at least 10 important phone numbers by rote, today we can't recall any other than our own. Our mind is not challenged. Everything is fed in the phonebook, and under categories — family, work, miscellaneous. Sometimes, there are so many, we can't recall the face to the name and number," says Dr Ravat.
Underdeveloped human intelligence
Culprit: Absence of external stimuli Shraddha Shah, clinical psychologist with the Department of Neurology at KEM, is most concerned about the smartphone's impact on children. She discusses Piaget's Theory of Cognitive Development — a comprehensive theory about the nature and development of human intelligence, which deals with the nature of knowledge itself and how humans gradually acquire, construct and use it. Shah explains, "This mental process of awareness, perception, reasoning and judgement can only be built if the child experiences something physical, like playing with clay, blocks or a bat and ball. It isn't possible if s/he is staring into a screen and conquering angry birds." Physical activities, she adds, help build a child's motor skills (a learned sequence of movements that combine to produce a smooth, efficient action in order to master a task) that can range from cutting a paper with a scissor to running and jumping. Phones can't play a role here.
Human mind not meant to multi-task
Culprit: Multi-tasking features Dr Ravat is critical of the Internet which none of us can do without. Our increasing dependency on search engines like Google is making us poor thinkers, she argues. "Our minds are getting lazy because gadgets ensure we don't use them enough," she says.
In another interesting argument by neuro experts, the very advantage of smartphones becomes a cause for worry. Smartphones encourage you to carry out multiple tasks at once. Clifford Nass, professor of communication at Stanford University, reckons, "It is not physiologically healthy for you because (humans) are not built to do a multitude of tasks at one time. Your phone makes you feel like you have to respond, which then increases your stress and harms your cognitive thinking."
Dr Bhinderwala agrees. Multitasking, he says, lessens our ability to focus on what is relevant, and rewires the brain to make us shallow thinkers. Varied communication features (SMS, video, Whatsapp, BBM, Facebook, Twitter) available on our finger tips, makes us less responsive to the immediate environment.
Dr Sandy Chapman, chief director for the Center for Brain Health in Dallas, who has studied the effects of technology on the brain, was quoted in nbcdwf. com, saying: "It's really keeping us at this distracted level, so everything that we're thinking about tends to be quicker, less synthesised, and that's what's making us dumber."
IT MODERNISATION PROJECT UPDATES FOR MAY, 2013
Observance of Anti-Terrorism Day on 21.05.2013
Filling up the posts of Postmaster Grade-III IN Post offices in Postal Circles
PM’S ADDRESS AT 45TH SESSION OF THE INDIAN LABOUR CONFERENCE
Following is the text of the Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh’s address at the 45th session of the Indian Labour Conference in New Delhi today:
“Let me begin by emphasizing that this is a very important conference that deliberates issues of critical importance to our workers and industry, and therefore to our economy and society at large. I feel happy that as Prime Minister I have participated in all Sessions of the Indian Labour Conference that have taken place since 2005, except the one in 2009 which I could not attend due to ill-health. As you begin proceedings in this 45th Session of the Conference, I compliment you on your past achievements and extend my best wishes for your efforts in the future. It is also my hope that this Session will build further upon the rich legacy of the earlier Sessions.
Before I proceed further, let me also state that our Government has paid very serious attention to the issues that Trade Unions have raised from time to time. The recent two-day strike by Trade Unions focused on a number of issues relating to the welfare not only of the working-classes but also the people at large. These include demands on which there can be no disagreement. For example, demands for concrete measures for containing inflation, for generation of employment opportunities, for strict implementation of labour laws, are unexceptionable. There can however be differences on the best ways of fulfilling these demands and we are willing to engage constructively with the Trade Unions in this regard.
“Let me begin by emphasizing that this is a very important conference that deliberates issues of critical importance to our workers and industry, and therefore to our economy and society at large. I feel happy that as Prime Minister I have participated in all Sessions of the Indian Labour Conference that have taken place since 2005, except the one in 2009 which I could not attend due to ill-health. As you begin proceedings in this 45th Session of the Conference, I compliment you on your past achievements and extend my best wishes for your efforts in the future. It is also my hope that this Session will build further upon the rich legacy of the earlier Sessions.
Before I proceed further, let me also state that our Government has paid very serious attention to the issues that Trade Unions have raised from time to time. The recent two-day strike by Trade Unions focused on a number of issues relating to the welfare not only of the working-classes but also the people at large. These include demands on which there can be no disagreement. For example, demands for concrete measures for containing inflation, for generation of employment opportunities, for strict implementation of labour laws, are unexceptionable. There can however be differences on the best ways of fulfilling these demands and we are willing to engage constructively with the Trade Unions in this regard.
Some other demands raised by the Trade Unions are already under an advanced stage of consideration by the Government. These include issues like universal social security cover for workers in both the organized and unorganized sectors and creation of a National Social Security Fund, fixing a National Floor Level Minimum Wage and provision of minimum pension of Rs. 1000 per month under the Employees’ Pension Scheme. In fact, the Cabinet has already approved amendments to the Minimum Wages Act, 1948 to provide for a statutory National Floor Level Minimum Wage.
The third set of demands relates to issues on which further dialogue with Trade Union leaders appears necessary, including tripartite discussions. We have set up a Group of Ministers under the Finance Minister to go into the whole gamut of demands raised by the Trade Unions and I am confident that soon you will see some forward movement on these demands.
The third set of demands relates to issues on which further dialogue with Trade Union leaders appears necessary, including tripartite discussions. We have set up a Group of Ministers under the Finance Minister to go into the whole gamut of demands raised by the Trade Unions and I am confident that soon you will see some forward movement on these demands.
I believe that many of the demands of the Trade Unions reflect the concern that our growth and progress should be inclusive and should particularly benefit the under-privileged sections of our society. This is a concern that has been very dear to our Government. We believe that providing our people with productive employment opportunities is the best way of achieving this objective.
According to some available data, we created 20 million additional job opportunities during the period 2004-05 and 2009-10. The unemployment rate came down from 8.3% to 6.6% during the same period. This period suffered from one of the worst global meltdowns in history and most of the countries, developed and developing, have registered increases in their unemployment rates while we were still able to create additional jobs. Employment in the organized sector registered a growth of more than 9% from 26.5 million in 2005 to 29 million in 2011. It is heartening to note that women employed in the organized sector have also registered a growth of about 19% during the same period.
According to some available data, we created 20 million additional job opportunities during the period 2004-05 and 2009-10. The unemployment rate came down from 8.3% to 6.6% during the same period. This period suffered from one of the worst global meltdowns in history and most of the countries, developed and developing, have registered increases in their unemployment rates while we were still able to create additional jobs. Employment in the organized sector registered a growth of more than 9% from 26.5 million in 2005 to 29 million in 2011. It is heartening to note that women employed in the organized sector have also registered a growth of about 19% during the same period.
Our Government has also made serious efforts in implementing various employment generation programmes such as Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), National Rural Livelihood Mission, Swarnajayanti Shahari Rozgar Yojna and Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Programme. There has been an increase in allocations of these schemes over the years which have provided employment opportunities to a large number of men and women, particularly persons belonging to Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward Classes. MGNREGA has been particularly helpful in reducing inter-State migration of labour, eliminating bonded labour and raising the purchasing power of the rural households. Women participation under the scheme has been more than 48%. It is also heartening to note that rural women are increasingly going for self-employment opportunities in ever increasing numbers. Out of a total of 44.32 lakh Self-Help Groups in our country, 30.21 lakh are exclusively for women which accounts for more than 68%. We propose to continue this effort in future as well.
Clearly, skill development is crucial to our efforts for providing decent employment opportunities to our large and growing young population. A skilled workforce is also a pre-requisite for the achievement of our objective of rapid and inclusive growth. Therefore, we have laid special emphasis on skill development.
Our aim is to skill 5 crore people by the end of the 12th Five Year Plan. This will not only help in generating good quality employment but will also provide Industry with the skilled workforce they need to expand and modernize their operations. During the last five years, the number of Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) in the country has doubled from about 5000 to about 10000. About 1700 Government ITIs have been modernized. Another 3000 ITIs, 5000 Skill Development Centres and 27 Advanced Training Institutes are proposed to be set up during the 12th Five Year Plan (2012-17). The Modular Employable Skills (MES) programme of the Ministry of Labour & Employment provides short duration courses to prospective trainees using both Government and private infrastructure. It is an attempt towards increasing employment in the unorganized sector at a rapid pace.
In order to achieve our ambitious targets, the skilling efforts of both the Central and the State Governments need to be supplemented by the private sector. Furthermore, skills need to be closely matched with emerging job requirements. This calls for setting up of national standards for skill formation benchmarked to global standards, development of appropriate curriculum design for specific skills and formation of new assessment and certifying bodies besides strengthening the existing ones.
The National Skill Development Corporation has been established for promoting private sector efforts in the area of skill development. In addition, the Government has recently taken the decision to set up the National Skill Development Agency (NSDA) to anchor and operationalize the National Skills Qualification Framework (NSQF) which should play a vital role in transforming the quality of training in our country. The NSDA will also endeavor to bridge the social, regional, gender and economic divides in processes of skill development.
I have no doubt that with active participation of the industry, the Trade Unions and the Government, we will be able to achieve more effective outcomes in improving the employability of our youth and thus pave the way for generating decent employment opportunities for them commensurate with their rising aspirations. This is the task to which I commit our country.
Ever since the UPA Government came to power in 2004, we have endeavoured to work for the welfare of workers. When I look back at what I had said when I addressed the 40th Session of this Conference in 2005, I feel a sense of satisfaction that we have delivered substantially on the promises we had made at that time. I had at that time spoken about the need for a new deal to the working people, the need for ensuring the welfare and well being of all workers, particularly those in the unorganized sector, and the legislation that was under consideration in this regard. I am happy that we have achieved good results in these areas, though I would be the first one to recognize that there is much that still needs to be done.
We launched the Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana (RSBY) in 2008 to provide for smart card based hospitalization facilities for workers in the unorganized sector. We have been expanding the reach of the Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana (RSBY) to cover larger numbers of workers in the informal sector. Under this scheme, 3.41 crore smart cards have been issued so far. The RSBY now covers additional categories of workers including construction workers, street vendors, domestic workers and even beneficiaries of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Programme.
Our Government enacted the Unorganized Workers Social Security Act, 2008 for the benefit of the workers in the informal sector.
We have increased the eligibility limit under the Payment of Bonus Act, 1965 from Rs 3500 per month to Rs 10000 per month. The medical bonus payable under the Maternity Benefit Act of 1961 has also been enhanced. We have also enhanced the period of unemployment allowance to retrenched workers from 6 months to 1 year under the Rajiv Gandhi Shramik Kalyan Yojana.
The National Policy on Safety, Health and Environment and the National Policy on HIV and AIDS in the World of Work were put in place in the year 2009.
We have taken proactive steps for elimination of child labour. Our Government has taken a decision to amend the Child Labour Prohibition & Regulation Act, 1986 to ban all child labour below 14 years to enable our children to exercise their right to education. I am happy that the number of children working as labourers in our country has decreased by 45% from 90.75 lakh in 2004-05 to 49.84 lakh in year 2009-10. We now need to ensure that this is brought down further.
We have taken proactive steps for elimination of child labour. Our Government has taken a decision to amend the Child Labour Prohibition & Regulation Act, 1986 to ban all child labour below 14 years to enable our children to exercise their right to education. I am happy that the number of children working as labourers in our country has decreased by 45% from 90.75 lakh in 2004-05 to 49.84 lakh in year 2009-10. We now need to ensure that this is brought down further.
A number of Bills have been introduced for amending Acts such as the Labour Laws (Exemption from Furnishing Returns and Maintaining Registers by Certain Establishments) Act, 1988, the Mines Act, 1952 and the Inter-State Migrant Workmen (Regulation of Employment and Conditions of Service) Act, 1979. Besides, a number of amendments in labour laws are at various stages of consideration.
The Employees` State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) Act was amended in the year 2010 to cover factories employing 10 or more workers, instead of the earlier threshold of 20. The wage ceiling for coverage of employees has been enhanced from Rupees 10,000 to Rs.15,000 per month. The number of establishments covered has increased to 5.80 lakh till the end of 2011-12 from 3.94 lakh in year 2008-09. Twenty seven ESIC hospitals are being modernized and four have already been upgraded. Five new ESIC hospitals were commissioned in 2011-12. Insured persons are now being issued Smart Cards and super specialty treatment facilities have been extended to them. The ESIC organization has undertaken a massive computerization project for more effective delivery of benefits to the insured persons.
The Employees` State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) Act was amended in the year 2010 to cover factories employing 10 or more workers, instead of the earlier threshold of 20. The wage ceiling for coverage of employees has been enhanced from Rupees 10,000 to Rs.15,000 per month. The number of establishments covered has increased to 5.80 lakh till the end of 2011-12 from 3.94 lakh in year 2008-09. Twenty seven ESIC hospitals are being modernized and four have already been upgraded. Five new ESIC hospitals were commissioned in 2011-12. Insured persons are now being issued Smart Cards and super specialty treatment facilities have been extended to them. The ESIC organization has undertaken a massive computerization project for more effective delivery of benefits to the insured persons.
Modernization initiatives in the Employees Provident Fund Organization have resulted in 25% increase in the settlement of claims as compared to the previous year. The Status of all Provident Fund Accounts is now available online along with SMS alerts for important account information. Payment is now possible through National Electronic Fund Transfer (NEFT).
There are certain vulnerable groups of workers that need our special attention. I would urge this Conference to focus particularly on the well being and welfare of migrant workers, domestic workers and those working in unsafe conditions. These groups not only need special legislative support but also a more effective implementation of the existing laws that have been made for their protection and wellbeing. We need to bring in the best international practices for bringing about improvements in their working conditions.
The Government of India, Industry, Trade Unions and State Governments need to work in partnership to strengthen our society, our economy and our country. I would like to take today`s opportunity to reaffirm our Government`s firm commitment to building such a partnership. We are all aware that our economy is going through difficult circumstances and our growth is not what we would like it to be. Even as the Government works for reversing this situation and I am confident, we can do so and we will do it, we need the cooperation of both Captains of Industry and our Trade Unions. In the recent months we have taken a number of steps to boost investment, encourage enterprise and improve business sentiment. We have paid special attention to the need for removing bottlenecks that hamper new industrial activity. I would urge you all Captains of Industry and Trade Union leaders to help us in making a success of these efforts. I wish your deliberations all success.”
The Government of India, Industry, Trade Unions and State Governments need to work in partnership to strengthen our society, our economy and our country. I would like to take today`s opportunity to reaffirm our Government`s firm commitment to building such a partnership. We are all aware that our economy is going through difficult circumstances and our growth is not what we would like it to be. Even as the Government works for reversing this situation and I am confident, we can do so and we will do it, we need the cooperation of both Captains of Industry and our Trade Unions. In the recent months we have taken a number of steps to boost investment, encourage enterprise and improve business sentiment. We have paid special attention to the need for removing bottlenecks that hamper new industrial activity. I would urge you all Captains of Industry and Trade Union leaders to help us in making a success of these efforts. I wish your deliberations all success.”
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SH/NK/SKS
(Release ID :96045) (PIB 17.05.2013)
SH/NK/SKS
(Release ID :96045) (PIB 17.05.2013)
DEMANDS OF UNIONS UNDER STUDY, SAYS PM (Click the link below for details)
REDUCTION IN PRESERVATION PERIOD OF RECORD UNDER PREVENTION OF MONEY LAUNDERING (PML) ACT 2002 (CLICK THE LINK BELOW FOR DETAILS)
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