1) Minister without portfolio: Government of India (Allocation of Business) Rules, 1961 allows President on advice of PM to entrust responsibilities of specified business to a union minister without portfolio.
- Several leaders such as Lal Bahadur Shastri, V.K. Krishna Menon (at Centre) and J.Jayalalithaa (in Tamil Nadu) were inducted as minister without portfolio.
- A minister without a portfolio means s/he will not have a department to handle or an office to attend. But s/he is entitled to all perquisites and privileges of a minister.
- Such a minister does not draw salary and emoluments in the capacity of a minister but only as a member of legislative assembly
2) UPI-ATM: Hitachi Payment Services has unveiled India’s first ever United Payments Interface (UPI) – ATM.
- Set-up as a White Label ATM (WLA) in association with National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI).
- WLA is owned and operated by non-banks entities.
- UPI-ATM will provide customers with unified and secure card-less cash withdrawals.
- Allows users to withdraw cash from multiple accounts using the UPI app.
3) Justice Amitava Roy Committee: Supreme Court sought views of the center and states on the Justice Amitava Roy Committee report on prison reforms.
- Key observations
- Correctional justice system is “evidently gender exclusionary”.
- Increase in population of female prisoners by 11.7% between 2014-19.
- Only 18% of women prisoners are allotted exclusive women’s prison facilities.
- All categories (undertrials and convicted) of female prisoners are lodged in the same wards.
- Poor access to basic facilities e.g, medical care, legal aid, etc.
- Recommendations: Telemedicine consultation, vocational training, sensitization training of prison staff, counseling of women prisoners with psychosomatic disorders or victims of sexual abuse, etc
4) Malaviya Mission – Teachers Training Programme (MM-TTP): University Grants Commission’s MM-TTP was launched.
- About MM-TTP
- It is proposed by restructuring of existing schemes of capacity building of teachers under Department of Higher Education.
- It envisages capacity-building training for the faculty and staff across higher educational institutions (HEIs), in the light of National Education Policy (NEP 2020) within two years through multiple training centres.
- Human Resource Development Centres (HRDCs) will also be renamed as Madan Mohan Malaviya Teachers’ Training Centre.
Places in News:
1) Cuba (Capital: Havana)
- Cuban Foreign Ministry states that it uncovered a human trafficking ring aimed at recruiting Cubans to fight for Russia in its war in Ukraine.
- Political Boundaries
- Neighbouring country includes Haiti; Jamaica; Bahamas archipelago and US (north across Straits of Florida)
- Geographical features
- Cuba is the largest island in the Caribbean Sea.
- Forms an important segment of the Antilles (West Indies) island chain.
- Situated just south of Tropic of Cancer at intersection of Atlantic Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, and Caribbean Sea.
- Major River: Cauto.
- Highest Peak: Turquino Peak.
