PIB ANALYSIS FOR UPSC CIVIL SERVICES EXAM
- Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016
- EX SHINYUU Maitri 2018
- Odisha Skill Development Project
1 . Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act 2016
People with special needs require empathy and not sympathy: Vice President
Rededicate to the cause of less fortunate;
Develop barrier-free environment for the Persons with Disabilities;
Presents the National Awards for the Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (Divyangjan)Syllabus
General Studies 2 Social Justice
Highlights of the Bill
- The Bill replaces the Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995. Instead of seven disabilities specified in the Act, the Bill covers 19 conditions.
- Persons with at least 40% of a disability are entitled to certain benefits such as reservations in education and employment, preference in government schemes, etc.
- The Bill confers several rights and entitlements to disabled persons. These include disabled friendly access to all public buildings, hospitals, modes of transport, polling stations, etc.
- In case of mentally ill persons, district courts may award two types of guardianship. A limited guardian takes decisions jointly with the mentally ill person. A plenary guardian takes decisions on behalf of the mentally ill person, without consulting him.
- Violation of any provision of the Act is punishable with imprisonment up to six months, and/or fine of Rs 10,000. Subsequent violations carry a higher penalty.
Key Issues and Analysis
- The Bill is being brought in to fulfill obligations under an international treaty. The question is whether it is appropriate for Parliament to impose legal and financial obligations on states and municipalities with regard to disability, which is a State List subject.
- The Financial Memorandum does not provide any estimate of the financial resources required to meet obligations under the Bill.
- The Bill states that violation of any provision in the Act will attract imprisonment and/or fine. Given the widespread obligations (such as making all polling booths accessible to the disabled), many acts of omission or commission could be interpreted as criminal offences.
- In “extraordinary situations” district courts may appoint plenary guardians for mentally ill persons. The Bill does not lay down principles for such determination, in a consistent manner, across various courts. The Bill overrides the Mental Health Act, 1987 but the safeguards against misuse of powers by guardians are lower.
- The Bill is inconsistent with other laws in some cases. These include conditions for termination of pregnancy and the minimum penalty for outraging the modesty of a woman.
International Day of Disabled Person
- International Day of Disabled Persons 2018 – December 3
2 . EX SHINYUU Maitri 2018
EX SHINYUU Maitri-2018 With JASDF Commences
Syllabus
General Studies 2 Bilateral Relations
- The Japanese Air Self Defence Force (JASDF) is in India for a bilateral air exercise SHINYUU Maitri-18 with Indian Air Force
- The theme of the exercise is joint Mobility/Humanitarian Assistance & Disaster Relief (HADR) on Transport aircraft.
- This is the first air exercise between the two Air Forces.
3 . Odisha Skill Development Project
Government of India and Asian Development Bank Sign $85 Million Loan to Support Odisha Skill Development Project
Syllabus
General Studies 2 Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation
- The Government of India and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) signed a $85 million loan to improve the skill development eco-system in Odisha and establish an advanced skill training center, the World Skill Center (WSC), in the state capital Bhubaneswar
- The project will improve the quality of the State’s Technical & Vocational Education and Training programs by making them relevant to industry and demand driven, and will impart advanced occupation-ready skills training aligned with international standards. It would also complement the efforts to target the employment needs of the emerging sectors in India and globally
- The project will engage Institute of Technical Education Services (ITEES), Singapore, to support Odisha Skill Development Authority in setting-up and operationalizing WSC which would offer internationally bench marked advanced training programs for the working age population of Odisha.
- The project will help over 150,000 people learn skills in priority sectors, including manufacturing, construction and services for formal employment.
- WSC will deliver eight training courses for 13,000 full-time students, provide training for 5,000 teachers, and train 1,000 assessors. It will improve the overall eco-system of skill development in Odisha by providing integrated services through an entrepreneurship incubation center, a career counseling and placement center, a curriculum design and development center, and education technology deployment center.
- These important functions of WSC will support a network of Government ITIs and develop skills and capacity of polytechnics, college of engineering, and other private skilling centers