Today in History (January 25^th, 1950)

25th January is the foundation day of the Election Commission of India (ECI) which came into existence in 1950. This day was first celebrated in 2011 to encourage young voters to take part in the electoral process.

Summary of Today’s News

Bharat Ratna

Karpoori Thakur, a prominent Gandhian socialist leader and former Bihar chief minister will be awarded the ‘Bharat Ratna’ posthumously.

Key Points

It is the highest civilian Award of the country which was instituted in the year 1954.

• EligibilityCriteria:

  • Any person without distinction of race, occupation, position or sex is eligible for these awards.
  • Though usually conferred on India-born citizens.
  • But the Bharat Ratna has been awarded to one naturalized citizen, Mother Teresa, and to two non-Indians, Pakistan national Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan and former South African President Nelson Mandela.
  • Former Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri became the first individual to be honoured posthumously.
• It is awarded in recognition of exceptional service/performance of the highest order in any field of human endeavour.
• The recommendations for Bharat Ratna are made by the Prime Minister himself to the President and no formal recommendations for this are necessary.
• The number of annual awards is restricted to a maximum of three in a particular year.
• On conferment of the award, the recipient receives a Sanad (certificate) signed by the President and a medallion.
• The award does not carry any monetary grant.
• In terms of Article 18 (1) of the Constitution, the award cannot be used as a prefix or suffix to the recipient’s name.
• However, an award winner may use expression in their biodata/letterhead/visiting card etc. to indicate that he/she is a recipient of the award.

Jan Nayak Karpoori Thakur

• Karpoori Thakur was greatly influenced by Mahatma Gandhi and Satyanarayan Sinha.
• He joined the All India Students Federation (AISF), the oldest student organisation in India, during his schooling days.
• He was inspired by Indian nationalistic thought, and left his graduation studies to join the Quit India Movement, a massive mobilisation started by Mahatma Gandhi in 1942 to force the colonial British rulers to leave India.
• He became a legend because of his successful fights for the rights of the workersand thus pushed for reservations for backward classes.
• He started his fast-unto-deathagitation for the cause of the labourers in Telco in the year 1970, and was arrested for leading worker strikes.
• His life revolved around thetwin pillars of simplicity and social justice.
  • He wanted to address the systemic inequalitiesthat plagued Indian society.
• OBC Politics: He is known as the pioneer of OBC politics in Bihar. He implemented quotas for backward classes in the state, a move that was pivotal in setting the stage for the implementation of the Mandal Commission recommendations.
  • He appointed the Mungeri Lal Commission in 1970, that identified the 128 ‘backward’ and  94 ‘most backward’ communities.
• It paved the way for 26% reservationfor OBCs

19th NAM Summit

Context:

The 19th Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) Summit was held in Uganda’s capital, Kampala.

Key Discussion:

 Israel-Hamas war and India’s “Vishwa Mitra” initiative.

Key Ponts about Non-Aligned Movement (NAM)

• NAMis an alliance of developing nations that refuses to join any major superpower during the Cold War.
• It has its origins in the 1955 Bandung conference in Indonesia.
• NAM was establishedand held its first conference in 1961 in Belgrade, the capital of Yugoslavia.
• After the United Nations, NAM is the second-largest grouping of nations.
• Founders: 

• • President Sukarno of Indonesia,
  • Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru of India,
  • Gamal Abdel Nasser of Egypt,
  • Kwame Nkrumah of Ghana, and
  • President Josip Tito of Yugoslavia.

• Secretariat: NAM does not have a permanent secretariator a formal founding charter, act, or treaty.
• Members: Currently, NAM membership consists of 120 countries.

Group of 77

Context

• Third summit of the Group of 77 (G-77) and China was held in Kampala, Uganda.
  • China isnot a member of the group, but often aligned politically with the group that is why it is often labelled ‘G-77 plus China’. 

About

• The Group of 77 refers to the largest intergovernmental groupof emerging countries in the United Nations.
• It was established in 1964by seventy-seven developing countries at the end of the first session of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) in Geneva.