Today in History (August 27th, 1576)
On August 27, in 1576, Titian, the greatest Italian Renaissance painter of the Venetian school, passed away. He was once described as “the sun amidst small stars, not only among the Italians but among all the painters of the world.”
Summary of Today’s News
Amit Shah announces five new districts for Ladakh.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah announced the creation of five new districts in Ladakh: Zanskar, Drass, Sham, Nubra, and Changthang, enhancing governance beyond the previous two districts of Leh and Kargil. Prime Minister Modi emphasized that this will bring services closer to people. Despite this development, the Leh Apex Body (LAB) and Kargil Democratic Alliance (KDA) continue their demand for Statehood and Sixth Schedule status, with a planned march to Delhi from September 1 to October 2.
Report reveals minimal use of plea bargaining in India.
Plea bargaining, introduced in India in 2005 to alleviate court backlogs, remains underutilized, with only 19,135 cases disposed of through this method in 2022, representing just 0.11% of total cases. It allows accused individuals to admit guilt for leniency but excludes serious offenses. Meanwhile, the Indian Medical Association raised concerns about the registration process on the new National Medical Register (NMR) portal, which aims to consolidate data on over 1.3 million doctors, including those who have left the country.
Bail should not suffer due to one’s inability to find people to stand surety: SC
Girish Gandhi faced challenges in securing sureties after receiving bail in 13 cases, managing only two pairs to meet requirements. The Supreme Court ruled that these sureties could apply to all cases, emphasizing that Gandhi shouldn’t remain jailed due to his personal responsibilities, including caring for a physically handicapped wife and elderly mother. The court acknowledged the difficulties in finding sureties in criminal cases and stressed the importance of balancing the accused’s rights with reasonable bail conditions to protect fundamental rights.
Education Ministry defines ‘literacy’, ‘full literacy’ in push for adult literacy.
The New India Literacy Programme (NILP) aims to enroll one crore learners aged 15+ annually from 2022 to 2027, defining literacy as the ability to read, write, and understand, along with critical life skills. A non-literate person becomes certified after passing the Foundational Literacy and Numeracy Assessment Test (FLNAT). In 2024, 34.62 lakh learners appeared for the test, with only 29.52 lakh certified. With ₹160 crore allocated for 2024-25, India still faces significant literacy challenges, with 25.76 crore individuals remaining non-literate.
