• Seven Congress members were recently suspended for unruly behaviour in the Lok Sabha.
• The motion was passed by a voice vote.

Procedure for Suspension of Members of the Parliament

• The general principle is that it is the role and duty of the Speaker of Lok Sabha to maintain order so that the House can function smoothly.
• In order to ensure that proceedings are conducted in the proper manner, the Speaker is empowered to force a Member to withdraw from the House (for the remaining part of the day), or to place him/her under suspension.
• Rule 373 – Speaker’s power to direct a Member to withdraw immediately from the House.
• Rule 374 – To deal with more recalcitrant Members
• Under this rule, Speaker may suspend a member through moving and adopting a motion for suspension.
• Rule 374A – This clause was incorporated to skirt around the necessity of moving and adopting a motion for suspension.
• Under this rule, Member shall, on being named by the Speaker, stand automatically suspended from the service of the House for five consecutive sittings or the remainder of the session, whichever is less.

Procedure for revocation of a Member’s suspension

• While the Speaker is empowered to place a Member under suspension, the authority for revocation of this order is not vested in her.
• It is for the House, if it so desires, to resolve on a motion to revoke the suspension.

In Rajya Sabha

• Unlike the Speaker, the Rajya Sabha Chairman does not have the power to suspend a Member.
• Suspension will only happen through moving and adoption of a motion.

• Central Adoption Resource Authority (CARA) is a Statutory Body of Ministry of Women and Child Development, Government of India which promotes and facilitates In –country adoption and regulates Inter-country adoption as Central Authority under the Hague Convention for Inter-country adoptions.
• It is also mandated to frame regulations on adoption related matters from time to time as per Section 68 of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015.

• The Beti Bachao Beti Padhao (BBBP) scheme was launched by the Prime Minister of India, on 22nd January, 2015 at Panipat, Haryana as a comprehensive programme to address the declining Child Sex Ratio (CSR) and the related issues of empowerment of women over a life-cycle continuum.
• Expanded in a phased manner and currently being implemented in all the 640 districts of the country, BBBP is a step towards the nation’s resolve to accomplish gender equality by promoting and prioritizing the needs and rights of the girl child.
• The scheme is a tri-ministerial initiative of the central government ministries of Women & Child Development, Human Resource Development and Health & Family Welfare.

• International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (MARPOL)
• The MARPOL Convention was adopted on 2 November 1973 at IMO. 
• The Convention includes regulations aimed at preventing and minimizing pollution from ships - both accidental pollution and that from routine operations - and currently includes six technical Annexes.
• Special Areas with strict controls on operational discharges are included in most Annexes.
• India is a party to MARPOL 73/78 and has ratified Annexes I to V.

• To promote inland water transport in the country as an economical, environment friendly supplementary mode of transport to rail and road, 111 inland waterways (including 5 National Waterways declared earlier) were declared as ‘National Waterways’ under the National Waterways Act, 2016.  
• Out of these 111 waterways, 25 NWs are inter-state NWs.
• National Waterway (NW)-1 (Ganga-Bhagirathi-Hooghly river system from Allahabad to Haldia) in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand & West Bengal; NW-2 (River Brahmaputra from Dhubri to Sadiya) in Assam; NW-3 (West Coast Canal from Kottapuram to Kollam along with Udyogmandal and Champakara Canals) in Kerala, have already been developed with fairway navigational aids, jetties and terminals with mechanized equipment handling facilities for loading and unloading of cargo. 
• These NWs are operational and vessels are plying on them.
• In addition, NW-10 (river Amba), NW-68 (river Mandovi), NW-73 (river Narmada), NW-83 (Rajpuri Creek), NW-85 (Revadanda Creek - Kundalika River System), NW-91 (Shastri river–Jaigad creek system), NW- 97 (Sunderbans Waterways), NW-100 (river Tapi) and NW-111 (river Zuari) are also operational.

• A dam proposed on the River Human (pronounced Hooman) at Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve (TATR) in Chandrapur district threatens to submerge more than 90 per cent of a 7-km forest area.
• The project not only falls in TATR buffer zone, but also the eco-sensitive zone of Ghodazari Wildlife Sanctuary closeby.
• It will break the only linking corridor for tiger movement between TATR, Ghodazari and Umred-Karhandla wildlife sanctuaries in the state of Maharashtra.

• A dam proposed on the River Human (pronounced Hooman) at Tadoba Andhari Tiger Reserve (TATR) in Chandrapur district threatens to submerge more than 90 per cent of a 7-km forest area.
• The irrigation project is to be built across Human River in Wainganga/Godavari basin near Sirkada village in Sindewadi tehsil of Chandrapur district.
• The Human River is a tributary of Andhari river, which ultimately joins Wainganga.
• The Wainganga is a river in India originating in the Mahadeo Hills in Mundara, Madhya Pradesh.
• It is a key tributary of the Godavari.

• NITI Aayog’s Women Entrepreneurship Platform is organising the Fourth Edition of the Women Transforming India Awards (WTI) 2019 on International Women’s Day, Sunday, 8 March 2020.
• The WTI will recognize 30 finalists and 15 winners will be felicitated.
• On this occasion, the Women Entrepreneurship Platform also completes two years since its inception.
• The Women Transforming India Awards, instituted four years ago, is NITI Aayog’s endeavour to recognise and celebrate stories of exceptional women change makers from across India.
• Since 2018, the Women Transforming India Awards have been hosted under the aegis of the Women Entrepreneurship Platform on the theme of ‘Women and Entrepreneurship’.