64 Political Parties Participated in General Elections 2014

The 16^th General Elections saw participation of 464 political parties. This comprises 6 national parties, 39 state parties and 419 unrecognized parties. In the 2009 General Elections, 363 parties participated, comprising 7 national parties, 34 state parties and 322 unrecognized parties.

The total number of registered parties was 1,687 before General Elections 2014; this comprised 6 national parties, 47 state parties and 1,634 unrecognized parties. The total number of registered parties was 1,060 in 2009. The increase in the total number of parties from 764 in 2004 to 1,687 in 2014 has been largely due to the rise in the number of unrecognized parties from 702 in 2004 to 1,634 in 2014.

Participation of Political Parties in General Elections

Year	Party Type	Registered	Participated
2004	National Parties	6	6
	State Parties	56	36
	Unrecognized Parties	702	173
	Total Registered Parties	764	215
2009	National Parties	7	7
	State Parties	39	34
	Unrecognized Parties	1014	322
	Total Registered Parties	1060	363
2014	National Parties	6	6
	State Parties	47	39
	Unrecognized Parties	1634	419
	Total Registered Parties	1687	464

RM/DJM

Computerised Booking of Retiring Rooms on Indian Railways

Indian Railways provides lodging facility through retiring rooms to its passengers at stations spread across the country. The Retiring Room Application has been developed to computerize the booking of retiring rooms at the railway stations.

At present, booking of retiring rooms has been computerized at 67 stations. The Rooms can be booked on computer terminals placed at these stationsas well as on internet through the website www.railtourismindia.com. Currently, booking / cancellation, up-gradation and extension are available in the retiring room application.

Some of the basic features of retiring room application are given below:-

•         The Rooms can be booked in advance (up to 60 days) through internet as well as on terminals at stations,

•         Based on the booked PRS ticket PNR No. at the Source and Destination stations.

•         The facility of booking of retiring room is available only on Confirmed and RAC tickets.

•         The Rooms can be booked  2 days in advance based on UTS tickets, Railway Passes and other travel authorities only on terminals at stations.

43 Delegates From 18 Countries Witness Lok Sabha Elections 2014

The Election Visitors Programme (EVP) conducted by the Election Commission of India simultaneously with the Lok Sabha elections 2014 came to a successful close today. The Electoral Commissioner of Mauritius and the UNDP Resident Representative visited a Counting Centre here today as part of the Election Visitors Programme. This is a part of the South-South Cooperation initiative of the Election Commission of India. The programme, run in partnership with UNDP, attracted a huge response. 

The countries which participated are Namibia, Nigeria, Lesotho, Malaysia, Mauritius, Myanmar, Nepal, Uganda, Kenya, Bhutan and several member-countries of the League of Arab States (Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, Somalia, Palestine, Iraq, Yemen and Oman). 

The delegates were divided into groups and each group was given a briefing at ECI, followed by field visits to an elections location, again followed by another interaction at ECI. The election locations were in Karnataka, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Himachal Pradesh and Delhi. In addition, ECI also facilitated field visits to Election locations by 30 trainees who were undergoing training at its training institute, IIIDEM. 

Diplomats posted in New Delhi and a group of Malaysian Parliamentarians also witness the Lok Sabha elections in various states. In all, over 140 visitors from more than 30 countries had the occasion to get first hand exposure to the largest electoral event in the world. 

All delegates, without exception, were impressed by the magnitude of the electoral exercise, and the numbers involved. All of them complimented the ECI on overseeing a mammoth event and ensuring that it was free and fair, transparent and peaceful. They expressed their admiration for the orderly and meticulous discharge of duties by the polling teams. They were impressed with the extensive measures implemented under ECI’s Systematic Voters Education and Electoral Participation Programme and many of them requested for information/implementation documents for adoption/replication in their countries. The use of technology in different areas of election management came in for high praise, and a lot of wonder and admiration from various delegates. Most of them wanted to explore the use of EVMs, VVPAT, webcasting, live monitoring of movement of men, materials and vehicles in their own countries. 

Simplification of Operational Guidelines for Opening of self Financing Units of NSS

National Services Scheme (NSS) is a flagship programme of the Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports, being implemented since 1969 with the objective of developing the personality and character of the student youth through voluntary community service. Currently, there are about 32.5 lakhs NSS volunteers in senior secondary schools, colleges and universities, but the same is less than 15% of the student strength eligible to join NSS. The expansion of the NSS has been constrained by the availability of funding support from the Government. 

The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports had introduced the framework for opening of the self-financing units of NSS in October, 2007 so that expansion of NSS network can continue irrespective of the availability of Government funding. However, the SFUs mechanism has met with limited success. Total enrolment under SFUs is only about one lakh volunteers so far. 

Based on feedback from all concerned stakeholders, the Ministry has decided to simplify the Operational Guidelines for setting up of SFUs. Accordingly, the requirements regarding Application Form/ Supporting Documents has been greatly simplified and the power to sanction SFUs has been delegated to a State Level Committee of the University and the Regional Centre Head of NSS. The Revised guidelines have since been notified and can be seen on the NSS website. It is expected that this step shall go a long way in further popularizing the NSS movement in the country. 

Overall Facts at A Glance of 7th Polling Day on 30th April, 2014

S. No.	STATE/UTs	Seats Polling	Total Electorate	Total No. of Contesting Candidates	No. of Observers	No. of Polling Stations	No. of EVMs to be used	No. of Personnel deployed
1.	Andhra Pradesh	17/42	28174056	265	42	30574	187600	Not Available
2.	Bihar	7/40	11042043	94	17	10157	21800	58215
3.	Gujarat	26/26	40603111	334	63	45380	114594	234011
4.	J & K	1/6	1207193	14	5	1546	3092	6942
5.	Punjab	13/13	19608177	253	40	22022	63279	Not Available
6.	Uttar Pradesh	14/80	24694034	233	34	25380	65416	109641
7.	West Bengal	9/42	13957381	87	22	17332	34664	Not Available
8.	Dadra & Nagar Haveli	1/1	207458	11	2	163	239	Not Available
9.	Daman & Diu	1/1	111057	4	4	119	49	Not Available
	Total	89	139604510	1295	299	152673	490733	408809

Form Expert Committee to decide New Capital for Successor State of Andhra Pradesh

The Centre has  constituted the following Committee known as the Expert Committee to study the various alternatives regarding the new Capital for the successor State of Andhra Pradesh and make appropriate recommendations in pursuant to the Section 6 of the Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2014: -

a)         Shri K C Siva Ramakrishnan, IAS (Retd.), Research Professor & Chairman, Governing Board, CPR – Chairman

b)         Dr.Rathin Roy, Director, National Institute of Public Finance & Policy, New Delhi

c)         Shri Aromar Revi, Director, Indian Institute for Human Settlements, Bengaluru

d)         Prof.Jagan Shah, Director, National Institute of Urban Affairs, New Delhi

e)         Prof. K T Ravindran, Former Dean School of Planning and Architecture, New Delhi

 The Terms of Reference of the Committee are as follows:

1. To study various alternatives for locating the new capital of the successor State of Andhra Pradesh and evaluate their comparative suitability based on available data, site visits and consultations with the stakeholders, central government and the existing government of Andhra Pradesh and the successor State of Andhra Pradesh and submit its report within 31st August, 2014.

2. To evaluate the possible alternatives and make appropriate recommendations based on the following considerations:

a) Availability of sufficient land, water and other essential natural resources with due regard to the possibility of de-reservation of degraded forest land.

b) Conduct an assessment of the potential for planned growth for the estimated population with appropriate zoning regulations as well as the feasibility of accommodating large structures to house the Raj-Bhawan, State Legislature (Assembly and Council), Secretariat, High Court, office buildings, guest houses, residential quarters and physical infrastructure including stadia, conference halls, convention centres, hotels, hospitals, schools, colleges, educational and training institutions, libraries, museums, theatres, places of recreation and tourism, parks and markets etc.

c) Potential for connectivity by rail, road and air with various districts of the successor State of Andhra Pradesh and the present common capital of Hyderabad and other major cities of the region as well as the possibility to develop rapid mass transit systems within the city.

d) Assess the potential for developing a vibrant economic, social and cultural infrastructure for a symbiotic growth with the other important cities in the region.

3.         The Committee while making its recommendations will inter-alia consider allied issues such as: a) The least possible dislocation to existing agriculture systems as well as ensure minimum resettlement of people and their habitations. b) Preservation of local ecology and natural features including water bodies. c) Promoting environmentally sustainable growth coupled with measures for pollution mitigation including solid and liquid waste management. d) Vulnerability assessment from natural disasters like floods, cyclones and earthquakes. e) Assess the scope for minimizing the cost of construction and acquisition of land f) Ascertain the availability of raw materials, skilled and unskilled labour etc. required for the construction of a new capital.

  

Any suggestion which is specific to the issues mentioned in the terms of reference of the committee that any member of public or any organisation would like to give to the committee may be communicated by E mail to: feedback.expcomt@mha.gov.in or in writing to Centre-State Division, Ministry of Home Affairs, Govt. of India, 5th Floor, NDCC –II Building, Jaisingh Road, N.Delhi 110001 latest by 7th May 2014.

Photo journalists need to be aware of legal rights to combat piracy- Chief Justice of India Shri P Sathasivam

Chief Justice of India Confers 3rd National Photography Awards
Life-Time Achievement Award Given To Shri Rajesh Bedi, Eminent Photographer 13 Awards given in various categories

The 3^rd National Photography Awards were conferred today by the Honorable Chief Justice of India Shri P Sathasivam to eminent photojournalists at a function held in the National Media Centre. The Hon’ble Chief Justice conferred 13 awards in various categories which included the Life-Time Achievement Award to eminent photographer Shri Rajesh Bedi. Awards were also conferred in the Special Mention Category for both Amateur and Professional segments.

Speaking on the occasion, Hon’ble Chief Justice of India, Shri P. Sathasivam said that due to the daunting sphere of piracy in the domain of photojournalism, professional photographers must be aware of their lawful rights in order to flourish as professionals in their field. While Copyright protection did exist, it was necessary for the photojournalists to register their copyrights for enforcing their rights in case there were instances of infringements.

Elaborating further, the Chief Justice stated that the perusal of this process by photojournalists would not only protect their work, it would also register their copyrights making it easier to track down potential infringers and enable them to obtain a license legitimately for their creative work thereby avoiding the hassle of litigation. The Chief Justice also stated that photography had become an integral part of human life and thus could no longer be considered an affluent hobby. The initiative by the Photo Division was an acknowledgement of the vision  and effort put in by the pioneers of the Indian Photographic Movement. 

       Speaking earlier on the occasion, Shri Bimal Julka, Secretary, Ministry of Information & Broadcasting, said that through the efforts of Photo Division, the photography as a medium had acquired a new meaning. Digitization had become the accepted norm and technology had become the driving force in this field. The Photo Division through its fully featured systems had brought about innovation in various aspects of photography. The different awards conferred in the various categories was an attempt to capture the growth of professionalism and creativity within the growing dimensions of photojournalism.

Appreciating the award winners, the Secretary said that in an age, when almost everyone owns a camera, only a few had mastered the art of using lens to perfectly capture the best moments. It was the endeavor of the Ministry to ensure that the awards encouraged people to take up photography as a profession. The awards were also a testimony to the diversity in India as far as creative instinct for photography was concerned.

The profile of the 3^rd National Photo Award Winners is as follows: 

           The Life-Time Achievement Award has been conferred on Shri Rajesh Bedi, a renowned photographer of the country, who has made long and outstanding contribution in the various fields of photography at the national and international level. Shri Bedi is regarded as one of the finest photographers of Indian Wild life. His photographic work has also contributed in reflecting the various dimensions and development of the society. His works have appeared in nearly all distinguished international magazines such as National Geographic, Life, Geo, The Audubon Society Book and in various encyclopedias.

            In the Professional Category, the ‘Best Professional Photographer of the Year 2012-13’ has been given to Shri J. Suresh, a renowned photographer and photojournalist who has made commendable accomplishments in social, environmental and wild life photography. Currently, working as Chief Photographer in Malayala Manorama Daily, he is winner of numerous national and international awards including Press Council of India National Awards for Excellence in Photo Journalism 2013.

            Special Mention Awards (Professional) have been given to Shri Atul Yadav, Shri Dinesh Shukla, Shri Chauhan Pravinsinh R, Shri Sudipto Das and Shri Dipayan Bhar. 

           In the Amateur Category, the ‘Best Amateur Photographer of the Year 2011-12’ has been given to Shri Kingshuk Chakravarty, a computer science researcher. He focuses on street and documentary style of photography and has been awarded many accolades including People & Cultures Runner-up in London School of Photography, Performance Award in HPA 2013; 2nd Prize in Indian Himalayan Photography Competition 2013.

           Special Mention Awards (Amateur) have been given to Shri Sandipan Majumdar, Shri Alok Avinash, Shri Asis Kumar Sanyal, Shri Devendra and Shri Avijit Roy.

The theme for Professional Photographer category was “Women Empowerment” while Amateur Photographer category’s theme was 'Indian Culture'.

These awards involved cash prizes of around Rupees 17 lakhs with the “Life Time Achievement Award” winner receiving Rs.1,50,000/- , while the “Best Photographer of the year” in the Professional and Amateur category getting Rs.1,00,000/- and Rs.75,000/- respectively. The “Special Mention Award” winners received prize money of Rs.15,000/- each in Professional, and Rs.10,000/- each in Amateur category.  Besides this, Medals / Plaques, Citations were also conferred on all the Award Winners.