www.tnpsc.academy – TNPSC Current Affairs April 27, 2019

www.tnpsc.academy – TNPSC Current Affairs April 27, 2019 (27/04/2019)

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Topic: International Diary of Events

Exit Visa system and Kafala

Qatar is set to abolish its controversial exit visa system for all foreign workers by the end of 2019. The new law allows most workers to leave the country without exit permits from their employers.

Background:

Qatar has introduced a series of labour reforms since its selection as the 2022 World Cup host, with the event setting in motion a huge construction programme employing foreign workers.

In September 2018, Qatar approved legislation to scrap the “kafala”, or sponsorship, system which required that foreign workers obtain permission from their employers to leave the country.

As part of its pledge to reform the labour section, Qatar has also introduced a monthly minimum wage of 750 riyals ($206) and agreed to work closely with the ILO, which now has an office in the capital.

What is kafala?

The ‘kafala’ system is a system that lays down obligations in the treatment and protection of foreign ‘guests’. Kafala means ‘to guarantee’ or ‘to take care of’ in Arabic.

Under the system, a migrant worker’s immigration status is legally bound to an individual employer or sponsor (‘kafeel’) during the contract period. The migrant worker cannot enter the country, transfer employment nor leave the country for any reason without first obtaining explicit written permission from the kafeel.

When did the kafala system start?

The kafala system began in the 1950s when several Middle East countries started hiring foreign workers to accelerate development following the discovery of oil.

Where is the kafala system practiced?

It is being practiced in the Gulf Cooperation Council member countries of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, and also in the Arab states of Jordan and Lebanon.

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Topic: General Administration, Profile of States, Latest Diary of Events

Khasi ‘kingdoms’ to revisit 1947 agreements

A federation of 25 Himas or Khasi kingdoms that have a cosmetic existence today, plan to revisit the 1948 agreements that made present-day Meghalaya a part of India.

Need:

The revisiting is aimed at safeguarding tribal customs and traditions from Central laws in force or could be enacted, such as the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill.

Background:

During the British rule, the Khasi domain was divided into the Khasi states and British territories. At that time, the British government had no territorial right on the Khasi states and they had to approach the chiefs of these states if they needed land for any purpose.

After independence, the British territories became part of the Indian dominion but the Khasi states had to sign documents beginning with the Standstill Agreement that provided a few rights to the states.

The 25 Khasi states had signed the Instrument of Accession and Annexed Agreement with the Dominion of India between December 15, 1947, and March 19, 1948. The conditional treaty with these states was signed by Governor General Chakravarty Rajagopalachari on August 17, 1948.

The Khasi states, though, did not sign the Instrument of Merger unlike most other states in India.

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Topic : Eminent persons in News, World Organizations

Arunachalam Muruganantham ranks 45th in list of Fortune’s World’s 50 Greatest Leaders

Social entrepreneur from Coimbatore Arunachalam Muruganantham has joined some of the global leaders in the list of World’s 50 Greatest Leaders 2019 by Fortune Magazine. He is ranked 45th in the list released recently.

About him:

Arunachalam Muruganantham (Padman) is a social entrepreneur from Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu, India. He is the inventor of a low-cost sanitary pad-making machine and is credited for innovating grassroots mechanisms for generating awareness about traditional unhygienic practices around menstruation in rural India.

His mini-machines, which can manufacture sanitary pads for less than a third of the cost of commercial pads, have been installed in 23 of the 29 states of India. He is currently planning to expand the production of these machines to 106 nations.

The movie Period. End of Sentence. won the Academy Award for the Best Documentary (Short Subject) for the year 2018.