BHAVISHYA Portal

• It is an online Pension Sanction & Payment Tracking System launched by the Department of Pension & Pensioners’ Welfare.
• The aim of this portal is to ensure payment of all retirement dues and delivery of Pension Payment Order (PPO) to retiring employees on the day of retirement itself.
• The system obviates delays in payment of pension by ensuring complete transparency.
• The platform was made mandatory for all central government departments since 01.01.2017.

The Dam Safety Act, 2021

• The Act provides for the surveillance, inspection, operation, and maintenance of specified dams across the country. 
• It also provides for an institutional mechanism to ensure the safety of such dams.
• Applicability: The Act applies to all specified dams in the country. 
• These are dams with: (i) height more than 15 metres, or (ii) height between 10 metres to 15 metres and subject to certain additional design and structural conditions.
• National Committee on Dam Safety: It will be constituted and will be chaired by the Chairperson, Central Water Commission.
• All other members will be nominated by the central government.
• National Dam Safety Authority: It will be headed by an officer, not below the rank of an Additional Secretary, who will be appointed by the central government. 
• State Dam Safety Organisation: State governments will establish State Dam Safety Organisations (SDSOs). 
• All specified dams situated in a state will fall under the jurisdiction of that state’s SDSO. 
• However, in certain cases the National Dam Safety Authority will act as the SDSO. 
• These include cases where a dam: (i) is owned by one state but situated in another state, (ii) extends over multiple states, or (iii) is owned by a central public sector undertaking.

• The new Northern Ireland Protocol Bill was unveiled recently by the UK government.

The Northern Ireland Protocol

• After the UK left the European Union, Northern Ireland remained its only constituent that shared a land border with an EU-member, the Republic of Ireland.
• EU and UK having different product standards, checks would be necessary before goods could move from Northern Ireland to Ireland.
• However, the two sides have had a long history of conflict, with a hard-fought peace secured only in 1998 under the Belfast Agreement, also called the Good Friday agreement.
• Fiddling with this border was thus considered too dangerous, and it was decided the checks would be conducted between Northern Ireland and Great Britain.
• This was called the Northern Ireland Protocol.
• Under the protocol, Northern Ireland remains in the EU single market, and trade-and-customs inspections of goods coming from Great Britain take place at its ports along the Irish Sea.

The Northern Ireland Protocol Bill

• The new bill was unveiled by the UK government.
• It has justified itself using the “doctrine of necessity”, claiming that breaking this law was its only way to serve crucial domestic interests.
• The checks have made trade between Great Britain and Northern Ireland cumbersome, with food products, specially, losing out on shelf life while they wait for clearance.
• Some taxation and spending policies of the UK government can’t be implemented in Northern Ireland because of EU rules.

Main features of the bill

• The bill’s main proposals are that a ‘green lane’ with fewer clearances be created for goods that will remain in Northern Ireland.
• While a more stringent ‘red lane’ looks at goods destined for the EU.
• Spending and tax policies for Northern Ireland be decided only by London.
• Disputes be resolved not through the European Court of Justice, but through independent arbitration and negotiations.
• It also proposes that businesses in Northern Ireland be allowed to choose between UK or EU standards.

Article 300A (Right to Property)

• It states that no person shall be deprived of his property save by authority of law.
• A slew of Supreme Court decisions on Article 300A, including in the Indian Handicrafts Emporium case, has held that right to property was a “constitutional right”.
• Article 300A was inserted shortly after the Emergency through the Constitution (44th Amendment) Act of 1978.
• While it is inherent for a sovereign state to exercise its power of eminent domain over private property, the deprivation of the property should be for a public purpose and was subject to judicial review.
• Mere executive fiats cannot be used to take away a person’s property, the court has held.

Hate Speech Law

• India does not have a formal legal framework for dealing with hate speech.
• However, a cluster of provisions, loosely termed hate speech laws deal with offences against religions.
• Section 295A defines and prescribes a punishment for deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or religious beliefs.
• Section 153A of the Indian Penal Code penalises promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, etc, and doing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony.
• Section 505 of the IPC punishes statements conducing to public mischief.