The document summarizes several current affairs items from December 16, 2021. It discusses the following key points: 1. The Union Cabinet approved a bill seeking amendments to the Representation of People Act, including optionally linking Aadhaar to electoral rolls to prevent duplicate entries. 2. The Cabinet approved a Rs. 76,000 crore scheme to develop the semiconductor and display manufacturing ecosystem in India over six years. 3. The Cabinet cleared raising the legal marriage age of women in India from 18 to 21 years. 4. Indian Army Chief Gen. Naravane assumed the role of Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee following the passing of the previous Chief of Defence Staff.

1. CURRENT AFFAIRS
16 DECEMBER 2021
Dr. A. PRABAHARAN
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2. Union Cabinet clears bill seeking
amendments to Representation of the
People Act
 The Union Cabinet on December 15, 2021 reportedly approved a
bill on electoral reforms that includes a proposal to link electoral
roll with Aadhaar on a voluntary basis to root out multiple
enrolments.
 The proposed bill is likely to be introduced in the ongoing Winter
Session of the Parliament. The bill proposes to make several
amendments to the Representation of the People Act.
 Following are the proposed amendments to Representation of the
People Act-
 1. Gender Neutral Process for Service Voters
 The bill cleared by the Union Cabinet proposes to make the
electoral process gender-neutral for service voters.
 As per the current provision, while an army man's wife is entitled to
be enrolled as a service voter, an army woman officer's husband is
not. The new bill may change this.
 The poll panel had asked the law ministry earlier to replace the
term wife' with spouse' in the provision related to service voters in
the Representation of the People Act.
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3. Semiconductor in India: Scheme worth Rs.
76,000 crores approved for semiconductor
manufacturing in India
 Union Cabinet on December 15, 2021, gave its approval to a budget of
Rs. 76,000 crores for the designing and manufacturing of
semiconductor chips in the country.
 The amount has been sanctioned for an ambitious project named
‘Programme for Development of Semiconductors and Display
Manufacturing Ecosystem’ and it will be spent over a span of six years.
 Elaborating more on the semiconductor scheme in India, Union Minister
Ashwini Vaishnaw said that a historic decision has been taken in the field
of Electronics in which the development of a complete ecosystem will
take place in India.
 The country reached USD 75 billion in electronic manufacturing in 7
years and in the next 6 years, it will reach USD 300 billion.
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4. Cabinet approves proposal to raise legal
marriage age of women from 18 to 21 years
 Union Cabinet on December 15, 2021 cleared a bill to raise women's legal
marriage age from 18 to 21 years after reviewing a proposal from a
specially constituted task force.
 The task force had made its recommendations after holding extensive
consultations with experts and young adults, especially young women.
 The present legal marriageable age for women is 18 years and for men it is
21 years. The decision to raise the marriageable age of women will bring
the marriageable age of men and women at par.
 Prime Minister Narendra Modi had first announced this plan during his
Independence Day address in 2020.
 As per reports, following the cabinet's approval of the proposal of raising
the marriageable age of women, the centre is expected to introduce an
amendment to the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act, 2006 and
consequently bring amendments to the Special Marriage Act and personal
laws such as the Hindu Marriage Act, 1955.
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5. Army Chief Gen Naravane assumes charge
as Chairman of Chiefs of Staff Committee
 Indian Army Chief Gen MM Naravane has taken charge as the
Chairman of Chiefs of Staff Committee comprising the three service
chiefs.
 The post of the Chairman of Chiefs of Staff Committee had fallen
vacant after the death of the Chief of Defence Staff Bipin Rawat in the
IAF helicopter crash in Tamil Nadu on December 8, 2021.
 Army Chief Gen MM Naravane has been appointed as the current
Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee because of his seniority
among the three service Chiefs.
 The Chief of Indian Air Force V R Chaudhari and the Chief of Indian
Navy Admiral R Hari Kumar took over their respective positions on
September 30 and November 30, 2021.
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6. Who is Indian-American Mathematician
Nikhil Srivastava who helped solve famous
1959 problem?
 Nikhil Srivastav, a genius Indian-American Mathematician, has been jointly
selected for the inaugural Ciprian Foias Prize in Operator Theory by AMS
(American Mathematical Society). Nikhil Srivastava teaches at the University of
California, Berkeley.
 The two other awardees along with mathematician Nikhil Srivastava are David
Spielman and Adam Marcus.
 The prestigious prize will be awarded to Indian-American Mathematician Nikhil
Srivastava and his colleagues on January 5, 2022.
 It will be conferred at the 2022 Joint Mathematics Meeting in Seattle which is
also described as the largest mathematics gathering around the world.
 Daniel Spielman is a Sterling Professor of Computer Science, a professor of
mathematics, and a professor of data science and statistics.
 While Adam Marcus holds the Chair of Combinatorial Analysis at EPFL in
Switzerland.
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7. Durga Puja in Kolkata on UNESCO list
 Durga Puja in Kolkata has been included by UNESCO in its
representative list of 'Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity'. It is
now among the 14 Indian elements on the ICH list.
 UNESCO tweeted, "Durga puja is now inscribed on the UNESCO
Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity! 14
ICH elements from India have been inscribed on this list by the
Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of Intangible
Cultural Heritage."
 PM Narendra Modi tweeted that it is a matter of great pride and joy for
every Indian. He said that 'Durga Puja highlights the best of our
traditions and ethos. "Kolkata Durga Puja is an experience everyone
must have," PM Modi added.

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8. Vijay Diwas 2021
 Vijay Diwas in India is celebrated annually on December 16 to
commemorate the country’s victory over Pakistan in the 1971 war leading to
the creation of Bangladesh. India on Vijay Diwas 2021 pays homage to the
soldiers who fought bravely during the war which ultimately helped the
Indian Armed Forces in establishing their prowess.
 Vijay Diwas on December 16, 2021, marks the 50th-anniversary celebrations
of India’s glorified victory over Pakistan in the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation
war.
 Vijay Diwas in India is not only a day of India’s victory over Pakistan during
the 1971 Indo-Pak war but is also a day that played a crucial role in
establishing strong relations between India and Bangladesh.
 To commemorate the 50th anniversary of Vijay Diwas 2021, Prime Minister
Modi via tweet recalled the sacrifice made during the Indo-Pak 1971 war.
 He also added that both India and Bangladesh forces, together, fought and
defeated the oppressive forces.
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