The Election Commission of India raised the cap of minimum votes a political party must secure in election to get the status of a State party or maintain it further. The new minimum limit is 8 per cent of total valid votes polled in State Assembly or Lok Sabha polls. Earlier, the limit was 6 per cent. In addition, the party must have returned at least two members to the Legislative Assembly in case of Assembly polls or at least one member in Parliament from the State in case of Lok Sabha elections.

In Jammu and Kashmir, the Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojna, jointly sponsored by the Centre and State governments was formally launched by State Health and Family Welfare Ministry in Srinagar on 13 October 2011. The scheme has been initially launched in the twin capital districts of Jammu and Srinagar and will be gradually extended to all the districts of the State.

The Save Sarmila Campaign was flagged off by Magsaysay award winner Sandeep Pandey on 16 October 2011. The campaign was launched in Srinagar demanding the revocation of the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA) from Jammu and Kashmir and the northeast.

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Amendment to the election law in Egypt

Egypt's military council amended a contentious election law to allow parties to contest a third of the seats in Parliament reserved for independents. Egypt’s military decided to cancel Article 5 of the election law, which reserved a third of seats for independents. The three-round Parliamentary election will start on 28 November 2011, which will be the first since an uprising that toppled President Hosni Mubarak on 11 February 2011.

Russia and China vetoed UN Security Council draft resolution on Syria

Russia and China on 5 October 2011 vetoed UN Security Council draft resolution recommending sanctions against Syria for the ongoing crackdown on Protesters.The resolution was moved by EU (European Union) member countries and backed by USA.

Israel and Hamas Prisoner Swap

The first ever prisoner swap between Israelis and the radical Palestinian group Hamas took place at the Rafah crossing on 18 October 2011. Israel’s abducted soldier Gilad Shalit was handed over to Egyptian authorities and in exchange, 477 Palestinian prisoners were released by Israel.

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India and Iran agreed to set up a mechanism for payment of crude oil and ensure bilateral trade. Both sides agreed that the mechanism will cover the payment to Indian exporters and some other areas. The two countries have decided to continue their dialogue on the issue. Earlier, Iran had threatened to stop crude oil supplies to India if a mechanism to pay for imports is not found quickly. India has to pay Iran 9 billion dollars, which is now seven months in arrears.

India signed three agreements with Afghanistan for both the countries greater strategic partnership. The agreements were signed between Afghanistan President, Hamid Karzai and India’s Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in new Delhi when President Karzai was on a two day visit to India.

The fifth summit of IBSA (India-Brazil-South Africa ) was held in Pretoria, South Africa .. India, Brazil and South Africa, issued a joint declaration at the end of the summit, which condemned terrorism in all its forms and manifestations.

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