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UPSC Daily Current Affairs 26 March 2021
1. Rangghar
(Topic- GS Paper I–Art and Culture, Source- Hindu)
Why in the news?
• Recently, the political party in Assam has posted posters near Rangghar, the centrepiece of Ahom architecture present in SibSagar.
About Rangghar
• It is a 18th century building, considered Asia’s oldest amphitheatre, is more than just a landmark in eastern Assam’s Sivasagar. • It symbolises Assamese cultural pride, was witness to the birth of the outlawed United Liberation Front of Asom in April 1979 and most recently, the movement against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act.
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• It served as the royal sports-pavilion where Ahom kings and nobles were spectators at games like buffalo fights and other sports at Rupahi Pathar (pathar meaning "field" in Assamese) - particularly during the Rongali Bihu festival in the Ahom capital of Rangpur.
2. Lachit Borphukan
(Topic- GS Paper I–Art and Culture, Source- Hindu)
Why in the news?
• Recently, in the run-up to the polls in Assam, the name of Ahom general Lachit Borphukan, credited with defeating the Mughals in the Battle of Saraighat (1671), has been frequently invoked.
About Lachit Borphukan
• He was a general during the 17th Century period of the Ahom dynasty which was credited with defeating the Mughals (Aurangzeb) in the Battle of Saraighat (1671) on the Brahmaputra. • It was one of the greatest achievements of the Ahom Kingdom and a sheer epitome of tactical brilliance, perfect use of terrain, guerrilla warfare and intelligence gathering. • He is remembered as the greatest military hero of Assam. • The Tai-Ahom ethnic communities, seen as the descendants of the Ahom dynasty who reside in Upper Assam, represent Assamese sub-nationalism. • According to Arup Kumar Dutta, author of the book The Ahoms, Borphukan represents a time when the “Assamese race was united and able to fight an alien, formidable force such as the Mughals”.
3. “Zabarwan Range” of J&K
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(Topic- GS Paper I–Geography, Source- Hindu)
Why in the news ?
• The Prime Minister through a tweet has recently asked everyone to visit a tulip garden in Jammu and Kashmir which was located at the foothills of the Zabarwan range.
About Zabarwan Range
• It is a short sub-mountain range between Pir Panjal and Great Himalayan Range which is located in the central part of the Kashmir Valley. • The highest peak of this range is Mahadev Peak.
National Park
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• Dachigam National Park is the main feature of the range.
4. Electoral bond scheme
(Topic- GS Paper II–Governance, Source- Hindu)
Why in the news?
• The Supreme Court has recently reserved its order on a plea seeking a stay on the sale of fresh electoral bonds ahead of state assembly elections in West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Assam and the Union Territory of Puducherry.
What are electoral bonds?
• It was announced in the 2017 Union Budget. • The Electoral bonds are securities/ instruments which can be used to donate money to the political parties. • These bonds are like promissory notes or bearer bond in which the (bank) issuer is the custodian and is liable to pay the political parties holding the bonds. • The electoral bonds are interest-free bearer instruments. • A bearer instrument does not carry any information about the buyer or payee and the holder of the instrument (which is the political party) is presumed to be its owner. • The bonds are sold in multiples of Rs 1,000, Rs 10,000, Rs 1 lakh, Rs 10 lakh, and Rs 1 crore.
Authorized
• The State Bank of India (SBI) is the only bank authorised to sell them. • Donors can purchase and subsequently donate the bonds to their party of choice, which the party can then cash through its verified account within 15 days.
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• There is no limit on the number of bonds an individual or company can purchase. • SBI deposits bonds that a political party hasn’t enchased within 15 days into the Prime Minister’s Relief Fund.
When are the bonds available for purchase?
• The electoral bonds are available for purchase for 10 days in the beginning of every quarter. • The first 10 days of January, April, July and October has been specified by the government for purchase of electoral bonds. • An additional period of 30 days shall be specified by the government in the year of Lok Sabha elections.
Electoral bonds: Conditions
1. Any party that is registered under section 29A of the Representation of the Peoples Act, 1951 (43 of 1951) and has secured at least one per cent of the votes polled in the most recent General elections or Assembly elections is eligible to receive electoral bonds. 2. The party will be allotted a verified account by the Election Commission of India (ECI) and the electoral bond transactions can be made only through this account. 3. The electoral bonds will not bear the name of the donor. 4. Thus, the political party might not be aware of the donor's identity.
Amendment in the Acts
• The Finance Act of 2017 has made various amendments in the Representation of People Act (RoPA), 1951, the Companies Act and the Income Tax Act. • The finance act of 2016 makes some changes in the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act of 2010.
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• The amendments in the RoPA make provisions for the political parties that keeping the records of fund donations received through electoral bonds to them is not required. • The amendment in Income Tax Act allowed anonymous contributions to political parties whose donation amount is upto Rs 20,000/-. • The political parties don't need to disclose the details of donations in these cases. Most of the donations of the political parties come under this category. • The amendments in the Finance Act of 2016 also allowed the process of donations from foreign companies which are having majority stake in Indian companies
5. The Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Amendment Bill, 2021
(Topic- GS Paper II–Social Issue, Source- Hindu)
Why in the news ?
• Recently the Parliament has passed the The Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Amendment Bill, 2021. • The Bill amends the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015. • The Act contains provisions related to children in conflict with law and children in need of care and protection.
Key highlight of the bill
• The Bill seeks to introduce measures for strengthening the child protection setup.
Serious offences
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In Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015
• The Act provides that the Juvenile Justice Board will inquire about a child who is accused of a serious offence. • Serious offences are those for which the punishment is imprisonment between three to seven years.
New Amendment
• The Bill adds that serious offences will also include offences for which maximum punishment is imprisonment of more than seven years, and minimum punishment is not prescribed or is of less than seven years. • The Act provides that an offence which is punishable with imprisonment between three to seven years will be cognizable (where arrest is allowed without warrant) and non-bailable. • The Bill amends this to provide that such offences will be non- cognizable.
Punishment
• The Act provides that an offence against children under the Act, punishable with imprisonment of a term more than seven years, will be tried in the children’s court. • Other offences (punishable with imprisonment less than seven years) will be tried by any Judicial Magistrate.
Designated Court
• The Bill proposes that all offences under the Act be tried in children’s court.
Adoption
In Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015
• The Act prescribes the procedure for the adoption of children by prospective adoptive parents from India and abroad.
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• On the acceptance of the child by prospective adoptive parents, a specialised adoption agency applies to a civil court to obtain the adoption order. • The adoption order issued by the court establishes that the child belongs to the adoptive parents. • As per the Act, in cases where a person living abroad intends to adopt a child from his relative in India, he is required to obtain an adoption order from the court.
New Amendment
• The Bill provides that instead of the court, the District Magistrate (including Additional District Magistrate) will issue such adoption orders.
Appeals
• The Act provides that there will be no appeal for any order made by a Child Welfare Committee finding that a person is not a child in need of care and protection
New Amendment
• The Bill provides that any person aggrieved by an adoption order passed by the District Magistrate may file an appeal before the Divisional Commissioner, within 30 days from the date of passage of such order. • Such appeals should be disposed within four weeks from the date of filing of the appeal. • The Bill removes this provision.
Child Welfare Committees (CWCs)
• The Act provides that states constitute one or more CWCs for each district for dealing with children in need of care and protection. • It provides certain criteria for the appointment of members to CWC.
For instance, an appointee should be:
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(i) involved in health, education, or welfare of children for at least seven years, or (ii) a practising professional with a degree in child psychology, psychiatry, law, or social work.
The Bill specifies certain additional criteria for the appointment of CWC members
It provides that a person will not eligible to be a member of the CWC if he:
• has any record of violation of human rights or child rights, • has been convicted of an offence involving moral turpitude, and such conviction has not been reversed, • has been removed or dismissed from service of the central government, or any state government, or an undertaking owned by the government, or • is part of the management of a child care institution in a district
6. Hunger Hotspots : Report
(Topic- GS Paper II–Social Issue, Source- Down To Earth)
Why in the news?
• The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and World Food Programme (WFP) have recently warned in a report tital Hunger HotSpot that Acute hunger may rise in over 20 countries in the coming months.
Key highlight of the Report
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• According to the report, Yemen, South Sudan and northern Nigeria topped the list with populations facing catastrophic levels of acute hunger and starvation. • A majority of the affected countries mentioned in the report are in Africa, including Burkina Faso, Somalia, Central African Republic, Niger, Sierra Leone, Madagascar, Mali and El Salvador, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Sudan, South Sudan and Mozambique. • The other countries where acute hunger is set to worsen include Afghanistan, Syria, Venezuela, Haiti, Guatemala, Zimbabwe, Honduras, and Mozambique.
The drivers of Acute Hunger
• Conflict, novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, economic blows, extreme climate weather and locust outbreaks were among the key drivers of acute food insecurity. • In several African countries such as the Sudan, Zimbabwe, Sierra Leone and Liberia, elevated levels of currency depreciation and food inflation continued to reduce people’s purchasing power, the report stated.
Action needed
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• The report called for short-term actions in each hunger hotspots, including scaling up food and nutrition assistance, distributing drought-tolerant seeds, treating and vaccinating livestock, rolling out cash-for-work schemes, rehabilitating water-harvesting structures and increasing income opportunities for vulnerable communities.
Related Information
Types of hunger
Acute Hunger
• Acute hunger (famine) designates undernourishment over a definable period. • It is the most extreme form of hunger and arises frequently in connection with crises like droughts due to El Niño, wars and disasters.
Chronic hunger
• Chronic hunger designates a state of long-term undernourishment. • The body absorbs less food than it needs.
Hidden hunger
• It is a form of chronic hunger. • Due to an unbalanced diet, important nutrients are lacking, such as iron, iodine, zinc or vitamin A.
7. India-US to re-establish Homeland Security Dialogue
(Topic- GS Paper II–International relation, Source- Hindu)
Why in the news?
• Recently, the Biden administration has announced the re-establishment of the Homeland Security Dialogue with India that was discontinued by the previous Trump dispensation.
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What is Homeland Security Dialogue?
• It is an initiative of the Obama administration. • It was announced by Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh and President Barack Obama in November 2010 as part of the global strategic partnership between India and the United States. • The first India-US Homeland Security Dialogue was held in May 2011. • The second India-US Homeland Security Dialogue was held in Washington DC in 2013. • The dialogue at the ministerial level were not scheduled after 2013 though working groups set up as part of the dialogue continued to engage on several areas of mutual concern and issues.
Significance
• The Homeland Security Dialogue is quite important because the United States and India both have shared concerns about terrorism. • It enables open lines of communications and rapport between our leading officials can ensure better coordination, keeping citizens from both nations safer. • Some emerging areas of concern require regular consultations likeboth nations are being regularly targeted with cyber-attacks. • Sharing information on sources of these attacks, the tactics, and potential countermeasures will be very helpful.
8. National Commission for Allied and Healthcare Professions Bill 2021
(Topic- GS Paper II–Social Issue ( Health), Source- Hindu)
Why in the news ?
• Parliament has recently passed the National Commission for Allied and Healthcare Professions Bill 2021.
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Objective
• The Bill seeks to regulate and standardize the education and practice of allied and healthcare professional
Key Provisions of the bill
• The Bill defines ‘allied health professional’ as an associate, technician, or technologist trained to support the diagnosis and treatment of any illness, disease, injury, or impairment. • Such a professional should have obtained a diploma or degree under this Bill. • The duration of the degree /diploma should be at least 2,000 hours (over a period of two to four years)
Healthcare professional:
• A ‘healthcare professional’ includes a scientist, therapist, or any other professional who studies, advises, researches, supervises, or provides preventive, curative, rehabilitative, therapeutic, or promotional health services. • Such a professional should have obtained a degree under this Bill.
National Commission for Allied and Healthcare Professions
• The Bill sets up the National Commission for Allied and Healthcare Professions.
The Commission will consist of:
• Chairperson • Vice-Chairperson • Five members (at the level of Joint Secretary) representing various Departments/ Ministries of the central government • One representative from the Directorate General of Health Services,
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• Three Deputy Directors or Medical Superintendents appointed on a rotational basis from amongst medical institutions including the AIIMS, Delhi and AIIPMR, Mumbai, and • 12 part-time members representing State Councils, among others
Functions of the Commission
The Commission will perform the following functions with regard to Allied and Healthcare professionals:
• framing policies and standards for regulating education and practice, • creating and maintaining an online Central Register of all registered professionals, • providing basic standards of education, courses, curriculum, staff qualifications, examination, training, maximum fee payable for various categories, and • providing for a uniform entrance and exit examination, among others.
Professional Councils
• The Commission will constitute a Professional Council for every recognised category of allied and healthcare professions. • The Professional Council will consist of a president and four to 24 members, representing each profession in the recognised category. • The Commission may delegate any of its functions to this Council.
State Councils
• State governments will constitute State Allied and Healthcare Councils.
Establishment of institutions
Prior permission of the State Council will be required to:
a. establish a new institution, or b. open new courses, increase the admission capacity, c. admit a new batch of students to existing institutions
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Significance
• It seeks to regulate and standardise the education and practice of allied and healthcare professionals in the country. • It is aimed at fulfilling long-pending demands of the sector, and enhances employment opportunities for professionals. • With the registration, and standardisation of professions, the Bill would ensure generation of more employment. • This standardisation will also improve distribution of professionals across the country, especially in rural and peripheral areas. • Inclusion of professionals such as dieticians, physiotherapists etc, makes the healthcare system multi-disciplinary.
9. National Aquifer Mapping and Management program (NAQUIM)
(Topic- GS Paper III–Environment, Source- Hindu)
Why in the news?
• Recently, the Minister of State for Jal Shakti has informed that out of nearly 33 lakh sq km geographical area of the country, a mappable area of around 25 lakh sq km has been identified by the CGWB to be covered under National Aquifer Mapping and Management program.
About National Aquifer Mapping and Management program
• NAQUIM was initiated in 2012 as a part of the ‘Ground Water Management and Regulation’ scheme.
Objective
• It objectives are to delineate and characterize the aquifers and develop plans for sustainable ground water management in the country.
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Implementing Agency
• Central Ground Water Board (CGWB) is implementing National Aquifer Mapping and Management program (NAQUIM). • They envisage mapping of aquifers (water bearing formations), their characterization and development of Aquifer Management Plans to facilitate sustainable management of Ground Water Resources. • The CGWB is responsible for organizing Public Interaction Programme (PIP) regularly in order to facilitate participation at grassroots levels for the discussion related to aquifer maps and management plans,
The vision of the programme is to:
• Identify and map aquifers at the micro level; • Quantify the available groundwater resources; and • Propose plans appropriate to the scale of demand and aquifer characteristics, and institutional arrangements for participatory management.
About Central Ground Water Board (CGWB)
• It is a subordinate office of the Ministry of Jal Shakti. • It is the National Apex Agency entrusted with the responsibilities of providing scientific inputs for management, exploration, monitoring, assessment, augmentation and regulation of ground water resources of the country. • It is a multi-disciplinary scientific organization consisting of Hydro-geologists, Geophysicists, Chemists, Hydrologists, Hydro-meteorologists and Engineers.
Background
• It was established in 1970 by renaming the Exploratory Tube wells Organization under the Ministry of Agriculture and it was merged with the Ground Water Wing of the Geological Survey of India during 1972.
10 . Cats & Dogs infected by UK Variant of Coronavirus
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(Topic- GS Paper III–Science and Technology, Source- Hindu)
Why in the news?
• Recently, the first few cases have been reported of cats and dogs being infected with the so-called “UK variant” of the coronavirus also known as B.1.1.7 • It is of great concern that some of the infected animals have also been diagnosed with a heart condition known as myocarditis.
About Myocarditis
• Myocarditis is an inflammation of the heart muscle that decreases the ability of the heart to pump blood normally. • It can be caused by a number of factors, including a viral infection. • The severity of symptoms varies; in extreme cases, patients of myocarditis can suddenly lose consciousness or show signs of heart failure.
Connection with Covid-19 and Myocarditis
• The UK paper does not establish the coronavirus infection as the cause for myocarditis in the animals; it notes that among people, myocarditis associated with multisystem inflammatory syndrome is a well-recognised complication of Covid-19. • The association between myocarditis and B.1.1.7 152 infection in domestic pets has to be acknowledged and addressed. • Most of the owners and handlers of these pets with myocarditis had developed Covid-19 respiratory symptoms within 3-6 weeks before their pets became ill, and many of these owners had tested PCR-positive for Covid-19,” • The researchers examined eight cats and three dogs, among which three tested positive for B.1.1.7 and three more showed antibodies.
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