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1 Content AGRICULTURE ______5

SCHEME FOR CREATION OF INFRASTRUCTURE FOR AGRO-PROCESSING CLUSTER (APC) ______5 XOO INFECTION ______5 BIOTECH-KISAN PROGRAMME ______6 DISASTER MANAGEMENT ______6

DIFFERENCE BETWEEN PMNRF AND PMCARES ______6 ECONOMY ______9

INTEREST SUBVENTION SCHEME FOR ETHANOL DISTILLERIES ______9 PETROLEUM, CHEMICAL AND PETROCHEMICAL INVESTMENT REGIONS (PCPIRS)______10 FINANCIAL STABILITY BOARD (FSB) ______11 ATMANIRBHAR BHARAT ROJGAR YOJANA ______11 ARISE-ANIC INITIATIVE ______12 SYSTEM FOR ASSESSMENT, AWARENESS AND TRAINING IN HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY (SAATHI) ______12 PAYMENT INFRASTRUCTURE DEVELOPMENT FUND (PIDF) SCHEME ______13 NATIONAL MIGRANT INFORMATION SYSTEM (NMIS) ______14 WORLD MIGRATION REPORT 2020 ______14 E-WAY BILL SYSTEM ______15 PRIME MINISTER EMPLOYMENT GENERATION PROGRAM (PMEGP ______15 SHRAMSHAKTI PORTAL ______16 HUMAN CAPITAL INDEX 2020 ______16 DOMESTIC SYSTEMICALLY IMPORTANT INSURERS ______17 TURANT CUSTOMS ______18 K.V. KAMATH COMMITTEE ______18 COUNTER-CYCLICAL FISCAL POLICY ______19 ENVIRONMENT ______19

ENHANCED TRANSPARENCY FRAMEWORK OF PARIS PROTOCOL ______19 TAJ TRAPEZIUM ZONE (TTZ) ______21 MICROBIAL DECOMPOSER CAPSULE ______21 ACTION PLAN IMPROVING AIR QUALITY ______22 INTERNATIONAL SOLAR ALLIANCE (ISA) ______22 UNESCO GLOBAL GEOPARKS ______23 ARCTIC AMPLIFICATION______23 MADHUCA DIPLOSTEMON ______24 PLASTIC PARKS SCHEME ______24 LIVING PLANET REPORT 2020 ______25 ASIAN WATERBIRD CENSUS-2021 ______25 MANUFACTURED SAND (M-SAND) ______26 MANAGEMENT EFFECTIVENESS EVALUATION (MEE) OF PROTECTED AREAS (PAS) ______27 NATURAL CAPITAL ACCOUNTING AND VALUATION OF ECOSYSTEM SERVICES (NCAVES) ______27 MEALWORMS FOR HUMAN CONSUMPTION ______27 DRAGON ______28 AQUA REJUVENATION (ARP) ______28 GREEN TAX TO BE IMPOSED ON OLDER VEHICLES ______29 KALINGA FROG ______29 LEUSER ECOSYSTEM ______30 SPIKE DISEASE ______30 ETHICS ______31

WORLD ANTI DOPING AGENCY (WADA)______31 JournalsOfIndia.ComFOREIGN AFFAIRS ______31 POST-BREXIT DEAL AND ITS CONSEQUENCES ______31 ’S DRAFT ARCTIC POLICY ______32 STATUS OF RESIDENCE TO SPECIFIED SKILLED WORKERS IN JAPAN ______33 GREAT FIREWALL OF CHINA ______33 THE OFFICE OF THE HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR (OHCHR) ______34 THE INTERGOVERNMENTAL NEGOTIATIONS FRAMEWORK ON UNSC REFORMS ______34 2 WORLD ECONOMIC FORUM ______35 GEOGRAPHY ______35

MEDICANES ______35 MODERN GRAND SOLAR MINIMUM ______36 GOVERNANCE ______36

NATIONAL DIGITAL HEALTH MISSION (NDHM) ______36 AADHAAR PAYMENT BRIDGE SYSTEM ______37 SKOCH CHALLENGER AWARD ______38 NATIONAL COMMISSION FOR MINORITIES (NCM)______38 DIGITAL QUALITY OF LIFE INDEX 2020 ______39 BHADBHUT PROJECT ______39 HISTORY ______40

BUDDHIST CIRCUIT ______40 PRABUDDHA BHARATA ______40 LAW AND POLICY ______40

PADHNA LIKHNA ABHIYAN ______40 MISSION PURVODAYA ______41 UN CONVENTION RIGHT OF PERSON WITH DISABILITY(UNCRPD) ______41 E-VIN ______42 SWAMITVA SCHEME ______43 PM SHRAMIK SETU PORTAL ______43 FOOD FORTIFICATION SCHEME ______44 DRAFT PERSONAL DATA PROTECTION BILL, 2019 ______45 DATA GOVERNANCE QUALITY INDEX ______45 O-SMART SCHEME ______46 VAN DHAN PROGRAMME ______46 DIKSHA PORTAL ______47 IRON ORE POLICY 2021 ______47 BODOLAND TERRITORIAL REGION (BTR) AGREEMENT ______48 PRADHAN MANTRI RASHTRIYA BAL PURASKAR ______49 AYU SAMVAD CAMPAIGN ______49 INDIAN SIGN LANGUAGE (ISL) ______50 MEKEDATU PROJECT ______50 GRANT IN AID FOR RURAL LOCAL BODIES UNDER 15TH FINANCE COMMISSION ______51 SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY ______51

REUSABLE LAUNCH VEHICLE TECHNOLOGY DEMONSTRATION PROGRAMME(RLV-TD) ______51 GAGANYAAN MISSION ______52 MARS ORBITER MISSION (MOM) ______52 CHANDRAYAAN MISSION ______53 SOLAR MISSION______54 METROLITE AND METRO NEO ______55 ARTEMIS ACCORD ______55 NATIONAL MISSION ON INTERDISCIPLINARY CYBER-PHYSICAL SYSTEM (NMICPS) ______56 SMART ANTI-AIRFIELD WEAPON (SAAW) ______57 AQUAPONICS ______57 DATA SONIFICATION ______57 SEED BALL TECHNIQUE ______58 TRADITIONAL KNOWLEDGE DIGITAL LIBRARY (TKDL) ______58 INDIAN SARS-COV-2 GENOMICS CONSORTIUM (INSACOG) ______59 DRAFT NATIONAL SCIENCE TECHNOLOGY AND INNOVATION POLICY ______59 JournalsOfIndia.ComNEW REGULATIONS OF FSSAI ON TRANS FATS ______60 H5N8 SUBTYPE OF INFLUENZA A VIRUS ______61 NATIONAL ATOMIC TIMESCALE ______62 VIGYAN JYOTI AND ENGAGE WITH SCIENCE (VIGYAN PRASAR) ______62 GENDER ADVANCEMENT FOR TRANSFORMING INSTITUTIONS (GATI) ______63 INDIA INNOVATION INDEX 2020 ______63 SECURITY ______64 3 INDIGENOUSLY DEVELOPED LASER DAZZLER FOR ARMED FORCES ______64 MUKTI BAHINI ______64 S-400 ANTI-MISSILE SYSTEM ______65 DRAFT DATA CENTRE POLICY, 2020 ______65 SOCIETY ______66

LONGITUDINAL AGEING STUDY OF INDIA (LASI) ______66 GLOBAL INDEX 2020 ______66 PEOPLE IN NEWS______67

RUKMINI DEVI ARUNDALE ______67 C V RAMAN ______67 SREE NARAYANA GURU ______68 BASAVANNA AND HIS CONTRIBUTIONS ______69 SAINT THIRUVALLUVAR ______69 SUSHRUTA AND HIS CONTRIBUTIONS ______70 BIJU PATNAIK ______70 PLACES IN NEWS ______71

STRATEGIC PETROLEUM RESERVE (SPR) INDIA ______71 ______71 GIST OF ECONOMIC SURVEY ______72

ECONOMIC SURVEY-2021: THEME OF THE SURVEY ______72 ECONOMIC SURVEY-2021: SAVING LIVES AND LIVELIHOODS AMIDST A ONCE-IN-A-CENTURY CRISIS______73 ECONOMIC SURVEY-2021: SOCIAL INFRASTRUCTURE, EMPLOYMENT AND HUMAN DEVELOPMENT ______74 ECONOMIC SURVEY-2021: STATE OF THE ECONOMY IN 2020-21: A MACRO VIEW ______76 ECONOMIC SURVEY-2021: FISCAL DEVELOPMENTS ______80 ECONOMIC SURVEY-2021: INEQUALITY AND GROWTH: CONFLICT OR CONVERGENCE? ______82 ECONOMIC SURVEY-2021: PROCESS REFORMS______84 ECONOMIC SURVEY-2021: EXTERNAL SECTOR ______87 ECONOMIC SURVEY-2021: MONEY MANAGEMENT AND FINANCIAL INTERMEDIATION- ______90 ECONOMIC SURVEY-2021: SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT AND CLIMATE CHANGE ______94 ECONOMIC SURVEY-2021: AGRICULTURE AND FOOD MANAGEMENT ______94

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4 AGRICULTURE Scheme for Creation of Infrastructure for Agro-Processing Cluster (APC) In News- The government has approved seven projects to create infrastructure for agro-processing clusters with an estimated cost of ₹235 crore under the Scheme for Creation of Infrastructure for Agro-Processing Cluster (APC).

About Scheme for Creation of Infrastructure for APC:

● The Ministry of Food Processing Industries has formulated the Scheme as a sub-scheme of Central Sector Scheme 'Pradhan Mantri Kisan Sampada Yojana (PMKSY)'.

● The scheme aims at development of modern infrastructure to encourage entrepreneurs to set up food processing units based on cluster approach.

● The scheme is to be implemented in the area of horticulture/agriculture production identified through a mapping exercise.

● The Scheme envisages grants-in-aid at 35% of eligible project cost in general areas and at 50% of eligible project cost in the North East States and Himalayan States.

● Components of the Scheme include enabling infrastructure like development of industrial plots, boundary wall, roads, drainage, water supply, electricity supply, effluent treatment plant, parking bay, weigh bridges, common office space etc...

● Core infrastructure including common facilities will be based on the needs of the units which will be set up in these clusters.

Pradhan Mantri Kisan Sampada Yojana- ● In 2016, the Ministry of Food Processing Industries (MoFPI) introduced an umbrella Scheme for Agro- Marine Processing and Development of Agro-Processing Clusters (SAMPADA), which was proposed to be implemented with an allocation of Rs. 6,000 crores for the period of 2016-20. ● In 2017, it was renamed as the Pradhan Mantri Kisan Sampada Yojana (PMKSY). ● It is a Central Sector Scheme. ● Seven component schemes under PMKSY include Mega Food Parks, Integrated Cold Chain and Value Addition Infrastructure, Infrastructure for APC, Creation of Backward and Forward Linkages, Creation/Expansion of Food Processing and Preservation Capacities, Food Safety and Quality Assurance Infrastructure, Human Resources and Institutions. Xoo Infection

In News- Scientists from the Centre for Plant Molecular Biology (CPMB) have uncovered the mechanism by which bacterium called Xoo causes disease in rice . About Xoo-

● Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae (Xoo) causes a serious bacterial blight disease in rice and causes huge yield losses to rice cultivation. ● It is also known as Bacterial blight. JournalsOfIndia.Com● Xoo is a gram-negative bacteria. ● Xoo infection initiates from the leaf sheath and eventually spreads to mature through the water flow under optimum temperature and high humidity conditions (Vascular disease).

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Prevention-

● The most-common method of defending against rice bacterial blight is the cultivation of rice varieties with genes that confer resistance to Xoo infection. ● Over 30 resistance genes, termed Xa1 to Xa33, have been identified in rice plants, and some, such as Xa21, have been integrated into the genomes of commercial rice strains. ● However, the introduced resistance genes provide only race-specific resistance that will prevent infections by only specific strains of Xoo. ● Treatment of rice with cellulase, a cell wall degrading enzyme secreted by Xoo induces rice immune responses and protects rice from subsequent infections by Xoo.

Biotech-KISAN Programme

● Biotech-KISAN programme is a farmer-centric scheme under the Department of Biotechnology, Ministry of Science and Technology.

● Biotech-Krishi Innovation Science Application Network (Biotech-KISAN) programme plays an important role in taking innovative biotechnologies to the farmers.

● It is a pan-India program, following a hub-and-spoke model.

● It has a unique feature to identify and promote local farm leadership in both genders.

● It aims to understand the problems of water, soil, seed and market faced by the farmers and provide simple solutions to them.

● Currently, there are a total of eight Biotech-KISAN Hubs in different Agro-climatic Zones. DISASTER MANAGEMENT Difference between PMNRF and PMCARES

What is PMNRF?

● Prime Minister's National Relief Fund (PMNRF) is the fund raised to provide support for people affected by natural and man made disasters. ● In pursuance of an appeal by the then Prime Minister, Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru in January, 1948, it was established with public contributions to assist displaced persons from Pakistan. ● The resources of the PMNRF are now utilized primarily to render immediate relief to families of those killed in natural calamities like floods, cyclones and earthquakes, etc. and to the victims of the major accidents and riots. ● To undertake and support relief or assistance of any kind relating to a public health emergency or calamity or distress, either man-made or natural. ● To render financial assistance, provide grants of payments of money or take such other steps as may be deemed necessary by the Board of Trustees to assist the affected population. JournalsOfIndia.Com What is the PM CARES Fund?

● The Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund (PM CARES) is a public charitable trust.

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● It has been set up keeping in mind the need for having a dedicated fund with the primary objective of dealing with any kind of emergency or distress situation, like posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, and to provide relief to the affected Differences and similarities between PMNRF and PM CARES Fund

Areas of difference PMNRF PM CARES Fund

Establishment It was set up in 1948 with public contributions PM CARES Fund was created on to assist displaced persons from Pakistan. 27 March 2020, following the COVID-19 pandemic in India.

Head The Prime Minister heads the Prime Minister's The Prime Minister is National Relief Fund. Chairperson (ex-officio) of the PM CARES Fund and Minister of Defence, Minister of Home Affairs and Minister of Finance, are ex- officio Trustees of the Fund.

Administration ● The fund is administered on an The fund is administered on an Honorary basis by Joint Secretary to the honorary basis by a Joint Prime Minister as Secretary of the fund. Secretary (Administration) in the ● He is assisted on Honorary basis by an PMO as Secretary to the fund, Officer of the rank of Director. who is assisted on honorary basis by an Officer of the rank of Director/Deputy Secretary (Administration) in the PMO.

The Prime Minister’s Office provides such administrative and secretarial support to the Trustees for the management and administration of the Trust, as may be required by the Trustees.

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Disbursement of the The disbursement out of the fund is made at The Trustees of the PM CARES fund the discretion of the Prime Minister, and in Fund have powers to formulate accordance with the Prime Minister's rules/criteria for carrying out any directions of the Objectives of the Trust.

Donations/contributions ● PMNRF accepts only voluntary ● PM CARES Fund accepts contributions by individuals and voluntary contributions by institutions. individuals/organizations ● Contributions flowing out of budgetary as well as contributions as sources or from the balance sheets of part of CSR from the Public Sector Undertakings are not Companies/Public Sector accepted. Undertakings (PSUs). ● Donations in foreign currency may be ● However, contributions made to PMNRF flowing out of budgetary sources of the PSUs are not accepted. ● It is also exempt from the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act, 2010, and accepts foreign contributions

Legal framework PM CARES Fund has been registered as a Public Charitable Trust. The trust deed of PM CARES Fund has been registered under the Registration Act, 1908 at New Delhi on 27th March, 2020.

Audit ● The PMNRF is audited by an PM CARES Fund is audited by an independent auditor outside the independent auditor. Government. At present, Sarc & Trustees of the Fund during the Associates, Chartered Accountants are 2nd meeting held on 23.04.2020 the auditors. decided to appoint M/s SARC & Associates, Chartered Accountants, New Delhi as the auditors of PM CARES Fund for 3 years. JournalsOfIndia.Com

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Tax benefits ● This fund is exempted from Income Tax ● All contributions towards under Section 10(23)(c). the PM CARES Fund are ● All contributions towards the PMNRF 100% exempt from Income are exempted from Income Tax under Tax under Section 80(G) of Section 80(G). the Income Tax Act, 1961 for those who opt for the old tax slabs. ● The fund is exempted from paying Income Tax as per Section 10(23)(c) of Income Tax Act, 1961

CSR activities The facility of getting uncapped corporate Companies donating to the PM donations is not available to the PMNRF or the Cares Fund are allowed to Chief Minister's Relief Fund in states. In fact, earmark their contribution under the previous CSR guidelines restricted the use the Corporate Social of corporate donations to fund government Responsibility (CSR). schemes.

Utilization of the fund ● A very large proportion of the funds It can be utilized for following stands committed to be utilized in a activities phased manner for various schemes • To undertake and support announced by PM. relief or assistance of any ● Funds are also earmarked for medical kind relating to a public assistance, floods, drought, terrorist health emergency or any violence and other such unforeseen other kind of emergency, occurrences, with a reserve for calamity or distress, either emergencies. man-made or natural, ● The PMNRF provides financial • To render financial assistance to indigent patients for assistance, provide grants treatment of major diseases at of payments of money or Government/PMNRF empanelled take such other steps as hospitals to partially defray the may be deemed necessary expenses. by the Board of Trustees to assist the affected population.

ECONOMY InterestJournalsOfIndia.Com Subvention Scheme for Ethanol Distilleries

In news- The Union Cabinet approved the expansion of interest subvention scheme to provide financial assistance for enhancement of ethanol distillation capacity from -based distilleries along with molasses-based distilleries.

More about it- 9

The expanded interest subvention scheme will fuel investment of about Rs.40,120 crore in the ethanol value chain, encouraging ‘Urja-Kheti’, which will augment farmer’s income, transform our ‘annadatas’ into ‘urjadatas’ and contribute to the overall vision of Atma Nirbhar Bharat.

Status of Ethanol blending-

● Ethanol Blended Petrol (EBP) programme was launched in January, 2003. ● EBP programme was launched in 9 States i.e. Maharashtra, , Goa, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab, , , and 4 Union Territories. ● The Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas (MoP&NG) in 2006, directed the Oil Marketing Companies (OMCs) to sell 5% Ethanol Blended Petrol subject to commercial viability in 20 States and 4 UTs with effect from 1st November, 2006. ● At present, this programme has been extended to the whole of India except Union Territories of Andaman Nicobar and Lakshadweep islands wherein OMCs sell petrol blended with ethanol up to 10%. ● The blending percentage of ethanol in petrol has gone up from 1.53% in 2013-14 to 5% in 2019-20 and estimated to be 8.5% in 2020-21. ● Newly proposed Ethanol Blending Policy has proposed a roadmap, which would “increase blending by states from 5 percent to 12-15 percent by 2026, and then increase to 20 percent by 2030.” ● Under the proposed policy, the government is likely to allow use of grain for ethanol and is likely to allow use of maize to supplement ethanol supplies from cane/molasses in the next two-three months. ● To fix transportation challenges the policy will enable creation of pipeline infrastructure for ethanol movement.

Petroleum, Chemical and Petrochemical Investment Regions (PCPIRs) In news- New PCPIR Policy 2020-35 of Andra Pradesh moots central funding for infrastructure.

About PCPIRs- ● Four PCPIRs were declared by the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers, Govt. of India under PCPIR Policy 2007.

● At present, four PCPIRs policies are being implemented in the States of

a. Andhra Pradesh (Visakhapatnam)

b. Gujarat (Dahej)

c. Odisha (Paradeep) and

d. Tamil Nadu (Cuddalore and Nagapattinam)

● PCPIRs are being implemented to promote investment and industrial development in these sectors.

● Once fully established, these four PCPIRs are expected to attract investment of around Rs. 7.63 lakh crore.

● PCPIRs are envisioned with high-class common infrastructure and support services to provide a competitive JournalsOfIndia.Comenvironment conducive for setting up businesses.

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Financial Stability Board (FSB) In news- The Financial Stability Board (FSB) of G20 issued a report, “Implications of Climate Change for Financial Stability,”. Key highlights of the report-

● It investigates channels through which climate-related risks might impact the financial system. ● It examines potential mechanisms within the financial system that might amplify the effects of climate- related risk as well as the cross-border transmission of risks. ● According to it different types of climate-related risks (e.g., physical and transition) may occur simultaneously, which might amplify their effect on the financial system.

About the Financial Stability Board (FSB)-

● The Financial Stability Board is an international body that monitors and makes recommendations about the global financial system. ● It was established after the G20 London summit in April 2009 as a successor to the Financial Stability Forum. ● At the Pittsburgh Summit, the Heads of State and Government of the G20 endorsed the FSB’s original Charter of 25 September 2009 which set out the FSB’s objectives and mandate, and organisational structure.

Atmanirbhar Bharat Rojgar Yojana

In news- The Union Cabinet has approved the Atmanirbhar Bharat Rojgar Yojana which is one of the schemes announced by the Finance Minister under Atmanirbhar Bharat Package 3.0 in November 2020.

Key features of the scheme-

● It is launched to boost employment in the formal sector and incentivize creation of new employment opportunities during the Covid recovery phase. ● The scheme is to be operational for the period 2020-2023. ● An employee drawing a monthly wage of less than Rs. 15000/- who was not working in any establishment registered with the Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) before 1st October, 2020 and did not have a Universal Account Number (UAN) or EPF Member account number prior to 1st October 2020 is eligible. ● Any EPF member possessing UAN and drawing monthly wage of less than Rs. 15000/- who made exit from employment during Covid pandemic from 01.03.2020 to 30.09.2020 and did not join employment in any EPF covered establishment up to 30.09.2020 is also eligible. ● Eligible establishments are those registered with EPFO if they add new employees compared to reference base of employees as in September, 2020 as under:

- minimum of two new employees if the reference base is 50 employees or less. - minimum of five new employees if the reference base is more than 50 employees. JournalsOfIndia.Com Benefits for establishments-

● Government of India will provide subsidy for two years in respect of new employees engaged on or after 1st October, 2020 and upto 30th June, 2021 at following scale-

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- Establishments employing up to 1000 employees: Employee’s contributions (12% of Wages) & Employer’s contributions (12% of wages) totalling 24% of wages - Establishments employing more than 1000 employees: Only Employee’s EPF contributions (12% of EPF wages)

What is the Universal Account Number(UAN)? ● UAN is a 12-digit unique number assigned to every employee contributing to the EPF. ● It is generated and allotted by the Employee Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) and authenticated by the Ministry of Labour and Employment, Government of India. ● On 1 October 2014, the government of India launched Universal Account Number for Employees covered by EPFO to enable PF number portability.

ARISE-ANIC Initiative

In news- ISRO, as a part of ARISE-ANIC Initiative, announced that it will be adopting 100 Atal Tinkering Labs across the country to promote education in the field of STEM, Space education and space technology related Innovations for school students.

About ARISE-ANIC Initiative-

● Atal Innovation Mission (AIM), NITI Aayog, launched the Atma Nirbhar Bharat ARISE-Atal New India Challenges, to spur applied research and innovation in Indian MSMEs and startups. ● The programme is driven by ISRO, four ministries- ○ Ministry of Defence ○ Ministry of Food Processing Industries ○ Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and ○ Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs—and associated industries to facilitate innovative solutions to sectoral problems. ● The Aatmanirbhar Bharat ARISE-ANIC program is national initiative to promote research & innovation and increase competitiveness of Indian startups and MSMEs. ● It supports deserving applied research–based innovations by providing funding support of up to Rs 50 lakh for speedy development of the proposed technology solution and/or product. ● The objective is also to provide a steady stream of innovative products & solutions where the Central Government Ministries / Departments will become the potential first buyers.

System for Assessment, Awareness and Training in Hospitality Industry (SAATHI) In news- Recently, the Vice President of India called for leveraging tourism potential to enhance India’s soft power globally & also referred to SAATHI) for COVID-19 safety and hygiene.

SAATHI programme-

JournalsOfIndia.Com● To assist the hospitality industry in their preparedness to continue operations safely and mitigate risks arising out of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Ministry of Tourism has partnered with the Quality Council of India (QCI), to assist the Hospitality Industry through an initiative called SAATHI. ● The idea is not only to sensitize the industry on the COVID regulations by the government but also to instil confidence amongst the staff and guests that the hospitality unit has exhibited intent towards ensuring safety and hygiene at the workplace.

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10 elements of SAATHI-

1. Management Commitment 2. Hygiene and Sanitization 3. Safety Advisories in Hotel Operations 4. Communication, Training & Awareness 5. Preventive Measures 6. Transport Management 7. Vendor Management 8. Ventilation 9. Waste Management 10. Control of Discriminatory Practices

Phases of SAATHI-

1. Self-Certification: Provides detailed understanding of the Guidelines/Key-elements to be followed. A self- certification is issued by the hotel. 2. Webinars: Self-certified Hotels/units attend webinars to clarify doubts through live interactions. 3. Site-assessment (optional): Checks on-ground implementation of the SOPs/ Guidelines and identifies gaps.

Any accommodation unit registered on NIDHI (National Integrated Database of Hospitality Industry) can apply for SAATHI.

Payment Infrastructure Development Fund (PIDF) scheme

In news- Recently, the RBI announced the operationalization of PIDF scheme.

Key features of the scheme-

● The PIDF scheme is intended to subsidise deployment of payment acceptance infrastructure in tier-3 to tier-6 centres, with a special focus on the north-eastern states of the country. ● An advisory council (AC) under the chairmanship of RBI deputy governor BP Kanungo has been constituted for managing the PIDF. ● PIDF will be operational for three years effective from January 1, 2021 and may be extended for two more years. ● The PIDF presently has a corpus of Rs 345 crore, with Rs 250 crore contributed by the RBI and Rs 95 crore by the major authorised card networks in the country. ● RBI has stated that the authorised card networks shall contribute in all Rs 100 crore. ● Card issuing banks must contribute Rs 1 and Rs 3 for every new debit and credit card issued by them during the year. ● Focus shall be to target those merchants who are yet to be terminalized (merchants who do not have any payment acceptance device) JournalsOfIndia.Com● Merchants engaged in services such as transport and hospitality, government payments, fuel pumps, public distribution system (PDS) shops, healthcare and kirana shops may be included, especially in the targeted geographies. ● Tentatively, tier-3 and tier-4 centres will be allocated 30% of the acceptance devices, tier-5 and tier-6 centres will get 60% and the north eastern states will be given 10%. ● A subsidy of 30% to 50% of cost of physical PoS and 50% to 75% subsidy for Digital PoS shall be offered 13

● Payment methods that are not interoperable shall not be considered under the PIDF. ● The subsidy shall not be claimed by applicants from other sources like the NABARD etc... ● The subsidy claims shall be processed on a half-yearly basis and 75% of the subsidy amount shall be released. ● The balance 25% shall be released later subject to the status of the device being active in three out of the four quarters of the ensuing year. ● The maximum cost of physical acceptance devices eligible for the subsidy will be Rs 10,000, including one- time operating costs up to Rs 500. ● The maximum cost of digital acceptance devices eligible for subsidy will be Rs 300, including a one-time operating cost up to Rs 200. ● The implementation targets shall be monitored by the RBI with assistance from card networks, the Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) and the Payments Council of India (PCI).

National Migrant Information System (NMIS)

In news- National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) launched NMIS to capture the information regarding movement of migrants recently.

About the NMIS-

● NDMA has developed an online dashboard NMIS on an existing NDMA-GIS portal which would maintain a central repository on migrant workers and help in speedy inter-State communication/coordination to facilitate their smooth movement to native places. ● It has additional advantages like contact tracing, which may be useful in overall COVID-19 response work. ● States will be able to visualize how many people are going out from where and how many are reaching destination States. ● As many States have already collected migrant data, this can be integrated through Application Programming Interface (API). ● The key data upload pertaining to the persons migrating has been standardised such as the name, age, mobile no, originating and destination district and date of travel ● Central Ministries can also monitor the movement of migrants through this portal. ● The IDs of people moving by a particular train will be given to Railways by the origin State, when giving the requisition of trains.

World Migration Report 2020 ● It is the tenth in the world migration report series. ● As per the report, between 2000 and 2020, the size of the migrant population abroad grew for nearly all countries and areas of the world. ● According to the report, India has the largest diaspora population in the world with 18 million people from the country living outside their homeland in 2020. ● India's large diaspora is distributed across the UAE (3.5 million), the USA (2.7 million) and Saudi Arabia (2.5 million). ● Other countries with a large diaspora population included Mexico and Russia (11 million each), China (10 JournalsOfIndia.Commillion) and Syria (8 million). ● The US remained by far the largest country of destination for international migrants with 51 million migrants in 2020, equal to 18 percent of the world's total. ● Germany hosted the second largest number of migrants worldwide at around 16 million, followed by Saudi Arabia (13 million), Russia (12 million) and the United Kingdom (9 million).

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● Of the top 20 destinations of international migrants in 2020, all but three were high-income or upper- middle-income countries. ● Currently, international migrants represent about 3.6 per cent of the world's population. ● Armenia, India, Pakistan, Ukraine and the United Republic of Tanzania were among the countries that experienced the most pronounced declines in international migrant population. ● In many cases the declines resulted from the old age of the migrant populations or the return of refugees and asylum seekers to their countries of origin. ● Central and Southern Asia was the birthplace of the second largest number of international migrants (51 million), followed by Latin America and the Caribbean. ● Relatively few migrants globally originated from Northern America followed by Oceania.

e-Way Bill System

In News- The Group of Finance Ministers has approved bringing the intra-state movement of gold within the ambit of the e-Way bill.

About E-way bill-

● E-Way Bill is an electronic way bill for movement of goods which can be generated on the e-Way Bill Portal. ● Transport of goods of more than Rs. 50,000 (Single Invoice/bill/delivery challan) in value in a vehicle cannot be made by a registered person without an eway bill. ● When an e-way bill is generated a unique e-way bill number (EBN) is allocated and is available to the supplier, recipient, and the transporter. ● An e-way bill is valid for 1 day for distance less than 100 Kms and additional 1 day for every additional 100 Kms or part thereof ● The validity of the E-way bill can be extended. ● It enables paperless and fully online system to facilitate seamless movement of goods across all the States, ● The upgraded system is capable of handling a peak load of 75 lakh E-way bills per day.

Prime Minister Employment Generation Program (PMEGP

In News- PMEGP projects record 44% implementation jump.

About PMEGP- ● It is a central sector scheme administered by the Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME). ● Launched in 2008-09, it is a credit-linked subsidy scheme which promotes self-employment through setting up of micro-enterprises, where subsidy up to 35% is provided by the Government for loans up to ₹25 lakhs in manufacturing and ₹10 lakhs in the service sector. ● The balance amount of the total project cost will be provided by the banks in the form of term loan and JournalsOfIndia.Comworking capital. ● At National Level, Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) is the nodal agency. ● At State Level, State KVIC Directorates, State Khadi and Village Industries Boards (KVIBs), District Industries Centres (DICs) and banks. ● Any individual above 18 years of age, Self Help Groups, Institutions registered under Societies Registration Act 1860, Production Co-operative Societies and Charitable Trusts are eligible.

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● Existing Units and the units that have already availed Government Subsidy under any other scheme of Government of India or State Government are not eligible.

ShramShakti portal

In News- The Union Minister of Tribal Affairs launched “ShramShakti”, a National Migration Support Portal at a programme held at Panjim, Goa.

About ShramShakti portal-

● It would effectively help in the smooth formulation of state and national level programs for migrant workers. ● It would be able to successfully address the data gap and empower migrant workers who generally migrate in search of employment and income generation. ● The various data that will be recorded via Shram Shakti include demographic profile, livelihood options, skill mapping and migration pattern. ● It would also help the government in linking the migrant population with existing welfare schemes – under AtmaNirbhar Bharat. ● The cell would address multiple needs of migrants – legal support, skill development, job linkages, access to public services, health, insurance, financial inclusion.

Shram-Saathi-

● Shram-Saathi is a training manual for migrant workers. ● Shramshakti and Shram-Saathi is a joint initiative of Union Ministry of Tribal Affairs (MoTA) and Goa Government. ● The Chief Minister of Goa will also launch a dedicated Migration cell in Goa in order to facilitate and support approximately 4 lakh migrants who come from different States to Goa. ● The MoTA has also sanctioned Tribal research Institute, Tribal Museum, Van Dhan Kendras and Tribal Lok Utsav in Goa.

Human Capital Index 2020

In News- The World Bank released the Human Capital Index (HCI) report for 2020. The index benchmarks key components of human capital across countries.

Important Points-

● Human Capital: It consists of the knowledge, skills, and health that people accumulate over their lives, enabling them to realize their potential as productive members of society. ● Parameters Used in HCI: The HCI 2020 includes health and education data of children for 174 countries up to March 2020. It covers 98% of the world’s population. JournalsOfIndia.Com● Outcome: The HCI 2020 shows that pre-pandemic, most countries had made steady progress in building human capital of children, with the biggest strides made in low-income countries. ● The pandemic puts at risk the decade’s progress in building human capital, including the improvements in health, survival rates, school enrollment, and reduced stunting. ● The economic impact of the pandemic has been particularly deep for women and for the most disadvantaged families, leaving many vulnerable to food insecurity and . 16

● Due to the pandemic’s impact, more than 1 billion children have been out of school. ● India’s score increased to 0.49 from 0.44 in 2018. ● This year India finds itself at 116th from among 174 countries.

Human Capital Index (HCI)-

● The HCI has been constructed for 157 countries. ● It claims to seek to measure the amount of human capital that a child born today can expect to attain by age 18. ● The HCI has three components:

- Survival: as measured by under-5 mortality rates - Expected years of Quality-Adjusted School: which combines information on the quantity and quality of education - Health environment: Using two proxies of (a) adult survival rates and (b) the rate of stunting for children under age 5.

Other Important Reports Published by World Bank: ● Global Economic Prospects ● Ease of Doing Business ● World Development Report

Domestic Systemically Important Insurers

In News- The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has identified the Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), General Insurance Corporation of India (GIC) and The New India Assurance Co. as Domestic Systemically Important Insurers (D-SIIs) for 2020-21.

What is the Domestic Systemically Important Bank (D-SIB)? ● According to the RBI, some banks become systemically important due to their size, cross-jurisdictional activities, complexity and lack of substitute and interconnection. ● The banks whose assets exceed 2% of GDP are considered part of D-SIB group. ● The RBI stated that should such a bank fail, there would be significant disruption to the essential services they provide to the banking system and the overall economy. ● The too-big-to-fail tag also indicates that in case of distress, the government is expected to support these banks. ● All the banks under D-SIB are required to maintain a higher share of risk-weighted assets as tier-I equity. ● IRDAI has developed a methodology for identification and supervision of D-SIIs. ● The parameters, as per the methodology, include:

- Size of operations in terms of total revenue, including premium underwritten and the value of assets JournalsOfIndia.Comunder management. - Global activities across more than one jurisdiction.

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Turant Customs

In News- Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) launched its flagship programme Turant Customs at Bengaluru and Chennai.

Key Points-

● This step has been taken by CBIC for fulfilling its commitment to a Faceless, Paperless, and Contactless Customs. ● The launch of paperless documentation on exports is a sequel to a similar initiative that was begun for imports w.e.f. 15th April 2020. ● Green Customs: These initiatives will do away with the present requirement to take paper printout of these documents thereby promoting Green Customs. ● Exporters would not have to visit the Customs Houses for this purpose and can better utilize their time in promoting their business. ● Faceless Assessment, would be implemented in phases across the entire country by 1st January 2021.

The Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC)-

● It comes under the Department of Revenue, Ministry of Finance. ● The Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) was renamed as the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs (CBIC) in 2018 after the roll out of Goods and Services Tax (GST). ● It is the nodal national agency responsible for administering: ○ Customs ○ GST ○ Central Excise ○ Service Tax ○ Narcotics in India.

K.V. Kamath Committee

In News- The Supreme Court recently asked the Centre and the RBI about the steps taken to implement the K.V. Kamath Committee report on recommendations to bail out sectors affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Key Points-

● Graded approach to restructuring of stressed accounts based on severity of the impact on the borrowers- Banks can classify the accounts into mild, moderate and severe as recommended by the committee. ● Five financial parameters to gauge the health of sectors facing difficulties- total outside liabilities to adjusted tangible net worth, total debt to earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (Ebitda), debt service coverage ratio (DSCR), current ratio and average debt service coverage ratio (ADSCR). JournalsOfIndia.Com● 26 sectors have been identified including auto, aviation, construction, hospitality, power, real estate and tourism. ● The committee was to scrutinise restructuring of loans above ₹1500 crore. ● The resolution under this framework is applicable only to those borrowers who have been impacted on account of Covid.

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● Only those borrowers which were classified as standard and with arrears less than 30 days as at March 1, 2020 are eligible under the Framework.

Counter-Cyclical Fiscal Policy

● A counter-cyclical fiscal policy refers to a strategy by the government to counter boom or recession through fiscal measures. ● It works against the ongoing boom or recession trend; thus, trying to stabilize the economy. ● Countercyclical fiscal policy works in two different directions during these two phases. ● Countercyclical fiscal policy during recession-

○ Recession is a business cycle situation where there is slowing demand and falling growth in the economy. ○ Here, the Government’s responsibility is to generate demand by fine-tuning taxation and expenditure policies. ○ Reducing taxes and increasing expenditure will help to create demand and produce upswing in the economy.

● Countercyclical fiscal policy during boom-

○ In the case of a boom, economic activities will be on upswing. ○ Amplifying the boom is disastrous as it may create inflation and debt crisis and the government’s responsibility here is to bring down the pace of economic activities. ○ Increasing taxes and reducing public expenditure will make the boom mild. ○ Thus, slowing down demand should be the nature of countercyclical fiscal policy during a boom. The Economic Survey has highlighted the desirability of using counter-cyclical fiscal policy to enable growth, as a well-designed expansionary fiscal policy stance can boost potential growth with multi-year public investment packages that raise productivity and can mitigate the risk of Indian economy falling into a low wage-growth trap, like Japan.

Procyclical fiscal policy-

● Procyclical is the opposite of countercyclical. ● Here, fiscal policy goes in line with the current mood of the business cycle; amplifying them. ● For example, during the time of boom, the government makes high expenditure and doesn’t hike taxes, thus the boom grows further. ○ Boom: total government spending as a percentage of GDP goes up and tax rates go down, increasing government deficit. ○ Recession: total government spending as a percentage of GDP goes down and tax rates go up, decreasing government deficit. ● So procyclical fiscal policy is undesirable for the economy. ENVIRONMENT

JournalsOfIndia.Com Enhanced transparency framework of Paris protocol

What is Enhanced Transparency Framework ?

● The Enhanced Transparency Framework (ETF) for action and support is a central component to the design, credibility and operation of the Paris Agreement 19

● Specifies how parties to the agreement must report on progress in climate change mitigation, adaptation measures and support provided or received. ● It also provides for international procedures for the review and evaluation of those reports. ● The ETF agreed at Katowice builds (COP24) on and enhances existing Monitoring, Reporting, and Verification (MRV) arrangements.

The ETF includes three elements: 1. Reporting: There are two mandatory requirements; greenhouse gas inventories, and progress tracking of NDCs. Developed countries must also provide support to developing countries in the form of finance, technology transfer, or capacity building. 2. Technical review: This verifies the information provided by countries. The aim is not to be intrusive, but to build a country’s capacity over time, helping it to identify information gaps and capacity building needs. 3. Multilateral facilitative consideration: This is for nations to inform the international community about what they are doing and share best practice and experience. Transparent information on the progress of a country’s efforts also promotes accountability.

What is global stock take?

● Under the Paris Agreement, the first global stocktake will happen in 2023. ● It will assess whether the net result of the climate actions being taken was consistent with the goal of keeping the increase in global average temperature from pre-industrial times to within 2 degree Celsius. ● While every country is required to participate in the global stocktake, the exercise will not assess whether actions of any individual country are adequate or not. ● It will only make an assessment of the “” efforts of the world. ● It will cover not only the results of actions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions but of actions being taken to adapt to the effects of climate change as well. ● It will also include an assessment of whether developed countries are offering adequate help to developing countries by providing money and technology, as mandated by the Paris Agreement. ● Stocktake includes the latest report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). Apex Committee for the Implementation of the Paris Agreement (AIPA):

● The Apex Committee for the Implementation of the Paris Agreement (AIPA) was constituted by the Indian government to ensure coordinated response to climate change matters and to keep the country on track towards meeting its climate change obligations under the Paris Agreement. ● It will act as the national authority for regulating carbon markets within the country under the Paris agreement. ● The committee was formed under the chairmanship of the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change secretary. ● The committee has 17 members, responsible for formulating policies to implement the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC). ● The committee will also regularly communicate and report the progress of India’s status in achieving its NDC to the Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). ● The committee will define the responsibility of different government Ministries to achieve the climate JournalsOfIndia.Comchange mitigation and adaptation goals of India.

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Taj Trapezium Zone (TTZ) In News- The Supreme court of India lifted its earlier interim order imposing a complete ban on construction, industrial activities and felling of trees in the Taj Trapezium Zone (TTZ).

What is Taj Trapezium Zone?

● The geographical limits of the Taj Trapezium Zone is defined in the shape of a trapezium lying in the Agra Division of the State of Uttar Pradesh and in the Bharatpur Division of the State of . ● It is a defined area of 10,400 sq km around the Taj Mahal to protect the monument from pollution. ● The Supreme Court of India delivered a ruling on December 30, 1996, regarding industries covered under the TTZ, in response to a PIL seeking to protect the Taj Mahal from environmental pollution. ● It banned the use of coal/ coke in industries located in the TTZ with a mandate for switching over from coal/ coke to natural gas, and relocating them outside the TTZ or shutting down. ● The TTZ comprises monuments including three World Heritage Sites, the Taj Mahal, Agra Fort and Fatehpur Sikri. ● TTZ is so named since it is located around the Taj Mahal and is shaped like a trapezoid. ● It has a four-zone which is named Red, Green, Orange and White.

Mobile apps to Display AQI-

SAMEER: ● Launched in October 2017, SAMEER provides information on air quality to the public. ● It also has provision for registering complaints against air polluting activities. ● Air quality information collection and dissemination are done from a centralized location. ● It provides real-time air quality status to all stakeholders apart from hourly updates on the National Air Quality Index (AQI) published by the Central Pollution Control Board. SAFAR: ● An integrated early warning System of Air Quality and Weather Forecasting and Research (SAFAR) was launched to provide forecast of the Air Quality and Weather 72 hours in advance. ● SAFAR is operational in four cities – Delhi, Pune, and .

Microbial Decomposer Capsule

In News- The scientists have developed a bio-decomposer technique called ‘PUSA Decomposers’ for converting crop stubble into compost.

Pusa Bio-decomposer-

● It is a solution developed by the scientists at the Indian Agricultural Research Institute, Pusa, which can turn crop residue into manure in 15 to 20 days and therefore, can prevent stubble burning. ● It involves making a liquid formulation using Pusa decomposer capsules and readily available inputs, JournalsOfIndia.Comfermenting it over 8-10 days, and then spraying the mixture on fields. ● It is a mix of seven fungi that produce enzymes to digest cellulose, lignin and pectin in paddy straw. ● The fungi thrive at 30-32 degree Celsius, which is the temperature prevailing when paddy is harvested and wheat is sown.

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Action Plan Improving Air Quality

About Action Plan Improving Air Quality-

● The Central Government has launched the National Clean Air Programme as a long-term, time-bound, national-level strategy to tackle air pollution across the country in a comprehensive manner with targets to achieve 20–30 per cent reduction in PM10 and PM2.5 concentrations by 2024 with 2017 as the base year ● 102 non-attainment cities, mostly in Indo-Gangetic Plains, have been identified on the basis of ambient air quality data for the period of 2011– 2015 and WHO report 2014/2018. ● The city-specific action plans have been approved for all these cities for implementation. ● The Central Government had notified a Comprehensive Action Plan in 2018 identifying timelines and the implementing agencies for actions identified for prevention, control and mitigation of air pollution in the NCR. ● Graded Response Action Plan was notified on January 12, 2017, for prevention, control and abatement of air pollution in the NCR. ● It also proposes state-level plans of e-mobility in the two-wheeler sector, rapid augmentation of charging infrastructure, stringent implementation of BS-VI norms, boosting public transportation system, and adoption of third-party audits for polluting industries. ● It identifies graded measures and the implementing agencies for response to four AQI categories, namely, moderate to poor, very poor, severe and severe+ or emergency. International Solar Alliance (ISA)

In News- For a second time, India has been elected as the President of the ISA for a term of two years. France has been re-elected as the Co-President of the ISA.

About ISA- ● ISA was jointly launched by Prime Minister , and the then President of France Francois Hollande on November 30, 2015 in Paris, France on the side-lines of the 21st Conference of Parties (CoP 21) to the UNFCCC. ● The ISA Framework Agreement was opened for signature on November 15, 2016 in Marrakech, Morocco, on the side-lines of CoP-22. ● It is an alliance of more than 122 countries initiated by India, most of them being sunshine countries, which lie either completely or partly between the Tropic of Cancer and the Tropic of Capricorn, now extended to all members of the UN. ● The Paris Declaration establishes ISA as an alliance dedicated to the promotion of solar energy among its member countries. ● It intends for global deployment of over 1,000GW of solar generation capacity and mobilisation of investment of over US$ 1000 billion into solar energy by 2030. ● When the ISA Framework Agreement entered into force on December 6th, 2017, ISA formally became a de-jure treaty based International Intergovernmental Organization, headquartered at Gurugram, India. ● The objective of the ISA is to mobilize member countries, seek commitments from international organisations and mobilize private sector, to support rural and decentralised applications, access to affordable finance, island and village solar mini grids, rooftop installations, and solar e-mobility JournalsOfIndia.Comtechnologies.

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UNESCO Global Geoparks In news- The Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) is making efforts to get recognition of a geopark for Visakhapatnam (Andhra Pradesh) consisting of Erra Matti Dibbalu (red sand dunes), natural rock formations, Borra Caves and volcanic ash deposits.

UNESCO Global Geopark-

● UNESCO Global Geoparks are single, unified geographical areas where sites and landscapes of international geological significance are managed with a holistic concept of protection, education and sustainable development. ● UNESCO Global Geoparks empower local communities and give them the opportunity to develop cohesive partnerships with the common goal of promoting the area's significant geological processes, features, periods of time, historical themes linked to geology, or outstanding geological beauty. ● While there are 161 UNESCO Global geoparks spread across 44 countries, India is yet to have one of its own.

Global Geoparks Network (GGN)-

● The Global Geoparks Network (GGN), of which membership is obligatory for UNESCO Global Geoparks, is a legally constituted not-for-profit organisation. ● The GGN was founded in 2004 and is a dynamic network where members exchange ideas of best practise to raise the quality standards of a UNESCO Global Geopark. ● While the GGN as a whole comes together every two years, it functions through the operation of regional networks, such as the European Geoparks Network that meets twice a year to develop and promote joint activities. ● It is managed under the UNESCO’s Ecological and Earth Sciences Division.

Difference between UNESCO Global Geoparks, Biosphere Reserves and World Heritage Sites: ● Biosphere Reserves focus on the harmonised management of biological and cultural diversity. World Heritage Sites promote the conservation of natural and cultural sites of outstanding universal value ● UNESCO Global Geoparks give international recognition for sites that promote the importance and significance of protecting the Earth’s geodiversity through actively engaging with the local communities. ● A World Heritage Site or Biosphere Reserve can apply for the UNESCO Global Geopark status. However, a clear evidence has to be provided on how UNESCO Global Geopark status will add value by being both independently branded and in synergy with the other designations.

Arctic Amplification

In News- A team of scientists have identified iodic acid (HIO3) which is the driver of new aerosol particle formation in the Arctic.

Arctic Amplification or Arctic Warming-

● Over the past 30 years, the Arctic has warmed at roughly twice the rate as the entire globe, a phenomenon known as Arctic amplification. JournalsOfIndia.Com● This means that global warming and climate change are impacting the Arctic more than the rest of the world. ● Global temperatures from 2000–2009 were on average about 0.6°C higher than they were from 1951– 1980. The Arctic, however, was about 2°C warmer.

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Reasons for Arctic Amplification-

● Change in Albedo ● Changing Ocean currents ● Changing Weather

Iodic acid influences cloud formation at the North Pole-

● An international team of scientists have identified iodic acid as a novel driver of new aerosol particle formation in the Arctic, which subsequently influences the formation of clouds. ● By reflecting the sun’s rays back into space or trapping heat close to the Earth’s surface like a blanket, clouds help either cool off or warm up the planet. ● Iodic acid is formed in the atmosphere from the oxidation of iodine or other molecules containing iodine.

Madhuca Diplostemon

In News- Madhuca diplostemon tree has been rediscovered after a gap of more than 180 years from a sacred grove in Kollam district, Kerala.

Madhuca diplostemon-

● The tree is locally known as Kavilippa in Malayalam. ● Belongs to family Sapotaceae. ● It is a threatened species of the whose specimen was first collected in 1835. ● It has been identified by the scientists at the Jawaharlal Nehru Tropical Botanic Garden and Research Institute (JNTBGRI) at Palode, Kerala. ● The threatened species of the Western Ghats was believed to be extinct. ● This is the second time a tree of this species has ever been located and only one mature tree has been found so far. ● Since the species is represented only by one specimen in a single locality, it is eligible to be categorised ‘Critically Endangered’ by the IUCN.

Plastic Parks Scheme

In News- Union Minister for Chemicals & Fertilizers has said that the government is coming up with a scheme of Setting up of Plastic Parks through cluster development approach.

Key Points

● A Plastic Park is an industrial zone devoted to plastic enterprises and its allied industries. ● The Ministry of Chemicals & Fertilizers has approved setting up of 10 Plastic Parks in the country. ● Major Objectives are to Increase the competitiveness, polymer absorption capacity and value addition in the domestic downstream plastic processing industry through adaptation of modern measurers. ● In phase-I of the scheme, four Plastic parks in the States of Assam (Tinsukia), Madhya Pradesh (Raisen), Odisha (Jagatsinghpur) & Tamil Nadu (Thiruvallur) are approved for implementation. JournalsOfIndia.Com● In Phase-II of the scheme, preliminary proposals were received from the States of Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Gujarat, Chhattisgarh, Punjab, West Bengal, Uttarakhand, Manipur, Jammu & Kashmir and Rajasthan and two plastic parks in the States of Jharkhand (Deogarh) and Madhya Pradesh (Bilaua) have been given ‘final approval’. ● Implemented by a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) which shall complete the setting up of the Plastic Park in a period of three years from the date of final approval.

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● The Central Government provides grant funding up to 50% of the project cost, subject to a ceiling of Rs. 40 crore per project. ● The remaining project cost is to be funded by the State Government, beneficiary industries and by loan from financial institutions.

Living Planet Report 2020

In News- The Living Planet Report is published by the World Wildlife Fund for Nature (WWF) in collaboration with the Zoological Society of London (ZSL.)

Key findings-

● It is a biennial report (published every two years.) ● The population of vertebrate species declined by around 68 per cent between 1970 and 2016. ● The average two-thirds decline in global populations of mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles and fish in less than 50 years in large parts is due to the same environmental destruction, which is contributing to emergence of zoonotic diseases such as Covid-19. ● One in five plants is threatened with .

India’s scenario ● India has lost 12 percent of its wild mammals, 19 per cent amphibians and 3 per cent birds over the last five decades. ● India’s ecological footprint per person is less than 1.6 global hectares (gha) / person (smaller than that of many large countries).

What is not tracked by the Living Planet Index?

● The numbers of species lost or extinct ● Percentage of species declining ● Percentage of populations or individuals lost

Asian Waterbird Census-2021

In news- Asian Waterbird Census-2021 was carried out in Andhra Pradesh.

About Asian Waterbird Census- ● It takes place every January. ● This citizen-science event is a part of the global International Waterbird Census (IWC) that supports the conservation and management of wetlands and waterbirds worldwide ● The annual census will be done by the Forest Department with technical support from the Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) and Wetland International as part of the Asian Waterbird Census-2020. ● The prime objective of the census is to assess the status of the wetlands and water birds, apart from documenting the migratory birds and its .

International Waterbird Census (IWC)-

JournalsOfIndia.Com● IWC is coordinated by Wetlands International and is a monitoring programme operating in 143 countries to collect information on the numbers of waterbirds at wetland sites. ● There are 5 separate regional schemes of the IWC that represent the major flyways of the world: 1. Africa-Eurasia(AEWC) 2. Asia-Pacific(AWC) 3. Caribbean(CWC) 25

4. Neotropics(CNAA) 5. Central America(CCAA) ● In most countries the census is coordinated professionally, and in many countries professionals also carry out much of the fieldwork (although often on a voluntary basis).

Manufactured sand (M-Sand)

In news- Recently, the High Court of Karnataka has struck down the fee rule on M-sand and other materials.

What is M-Sand? ● M-Sand is artificial sand produced from crushing hard stones into small sand sized angular shaped particles, washed and finely graded to be used as construction aggregate. ● It is a superior alternative to River Sand for construction purposes. ● The sand obtained through this process is further refined by removing fine particles and impurities through sieving and washing. ● The Karnataka State has 164 M-sand manufacturing units and produces 20 million tonnes of M Sand per annum. ● Karnataka, Maharashtra, Gujarat have separate section for M-sand in the State Minor Mineral Concession Rules. ● Apart from Karnataka, the other States working in the direction to promote M-sand are Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat.

Difference between River Sand and M-Sand

Parameters M-Sand River Sand

Process Manufactured in a Factory Naturally available on river banks

Moisture content Moisture is available only in water washed M sand Moisture is trapped in between particles which are good for concrete purposes

Concrete strength Higher Concrete strength compared to river sand. lesser Concrete compared to M sand

Silt content Zero silt Minimum permissible silt content is 3%. It may have 5-20& silt content

Cement Consumption M-Sand is free of impurities such as clay, dust and It needs more cement silt and has denser particle packing than natural sand particles, hence saves cement requirement in concrete production. JournalsOfIndia.Com

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Management Effectiveness Evaluation (MEE) of Protected Areas (PAs)

In news- The Environment Minister releases MEE of 146 National Parks and Wildlife Sanctuaries and also launched a framework for the Management Effectiveness Evaluation of Indian Zoos (MEE-ZOO) and Marine PAs.

India’s Protected areas (PAs) - Current status:

● Protected areas (PAs) are the cornerstone of efforts to conserve biodiversity and the environment and provide associated recreational, economic and social benefits to humans. ● PA management effectiveness evaluation (MEE) is defined as the assessment of how well NP&WLS are being managed—primarily, whether they are protecting their values and achieving the goals and objectives agreed upon. ● India has systematically designated its PAs in four legal categories viz. National Parks, Wildlife Sanctuaries, Conservation Reserves and Community Reserves under Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972 and as per this Act. ● Among 903 PAs, 101 National Parks, 553 Wildlife Sanctuaries, 86 Conservation Reserves and 163 Community Reserves (as on 1st January, 2020). ● The National Parks and Wildlife Sanctuaries are presently the categories being subjected to evaluation through MEE process. ● MEE is based on IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas (WCPA). ● According to the survey, Tirthan Wildlife Sanctuary and Great Himalayan National Park in Himachal Pradesh have performed the best among the surveyed protected areas. ● The Turtle Wildlife Sanctuary in Uttar Pradesh was the worst performer in the survey.

Natural Capital Accounting and Valuation of Ecosystem Services (NCAVES)

In news- The Ministry of Statistics & Programme Implementation is to organize NCAVES India forum in collaboration with United Nations Statistics Division (UNSD), European Union and UN Environment.

About NCAVES-

● The project seeks to advance the theory and practice of environmental and ecosystem accounting in several countries. The project will have a duration until the end of 2021. ● It is funded by European Union through its Partnership Instrument (PI). ● The main objective of the UNSD-led project is to mainstream natural capital accounting and the valuation of ecosystem services in data-driven decision and policy-making at the national, regional and local levels. ● The project is covering five piloted countries- India, Brazil, China, South Africa and Mexico.

Mealworms for Human consumption

In news- European Food Safety Agency/Authority (EFSA) has approved 'yellow grub' or mealworms as edible human food recently.

What are mealworms?

● In general, Mealworms are the larval form of the mealworm beetle, Tenebrio molitor, a species of darkling JournalsOfIndia.Combeetle. ● Mealworms are typically used as a pet food for captive reptiles, fish, and birds. ● While mealworms are already part of pet food in the European Union, the new development by EFSA allows mealworms to be used whole and dried. ● Now, these worms can be used in curries and soups as well as in biscuits, pasta and bread.

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● A handful of EU states including Finland, Belgium and the Netherlands -- already permit sales of bug- containing foods in shops. ● Mealworms have historically been consumed in many Asian countries, Africa and .

Health benefits of Mealworms- ● Mealworms are useful for their high protein, fat and fibre content. ● Mealworm larvae contain levels of potassium, copper, sodium, selenium, iron and zinc that rival that of beef. ● Mealworms contain essential linoleic acids as well. ● They also have greater vitamin content by weight compared to beef, B12 not included.

Dragon Fruit

In news- Recently, the state government of Gujarat has renamed the Dragon fruit as Kamalam as it has the shape of the lotus flower.

What is dragon fruit?

● It is the fruit of a species of wild cactus indigenous to South and Central America, where it is called pitaya or pitahaya. ● It grows in all kinds of soil, and does not require much water. ● Pitaya’s flesh is usually white or red, although there is a less common yellow pitaya too and is studded with tiny seeds rather like the kiwifruit. ● Pitaya flowers bloom overnight and usually wilt by the evening. ● They rely on nocturnal pollinators such as bats or moths for fertilization. ● Vietnam is the world’s largest producer and exporter of dragon fruit, the Dragon fruit plant was brought by the French in the 19th century. ● It was brought to India in the 1990s, and is grown in Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Odisha, West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh, and Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

Aqua Rejuvenation Plant (ARP)

In news - CSIR-Central Mechanical Engineering Research Institute, Durgapur unveiled the first-ever WasteWater Treatment Technology Model which purifies WasteWater for Irrigation/Farming purposes.

What is Aqua Rejuvenation Plant?

● It is an Integrated Waste Water Rejuvenation Model which has Six-Stage purification profile for comprehensive treatment of Waste Water, based upon diverse purification parameters. ● The approx. 24,000 litres of water that can be rejuvenated using ARP will be sufficient for almost 4 acres of Agricultural Land. ● The treated water which is now being used for irrigation can be used even for drinking purposes . ● The filtered sludge generated is also utilized as manure / fertilizer.

JournalsOfIndia.Com

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Green tax to be imposed on older vehicles

In news- The Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways has approved a proposal to levy a “Green Tax” on old vehicles which are polluting the environment.

What is a green tax?

● It is imposed on the environment polluting goods or activities, to discourage people from anti-ecological behaviour and make them sensitive towards the environment.

Key principles of levying Green Tax-

● Transport vehicles older than 8 years could be charged Green Tax at the time of renewal of fitness certificate, at the rate of 10 to 25 % of road tax. ● Personal vehicles to be charged Green Tax at the time of renewal of Registration Certification after 15 years. ● Public transport vehicles, such as city buses, to be charged lower Green tax. ● Higher Green tax (50% of Road Tax) for vehicles being registered in highly polluted cities. ● Differential tax, depending on fuel (petrol/diesel) and type of vehicle. ● Vehicles like strong hybrids, electric vehicles and alternate fuels like CNG, ethanol, LPG etc…vehicles used in farming, such as tractor, harvester, tiller etc.. to be exempted. ● Revenue collected from the Green Tax to be kept in a separate account and used for tackling pollution, and for States to set up state of-art facilities for emission monitoring. ● The Minister also approved the policy of deregistration and scrapping of vehicles owned by Government department and PSU, which are above 15 years in age. It is to be notified, and will come into effect from 1st April, 2022.

Kalinga Frog

In news- Recently, the scientists have reported a first-of-its-kind discovery of morphological phenotypic plasticity (MPP) in the Kalinga cricket frog (( MPP is the ability of an organism to show drastic morphological (physical features) variations in response to natural environmental variations or stimuli)).

About Kalinga Cricket Frog-

● Its documentation was done in 2018 was thought to be endemic to the hill ranges of the Eastern Ghats, especially found on the higher-elevation hill ranges of Odisha and Andhra Pradesh. ● Its scientific name is Fejervarya / Minervarya Kalinga. ● In the present research communication, the team have reported the Kalinga cricket frog from the central Western Ghats. ● According to them the physical characteristics of the species in Eastern Ghat vary entirely from the known Fejervaraya / Minervarya species from the Western Ghats. ● There are contrasting morphometric differences in terms of head shape and size; the number and size of the fingers vary from two to four, toe sizes were observed to be smaller in the frog species found in the Western Ghats. JournalsOfIndia.Com● The researchers said that it is the first-of-its-kind finding in amphibian research in India.

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Leuser Ecosystem

In news- Recently, an investigation by global watchdog Rainforest Action Network (RAN) has shown that food and cosmetic companies as well as financial institutions have links with companies implicated in the destruction of the Leuser Ecosystem.

About the Leuser Ecosystem-

● The Leuser Ecosystem is an area of forest located in the provinces of Aceh and North Sumatra on the island of Sumatra in ● It is one of the richest expanses of tropical rain forest in . ● This rainforest is said to be the only place left on Earth where tigers, orangutans, elephants and rhinos still coexist in the wild. ● Palm oil, Pulp and Paper industries and mining continue to threaten its ecosystem therefore deforestation is bringing the Leuser Ecosystem’s wildlife to the very brink of extinction. ● Around 70-75% of Aceh’s people live on the coastal plains of Sumatra, where many communities have established wet rice cultivation.

Sandalwood Spike Disease

In news- Sandalwood trees in India, particularly in Karnataka and Kerala are facing a serious threat with the recent return of the destructive Sandalwood Spike Disease (SSD).

About the disease-

● Spike disease caused by phytoplasma bacteria is the major disease of sandalwood. ● Spike disease is characterized by extreme reduction in leaf size accompanied by stiffening and reduction of internode length. ● In the advanced stage, the entire shoot gives the appearance of a spike of inflorescence. ● Spiked trees die within 1–2 years after the appearance of visible symptoms. ● It can be noticed only when the tree gets completely affected. ● As of now there is no cure for the disease. ● Presently, there is no option but to cut down and remove the infected tree to prevent the spread of the disease. ● The disease was first reported in Kodagu of Karnataka in 1899.

Types of sandalwood -

1. White Sandalwood: Scientific name is album, found in southern India and Southeast Asia, mostly in the states of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. IUCN status is vulnerable. 2. Red Sandalwood: Scientific name is Pterocarpus santalinus. It is a small tree that grows to 5-8 meters in height and has a dark grayish and is extremely hard, found in southern parts of the Eastern Ghats in India, mainly in forest tract of Andhra Pradesh. IUCN Red List status is “Near Threatened.”

JournalsOfIndia.Com

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ETHICS World Anti Doping Agency (WADA)

In News- India has pledged a sum of USD 1 million to the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) towards the agency’s scientific research budget.

About World Anti-Doping Agency-

● The First World Conference on Doping in Sport held, in Lausanne, Switzerland, in 1999, produced the Lausanne Declaration on Doping in Sport. ● Pursuant to the terms of the Declaration, the WADA was established on November 10, 1999, in Lausanne to promote and coordinate the fight against doping in sport internationally. ● The Agency consists of equal representatives from the Olympic Movement and public authorities. ● Its foundation was initiated by the International Olympics Committee (IOC) to promote, coordinate and monitor the fight against drugs in sports. ● It is headquartered in Montreal, Canada. ● Its key activities include scientific research, education, development of anti-doping capacities and monitoring of the World Anti-Doping Code (the document harmonizing anti-doping policies in all sports and all countries). VALUES promoted-

● Integrity- We protect the rights of all athletes in relation to anti-doping, contributing to the integrity in sport. ● Openness- We collaborate with stakeholders and the industry to find common ways to fight doping. We listen to athletes’ voices, as the stakeholders that are most impacted by anti-doping policies and activities. ● Excellence- We apply and share best practice standards to all our activities.

International Olympic Committee: ● It is a not-for-profit independent international organisation that is committed to building a better world through sport. ● It was created in 1894 and is the supreme authority of the Olympic Movement. ● It ensures the regular celebration of the Olympic Games, supports all affiliated member organisations and strongly encourages, by appropriate means, the promotion of the Olympic values.

FOREIGN AFFAIRS Post-BREXIT Deal and its consequences

In news- United Kingdom completed its separation from European Union(EU) on 31st December 2020.

What will change after the UK's exit from the EU? JournalsOfIndia.Com ● On December 31, 2020, 11-month transition period during which the UK and the European Union were supposed to negotiate the nature of their post-Brexit economic relationship came to an end. ● The new agreement which was unanimously approved by the EU nations came into effect from January 1. ● With this, the UK will leave the EU Single Market and Customs Union (under the customs union the UK could not negotiate with other member nations of the EU separately), all EU policies and international agreements. 31

● The free movement of goods, people, services and capital will stop from January 1 onwards as the EU and UK will become two separate market spaces. ● Now the UK will be able to set its own trade policy. ● As part of the free trade agreement, UK and EU have agreed to a 100 percent tariff liberalisation, which means that there will be no tariffs or quotas on goods that move between the UK and EU. ● For people travelling between the UK and EU, it means that while their entry will still be visa-free, they may be subject to screening and will no longer be able to use the biometric passports. ● The UK will have sovereignty over its fishing waters. ● Though the UK will leave the EU’s Common Fisheries Policy on December 31, the current rules will remain largely in place during the transition period that will last over five years. ● The tax-free airport sales of electronics and clothing will stop, pet passports issued in Great Britain will not be valid in the EU and travellers from the UK will be subject to travel restrictions imposed on passengers coming from non-EU countries. ● European Court of Justice can no longer play a role and the UK does not have to follow EU law. ● Now there will be a new trade border between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK, which means that the former will still be under the EU’s single market and will follow EU’s customs rules.

India’s Draft Arctic policy

● The draft policy lists a wide range of activities that India seeks to pursue in the Arctic including economic, diplomatic and scientific activities. ● One aspect of the draft Arctic Policy centers around climate change and it highlights the intricate link between conditions in the Arctic and the monsoon and Himalayan systems. ● Through the draft Arctic Policy India seeks to achieve the following goals:

- To play a constructive role in the Arctic by leveraging its vast scientific pool and expertise in Himalayan and Polar research. - to contribute in ensuring that as the Arctic becomes more accessible, - the harnessing of its resources is done sustainably and in consonance with best practices formulated by bodies such as the Arctic Council.

India’s Arctic policy will rest on five pillars:

● Science and research ● Economic and human development cooperation ● Transportation and connectivity ● Governance and international cooperation ● National capacity building

India and the Arctic-

● The Arctic refers to the region above the Arctic Circle, north of latitude 66° 34’ N, which includes the Arctic Ocean with the North Pole at its centre. ● Much of this Ocean falls within the jurisdiction of five Arctic littoral states- Canada, Denmark (Greenland), JournalsOfIndia.ComNorway, Russia and the USA (Alaska). ● Three other Arctic nations – Finland, Sweden and Iceland – along with the five littorals form the Arctic Council. ● The Arctic is home to almost four million inhabitants, of which approximately one-tenth are considered as indigenous people.

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● India became the observer of Arctic Council in 2013 and its membership as an observer was renewed in 2018 for another five years. ● The National Centre for Polar and Ocean Research (NCPOR), Ministry of Earth Sciences, Government of India, is the nodal agency for India’s Polar research programme, which includes Arctic studies. ● India’s Ministry of External Affairs provides the external interface to the Arctic Council.

Status of residence to Specified skilled workers in Japan

In news- Union Cabinet approved the signing of a Memorandum of Cooperation(MoC) between the Government of India and Government of Japan, on a Basic Framework for Partnership for Proper Operation of the System Pertaining to "Specified Skilled Worker".

Key Highlights-

● The present MoC would set an institutional mechanism for partnership and cooperation between India and Japan on sending and accepting skilled Indian workers, who have qualified the required skill and Japanese language test, to work in fourteen specified sectors in Japan. ● These Indian workers would be granted a new status of residence of "Specified Skilled Worker" by the Government of Japan.

Great Firewall of China

In news- A website dedicated to publishing first-hand accounts of the Hong Kong pro-democracy movement has warned its users to prepare for large-scale internet blocks, filters, and censorship in future, in the first indication that China may be exporting its Great Firewall to the city.

What is the Great Firewall of China? JournalsOfIndia.Com ● It is the combination of legislative actions and technologies enforced by the People's Republic of China to regulate the Internet domestically. ● Its role in internet censorship in China is to block access to selected foreign websites and to slow down cross-border internet traffic

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● The effect includes limiting access to foreign information sources, blocking foreign internet tools (e.g. Google search, Facebook, Twitter, Wikipedia, and others) and mobile apps and requiring foreign companies to adapt to domestic regulations. ● Since 2013, the firewall is technically operated by the Cyberspace Administration of China (CAC). ● As mentioned in the "one country, two systems" principle, China's Special Administrative Regions (SARs) such as Hong Kong and Macau are not affected by the firewall, as SARs have their own governmental and legal systems and therefore enjoy a higher degree of autonomy.

The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights(OHCHR) In news- Recently, OHCHR has asked the Government of India to release the activists who are in prison for the 2018 Bhima Koregaon case, “at the very least on bail”.

A brief note on the Bhima Koregaon case-

● The Bhima Koregaon case dates back to January 1, 2018, which marked the 200th anniversary of the battle of Bhima Koregaon. ● The event was organised to celebrate the victory of the British, which included a large number of Mahars, against Peshwa Baji Rao II’s army. ● A person was killed and several others were injured during the 2018 event. ● Several human rights activists, including Sudha Bharadwaj, Varavara Rao and Gautam Navlakha, were arrested during the course of the investigation. ● The case is currently with the National Investigation Agency (NIA).

About the OHCHR-

● It is the leading UN entity on human rights. ● It was established by the UN in December 1993 through its resolution 48/141 which also details its mandate, a few months after the World Conference on Human Rights adopted the Vienna Declaration and Plan of Action. ● It has been adopted by 171 States.

The Intergovernmental Negotiations framework on UNSC reforms

In news- Recently, the UNGA president stated that the Intergovernmental Negotiations framework on UNSC reforms slowed due to Covid-19.

What is the Intergovernmental Negotiations framework (IGN)?

● IGN is a group of nation-states working within the United Nations to further reform of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC). ● It is composed of several different international organizations, namely:

1. The African Union 2. The G4 nations - India is a member and the other three are Brazil, Japan and Germany. 3. The Uniting for Consensus Group (UfC), also known as the "Coffee Club" 4. The L.69 Group of Developing Countries JournalsOfIndia.Com5. The Arab League/Group 6. The Caribbean Community (CARICOM) 7. The S-5 Group ● Each group represents a different set of positions vis-a-vis reforming the United Nations.

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World Economic Forum

In news- World Economic Forum’s Davos Dialogue was held on 28th January, 2021 via video conferencing.

Key updates-

● The Davos Dialogues agenda marks the launch of the World Economic Forum’s Great Reset Initiative in the post COVID world. ● It is based on the assessment that the world economy is in deep trouble and the world must act jointly and swiftly to revamp all aspects of our societies and economies, from education to social contracts and working conditions. ● Every country, from the United States to China, must participate, and every industry, from oil and gas to tech, must be transformed. ● In short, a ‘Great Reset’ of capitalism is needed.

About WEF:

● The World Economic Forum is the International Organization for Public-Private Cooperation. ● The Forum engages the foremost political, business, cultural and other leaders of society to shape global, regional and industry agendas. ● It was established in 1971 as a not-for-profit foundation and is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland. ● It is independent, impartial and not tied to any special interests.

GEOGRAPHY Following are the reports released by WEF:

● Global Risks Report ● Fostering Effective Energy Transition report ● Global Social Mobility Report ● Global Gender Gap Report ● Inclusive growth & Development Report ● Environmental Performance Index ● Global Competitive Index ● Global Energy Architecture Performance Index Report ● Global Information Technology Report ● Human Capital Report ● Outlook on Global Agenda ● Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Report

Medicanes In news- According to experts, human-induced climate change may increase Medicanes.

What is Medicanes? JournalsOfIndia.Com● Extra tropical storms in the Mediterranean Sea are known as ‘Medicanes’ or ‘Mediterranean Hurricanes’ ● The medicane is more of a tropical stormlike cyclone. ● They form when a non-tropical storm feeds off the warm waters of the Mediterranean. ● The storm can then begin to strengthen and develop tropical storm characteristics. ● The area that typically experiences a medicane is central Mediterranean countries like Greece, Italy or Turkey.

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● On September 18, 2020, a medicane named Ianos made landfall along the coast of Greece.

How is it different from other systems? ● Medicanes occur more in colder waters than tropical cyclones, hurricanes and typhoons. Hence, the cores of these storms are also cold. ● Warmer cores tend to carry more moisture (hence rainfall), are bigger in size and have swifter winds. ● The chances of a medicane developing into a major hurricane-strength system are extremely small. ● There is not a classified system with categories. ● Very rarely do they produce anything over 120-130 mph, equivalent to a Category 3 or 4 hurricane. ● Although a medicane is not a hurricane, many times they try to form an eye that could resemble one of a hurricane. ● They also spin like other tropical systems.

Modern Grand Solar Minimum

In News- The magnitude of the Sun’s solar activity is decreasing and this period of decreased solar activity will last from 2020 to 2053.

Measurement of Solar Activity- ● This is done by observing the number of Sunspots at any given time. More Sunspots mean more solar activity. ● Sunspots are areas that appear dark on the surface of the Sun (photosphere) and are cooler than other parts of the Sun’s surface. ● Sunspots form at areas where magnetic fields are particularly strong that they keep some of the heat within the Sun from reaching the surface. ● According to the United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA), 71% of the Sun had no Sun spots in 2020 through September 21, 2020 as compared to 77% in 2019. ● Possible Reason might be 2020 marks the beginning of the 11th solar cycle which is a solar minimum, or when the Sun has the sunspots and thus, least activity.

Impact-

● Variations in solar irradiance will lead to heating of the upper layer of the Earth’s atmosphere. ● It affects the climatic cycles of Earth such as the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) (( The NAO is the dominant mode of winter climate variability in the North Atlantic region and there will be a large-scale seesaw in atmospheric mass between the subtropical high and the polar low)).

GOVERNANCE National Digital Health Mission (NDHM)

● announced its implementation on 15th August 2020 with a vision to create a JournalsOfIndia.Comnational digital health ecosystem. ● It aims to develop the backbone necessary to support the integrated digital health infrastructure of the country.

Objectives: ● To establish state-of-the-art digital health systems, to manage the core digital health data.

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● To establish registries at appropriate levels. ● To enforce adoption of open standards by all national digital health stakeholders. ● To create a system of personal health records easily accessible to individuals and healthcare professionals and services providers, based on individual’s informed consent ● To promote development of enterprise-class health application systems. ● To adopt the best principles of cooperative federalism while working with the States and Union Territories for the realization of the vision. ● To ensure that the healthcare institutions and professionals in the private sector participate actively with public health authorities in the building of the NDHM. ● To ensure national portability in the provision of health services ● To promote the use of clinical decision support (CDS) systems by health professionals and practitioners.

The NDHM is envisaged to be implemented in phase wise manner. ● Phase 1 to cover 6 UTs on pilot basis. ● Phase 2 will cover additional States with expansion of the services. ● Phase 3 will target nation-wide roll-out, operationalizing and converging with all health schemes across India.

Currently, the NDHM is being implemented in 6 Union Territories- Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Chandigarh, Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman & Diu, Lakshadweep, Ladakh and Puducherry.

Aadhaar Payment Bridge System

In news- Recently, a campaign called Rethink Aadhaar has published a report highlighting scams in the Aadhaar enabled Direct Benefit Transfers(DBTs).

Aadhaar Payment Bridge (APB) System- It is one of the unique payment systems implemented by NPCI, uses Aadhaar number as a central key for electronically channelizing the Government benefits and subsidies in the Aadhaar Enabled Bank Accounts (AEBA) of the intended beneficiaries. Key features of APB system- ● Banks can upload/download transaction files through secured web access. ● Banks can get connect to NPCI either through NPCINet or Internet. ● APB System supports ISO 20022 messaging standards. ● APB System supports multiple intraday sessions. ● APB System provides Direct Corporate Access (DCA) to Government Departments and Agencies. ● Provides online Dispute Management System (DMS). ● APB System capable to handle 10 million transactions per day. ● APB System can process both onus and offus transactions. ● APB System makes available enriched MIS to all the participants. JournalsOfIndia.Com

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Skoch Challenger Award

In news- Ministry of Panchayati Raj (MoPR) received SKOCH Challenger Award for the transparency in governance.

Why was it conferred upon the MoPR?

MoPR received the Award for the transparency in governance category for IT-led initiatives and transformational reforms leading to outcome-based performance improvement, better transparency and strengthening of the e- Governance in Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) across the country.

Important initiatives of MoPR:

1) SVAMITVA Scheme aims to provide an integrated property validation solution for rural India, engaging the latest drone surveying technology, for demarcating the inhabitant land in rural areas. 2) e-GramSwaraj application provides single window with the complete profile of the Gram Panchayat, including Sarpanch and Panchayat Secretary details, demographic details of Panchayat, details of Panchayat Finances, 3) On-line Monitoring Systems of Central Finance Commission (CFC) Funds Flow & Proper Utilisation 4) AuditOnline for online audit of Panchayat accounts in order to strengthen the transparency and accountability at grassroots level. 5) ServicePlus is a secure solution for service delivery – makes all Government services accessible to the common man in his/her locality, through common service delivery outlets. 6) Gram Manchitra- Geo-Spatial Planning Application for facilitating and supporting Gram Panchayat users to perform planning at Gram Panchayat level .

About the SKOCH Challenger Award: ● These awards are distinctive for its approach of selection of awardees, which is not based on the nomination but on discovery. ● The SKOCH Challenger Award is considered India’s Highest Independent Honour and is conferred after exhaustive research and expert evaluations. ● These Awards acknowledge people, projects and institutions that go the extra mile to make India a better nation.

National Commission for Minorities (NCM) In News- The 7-member National Commission for Minorities (NCM) is down to just one member after the retirement of its vice-chairperson in October and the non-filling of 5 other seats since May 2020.

About NCM- ● The Minorities Commission was detached from the Ministry of Home Affairs in 1984, and placed under the Ministry of Social Welfare. ● The National Commission for Minorities Act was enacted in 1992, and the Commission became a statutory body. ● NCM consist of Chairperson, a Vice-Chairperson and five Members. JournalsOfIndia.Com● The five Members including the Chairperson shall be from amongst the minority communities. ● To mark the adoption of the “Declaration on the Rights of Persons belonging to National or Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities” by the UN in 1992, it observes the Minorities Rights Day every year on 18th December. ● It lacks the constitutional power to conduct independent enquiries or investigations in cases of the transgression of minorities’ rights, and especially in cases of communal violence. 38

● The annual report as well as the reasons for non-acceptance of the recommendations be tabled before Parliament annually.

Digital Quality of Life Index 2020

In News- India ranks among the lowest in the world in terms of Internet quality, according to the Digital Quality of Life Report.

Key Points- ● It is global research on the quality of digital wellbeing in 85 countries (81% of the global population). ● The study indexes the countries by looking at five fundamental pillars that define the digital quality of life namely, internet affordability, internet quality, electronic infrastructure, electronic security and electronic government. ● There are countries that have a better digital quality of life with a lower GDP per capita than expected. ● Bahrain, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia with relatively high GDP per capita are underperforming in providing better digital wellbeing for their citizens due to low levels of internet quality and e-security. ● 7 out of 10 countries with the highest DQL are in Europe, with Denmark leading among 85 countries. ● Scandinavian countries excel in offering high-quality digital wellbeing to their citizens. ● Canada leads in American continents, Japan in Asia, South Africa in Africa and News Zealand in Oceania. ● India stands at the overall rank of 57 and in Internet Affordability stands at 9th place and outperforms countries like the UK, the USA and China. ● However in Internet Quality India is in 78th place and almost at the bottom of the pillar

Bhadbhut Project

In News- The Gujarat government recently awarded the contract for the Bhadbhut project in Bharuch, Gujarat.

What is the Bhadbhut Project?

● It is planned to be a 1.7-km causeway-cum-weir barrage with 90 gates, across the river Narmada, 5 km from Bhadbhut village and 25 km from the mouth of the river, where it flows into the Gulf of Khambhat. ● The barrage will stop most of the excess water flowing out of the Sardar Sarovar Dam from reaching the sea and thus create a “sweet water lake” of 600 mcm (million cubic metres) on the river. ● The barrage will also have a six-lane road that will connect the left and right banks of the river and provide shorten the land distance between two large industrial estates in Surat and Bharuch. ● The project also aims to prevent flooding in years when rainfall is higher than normal. ● The project is part of the larger Kalpasar Project, which entails the construction of a 30-km dam across the Gulf of Khambhat between Bharuch and Bhavnagar districts. ● The reservoir is meant to tap the waters of the Narmada, Mahisagar and Sabarmati. ● However, the barrage is expected to interfere with the migration and breeding cycle of Hilsa, blocking their natural entry. ● Hilsa is a marine fish which migrates upstream and arrives in the brackish water of the Narmada estuary near Bharuch for spawning usually during the monsoon months of July and August. JournalsOfIndia.Com● Part of Aliya Bet, an island in the delta of the Narmada and known for shrimp farming, is likely to get submerged.

Sardar Sarovar Project (SSP)-

● The SSP is a gravity dam on the Narmada River crossing Gujarat in India.

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● It involves a series of large irrigation and hydroelectric multi-purpose dams. ● The project took form in 1979. ● The hydroelectric power of the SSP is to be shared by the states of Gujarat, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh. ● The irrigation benefits would accrue to the states of Gujarat and Rajasthan. HISTORY Buddhist Circuit In news- The Ministry of Tourism organised a webinar titled “Exploring Buddhist Circuit by Train” as a part of ‘Dekho Apna Desh’ Webinar series. The Buddhist Circuit- ● In the Mahaparinirvana sutra, the Buddha tells his followers that they can attain merit and a noble rebirth by going on pilgrimage to the places where he was born (Lumbini, ), gained enlightenment (Bodhgaya), first taught (Sarnath), and attained nirvana (Kushinagar). ● The IRCTC Buddhist tourist train covers all the places which had a significant impact on Buddha’s life and teachings.

Other important places associated with Buddha are- ● Nalanda (Bihar) – where he lived and taught, ● Rajgir (Bihar) where Lord Buddha set in motion his second wheel of law, ● Kapilavastu (on India Nepal Border) where it is believed that Buddha spent his first early years before embarking on the long journey to enlightenment, ● Vaishali (in Bihar) where Buddha delivered his last sermon, ● Sravasti (in Uttar Pradesh) where Buddha spent twenty four rainy seasons at the Jetavan monastery, built by his disciple Sudatta Anathapindika, ● Kausambi (in Uttar Pradesh) where Buddha stayed and preached.

Prabuddha Bharata In News - Prabuddha Bharata monthly journal recently completed 125 years.

About Prabuddha Bharata or Awakened India- ● Prabuddha Bharata or Awakened India is an English-language monthly journal of the Ramakrishna Order, first published by Swami Vivekananda in July 1896. ● It carries articles and translations by monks, scholars, and other writers on humanities and social sciences. ● It has a section of book reviews where important publications from university presses from around the world are reviewed. ● It is edited from Advaita Ashrama, Mayavati, Uttarakhand, and published and printed in Kolkata. ● It is India's longest running English journal LAW AND POLICY Padhna Likhna Abhiyan

In JournalsOfIndia.ComNews- The government’s new literacy scheme, ‘Padhna Likhna Abhiyan’, will be a leap forward for achieving the goal of total literacy by 2030.

About it:

● It comes under the Ministry of Education (Earlier MHRD).

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● The programme imparts functional literacy and numeracy to 57 lakh non-literate and non-numerate adults in both rural and urban areas across the country in the age group of 15 years and above. ● This target mostly comprises Women, Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Minorities and other Disadvantaged Groups. ● In the scheme, priority will be given to districts with female literacy rates less than 60%, as per the latest Census. ● Priority will be given to aspirational districts. ● The scheme shall have a flexible approach and innovative methodologies such as involving school and college students and other volunteers of NCC, NSS and NYKS, for imparting Basic Literacy. ● There will be a Project Approval Board (PAB) at the national level to approve the Annual Plans of States/UTs. ● Convergence with projects of M/o Rural Development (MGNREGA), Skill Development, Culture, Information Technology, Finance, Sports and Youth Welfare (NYK), schemes of NCC and NSS, NGOs/Civil Society & CSR sector may be taken up. ● Basic Literacy Assessment under the scheme will be conducted by National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS) for adult learners, thrice a year.

Mission Purvodaya

In News- Recently, the Union Minister of Steel has emphasized the role of SAIL steel plants in Mission Purvodaya to drive development of eastern India.

Mission Purvodaya-

● It was launched in 2020 for the accelerated development of eastern India through the establishment of an integrated steel hub in Kolkata, West Bengal. ● The focus will be on eastern states of India (Odisha, Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh, West Bengal) and northern part of Andhra Pradesh which collectively hold ~80% of the country’s iron ore, ~100% of coking coal and significant portion of chromite, bauxite and dolomite reserves. ● The Integrated Steel Hub would focus on 3 key elements:

- Capacity addition through easing the setup of Greenfield steel plants. - Development of steel clusters near integrated steel plants as well as demand centres. - Transformation of logistics and utilities infrastructure which would change the socio-economic landscape in the East.

UN Convention Right of Person with Disability(UNCRPD)

In News- The United Nations has released its first-ever guidelines on access to social justice for people with disabilities to make it easier for them to access justice systems around the world.

About UNCRPD-

● It is an international human rights treaty dealing with the rights of disabled people and was adopted in JournalsOfIndia.Com2007. ● It defines persons with disabilities as those “who have long-term physical, mental, intellectual or sensory impairments which in interaction with various barriers may hinder their full and effective participation in society on an equal basis with others”. ● Currently, the convention has received 177 ratifications.

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● A chief goal behind the treaty is to eliminate the idea that disabled people are objects of charity and reiterate the fact that they have equal rights as much as any other person in society. ● Parties to the convention must ensure that they take adequate measures to ensure the protection and promotion of the rights and freedoms of individuals with disabilities and promote respect for the dignity of persons with disabilities. ● The convention is legally binding. ● Another unique feature of the convention is that it is applicable to all forms of disabilities including physical, psycho-social and intellectual (cross-disability). ● India ratified the UNCRPD in October 2007. ● The Parliament enacted the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 with a view to fulfilling the obligations under the UNCRPD.

Right of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016-

● Under the act, the types of disabilities have been increased from 7 to 21. ● In addition, the Government has been authorized to notify any other category of specified disability. ● The act is implemented by the Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment e-Vin

Deendayal Disabled Rehabilitation Scheme (DDRS)-

● It is the umbrella Central Sector Scheme to Promote Voluntary Action for Persons with Disability. ● The approach of this Scheme is to provide financial assistance to voluntary organizations to make available the whole range of services necessary for rehabilitation of PwD. ● The recommendation from the District Social Welfare Officer and State Government is required in release of grant-in-aid to NGOs. ● The list of model projects which have been optimized includes

- Pre-Schools, Early Intervention and Training; - Special Schools for Persons with Intellectual Disabilities; Hearing and Speech Disabilities; Visual Disabilities; Project for Cerebral Palsied children; Rehabilitation of Leprosy cured persons; - Halfway Home for psycho-Social Rehabilitation of treated and controlled mentally ill persons;

In News- The government is using eVIN – Electronic Vaccine Intelligence Network in association with the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) to identify primary beneficiaries and vaccine distribution networks.

What is eVIN?

● It is an innovative technological solution aimed at strengthening immunization supply chain systems across the country. ● This is being implemented under the National Health Mission (NHM) by the Ministry of Health and Family JournalsOfIndia.ComWelfare. ● It aims to provide real-time information on vaccine stocks and flows, and storage temperatures across all cold chain points in the country. ● The eVIN technology was initially launched in 2015 across 12 states of India in order to provide support for better vaccine logistics management at cold chain points.

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● National Expert Group on Vaccine Administration for Covid-19 (NEGVAC) has been formed as the highest group that guided the strategies for COVID vaccine introduction.

Swamitva Scheme

In News- Indian Union Minister of Rural Development & Panchayati Raj has issued guidelines regarding the Survey of Villages and Mapping with Improvised Technology in Village Area (SVAMITVA) scheme.

About the scheme-

● It is a collaborative effort of the Ministry of Panchayati Raj, State Panchayati Raj Departments, State Revenue Departments and Survey of India. ● It is currently being implemented in six states – Haryana, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand. ● Aim is to provide an integrated property validation solution for rural India. ● It is a scheme for mapping the land parcels in rural inhabited areas using drone technology and Continuously Operating Reference Station (CORS). ● The mapping will be done across the country in a phase-wise manner over a period of four years - 2020 to 2024. ● Property cards for every property in the village will be prepared by states using accurate measurements delivered by drone-mapping. ● These cards will be given to property owners and will be recognised by the land revenue records department. ● This will also help in resolving property related disputes. ● After getting the property card, easy access to loans from banks on their (beneficiaries’) houses would be ensured. ● The property records for a village will also be maintained at the Panchayat level, allowing for the collection of associated taxes from the owners. ● The money generated from these local taxes will be used to build rural infrastructure and facilities.

PM Shramik Setu Portal

In News: Aimed at migrant workers, the government launched the Shramik Setu, an online portal.

Key points of the scheme-

● In this Shramik Setu project, unorganised sector workers will be able to apply online and avail benefits of the central government’s insurance and pension schemes. ● It includes labourers welfare schemes such as the Pradhan Mantri Jeevan Jyoti Bima Yojana (PMJJBY) and PM Shram Yogi Maan-dhan Yojana (PMSYM). ● If migrant workers move to a different city or state, then such migrant workers would also be able to update their status. ● All those people who are working in the unorganised sector will have to register on the portal using their Aadhaar or bank account numbers. ● Both skilled and unskilled laborers will be able to register themselves on the Shramik Setu portal. ● It is mandatory for the person registering on the portal to be over 18 years of age. ● It is mandatory for the person registering to have his mobile number and bank account.

PradhanJournalsOfIndia.Com Mantri Shram Yogi Maan-Dhan Yojana- ● PM-SYM is a voluntary and contributory pension scheme that will engage as many as 42 crore workers in the unorganised sector. ● The unorganised sector workers, with income of less than Rs 15,000 per month and who belong to the entry age group of 18-40 years, will be eligible for the scheme.

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● Those workers should not be covered under New Pension Scheme (NPS), Employees’ State Insurance Corporation (ESIC) scheme or Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO). ● He or she should not be an income tax payer. ● The prescribed age-specific contribution by the beneficiary and the matching contribution by the Central Government will be made on a ‘50:50 basis’. Benefits- ● Each subscriber under the scheme will receive a minimum assured pension of Rs 3000 per month after attaining the age of 60 years. ● If the subscriber dies during the receipt of pension, his or her spouse will be entitled to receive 50 percent of the pension as family pension. ● If a beneficiary has given regular contribution and dies before attaining the age of 60 years, his or her spouse will be entitled to continue the scheme subsequently by payment of regular contribution or may even exit the scheme.

Food Fortification Scheme

In News- The government is making plans to distribute fortified rice through the Integrated Child Development Services and Mid Day Meal Schemes across the country from the year 2021. What is Food Fortification?

● According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), food fortification is defined as the practice of deliberately increasing the content of essential micronutrients so as to improve the nutritional quality of the food supply and to provide a public health benefit with minimal risk to health. ● The concentration of just one micronutrient might be increased in a single foodstuff (e.g. the iodization of salt), or, at the other end of the scale, there might be a whole range of food–micronutrient combinations. ● In October 2016, FSSAI operationalized the Food Safety and Standards (Fortification of Foods) Regulations, 2016 for fortifying staples namely Wheat Flour and Rice (with Iron, Vitamin B12 and Folic Acid), Milk and Edible Oil (with Vitamins A and D) and Double Fortified Salt (with Iodine and Iron) to reduce the high burden of micronutrient malnutrition in India. ● India’s National Nutritional strategy, 2017, had listed food fortification as one of the interventions to address anaemia, vitamin A and iodine deficiencies apart from supplementation and dietary diversification.

About Food Fortification Scheme-

● Existing Scheme: The centrally-sponsored pilot scheme was approved in February 2019, for a three-year period from 2019-20 onwards. Under it, one district each in 15 predominantly rice-eating States was selected. ● It was found that, out of 15 states only 5 — Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Chhattisgarh — have started the distribution of fortified rice in their identified pilot districts. ● The Food Corporation of India has now been mandated to scale up the annual supply of Fortified Rice Kernels (FRK) from the current 15,000 tonnes to at least 1.3 lakh tonnes. JournalsOfIndia.Com● To cover PDS, anganwadis and mid-day meals in the 112 aspirational districts, annual supply capacity would need to be increased to about 1.3 lakh tonnes. ● Further, existing rice mills will be equipped with Blending Machines for mixing FRK with normal rice.

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Draft Personal Data Protection Bill, 2019

In News- Facebook India’s policy head appeared before the 30-member Joint Committee of Parliament which is examining the draft Personal Data Protection Bill, 2019.

Personal Data Protection Bill, 2019-

● It is commonly referred to as the Privacy Bill. ● It intends to protect individual rights by regulating the collection, movement, and processing of data that is personal, or which can identify the individual. ● The Bill gives the government powers to authorise the transfer of certain types of personal data overseas. ● It has also given exceptions allowing government agencies to collect personal data of citizens. ● The Bill divides the data into three categories:

- Personal Data: Data from which an individual can be identified like name, address, etc. - Sensitive Personal Data: Personal data like financial, health-related, sexual orientation, biometric, caste, religious belief, etc.; - Critical Personal Data: Anything that the government at any time can deem critical, such as military or national security data.

● It removes the requirement of data mirroring in case of personal data. ● Only individual consent for data transfer abroad is required. ● The Bill requires companies and social media intermediaries to enable users in India to voluntarily verify their accounts. ● The government is qualified to order any data fiduciary to acquire personal and non-personal/anonymised data for the sake of research and for national security and criminal investigations. ● Social media companies, which are deemed significant data fiduciaries based on factors such as volume and sensitivity of data as well as their turnover, should develop their own user verification mechanism. ● An independent regulator Data Protection Agency (DPA) will oversee assessments and audits and definition making. ● Each company will have a Data Protection Officer (DPO) who will liaison with the DPA for auditing, grievance redressal, recording maintenance and more. ● The bill also grants individuals the right to data portability, and the ability to access and transfer one’s own data. ● The right to be forgotten allows an individual to remove consent for data collection and disclosure.

Data Governance Quality Index In News- As per a Survey conducted by Development Monitoring and Evaluation Office (DMEO), NITI Ayog to assess different Ministries /Departments’ performance on the implementation of Central Sector Schemes (CS) and Centrally Sponsored Schemes (CSS). Data Governance Quality Index (DGQI)Report-

● The objective is to assess data preparedness of Ministries / Departments on a standardized framework to JournalsOfIndia.Comdrive healthy competition among them and promote cooperative peer learning from best practices. ● An online questionnaire was prepared under six major themes of DGQI:

○ Data Generation ○ Data Quality ○ Use of Technology 45

○ Data Analysis, Use and Dissemination ○ Data Security and HR Capacity ○ Case Studies. ● Weightages were assigned to the themes to arrive at final DGQI scores ranging between 0 to 5 for every scheme. ● Ministries / Departments were classified in six categories: Administrative, Strategic, Infrastructure, Social, Economic and Scientific. ● Inputs have been collected from 65 Ministries / Departments implementing 250 CS / CSS schemes. ● Department of Fertilizers under the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers has been ranked 2nd amongst the 16 Economic Ministries / Departments and 3rd out of the 65 Ministries / Departments with a score 4.11.

O-SMART Scheme

In News- The O-SMART (Ocean Services, Modelling, Applications, Resources, and Technology) umbrella scheme has been implemented by the Ministry of Earth Sciences.

O-SMART Scheme-

● The services rendered under the O-SMART will provide economic benefits to a number of user communities in the coastal and ocean sectors, namely, fisheries, offshore industry, coastal states, Defence, Shipping, Ports etc. ● It provides the necessary scientific and technological background required for the implementation of various aspects of Blue Economy. ● The State of Art Early Warning Systems established Scheme will help in effectively dealing with ocean disasters like Tsunami, storm surges. ● The technologies being developed will help in harnessing the vast ocean resources of both living and non- living resources from the seas around India.

Van Dhan programme

In News- The TRIFED operating under the Ministry of Tribal Affairs signed a MOU with Akhil Bhartiya Vanvasi Kalyan Ashram to set up TRIFOOD parks in Madhya Pradesh.

About it-

● Van Dhan Vikas Karyakram is an initiative targeting livelihood generation for tribal population by harnessing the wealth of forest i.e. Van Dhan. ● The programme aims to tap into the traditional knowledge and skill sets of tribal people by adding technology and Information Technology for upgradation of output at each stage and to convert the tribal wisdom into a remunerative economic activity. ● It is primarily a component under the Mechanism for Marketing of Minor Forest Produce (MFP) through Minimum Support Price (MSP) & Development of Value Chain of Ministry of Tribal Affairs (MoTA). ● A typical Van Dhan Vikas Kendra shall constitute of 10 tribal Van Dhan Vikas Self Help Groups (SHG), each JournalsOfIndia.Comcomprising of upto 30 MFP gatherers or tribal handicraft artisans. ● Each Kendra would act as common facility centres for procurement cum value addition to locally available MFPs and skill based handicraft. ● The SHGs would belong to contiguous area, preferably in the same or near-by villages. ● At least 60% beneficiaries of the SHG shall be tribal and the SHG shall be led by a tribal member.

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● The Aajeevika SHGs will also continue to use their Aajeevika bank accounts for working capital requirements for the purpose of Van Dhan operations.

Trifood Project- ● It is an initiative of Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India (TRIFED). ● It will be implemented jointly by the Ministry of Tribal Affairs and Ministry of Food Processing Industries. ● The project aims to enhance the income of tribals through better utilization of and value addition to the MFPs collected by the tribal forest gatherers.

● The project has been launched on a pilot basis in Raigad (Maharashtra) and Jagdalpur (Chhattisgarh). ● The unit in Raigad will be used for value addition to mahua, amla, custard apple and jamun to produce mahua drink, amla juice, candy, jamun juice and custard apple pulp. ● The multi-commodity processing centre in Jagdalpur will be used for the processing of commodities like mahua, amla, honey, cashew, tamarind, ginger, garlic and other and .

DIKSHA portal

In news- In the context of COVID-19 related disruption of schooling, DIKSHA makes it possible for all states/UT’s to enable learning/education at home through innovative state programs

About DIKSHA portal-

● DIKSHA (Digital Infrastructure for Knowledge Sharing) is a national platform for school education. ● DIKSHA was developed based on the core principles of open architecture, open access, open licensing diversity, choice and autonomy. ● It is a unique initiative which leverages existing highly scalable and flexible digital infrastructures while keeping teachers at the center. ● It is an initiative of the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT). ● DIKSHA can be accessed by learners and teachers across the country and currently supports 18+ languages and the various curricula of NCERT, CBSE and SCERTs across India. ● States, government bodies and even private organizations, can integrate DIKSHA into their respective teacher initiatives based on their goals, needs, and capabilities.

Iron ore policy 2021

In news- Ministry of Railways rolls out a new iron ore policy governing allocation of rakes and transportation of iron ore. Aim of the policy- To assure that Indian Railways is fully committed to meet the complete requirement of transportation of iron ore and provide total logistics support to the steel industry to meet the competitive challenges domestically and globally. Key highlights of the policy- JournalsOfIndia.Com ● Existing categorisation based on customer’s profile into CBT/Non CBT customers henceforth is being done away with. ● Old and new plants will be treated similarly as far as allotment/loading of rakes is concerned. ● Categorization of Priority of movement of Iron Ore has now been based on the availability of Railway infrastructure developed by the customer for loading/unloading. 47

● Higher priority given to movement of iron-ore traffic for domestic manufacturing activity. ● Within domestic movement of iron-ore traffic, priority preference given to

- Steel /Pig Iron/Sponge Iron/pellet/sinter plant owning customers having their own private sidings at both loading as well as unloading ends (C+), - customers with private siding at either loading or unloading end (C), - customers without any private siding of their own relying totally on public goodsheds/sidings (C-) in that order.

● No permission is required to be obtained for choosing priorities or combination of priorities. ● To differentiate rail-cum-sea traffic from export traffic, the former should be accompanied by a self- declaration that such traffic is meant for domestic consumption. ● With the aim to facilitate ‘Ease of doing business’ scrutiny of documentation by Railways has been removed.

Bodoland Territorial Region (BTR) agreement

In news- The Union Home Minister attended a special function held in Kokrajhar, Assam to celebrate the first anniversary of the historic Bodoland Territorial Region (BTR) agreement.

Key features of the (BTR) agreement-

● It is a historic agreement between Government of India, Government of Assam and Bodo representatives signed in 2020 to end the over 50-year old Bodo crisis. ● With this agreement, over 1500 armed cadres abjured violence and joined the mainstream. ● The state government would give Rs 5 lakh each to the next of kin of those who lost their lives during the agitation for a separate state. ● Criminal cases with non-heinous charges against NDFB members will be withdrawn. ● Those cases which are heinous will be reviewed on a case-to-case basis as per the existing rules. ● Bodos living in the hills would be conferred a Scheduled Hill Tribe status. ● A Special Development Package of Rs 1,500 crore will be implemented for the development of Bodo areas in the next three years with equal contribution of Rs 750 crore each from the Central and state governments. ● The government will set up a Central University in the name of Upendranath Brahma and a National Sports University will be set up. ● A regional medical institute, hotel management campus, a Mother Dairy plant, a National Institute of Technology and more Navodaya Vidyalayas will be set up. ● The existing structure of Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC) will be strengthened with more powers and its seats will be expanded from 40 to 60. ● A commission will be set up for inclusion of Bodo-dominated villages in the BTC and exclusion of those where Bodos are not in majority. ● The Bodoland Territorial Area Districts (BTAD) spread over four districts of Kokrajhar, Chirang, Baksa JournalsOfIndia.Comand Udalguri will be renamed as Bodoland Territorial Region (BTR).

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● Bodo language as in Devanagari script will be notified by the state government as an associate official language of Assam.

Previous efforts for BODO accord- 1) The first accord was signed with the All Bodo Students’ Union in 1993, leading to the creation of a Bodoland Autonomous Council with limited political powers. But the accord failed as it failed to consider minorities other than Bodos who were also the residents of those areas. 2) In 2003, the second accord was signed with the militant group Bodo Liberation Tigers, leading to formation of Bodoland Territorial Council (BTC) with four districts of Assam called Bodoland Territorial Area District (BTAD). However, this too failed due to rising discontent from non-Bodo residents of the BTAD areas.

Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar

In news- 32 children have been awarded the Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar, 2021.

About the award ● Formerly known as the National Child Award for Exceptional Achievement, it is India's Highest Civilian Honour bestowed upon exceptional achievers under the age of 18 in the fields of innovation, scholastics, sports, arts & culture, social service and bravery. ● The award is conferred by the President of India in the week preceding the Republic Day in the Durbar Hall of Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi, ● Previously, the awards were conferred on Children's Day. ● The awardees also participate in the Republic Day Parade. ● The award was instituted by the Ministry of Women and Child Development(MCWD) in 1996. ● Each awardee will be given a medal, a cash award of Rs.1,00,000/-, book vouchers worth Rs. 10,000/-, a certificate and citation. ● A National Selection Committee, headed by the Minister of MWCD will finalize the names of the awardees.

AYU SAMVAD Campaign

In news- As part of AYU SAMVAD Campaign All India Institute of Ayurveda organized an online Training of Trainers program on AYUSH Ministry AVCC platform.

About AYU SAMVAD Campaign-

● “AYU SAMVAD” (My Health My Responsibility) is one of the largest public awareness campaign programs on AYURVEDA and COVID 19 pademic. ● The trained personnel will organize lectures for Government Offices, Non-Government sector employees, schools, colleges, panchayati raj institutions, gram sabhas, industries, various housing societies, NGOs, Mahila udyogs, Asha workers and health staff etc.. across India. ● Each trained person is expected to actively participate and deliver minimum 5 lectures each from 26th Jan 2021 to 30th March 2021 to people of India. ● The main objective of the campaign is to create awareness through Lecture series to make common JournalsOfIndia.Compeople aware about the theme “Ayurveda for COVID 19 Pandemic”. ● This campaign specifically focused on the Role of Preventive, Promotive, Curative and Rehabilitation in Management of COVID 19 through Ayurveda.

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Indian Sign Language (ISL)

In news- The Tableau of Indian Sign Language Research and Training Centre (ISLRTC), at this year’s Republic Day Parade showcased the theme ‘Bhartiya Sanketik Bhasha– Ek Rashtra, Ek Sanketik Bhasha’.

More about sign language- ● Sign language is a visual language that uses hands, facial and body movements as a means of communication for persons with hearing disabilities.

● There is only one Indian Sign Language.

● Though Indian Sign Language (ISL) is used in the deaf community all over India, it is not used in deaf schools to teach deaf children. ● Teacher training programs do not orient teachers towards teaching methods that use ISL. ● There is no teaching material that incorporates sign language.

ISLRTC- ● The Finance Minister announced the setting up of ISLRTC in the Union Budget speech of 2010-11. ● It is an autonomous body under the Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities (Divyangjan), Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment. ● The main objective of the Centre is to develop manpower for using, teaching and conducting research in Indian Sign Language.

Mekedatu Project In news- Government of Karnataka brought pressure on the central government to approve the construction of the Mekedatu balancing reservoir.

About Mekedatu project- ● Karnataka intends to build a reservoir across river Cauvery near Mekedatu in Kanakapura taluk. ● It was first proposed along with Shivanasamudra hydro power project at Shimsa in 2003 with an intention to use the water for a hydro power station and supply drinking water to Bengaluru city. ● However, Tamil Nadu’s argument was that the project would affect the flow of Cauvery water to Tamil Nadu. ● Following the green signal from the legal experts, the Karnataka government has decided to develop a 'Balancing Reservoir' or 'Mini KRS' (Krishna Raja Sagar reservoir near Mysuru) near Mekedatu for supplying potable water to Bengaluru and parts of Mysuru region in the near future. ● The state government has already floated global expression of interest in this regard for construction of balancing reservoir at Mekedaatu and already six global firms have submitted expression of interest (EoI). ● The Rs.9,000 crore project, approved by the State government in 2017, has received approval from the Union Water Resources Ministry for the detailed project report. JournalsOfIndia.Com● It is awaiting approval from the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MOEF) even as Tamil Nadu has approached the Supreme Court against the project. ● Ontigondlu, the proposed reservoir site, in the midst of the Cauvery Wildlife Sanctuary. ● The approval from MOEF is crucial since 63% of the forest area or 5,051 hectares of forests will be submerged in the sanctuary.

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Grant in Aid for Rural Local Bodies under 15th Finance Commission

In news- Ministry of Finance has released an amount of over 12,351 crore rupees for providing grants to the Rural Local Bodies.

Key updates- ● Current one is the 2nd instalment of basic grants released in the financial year 2020-21. ● The grant has been released to 18 states who have provided the Utilisation Certificate for the first instalment. ● The grants are provided to all the three tiers of Panchayati Raj - Village, Block and District to enable pooling of resources across villages and blocks. ● The 15th Finance Commission has recommended two types of grants to the RLBs - basic and tied grants. ● Basic grants can be used by the local bodies for location specific felt needs except for salary or other establishment expenditure. ● The tied grants in the ratio of 50:50 are to be used for the basic services of sanitation and maintenance of Open Defecation Free status and supply of drinking water, rain water harvesting and water recycling. ● If any RLB has fully saturated the needs of one category, it can utilize the funds for the other category. ● Grants to RLBs are to be released in two equal installments.

The State Governments will be distributing the XV FC Grants to all the tiers of panchayats in conformity with the following bands recommended by FC.

70-85 % for village/gram panchayats 10-25 % for block/intermediate panchayats 5-15 % for district/zilla panchayats

The intra-tier distribution among the relevant entities in a tier across the State (including Fifth and Sixth Schedule areas) will be on the basis of population and area in the ratio of 90:10 or as per the accepted recommendations of the latest SFC.

SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY Reusable Launch Vehicle Technology Demonstration Programme(RLV-TD)

In News- RLV-TD is India's first uncrewed flying testbed developed for ISRO's Reusable Launch Vehicle Technology Demonstration Programme.

About RLV-TD- ● RLV-TD is a winged body aerospace vehicle that operates in hypersonic flight regime. ● It is capable of launching satellites into orbit around earth and then re-enter the atmosphere. ● It is a prototype vehicle developed to achieve the Two-Stage To Orbit (TSTO) Reusable Launch Vehicle (RLV). JournalsOfIndia.Com● ISRO handles the RLV-TD programme. ● The Technology Demonstration Programme consists of the development of a hypersonic rocket with air-breathing engines and the reusable launch vehicle ● The first test-flight took place on 23rd May 2016 from Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh ● RLV will not be used in the Gaganyaan mission. 51

● A Space Capsule will be used in Gaganyaan Mission.

Gaganyaan Mission

In news: Four Indian Air Force (IAF) pilots, chosen as candidate-astronauts for India’s first manned mission Gaganyaan, have begun training in Moscow, Russia.

● Gaganyaan is the ₹10,000-crore Indian human space flight scheduled for 2022. ● It is designed to have 3-7 crew members spend 3-7 days in space in a 400-km orbit. ● The first of the two pre-Gaganyaan flights with a humanoid will be launched in 2020-end. ● The candidates will study in detail the systems of the Soyuz manned spaceship, as well as be trained in short-term weightlessness mode. ● The Soyuz is a Russian spacecraft which carries people and supplies to and from the space station. ● The candidates will also be trained to take appropriate actions during emergencies like abnormal landing in (unplanned) climate and geographic zones.

Developments so far:

● ISRO has completed the development of launch vehicle GSLV Mk-III which has the necessary payload capability to launch a 3-member crew module in low earth orbit. ● It has also tested the crew escape system which is an essential technology for human space flight. ● Elements of the life support system and Space suit also have been realized and tested. ● The orbital & re-entry mission and recovery operations have been demonstrated in the Space Capsule Re- entry experiment (SRE) mission.

Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM)

Mars Orbiter Mission was launched with the help of the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) C-25- XL from Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota on November 5, 2013.

Primary Objectives:

1. Study of Martian atmosphere 2. Study of Martian Surface Features 3. Morphology 4. Mineralogy.

5 different scientific payloads carried are:

1. Mars Color Camera (MCC) 2. Methane Sensor for Mars (MSM) 3. Lyman Alpha Photometer (LAP) 4. Thermal Infrared Imaging Spectrometer (TIS) 5. Mars Exospheric Neutral Composition Analyser (MENCA)

MarsJournalsOfIndia.Com Orbiter Mission (MOM) – Achievements

1. India is the 1st country in the world to achieve Mars Orbit Insertion in the very 1st attempt. The cost of this mission was $ 74 million, less than a famous Hollywood movie named Gravity. 2. MOM is the cheapest Interplanetary Space Mission in the World. 3. It is the 1st Interplanetary Space Mission of India. 52

4. It is the 1st Indian spacecraft to survive the Van Allen Belt, by crossing it 39 times. 5. Before ISRO only 3 other different Space agencies were able to successfully carry out space missions to Mars, ROSCOSMOS of Russia, NASA and European Space Agency (ESA).

MOM mission won Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament, and Development – For its contribution to strengthening international cooperation for the peaceful use of outer space.

Chandrayaan Mission ● Chandrayaan-1 was the first Indian lunar probe under Chandrayaan program. ● It was launched by the Indian Space Research Organisation in October 2008, and operated until August 2009. ● The mission included a lunar orbiter and an impactor. ● India launched the spacecraft using a PSLV-XL rocket. ● India was the fourth country to place its flag insignia on the Moon. ● The location of impact was named Jawahar Point.

Goals:

● High-resolution mineralogical and chemical imaging of the permanently shadowed north- and south-polar regions ● Searching for surface or subsurface lunar water-ice, especially at the lunar poles ● Identification of chemicals in lunar highland rocks ● Chemical stratigraphy of the lunar crust by remote sensing of the central uplands of large lunar craters and of the South Pole Aitken Region (SPAR)

Due to technical issues Chandrayaan-1 stopped communicating in August 2009 and ISRO officially declared that the mission was over. Chandrayaan-1 operated for 312 days as opposed to the intended two years, but the mission achieved most of its scientific objectives.

Findings:

● The recent images sent by Chandrayaan-1 suggest that the moon may be rusting along the poles. ● Data sent indicates the presence of hematite at the lunar poles. ● Recently, NASA has found evidence of greater quantities of metals such as iron and titanium on the moon’s subsurface. ● As per scientists at NASA, earth’s oxygen could be driving the formation of hematite which is ferried by Earth’s magnetosphere. ● Chandrayaan-1 data indicates that the moon's poles are home to water that scientists are trying to decipher.

Chandrayan-2:

● Chandrayaan-2 is India’s first lander mission. ● It consists of an Orbiter, Lander and Rover, all equipped with scientific instruments to study the moon. ● Orbiter - The Orbiter is a 2379-kg spacecraft with 7 instruments on board. It has instruments to study the JournalsOfIndia.Commineral composition on the moon and the lunar atmosphere, and to assess the abundance of water. The Orbiter will observe lunar surface and relay communication between Earth and the Lander. ● Lander - ISRO has named the Lander module as Vikram. It carried three instruments that will mainly study the moon’s atmosphere. One of the instruments will also look out for seismic activity on the lunar surface.

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● Rover - The Rover is a 6-wheeled, Artificial Intelligence-powered and solar-powered vehicle named Pragyan, meaning wisdom. Its primary objective is to study the composition of the moon’s surface near the landing site and determine the abundance of different elements on the moon’s surface. ● Chandrayaan-2 was planned to make a landing at a site where no earlier mission had gone, i.e near the South pole of the moon.

However, a part of the mission failed as the Vikram lander crash-landed on the lunar surface.

Chandrayaan-3 is likely to be launched in early 2021. It will be a mission repeat of Chandrayaan-2 and will include a Lander and Rover similar to that of Chandrayaan-2, but will not have an orbiter.

Solar Mission

● ISRO is preparing for its first scientific expedition to study the Sun, Aditya-L1. ● It would be placed into a point in space known as the L1 Lagrange point. ● Aditya L1 will be ISRO’s 2nd space-based astronomy mission after AstroSat (It is the first dedicated Indian astronomy mission aimed at studying celestial sources in X-ray, optical and UV spectral bands simultaneously), which was launched in 2015. ● Aditya L1 will be launched using the PSLV - XL with 7 payloads (instruments) on board. ● Many of the instruments and their components for this mission are being manufactured for the first time in the country.

Lagrange Points are positions in space where the gravitational forces of a two-body system (like the Sun and the Earth) produce enhanced regions of attraction and repulsion. The L1 point is about 1.5 million km from Earth. A Satellite placed in the halo orbit around the Lagrangian point 1 (L1) has the major advantage of continuously viewing the Sun without any occultation/ eclipses.

Objective: Aditya L1 will study the Sun’s corona (Visible and Near infrared rays), Sun's photosphere (soft and hard X-ray), chromosphere (Ultra Violet ), solar emissions, solar winds and flares, and Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs), and will carry out round-the-clock imaging of the Sun.

The payloads used:

● Visible Emission Line Coronagraph (VELC): ● Solar Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope (SUIT) ● Aditya Solar wind Particle Experiment (ASPEX) ● Plasma Analyser Package for Aditya (PAPA) ● Solar Low Energy X-ray Spectrometer (SoLEXS) ● High Energy L1 Orbiting X-ray Spectrometer (HEL1OS) JournalsOfIndia.Com

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Other Missions to the Sun-

NASA’s Parker Solar Probe’s aim is to trace how energy and heat move through the Sun’s corona and to study the source of the solar wind’s acceleration.

Metrolite and Metro Neo

In News- The government is set to approve national standard specifications for Metro Neo.

About Metro Neo- ● Metro Neo is a mass rapid transit system providing low-cost, energy-efficient and eco-friendly urban transport solutions for tier 2 and tier 3 cities. ● It is no-frills, low-cost urban rail transit system aimed at cities with population of less than 10 lakh or suburbs of bigger cities.

● Metro Neo systems are lighter and smaller than conventional Metro trains. ● They cost about 25% of conventional systems but with similar facilities. ● Metrolite costs about 40% of the normal Metro. ● Metro Neo will not run on track but on road. ● It is suitable for places where the traffic demand is around 8,000 passengers one way in peak time. ● The Maharashtra government has already given a green signal for this state-of-the-art Mass Rapid Transit System (MRTS) for Nashik.

Metrolite- • The Centre has proposed a light urban rail transit system - 'Metrolite' - in small cities and towns having lower projection of ridership, with each train having three coaches and a restricted speed of 25 kmph. • The Union Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry has issued standard specifications of the 'Metrolite' system which will be developed on surface and elevated stretches. • It will have a dedicated path separating the road traffic with it. • The three-coach train will have a capacity of carrying 300 passengers. • The maximum operational speed of the Metrolite is 60 KMPH. Artemis Accord

In News- NASA’s Artemis programme aims to return humans to the Moon by 2024.

About Artemis Accord- ● NASA announced Eight-Nation Space Coalition under Artemis Accords. ● The Artemis Accords are an international agreement between governments of participating nations in the Artemis program. ● It is based on the principles for cooperation in the civil exploration and use of the Moon, Mars, comets, and asteroids for peaceful purposes, and is grounded in the Outer Space Treaty of 1967. ● The Accords were signed on October 13, 2020 by the directors of eight national space agencies: United States, Australia, Canada, Japan, Luxembourg, Italy, the United Kingdom, and the United Arab Emirates. JournalsOfIndia.Com● Ukraine and Brazil signed it later in 2020.

Artemis program-

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● Is an upcoming crewed mission to the moon. ● It is a collaborative project of NASA, European Space Agency (ESA), Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) and the Canadian Space Agency (CSA). ● The preparations for the mission started in 2017 and is expected to be launched in 2024. ● The program is divided into three parts, ○ Artemis I is most likely to be launched next year and involves an uncrewed flight to test the SLS and Orion spacecraft. ○ Artemis II will be the first crewed flight test and is targeted for 2023. ○ Artemis III will land astronauts on the Moon’s South Pole in 2024. ● The signatories commit to adhere to peaceful exploration transparently. ● The Artemis Accords exclude China, a rising space rival to the US.

National Mission on Interdisciplinary Cyber-Physical System (NMICPS)

In News- Recently, the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Ropar, Punjab is setting up a Sectoral Application Hub in Technologies for Agriculture and Water under NMICPS. It will bring solutions for stubble management, water quality improvement and mapping of hazardous substances in water.

About NMICPS- ● It was launched in 2018 and is implemented by the Department of Science & Technology for a period of five years. ● It covers the entire India which includes Central Ministries, State Governments, Industry and Academia. Objectives of the mission-

● It is a comprehensive mission which would address technology development, application development, human resource development & skill enhancement, entrepreneurship and start-up development in Cyber-Physical System (CPS) and associated technologies. ● The mission aims at establishing 15 Technology Innovation Hubs (TIH), six Application Innovation Hubs (AIH) and four Technology Translation Research Parks (TTRP). ● They have four focused areas namely:

- Technology Development - HRD & Skill Development - Innovation, Entrepreneurship & Start-ups Ecosystem Development - International Collaborations Cyber-physical system (CPS)-

● Cyber-Physical Systems is an interdisciplinary field that deals with the deployment of computer-based systems that do things in the physical world. It integrates sensing, computation, control and networking into physical objects and infrastructure, connecting them to the Internet and to each other. JournalsOfIndia.Com● Examples- Smart Grid Networks, Smart Transportation System, Enterprise Cloud Infrastructure, Utility Service Infrastructure for Smart Cities, etc...

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Smart Anti-Airfield Weapon (SAAW)

In News- DRDO conducted a successful trial of the indigenously developed Smart Anti-Airfield Weapon (SAAW) off the Odisha coast from the Hawk-I jet of Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL). About SAAW-

● It is the first smart weapon fired from an Indian Hawk. ● SAAW is a long-range precision guided anti-airfield weapon. ● It is capable of engaging ground targets with precision up to a range of hundred kilometres. ● Basically, SAAW is a bomb and is designed to destroy targets such as bunkers, runways, reinforced structures and aircraft hangers. ● So far, eight successful tests of SAAW have been conducted. ● In 2020, the Government of India approved the SAAW project for Indian Navy and Indian Air Force.

Aquaponics

In News- The Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC), Mohali, developed the ‘Aquaponics facility’ for aquaponic cultivation of plants.

What is Aquaponics ?

● Aquaponics refers to any system that combines conventional aquaculture (raising aquatic animals such as snails, fish, crayfish or prawns in tanks) with hydroponics (cultivating plants in water) in a symbiotic environment. ● It is a form of agriculture that combines raising fish in tanks (recirculating aquaculture) with soilless plant culture (hydroponics). ● It is a sustainable method of raising both fish and vegetables. ● After the initial set-up costs, an Aquaponics system requires very little in terms of financial input. So growers can reap huge rewards.

Data Sonification

In News- The NASA Chandra X-Ray Center (CXC) has unveiled a new ‘sonification’ project that transforms data from astronomical images into audio.

What is the project?

● Users can now ‘listen’ to images of the Galactic Centre, the remains of a supernova called Cassiopeia A, as well as the Pillars of Creation Nebula, which are all located in a region around 26,000 light-years away from Earth. ● The data has been collected by NASA’s Chandra X-Ray Observatory, Hubble Space Telescope and Spitzer Space Telescope, each of which is represented by a different musical ‘instrument’, data is represented using a number of musical notes. JournalsOfIndia.Com Data Sonification- ● It refers to the use of sound values to represent real data. ● It is the auditory version of data visualisation.

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● The birth of a star, a cloud of dust or even a black hole can be ‘heard’ as a high- or low-pitched sound.

Chandra X-ray Project- ● It was launched by Space Shuttle Columbia in 1999. ● The Chandra X-ray Observatory is part of NASA's fleet of "Great Observatories" along with the Hubble Space Telescope, the Spitzer Space Telescope. ● The "X-ray universe" refers to the universe as observed with telescopes designed to detect X-rays. X-rays are produced in the cosmos when matter is heated to millions of degrees. Such temperatures occur where high magnetic fields, or extreme gravity, or explosive forces exist in space. ● The telescope is named after the Nobel Prize-winning Indian astrophysicist Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar.

Seed Ball Technique

In News ● Odisha’s Athagarh Forest Division has started casting seed balls (or bombs) inside different reserve forest areas to enrich food stock for wild elephants. What happens in a seed ball?

● A seed ball (or plant seed bomb) is a plant seed which has been pre-planted in a small round lump of soil materials, mainly a mixture of clay and compost along with other necessary nutrients, and the entire ball containing the seed is then dried. ● This enables the seed to germinate for a few days initially and then be produced when the conditions are right. ● In effect, each seed is pre-planted and is generally sown by depositing the seed ball anywhere where it is suitable for the plant species. ● This keeps the seed safe from birds etc.. till the right moment for germination comes. ● Historically, the Seed balls were used by the Ancient Egyptians to plant crops when the swollen banks of the river Nile receded after a flood. ● They are also used in Asia and North America, especially in regions of high aridity. ● The process of the seed’s germination and growth is such that it requires no attention after it is dispersed – the reason why seed pellets are known as the “fire and forget” way of plantation. ● They eliminate the need for ploughing and digging holes in the soil and the seeds do not need to be planted, since they are already surrounded by soil, nutrients, and microorganisms.

Traditional Knowledge Digital Library (TKDL)

In News- AYUSH ministry and the CSIR will collaborate in research and education in areas of traditional systems of and its integration with modern science

About TKDL:

● It is an Indian digital knowledge repository of traditional knowledge, especially about medicinal plants and formulations used in Indian systems of medicine. JournalsOfIndia.Com● Set up in 2001, as a collaboration between the CSIR and the MINISTRY OF AYUSH (This is not the first collaboration of the two organisations). ● The objective of the library is to protect the ancient and traditional knowledge of the country from exploitation through biopiracy and unethical patents, by documenting it electronically and classifying it as per international patent classification systems. ● It documents in digitized format, various Indian traditional systems of medicine available in the public domain. 58

● It contains information in five languages - English, German, French, Japanese and Spanish

Indian SARS-CoV-2 Genomics Consortium (INSACOG)

In news- INSACOG has been launched recently.

What is SARS-CoV-2 Virus?

● Referred to as SARS-CoV-2 VUI 202012/01 has been identified through viral genomic sequencing in the United Kingdom (UK). ● It is also known as lineage B.1.1.7. ● It is defined by multiple spike protein mutations. ● It is correlated with a significant increase in the rate of COVID-19 infection in England. ● This increase is thought to be at least partly because of mutation N501Y inside the spike glycoprotein’s receptor-binding domain, which binds to the ACE2 receptor in humans.

Key features of the INSACOG-

● INSACOG is a consortium of 10 labs. ● Coordinated by the Department of Biotechnology (DBT) along with MoH&FW, ICMR, and CSIR. ● The overall aim is to monitor the genomic variations in the SARS-CoV-2 on a regular basis through a multi- laboratory network. ● This vital research consortium will also assist in developing potential vaccines in the future. ● The consortium will establish a sentinel surveillance for early detection of genomic variants with public health implication, and determine the genomic variants in the unusual events/trends.

Draft National Science Technology and Innovation Policy

In news- Department of Science and Technology released the draft 5th National Science Technology and Innovation Policy(STIP) for public consultation.

About STIP-

● The STIP will be guided by its broad vision of achieving technological self-reliance and position India among the top three scientific superpowers in the decade to come. ● To attract, nurture, strengthen and retain critical human capital through a ‘people centric’ science, technology and innovation (STI) ecosystem, ● To double the number of Full-Time Equivalent (FTE) researchers, Gross Domestic Expenditure on R&D (GERD) and private sector contribution to the GERD every 5 years. ● To build individual and institutional excellence in STI.

The objective of the policy is to identify and address strengths and weaknesses of the Indian STI ecosystem to catalyse socio-economic development of the country and also make the Indian STI ecosystem globally competitive. JournalsOfIndia.Com Key features of STIP-

● STIP revolves around the core principles of being decentralized, evidence-informed, bottom-up, experts- driven, and inclusive. ● It envisages the formation of an STI Development Bank for direct investments on various long and medium- term projects in select strategic areas, commercial ventures, start-ups, technology diffusion and licensing. 59

● It states that the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer (LGBTQ+) community will be included in gender equity conversations with special provisions to safeguard its members’ rights and promote their representation and retention in STI. ● The policy will lead to the establishment of a National STI Observatory that will act as a central repository for all kinds of data related to and generated from the STI ecosystem. ● It will encompass an open centralised database platform for all financial schemes, programmes, grants and incentives existing in the ecosystem. ● A dedicated portal to provide access to the outputs of such publicly-funded research will be created through the Indian Science and Technology Archive of Research (INDSTA). ● It proposes to create pathways for the government to negotiate with journal publishers for a “one nation, one subscription” policy, in return for a centrally-negotiated payment. ● It also proposes to establish education research centres (ERCs) and collaborative research centres (CRCs) to provide research inputs to policymakers and bring together stakeholders. ● States to earmark percentage of the state allocation for STI-related activities. ● MultiNational Companies (MNCs) will collaborate with domestic private and public sector entities on projects aligned to national needs and priorities ● It also proposes that hybrid funding models with enhanced participation from public and private sectors will be created through the Advanced Missions in Innovative Research Ecosystem (ADMIRE) initiative. ● It also aims to bring in the concept of ‘dynamic policy’ with a robust policy governance mechanism incorporating features such as implementation strategy, periodic review, policy evaluation, feedback, adaptation and a timely exit strategy for various policy instruments.

New regulations of FSSAI on Trans Fats

In news- Recently, FSSAI has reduced the trans fat levels in foods from 5% to 3%.

What are Trans Fats? Trans fats or trans-fatty acids are a form of unsaturated fat which are the result of partial hydrogenation of unsaturated fat.

Types of Trans fats-

● Trans fats come in both natural and artificial forms. ● Natural or ruminant trans fats occur in the meat and dairy from ruminant animals when bacteria in these animals’ stomachs digest grass. ● Artificial trans fats are created when hydrogen is added to unsaturated liquid oils to make them more solid. ● Food manufacturers use partially hydrogenated oils (PHOs) to improve the texture, shelf life, and flavour of food. ● Artificial trans fats are found in fried foods, commercial baked goods, processed foods, etc…

Ill effects of trans fats-

● Increased bad cholesterol and also lower good cholesterol. JournalsOfIndia.Com● Trans fats are associated with increased risk of heart attacks and death from coronary heart disease.

FSSAI regulations of Trans fats-

● FSSAI has capped the amount of trans fatty acids (TFA) in oils and fats to 3% for 2021 and 2% by 2022 from the current permissible limit of 5%.

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● The revised regulation applies to edible refined oils, vanaspati (partially hydrogenated oils), margarine, bakery shortenings and other mediums of cooking such as vegetable fat spreads and mixed fat spreads. ● It was in 2011 that India first passed a regulation that set a TFA limit of 10% in oils and fats, which was further reduced to 5% in 2015.

H5N8 subtype of Influenza A Virus

In news- The presence of the H5N8 subtype of the Influenza A virus was reported in ducks in Kottayam and Alappuzha districts of Kerala.

What is H5N8?

● It is a subtype of the Influenza A virus (sometimes called bird flu virus). ● Flu/Influenza is an extremely contagious respiratory illness caused by influenza A or B viruses. ● It appears most frequently in winter and early spring. ● The flu virus attacks the body by spreading through the upper and/or lower respiratory tract. ● Although it is a lethal for birds,the H5N8 strain of avian influenza has a lower likelihood of spreading to humans compared to H5N1.

Types of flu/Influenza viruses- There are four types of influenza viruses: A, B, C and D. ● Influenza A viruses are the only influenza viruses known to cause flu pandemics, i.e., global epidemics of flu disease. ● Influenza B virus is almost exclusively a human pathogen, and is less common than influenza A. The only other animal known to be susceptible to influenza B infection is the seal. ● Influenza type C infections generally cause mild illness . It infects humans and pigs, and can cause severe illness and local epidemics. ● Influenza D viruses primarily affect cattle and are not known to infect or cause illness in people. Cases of infections from the Type D virus are rare compared to Types A, B, and C.

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National Atomic Timescale

In news- Recently, Prime Minister of India dedicated National Atomic Timescale to the Nation.

What is the Atomic Timescale?

● Atomic time scale generated by atomic clocks, which furnish time more accurately than was possible with previous astronomical means. ● Atomic clocks measure the actual length of a second, which is the base unit we use to calculate time. ● With this launch, India has become self-reliant in measuring the time within the range of a nano second. ● Now Indian Standard Time is matching the International Standard Time with the accuracy range of less than 3 nano second. ● This will be a big help for organizations like ISRO who are working with cutting edge technology. ● Modern technology related Banking, railways, defense, health, telecom, weather forecast, disaster management and many similar sectors will be benefited greatly from this achievement. ● This timescale would strengthen India’s role in Industry 4.0. ● This achievement will lead to self-reliance in the field and will lead to creation of more effective and cheaper tools for pollution control.

Vigyan Jyoti and Engage with Science (Vigyan Prasar)

In news- The Department of Science & Technology (DST) and IBM India announced collaborations to scale up two DST initiatives--Vigyan Jyoti and Engage with Science (Vigyan Prasar) recently. JournalsOfIndia.Com Vigyan Jyoti initiative-

● The Vigyan Jyoti programme was launched by DST in 2019. ● Vigyan Jyoti is a programme to promote Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) learning among girl students.

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● The program provides a scholarship, visit to nearby scientific institutions, science camps, lecturers from eminent women scientists, and career counseling. ● The program is currently implemented by Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya (JNV) in 58 districts, with the participation of about 2900 students. ● It focuses on solving the multidimensional problems associated with meager representation of women in Engineering and Technology streams in higher education by building confidence and excitement towards these streams.

Engage with Science (Vigyan Prasar)-

● This is an interactive platform that will be built on top of the India Science Over-The-Top (OTT) platform to encourage and inspire high school students to pursue Science & Technology (S&T) for a career. ● The principal objective of Vigyan Prasar is to serve India’s science popularization agenda.

Gender Advancement for Transforming Institutions (GATI)

● GATI Framework is an innovative overarching Pilot Project supported by the Department of Science and Technology (DST). ● It ushers a new intervention programme for gender equality in science and technology in India. ● The GATI model draws inspiration from the Athena SWAN Gender Equality Charter and accreditation framework operated by Advance HE, UK, since 2005. ● Project GATI aims to nudge institutions of higher education and research towards supporting diversity, inclusion and the full spectrum of demographic talent for their own success and progression. ● In particular, it aspires to create an enabling environment for equal participation of women in science, technology, engineering, medicine and mathematics disciplines (STEMM) at all levels, addressing deep- rooted problems. ● It envisages a fresh perspective on not just measures for increasing retention and recruitment but the progression of women throughout their professional journey.

India Innovation Index 2020

In news- NITI Aayog released the second edition of the India Innovation Index 2020 in a virtual event.

What is it? ● The index seeks to rank the states and union territories based on their relative performance of supporting innovation, and to empower them to improve their innovation policies by highlighting their strengths and weaknesses. ● It is jointly prepared by NITI Aayog and the Institute of Competitiveness.

Key highlights of the Index-

● The states and union territories have been divided into 17 ‘Major States’, 10 ‘North-East and Hill States’, and 9 ‘City States and Union Territories’, for effectively comparing their performance. ● The states and union territories have been ranked on two broad categories: outcome and governance. JournalsOfIndia.Com● The framework consists of 36 indicators, which include hard data (32 indicators) and four composite indicators.

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Innovation Ranking of states-

Top five major states Top five NE and Hill states Top Five UTs/Small states/cities

1. Karnataka 1. Himachal Pradesh 1. Delhi 2. Maharashtra 2. Uttarakhand 2. Chandigarh 3. Tamil Nadu 3. Manipur 3. Daman & Diu 4. Telangana 4. Sikkim 4. Puducherry 5. Kerala 5. Mizoram 5. Goa

SECURITY Indigenously developed Laser Dazzler for armed forces

In news- BEL signs contract with Indian Navy for Initial supply of indigenously developed Laser Dazzlers.

About Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation Dazzlers (Laser Dazzlers)-

● The Laser Dazzler is used as a non-lethal method for warning and stopping suspicious vehicles/ boats/ aircrafts/ UAVs etc... from approaching secured areas during both day and night. ● This unique product is indigenously designed and developed for first time for the Armed Forces. ● It is capable of dazzle and thereby suppress the person’s/optical sensor’s action with disability glare in case of non-compliance to orders. ● It disorient/confuse/blind a person temporarily. ● It also dazzles and distract aircraft/UAVs. ● It is a portable, shoulder operated and ruggedized for military use in adverse environmental conditions. ● Laser dazzler technology was developed by DRDO. ● Dazzlers emit infrared or invisible light against various electronic sensors, and visible light against humans, when they are intended to cause no long-term damage to eyes. ● The emitters are usually lasers, making what is termed a laser dazzler Laser dazzler has a wider laser beam than regular laser pointers.

Mukti Bahini

In news- For the first time ever a 122 member strong contingent of the Bangladesh Armed Forces (Mukti Bahini) participated at the historic Republic Day celebrations, to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation .

About Mukti Bahini/Bangladesh Forces-

● The Mukti Bahini, also known as the Bangladesh Forces, was the guerrilla resistance movement consisting JournalsOfIndia.Comof the Bangladeshi military, paramilitary and civilians during the War of Liberation that transformed East Pakistan into Bangladesh in 1971. ● An earlier name Mukti Fauj was also used. ● In addition to regular units, such as the East Bengal Regiment and the East Pakistan Rifles, the Mukti Bahini also consisted of the civilian Gono Bahini (People's Force).

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● The most prominent divisions of the Mukti Bahini were the Z Force led by Major Ziaur Rahman, the K Force led by Major Khaled Mosharraf and the S Force led by Major K M Shafiullah. ● Using guerrilla warfare tactics, the Mukti Bahini secured control over large parts of the Bengali countryside. ● It conducted successful "ambush and sabotage" campaigns, and included the nascent Bangladesh Air Force and the Bangladesh Navy. ● It received training and weapons from India, where people in West Bengal shared a common Bengali ethnic and linguistic heritage with East Pakistan. ● During the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971, the Mukti Bahini became part of the Bangladesh-India Allied Forces.

S-400 anti-missile system

In News- US, India friction grows over purchase of S-400 air defence system from Russia.

S-400 anti-missile system-

● It is Russia’s most advanced long-range surface-to-air missile defence system. ● India had signed a $5 billion deal with Russia to buy the S-400 air defence missile systems in 2018. ● The system is also known as the ‘Triumf’ interceptor-based missile system. ● It can simultaneously track numerous incoming objects - all kinds of aircraft, missiles and UAVs in a radius of 400km and launch appropriate missiles to neutralise them. ● Russia plans to complete the delivery by 2025.

Draft Data Centre Policy, 2020

In News- The Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology (MeitY) has released the Draft Data Centre Policy, which aims to simplify clearances for setting up data centres in the country.

About it-

Vision of the Draft Data Centre Policy- ● Making India a Global Data Centre hub, ● Promote investment in the sector, ● Propel digital economy growth, ● Enable provisioning of trusted hosting infrastructure to fulfil the growing demand of the country and facilitate state of the art service delivery to citizens.

Provisions of the Draft Data Centre Policy- ● Providing Infrastructure Status to the Data Centre Sector, at par with other sectors like Railways, Roadways, and Power. ● Demarcation of specific zones with necessary infrastructure such as roads, running water and electricity to set up data centre parks. ● These Data centre parks would be encouraged to set up their own power generation units, and use JournalsOfIndia.Comrenewable energy. ● A single-window, time-bound clearance system for all the approvals required to set up a data-centre park. ● Formulation of Data Centre Incentivization Scheme (DCIS) which will specify the intended beneficiaries, applicability criteria and fiscal and non-fiscal incentives for the sector. ● Setting-up at least four Data Centre Economic Zones (DCEZ) in the country, as a Central Sector Scheme - DCEZ Scheme.

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● Data centres will be declared as an Essential Service under “The Essential Services Maintenance Act, 1968 (ESMA)” which means that there would be a continuity of services even during times of calamities or crisis. ● An independent Data Centre Industry Council (DCIC) is proposed to be set up, which would act as an interface between the sector and the Government.

SOCIETY Longitudinal Ageing Study of India (LASI) In news- Union Minister for Health & Family Welfare released India report on Longitudinal Ageing Study of India (LASI) Wave-1.

What is LASI?

● LASI is a full–scale national survey of scientific investigation of the health, economic, and social determinants and consequences of population ageing in India. ● The National Programme for Health Care of Elderly, Ministry of Health & Family Welfare has undertaken the survey through International Institute for Population Sciences, (IIPS), Mumbai in collaboration with Harvard School of Public Health, University of Southern California,USA, United Nations Population Fund and National Institute on Ageing. ● It covered a baseline sample of individuals aged 45 till 75 and above from all States and Union Territories (UTs) of India (excluding Sikkim).

Significance of the report-

● It is India’s first and the world’s largest ever survey that provides a longitudinal database for designing policies and programmes for the older population. ● It helps in establishing a range of preventive and health care programmes for older population and most vulnerable among them. ● A unique feature of LASI is the coverage of comprehensive biomarkers as no other survey in India collects detailed data on health and biomarkers together with information on family and social network, income, assets, and consumption.

GLOBAL HUNGER INDEX 2020

In News- India has been ranked at 94 among 107 countries in the Global Hunger Index (GHI) 2020.

About the report-

● It is published by Welthungerhilfe and Concern Worldwide. ● This report is released annually. ● Worldwide hunger is at a moderate level, according to the 2020 Index. ● 3 countries have alarming levels of hunger – Chad, Timor-Leste, and Madagascar. ● Africa (South of the Sahara) and South Asia have the highest hunger.

Indian Scenario: JournalsOfIndia.Com ● With a score of 27.2, India has a level of hunger that is “serious”. ● It ranks 94 out of 107 countries in the Index. ● In 2019, India’s rank was 102 out of 117 countries. ● Country has the highest prevalence of ‘wasted children’ when even Bangladesh and Pakistan score better.

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● India features behind Nepal (73), Pakistan (88), Bangladesh (75), Indonesia (70) among others. ● Out of the total 107 countries, only 13 countries fare worse than India.

Indicators:

● 14% of India’s population is undernourished (2017-19) (It was 16.3% during 2011-13). ● Child Wasting is 17.3% (2015-19)( it was 15.1% in 2010-14). ● Child Stunting has improved significantly, from 54% in 2000 to less than 35% now. ● Child Mortality is 3.7%, which was 5.2% in 2012. PEOPLE IN NEWS Rukmini Devi Arundale

“I was very intuitive from an early age. I responded to people just as I responded to art – through an inner feeling which is difficult to explain. I just felt some things were right and some were not…”

● Rukmini Devi was born on 29 February 1904 in Madurai of Tamilnadu. ● She was the first woman in Indian history to be nominated a member of the Rajya Sabha. ● The most important revivalist of from its original 'sadhir' style prevalent amongst the temple dancers, the Devadasis. ● She also worked for the re-establishment of traditional Indian arts and crafts. ● She was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 1956 and the Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship in 1967. ● In January 1936, she along with her husband established Kalakshetra, an academy of dance and music, built around the ancient Indian Gurukul system, at Adyar, at Chennai. ● Today the academy is a deemed university under the Kalakshetra Foundation. ● She also became very close to Annie Besant and helped her with her work. ● She went on to become the President of the Theosophical Society after Dr. Besant’s passing. ● She gave her first performance at the Diamond Jubilee celebrations of the Theosophical Society in 1935. ● Theosophists hailed her as the World Mother, to her family in Kalakshetra she is Athai (paternal aunt). ● Keenly interested in , she as a member of the Rajya Sabha, was instrumental for the legislation for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act and for later setting up of the Animal Welfare Board of India, under her chairmanship in 1962.

C V Raman

“I would like to tell the young men and women before me not to lose hope and courage. Success can only come to you by courageous devotion to the task lying in front of you”.

● C V Raman was born on 7 November 1888 in Tiruchirapalli in modern Tamil Nadu. ● In 1902 aged just 13, he completed his graduation. ● He passed out in 1904 with a Gold Medal in Physics. ● He completed his post-graduation from the University of Madras in 1907 with distinction. ●JournalsOfIndia.Com He joined the Indian Finance Department as Assistant Accountant General in Calcutta. ● In 1917, he resigned from his government job and pursued his true calling when he was offered the Palit Chair of Physics at Calcutta University. ● ‘Raman Effect’- the discovery of the scattering of light was made on February 28, 1928. ● This effect proved the quantum nature of light and Raman Spectroscopy was based on this phenomenon. ● For this discovery, Raman was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1930.

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● He was the first Indian, Asian and non-white person to win a Nobel Prize for the sciences. ● In 1933, he became the first Indian Director of the Indian Institute of Science (IISC) in Bangalore. ● In 1948, he founded the Raman Research Institute (RRI) in Bangalore for conducting experiments in Physics.

Honours and awards-

● Fellow of the Royal Society – 1924 ● Knighthood – 1929 ● Nobel Prize (Physics) – 1930 ● Franklin Medal – 1941 (Franklin Institute, USA) ● Bharat Ratna – 1954 ● Lenin Peace Prize – 1957

Sree Narayana Guru

In News- Recently Vice President made a virtual book launch of “Not Many, But One”, an English translation of poems of Sree Narayana Gurudev by Prof G.K. Sasidharan.

About Sree Narayana Guru- ● Narayana Guru (1856 – 1928) was a social reformer. ● He was born into an Ezhava family in an era when people from such communities, which were regarded as Avarna, faced much social injustice in the caste-ridden society of Kerala. ● He was a pioneer reformer who rejected the caste system and stressed the equality of man. ● He also gave the universal message, “One caste, one religion, one God.” ● Educated by his father and at a nearby school, Narayana or ‘Nanu’ as he was called was influenced by Vedanta. ● He also taught Sanskrit to students at a local school with close associate Chattampi Swami. ● Chattampi Swami introduced Guru to Thycattu Ayyaavu, a Hatha Yogi. ● He lived as a hermit in a forest at Maruthwamala for eight years. ● In 1888, he installed an idol of at Aruvippuram in Kerala in his effort to show that the consecration of god’s image was not a monopoly of the . This is popularly known as Aruvippuram movement. ● In one temple he consecrated at Kalavancode, he kept mirrors instead of idols. This symbolised his message that the divine was within each individual. ● He also founded an Advaita Ashram in Kalady. ● He also lent his support to the Vaikkom which was aimed at temple entry in Travancore for the lower castes. Mahatma Gandhi met Guru during this time. ● He contributed many important literary works, the most influential being Atmopadesa Satakam which he composed in 1897. ● In 1904, he chose Sivagiri in Varkala to pursue his spiritual deeds. ● He travelled all over Kerala and the Madras State visiting people and spreading his message of unity and ‘one God’. ●JournalsOfIndia.Com Dr Palpu, a devotee of Guru, established the Sree Narayana Dharma Paripalana Yogam (SNDP Yogam) in 1903 to further Narayana Guru’s message. ● Sree Narayana Guru breathed his last on 20 September 1928.

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Basavanna and His contributions

In news- In honor of Basavanna, the Karnataka government laid the foundation stone for the Anubhava Mantapa in Basavakalyan town in .

About Basavanna-

● Basavanna was an Indian 12th-century statesman, philosopher, poet, Lingayat saint, born in Basavana Bagewadi, Karnataka and lived during the reign of the Kalyani Chalukya/Kalachuri dynasty. ● He had married Sharane Neelganaga, the daughter of his maternal uncle, and taken the position of an accountant in the palace of King Bijjala. ● He became the Finance Minister and then Prime Minister in the King’s court. ● The Basavaraj Devara Ragale by the poet is the earliest available account on the life of the social reformer. ● A full account of 's life and ideas are narrated in a 13th-century sacred Telugu text, the Basava Purana by Palkuriki Somanatha. ● He spread social awareness through his poetry, popularly known as Vachanaas. ● He rejected gender or social discrimination, superstitions and rituals but introduced Ishtalinga with an image of the Shiva Liṅga, to every person regardless of his or her birth, to be a constant reminder of one's bhakti (devotion) to Shiva. ● He established the Anubhava Mantapa (the "hall of spiritual experience"), a place that Allamaprabhu and became a part of. ● The new devotional movement named Veerashaiva movement or "ardent, heroic worshippers of Shiva '' shared its roots in the ongoing Tamil Bhakti movement (Shaiva Nayanars traditions, 7th- 11th-century). ● However, Basava championed devotional worship that rejected temple worship and rituals led by Brahmins and replaced it with personalized direct worship of Shiva.

Saint Thiruvalluvar

In news- January 15th marked the birth anniversary of Saint Thiruvalluvar.

A brief note on Saint Thiruvalluvar-

● He was revered as an ancient saint, poet, and a philosopher by Tamils, irrespective of their religion. ● Tamils are taught to learn his couplets word-for-word, and to follow his teachings in their day-to-day living. ● He is best known as the author of Tirukkuṟaḷ, a collection of couplets on ethics, political and economical matters, and love. ● The Shaivite Tamil Hindu text Tiruvalluva Malai contains the earliest known textual reference to the legend of Valluvar, but it remains undated ● In Thirukkural hé mentioned that “Adversity is nothing sinful, but / laziness is a disgrace”; “Wine cheers only when it is quaffed, but love / intoxicates at mere sight.” ●JournalsOfIndia.Com On caste system he stated that “One is not great because of one’s birth in a noble family; one is not low because of one’s low birth.” ● Many communities worship Valluvar as the 64th Nayanmar of the Saivite tradition. ● It contains 1330 couplets, which are divided into 133 sections of 10 couplets each. ● In the 700 couplets on porul (second section) (53% of the text), he mostly has discussed statecraft and warfare.

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● In Valluvar's theory of state, he recommends that a well kept and well trained army (patai) led by an able commander and ready to go to war is necessary for a state. ● Valluvar presents his theory of state using six elements: army (patai), subjects (kuti), treasure (kul), ministers (amaiccu), allies (natpu), and forts (aran).

Sushruta and his contributions

In news- The Union Health Minister dedicated the newly constructed Burns and Plastic Surgery Block at the premier AIIMS, New Delhi to Sushruta, the Father of Plastic Surgery.

About Sushruta(around 6th century BCE)-

● Sushruta was an Indian physician, who is regarded as the 'Father of Indian Medicine' and 'Father of Plastic Surgery.' ● The ancient surgeon lived in the city of Kashi, now known as Varanasi or Banaras in the northern part of India. ● For Sushruta, the concept of shalya tantra (surgical science) was all-encompassing. ● Examples of some of his groundbreaking operations include rhinoplasty (the repairing or remaking of a nose), removal of a dead fetus, and lithotomy (surgical incision into hollow organs such as the urinary bladder to remove stones, or calculi). ● He also developed many unique and practical techniques to dissect the human body and study its structure. ● Sushruta Samhita is considered the oldest text in the world on plastic surgery and is highly regarded as one of the Great Trilogy of Ayurvedic Medicine (the other two being the Charaka Samhita, which preceded it and the Astanga Hridaya, which followed it). ● It dates back to the times before Christ and is one of the earliest works in the field of medicine. ● This book documented more than 1,100 diseases, the use of hundreds of medicinal plants, and instructions for performing scores of surgical procedures - including three types of skin grafts and reconstruction of the nose. ● He gave an in-depth account of the treatment of 12 varieties of fracture and six types of dislocation. ● In the eighth century AD, Sushruta Samhita was translated into Arabic as 'Kitab Shah Shun al Hindi' and 'Kitab-I-Susurud.' ● The first European translation of Sushruta Samhita was published by Hessler in Latin and in German by Muller in the early 19th century. ● The complete English literature was done by Kaviraj Kunja Lal Bhishagratna in the three volumes in 1907 in Calcutta.

Biju Patnaik

In news- Recently, Indonesia named an embassy room in Biju Patnaik’s honour and recognizes his role in Indonesia’s freedom struggle in 1947.

His role - JournalsOfIndia.Com● Bijayananda Patnaik was an Indian politician, aviator and businessman. ● As a politician, he served twice as the Chief Minister of the State of Odisha. ● He flew several missions in 1947 to transport Indonesian leaders including President Sukarno, Vice- President Hatta and Prime Minister Sutan Sjahrir out of Indonesia, at grave risk to himself.

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● His missions involved flying in undetected to Yogjakarta where the “resistance” Republican leadership led by Sukarno was based when Dutch forces launched “Operation Product” on July 20, 1947 to capture the capital Jakarta. ● At Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru’s request, Patnaik, who had earlier served in the British Royal Air Force (RAF) and then joined the freedom movement, agreed to fly one of his Dakota planes into Indonesia, eluding Dutch air surveillance.

PLACES IN NEWS

Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) India In News- India's current national capacity for storage of crude oil and petroleum products has reached 74 days after the addition of three new locations at Visakhapatnam, Mangalore and Padur.

About SPR programme:

● To ensure energy security, the Government of India decided to set up 5 million metric tons (MMT) of strategic crude oil storages at Visakhapatnam, Mangalore and Padur (near Udupi). ● In the 2017-18 budget, it was announced that two more such caverns will be set up at Chandikhol in Jajpur district of Odisha and Bikaner in Rajasthan as part of the second phase. ● These facilities are being managed by Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserves Limited (ISPRL), a Special Purpose Vehicle, which is a wholly owned subsidiary of Oil Industry Development Board (OIDB) under the Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas. ● The crude oil storages are constructed in underground rock caverns and are located on the East and West coast of India. ● Crude oil from these caverns can be supplied to the Indian Refineries either through pipelines or through a combination of pipelines and ships. ● International Energy Agency members maintain emergency oil reserves equivalent to at least 90 days of net imports. ● India will have oil reserves equivalent to at least 87 days of net imports, once the $1.6 billion second phase of Indian Strategic Petroleum Reserves, which aims to add 12 days of crude storage, is operational. ● These facilities together will help support 22 days of India’s crude oil requirements. ● Indian refiners also maintain 65 days of crude storage, taking the total tally to 87 days.

Somnath Temple

In News- PRIME MINISTER was elected new chairman of the Shree Somnath Trust (SKT), the religious body which manages and maintains the famous Somnath temple near Veraval in Gujarat.

Concept:

● Somnath, literally translated as the Lord of Moon (Soma) houses the first of the 12 Jyotirlingas or the symbolic representation of Lord Shiva. ● This highly famed pilgrim destination is located at the Viraval Port or PrabhasPattan in , Gujrat. ●JournalsOfIndia.Com The temple is positioned in such a way that not a single piece of land is visible from the Somnath seashore until Antarctica. ● It is said the first version of the temple came into being even before the start of Christian era. ● The second version of the temple came into being under the initiative of the Vallabhi king around 408AD- 768AD. ● This temple is often referred to as the ‘eternal shrine’ because historical records say that this temple has been destroyed several times by invaders and have been resurrected several times too. 71

● Archaeological investigations point out that the temple of Somnath had been rebuilt nearly thrice before the raid of Muhammad Ghaznavi in the year 1026. ● It is said that the temple was looted and destroyed as many as seventeen times. ● The latest rebuilding of Somnath temple was done in 1947 under the initiative of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. ● Renowned temple architect Prabhas Chandra designed it and the first President of India Dr. Rajendra Prasad installed the Jyotirling in the new temple on May 11, 1951. ● The present structure was built by the Sompura Salat community in Kailash Mahameru Prasad Style or the Chalukya style. Gist of Economic Survey Economic Survey-2021: Theme of the survey

The Survey says, India’s mature policy response to this “once-in-a-century” crisis provides important lessons for democracies to avoid myopic policy making and demonstrates the significant benefits of focusing on long-term gains.

India adopted a unique four-pillar strategy of: 1. Containment 2. Fiscal Reforms JournalsOfIndia.Com3. Financial Reforms 4. Long-term structural reforms.

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A favorable monetary policy ensured abundant liquidity and immediate relief to debtors via temporary moratoria, while unclogging monetary policy transmission. The Survey underlines that the year 2020 was dominated by the COVID-19 pandemic and the ensuing global economic downturn, the most severe one since the Global Financial Crisis. Global economic output is estimated to fall by 3.5 percent in 2020 (IMF January 2021 estimates). The Survey observes that the intense lockdown implemented at the start of the pandemic – when India had only a 100 confirmed cases – characterized India’s unique response in several ways:

1) The policy response was driven by the findings from both epidemiological and economic research. The policy implemented the Nobel-prize winning research in Hansen and Sargent (2001) that recommends a policy focussed on minimising losses in a worst case scenario.

The scores of lives that have been saved and the V-shaped economic recovery that is being witnessed bear testimony to India’s boldness in taking short-term pain for long-term gain.

2) India recognised that the pandemic impacts both supply and demand in the economy.

The Government of India also launched the Emergency Credit Line Guarantee Scheme to provide much needed relief to stressed sectors by helping entities sustain employment and meet liabilities. During the unlock phase, on the one hand economic mobility increased and on the other hand, India has ramped up its fiscal spending.

Economic Survey-2021: Saving Lives and Livelihoods amidst a Once-in-a-Century Crisis

● India focused on saving lives and livelihoods by its willingness to take short-term pain for long-term gain, at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. ● Response stemmed from the humane principle that:

JournalsOfIndia.Com○ Human lives lost cannot be brought back ○ GDP growth will recover from the temporary shock caused by the pandemic ● An early, intense lockdown provided a win-win strategy to save lives, and preserve livelihoods via economic recovery in the medium to long-term.

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● India’s strategy flattened the curve, pushing the peak to September, 2020. ● After the September peak, India has been unique in experiencing declining daily cases despite increasing mobility ● V-shaped recovery, as seen in 7.5% decline in GDP in Q2 and recovery across all key economic indicators vis- à-vis the 23.9% GDP contraction in Q1. ● India was the only country to announce structural reforms to expand supply in the medium-long term and avoid long-term damage to productive capacities. ● A public investment programme centered around the National Infrastructure Pipeline to accelerate the demand push and further the recovery ● Upturn in the economy, avoiding a second wave of infections - a sui generis case in strategic policy making amidst a once-in-a-century pandemic.

India’s fight against COVID-19: ● Initial measures of lockdown, social distancing, travel advisories, practicing hand wash, wearing masks reduced the spread of the disease ● Country also acquired self-reliance in essential , hand sanitizers, protective equipment including masks, PPE Kits, ventilators, COVID-19 testing and treatment facilities. ● World’s largest COVID-19 vaccination drive commenced on 16th January, 2021 using two indigenously manufactured vaccines.

Economic Survey-2021: Social Infrastructure, Employment and Human Development ● The combined (Centre and States) social sector expenditure as % of GDP has increased in 2020-21 compared to last year. ● India’s rank in HDI 2019 was recorded at 131, out of a total 189 countries. ● India's GNI per capita (2017 PPP $) has increased from US$ 6,427 in 2018 to US$ 6,681 in 2019. ● Life expectancy at birth improved from 69.4 years in 2018 to 69.7 years in 2019. ● The access to data network, electronic devices such as computer, laptop, smartphone etc… gained importance due to online learning and remote working during the pandemic ● Major proportion of workforce engaged as regular wage/salaried in the urban sector during the period of January 2019-March 2020 (quarterly survey of PLFS). ● Government’s incentive to boost employment through Atma Nirbhar Bharat Rozgar Yojana and JournalsOfIndia.Comrationalization and simplification of existing labour codes into 4 codes. ● Low level of female LFPR in India. ● Under PMGKY announced in March, 2020, cash transfers of upto Rs.1000 to existing old aged, widowed and disabled beneficiaries under the National Social Assistance Programme (NSAP). ● An amount of Rs. 500 each was transferred for three months digitally into bank accounts of the women beneficiaries under PM Jan Dhan Yojana, totalling about Rs. 20.64 crores.

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● Free distribution of gas cylinders to about 8 crore families for three months. ● Limit of collateral free lending increased from Rs. 10 lakhs to Rs. 20 lakhs for 63 lakh women SHGs which would support 6.85 crore households. ● Wages under Mahatma Gandhi NREGA increased by Rs.20 from Rs.182 to Rs.202 w.e.f. 1st April, 2020.

● Access to the ‘bare necessities’ has improved across all States in the country in 2018 as compared to 2012, which is highest in States such as Kerala, Punjab, Haryana and Gujarat while lowest in Odisha, Jharkhand, West Bengal and Tripura. ● Improvement in each of the five dimensions viz., access to water, housing, sanitation, micro-environment and other facilities. ● Inter-State disparities declined across rural and urban areas as the laggard states have gained relatively more between 2012 and 2018. ● Improved disproportionately more for the poorest households when compared to the richest households across rural and urban areas ● There are also improvements in health indicators such as infant mortality and under-5 mortality rate and also correlates with future improvements in education indicators. JournalsOfIndia.Com

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● A Bare Necessities Index (BNI) based on the large annual household survey data can be constructed using suitable indicators and methodology at district level for all/targeted districts to assess the progress on access to bare necessities. EconomicJournalsOfIndia.Com Survey-2021: State of the Economy in 2020-21: A Macro View

● Due to COVID-19 pandemic, lockdowns and social distancing norms brought the already slowing global economy to a standstill. ● Global economic output estimated to fall by 3.5% in 2020 (IMF January 2021 estimates)

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● Governments and central banks across the globe deployed various policy tools to support their economies such as lowering policy rates, quantitative easing measures, etc. ● India adopted a four-pillar strategy of containment, fiscal, financial, and long-term structural reforms. ● Calibrated fiscal and monetary support was provided, cushioning the vulnerable during the lockdown and boosting consumption and investment while unlocking ● A favourable monetary policy ensured abundant liquidity and immediate relief to debtors while unclogging monetary policy transmission ● As per the advance estimates by NSO, India’s GDP is estimated to grow by (-) 7.7% in FY21 - a robust sequential growth of 23.9% in H2: FY21 over H1: FY21. ● India’s real GDP to record a 11.0% growth in FY 2021-22 and nominal GDP to grow by 15.4% – the highest since independence. ● Government consumption and net exports cushioned the growth from diving further down, whereas investment and private consumption pulled it down. ● The recovery in second half of FY 2020-21 is expected to be powered by government consumption, estimated to grow at 17% YoY. ● Exports expected to decline by 5.8% and imports by 11.3% in the second half of FY21. ● India expected to have a Current Account Surplus of 2% of GDP in FY21, a historic high after 17 years.

● On supply side, Gross Value Added (GVA) growth pegged at -7.2% in FY21 as against 3.9% in FY20: ● Agriculture set to cushion the shock of the COVID-19 pandemic on the Indian economy in FY21 with a growth of 3.4%. ● Industry and services estimated to contract by 9.6% and 8.8% respectively during FY21. ● Agriculture remained the silver lining while contact-based services, manufacturing, construction were hit hardest, and recovering steadily. ● Net FPI inflows recorded an all-time monthly high of US$ 9.8 billion in November 2020, as investors’ risk appetite returned. JournalsOfIndia.Com● India was the only country among emerging markets to receive equity FII inflows in 2020. ● Buoyant SENSEX and NIFTY resulted in India’s market-cap to GDP ratio crossing 100% for the first time since October 2010 ● Softening of CPI inflation recently reflects easing of supply side constraints that affected food inflation. ● Reignited inter and intra state movement and record-high monthly GST collections have marked the unlocking of industrial and commercial activity.

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● The external sector provided an effective cushion to growth with India recording a Current Account Surplus of 3.1% of GDP in the first half of FY21. ● Forex reserves increased to a level so as to cover 18 months worth of imports in December 2020. ● External debt as a ratio to GDP increased to 21.6% at end-September 2020 from 20.6% at end-March 2020. ● V-shaped recovery is underway, as demonstrated by a sustained resurgence in high frequency indicators such as power demand, e-way bills, GST collection, steel consumption, etc... ● India became the fastest country to roll-out 10 lakh vaccines in 6 days and also emerged as a leading supplier of the vaccine to neighbouring countries and Brazil.

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Major Structural Reforms Undertaken as a Part of Atmanirbhar Bharat Package

Sector Structural Reform Undertaken

Deregulation and Liberalization of Sectors

● Farmers’ Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Act, 2020 Agriculture ● Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance and Farm Services Act, 2020 Essential Commodities (Amendment) Act, 2020 ● New MSME definition covering almost 99 per cent of all firms enabling MSMEs MSMEs to grow in size and create jobs ● Removal of artificial separation between manufacturing and service MSMEs ● Enactment of four labour codes namely, Wage Code, Industrial Relations Code, Labour 2020, Code on Occupational Safety, Health & Working Conditions Code, 2020 & Social Security Code, 2020 ● 'One labour return, one licence and one registration' Simplification of the Other Service Provider (OSP) guidelines of the Department of Telecom. Several requirements, which prevented companies Business Process from adopting Outsourcing (BPO) ‘Work from Home’ and ‘Work from Anywhere’ policies have been removed

● Tariff Policy Reform: DISCOM inefficiencies not to burden consumers, Power Progressive reduction in cross subsidies, Time bound grant of open access, etc. ● Privatization of Distribution in UTs

PSUs ● PSUs in only strategic sectors ● Privatization of PSUs in non-strategic sectors ● Commercial Mining in Coal Sector ● Removal of distinction between captive and merchant mines Mineral Sector ● Transparent auction of mining blocks ● Amendment to Stamp Act, 1899 to bring uniformity in stamp duty across States ● Introduction of a seamless composite exploration- cum- mining- cum- production regime Strengthening Productive Capacity

Industry ● Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme for 10 identified sectors ● National GIS-enabled Land Bank system launched ● Level playing field provided to private companies in satellites, launches and Space space-based services ● Liberal geo-spatial data policy for providing remote-sensing data to tech- entrepreneurs ● Corporatization of Ordnance Factory Board Defence ● FDI limit in the Defence manufacturing under automatic route to be raised from JournalsOfIndia.Com49 per cent to 74 per cent. ● Time-bound defence procurement process Strengthening Productive Capacity

Education ● PM-eVidya to enable multi-mode and equitable access to education ● Manodarpan initiative for psychosocial support 79

Social Scheme for Financial Support to Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) in Infrastructure Infrastructure Viability Gap Funding (VGF) Scheme extended till 2024-25

Ease of Doing Business

● Direct listing of securities by Indian public companies in permissible foreign jurisdictions Financial Markets ● Provisions to reduce timeline for completion of rights issues by companies ● Private companies which list NCDs on stock exchanges not to be regarded as listed companies ● Including the provisions of Part IXA (Producer Companies) of Companies Act, 1956 in Companies Act, 2013 ● Decriminalization of Companies Act defaults involving minor technical and procedural defaults Corporates ● Power to create additional/ specialized benches for NCLAT ● Lower penalties for all defaults for Small Companies, One-person Companies, Producer Companies & Start Ups ● Simplified Proforma for Incorporating Company Electronically Plus (SPICe +) introduced ● National platform for recruitment: National Recruitment Agency to conduct a Common Eligibility Test Administration ● Revised guidelines on Compulsory retirement to remove ineffective or corrupt officials through Fundamental Rule 56(j)/(l) and Rule 48 of CCS (Pension) Rule ● Faceless tax assessment and a 12-point taxpayers charter ● Fast track Investment Clearance through Empowered Group of Secretaries

Economic Survey-2021: Fiscal Developments

● India adopted a calibrated approach best suited for a resilient recovery of its economy from COVID-19 pandemic impact, in contrast with a front-loaded large stimulus package adopted by many countries. ● Expenditure policy in 2020-21 initially aimed at supporting the vulnerable sections but was re-oriented to boost overall demand and capital spending, once the lockdown was unwound. ● Monthly GST collections have crossed the Rs. 1 lakh crore mark consecutively for the last 3 months, reaching its highest levels in December 2020 ever since the introduction of GST.

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Does Growth lead to Debt Sustainability? Yes, But Not Vice- Versa!

● Debt sustainability depends on the ‘Interest Rate Growth Rate Differential’ (IRGD), i.e., the difference between the interest rate and the growth rate. ● In India, the interest rate on debt is less than the growth rate - by norm, not by exception. ● Negative IRGD in India is not due to lower interest rates but much higher growth rates. ● Fiscal multipliers are disproportionately higher during economic crises than during economic booms.

JournalsOfIndia.Com ● Fiscal policy that provides an impetus to growth will lead to lower debt-to-GDP ratio. ● Desirable to use counter-cyclical fiscal policy to enable growth during economic downturns. ● India, the fifth largest economy in the world has never been rated as the lowest rung of the investment grade (BBB-/Baa3) in sovereign credit ratings.

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● Reflecting the economic size and thereby the ability to repay debt, the fifth largest economy has been predominantly rated AAA. ● China and India are the only exceptions to this rule – China was rated A-/A2 in 2005 and now India is rated BBB-/Baa3. ● Credit ratings map the probability of default and therefore reflect the willingness and ability of the borrower to meet its obligations. ● India’s willingness to pay is unquestionably demonstrated through its zero sovereign default history. ● India’s ability to pay can be gauged by low foreign currency denominated debt and forex reserves. ● India’s fiscal policy should reflect Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore’s sentiment of ‘a mind without fear’.

Economic Survey-2021: Inequality and Growth: Conflict or Convergence?

● Both inequality and per-capita income (growth) have similar relationships with socio-economic indicators in India, unlike in advanced economies. ● Economic growth has a greater impact on poverty alleviation than inequality ● India must continue to focus on economic growth to lift the poor out of poverty. ● Expanding the overall pie - redistribution in a developing economy is feasible only if the size of the economic pie grows.

● India’s health infrastructure must be agile so as to respond to pandemics - healthcare policy must not become beholden to ‘saliency bias’

● National Health Mission (NHM) played a critical role in mitigating inequity as the access of the poorest to pre- natal/post-natal care and institutional deliveries increased significantly. ● Emphasis on NHM in conjunction with Ayushman Bharat should continue. ● An increase in public healthcare spending from 1% to 2.5-3% of GDP can decrease the out-of-pocket expenditure from 65% to 35% of overall healthcare spending. ● A regulator for the healthcare sector must be considered given the market failures stemming from information asymmetry. ● Mitigation of information asymmetry will help lower insurance premiums, enable the offering of better products and increase insurance penetration. ● Information utilities that help mitigate the information asymmetry in healthcare sector will be useful in enhancing overall welfare ● Telemedicine needs to be harnessed to the fullest by investing in internet connectivity and health infrastructure.

Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (PM-JAY) – the ambitious program launched by Government of India in 2018 to provide healthcare access to the most vulnerable sections demonstrates strong positive effects on healthcare outcomes in a short time.

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● PM-JAY is being used significantly for high frequency, low cost care such as dialysis and continued during the Covid pandemic and the lockdown. ● Causal impact of PM-JAY on health outcomes by undertaking a Difference-in-Difference analysis based on National Family Health Survey (NFHS)-4 (2015-16) and NFHS-5 (2019-20) is following:

● Enhanced health insurance coverage: The proportion of households that had health insurance increased in Bihar, Assam and Sikkim from 2015-16 to 2019-20 by 89% while it decreased by 12% over the same period in West Bengal ● Decline in Infant Mortality rate: from 2015-16 to 2019-20, infant mortality rates declined by 20% for West Bengal and by 28% for the three neighbouring states ● Decline in under-5 mortality rate: Bengal saw a fall of 20% while, the neighbours witnessed a 27% reduction ● Modern methods of contraception, female sterilization and pill usage went up by 36%, 22% and 28% respectively in the three neighbouring states while the respective changes for West Bengal were negligible ● While West Bengal did not witness any significant decline in unmet need for spacing between consecutive kids, the neighbouring three states recorded a 37% fall ● Various metrics for mother and child care improved more in the three neighbouring states than in West Bengal. JournalsOfIndia.Com

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Overall, the comparison reflects significant improvements in several health outcomes in states that implemented PM-JAY versus those that did not.

Economic Survey-2021: Process Reforms

● India over-regulates the economy resulting in regulations being ineffective even with relatively good compliance with process. ● The root cause of the problem of overregulation is an approach that attempts to account for every possible outcome. ● Increase in complexity of regulations, intended to reduce discretion, results in even more non-transparent discretion. ● The solution is to simplify regulations and invest in greater supervision which, by definition, implies greater discretion ● Discretion, however, needs to be balanced with transparency, systems of ex-ante accountability and ex-post resolution mechanisms JournalsOfIndia.Com

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Industry and Infrastructure-

● The IIP & eight-core index further inched up to pre-COVID levels. ● The broad-based recovery in the IIP resulted in a growth of (-) 1.9 % in Nov-2020 as compared to a growth of 2.1 % in Nov-2019 and a nadir of (-) 57.3 % in Apr-2020. ● Further improvement and firming up in industrial activities are foreseen with the Government enhancing capital expenditure, the vaccination drive and the resolute push forward on long pending reform measures. ● Atma Nirbhar Bharat Abhiyan with a stimulus package worth 15 % of India’s GDP announced. ● India’s rank in the Ease of Doing Business (EoDB) Index for 2019 has moved upwards to the 63rd position in 2020 from 77th in 2018 as per the Doing Business Report (DBR):

- India has improved its position in 7 out of 10 indicators. - Acknowledges India as one of the top 10 improvers, the third time in a row, with an improvement of 67 ranks in three years. - It is also the highest jump by any large country since 2011.

● FDI equity inflows were US$49.98 billion in FY20 as compared to US$44.37 billion during FY19:

- It is US$30.0 billion for FY21 (up to September-2020). - The bulk of FDI equity flow is in the non-manufacturing sector. - Within the manufacturing sector, industries like automobile, telecommunication, metallurgical, non- conventional energy, chemical (other than fertilizers), food processing, petroleum & natural gas got the bulk of FDI.

●JournalsOfIndia.Com Government has announced a Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme in the 10 key sectors under the aegis of Atma Nirbhar Bharat for enhancing India’s manufacturing capabilities and exports.

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Services Sector

● India’s services sector contracted by nearly 16 % during H1: FY 2020-21, during the COVID-19 pandemic mandated lockdown, owing to its contact-intensive nature. ● Key indicators such as Services Purchasing Managers’ Index, rail freight traffic, and port traffic, are all displaying a V-shaped recovery after a sharp decline during the lockdown. ● Despite the disruptions being witnessed globally, FDI inflows into India’s services sector grew robustly by 34% Y-o-Y during April-September 2020 to reach US$ 23.6 billion. ● The services sector accounts for over 54 % of India’s GVA and nearly four-fifths of total FDI inflow into India. ● The sector’s share in GVA exceeds 50% in 15 out of 33 States and UTs, and is particularly more pronounced (greater than 85%) in Delhi and Chandigarh. ● Services sector accounts for 48% of total exports, outperforming goods exports in recent years. ● The shipping turnaround time at ports has almost halved from 4.67 days in 2010-11 to 2.62 days in 2019-20. ● The Indian start-up ecosystem has been progressing well amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, being home to 38 unicorns - adding a record number of 12 start-ups to the unicorn list last year. ● India’s space sector has grown exponentially in the past six decades.

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Innovation: Trending Up but Needs Thrust, Especially from the Private Sector

● India entered the top-50 innovating countries for the first time in 2020 since the inception of the Global Innovation Index in 2007, ranking first in Central and South Asia, and third amongst lower middle-income group economies ● India’s gross domestic expenditure on R&D (GERD) is lowest amongst top ten economies. ● The government sector contributes a disproportionately large share in total GERD at three times the average of top ten economies. ● The business sector’s contribution to GERD, total R&D personnel and researchers is amongst the lowest when compared to top ten economies. ● Indian resident’s share in total patents filed in the country must rise from the current 36% which is much below the average of 62% in top ten economies.

Economic Survey-2021: External Sector

● COVID-19 pandemic led to a sharp decline in global trade, lower commodity prices and tighter external financing conditions with implications for current account balances and currencies of different countries. ● India’s forex reserves at an all-time high of US$ 586.1 billion as on January 08, 2021, covering about 18 JournalsOfIndia.Commonths worth of imports.

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● India experiencing a Current Account Surplus along with robust capital inflows leading to a BoP surplus since Q4 of FY 2019-20. ● Balance on the capital account is buttressed by robust FDI and FPI inflows:

- Net FDI inflows of US$ 27.5 billion during April-October, 2020: 14.8% higher as compared to first seven months of FY 2019-20 - Net FPI inflows of US$ 28.5 billion during April-December, 2020 as against US$ 12.3 billion in corresponding period of last year

● India to end with an Annual Current Account Surplus after a period of 17 years. ● India’s merchandise trade deficit was lower at US$ 57.5 billion in April-December, 2020 as compared to US$ 125.9 billion in the corresponding period last year. ● In April-December, 2020, merchandise exports contracted by 15.7% to US$ 200.8 billion from US$ 238.3 billion in April-December, 2019:

- Petroleum, Oil and Lubricants (POL) exports have contributed negatively to export performance during the period under review. - Non-POL exports turned positive and helped in improving export performance in Q3 of 2020-21. - Within Non-POL exports, agriculture & allied products, drugs & pharmaceutical and ores & minerals recorded expansion.

● Total merchandise imports declined by (-) 29.1% to US$ 258.3 billion during April-December, 2020 from US$ 364.2 billion during the same period last year:

JournalsOfIndia.Com- Sharp decline in POL imports pulled down the overall import growth. - Fertilizers, vegetable oil, drugs & pharmaceuticals and computer hardware & peripherals have contributed positively to the growth of non-POL, non-Gold & non-Silver imports.

● Trade balance with China and the US improved as imports slowed.

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● Net services receipts amounting to US$ 41.7 billion remained stable in April-September 2020 as compared with US$ 40.5 billion in corresponding period a year ago. ● Resilience of the services sector was primarily driven by software services, which accounted for 49% of total services exports. ● Net private transfer receipts, mainly representing remittances by Indians employed overseas, totaling US$ 35.8 billion in H1: FY21 declined by 6.7% over the corresponding period of previous year. ● At end-September 2020, India’s external debt was placed at US$ 556.2 billion - a decrease of US$ 2.0 billion (0.4%) as compared to end-March 2020.

● Improvement in debt vulnerability indicators:

- Ratio of forex reserves to total and short-term debt (original and residual) - Ratio of short-term debt (original maturity) to the total stock of external debt. - Debt service ratio (principal repayment plus interest payment) increased to 9.7% as at end-September 2020, compared to 6.5% as at end-March 2020.

● Rupee appreciation/depreciation:

- In terms of 6-currency nominal effective exchange rate (NEER) (trade-based weights), Rupee depreciated by 4.1% in December 2020 over March 2020; appreciated by 2.9% in terms of real effective exchange rate (REER). - In terms of 36-currency NEER (trade-based weights), Rupee depreciated by 2.9% in December 2020 over March 2020; appreciated by 2.2% in terms of REER.

●JournalsOfIndia.Com RBI’s interventions in forex markets ensured financial stability and orderly conditions, controlling the volatility and one-sided appreciation of the Rupee ● Initiatives undertaken to promote exports: Production Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme; Remission of Duties and Taxes on Exported Products (RoDTEP); Improvement in logistics infrastructure and digital initiatives.

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Economic Survey-2021: Money Management and Financial Intermediation-

● Accommodative monetary policy during 2020: repo rate cut by 115 bps since March 2020. ● Systemic liquidity in FY 2020-21 has remained in surplus so far. RBI undertook various conventional and unconventional measures like:

○ Open Market Operations ○ Long Term Repo Operations ○ Targeted Long Term Repo Operations ● Gross Non-Performing Assets ratio of Scheduled Commercial Banks decreased from 8.21% at end-March, 2020 to 7.49% at end-September, 2020. ● The monetary transmission of lower policy rates to deposit and lending rates improved during FY 2020-21. ● NIFTY-50 and BSE SENSEX reached record high closing of 14,644.7 and 49,792.12 respectively on January 20, 2021. ● The recovery rate for the Scheduled Commercial Banks through IBC (since its inception) has been over 45%.

Regulatory Measures in Banking Sector-

Commercial Banks-

a. Merger of PSBs: Consolidation among another 10 PSBs, with Punjab National Bank, Canara Bank, Union Bank of India and Indian Bank as anchor banks came into effect from April 1, 2020.

b. Restructuring of MSME loans: A one-time restructuring of loans to MSMEs that were in default but ‘standard’ as on January 1, 2019, was permitted, without an asset classification downgrade, subject to certain conditions like aggregate exposure (including non-fund-based facilities) of banks and NBFCs to the borrower not exceeding `25 crore as on January 1, 2019.

The borrowing entity has to be GST registered. However, this condition will not apply to MSMEs that are exempt from GST-registration.

c. Large exposure framework: A bank’s exposure under the Large Exposure Framework to a group of connected counterparties was increased from 25 per cent to 30 percent of the eligible capital base of the bank. The increased limit will be applicable up to June 30, 2021.

d. Export Credit: The maximum permissible period of pre-shipment and post-shipment export credit sanctioned by banks was increased from one year to 15 months for disbursements made up to July 31, 2020, in line with the relaxation granted in the period of realization and repatriation of the export proceeds to India.

e. Monetary policy transmission: external benchmarking of loans: RBI deregulated the interest rates on advances by SCBs (excluding RRBs).

In order to ensure transparency, standardisation, and ease of understanding of loan products by borrowers, banks were advised to adopt a uniform external benchmark within a loan category.

Under the external benchmark system, the interest reset period for loans was also reduced to three months with a view to pass on the benefit of reduction in policy repo rate to the borrowers more frequently. Further,JournalsOfIndia.Com to make the benefit of external benchmark linked interest rate regime available to the existing borrowers (Base Rate/MCLR), banks were advised to provide a switchover option to such borrowers on mutually agreed terms.

Co-operative Bank-

90 a. Revision in the target for priority sector lending: The overall priority sector lending target for Urban Co-operative Banks has been increased from the present level of 40 percent of adjusted net bank credit (ANBC) or credit equivalent amount of off-balance sheet exposure (CEOBSE), whichever is higher, to 75 per cent of ANBC or CEOBSE, whichever is higher by March 31, 2024. b. Inclusion of co-operative banks as eligible member lending institutions under interest subvention scheme for MSMEs - This scheme provides an interest relief of two per cent per annum to eligible MSMEs on their outstanding fresh/incremental term loan/working capital during the period of its validity. c. Reporting of large exposures to Central Repository of Information on Large Credits (CRILC): Urban Cooperative Banks (UCBs) with assets of `500 crore and above were brought under the CRILC reporting framework. Accordingly, UCBs shall report credit information, including classification of an account as Special Mention Account (SMA), on all borrowers having aggregate exposures of `5 crore and above with them to CRILC. d. Limits on exposure to single and group borrowers and large exposures: The exposure norms for single borrower and a group of borrowers from 15 percent and 40 percent of UCB’s capital funds, to 15 percent and 25 percent, respectively, of UCB’s Tier-I capital. e. Submission of returns under Section 31 (read with section 56) of the Banking Regulation Act, 1949 - The timeline for the furnishing of the returns for the financial year ended on March 31, 2020, was first extended by three months, i.e., till September 30, 2020 and then further to December 31,2020. f. Amendments to the Banking Regulation Act, 1949, Banking Regulation (Amendment) Act, 2020. The key changes in the regulatory regime of UCBs pursuant to the Banking Regulation (Amendment) Act, 2020 are as under: ● The Reserve Bank has been given powers over the management of the UCBs, owing to which it can issue directions relating to the management of UCBs including approval for appointment of Chairman / MD / CEO, removal and remuneration of MD / CEO. ● Further, the Board of UCBs would be required to have not less than 51 percent members having special knowledge / practical experience in specified areas. ● The statutory restriction on grant of director-related loans/ advances has been widened and common directorship across banks shall be prohibited as per the provisions of the amended Act. ● The Reserve Bank has been vested with powers of approval of the appointment / removal of statutory auditors of UCBs. ● Provisions of the revised Act will enable UCBs to raise capital by issue of equity/ preference/special shares and debentures/bonds/like securities subject to such conditions as the Reserve Bank may specify on this behalf. ● The Reserve Bank has been empowered to supersede the Board of Directors of a UCB; though in case of a UCB having operations confined to a single State, in consultation with the concerned State Government. ● The Reserve Bank has been empowered to sanction voluntary/compulsory amalgamation and to prepare a scheme for reconstruction of a UC with the approval of the Central Government. The amended Act provides for winding up of a UCB by High Court at the instance of the Reserve Bank.

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CHAMPIONS online platform for MSME- ● In a major initiative, on 9th May, 2020, the GoI launched CHAMPIONS online platform to help and handhold the MSMEs. ● ‘CHAMPIONS’ stands for Creation and Harmonious Application of Modern Processes for Increasing the Output and National Strength. ● It is an ICT based technology system aimed at making the smaller units big by solving their grievances, encouraging, supporting, helping and hand holding them throughout the business lifecycle. ● The platform facilitates a single window solution for all the needs of the MSMEs. ● In addition to ICT tools including telephone, internet and video conference, the system is enabled by Artificial Intelligence, Data Analytics and Machine Learning. ● It is also fully integrated on a real time basis with GoI’s main grievances portal CPGRAMS and MSME Ministry’s other web based mechanisms. ● As part of the system, a network of 70 control rooms have been created in a Hub & Spoke Model. ● The Hub is situated in New Delhi in Secretary MSME’s office. ● The spokes are in the States in various offices and institutions of the Ministry. ● The GoI has also onboarded public sector banks to provide extended support for finance facilitation/ resolving through CHAMPIONS platform.

Regulatory Forbearance an emergency medicine, not staple diet! ● During the Global Financial Crisis, regulatory forbearance helped borrowers tide over temporary hardship. ● Forbearance continued long after the economic recovery, resulting in unintended consequences for the economy. ● Banks exploited the forbearance window for window-dressing their books and misallocated credit, thereby damaging the quality of investment in the economy. ● Forbearance represents emergency medicine that should be discontinued at the first opportunity when the economy exhibits recovery, not a staple diet that gets continued for years. ● To promote judgement amidst uncertainty, ex-post inquests must recognize the role of hindsight bias and not equate unfavourable outcomes to bad judgement or malafide intent. ● An Asset Quality Review exercise must be conducted immediately after the forbearance is withdrawn. ● The legal infrastructure for the recovery of loans needs to be strengthened de facto.

Without Forbearance With Forbearance

1. If the project is viable, the bank would restructure 1. If the project is viable, the bank would the asset. As restructured assets do not require the restructure the asset and downgrade it to a Non- same level of provisioning as NPAs, inadequate Performing Asset (NPA) and provision for the same. provisions are made.

2.If the project is unviable, the bank would not 2. Capital-starved banks now have an incentive to restructure the loan and declare the asset as non- restructure even unviable projects to reduce performing. Crucially, banks do not gain by JournalsOfIndia.Comprovisioning and avoid the consequent hit on capital. restructuring unviable projects in this case.

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Prices and Inflation

Headline CPI inflation:

- Averaged 6.6% during April-December, 2020 and stood at 4.6% in December, 2020, mainly driven by rise in food inflation. - CPI headline and its sub groups witnessed inflation during April-October 2020, driven by substantial increase in price momentum, due to the initial disruptions caused by COVID-19 lockdown. - Moderated price momentum by November 2020 for most sub groups, coupled with positive base effect helped ease inflation.

Rural-urban difference in CPI inflation saw a decline in 2020:

● During April-December, 2019 as well as April-December, 2020-21, the major driver of CPI-C inflation was the food and beverages group. ● Steps taken to stabilize prices of food items: Banning of export of onions; Imposition of stock limit on onions; Easing of restriction on imports of pulses.

State-wise trend:

- CPI-C inflation increased in most of the states in the current year. - Regional variation persists - Inflation ranged from 3.2% to 11% across States/UTs during June-December 2020 compared to (-) 0.3% to 7.6% during the same period last year.

Gold prices:

JournalsOfIndia.Com- Sharp spike as investors turned to gold as a safe haven investment amid COVID-19 induced economic uncertainties. - Compared to other assets, gold had considerably higher returns during FY 2020-21.

Consistency in import policy warrants attention:

- Increased dependence on imports of edible oils poses risk of fluctuations in import prices. 93

- Imports impacting production and prices of domestic edible oil market, coupled with frequent changes in import policy of pulses and edible oils, add to confusion among farmers/producers and delay imports.

Economic Survey-2021: Sustainable Development and Climate Change

● India has taken several proactive steps to mainstream the SDGs into the policies, schemes and programmes. ● Voluntary National Review (VNR) is presented to the United Nations High-Level Political Forum (HLPF) on Sustainable Development. ● Localisation of SDGs is crucial to any strategy aimed at achieving the goals under the 2030 Agenda. ● Several States/UTs have created institutional structures for implementation of SDGs and also nodal mechanisms within every department and at the district levels for better coordination and convergence. ● Eight National Missions under the National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC) focussed on the objectives of adaptation, mitigation and preparedness on climate risks. ● India’s Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC) states that finance is a critical enabler of climate change action. ● The goal of jointly mobilizing US$ 100 billion a year by 2020 for climate financing by the developed countries has remained elusive. ● The postponement of COP26 to 2021 also gives less time for negotiations and other evidence-based work to inform the post-2025 goal. ● Green bond issuance in the first half of 2020 slowed down from 2019, possibly as a result of the on-going COVID-19 pandemic. ● International Solar Alliance (ISA) launched two new initiatives – ‘World Solar Bank’ and ‘One Sun One World One Grid Initiative’ - poised to bring about solar energy revolution globally

Economic Survey-2021: Agriculture and Food Management

JournalsOfIndia.Com ● India’s Agricultural (and Allied Activities) sector has shown its resilience amid the adversities of COVID-19 induced lockdowns with a growth of 3.4% at constant prices during 2020-21 (first advance estimate). ● The share of Agriculture and Allied Sectors in Gross Value Added (GVA) of the country at current prices is 17.8% for the year 2019-20.

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● Gross Capital Formation (GCF) relative to GVA showing a fluctuating trend from 17.7 % in 2013-14 to 16.4 % in 2018-19, with a dip to 14.7 % in 2015-16. ● Total food grain production in the country in the agriculture year 2019-20 (as per Fourth Advance Estimates), is 11.44 million tonnes more than during 2018-19. ● The actual agricultural credit flow was ₹13,92,469.81 crores against the target of ₹13,50,000 crores in 2019- 20. ● 1.5 crore dairy farmers of milk cooperatives and milk producer companies’ were targeted to provide Kisan Credit Cards (KCC) as part of Prime Minister’s Atma Nirbhar Bharat Package after the budget announcement of February 2020. ● As of mid January 2021, a total of 44,673 Kisan Credit Cards (KCCs) have been issued to fishers and fish farmers. ● The Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana covers over 5.5 crore farmer applications year on year. ● Claims worth Rs. 90,000 crore paid, as on 12th January, 2021. ● An amount of Rs. 18000 crore has been deposited directly in the bank accounts of 9 crore farmer families of the country in December, 2020 in the 7th installment of financial benefit under the PM-KISAN scheme. ● Food Processing Industries (FPI) sector growing at an Average Annual Growth Rate (AAGR) of around 9.99 % as compared to around 3.12 % in Agriculture and 8.25 % in Manufacturing at 2011-12 prices during the last 5 years ending 2018-19.

Pradhan Mantri Garib Kalyan Anna Yojana:

● 80.96 crore beneficiaries were provided foodgrains above NFSA mandated requirement free of cost till November, 2020. ● Over 200 LMT of foodgrains were provided amounting to a fiscal outgo of over Rs. 75000 Crores. JournalsOfIndia.Com● As Atma Nirbhar Bharat Package, 5 kg per person per month for four months (May to August) to approximately 8 crores migrants (excluded under NFSA or state ration card) entailing subsidy of Rs. 3109 crores approximately was given.

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