O F F I C E R S ' P U L S E Issue no. 1 | 31st May to 6th June, 2020 C O V E R A G E . The Hindu The Indian Express PIB Rajya Sabha TV All India Radio A T A G L A N C E & I N D E P T H . Polity and Social Issues Economy International Relations Environment Science and Tech Culture CURRENT AFFAIRS WEEKLY THE PULSE OF UPSC AT YOUR FINGER TIPS News @ a glance POLITY ............................................................... 3 2) Real-time polymerase chain reaction (RT- 1) PM CARES Fund............................................... 3 PCR) ............................................................... 33 2) One Nation One Ration Card .......................... 4 3) Chitra Gene LAMP-N: new Covid-19 3) Essential Commodities Act 1955 .................... 5 diagnostic test kit .......................................... 33 4) Ayushman Bharat Scheme .............................. 6 4) BHIM app and NPCI ....................................... 34 ENVIRONMENT ................................................. 8 4) Darknet / Darkweb ........................................ 35 1) Cyclones .......................................................... 8 5) LiDAR ............................................................. 36 2) Locust attack ................................................... 8 HEALTH ............................................................ 37 3) IMD ............................................................... 10 1) Superspreaders ............................................. 37 4) Pashmina Goats ............................................ 10 2) Coronavirus ................................................... 37 5) National Disaster Management Act .............. 11 3) Hydroxychloroquine ...................................... 39 6) #SaalBhar60 .................................................. 11 4) Remdesivir ..................................................... 40 7) State of India's Environment 2020 in Figures 13 5) Clade A3i ........................................................ 41 8) World Environment day 2020 ....................... 17 6) World Health organisation ............................ 41 9) Sunderbans ................................................... 18 ART & CULTURE ................................................. 42 ECONOMY ........................................................ 18 1) Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural 1) Hike in MSP ................................................... 18 Heritage (INTACH) ......................................... 42 2) Rating agencies ............................................. 19 2) Battle of Bhima Koregaon ............................. 42 3) MSMEs definition .......................................... 20 3) Archaeological sites/monuments of Pakistan 4) Electronics manufacturing schemes ............. 21 Occupied Kashmir (PoK) ................................ 43 5) Periodic Labour Force Survey ....................... 21 4) Saindhava empire .......................................... 45 6) Foreign Portfolio Investment ........................ 22 PIB ANAYSIS ..................................................... 46 7) Payment Infrastructure Development Fund . 23 1) Jal Jeevan Mission ......................................... 46 8) Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code .................. 23 2) Kisan Credit Card ........................................... 47 INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS ....................... 25 3) Pradhan Mantri Bhartiya Janaushadhi 1) G7 Summit .................................................... 25 Pariyojana ...................................................... 47 2) U.S. exit from WHO ....................................... 25 4) TRIFED ........................................................... 48 3) Hong Kong security law ................................ 26 5) Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port ...................... 48 4) Tiananmen Square Massacre ........................ 27 6) Pharmacopoeia Commission for Indian 5) GAVI Alliance ................................................. 27 Medicine & Homoeopathy (PCIM&H) ........... 49 6) India-Australia virtual bilateral summit ........ 28 7) The Urban Learning Internship Program 7) United Nations Security Council ................... 28 (TULIP) ........................................................... 50 8) China-Pakistan Economic Corridor ............... 29 8) Atal Innovation Mission ................................ 51 SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY ......................... 31 9) Institute of Eminence .................................... 52 1) International Space Station (ISS) .................. 31 1 News in Depth AIR NEWS ......................................................... 53 3) World Health Organisation and India’s Policy 1) Vande Bharat Mission ................................... 53 approach ........................................................ 57 2) PM SVANIDHI ................................................ 53 4) Free electricity to farm .................................. 57 3) SWADES initiative ......................................... 53 5) Alternative Protein ........................................ 58 4) Mahatma Gandhi National Rural INDIAN EXPRESS EXPLAINED ........................ 60 Employment Guarantee Program ................. 54 1) India-China Border issues .............................. 60 THE HINDU EDITORIALS ................................ 55 2) Inner Line Permit and its CAA context ......... 61 1) Universal Basic Income and the need for it 3) Essential Commodities Act and need for its now ............................................................... 55 amendment: .................................................. 62 2) Fortifying the Africa Outreach ...................... 55 2 News @ a glance POLITY 1) PM CARES Fund ▪ The term "Corporate Social GS-Paper 2: Transparency and Responsibility" in general can be Accountability, Right To referred to as a corporate initiative to Information assess and take responsibility for the What is PM CARES Fund? company's effects on the environment ▪ ‘Prime Minister’s Citizen Assistance and and impact on social welfare. Few Relief in Emergency Situations Fund’ (PM activities, which can be undertaken by a CARES Fund)’ is a dedicated national company under CSR include, fund with the primary objective of ▪ Eradicating hunger, poverty & dealing with any kind of emergency or malnutrition, promoting preventive distress situation, like posed by the health care & sanitation & making COVID-19 pandemic, and to provide relief available safe drinking water; to the affected. ▪ Promoting education, including special ▪ Prime Minister is the ex-officio education & employment enhancing Chairman of the PM CARES Fund and vocational skills especially among Minister of Defence, Minister of Home children, women, elderly & the differently Affairs and Minister of Finance, unable & livelihood enhancement Government of India are ex-officio projects; Trustees of the Fund. ▪ Employment enhancing vocational skills Key objectives : ▪ Protection of national heritage, art & ▪ To undertake and support relief or culture including restoration of buildings assistance of any kind relating to a public & sites of historical importance & works health emergency or any other kind of of art; setting up public libraries; emergency, calamity or distress, either ▪ promotion & development of traditional man-made or natural, including the arts & handicrafts; etc.. creation or upgradation of healthcare or pharmaceutical facilities, other necessary ▪ PM CARES Fund has also got exemption infrastructure, funding relevant research under the FCRA and a separate account or any other type of support. for receiving foreign donations has been ▪ To render financial assistance, provide opened. This enables PM CARES Fund to grants of payments of money or take such accept donations and contributions from other steps as may be deemed necessary individuals and organizations based in by the Board of Trustees to the affected foreign countries. population. Tax and other Exemptions: ▪ Donations to PM CARES Fund would ▪ Foreign Contribution Regulation Act qualify for 100% exemption under the (FCRA), 2010 Income Tax Act, 1961. ▪ Foreign funding of voluntary organizations ▪ Donations to the Fund will also qualify to in India is regulated under FCRA act and is be counted as Corporate Social implemented by the Ministry of Home Responsibility (CSR) expenditure under Affairs. the Companies Act, 2013 ▪ It regulates the acceptance and utilization of foreign contribution or foreign hospitality by certain individuals or associations or 3 companies. ▪ If information sought concerns the life or ▪ The Acts ensures that the recipients of liberty of a person, it shall be supplied foreign contributions adhere to the stated within 48 hours. purpose for which such contribution has Section- 7 (8): Reason to rejection: been obtained. ▪ Where a request has been rejected ,the Central Public Information Officer or State Public Information Officer, as the case Why in News? may be, shall communicate to the person ▪ The Prime Minister's Office (PMO) has making the request, refused to disclose details on the creation ▪ The reasons for such rejection; and operation of the PM CARES Fund, ▪ The period within which an appeal against telling an RTI applicant that the fund is such rejection may be preferred; and “not a public authority” within the ambit ▪ The particulars of the Appellate of the RTI Act, 2005. Authority. Section 8 (1) :Exemptions against About RTI Act 2005 ▪ The basic objective of the Right to furnishing information under RTI