Navo – Pramati School of Civil Services YesUPSC
Website: www.navodayafoundation.in, www.Yesupsc.com Contact: 097418 69722
23 November 2018
Daily News Pedia
Allied and Healthcare Professions Bill, 2018
The Bill provides for setting up of an Allied and Healthcare Council of India and corresponding State Allied and Healthcare Councils. These councils will play the role of a standard-setter and facilitator for professions of Allied and Healthcare.
Provisions of the Bill
The Bill provides for Structure, Constitution, Composition and Functions of the Central Council and State Councils, e.g. Framing policies and standards, Regulation of professional conduct, Creation and maintenance of live Registers etc. The Bill will also have an overriding effect on any other existing law for any of the covered professions.
The State Council will undertake recognition of allied and healthcare institutions. Offences and Penalties clause have been included in the Bill to check malpractices.
The Bill also empowers the Central and State Governments to make rules. Central Govt. also has the power to issue directions to the Council, tomake regulations and to add or amend the schedule.
Composition of the Councils: The Central Council will comprise 47 members, of which 14 members shall be ex-officio representing diverse and related roles and functions and remaining 33 shall be non-ex-officio members who mainly represent the 15 professional categories. The State Councils are also envisioned to mirror the Central Council, comprising 7 ex-officio and 21 non-ex officio members and Chairperson to be elected from amongst the non-ex officio members. Professional Advisory Bodies under Central and State Councils will examine issues independently and provide recommendations relating to specific recognised categories.
The Bill aims:
To bring all existing allied and healthcare professionals on board during the first few of years from the date of establishment of the Council. To provide opportunity to create qualified, highly skilled and competent jobs in healthcare by enabling professionalism of the allied and healthcare workforce. To bring in high quality, multi-disciplinary care in line with the vision of Ayushman Bharat, moving away from a ‘doctor led’ model to a ‘care accessible and team based’ model. Opportunity to cater to the global demand (shortage) of healthcare workforce which is projected to be about 15 million by the year 2030, asper the WHO Global Workforce, 2030 report.
Source: The Hindu.
India, Pak. commit to Kartarpur corridor
India had first proposed the Kartarpur Sahib corridor in 1999 when the then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee took a bus ride to Lahore.
India and Pakistan agreed to build the Kartarpur Sahib corridor for Sikh pilgrims to visit the Gurdwara in Kartarpur (Pakistan)
Both the countries exchanged letters committing to build the required infrastructure for visa- free direct travel by Sikh pilgrims to Pakistan’s Kartarpur Sahib gurdwara. November 2019 marks 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev
The gurdwara in Kartarpur is located on the bank of river Ravi in Pakistan. It is about four km from the Dera Baba Nanak shrine, and about 120 km northeast of Lahore. It was here that Guru Nanak assembled a Sikh community and lived for 18 years until his death in 1539.
The shrine is visible from the Indian side, as Pakistani authorities generally trim the elephant grass that would otherwise obstruct the view. Indian Sikhs gather in large numbers for darshan from the Indian side, and binoculars are installed at Gurdwara Dera Baba Nanak. The gurdwara was opened to pilgrims after repairs and restoration in 1999, and Sikh jathas have been visiting the shrine regularly ever since.
Sikh jathas from India travel to Pakistan on four occasions every year- for Baishakhi, the martyrdom day of Guru Arjan Dev, the death anniversary of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, and the birthday of Guru Nanak Dev.
Source: The Hindu.
Atmosphere and Climate Research-Modelling Observing Systems & Services (ACROSS) and National Facility for Airborne Research (NFAR)
The Government has approved continuation of the nine sub-schemes of the umbrella scheme “Atmosphere & Climate Research-Modelling Observing Systems & Services (ACROSS)” during 2017-2020.
The scheme will be implemented by the Ministry of Earth Sciences.
ACROSS scheme pertains to the atmospheric science programs of the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES) and addresses different aspects of weather and climate services, which includes warnings for cyclone, storm surges, heat waves, thunderstorms etc.
The ACROSS scheme consists of nine sub-programmes which are multi disciplinary and multi institutional in nature and will be implemented in an integrated manner through IMD, HIM, NCMRWF and INCOIS. Government has also approved establishment of National Facility for Airborne Research (NFAR).
The scheme will provide improved weather, climate and ocean forecast and services, thereby ensuring transfer of commensurate benefits to the various services like Public weather service, disaster management, Agro-meteorological Services, Aviation services, Environmental monitoring services, Hydro-meteorological services, climate services, tourism, pilgrimage, power generation, water management, Sports & adventure etc.
Source: PIB.
Greenhouse gas amounts in atmosphere hit record high
The World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) in its latest Greenhouse Gas Bulletin reported that the amounts of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere have hit yet another record high.
About WMO: The WMO is the weather agency of the United Nations, and publishes its Greenhouse Gas Bulletin each year. This year’s report covers data for 2017.
Findings of the report:
There is no sign of a reversal in the trend of rising levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere, which is driving long-term climate change, sea level rise, ocean acidification and more extreme weather. Without rapid cuts in carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases, climate change will have increasingly destructive and irreversible impacts on life on Earth. The last time the Earth experienced a comparable concentration of carbon dioxide was 3-5 million years ago, when the temperature was 2-3°C warmer and sea level was 10-20 metres higher than now.
Carbon dioxide: Concentrations of the gas reached 405.5 parts per million in 2017, 146% of the pre-industrial era (before 1750). The increase in carbon dioxide from 2016 to 2017 was about the same as the average growth rate over the last decade. It was smaller than the record leap observed from 2015 to 2016 (from 401.1 ppm to 403.3 ppm) under the influence of a strong El Niño
There was no El Niño in 2017.
Methane: Atmospheric methane reached a new high of about 1859 parts per billion in 2017 and is now 257% of the pre-industrial level. Its rate of increase was about equal that observed over the past decade.
Nitrous Oxide: Its atmospheric concentration in 2017 was 329.9 parts per billion. This is 122% of pre-industrial levels. CFC-11: CFC-11 is a potent greenhouse gas and a stratospheric ozone depleting substance regulated under the Montreal Protocol. Since 2012, its rate of decline has slowed to roughly two-thirds of its rate of decline during the preceding decade. The most likely cause of this slowing is increased emissions associated with production of CFC-11 in eastern Asia according to the bulletin says.
Source: The Hindu.
Navo – Pramati School of Civil Services YesUPSC
India gets UN Environment award for combating transboundary environmental crime
UN Environment has awarded Wildlife Crime Control Bureau (WCCB), Ministry of Environment with Asia Environment Enforcement Awards, 2018 for excellent work done in combating transboundary environmental crime.
The Asia Environment Enforcement Awards publicly recognize and celebrate excellence in enforcement by government officials and institutions/teams combating transboundary environmental crime in Asia.
The awards are given to outstanding individuals and/or government organizations/teams that demonstrate excellence and leadership in enforcement of national laws to combat transboundary environmental crime. The award was decided upon by a selection panel set up by the UN Environment and this is the second time in a row the awards are being given by UN Environment to India.
Wildlife Crime Database Management System
WCCB has adopted innovative enforcement techniques that have dramatically increased enforcement of transboundary environmental crimes in India.
It has developed an online Wildlife Crime Database Management System to get real time data in order to help analyze trends in crime and devise effective measures to prevent and detect wildlife crimes across India. This system has been successfully used to analyse trends, helping put in preventive measures as well as for successfully carrying out operations such as Operation SAVE KURMA, THUNDERBIRD, WILDNET, LESKNOW, BIRBIL, THUNDERSTORM, LESKNOW-II.
It has also helped enforcement agencies in the arrest of 350 wildlife criminals and huge seizures of animal body parts and skins. In order to involve the public in the fight against wildlife crime, WCCB has also developed a scheme to enroll willing persons as WCCB Volunteers.
Source: PIB.
Wildlife Crime Control Bureau
Wildlife Crime Control Bureau is a statutory multi-disciplinary body established by the Government of India under the MoEFCC, to combat organized wildlife crime in the country.
The Bureau has its headquarter in New Delhi and five regional offices at Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai, Chennai and Jabalpur; three sub-regional offices at Guwahati, Amritsar and Cochin; and five border units at Ramanathapuram, Gorakhpur, Motihari, Nathula and Moreh.
Under Section 38 (Z) of the Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972, it is mandated:
to collect and collate intelligence related to organized wildlife crime activities and to disseminate the same to State and other enforcement agencies for immediate action so as to apprehend the criminals; to establish a centralized wildlife crime data bank; co-ordinate actions by various agencies in connection with the enforcement of the provisions of the Act; assist foreign authorities and international organization concerned to facilitate co- ordination and universal action for wildlife crime control; Navo – Pramati School of Civil Services YesUPSC
Capacity building of the wildlife crime enforcement agencies for scientific and professional investigation into wildlife crimes and assist State Governments to ensure success in prosecutions related to wildlife crimes; and advise the Government of India on issues relating to wildlife crimes having national and international ramifications, relevant policy and laws.
It also assists and advises the Customs authorities in inspection of the consignments of flora & fauna as per the provisions of Wild Life Protection Act, CITES and EXIM Policy governing such an item.
Source: Internet.
Manipur Sangai Festival 2018
The ‘Manipur Sangai Festival’, the biggest tourism festival of the state was recently inaugurated in Imphal.
This year’s festival is going to create history as it is being organised at three venues of both hill and valley districts including Imphal, Mao and Keibul Lamjao for the first time. Altogether, 99 stalls from 10 foreign countries and 112 for India will be opened during the festival.
Many foreign dignitaries, including 100 delegates from Myanmar will also be attending the 10 days long grand event.
Sangai festival is an annual cultural festival organised by Manipur Tourism Department every year from November 21 to 30.
The Tourism Festival, since 2010 has been renamed as the Sangai Festival as Sangai is the state animal of Manipur. Homage is paid to this shy and gentle Brow-Antlered Deer which is found only in the state’s floating Keibul Lamjao National Park in Loktak Lake.
The festival showcases tourism potential of Manipur in field of arts & culture, handloom, handicrafts, indigenous sports, cuisine, music and adventure sports of the state etc. The tourism festival promotes Manipur as a world class destination.
Source: The Hindu.
Editorial
To read
Failing the Maoists’ victims
Teacher-less schools in Chhattisgarh represent a lost opportunity for the state
Polling for the second phase of the assembly election in Chhattisgarh has ended. Naxalism had emerged as one of the key poll issues. While opposition parties targeted the Raman Singh-led government, which has held office in the state for 15 years, for its ineffective handling of the Naxalite challenge, the BJP leaders did not leave any opportunity to publicise success stories on this front. At an election campaign in Bastar earlier this month, the prime minister made it a point to highlight the BJP-led government’s successful developmental programmes in the state’s Naxal- affected regions. One claim — the state government’s commitment to ensure that all children in these regions attend schools — caught my attention.
Navo – Pramati School of Civil Services YesUPSC
About a year ago, I visited Narayanpur, one of the worst Maoist-hit districts of Chhattisgarh, for field-research. A major part of this district is covered by the Abujhmarh forest areas. With hilly terrain and dense forests, Abujhmarh is largely un-surveyed. It is home to a tribal population, which has very little interaction with the outside world. Over the years, this region has also been providing safe sanctuary to Maoist insurgents. The fear of insurgency in this district is such that every year, the civil administration assesses its success based on how many more kilometres away from the headquarters its officials can go freely to implement state schemes. Review and monitoring of programmes has taken a back seat. Many state welfare schemes are, in fact, carried out by the Ramakrishna Mission Ashram that has been working in the Abujhmarh region for more than three decades.
Nevertheless, the state’s eagerness to penetrate the region in order to include the excluded tribal population of the area under its welfare programmes and wipe out insurgency in the area is reflected in the district administration’s plans and programmes. Until a few years ago, all state interventions were confined to the district headquarters but in recent times, some of the remote areas of Narayanpur have seen the functioning of the government machinery to improve healthcare, education and transport.
I travelled to some remote areas of the districts and documented people’s reactions to government’s claims about its programmes. I also visited government-run centres — some of them were newly opened — several times to gauge the acceptability of the programmes. The most telling picture was of a state-run school in Madhonar village. Reaching this village was not very easy because of poor connectivity.
The local people described the village as a Maoist stronghold. It was surprising to see a good government school building in that area. There were posters on educational awareness on its walls. I was happy to see about 40 to 50 children in school uniform playing inside the school campus. The willingness of parents — most of them had never attended any school — to educate their children was evident. The children attended school everyday and their excitement was discernible. They had come to realise that education would provide them better opportunities.
But it did not take me long to realise that the school was actually locked and no teacher or school staff was present. Interactions with the children revealed that this was par for the course. The teachers came only once in a month, sometimes, once in two months, to maintain records, they said. The situation was more or less the same in some of the other government schools I visited, in nearby villages. The district officials ascribed the low attendance to the fear of the Naxals. But the locals could not recollect an incident of a schoolteacher being attacked by the Naxals. In fact, the Naxals fear a backlash if they harass teachers and doctors.
Even though the administration is serious about children’s enrolment in schools and the Naxal- affected areas get more focus and funds, it hasn’t given adequate importance to the presence of teachers in schools. One district collector told me that changing this state-of-affairs will take time.
For a very long time, the Maoists found it easy to get local support in Abujhmarh. In recent times, the Adivasis of this region have witnessed the increasing presence of security forces in their villages. But the schools of Narayanpur’s remote villages speak of a missed opportunity for the administration to win the hearts and minds of the people. Such missed opportunities benefit the Maoists. A mere increase in enrolment carries no value, if the enrolled children do not get education.
Navo – Pramati School of Civil Services YesUPSC
Mains Question
Q: The preferential voting system ensures a truly representative winner. Critically examine the suitability of this voting system in India.
Navo – Pramati School of Civil Services YesUPSC