FEB-2019 CURRENT AFFAIRS DR. LAKSHMAIAH IAS STUDY CIRCLE ASHOK NAGAR, HYDERABAD 040-27671427, 8500218036 |[email protected] |drpvlakshmaiah.com Separating KEY POINTS OF NEWS from excess information Gist of DISCUSSION POINTS from Prelims and Mains Perspective RELIABLE & CONCISE NOTES for preparation, discussion and revision DLSC CURRENT AFFAIRS Table of Contents S.No Topic Page No. POLITY & GOVERNANCE 1-56 1 Goyal unveils Vision 2030,highlighting 10 dimensions in Interim Budget, 2019- 1-3 20 2 Not really bullish on native cow breeds 3-8 3 Legitimacy of the basic structure – On Basic Structure of India’s Constitution 8-11 4 Wrong on the Rohingya 12-15 5 100% use of VVPAT for Lok Sabha polls: EC 15-16 6 India set to overtake Pakistan in number of Haj pilgrims: Naqvi 16-18 7 Pension scheme for workers in informal sector to kick-start from February 15, 18-19 2019 8 The solution is universal – On MGNREGA and PM-KISAN 19-22 9 Time to raise the bar 22-24 10 AMU issue referred to Constitution Bench 24-31 11 SC sends Delhi power tussle case to larger Bench 31-32 12 Auditor’s account 32-35 13 Why only bureaucrats on information panels, asks SC 36-37 14 How the 16th Lok Sabha fared 38-41 15 Discord in Puducherry 41-43 16 7 islands in Andamans, Lakshadweep identified for seaplane operations 43-46 17 Without land or recourse 47-51 18 EVM is ‘information’ under RTI, says CIC 51-52 19 De-odourising sewage 52-54 20 ‘What action can you take against political parties?’ 54-56 INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS 57-99 1 U.S. to pull out of nuclear Treaty 58-59 2 11 EU nations back Guaido as President 60-65 3 Visa crackdown (Indian Diaspora) 66-67 4 No zero-sum games 67-69 5 India, Maldives reverse visa stand-off 69-71 6 Ageing revolution (Iran’s 1979 Revolution) 71-75 7 India revokes Pak.’s MFN status day after terrorist strike in J&K 75-79 8 Trump declares emergency to build border wall 79-83 9 Heralding a new dawn 83-89 10 SushmaDLSC to address OIC meet 89-91 11 Beyond oil 91-99 CURRENT AFFAIRS SOCIETY/SOCIAL WELFARE 100-113 1 Centre launches panic button on mobiles. 101-103 2 Assam to cut pay of staff who neglects parents. 103-105 3 Niyamgiri’s Dongria Kondh gird for ‘resistance’ after SC order 106-110 4 Caught between two extremisms. 110-113 HEALTH & EDUCATION 114-125 1 Medical journals publisher under fire 115-118 2 NGOs call for funds to eliminate TB 118-123 3 A fungus that cripples immune system 124-125 ECONOMY 126-166 1 The Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi (PM-KISAN) scheme 127-133 2 Pension for informal sector workers 133-136 3 Ayushman Bharat 136-138 4 Surveying India’s unemployment numbers 138-141 5 Bill shock for power producers 141-144 6 A ‘pink revolution’ quietly takes shape in Maharashtra 144-146 7 RBI cuts rates to spur growth 146-149 8 Angel Tax 149-150 9 The state of the States 150-152 10 Everyone is afraid of data 152-155 11 The shape of the jobs crisis 155-157 12 Is the unemployment crisis for real? 157-161 13 Cabinet approves new National Electronics Policy 161-162 14 Labour Bureau files MUDRA job report 162-164 15 Safety nets – On Unregulated Deposit Schemes Ordinance 164-166 INTERNAL SECURITY 167-177 1 Centre bans Kashmir outfit 168-169 2 Push for generous rehab scheme for Naga cadres 169-172 3 Terror monitor keeps Pak. on grey list, seeks action 172-173 4 Pulwama attack and the subsequent India’s Non-military, Preemptive Strikes 173-177 on terrorist training camps in Pakistan SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 178-196 1 India’s 40thDLSC Communication Satellite, GSAT-31, Launched 179-183 2 In a first, Air Force commissions aerial surveillance 183-184 3 The Table that defines chemistry turns 150 185-188 CURRENT AFFAIRS 4 Antibiotic-resistant NDM-1 gene found in pristine Arctic 188-192 5 India to have own DNS for safe browsing 192-196 ENVIRONMENT 197-230 1 Fundraiser to secure 96 elephant corridors. 198-201 2 Human-elephant conflict kills 1,713 people, 373 pachyderms in 3 years. 201-203 3 Caught down the wire: Punjab’s blackbuck fight for existence. 203-207 4 Vet institute, ambulances mooted in ₹98 crore lion conservation plan. 207-212 5 ‘Flying bulldog’: world’s largest bee spotted again 212-214 6 Removal of sand from Thottappally opposed 214-216 7 Travel on a jet plane, using a little cooking oil 216-220 8 A case for Commons sense 220-222 9 DNA forensics a vital tool in cracking wildlife crimes 223-226 10 Wasted effort: half of India’s waste-to-energy plants defunct 226-230 DLSC 1 POLITY & GOVERNANCE DLSC 2 1. Goyal unveils Vision 2030, highlighting 10 dimensions in Interim Budget, 2019-20 News: Presenting the Interim Budget 2019-20, Finance Minister Piyush Goyal has laid out the government’s vision for India in 2030, highlighting “10 most important dimensions”. Analysis: Most important dimensions of the Vision 2030: 1. To build physical as well as social infrastructure and to provide ease of living. 2. To create a Digital India, digitize government processes with leaders from youth. 3. Making India pollution-free by leading transport revolution with Electric Vehicles and focus on Renewables. 4. Expanding rural industrialization using modern digital technologies to generate massive employment. 5. Clean up rivers, provide safe drinking water to all Indians and ensure efficient use of water through micro-irrigation. 6. Scale up Sagarmala, develop other inland waterways faster, harness India’s long coastline and oceans to power India’s development and growth. 7. Aim at our space programme – Gaganyaan, India becoming the launch-pad of satellites for the world and placing an Indian astronaut into space by 2022. 8. Making India self-sufficient in food, exporting to the world to meet global food needs and producing food in the most organic way. 9. A healthy India via Ayushman Bharat with women having equal rights, ensuring their safety and promoting their empowerment. 10. Transforming India into a ‘Minimum Government, Maximum Governance’ nation with pro-active and responsible bureaucracy. Summary: The aim of this comprehensive 10-dimensional Vision is to create an India where poverty, malnutrition, littering and illiteracy would be a matter of the past. India would be a modern, technology driven, high growth, equitable and transparent society. PRELIMS CARDINAL : Highlights of Interim Budget 2019-20: DLSC 3 Govt. Schemes at a glance: 2. Not really bullish on native cow breeds News: DLSC Farmers who rear the best indigenous breeds of cattle win prizes from the government. The Finance Minister Piyush Goyal announced the allotment of ₹750 crore to the Rashtriya Gokul Mission (RGM). 4 Analysis: Rashtriya Gokul Mission: Potential to enhance the productivity of the indigenous breeds of India through professional farm management & superior nutrition is immense. For this it is essential to promote conservation and development of indigenous breeds. The “Rashtriya Gokul Mission” aims to conserve and develop indigenous breeds in a focused and scientific manner. The objective is to get native breeds to produce more milk, be more fecund, and to raise the quality of Indian cows and bulls. The mission draws inspiration from Article 48 of the Constitution (Organisation of agriculture and animal husbandry), which states as below- “The State shall endeavour to organise agriculture and animal husbandry on modern and scientific lines and shall, in particular, take steps for preserving and improving the breeds, and prohibiting the slaughter, of cows and calves and other milch and draught cattle.” Objectives: To undertake breed improvement program for indigenous cattle breeds so as to improve genetic makeup and increase the stock. To upgrade nondescript cattle using elite indigenous breeds like Gir, Sahiwal, Rathi, Tharparkar, Red Sindhi. To enhance milk production and productivity of indigenous bovines to eventually outdo Jerseys and Holsteins. To distribute disease free high genetic merit bulls of indigenous breeds for natural service. Components: Establishment of Village level Integrated Indigenous Cattle Centres viz Gokul Gram Strengthening of bull mother farms to conserve high genetic merit Indigenous Breeds Establishment of Field Performance Recording (FPR) in the breeding tract. Assistance to Institutions/lnstitutes which are repositories of best germplasm Implementation of Pedigree Selection Programme for the Indigenous Breeds with large population Establishing Gopalan Sangh - Breeder’s Societies Distribution of disease free high genetic merit bulls for natural service. Incentive to farmers maintaining elite animals of indigenous breeds Award to Farmers (Gopal Ratna) and Breeders” Societies (Kamadhenu) Organization of Milk Yield Competitions for indigenous breeds Organization of Training Programme for technical and non technical Criticism: Though the minister talked of “cow welfare” and “farmer distress”, the RGM doesn’t look at ageing and unproductive cattle, which pose a problem to the farmers. Advantages of Indigenous breeds: IndigenousDLSC cattle (categorized as Zebu) are well known for their quality of heat tolerance and ability to withstand extreme climatic conditions. They also provide cow dung (organic manure), cow urine (medicinal value) and are suited for draught power because of the presence of a hump. 5 Studies indicate that temperature rise due to global warming will negatively impact milk production. The annual loss in milk production of cattle and buffaloes due to thermal stress in 2020 will be about 3.2 million tonnes of milk costing more than Rs 5000 Crore at current price rate. The decline in milk production and reproductive efficiency will be highest in crossbred cattle followed by buffaloes.