Current Affairs Monthly the Pulse of Upsc at Your Finger Tips
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OFFICERS' Pulse Coverage. The Hindu Economic Times PIB AIR & RSTV Down to Earth une J2019 CURRENT AFFAIRS MONTHLY THE PULSE OF UPSC AT YOUR FINGER TIPS. Contents SCHEMES 3 3. RANGANATHITTU BIRD SANCTUARY 8 1. JAN SHIKSHAN SANSTHAN (JSS) 3 4. POLYETHYLENE TEREPHTHALATE (PET) 9 2. JAL SHAKTI 3 5. PRACTICAL ROAD MAP FOR ELECTRIC VEHICLES 9 3. AYUSHMAN BHARAT 3 6. UN MEETING ON LAND DEGRADATION 10 4. PRADHAN MANTRI FASAL BIMA YOJANA 4 7. LARGE HYDRO POWER PROJECTS 10 5. PRADHAN MANTRI KISAN SAMMAN NIDHI (PM- 8. HEAT WAVES 11 KISAN) 4 9. FOREST RIGHTS ACT 11 6. KISAN CREDIT CARD (KCC) 5 10. AGENDA 21 12 7. MERCHANDISE EXPORTS FROM INDIA SCHEME 11. POLLUTION CAUSED BY FERTILISER INDUSTRY (MEIS) 5 13 8. TRANSPORT AND MARKETING ASSISTANCE 12. SISHAM 14 (TMA) 6 13. CHILIKA LAKE 15 INITIATIVES 1 14. KHEONI SANCTUARY 16 1. DRAFT NATIONAL EDUCATION POLICY 2019 1 ORGANISATIONS 17 2. DIGICOP 1 1. COUNCIL OF EUROPE 17 3. WORLD FOOD SAFETY DAY 2 2. FINANCIAL ACTION TASK FORCE (FATF) 17 4. FLOOD HAZARD ATLAS 2 3. REGIONAL COMPREHENSIVE ECONOMIC 5. SEZ ACT 2 PARTNERSHIP (RCEP) 17 6. GO TRIBAL CAMPAIGN 3 4. UNITED NATIONS SECURITY COUNCIL (UNSC)18 7. KHELO INDIA PROGRAMME 3 5. KIMBERLEY PROCESS (KP) 19 8. CYBER COORDINATION CENTRE (CYCORD) 6. QUAD 19 PORTAL 3 7. SHANGHAI COOPERATION ORGANIZATION (SCO) 9. SYSTEMATIC VOTERS EDUCATION AND ELECTORAL 19 PARTICIPATION PROGRAM(SVEEP) 3 8. ENFORCEMENT DIRECTORATE (ED) 20 10. INFORMATION FUSION CENTRE – INDIAN OCEAN 9. GST COUNCIL 20 REGION 4 10. FINANCIAL STABILITY AND DEVELOPMENT 11. NEFT AND RTGS 4 COUNCIL (FSDC) 21 12. MISSION ON NATURAL LANGUAGE TRANSLATION 11. NATIONAL DISASTER MANAGEMENT 4 AUTHORITY (NDMA) 22 13. RASHTRIYA SANSKRITI MAHOTSAV 5 12. INTERNATIONAL CENTRE FOR INTEGRATED 14. MAKE IN INDIA INITIATIVE IN DEFENSE SECTOR MOUNTAIN DEVELOPMENT (ICIMOD) 22 5 13. FOOD CORPORATION OF INDIA (FCI) 22 15. INDIA NATIONAL PLATFORM ON PRIVATE ON 14. NITI AAYOG RECONSTITUTED 23 SUSTAINABILITY STANDARDS 6 15. POPULATION RESEARCH CENTRES 24 16. CORPORATE AVERAGE FUEL FLORA AND FAUNA 25 EFFICIENCY/ECONOMY REGULATIONS 6 1. GOLDEN LANGUR 25 17. KALESHWARAM LIFT IRRIGATION PROJECT 6 2. KARIMEEN 25 18. INDIASTACK 7 3. IMPRESSED TORTOISE 25 ENVIRONMENT 8 AGRICULTURE 26 1. BANGKOK DECLARATION 8 1. SUGAR INDUSTRY 26 2. BHARAT STAGE 8 2. DIFFERENT CROPPING SEASONS 26 3. DOUBLING FARMERS INCOME 27 18. ACUTE ENCEPHALITIS SYNDROME (AES) 47 4. DECONTROLLING UREA PRICES 28 19. ANTIBIOTIC RESISTANCE 48 5. ONLINE WAREHOUSE-BASED TRADING 28 20. PROTON THERAPY 49 ECONOMY 30 21. COLORED WHEAT 49 1. REPO RATE 30 22. MISSION DRAGONFLY 50 2. LEVERAGE RATIO 30 23. RAAVANA-1 50 3. STRESSED ASSET RESOLUTION NORMS 30 REPORTS AND INDICES 51 4. PARAMETERS TO MEASURE THE HEALTH OF THE 1. HEALTHY STATES, PROGRESSIVE INDIA 51 BANKING SYSTEM 31 2. SDG GENDER INDEX 51 5. CREDIT RATING 32 3. NUTRITION SECURITY ANALYSIS REPORT 51 6. CONSUMER PRICE INDEX (CPI) 32 4. TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS REPORT 52 7. INDEX OF INDUSTRIAL PRODUCTION (IIP) 32 5. STATE OF GLOBAL AIR 2019 REPORT 52 8. WHOLESALE PRICE INDEX (WPI) AND PRODUCER POLITY 54 PRICE INDEX (PPI) 33 1. REMOVAL OF HIGH COURT JUDGE 54 9. FDI IN MULTI-BRAND RETAIL 33 2. ESSENTIAL SERVICES 54 10. ANTI-DUMPING 34 3. ANTI-DEFECTION 54 11. NON-BANKING FINANCIAL COMPANY (NBFC) 4. LEADER OF OPPOSITION 55 34 5. STATE FLAG DAY 55 12. WILFUL DEFAULTER 35 INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS 56 13. ASSET RECONSTRUCTION COMPANY (ARC) 35 1. INDIA MALDIVES BILATERAL 56 14. GUIDELINES FOR E-COMMERCE FIRMS 35 2. DOKLAM ISSUE 56 15. CURRENT ACCOUNT DEFICIT AND FOREIGN 3. THE JOINT COMPREHENSIVE PLAN OF ACTION EXCHANGE RESERVE 36 (JCPOA) 56 16. FISCAL DEFICIT 37 4. H1B VISA 57 17. ELEPHANT BONDS 37 5. THE GENERALISED SYSTEM OF PREFERENCES 18. FUTURES ON COMMODITY INDICES 37 (GSP) 57 19. NATIONAL INVESTMENT AND MANUFACTURING 6. BREXIT 57 ZONES 38 7. EXERCISE GARUDA 58 SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY 39 8. TAX INFORMATION EXCHANGE AGREEMENT 58 1. 5G 39 9. STRAIT OF HORMUZ 58 2. DARK WEB 39 ART AND CULTURE 60 3. NIPAH INFECTION 40 1. CHAUKHANDI STUPA 60 4. REMDESIVIR 40 2. AMBUBACHI MELA 60 5. GESTATIONAL DIABETES 40 3. BANKIM CHANDRA’S STATUE 60 6. LONG MARCH-11 41 4. AMARAVATI SCHOOL OF ART 60 7. INDIAN SPACE STATION 41 DEFENSE 62 8. BLOOD TRANSFUSION 42 1. VARUNASTRA 62 9. GENE-EDITED BABIES 43 10. BT COTTON 43 11. BT BRINJAL 44 12. WASTE-TO-ENERGY 44 13. FUEL CELLS 45 14. CARBON QUANTUM DOT 45 15. PARKINSON’S DISEASE 46 16. TRICHOPUS ZEYLANICUS 46 17. CHIKUNGUNYA 47 SCHEMES • Kisan Vigyan Kendras will be roped in 1. Jan Shikshan Sansthan (JSS) to promote better crop choices for the About the scheme: farmers and efficient use of water for • Jan Shikshan Sansthan provide vocational irrigation. skills to non-literate, neo-literates as and Kisan Vigyan Kendras: school drop-outs by identifying skills that • Krishi Vigyan kendras was established by are useful in their region. ICAR (a autonomous body for education • The Scheme is under the Ministry of Skill and research under MOAFW) Development and Entrepreneurship. • It connects farmers and ICAR for the Target Group: purpose of training, technology transfer • Socio-economically backward and etc., educationally disadvantaged groups of Why in News? rural/urban population. • The Centre has initiated the Jal Shakti • Main target include non-literate, neo- Abhiyan for rainwater harvesting and literates, person educated up to 8th conservation efforts in water-stressed standard, and school drop-outs in the age districts. group of 15-35 years. • Priority will be given to women, SC, ST, 3. Ayushman Bharat OBC and Minorities in rural areas and Ayushman Bharat urban slums. • It is an umbrella of two major health Why in news? initiatives, namely • Fee for SC/ST candidates, who join o Health and Wellness Centers vocational training under Jan Shikshan o National Health Protection Sansthans has been waived off. Scheme. Health and Wellness Centers: 2. Jal Shakti • Under this 1.5 lakh health and wellness About the initiative: will be created to deliver primary health • It will look into the progress made in care services. harvesting, conserving and bore well • These centers will provide recharge activities under the comprehensive health care, including for o Mahatma Gandhi National Rural non-communicable diseases and maternal Employment Guarantee Scheme of and child health services. Ministry of Rural Development National Health Protection Mission: AB- o Integrated Watershed PMJAY (Ayushman Bharat- Pradhan Management Program of the Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana): Ministry of Rural Development • AB-PMJAY provides a insurance cover of o Water body Restoration activities Rs. 5 lakh per family per year. of Jal Shakthi Ministry • This cover will take care of almost all o Afforestation program of the secondary care and most of tertiary care Ministry of Environment, Forests procedures. and Climate Change. • To ensure that nobody is left out (especially women, children and elderly) • Progress of all the works will be there will be no cap on family size and monitored real-time through a mobile age in the scheme. application and a web-based dashboard • The benefit cover will also include pre at indiawater.gov.in. and post-hospitalization expenses. • A defined transport allowance per • The scheme is mandatory for the farmers hospitalization will also be paid to the who have borrowed institutional loans beneficiary. from banks. and it is optional for the • Benefits of the scheme are portable farmers who have not availed across the country and a beneficiary institutional credit. covered under the scheme will be allowed • Coverage : It aims at covering the losses to take cashless benefits from any suffered by farmers such as pre- sowing public/private empanelled hospitals losses, post-harvest losses due to cyclonic across the country. rains and losses due to unseasonal rainfall Eligibility criteria: in India. It also covers losses due to • Entitlement will be decided on the basis localized calamities such as inundation, of deprivation criteria (poor in some hailstorm and landslide risks. indicators like education, income etc.,) in • Exclusions : The losses arising out of war the Socio-economic cast census and nuclear risks, malicious damage and database. other preventable risks are not covered Implementation: under this scheme. • National Health Authority has been set Implementation: up for this purpose. • The scheme is implemented by • It will be chaired by the Minister of Health empanelled general insurance & Family Welfare scheme. companies. Selection of Implementing • States/ UTs are advised to create Agency (IA) is made by the concerned respective State Health Agency (SHA). State Government through bidding. Why in the news? • The funds for the scheme come from the • Indian government with the help of Krishi Kalyan Kosh. expert doctors and consultants is revising Krishi Kalyan Kosh: (farmers’ welfare fund) about 1300 insurance packages to be will be used as an ‘emergency fund’ to included under Ayushman Bharat support farmers when they incur losses due Pradhan Mantri Jan arogya yojana to low rates of produce, crop damage due to (National health protection mission). natural disasters, and to assist them when there is a delay in payment of minimum 4. Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima support price (MSP) by the Centre. Why in news ? Yojana • Under the scheme, crop yield information About the scheme: is mandatory for insurance estimation. • The scheme is being administered by the Currently, crop yield was estimated by Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Laborious crop-cutting experiments welfare. (CCE) which consumes more time and • The crop insurance scheme for farmers this was the main reason for delay in suffering crop damage or loss arising out insurance settlements. of unforeseen events. • Now, the government is planning to • Crops covered : Oilseed crops ; all food introduce new-age technology in crops ; Annual commercial/horticultural Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana to crops assess crop yield estimates for reducing • Premium : There will be a uniform delays in crop insurance claim premium of 2% to be paid by farmers for settlements.