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IASbaba's Daily Current Affairs (Prelims + Mains Focus)- 28th February 2018 Archives (PRELIMS+MAINS FOCUS) Changes made to Contract farming Bill Part of: Mains GS Paper III- Indian agriculture Key pointers: The Agriculture Ministry has broadened the scope of the proposed Contract Farming Bill by bringing marketing and services into its ambit. The States’ role in regulating the sector has been reduced. The State’s role will be limited to protecting the interests of farmers and others who enter into contract with sponsors. Similarly, the modified Bill doesn’t call for notification of commodities for which farmers and contract sponsors can get into a contract as envisaged in the previous draft. Major objectives of the Bill: Giving price protection to farmers. Setting up a Board to promote contract farming at the State level, and Creating a mechanism at district and taluka levels to legally record all contracts. Main focus: The Act needs to be passed by State Assemblies to become law in those States. The bill was drafted by a committee led by Ashok Dalwai, CEO of the National Rainfed Agricultural Authority. The Act is trying to create a competitive market and level playing field for both the public and private sector. Article link: Click here FATF places Pakistan on its watch list Part of: Mains GS Paper II- Internal Security Key pointers: The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) that monitors countries on action taken against terror-financing and money-laundering has decided to place Pakistan back on its watch list, or “greylist”, from June. The decision is both appropriate and overdue, given Pakistan’s blatant violation of its obligations to crack down on groups banned by the Security Council 1267 sanctions committee. Their leaders like Hafiz Saeed and Masood Azhar continue to hold public rallies and freely garner support and donations. Under the 1267 sanctions ruling, banned entities can get no funds, yet Lakhvi received the bail amount, and the authorities have since lost track of him. Cause of concern: The initial support for Pakistan came from China, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and the Gulf Cooperation Council countries is cause for concern in New Delhi, given the recent diplomatic outreach by India. Way ahead: Pressure needs to be build up with financial strictures on Pakistan's banks and businesses. Targeted sanctions must be imposed against specific law enforcement and intelligence officials. Such sanctions will persuade Pakistan to stop state support for these terror groups and become a responsible player on the global stage and a responsive neighbour. Article link: Click here (PRELIMS+MAINS FOCUS) HEALTH TOPIC: General Studies 2: Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health Development processes and the development industry the role of NGOs, SHGs, various groups and associations, donors, charities, institutional and other stakeholders The “Healthy States, Progressive India” report Introduction: The “Healthy States, Progressive India” report has been released recently. The focus has been on the performance and annual progress of states and Union territories on a myriad of health indicators. About the report: The comprehensive Health Index report titled, “Healthy States, Progressive India” was released by NITI Aayog. The report ranks states and Union territories innovatively on their year-on-year incremental change in health outcomes, as well as, their overall performance with respect to each other. It is the first attempt to establish an annual systematic tool to measure and understand the heterogeneity and complexity of the nation’s performance in Health. The report has been developed by NITI Aayog, with technical assistance from the World Bank, and in consultation with the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare (MoHFW), Best and worst performers: Kerala is the leader among large states, closely followed by Punjab and Tamil Nadu. Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Bihar are the least-performing states. Mizoram is the best-performing small state, followed by Manipur, while Nagaland and Tripura take the final two spots. Lakshadweep secured the top spot among Union territories, and Dadra and Nagar Haveli is at the end of the rankings. Incremental performance: The goal of the index is not just to rank the states based on their historical performance, but also on their incremental performance. The attempt is to capture the change made during the course of the year. Jharkhand, Jammu and Kashmir, and Uttar Pradesh are ranked first, second and third in their incremental performance ranking. The “Performance on Health Outcomes” index: The index is made up of 24 indicators in three different domains— Health outcomes, Governance and information, and Key inputs and processes. The “health outcomes” account for 70% of the weight, and the other two domains weighs 12% and 18%, respectively. The “health outcomes” domain has indicators such as total fertility rate (TFR), neonatal mortality rate (NMR), sex-ratio at birth (SRB), etc. The governance and information domain measures the quality of data (data integrity indicator) and the average occupancy in important health-related posts such as principal secretary (health), chief medical officer, etc. Key inputs and processes measure the current status of healthcare professional vacancies, infrastructure at district hospitals, and the speed of financial governance in the states. Key results that emerge from the health index: Pic credit: http://www.livemint.com/r/LiveMint/Period2/2018/02/28/Photos/Processed/g_Oped_Table_web.jpg There are large gaps between states. The gap between the best-performing states and the least-performing states.(Refer Image) Two-thirds of our citizens live in states with an overall score less than 60. Incremental performance reveals that there has been a decline in performance on some states: While most states have registered an increase in their health index in 2015-16 relative to 2014-15, six states’ scores have declined—Kerala, Haryana, Gujarat, Karnataka, Himachal Pradesh, and Uttarakhand. India has made significant strides in achieving the goals set out under the UN-SDG and our own National Health Policy. Some of our states have already met or exceeded the goals a decade ahead of 2030. Lessons from the health outcomes index: An exercise of this kind requires data on health outcomes, which is periodic, reliable and comparable across different states and Union territories. The effort showed us significant gaps in the availability of such data, especially for the smaller states. We need robust programmatic data than can be used for continuous monitoring. Incentives need to be linked to performance. The two separate rankings, on absolute performance and year-on-year progress are designed to encourage states to work on their health sector and bring about meaningful transformation. The linking of the health index with incentives under the National Health Mission will further push states to improve outcomes. This index must motivate states towards improving their health sector outcomes in the spirit of cooperative and competitive federalism. Conclusion: Measures like upgrading and setting up of health and wellness centres under the Ayushman Bharat Scheme, the National Health Protection Scheme and annual publication of the Index and its availability on public domain on a dynamic basis will help us realize the goal of “good health and well-being” for all citizens(SDG3). Connecting the dots: What are the key results from the “Healthy States, Progressive India” report released recently. Also discuss key lessons. HEALTH TOPIC: General Studies 2: Issues relating to development and management of Social Sector/Services relating to Health Development processes and the development industry the role of NGOs, SHGs, various groups and associations, donors, charities, institutional and other stakeholders National Health Protection Scheme: Challenges Background: The National Health Protection Scheme (NHPS), announced in the latest budget, is being hailed as the world’s largest public healthcare programme, which will cover about 40 per cent of India’s population. While any public effort at providing free healthcare to the poor is welcome, this is not the first public health insurance programme in the country. Many states, including Maharashtra, Karnataka, Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh, Goa and Tamil Nadu, have successfully implemented health insurance programmes, easily covering over 50 crore people. Challenges: NHPS will have to consider many critical aspects. Total cost- There is a token provision of Rs 2,000 crore in the budget. However, the total cost is likely to be nearer Rs 20,000 crore per year. A new 1 per cent cess will make about Rs 11,000 crore available to the government in a year. Identification of the initial 10 crore families- Any criteria, other than family income, will cause a huge discontent. How will a village-level functionary select 40 per cent of the people and leave out the rest? Will these remaining families be covered later? The government could alternately consider a universal roll-out for all the poor households, even at a lower level of maximum insurance cover, depending on the resource availability. The list of medical procedures to be covered in the scheme- Disease profile varies across the country. Each state must be given the flexibility to curate its own list of medical procedures. Selecting the insurance provider- This is an extremely complex process. Each step — such as the design of the tender documents, contracts and legal agreements, payment terms, penalties for non-compliance, prior experience — must be considered carefully. Otherwise, it could invite legal challenges. The accreditation of participating hospitals- If due care is not taken in selecting the right hospitals, it can derail the entire programme. The Rashtriya Swasthya Bima Yojana (RSBY) is a glaring example- Many private hospitals registered under the RSBY were reported to have indulged in malpractices such as prescribing unnecessary diagnostic testing and hospitalisation. Way forward: Implementation of such a large health insurance scheme will require humongous preparation in the creation of infrastructure such as central data centre, software development, data entry, issuance of health cards, call centers for pre-authorisation, and claims settlement, hospital accreditation and online accounting. Trained personnel (aarogya mitra) must be posted in each of the participating hospitals. Conclusion: Insurance-based intervention in the health sector can only be a partial solution. The government cannot, and must not, abdicate its responsibility of providing a high-quality and affordable public health infrastructure. Connecting the dots: The National Health Protection Scheme (NHPS), announced in the latest budget, is being hailed as the world’s largest public healthcare programme. Discuss the associated challenges and the way out. MUST READ The 1947 singularity The Hindu Cornered by the quad The Hindu Into priesthood The Hindu Counting every household Indian Express The rising agrarian distress Livemint
UPSC Quiz- 2018 : IASbaba’s Daily Current Affairs Quiz [Day 152] Archives Q.1) Consider the following statements about ‘Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves’ It is a public-private partnership hosted by the UN Foundation Alliance’s focus countries are all located in Asia and Africa Select the correct statements 1 Only 2 Only Both 1 and 2 Neither 1 nor 2 Q.2) Consider the following statements about ‘Starlink Constellation’ It is a proposed constellation of approximately 882 satellites WorldVu Satellites and Samsung It is expected to provide global Internet broadband service Select the correct statements 1 Only 2 Only Both 1 and 2 Neither 1 nor 2 Q.3) Consider the following statements Letter of undertaking (LOU) are used by a bank’s customer to avail short-term credit in a foreign country Nostro account refers to an account that a bank holds in a foreign currency in another bank Select the correct statements 1 Only 2 Only Both 1 and 2 Neither 1 nor 2 Q.4) Svalbard is an archipelago in the Arctic Ocean under the full sovereignty of Sweden Finland Greenland Norway Q.5) The Investment Dispute Settlement Navigator (IDSN) is compiled by World Trade Organization United Nations Conference on Trade and Development World Fair Trade Organisation None of the above To Download the Solution – Click here All the Best IASbaba
Growth in Industrial Output ARCHIVES Search 13th January here http://www.newsonair.com/Main_Audio_Bulletins_Search.aspx TOPIC: General Studies 3 Indian Economy and issues relating to planning, mobilization of resources, growth, development and employment. There were worries about economy slowing down especially after the introduction of GST and hence to bounce back above 7% in industrial production was a difficult task especially when the industrial sector was not showing any particular growth. However, industrial production growth zoomed to a 17 month high of 8.4% in November 2017. There were concerns about high corporate leverages in the economy supplemented by not enough gross capital formation. Now the gross fixed capital formation is likely to be increased by 4% and above and growth in capital goods by 9%. Manufacturing sector has shown growth rate of 10.2%. Thus, it can be said that ill-effects of demonetisation and GST driven problems are slowly wearing off. The turnaround Post demonetization and GST, there were continuous fears about not bouncing back but industry has shown a recovery and key factors of segments of industry responsible behind positive growth in industrial output are output of capital goods at 9.4%, consumer non-durables at 23%, Manufacturing of pharmaceuticals, medicines, chemical and botanical products has seen highest growth rate of 39.5%. Electronics and optical products have seen a growth of 29.1% and manufacture of transport equipment have shown a growth of 22.6%. Commercial vehicle sales have also surged. There is sharp increase of 13.5% in construction goods. It is interesting as construction scenario was not bright for a while and also real estate sector due to demonetization. Thus, data shows that there is positivity coming in economic growth in next few months. However, there has been negative growth too in sectors such as Mining sector- 1.1%, electricity at 3.9%, output of primary goods at 3.2% and consumer durables at 2.5%. Any other reason possible? The wedding season during this quarter, period of beginning of holidays and celebrations where bulk of goods are produced and transferred. Hence the surge can also be due to it. Other reasons can be strong export growth and sharp pay-back from GST-related disruptions. Persistent challenges Employment is the biggest challenge of government. Domestic growth in the industry was not yet visible as the IIP index was not picking up. Lack of sufficient industrial growth attributed to lesser employment opportunities. Now, with more output, there is going to be more employment. There are large number of vacancies in government institutions, government companies which are not yet filed up. But due to lack of skills, many of those remain unoccupied. Thus, there is an information asymmetry in the economy. The government is taking initiatives- Stand Up India, Mudra scheme, skill development, Make In India, clearance of FDI in ingle retail brand in automatic route to increase employment opportunities. Inflation will remain a challenge as it has gone above 5.2% due to increase in prices of vegetables and fuel and is going to impact the economic growth. Way forward There should be a model called National Labour Employment Exchange. It will be along the lines of national stock exchange whereby people and firms register themselves on a national level declaring which skills they require and people will sell their skills in terms of labour hours. There may be need of unskilled labour too which can be made available through this exchange. Conclusion There have been structural reforms in the economy which has churned the entire economy. Demonetization has brought entire change in economy. GST introduction overhauled entire economy, integration of people with banking system through JAM trinity has increased people’s reach to avail banking services. Since, new economic developments are happening, even digitalization coming as part and parcel of people’s lives, there is visible higher economic growth. The government spending in infrastructure sector has brought in cheer and positive result. Thus, the government has to ensure that industries receive sufficient credit to prosper and bring domestic growth and development. Connecting the dots: Industrial production index may not be an accurate indicator of manufacturing sector in recent times. Elaborate your thoughts on the same.
IASbaba's Daily Current Affairs (Prelims + Mains Focus)- 27th February 2018 Archives (PRELIMS+MAINS FOCUS) Social media executives for each district in India Part of: Mains GS Paper II- Key issues related to Governance Key pointers: For sharper delivery of the government’s message to the citizens, the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting (I&B) has approved the hiring of 716 social media executives, one for each district of the country. Their primary responsibility will be to analyse local news media and help the government adapt the message according to the responses to it. The responsibility of these executives will be to “monitor local editions of newspapers, local cable channels, local audio channels and important local social media handles for important local developments”. They will also have to analyse the news to assess whether the government’s message was received positively or negatively. This hiring is part of the Ministry’s outreach programme for smaller cities and rural areas. Till now, the government has largely reacted to opinions based out of the capital, giving a very lopsided view. Article link: Click here Mass nesting by Olive ridley turtles Part of: Mains GS Paper III- Environment Key pointers: Olive ridley turtles, the endangered species has created an all-time record of mass nesting at the Rushikulya rookery coast in the Ganjam district of Odisha this year. Major nesting sites in Odisha: The Gahirmatha beach The mouth of the Debi river The Rushikulya rookery coast in the Ganjam district The Gahirmatha beach is the largest mass nesting site for olive ridley turtles along the Indian coastline, followed by the rookery at the mouth of the Rushikulya river. Reason behind more nesting- This year, sea waves and winds have widened a portion of the beach near the Rushikulya rookery. A sandbar was eroded entirely, and its sand was deposited on the coast, widening a stretch of the beach and increasing its height. This is the region where a large number of nestings took place this year. Article link: Click here Developments in Transportation Sector Part of: Mains GS Paper III- Infrastucture Key pointers: A significant transformation is expected in the transportation sector in the next couple of years as the economic benefits of electric vehicles and alternative fuels like ethanol become apparent, said Nitin Gadkari, Minister for Road Transport and Highways. States like Maharashtra have already passed a law for the establishment of charging stations to support the electric vehicle ecosystem. The move towards electric vehicles and those that run on alternative fuels has gathered pace. Price of Li-ion batteries, meant for electric vehicles, had dropped about 50 per cent in the past one year and would continue to decline. Push for ethanol: The government was working on policies to encourage ethanol, which can be easily produced from wheat straw, rice straw, bagasse, and municipal waste, among others. By encouraging the use of ethanol in the transportation sector, the import bill (crude oil) can be cut at least by Rs. 2 lakh crore. Ethanol will not only be an import substitute, but it will be cost-effective, pollution-free and will help create an industry in rural areas, thereby helping the farmers. Article link: Click here (MAINS FOCUS) SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY TOPIC: General Studies 3: Science and Technology- developments and their applications and effects in everyday life Achievements of Indians in science & technology; indigenization of technology and developing new technology. Artificial Intelligence: Potential Benefits & Risks What is AI? AI, is the “science and engineering of making intelligent machines, especially intelligent computer programs”. AI enables intelligent machines that can execute functions, similar to human abilities like speech, facial, object or gesture recognition, learning, problem solving, reasoning, perception and response. AI enables machines to think intelligently, somewhat akin to the intelligence human beings employ to learn, understand, think, decide, or solve a problem in their daily personal or professional lives. Intelligence is intangible. The present wave of enthusiasm in AI is backed by the industry, with Apple, Amazon, Google, Facebook, IBM, Microsoft and Baidu in the lead. Automotive industry is also unleashing benefits of AI for self-driving cars, led by Tesla, Mercedez-Benz, Google and Uber. Real-world examples from around us: AI empowered cars are already under rigorous testing and they are quite likely to ply on the roads soon. The social humanoid robot Sophia became a citizen of Saudi Arabia in 2017. Apple’s intelligent personal assistant, Siri, can receive instructions and interact with human beings in natural language. Autonomous weapons can execute military missions on their own, identify and engage targets without any human intervention. Facial detection has instated deep interest from law enforcement and security agencies. China is known to be building a massive facial recognition system, connected with its surveillance camera networks, to assist in detecting criminals and fugitives. AI is also changing the ways militaries command, train, and deploy their forces. Applications of AI: Gaming industry, where AI empowered computers can think of a large number of possible positions in games such as chess, poker, and go. These computers can test the skills of the human beings who are playing against these AI enabled computers, in games or simulations which require greater mathematical and strategic depth. Computers with natural language processing capability can understand and generate human language, including speech, imitating human capabilities of listening, comprehending, thinking and responding. Law enforcement or internal security requirements for detecting and recognizing individuals or criminals, with multitudes of data streaming from police databases or the network of surveillance cameras. Healthcare industry to design optimized treatment plans, assistance in repetitive jobs, data management for medical records, or even assistance in clinical decision making with better analysis of diagnostics and interpretation of clinical laboratory results. Banking and financial services for fraud detection using advanced algorithms to identify patterns in transactions and consumer behaviors which are risk prone. Automotive industry is already using AI algorithms to enhance fuel efficiency and safety in vehicles to build features such as automatic braking, collision avoidance systems, alerts for pedestrian and cyclists, and intelligent cruise controls. Indian Context: India fares average in the surging competition for AI technology development. There is no clearly stated policy document or vision statement for AI development. In February 2018, the Department of Defence Production has constituted a 17-member task-force to study the use of AI for both military applications and technology-driven economic growth. Applications in Indian context: The potential benefits are plenty, from basic sectors like healthcare, governance and economy to the specialized ones like foreign policy and defence and security. Reforms in governance- AI can actually help with process optimization and cost savings for the government, in addition to solving some strategic problems or assisting in decision making. India has one of the world’s largest automotive industries, with a significant production and consumption base. AI applications have vast scope in the automotive sector, ranging from enhancing fuel efficiency to passenger safety to the concept of self-driving vehicles. AI can augment the potential of government and private sector to deliver healthcare services and products with improved drug safety, better diagnosis and analysis of clinical reports for preventive and accurate treatment. More advanced applications of AI extend to the domains of foreign, defence and security policies. Defence and foreign policy decisions are based on immense cognitive and intangible skillsets. As AI evolves further, it could play a vital role in analyzing large data sets, intelligence inputs, imagery from satellites or other airborne platforms etc. Such detailed analyses can supplement individual and organisational ability during bilateral or multilateral negotiations, and military standoffs or geopolitical conflicts. Summary of Potential Benefits of AI and Risks: Sector Potential Benefits Potential Risks Governance Process Optimization & Cost Saving Decision Making & Problem Solving Human Resources Management Lack of Technical Competence Inability to Synchronize Goals/Expectations Dependence on Foreign Technology Economy Next Generation of Economic Growth Spurring Innovation Value and Job Creation Economic Competition & Espionage Threats to Intellectual Property Loss of Conventional Jobs Automotive Industry Self-driving Cars Enhanced fuel efficiency Enhances Safety Features Optimize Logistics & Supply Chain Regulatory Challenges Overdependence on Technology Software Error, Defect or Failure Susceptible to Hacking/Interference Defence & Security Decision Making (Tactical & Strategic) Trainings and War-gaming Logistics, Fleet Management Periodic Maintenance Intelligence Analysis Face Recognition & Crime Prevention Dependence on Foreign Technology Human Safety & Security Software Error, Defect or Failure Potential Weapons Arms Race Foreign Policy Decision Making Scenario Analysis Analysis of Historical Data/Events Negotiations Information Analysis Public Diplomacy Lack of Cognitive Data for Deep Learning Multilateral Rules of the Road Technology Acceptance in Decision Making Lack of Data from Other Countries Dependence on Foreign Technology Potential Weapons Arms Race Healthcare Drug Discovery and Safety Diagnosis and Lab Results Analysis Preventive Care Insurance Risk Assessment Training Doctors and Paramedical Staff Generating Awareness Acceptance of AI in Medical Practices Technology Affordability Challenges for India: Akin to any advanced technology, AI also has its own set of risks. AI has to meet the first and foremost challenge of acceptability with the users from the government, public sector and the armed forces, or even the private sector. Technical competence in this fast-paced sector, primarily in the case of government, could be a road block. AI can better adapt to the goals and expectations of the Indian decision makers, if the technology development is indigenous. Foreign dependence in this case would be detrimental and unproductive. AI has set off an economic and technological competition, which will further intensify. Any delay in recognizing the benefits and in innovating will limit India's ability to draw the economic advantage. Conclusion: More than a technology developer or consumer, India can play a vital role in defining the multilateral rules of the road and help setting up of best ethical standards, ensuring safe and beneficial Artificial Intelligence for all. Connecting the dots: What do you mean by Artificial Intelligence? Discuss its potential benefits and associated risks. Also highlight the challenges in adoption of AI in Indian context. MUST READ Stemming the tide of agrarian distress The Hindu The power of persuasion The Hindu New dynamic in the Northwest Indian Express National Income in India: What's really growing? Business Line
UPSC Quiz- 2018 : IASbaba’s Daily Current Affairs Quiz [Day 151] Archives Q.1) We live in an era called Paleozoic Mesozoic Cenozoic Mesoproterozoic Q.2) ‘Bengal Florican’ is found in which of the following countries? India Vietnam Cambodia Select the correct code: 1 Only 1 and 2 2 and 3 1, 2 and 3 Q.3) Consider the following statements about ‘Heavy water’ It is radioactive It is a form of water that contains Hydrogen-3 (tritium) Select the correct statements 1 Only 2 Only Both 1 and 2 Neither 1 nor 2 Q.4) United Nations Security Council Resolution 1267 is concerned with which of the following countries? Syria Afghanistan Libya Iraq Q.5) Consider the following statements about SARAS It is India’s indigenous light transport aircraft It is designed and developed by the CSIR-National Aerospace Laboratories It will only be used for military purposes Select the correct statements 1 and 2 2 and 3 1 and 3 All of the above To Download the Solution – Click here All the Best IASbaba
IASbaba Press Information Bureau 18th Feb to 24th Feb, 2018 ARCHIVES GS-2 Electoral Bearer Bond Scheme 2018: (Topic: Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation) Electoral Bonds may be purchased by a person, who is a citizen of India or incorporated or established in India. A person being an individual can buy Electoral Bonds, either singly or jointly with other individuals. Only the Political Parties registered under section 29A of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 (43 of 1951) and which secured not less than one per cent of the votes polled in the last general election to the House of the People or the Legislative Assembly of the State, shall be eligible to receive the Electoral Bonds. The Bond shall be encashed by an eligible political party only through a bank account with the authorized bank. National Conference on “Agriculture-2022: Doubling Farmers' Incomes” (Topic: Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation) The Government is keen to make agriculture policies and programs 'income centric' instead of 'production-oriented'. Budget for Agriculture: The budget for Agriculture has been increased from Rs.51,576 crore in 2017-18 to Rs.58,080 crore for the year 2018-19 while ensuring sufficient funds for each component of the Seven-Point Strategy devised for doubling farmers’ income. An announcement of Rs. 2000 crore for Agri Market Development Fund has been made, which shows the importance of the retail market in agriculture marketing. These markets have been called as GRAM (Gramin Retail Agriculture Market). Through these markets infrastructure of 22,000 Rural Haats and 585 APMC markets will be developed. ‘Operation Greens’ announced will benefit farmers growing Tomato, Onion and Potato. Seven-Point Strategy Emphasis on irrigation along with end to end solution on creation of resources for ‘More crop per drop' 'Provision of quality seeds and nutrients according to the soil quality of each farm. Large investments in warehouses and cold chains to prevent Post-harvest losses. Promotion of value addition through food processing. Implementation of National Agricultural Markets and e-platforms (e-NAM) to eliminate shortcomings of all the 585 centers. To mitigate the risk, introduction of crop insurance scheme at a lower cost. Promotion of allied activities such as Dairy-Animal husbandry, Poultry, Bee-keeping, Horticulture, and Fisheries. Cabinet Approves Creation of National Urban Housing Fund: For Rs.60,000 crores; The target is to cater to the demand of housing shortage of nearly 1.2 crore and make available housing to all by 2022, when the Country celebrates its 75th Anniversary of Independence. India-Morocco Cooperation Agreement in Railway Sector: The Cooperation Agreement will enable technical cooperation in the following areas:- Training and staff development; Expert missions, exchange of experience and personnel; and Mutual technical assistance, including exchanging of experts. Adjudication of dispute on Mahanadi River Waters: The Tribunal shall determine water sharing among basin States on the basis of the overall availability of water in the complete Mahanadi basin, contribution of each State, the present utilization of water resources in each State and the potential for future development (long-pending dispute between States of Odisha and Chhattisgarh on Mahanadi River) Agreement between India and Israel on Film Co-production: Co-production of an Indian film with an international party means that Indian producer can access international funds and can collaborate on the script, talent and distribution at international level. Co-production of a film under this treaty will qualify it to be national production both in India and Israel. Enable a common pool of creative, artistic, technical, financial and marketing resources of the two countries. The co-produced films will also be eligible for their participation as domestic productions in film festivals of both the countries and any other incentives which are available for carrying out production and post-production work in any of the countries. New Bill to ban Unregulated Deposit Schemes and Chit Funds (Amendment) Bill, 2018: To protect the savings of the investors; the Banning of Unregulated Deposit Schemes Bill, 2018 will provide a comprehensive legislation to deal with the menace of illicit deposit schemes in the country through, Complete prohibition of unregulated deposit taking activity; Deterrent punishment for promoting or operating an unregulated deposit taking scheme; Stringent punishment for fraudulent default in repayment to depositors; Designation of a Competent Authority by the State Government to ensure repayment of deposits in the event of default by a deposit taking establishment; Powers and functions of the competent authority including the power to attach assets of a defaulting establishment; Designation of Courts to oversee repayment of depositors and to try offences under the Act; and Listing of Regulated Deposit Schemes in the Bill, with a clause enabling the Central Government to expand or prune the list. Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Government of India Sign $ 84 Million Loan (Topic: Important International institutions, agencies and fora- their structure, mandate) For: Improvement and Expansion of Water Supply in the State of Bihar The tranche 2 loan is part of the $200 million multi-tranche financing facility (MFF) for the Bihar Urban Development Investment Program that was approved by ADB in 2012 to provide sustainable urban infrastructure and services in four towns in Bihar – Bhagalpur, Gaya, Darbhanga and Muzaffarpur. The Project 2 will improve access to better quality and sustainable water supply, for the people of Bhagalpur and Gaya towns. It will also promote better water management practices that will result in a citywide coverage with 24-hour uninterrupted supply of treated water of 135 litres per capita per day in both cities. Support civil works subprojects and would benefit 1.1 million people in the two project towns with increased coverage of treated water supply by 2021; train 400 urban local body (ULB) staff in the management and operation and maintenance (O&M) of water supply systems, and help ULBs improve technical and financial management of the water supply operations Indo-German MOU - Implementation Agreement in Sustainable Urban Development and Smart Cities in India (Topic: Bilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting India’s interests) Aim: To develop and apply concepts for sustainable urban development about the provision of urban basic services and housing in selected cities and Smart Cities in India Technical cooperation measure will support approaches for sustainable urban development in the area of integrated planning, provision of affordable housing and basic services with particular focus on water, waste water and solid waste management and mobility. The ‘Sustainable Urban Development Programme - Smart Cities in India’ project is supported by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and jointly implemented by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs, Government of India and Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ). MoU with Canada’s International Development Research Centre (IDRC) (Topic: Bilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting India’s interests) Aim: To usher the “programme based research support” in addressing current and future global and local developmental challenges Revised Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement (DTAA) between India and Kenya In order to promote cross border flow of investments and technology, the revised DTAA provides for reduction in withholding tax rates from 15% to 10% on dividends, from 15% to 10% on interest, from 20% to 10% on royalties and from 17.5% to 10% on fees for management, professional and technical services. The revised DTAA provides for a new Article on Limitation of Benefits to allow treaty benefits to bonafide residents of both countries, to combat treaty abuse by third country residents and to allow application of domestic law to prevent tax avoidance or evasion. The Article on Exchange of Information has been updated to the latest international standard to provide for exchange of information, including banking information for tax purposes, to the widest possible extent. A new Article on Assistance in Collection of Taxes has also been provided in the revised treaty which will enable assistance in collection of tax revenue claims between both countries. How is it beneficial? Improve transparency in tax matters Help curb tax evasion and tax avoidance Remove double taxation Stimulate the flow of investment, technology and services GS-3 Features of National Agriculture Market (e-NAM) Platform (Topic: Issues related to direct and indirect farm subsidies and minimum support prices; Public Distribution System- objectives, functioning, limitations, revamping; issues of buffer stocks and food security; Technology missions) The Union Minister of Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare launches six new user friendly features of National Agriculture Market (e-NAM) Platform: e-NAM Mobile App: Facilitate the farmers to do advance Gate Entry on Mobile app which in turn will reduce a lot of time for farmers coming in the Mandi and will bring huge efficiency and facilitate smooth arrival recording at the Gate Farmers can see the progress of their lot being traded Real time bidding progress of price will be visible to farmers on Mobile App During the trade, facility of viewing the assaying certificate is made available to traders on the mobile app. Now, online payment by trader (buyer) can also be done from e-NAM Mobile App through debit card and net banking. This will help buyers to transfer the payment directly through the App and make it easier for traders in online payment to farmers. Also, SMS alert to farmer on receiving payment in their bank account will be sent thereby helping farmers in getting information of payment receipt. BHIM payment facility: To ease out payment to farmers which will also reduce the payment realization time from buyers’ account to the pool account and in turn disbursal to farmers. New and improved Website with eLearning Module: Live status of markets of e-NAM based on gate entry, latest information on events, dynamic training calendar etc. E-Learning module in Hindi language on how to operate the system and continuously get trained on the system at their convenience. MIS Dashboard: Based on Business intelligence will provide a greater insight into the performance of each Mandi in terms of arrival and trade. Help the Mandi Board officials and APMC Secretary to compare the performance of each Mandi on daily, weekly, monthly/quarterly and Year-on-Year Basis Enable officials and Mandi Secretary in doing actual trade analysis from commodity level to State level operation Beneficial for the Mandi Board and Mandi Secretary in planning and coordinating their operation post historical analysis. Grievance Redressal Management System for Mandi Secretaries: Help raise technology issues related to portal/ software and its operation and also track the status of redressal of their query online. Integration with Farmer Database: For registration process to become easier and easy identification of farmers increasing the efficiency and reduce queue time. This will help in managing the load at the Gate more efficiently during peak time in Rabi and Kharif and reduce waiting time for farmers at the entry gate. Indian scientists develop next generation technology loop to generate clean energy (Topic: Infrastructure: Green & Clean Energy) What: Indian scientists have developed a super critical carbon di oxide Brayton test loop facility that would help generate clean energy from future power plants including solar thermal. India’s first test-bed for next generation, efficient, compact, waterless super critical carbon dioxide Brayton cycle test loop for power generation. The first test loop coupled with solar heat source in the world. By: Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore The new generation high efficiency power plants with closed cycle CO2 as the working fluid have the potential to replace steam based nuclear and thermal power plants, thus reducing the carbon foot print significantly. This test loop is designed to generate the necessary data for future development of scaled up S-CO2 power plants, which would require overcoming several technological challenges –developing critical components such as the turbine, compressor and heat exchangers that can work at the desired pressure and temperature ranges and using materials that can withstand these conditions. Today’s thermal power plants use steam to carry heat away from the source and turn a turbine to generate power. However, it could generate more power if, instead of steam, supercritical CO2 (SCO2) is used. The term “supercritical” describes the state of carbon dioxide above its critical temperature of 31°C and critical pressure of 73 atmospheres making it twice as dense as steam. Advantages: The efficiency of energy conversion could also be significantly increased─by as much as 50 percent or more─if S-CO2 is operated in a closed loop Brayton cycle. Increases power generation and makes the process more efficient Smaller turbines and power blocks can make the power plant cheaper, while higher efficiency would significantly reduce CO2 emissions for fossil fuel based plants. Moreover, if the power plant used solar or nuclear heat source, it would mean higher capacity at lower operating costs. Please Note: Governor of Maharashtra: C.Vidhya Sagar Rao Chief Minister of Maharastra: Devendra Fadnavis Bharat-Net: Providing broad-band Internet connectivity to our villages Swajal: A community owned drinking water programme for sustained drinking water supply. Integrated Health Information Platform (IHIP): Intended to establish first Health Information Exchange by connecting various Hospital Information Systems from 10 Indian States. National Health Policy (2017) of India clearly articulates the healthcare aspirations of people of India with three distinct goals. First Goal: Ensure district-level electronic database of information on health system components by 2020, which largely means moving away from paper-based data collection and recording in public health system to use of sophisticated computerized tools for improving functioning of hospitals and health system Second goal: To strengthen the health surveillance system and establish registries for diseases of public health importance by 2020, where we intend to create registries to support epidemiological profiling of diseases to be better informed for targeted health interventions. Third goal: Pushes us to work for establishment of federated national e-health architecture, setting-up of health information exchanges and national Health Information Network by 2025 World Environment Day 2018 Global Host: India Theme: Beat Plastic Pollution SARAS: India’s indigenous light transport aircraft, completes the second test-flight successfully People in News: Sri Ramakrishna Paramhansa: Reverence and admiration for him amongst Bengali elites led to the formation of the Ramakrishna Mission by his chief disciple Swami Vivekananda Nizamuddin Auliyala: A Sufi saint of the Chishti Order; Amir Khusrow was his student Excerpts from the Speeches: Between the Mind and the Machine – With the arrival of Artificial Intelligence, Bots and Robots, there is no doubt that our productivity will further go up. But, there are also rising fears of human redundancy because there is a competition between the mind and the machine. Such fears are neither un-founded nor new. At every stage of technological evolution, we have faced such doubts and questions. This leads to two views of the future. First brings hopes and aspirations and second brings fears of disruption Technology opens entirely new spheres and sectors for growth. It also opens up an entirely new paradigm of opportunities. With each wave of new technology, many new opportunities arise. New opportunities have always out-numbered the lost ones. Human ingenuity has always prevailed and it will continue to do so in the future. This optimism stems from my firm faith in Ancient Indian Thinking that blended science and spirituality and found Harmony between the two/ for the greater good of mankind. The spirit of scientific enquiry was rooted in the pursuit of Truth. Our ancient texts go on to further list the mental faculties that assist in this pursuit of the Truth. श्रद्धा (dedication),मेधा (mental capacity), मनीषा (intelligence), मनसा (mind), शान्ति (peace), चित्त (elevated state of consciousnes), स्मृति (memory), स्मरण (recall) and विज्ञान (application of knowledge). The road ahead for Artificial Intelligence depends on and will be driven by Human Intentions. With every industrial revolution, the scalability of technology has increased manifold. This has given human increasingly more power to create an impact in whatever he does through technology. It is this ethic of development that will ensure equity for all people. The March of Technology cannot be at the expense of further increasing the difference between societies over access to technology. The evolution of Technology has to be rooted in the ethic of Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas. Industrial and Infrastructure Security architecture Edifice of a good Industrial and Infrastructure Security architecture rests on three pillars – Physical security, the main objective of which is access control. This is achieved by ensuring perimeter and campus security through fences, patrolling, sentry post, flood lighting and alarm systems. Security of Data and Information: This aspect has assumed significance in recent years as there are instances where data and information leakages have caused huge damages. Plugging these leaks is an important aspect of Industrial security. Emergency Response System which requires us to prepare a Contingency Plan to be able to respond to any emergency to minimise risk and to mitigate& reduce the extent of loss. This is very critical to Industrial and Infrastructure Security. The perceived threats to Industrial and Infrastructure Security till recent times were three dimensional. Cyber Crimes has added the 4th dimension to these threats.
IASbaba’s MINDMAP : Issue – Climate Change and Farmers Archives NOTE – Instructions to download Mind Maps/Images Right Click on the image and ‘Open in a new tab’ Remove/Delete the resolution part from the URl. Eg. “-1024×869” and Press Enter/Load Again Afterwards the URL will look something like this – “iasbaba.com/…./…/..-IASbaba.jpg” Right Click and Save As/Download (You’ll get the maximum resolution)
IASbaba's Daily Current Affairs (Prelims + Mains Focus)- 26th February 2018 Archives (PRELIMS+MAINS FOCUS) Ombudsman scheme for NBFCs Part of: Mains GS Paper II- Government interventions, schemes by central government Key pointers: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) issued an ombudsman scheme for non-banking finance companies (NBFCs), offering a grievance redressal mechanism for their customers. An officer at the RBI not below the rank of general manager will be appointed by the regulator as the ombudsman with territorial jurisdiction being specified by the central bank. Any customer or person can file a compliant with the ombudsman on various grounds like non-payment or inordinate delay in payment of interest, non-repayment of deposits, lack of transparency in loan agreement et. The NBFC shall, unless it has preferred an appeal, within one month of the award by the complainant, comply with the award and intimate compliance to the complainant and the ombudsman. The ombudsman will be required to send a report to the RBI governor annually on 30 June containing general review of the activities of his office during the preceding financial year. Article link: Click here Waste to wealth: In rural areas Part of: Mains GS Paper II- Government interventions, schemes by central government Key pointers: The government plans to set up an online platform for trading in cow dung and agricultural waste under its recently announced waste-to-wealth scheme. The Gobar-Dhan (galvanising organic bio agro resources) scheme announced in the Budget, has the potential to create new jobs linked to waste collection, transportation, biogas sales, etc. India’s cattle population numbering 300 million produce 3 million tonnes of dung every day. This together with agricultural waste and kitchen waste could be used for producing biogas. The Gobar-Dhan scheme would not only keep the villages clean and sanitised, but also help generate additional income for people. Reference article: Generating energy and wealth from waste Article link: Click here (MAINS FOCUS) INTERNATIONAL TOPIC: General Studies 2: India and its neighbourhood- relations. Bilateral, regional and global groupings and agreements involving India and/or affecting India’s interests Effect of policies and politics of developed and developing countries on India’s interests Canada's PM visit to India Introduction: India-Canada cooperation can be seen as anchored on five Es: economy, energy, education, entertainment industry linkages, and empowerment of women. The recent visit of Canadian PM to India has many takeaways. Key takeaways: Countering terrorism: From the Indian viewpoint, the most important agreement signed during the visit is the “Framework for Cooperation between India and Canada on Countering Terrorism and Violent Extremism”. It commits the two nations to combating this phenomenon in all its “forms and manifestations”, and to facilitate “effective cooperation” on security, finance, justice, law enforcement and operations. Progress in this realm will spur positivity in other domains of mutual cooperation. Regional, bilateral issues: A close commonality of views emerged on several regional issues. The two Prime Ministers called for dismantling the infrastructure of support to terrorism “from across borders of Afghanistan”, a clear reference to Pakistan. The Maldives government was urged “to ensure early resumption of the political process.” On Myanmar, the need for voluntary, safe and sustainable return of the Rohingya refugees was stressed. Canada and India showed a common perspective on freedom of navigation and over-flight “throughout the Indo-Pacific region” and respect for international law, including the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. Canada implicitly shared India’s reservations on China’s mega Belt and Road Initiative. Other developments: The decision to expand the scope of Ministerial Energy Dialogue is noteworthy. A new Canada-India Track 1.5 Dialogue on Innovation, Growth and Prosperity was launched. This aims to establish contours of convergence through sustained research and brainstorming among experts, officials and business people. Potential: As a capital, technology and innovation-rich economy and an open, inclusive and multi-cultural society, Canada is highly relevant to India. It is sharpening its role as a Pacific Ocean power. India’s commitment to peace and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific should deepen geopolitical affinity. The two sides had forged close cooperation on energy and trade, including a civil nuclear cooperation agreement and a commitment from Canadian pension funds to invest in India. India and Canada have much in common as two pluralistic, diverse democracies with very strong people-to-people ties: there is an Indian diaspora of 1.3 million in Canada, besides 100,000 Indian students. Conclusion: The mutual interests are likely to drive the two nations to strengthen their strategic partnership. However, for this vision to turn into reality, the Canadian leadership needs to demonstrate greater sensitivity to India’s core concerns (the Khalistan issue). Connecting the dots: Discuss the potential and challenges of India-Canada relationship. For reference: India-Canada relationship: Issues & Potential AGRICULTURE/ECONOMY TOPIC: General Studies 2: Government policies and interventions for development in various sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation. General Studies 3: Indian Economy and issues relating to planning, mobilization of resources, growth, development and employment Issues related to direct and indirect farm subsidies Achieving the goal of doubling farmers' income by 2022 In news: The ministry of agriculture and farmers welfare recently organized conference to prepare a strategy for doubling farm income by 2022. Prime Minister Narendra Modi emphasized on four ideas: Reducing the cost of inputs. Ensuring remunerative prices. Reducing wastage at the farm level. Creating alternative sources of income. After two consecutive years of drought, in 2014-15 and 2015-16, farmers of many crops were hit by low market prices in several states in 2016-17. In view of widespread discontent, there is a sense of urgency about addressing their issues. Variation in agro-climatic conditions: Agriculture is subject to a lot of uncertainties, ranging from rainfall and pest attacks to market prices. Even within states, there is enormous variation in agro-climatic conditions, extent of irrigation, penetration of roads, proximity to markets, and availability of credit through banking infrastructure. In Uttar Pradesh (UP), for example- Western UP farmers have access to irrigation and banking infrastructure and are close to a large market in the National Capital Region. They grow sugar cane, rice and wheat, for which they are assured a fair price as almost the entire production of sugar cane is bought by sugar mills and rice and wheat are procured by the government. The agriculture in seven districts of Bundelkhand in UP, however, is mostly unirrigated, farmers have smaller holdings, and do not have easy access to a large consuming market. The requirements of Punjab’s agriculture may have little in common with agriculture in Maharashtra or Bihar. The annual income of a farm household in Punjab in 2013 (70th-round National Sample Survey) was Rs2,17,450 while in Bihar it was only Rs44,172. It is clear that doubling farmer incomes in Punjab is not only much more difficult but will also require a completely different strategy than in Bihar. Therefore, the strategy for doubling farmer incomes will differ from state to state, and from one region to another even within a state. In March 2015, the government had set up a task force under Arvind Panagariya, which submitted its report that year itself, but the report has not been made public. Key issues that needs to be addressed: The wasteful use of water for irrigation- The micro-irrigation fund of Rs5,000 crore announced in the 2017 budget has not yet taken off and wasteful practices in the use of water continue in most areas, especially in the northern states. Even in Punjab, we do not see any action on the emerging water crisis. Several ideas put forward by experts continue to be discussed in conferences but state and centre have not taken a single decision which would make a real difference to the wasteful use of water. Model land leasing law- A model law prepared by NITI Aayog, has been circulated to states but they seem to have ignored it. The Union ministry of rural development, which deals with the subject of land leasing, has also haven't taken steps to see the implementation of the law. Considering price deficiency payment (PDP) system- To ensure that farmers receive remunerative prices. This has been tried in Madhya Pradesh (MP) in kharif 2017 and the results have not been very encouraging. The market price of some crops, particularly urad, continued to be much lower than the minimum support price (MSP) in MP, yet only 42% of urad production was brought to the mandis to avail of the benefit. NITI Aayog needs to examine various alternatives to ensure MSP to farmers. Conclusion: The states need to be persuaded to put useful and innovative ideas recommended by various committees and in conferences into practice for the goal of doubling famers' income by 2022 is to be achieved. Connecting the dots: Any strategy for doubling farmers' income must vary from state to state and from one region to other region within a state. Disucss. MUST READ Regulating the future The Hindu Can banking recover The Hindu Lives of others Indian Express Lawmakers with perks Indian Express India and Brazil's role in the bioeconomy Livemint Waste is best managed by monetising it Business Line
UPSC Quiz- 2018 : IASbaba’s Daily Current Affairs Quiz [Day 150] Archives Q.1) Consider the following statements about naval exercise MILAN It is conducted under the aegis of the Andaman and Nicobar Command All the members of Indian Ocean Rim Association for Regional Cooperation (IORARC) participate in the exercise Select the correct statements 1 Only 2 Only Both 1 and 2 Neither 1 nor 2 Q.2) Consider the following statements about Indian Ocean Rim Association for Regional Cooperation (IORARC) It is the brainchild of South Africa and India Maldives is not a member state Select the correct code: 1 Only 2 Only Both 1 and 2 Neither 1 nor 2 Q.3) Consider the following statements about Ruttom-2 It is a Medium Altitude Long Endurance drone (MALE) It is being developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation It can fly missions on manual as well as autonomous modes Select the correct statements 1 and 2 2 and 3 1 and 3 All of the above Q.4) ‘Samruddhi Corridor’ connects which of the following cities? Mumbai and Ahmedabad Mumbai and Nagpur Bengaluru and Chennai Delhi and Jaipur Q.5) Consider the following statements about ‘Heavy Water’ It is water composed of the hydrogen isotope with a mass double that of ordinary hydrogen, and oxygen. Heavy Water Board (HWB) is a constituent unit under the Department of Atomic Energy It is used as a moderator of neutrons in nuclear power plants Select the correct statements 1 and 2 2 and 3 1 and 3 All of the above To Download the Solution – Click here All the Best IASbaba
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