JULY MONTHLY CURRENT AFFAIRS 2022: Monthly Current Affairs are very important for every competitive exam and as we all know, in the upcoming months, many government exams.
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– 3-day Akhil Bhartiya Shiksha Samagam (ABSS) at Varanasi concludes
– Union Home Minister Amit Shah chairs 30th Meeting of Northern Zonal Council (NZC) in Jaipur
– 15 dead in cloudburst at Shri Amarnathji Shrine in Jammu and Kashmir
– Hindustan Aeronautics (HAL) and Safran Helicopter Engines of France sign JV agreement to set up aero engine company in India
– Sri Lanka: President Gotabaya Rajapaksa flees as protestors occupy his official residence in
Colombo
– Tesla CEO Elon Musk terminates deal to buy Twitter for $44 billion; says Twitter did not respond to requests for information on spam accounts on the platform
– Wimbledon tennis in London: Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan wins women’s singles title
– “The Architect of the New BJP: How Narendra Modi Transformed The Party” by journalist Ajay Singh set for release on July 11
– Perks provided by employers to employees not subject to GST: Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs
– Govt. exempts excise on aviation turbine fuel (ATF) for overseas flights
– India hands over 44,000 metric tonnes of urea under a credit line extended to crisis-ridden Sri Lanka
– Sri Lanka: President Gotabaya Rajapaksa to resign on July 13; opposition parties agree to form an all-party interim government
– China and Pakistan start ‘Sea Guardians-2’ naval drills off Shanghai coast
– Ukraine: President Volodymyr Zelensky sacks ambassadors to Germany, India, Czech Republic, Norway and Hungary
– Ukraine: 15 killed as building hit by rocket in Chasiv Yar town in the Donetsk region
FIELDS MEDAL WINNERS
– 1. Maryna Viazovska (Ukraine)
– 2. Hugo Duminil-Copin (France)
– 3. June Huh (US-South Korea)
– 4. James Maynard (UK)
– Awarded by International Mathematical Union to mathematicians under the age of 40
WIMBLEDON TENNIS (LONDON) WINNERS:
– Novak Djokovic of Czech Republic: men’s singles
– Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan: women’s singles
– United Kingdom’s Neal Skupski and Desirae Krawczyk of United States: mixed doubles
– Czech Republic’s Barbora Krejcikova and Katerina Siniakova: women’s doubles
– Australia’s Matthew Ebden and Max Purcell: men’s doubles
MALAYSIA MASTERS (KUALA LUMPUR) WINNERS
– Indonesia’s Chico Aura Dwi Wardoyo: men’s singles
– South Korea’s An Se Young: women’s singles
– China’s Chen Qing Chen and Jia Yi Fan: women’s doubles
– Indonesia’s Muhammad Rian Ardianto and Fajar Alfian: men’s doubles
– China’s Zheng Siwei and Huang Yaqiong: mixed doubles
– Indian Grandmaster D. Gukesh wins Gijon Chess Masters tournament in Spain
– England (215/7) defeat India (198/9) in 3rd and last T20I at Trent Bridge, Nottingham; lose series 1-2
– Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc wins Formula One Austrian Grand Prix at Spielberg
– Mexico’s Rey Vargas wins World Boxing Council featherweight title at San Antonio (US)
– PM unveils National Emblem cast on the roof of New Parliament Building
– India likely to surpass China, as world’s most populous country in 2023, says World Population
Prospects 2022 report of UN
– Information and Broadcasting Secretary Apurva Chandra unveils new logo of country’s Public Service Broadcaster, Prasar Bharati
– West Bengal: Union Minister Smriti Irani inaugurates Sealdah Metro Station of East-West corridor
– First-ever symposium and exhibition on Artificial Intelligence in Defence held in Delhi
– Number of undernourished in India fell, obese rose in 15 years, says State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2022 report released by UN
– RBI allows payments for cross-border trade in rupee, move to benefit trade with Russia
– Govt. announces curbs on export of wheat flour and related products
– Govt launches Jute Mark logo to promote Indian golden fibre
– Devesh Sachdev re-elected as Chairperson of MFIN (Microfinance Institutions Network)
– Govt. sacks National High Speed Rail Corporation Limited (NHSRCL), chairman and managing
director (CMD) Satish Agnihotri’ over charges of corruption
– India’s third power exchange -Hindustan Power Exchange Ltd. (HPX) – starts; promoted by PTC India Ltd, BSE & ICICI Bank
– World Population Day celebrated on July 11
– Japan: Ruling party LDP wins majority in Upper House (House of Councillors) polls held after ex- PM Shinzo Abe’s killing
– Japan awards Ex-PM Shinzo Abe country’s highest honour – the Supreme Order of the
Chrysanthemum — posthumously
– Bangladesh: Archaeologist Dr. Enamul Haque dies at 85 in Dhaka; awarded Padma Shri by India in 2020
– Lt Gen Mohan Subramanian appointed Force Commander of UN Mission in South Sudan
– Bihar: PM unveils centenary memorial pillar of the Bihar Assembly building in Patna
– Jharkhand: PM inaugurates an airport and AIIMS in Deoghar; flags off Deoghar-Kolkata IndiGo flight
– Uttarakhand becomes first state to implement Centre’s New Education Policy at pre-primary level
– Textiles Minister Piyush Goyal inaugurates National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT) at
Panchkula in Haryana
– Retail (Consumer Price Index-CPI) inflation eases slightly to 7.01% in June
– Industrial production grows 19.6% in May
– Ola Electric launches country’s first indigenously developed lithium-ion cell
– RBI approves Meena Hemchandra as part-time chairman of Karur Vysya Bank
– NASA releases 1st full-color image from its James Webb Space Telescope; provides glimpses of what the early Universe looked like
– British composer Monty Norman, known for James Bond theme, dies at 94
– International Malala Day observed on July 12
– India (111/0 in 18.4) defeat England (110/10) by 10 wickets in 1st ODI of 3-match cricket series at Kennington Oval in London
– ISSF World Cup in Changwon, South Korea: Arjun Babuta wins gold medal in men’s 10m air rifle
– President addresses Dhammacakka Day 2022 celebrations at Sarnath (UP) through video message
– PM Modi speaks with PM of the Netherlands Mark Rutte over the phone
– Cabinet approves Taranga Hill-Ambaji-Abu Road rail line for improved mobility
– Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) detects Customs duty evasion of around Rs 4,389 crore by mobile company Oppo India
– Delhi HC permits Vivo India to operate bank accounts frozen by ED on July 5
– No more selling of non-ISI marked items on e-commerce portals
– TCS launches TCS Pace Port Toronto, its global research & co-innovation centre in Canada
– Panasonic launches its first fully rugged laptop TOUGHBOOK 40 in India
– Lenovo launches new Yoga, IdeaPad gaming series, Legion range in India
– World Economic Forum (WEF) releases Gender Gap Report 2022 in Geneva: Iceland first, India 135th
– Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa flees to Maldives in military aircraft
– Ukraine joins NATO’s programme of technological cooperation between armies
– Apple ends decades-long relationship with chief designer Jony Ive
– Twitter launches Unmentioning feature allowing users to quit conversations
– International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) World Cup at Changwon in South Korea: Mehuli Ghosh and Shahu Tushar Mane win gold in the 10m Air Rifle Mixed Team
– PM Modi participates in the first Leaders’ Summit of I2U2 (India, Israel, UAE and USA) virtually
– UN Deputy Secretary-General commends India localising monitoring of sustainable development goals
– Lok Sabha Secretariat releases list of ‘unparliamentary’ words such as ‘Jumlajeevi’, ‘tanashah’,
‘Dictator’, ‘black’ and ‘Khalistani’
– Proportion of unmarried persons 15-29 years age bracket at 23% in 2019: Govt
– Women and Child Development Ministry issues guidelines for Mission Shakti Scheme that has been launched for the safety, security and empowerment of women
– Free Covid booster doses for all adults for next 75 days from July 15 at govt clinics
– Mustafizur Rahman appointed as Bangladesh’s next High Commissioner to India
– Academic and activist Avdhash Kaushal dies at 87 in Dehradun; awarded Padma Shri in 1987
– Meeting of BIMSTEC Expert Group on Cyber Security Cooperation being held in New Delhi on July 14-15
– London Indian Film Festival: Filmmakers Aparna Sen and Nandita Das awarded Icon Award
– India’s first monkeypox case reported in Kollam district of Kerala
– Maharashtra: CM Eknath Shinde restores Emergency pension scheme scrapped by Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) govt
– Centre extends scheme for Rebate of State and Central Taxes and Levies till March 2024
– Govt directs e-commerce platforms to sell Ayurvedic, Siddha and Unani drugs only after customers
upload valid medical prescriptions
– India’s wholesale price-based inflation declines to 15.18% in June
– Brijendra K Syngal, former Chairman of Videsh Sanchar Nigam Ltd (VSNL) & known as ‘Father of
Indian Internet’, dies at 82
– Infosys to acquire Denmark-based BASE life science for 110 million euros
– Lithuania’s Foreign Ministry to allow transit of Russian goods to Kaliningrad
– Sri Lankan President Gotabaya Rajapaksa emails his resignation letter to parliamentary speaker
– Haiti: At least 89 people dead in gang violence in capital Port-au-Prince
– India top ISSF Shooting World Cup medal tally at Changwon in South Korea; Arjun Babuta, Shahu
Tushar Mane and Paarth Makhija win gold in the 10-metre air rifle team event
July 1, 2022
Abhyas High-speed Expendable Aerial Target (HEAT)
Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) successfully flight-tested
Abhyas, which is a high-speed expendable aerial target (HEAT). This was flight-tested from
Integrated Test Range (ITR) in Chandipur, off the Bay of Bengal coast in Odisha.
Highlights
Abhyas has been designed and developed by Aeronautical Development
Establishment (ADE), of DRDO.
The test demonstrated the performance at low altitude including sustained level &
high manoeuvrability.
It has been designed for autonomous flying with the help of an autopilot system
onboard.
Features
It is powered by a small gas turbine engine to sustain a long endurance flight at high
subsonic speed.
It is equipped with Micro-Electromechanical Systems-(MEMS) based Inertial
Navigation System along with the flight control computer for guidance and control.
Abhyas system is equipped with radar cross-section (RCS) and infrared signatures
which can be used to simulate aircrafts for the practice of anti-aircraft warfare and
also for the testing designed to aim aerial targets.
About Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE)
Aeronautical Development Establishment is an Aeronautical Systems Design House
involved in the design and development of the Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) and
Aeronautical Systems and technologies to meet the requirements of the Indian Armed
forces. Major R&D activities are in the areas of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, Pilotless target
aircraft, Flight simulators, Air Weapons and Flight control systems.
About DRDO
It was established in 1958 with a mission to Design, develop and lead to production stateof-
the-art sensors, weapon systems, platforms and allied equipment for our Defence
Services. Dr G Satheesh Reddy is the current chairman of DRDO.
Computerisation of Primary Agriculture and Credit Society (PACS)
Cabinet has approved computerisation of primary agricultural credit societies (PACS) with
total outlay of 2516 crore rupees.
Highlights
The project has proposed computerization of about 63,000 functional PACS over a
period of five years.
The project focuses on improving efficiency of PACS, bringing transparency and
accountability in their operations.
Out of total budget outlay of 2,516 crore, Government of India share will be of 1,528
crore.
It will fulfil the aim of financial inclusion and also strengthen service delivery to
farmers especially small and marginal farmers (SMFs).
It will become delivery point for various services and provision of inputs like
fertilizers, seeds etc.
The project will help in making PACS as outlets for banking activities and also nonbanking
activities.
It will also prove beneficial in improving digitalisation in rural areas.
About PACS
It is smallest unit in cooperative sector which works with farmers and aim at
development of rural economy.
PACS account for 41% (3.01 crore farmers) of the kisan credit card (KCC) loans given
by all entities in the country and 95% of these KCC loans (2.95 crore farmers) through
PACS are to the small and marginal farmers.
Primary Agricultural Cooperative credit societies (PACS) is the lowest tier of the
three-tier short-term cooperative credit (STCC).
The other two tiers i.e State Cooperative Banks (SCBs) and District Central
Cooperative Banks (DCCBs) already work on Common Banking Software (CBS).
Kisan Credit Card (KCC) Scheme
The Kisan Credit Card (KCC) scheme was launched in 1998. It is aimed at providing credit
support from the banking system under a single window with flexible and simple
procedure to the farmers for their cultivation and other services such as purchase of
agriculture inputs including seeds, fertilizers, pesticides etc. It also allow them to take cash
for their production needs.
ISRO: Launch of PSLV C-53 Satellites
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) launched PSLV-C53 mission from Sri
harikota, Andhra Pradesh. It carried three satellites from Singapore.
Highlights
PSLV-C53 is the second dedicated commercial mission of the space agency’s
commercial arm NewSpace India Limited (NSIL).
PSLV-C53 successfully injected the satellites at an altitude of 570 km with 10-degree
inclination.
The four-stage, 44.4-metre-tall rocket had a lift-off mass of 228.433 tonnes.
This was the ISRO’s 55th mission of PSLV.
The launch vehicle has carried three satellites – DS-EO, a 365 kg and NeuSAR, a 155
kg satellite and 2.8 kg Scoob-1 satellite.
DS-EO carries an Electro-Optic, multi-spectral payload which will provide full colour
images for land classification, and for serving humanitarian assistance and disaster
relief needs.
NeuSAR satellite will provide images in day and night and under all weather
conditions.
The Scoob-I satellite is the first satellite in the Student Satellite Series (S3-I), which is
a hands-on student training programme.
New Space India Limited (NSIL)
NSIL is a Central Public Sector Enterprise of the Government of India. It functions as the
commercial arm of ISRO. It is headquartered at Bengaluru. NSIL was established in 2019
and is working under the administrative control of the Department of Space. It has the
responsibility to enable Indian industries to take up high technology space related
activities. It deals with capacity building of local industries for space manufacturing
ISRO- Key Facts
ISRO is the space agency under the Department of Space of Government of India.
It was formed in 1969.
ISRO replaced its predecessor, INCOSPAR (Indian National Committee for Space
Research) which was established in 1962.
Current Chairman of ISRO- S. Somnath
India forum for Nature-Based Solution
India Forum for Nature-Based Solutions was launched at the 11th World Urban Forum in
Poland. The forum was collectively launched by National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA),
World Resources Institute India (WRI India), Climate Centre for Cities (NIUA C-Cube), and
their partners launched India Forum for Nature-Based Solutions.
Highlights
It is India’s first national coalition platform for urban nature-based solutions (NbS).
It has been launched under Cities4Forest initiative.
It is aimed at creating a collective of NbS entrepreneurs, like-minded organizations
and government entities to help in scaling urban nature-based solutions by:
1. Defining a shared language and by communicating benefits that caters to actions at
the local level including scaling up of existing NbS interventions.
2. Creating awareness about urban ecosystem-based services and nature-based
solutions in India through informing policy, plans and project interventions.
3. Driving investment and promoting delivery mechanisms with coordination from
multi-stakeholder.
Nature Based Solutions (NbS)
As per IUCN, NbS are defined as “actions to protect, sustainably manage, and restore
natural or modified ecosystems, that address societal challenges effectively and
adaptively, simultaneously providing human well-being and biodiversity benefits.”
Cities4Forests Initiative
It is voluntary grouping of more than 60 cities from around the world involving
mayors’ offices and other city agencies such as public water utilities and offices of
sustainability.
It aims at supporting cities around the world to recognize their interdependence
with the world’s forests, and use their own political, economic, and cultural power to
ensure forest health and vitality.
The Cities4Forests initiative helps cities around the world connect with and invest in
inner forests (such as city trees and urban parks), nearby forests (such as green
corridors and watersheds) and faraway forests (such as tropical and boreal forests).
Three Indian cities under this initiative are-Mumbai, Hyderabad and Kochi.
World urban forum (WUF)
United Nations had established WUF in 2001 to examine the problem of rapid urbanisation
and its impact on communities, economies, climate change, cities, and policies. The first
WUF was held in 2002, in Nairobi, Kenya. It is being held since then. It is co-organised by
UN-Habitat, Municipal Office of Katowice and Ministry of Development Funds and
Regional Policy of Poland.
GST Council Meeting-Highlights
47th GST Council Meeting was held in Chandigarh. In a two-day meeting GST Council
recommended rate changes on certain items. These changes will be made effective from
July 18, 2022.
Recent Rate Changes
GST on ink, lights, LED lamps and metal printed circuit board has been hiked to 18%
from earlier 12%.
GST rate on solar water heaters and systems has been hiked to 12% from 5%.
Rate on job work associated with manufacturing of leather goods and footwear has
been increased to 12%.
Rate on works contract for roads, railways, metro, bridges, crematorium effluent
treatment plant is increased to 18%.
GST Council has decided to rationalise tax rates on certain goods and services to
remove an inverted duty structure.
Rate on petroleum and coal bed methane is raised to 12% from 5%.
GST Council proposed to levy 28% GST on casinos, horse racing, online gaming, and
lottery was deferred. This issue will be taken in next meeting.
GST Council
It is a constitutional body under Article 279A of the Indian constitution.
It was introduced by the Constitution (One Hundred and First Amendment) Act, 2016.
The GST Council is chaired by the Union Finance Minister.
Other members are the Union State Minister of Revenue or Finance and Ministers incharge
of Finance or Taxation of all the States.
It makes recommendations to the Union and State Government on issues related to
Goods and Service Tax.
Every decision of GST Council is to be taken by a majority of not less than threefourths
of the weighted votes of the members present.
Central government’s vote has a weightage of one-third of total votes cast, while the
votes of state governments all together have a weightage of two-thirds of total votes
cast in the meeting.
On June 30, 2022, Prime Minister Narendra Modi participated in ‘Udyami Bharat’
programme.
Key Facts
On the occasion, he launched following key initiatives:
1. Raising and Accelerating MSME Performance(RAMP) scheme
2. Capacity Building of First-Time MSME Exporters(CBFTE) scheme
3. New features of Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP) to
boost the MSME sector.
He also transferred the assistance to beneficiaries of PMEGP, digitally, for 2022-23.
He announced results of MSME Idea Hackathon, 2022 and distributed National MSME
Awards, 2022.
Digital Equity Certificates were also issued to 75 MSMEs in Self Reliant India (SRI)
Fund.
About RAMP scheme
The Raising and Accelerating MSME Performance(RAMP) scheme was launched with
an outlay of around Rs 6000 crore.
It is aimed at scaling up the coverage and implementation capacity of MSMEs across
the states, along with the impact enhancement of existing MSME schemes.
RAMP will complement the Aatmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan, by encouraging
innovation, ideation, entrepreneurship, improving practices & process, incubating
new business by developing quality standards, enhancing market access, deploying
technological tools and Industry 4.0 for making MSMEs competitive and self-reliant.
About CBFTE Scheme
The Capacity Building of First-Time MSME Exporters (CBFTE) scheme aims to encourage
MSMEs for offering products and services of international standards to global market. It
will also enhance the participation of Indian MSMEs at international value chain. CBFTE will
help them in realising their export potential.
New features of the PMEGP
New features of Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP) include:
1. Increase in maximum project cost from Rs 25 lakhs to Rs 50 lakhs for manufacturing
sector
2. For service sector, it has increased from Rs 10 lakhs to Rs 20 lakhs.
MSME Idea Hackathon, 2022
The Hackathon was organised with the aim of promoting and supporting the untapped
creativity of individuals and promoting latest technologies & innovation among MSMEs.
National MSME Awards 2022
The award recognises the contributions of MSMEs, Aspirational Districts, states/UTs, and
Banks for their outstanding performance in terms of growth and development of MSME
sector in India.
UN-Habitat World Cities Report 2022
On June 29, 2022, the United Nations published its report titled “Habitat World Cities
Report 2022”.
Key Points of the report
The UN-Habitat World Cities Report 2022 highlights that, rapid urbanisation in India
was delayed temporarily due to covid-19 pandemic.
Urban population in India is estimated to reach at 675 million in 2035. It will be the
second highest figure, behind China’s one billion.
After covid-19 pandemic, global urban population is growing again. It will grow by
another 2.2 billion by 2050.
India’s urban population is likely to reach 675,456,000 in 2035, as compared to
483,099,000 in 2020.
Percentage of population in urban areas pf India will be 43.2 percent, by 2035.
Global Scenario
Urban Population in China is estimated to reach at 1.05 billion in 2035.
Urban population in Asia will increase to 2.99 billion in 2035.
Big economies such as China and India account for large share of the world’s
population. Development trajectories across these countries have influenced global
inequality.
In last two decades, India and China experienced rapid urbanisation and economic
growth. As a result, number of people living in poverty reduced.
Natural Growth in Population
As per report, in lower income countries, existing urban populations continuing to
increase naturally with increasing birth rates. Urban population is expected to grow from
56 per cent of world’s total in 2021 to 68 per cent by 2050.
Impact of covid-19 pandemic
As per report, large scale flight from major cities to smaller town, amid COVID-19
pandemic, was a short-term response. It will not hinder the course of global urbanisation.
Urban poverty and inequality
According to report, urban poverty and inequality are the most intractable and highly
complex problems. Overcrowded slums in Mumbai, Nairobi, Rio de Janeiro, chronic
homelessness in London etc highlights that, tackling urban poverty and inequality are key
priorities to building inclusive and equitable urban futures.
World Bank Loan to support India’s Health Sector
The World Bank Board of Executive Directors approved two complementary loans of USD
500 million each, for supporting and enhancing India’s health sector.
Key Facts
The financing of USD 1 billion by World Bank will support the “Pradhan Mantri-
Ayushman Bharat Health Infrastructure Mission (PM-ABHIM)” scheme of India.
This scheme was launched in October 2021, for improve public healthcare
infrastructure across India.
One of the loans will prioritize seven states including Andhra Pradesh, Meghalaya,
Punjab, Kerala, Odisha, Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu.
India’s health performance
As per world bank’s estimate, India’s health performance has improved over time.
Life expectancy in India was at 69.8 in 2020 as opposed to 58 in 1990. It is higher than
the average for the India’s income level.
Under-five mortality rate (36 per 1,000 live births), maternal mortality ratio (103 per
100,000 live births) and infant mortality rate (30 per 1,000 live births), are nearly
equal to average for income level.
What are the two loans?
The two loans namely, Enhanced Health Service Delivery Program (EHSDP) and Public
Health Systems for Pandemic Preparedness Program (PHSPP) have been designed to be
complementary and transformational. These loans will support Government’s reform
agenda of accelerating universal coverage, increasing the resilience & preparedness and
improving quality of India’s health system. Both of these programmes provide unique
strengths to central & state governments in supporting the development of high-quality,
accessible and affordable health services.
PHSPP’s support
This programme will support:
India’s surveillance system in detecting and reporting epidemics of potential
international concern. It will ensure rapid response, as well as prevent emergence of
pathogens.
India’s capacity of detecting pathogens, including zoonotic diseases.
It will build institutional capacity and strengthen coordination of core public health
institutions, in a bid to implement program and deliver high-quality results.
EHSDP’s support
EHSDP programme will strengthen service delivery by a redesigned primary health care
model.
Asia Pacific Sustainability Index 2021
The Asia Pacific Sustainability Index 2021 was recently launched by Knight Frank, which is
a Global property consultant.
Highlights
In the index, four Indian cities viz., Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Delhi, and Mumbai, have
been ranked among top 20 sustainable cities.
In it, 36 cities were ranked on the basis of urbanisation pressure, carbon emissions,
climate risk, and government initiatives.
Rank of World’s cities
Index has been topped by Singapore.
It is followed by Sydney, Wellington, Perth, and Melbourne.
These are the top five green-rated cities in commercial real estate in Asia-Pacific
region.
Rank of Indian cities
Among the Indian cities, Bengaluru was ranked first. While in the Asia-Pacific region,
it has been ranked 14th.
Bengaluru is the only Indian city to achieve ‘Gold’ standard category.
Bengaluru is followed by Delhi, which has been ranked 17th in the ASIA Pacific Region.
Hyderabad has been ranked 3rd in India and 18th in Asia-Pacific region.
Mumbai is ranked 4th among Indian cities and 20th in Asia-pacific region.
What is the reason of growth of sustainable development in India?
Sustainable Development in India have been propelled due to new market dynamics.
Global commitment towards carbon neutrality and net zero focus on creating
environmentally friendly premises. This has led Indian developers to develop their
products to meet the requirements.
Green Bond in India
As per report, green bond issuances in India have increased by 523% on yearly basis. It
was USD 1.1 billion in 2020 and has increased to USD 6.8 billion in 2021. Currently, India
has become the sixth-largest country in Asia-Pacific region, with respect to total amount of
green bonds issued in 2021.
Green Bond Issuance in Asia-Pacific Region
As per estimates of Climate Bonds Initiative, in 2021 the region issued USD 126 billion in
green bonds. China accounted for largest amount of USD 68 billion.
Goods and Services Tax (GST) Day
The Goods and Services Tax (GST) Day is observed annually on July 1, in India.
Key Facts
GST Day is observed to commemorate the implementation of Goods and Services
Tax (GST).
GST Day was first observed on July 1, 2018 marking the one-year anniversary of
implementation of the new tax regime.
When was GST launched?
GST was launched on intervening night of June 30 and July 1, 2017, in a ceremony
held in the central hall of Parliament.
GST had replaced the old indirect tax regime in India.
It was introduced with the idea of “One Nation- One Market- One Tax”.
Year 2022 marks the fifth anniversary of GST.
What is GST?
GST is an indirect, multi-stage, consumption-based tax system. It subsumes several
domestic indirect taxes like service tax, purchase tax, value-added tax, excise duty, and
others under one head. However, items including petroleum, liquor, and stamp duty have
not been added to GST. These items follow the old tax system.
Background
Idea to launch a new tax regime came into existence, when a committee was set up in
2002 to draft GST laws. This committee submitted its report in 2004. Later in 2006, finance
minister proposed to introduce GST on April 1, 2010. It took more than 17 years for GST
laws to come into force.
Three taxes under GST
There are three taxes application under the GST namely, CGST, SGST, and IGST. Central
government collects CGST on intra-state sale on the other hand, SGST is collected by state
government on intra-state sale. Central government collects IGST on an inter-state sale.
Tax Slabs under GST
Currently, there are four tax slabs under GST viz. 5 %, 12 %, 18 %, and 28 %.
Objectives of GST laws
Main objective of GST laws is to eliminate the cascading effect of taxes. It is also aimed at
expanding the base of taxpayer in India by simplifying taxation process.
July 2, 2022
Financial Services Institutions Bureau (FSIB)
Union government has transformed the “Banks Board Bureau (BBB)” into “Financial
Services Institutions Bureau (FSIB)”, through some amendments.
Highlights
Banks Board Bureau (BBB) was the head-hunter for directors of state-owned banks
as well as financial institutions.
Amendments were needed, because in 2021 Delhi High Court in its order maintained
that, BBB is not a competent body for selecting Directors and General Managers of
state-owned general insurers. Due to this, newly-appointed directors of insurers had
to leave their positions.
Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) had asked Department of Financial
Services for bringing necessary modifications in Nationalized Banks (Management
and Miscellaneous Provisions) Scheme, after getting approval of finance minister
and then notify government resolution to establish “FSIB” as a single entity.
About Financial Services Institutions Bureau
The Financial Services Institutions Bureau will make recommendations for
appointments of full-time directors as well as non-executive chairman of banks and
financial institutions.
Guidelines to select general managers and directors of public sector general
insurance companies is also a part of FSIB now.
Chairman and members of FSIB
The ACC has approved the appointment of Bhanu Pratap Sharma as initial
chairperson of FSIB. He has been appointed for two years. He was the former
Chairman of BBB.
Other members of the FSIB include
1. Animesh Chauhan– He was the former Chairman and Managing Director of
erstwhile Oriental Bank of Commerce
2. Deepak Singhal– He was RBI’s ex-executive director
3. Shailendra Bhandari– He was former MD of erstwhile ING Vysya Bank.
Bank Board Bureau
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had approved the constitution of BBB as a body of eminent
officials and professionals in 2016. BBB was constituted to make recommendations for
appointment of full-time directors and non-executive chairperson of state-owned
chairperson and public sector banks (PSBs). It was provided with task of engaging with
board of directors of all PSBs for formulating appropriate strategies related to their
growth and development.
ISRO: PSLV Orbital Experimental Module
On June 30, 2022 the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) launched the “PSLV
Orbital Experimental Module” (POEM) successfully.
What is PSLV Orbital Experimental Module?
The PSLV Orbital Experimental Module is a platform which will perform in-orbit
experiments through the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) rocket.
It is a four-stage rocket in which first three spent stages will drop into the ocean and
the final stage will end up as space junk after launching the satellite into orbit.
However, in PSLV-C53 mission, spent final stage will be used as a “stabilised
platform” for performing the experiments.
POEM’s Payload
POEM is carrying six payloads out of which two are from Indian space start-ups
Digantara and Dhruva Space.
POEM comprises of a dedicated Navigation Guidance and Control (NGC) system for
attitude stabilisation.
The NGC will serve as the POEM’s brain to stabilize it with specified accuracy.
It will navigate using four equipment viz., sun sensors, gyros, NavIC and
magnetometer.
About NavIC
Navigation in Indian Constellation (NavIC) is an Indian Regional Navigation Satellite
System (IRNSS). It has been developed by Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO).
IRNSS comprises of eight satellites, of which three satellites are in geostationary orbit and
five satellites in geosynchronous orbit. Its functions are similar to the popular U.S. Global
Positioning System (GPS). It was operationalised with the objective of providing
navigation, timing services and reliable position in India and its neighbourhood. While GPS
has a position accuracy of 20-30 metres, the NavIC is capable to pinpoint location to an
estimated accuracy of under 20 metres.
ISRO
ISRO is the space agency under the Department of Space of Government of India. It was
formed in 1969. ISRO replaced its predecessor, INCOSPAR (Indian National Committee for
Space Research) which was established in 1962. Current Chairman of ISRO is S. Somnath.
SBI: Authorisation to issue of Electoral Bonds
The Union Government authorised the State Bank of India (SBI) for issue of and encashing
Electoral Bonds through its 29 Authorised Branches.
What are Electoral Bonds?
Electoral bonds are instruments through which anyone can donate money to political
parties.
Electoral Bonds are valid for fifteen calendar days from the date of issue and no
payment is made to any payee Political Party, if the Electoral Bond is deposited after
expiry of the validity period.
The bonds that are not encashed by a party within 15 days are deposited by the SBI
into the Prime Minister’s Relief Fund.
Electoral Bond deposited by an eligible Political Party in its account is credited on the
same day.
The electoral bonds do not comprise of name of the donor. So, political party may
not know about donor’s identity.
The party is allotted a verified account by the Election Commission of India (ECI) and
the electoral bond are transacted through this account only.
Which party can receive Electoral Bonds?
If any party that is registered under section 29A of the Representation of the Peoples Act,
1951 and has got at least 1% of the votes polled in the most recent General elections or
Assembly elections then it can receive electoral bonds.
Who sells the Bonds?
The bonds are sold by the authorized branches of SBI. Bonds can be purchased in the
denominations of Rs 1,000, Rs 10,000, Rs 1 lakh, Rs 10 lakh and Rs 1 crore. There is no
maximum limit for purchasing bonds.
Who can purchase these bonds?
The bonds can be purchased by any citizen of India. It can be purchased for a period of
ten days each in the months of January, April, July and October or as per specified by the
Government.
Categorisation of CDRI as international Organisation
The Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister has approved to categorize the Coalition for
Disaster Resilient Infrastructure (CDRI) as an “International Organization”.
Highlights
The Headquarters Agreement (HQA) was also signed with CDRI. This agreement will
grant it the exemptions, immunities and privileges in accordance with the United
Nations (Privileges & Immunities) Act, 1947.
Both of these things will provide CDRI an independent and international legal
persona in order for it to carry out its functions internationally in efficient way.
How will these agreements help CDRI?
It will help the CDRI in deputing experts to countries which are vulnerable to disaster
risk and seek for post disaster recovery. It will also bring in experts from member
countries to India for similar purposes.
CDRI can deploying funds at global level and receive contributions from member
countries for its activities.
It will be able to assist countries to develop resilient infrastructure by providing
technical expertise to them.
It will provide an opportunity to Indian scientific and technical institution and
infrastructure developers to interact with global experts. It will help in building our
own capacities and mechanisms to support disaster resilient infrastructure
development.
CDRI will be able to provide all possible support to member countries in upgrading
their systems to ensure disaster and climate resilience of existing and future
infrastructure in aligning with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the Paris
Climate Agreement and the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction.
About CDRI
CDRI was launched in 2019 at the United Nations Climate Action Summit. It is an initiative
of government of India. It aims at increasing the resilience of infrastructure systems to
climate and disaster risk, CDRI is a global coalition of UN agencies, National governments,
multilateral development banks and financing mechanisms, academic and research
institutions and the private sector.
Members of CDRI
Members of CDRI include 31 countries, 6 international organisations and 2 private sector
organisations. 6 International Organisations include Asian Development Bank (ADB),
United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), World Bank Group), European Union,
European Investment Bank, United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR).
Two Private Sector Organisations include Private Sector Alliance for Disaster Resilient
Societies and Coalition for Climate Resilient Investment.
DRDO: Autonomous Flying Wing Technology Demonstrator
Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) successfully carried out the
maiden flight of an unmanned combat aircraft, called Autonomous Flying Wing
Technology Demonstrator. The aircraft was tested in Chitradurga, Karnataka.
About Autonomous Flying Wing Technology Demonstrator
It was maiden flight of the Autonomous Flying Wing Technology Demonstrator.
The aircraft operated in a fully autonomous mode and also performed a perfect
flight, including its take-off, way point navigation as well as a smooth touchdown.
It has been termed a significant step towards our self-reliance in strategic defence
technologies and critical military system.
The vehicle is powered by a small turbofan engine.
Autonomous Flying Wing Technology Demonstrator is being called as a precursor to
an autonomous stealthy UCAV (unmanned combat aerial vehicle), being developed
by the DRDO.
Who has developed the Demonstrator?
The Autonomous Flying Wing Technology Demonstrator has been designed and
developed by Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE) of DRDO.
About ADE
Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE) is an Aeronautical Systems Design House
which designs and develops the Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) and Aeronautical
Systems and technologies to meet the requirements of the Indian Armed forces. Major
R&D activities are in the areas of-Unmanned Aerial Vehicles, Air Weapons, Flight
simulators, Flight control systems and Pilotless target aircraft
DRDO
It was established in 1958 with a mission to design, develop and lead to production stateof-
the-art sensors, weapon systems, platforms and allied equipment for our Defence
Services. Dr G Satheesh Reddy is currently the chairman of DRDO.
Unmanned combat aerial vehicle (UCAV)
UCAV is an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), which is used for intelligence, target
acquisition, surveillance, and reconnaissance. It carries aircraft ordnance like ATGMs,
missiles, and/or bombs for drone strikes. These drones usually take its operation, under
real-time human control.
Ramagundam: India’s largest floating Solar Power Project
India’s largest floating solar power plant was made fully operational by NTPC at
Ramagundam, Telangana.
About the floating solar power plant
The capacity of solar plant is 100 MW.
It is powered with advanced technology and environment friendly features.
The project spreads over 500 acres of its reservoir.
The project is divided into 49 blocks. Each block has capacity of 2.5MW and each
block comprise of one floating platform and a matrix of 11,200 solar modules.
The floating platform comprises a transformer, inverter and a HT breaker.
The solar modules are kept on floaters which are manufactured with HDPE (High
Density Polyethylene) material.
Significance of the power plant
The presence of floating solar panels will reduce evaporation rate from water bodies.
Thus, it will serve the purpose of water conservation.
Renewable Energy Sector in India
As on November 30, 2021; India’s installed Renewable Energy (RE) capacity is 150.54
GW. Out of this, solar capacity is 48.55 GW, Small hydro Power 4.83 GW, wind is 40.03
GW, Bio-power: 10.62, Large Hydro: 46.51 GW.
India’s nuclear energy based installed electricity capacity is 6.78 GW.
Thus, the total non-fossil based installed energy capacity stands at 157.32 GW. It
accounts for 40.1% of the total installed electricity capacity of 392.01 GW.
India has already achieved its target, in November 2021, of having 40% of its installed
electricity capacity from non-fossil energy sources by 2030. India had committed this
target at COP21 as part of its Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC)
At COP26, India has committed to achieve 500 GW of installed electricity capacity
from non-fossil fuel sources by 2030.
NTPC
NTPC Ltd. is a central Public Sector Undertaking (PSU) which comes under Ministry of
Power. It was established in 1975 with an aim to boost power development in India. It is
India’s largest energy conglomerate. It became a Maharatna Company in 2010.
NITI Aayog Report: ‘Harnessing Green Hydrogen’
Government’s think tank NITI Aayog published its report titled “Harnessing Green
Hydrogen- Opportunities for Deep Decarbonisation in India”. This report has been
prepared in collaboration with Delhi-based think tank RMI India.
Key Findings of the report
In its report, NITI Aayog has recommended to reduce or exempt the GST & Custom
duties on production of green hydrogen, in order to boost the production in India.
It also proposed to set up green hydrogen corridors as well as offer grants to startups
that are working on green hydrogen solutions domestically.
According to it, government should focus on bringing a cost reduction pathway for
green hydrogen production in country.
Present Green Hydrogen Policy
As per report, present Green Hydrogen policy provides for adequate measures, which
focuses on inter-state transmission (ISTS) charges waiver as well as open access for green
ammonia and green hydrogen production. Its production can be further improved by
reducing or exempting tax and duties.
What is Green Hydrogen?
Green hydrogen is hydrogen gas, which is produced through electrolysis of water.
Electrolysis is an energy intensive process to split water into hydrogen and oxygen.
Hydrogen demand in India
As per report, Hydrogen demand in India will grow over four-times by 2050, accounting
for 10% of global hydrogen demand. Thus, it suggests to facilitate investment by means of
demand aggregation and dollar-based bidding for green hydrogen. Majority of the
demand growth will come for steel and heavy-duty trucking, in long run, by 2050. Both will
account for 52 per cent of total demand.
Hydrogen Corridors
Report further recommended to set up green hydrogen corridors in association with
states. In initial phase, three hydrogen corridors should be developed, on the basis of
state grand challenge. Governments can provide loans and grants to start-ups & projects
as well as support entrepreneurs through investment networks and incubators.
Background
Central government has notified the green hydrogen and green ammonia policy, in
February 2022 with the aim of increasing domestic production of green hydrogen to 5
million tonnes by 2030.
RBI Financial Stability Report- June 2022
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) recently published its Financial Stability Report for June
2022.
This edition of the RBI report includes a survey of international regulatory and
supervisory practices, which are applied to BigTech entities.
In its survey, RBI listed Google, Facebook, Apple, Amazon and Alibaba among service
providers.
As per RBI, regulators worldwide are aiming to create a balance between risks and
benefits from entry of BigTechs in financial domain.
Regulators are adopting authorisation or licensing approach at the entity as well as
activity level. It is being guided by principle of ‘flexibility’ and ‘proportionality’
depending on complexity of services offered by BigTechs.
Findings of the report
In the report, RBI maintained that, large technology companies (‘BigTech’) are
scaling up and turning into “too-critical to fail” institutions. Thus, its regulators must
be aware of their interlinkages with the financial system.
As per report, BigTechs can scale up rapidly and become risky for financial stability.
This can arise from increased disintermediation of incumbent institutions.
Complex intertwined operational linkages between financial institutions and BigTech
firms could lead to contagion and concentration risks and issues related to potential
anti-competitive behaviour.
Major concerns related to BigTechs
Regulators and supervisors worldwide highlight three major concerns related with the
presence of BigTechs in financial services. These concerns related to financial stability,
legislative and governance issues. Report notes that, BigTechs entered into financial
domain as payment service providers. But now they are offering a host of financial
services like credit, asset management, crowdfunding and insurance. They increase
financial stability risks, by clubbing multiple financial activities through their platforms.
Business Reforms Action Plan (BRAP), 2020
On June 30, 2022, Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman released the ‘Business
Reforms Action Plan (BRAP), 2020’, and presented assessment report of states and union
territories.
Key Points
In the Business Reforms Action Plan (BRAP) 2020, states have been categorized into
four categories, namely
1. Top achievers,
2. Achievers
3. Aspires, and
4. Emerging business ecosystems.
In this report, states have been categorized, as opposed to earlier practice of
announcing ranks.
The BRAP report comprises of 301 reform points, covering 15 business regulatory
areas like access to Information, labour, single window system, sectoral reforms,
environment, and other reforms related to lifecycle of a typical business.
In it, sectoral reforms have been introduced for the first time. In it, 72 reforms were
identified across 9 sectors viz., healthcare, trade licence, cinema halls, legal
metrology, fire NOC, hospitality, movie shooting, telecom, and tourism.
Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) recently organised a three-day “Grand
Hackathon”, in collaboration with NABARD.
About Grand Hackathon
The Grand-Hackathon was held in hybrid mode, at the Bombay Stock Exchange in
Fort, Mumbai.
It is subdivided into two categories viz., Agri Grant Challenge and Agri Innovation
Hackathon.
Agri Innovation Hackathon will showcase the innovation for aiding the adoption of
eCommerce in agricultural sector.
Significance of hackathon
The ONDC-NABARD Grand Hackathon will act as springboard for start-ups to associate
with ONDC and innovate solutions for challenges in agri-sector. It will empower farmers
across the India. It will probably become a game changer for India, as well as for ecommerce
works across the world.
Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC)
Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC) is an initiative of Government of India, that is
aimed at building an open network for buyers and sellers to democratise current ecommerce
ecosystem across India. It is very crucial in democratizing agri-value chain as
well as ensuring the digital transformation of agri sector. With the help of NABARD, ONDC
would be capable of on-boarding entire farm value chain, and bringing them on to ecommerce,
specifically the FPOs, processors, mandis, MSMEs, exporters, and small
retailers. ONDC helps in building up inter-operability of various platforms, and helps the
consumers in getting greater choice of products near their home, besides providing
different modes of logistics and payment.
Significance of ONDC
ONDC will help the small sellers, traders and farmers to take part in the market with an
equal footing as large players. This will break limitations barrier for small players, in order
to enjoy fruits of digital technology.
QS Best Student Cities Rankings 2023
The QS Best Students Cities Rankings 2023 was published recently. In the ranking, London
has been ranked as the best city.
Ranking to the cities
London was ranked best for students, who are looking to study abroad in terms of
university standards, affordability and student facilities.
London is followed by Seoul and Munich at second and third place.
Zurich and Melbourne have been ranked at fourth and fifth places.
Buenos Aires took the top spot in Latin America. It has been ranked 23rd
Indian Cities
India’s highest-ranked student city is Mumbai.
At global level, it has been ranked at 103rd
Mumbai was scored for affordability. However, it struggles with student mix and
desirability.
Mumbai is followed by Bengaluru at 114 ranks.
Chennai and Delhi made their entries in the list and have been ranked at 125th and
129th places, respectively.
Arab Region
The best student city in Arab Region is Dubai. It has been ranked at 51st place, globally.
About QS Best Student Cities Ranking
The QS Best Student Cities Ranking provides independent data related to factors that are
relevant to students taking their study decisions. Factors include standard of university,
affordability, quality of life, besides the views of previous students who have studied in
that destination. It ranks around 140 cities worldwide.
All India Survey on Higher Education (AISHE)
International students account for only a small fraction of overall student in India. as per
All India Survey on Higher Education (AISHE) 2018-19, number of international students
who were enrolled in Indian universities was just 47,427. India has aimed to attract
200,000 international students by 2023, which is four times the current total.
July 4, 2022
NITI Aayog- WFP Report on Take-Home Ration (THR)
Government’s think-tank, NITI Aayog recently launched a report titled ‘Take Home Ration-
Good Practices across the State/Union Territories’, in collaboration with the World Food
Programme (WFP).
Highlights
NITI Aayog-WEP report on Take-Home Ration, presents a set of good and innovative
practices, that have been adopted by states & UTs, in implementation of Take-Home
Ration value chain.
Take-Home ration is provided by Government of India, under Supplementary
Nutrition component of Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS).
It is provided to fill the gap in nutrition among children, and pregnant & lactating
women (PLW).
Compilation of Innovations
The good practices document compiles and collates innovations in Take Home Ration
(THR) programmes being run in various States and Union Territories.
How was this document generated?
To generate a document on good practices under the programme, aspects related to
production, distribution, formulation, packaging, labelling, quality assurance, monitoring,
and social & behavioural change have been reviewed. This document will help in adopting
good practices in Take-Home Ration programmes across states and UTs.
Recommendations made by report
The NITI Aayog-WFP report made following recommendation:
1. All the components of this value chair should function at optimum, in order to realize
full potential of Take-Home Ration programme.
2. It suggests to build a robust system for procurement, standardized process, full
coverage, supply chain management & monitoring to ensure complete transparency,
sustainability, leverages local ties, and bring a culture of collaboration and trust
within a community.
World Food Programme (WFP)
World Food Programme (WFP) is the food-assistance branch of United Nations. It is the
largest humanitarian organization worldwide, that addresses hunger and promote food
security. It was established in 1961. The organisation seeks to eradicate hunger and
malnutrition, with the goal of eliminating the need for food aid itself. WEP is a member &
part of United Nations Development Group and its Executive Committee.
Himachal Pradesh: ‘Naari Ko Naman’ Scheme
Chief Minister of Himachal Pradesh, Jai Ram Thakur, launched the “Naari ko Naman’
Scheme, for women of the state.
Background
This scheme has been launched, in line with an announcement made before state
assembly elections.
Himachal Pradesh government has announced to give 50% discount in ticket prices
to women in state government buses.
Thus, bus tickets will now be available for women at half the cost.
Government’s expenditure
Under the scheme, Himachal Pradesh government will spend Rs 60 crore annually to
provide 50% discount on ticket prices to women in state. As per estimate, 1.25 lakh women
travel in HRTC buses every day.
Reduction in minimum fare
Apart from providing concession to women in tickets to women, government also
announced to decrease the minimum fare in HRTC buses from Rs 7 to Rs 5. Furthermore,
25 posts of women drivers will be filled in ‘Ride with Pride’ taxis of HRTC. 265 posts of
Motor Mechanic, Electrician etc will also be recruited in HRTC.
Himachal Road Transport Corporation (HRTC)
HRTC is the state-owned road transport corporation in Himachal Pradesh. It provides bus
services to towns and cities within the state and adjoining and states of Uttarakhand,
Haryana, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Rajasthan and Jammu & Kashmir. HRTC is one of
the first RTC’s in India that provides for online booking of tickets in all types of buses. It
was jointly founded, in 1958, by Government of Himachal Pradesh, Government of Punjab
and Railways as “Mandi-Kullu Road Transport Corporation”. It was founded to operate in
Punjab and Himachal Pradesh. On October 2, 1974 this corporation was merged with
Himachal Govt. and was renamed as Himachal Road Transport Corporation.
MHI- MSDE sign MoU to facilitate training in Engineering Trades
Ministry of Heavy Industries (MHI) and Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship
(MSDE) recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for creating a
collaborative ecosystem, which will imparting skill development training in capital goods
sector.
Key Points
Partnership between MHI and MSDE aims to facilitate training in several engineering
trades.
Training will be facilitated through Qualification Packs (QPs), that have been
developed by MHI related Sector Skill Councils (such as Infrastructure, Automotive,
Instrumentation and Capital Goods).
Such QPs have been developed under phase two of the “Scheme for Enhancement of
Competitiveness” in Capital Goods Sector.
Phase two of Scheme for Enhancement of Competitiveness
Under the phase two of initiative, a new component to promote skilling in Capital
Goods sector has been introduced, in order to cater futuristic industrial
requirements.
New component has been introduced through creation of Qualification Packs for
Level 6 and above.
Under this component, MHI is promoting skilling in Capital Goods sector by creating
QPs for skill levels 6 and above.
Funding support
Under this scheme, MHI will provide 100% funding support to MHI Sector Skill Councils
(SSCs), in order to develop new Industry Led National Skills Qualifications Framework
(NSQF) Level 6 and above QPs. MHI SSCs will also deploy developed QPs for up-skilling the
existing manpower in industries, after the development of QPs. This shall be done in
association with MSDE and NSDC. MHI will also provide linkage between Industry
associations and SSCs to impart skilling to over 70,000 individuals in three years.
National Health Claims Exchange
The National Health Authority (NHA) and IRDAI has decided to develop a National Health
Claims Exchange.
Key Facts
The National Health Claims Exchange will be developed as a digital platform, for
settling the health claims.
Chairman of IRDAI, Debasish Panda, has also proposed for creation of a working
group with representation from industry.
The working group will decide on how to attract more people to buy health
insurance, by making the largest segment of general insurance in India.
Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI)
IRDAI is a regulatory body, set up under the jurisdiction of Ministry of Finance. It helps in
regulating and licensing the insurance and re-insurance industries across country. It was
constituted in accordance with the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority Act,
1999. IRDAI headquartered in Hyderabad, Telangana. It was moved from Delhi to
Telangana in 2001.
Members of IRDAI
IRDAI is a 10-member body. It includes the chairman, 5 full-time and 4 part-time
members. All the members are appointed by government of India.
The National Health Authority (NHA)
National Health Authority implements India’s public health insurance or assurance
scheme called “Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana (AB-PMJAY)”. NHA
was set up for implementing PM-JAY at the national level. In the States, State Health
Agencies (SHAs) have been set up as a society or trust. SHAs have been given full
operational autonomy, for the implementation of this scheme. SHAs are free to extend
coverage of scheme to non SECC beneficiaries. NHA is the successor of National Health
Agency, which was formed on May 23, 2018.
Members of NHA
Governing Board chaired by the Union Minister for Health and Family Welfare, governs
the NHA. It is headed by a full-time Chief Executive Officer (CEO). The CEO of NHA works
as the Member Secretary of the Governing Board. Governing Board have 1 Chairperson
and 11 members. Ram Sevak Sharma is the current CEO of the NHA.
Delhi: New Assessment criteria for School students
On July 1, 2022, Government of Delhi introduced a “new assessment guidelines” for school
students.
About the new assessment guidelines
New guidelines have been introduced for government schools, government-aided &
recognised unaided schools in Delhi.
Under it, students will be assessed for impact of mindset curricula in their behaviour,
and other scholastic subjects.
Assessment criteria will act as a supplement to existing evaluation norms. These are
based on academic and co-curricular activity.
Amended assessment criteria will be implemented the current academic year.
Now onwards, students will be evaluated on their competencies, apart from their
knowledge of key courses.
What is the significance of new assessment criteria?
Incorporation of assessments of competencies learned through these curricula is being
done with the aim of emphasising the growth of social, ethical, cognitive abilities and
emotional capacities. These objectives are in line with the pedagogy and objectives of
mindset curriculum, that have been envisioned in the NEP 2020. The new assessment
standards will further motivate students in contributing the advancement in society. It will
further strengthen the critical thinking and analytical abilities among students. With new
criteria, students will get rid of the need for rote learning methods.
Competency-based learning
Competency-based learning is significant and it should be prioritised, in a bid to prepare
students for real-world challenges in the age driven by information and technology. It will
also help in maximising the innate potential of students.
Happiness and Deshbhakti Curricula
According to new assessment guidelines, students from 3-8 classes will be assessed
for Happiness and Deshbhakti curricula.
Students of Class 9 and Class 11 will be assessed for Entrepreneurship Mindset and
Deshbhakti Curricula. Students of Class 11 will have an additional criterion of
“Business Blasters” for assessment.
GI Tag: Mayurbhanj’s ‘Ant chutney’
In Odisha, scientists are fine-tuning their analysis for making presentation for
Geographical Indications (GI) registry of Kai Chutney.
Highlights
Dishes fabricated from weaver ants offer a treatment to many sicknesses for Odisha
tribes. They are identified to boost immune device and stay sicknesses at bay.
Though people ceaselessly stay away from purple weaver ants because their sting
inflicts sharp ache and reddish bumps. Despite this, weaver ants are standard in
Mayurbhanj district of Odisha. Some of the folks, commonly tribals, for the mouthwatering
meals. They make Kai Chutney from purple weaver ants.
About Kai Chutney
The Kai Chutney is wealthy in treasured proteins, zinc, calcium, iron, diet B-12, potassium,
magnesium, copper, sodium, fiber and 18 amino acids. It is considered healthy for
boosting the immune device and stay sicknesses’ at bay.
What will be the significance of GI tag for kai chutney?
The GI tag to kai chutney would lend hand in increasing a structured hygiene protocol for
its preparation for usual wider use. GI labels will improve the recognition and price of
native merchandise and native companies.
About Weaver ants
Weaver ants are scientifically called as Oecophylla smaragdina. They are abundantly
present in Mayurbhanj through the year. They assemble nests with leaves of host timber.
When required, leafy nests of ants are plucked and collected in a bucket of water. Later
they are sorted and separated from leaves and debris. Larval and adult stages ants are
preferred for eating raw or into “chutney form”.
Medicinal and bio-control use
The tribes of Mayurbhanj consume Kai soup or chutney to get rid of flu, whooping cough,
common cold, enhance vision and eyesight naturally, to increase appetite, stomach
diseases and to treat joints pain. They also prepare medicinal oil by dipping collected Kais
in pure mustard oil. After 30 days, this oil is used to cure rheumatism, gout or other skin
diseases as well as baby oil.
125th birth anniversary of Alluri Sitarama Raju
On July 4, 2022, Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveiled a 30-ft bronze statue of freedom
fighter Alluri Sitarama Raju.
Key Facts
The statue was unveiled to mark the 125th birth anniversary of Alluri Sitarama Raju.
It is a 15-tonne statue and was carved out at the cost of Rs 3 crore.
It has been installed by Kshatriya Seva Samiti in Municipal Park at ASR Nagar in
Bhimavaram.
Statue was installed as part of the Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav celebrations.
Who was Alluri Sitarama Raju?
Alluri Sitarama Raju was popularly known as ‘Manyam Veerdu’ (Hero of the Forest). He
also referred to by his surname Alluri. He was born at Pandrangi village of then
Visakhapatnam district, on July 4, 1897. Regular patriotic discourse during the freedom
struggle had highly influenced him. After the death of his father, his schooling got
disrupted. He went on a pilgrimage and toured the western, north, north-western, and
north-eastern India during his teens. The socio-economic conditions of India under the
British regime, especially in the tribal areas, moved him deeply.
Rampa Rebellion
During his tourney to almost entire India, he met revolutionaries in Chittagong (now in
Bangladesh). Following this, he decided to build a movement against the British. He
organised local Adivasis in forest areas of Visakhapatnam and East Godavari districts into
a potent force, for launching a frontal attack. Thus, ‘Rampa Rebellion’ or ‘Manyam
Uprising’ born, in the Rampachodavaram forest area of East Godavari district. This force
was using the traditional weapons of Adivasis’ like bows and arrows and spears. However,
he later realised that traditional weaponry was no match to heavily armed British forces.
Thus, he planned to snatch weapons of the British. in 1924, he got trapped and captured
by the British at Koyyuru village in Chintapalle forests. He was tied to a tree and executed
by a firing squad. His resting place lies in Krishnadevipeta village.
T. Raja Kumar of Singapore was recently appointed as the president of anti-money
laundering watchdog, Financial Action Task Force(FATF).
Highlights
Raja Kumar has replaced Marcus Pleyer.
He will discharge his service for next two years.
He will focus on:
1. Improving asset recovery
2. Enhancing the effectiveness of global anti-money laundering & counter-terrorist
financing measures.
He has been working against global terror financing since long time.
As soon as he took over the charge, he presented his objectives for Plenary period
July 2022 -June 2024, for strengthening the FATF.
Singapore Plenary Years
During the Singapore Plenary years, the anti-money laundering watchdog will
prioritise work in:
1. Strengthening Asset Recovery
2. Countering Illicit Finance of cyber-enabled crime
3. Reinforcing FATF Partnerships with FSRBs
4. Increasing Effectiveness of Global AML Measures
It will continue its core work of identifying and analysing terrorist financing methods
& trends, money laundering and developing & refining the FATF Standards.
It will also evaluate and support the assessments of countries within Global Network.
The Financial Action Task Force (FATF)
Financial Action Task Force is also known as Groupe d’action financière (GAFI) in French. It
is an intergovernmental organisation. It was founded in 1989, as an initiative of G7 for
developing policies to combat money laundering. In 2001, its mandate was expanded by
including terrorism financing.
Objectives of FATF
FATF works with the objectives of setting standards and promoting effective
implementation of legal, operational and regulatory measures to combat terrorist
financing, money laundering, and other related threats for the integrity of international
financial system. It works to generate necessary political will for bringing a national
legislative and regulatory reforms across these areas.
Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) in NAPS
According to Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship (MSDE), the National
Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme (NAPS) will now be a part of Direct Benefit Transfer
(DBT) scheme.
Key Facts
With the inclusion, the NAPS will provide direct government benefits to all
apprentices.
Earlier, companies used to pay entire amount to apprentices and then seek
reimbursement from the government.
With the launch of DBT scheme, government will transfer the contribution of
apprentices, directly to their bank accounts through National Skill Development
Corporation (NSDC).
Government will pay 25% of the stipend, which is payable up to Rs. 1500/- per month.
National Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme (NAPS)
The National Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme was launched on August 19, 2016 for
promoting apprenticeship training across India. Under the scheme, financial support is
also provided to establishments undertaking apprenticeship. It is aimed at motivating
employers to hire apprentices and aiding them in discovering right job roles, besides
maximising their potential through in-depth skill development. Over 12 lakh apprentices
have been engaged with several industries, as of now.
Significance of the scheme
The National Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme is helping India in becoming the ‘Skill
Capital of the World’, by introducing various apprenticeship reforms which aims to build a
skilled manpower.
National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC)
NSDC is a not-for-profit public limited company. It was incorporated on July 31, 2008. It
was set up by Ministry of Finance in a Public Private Partnership (PPP) model. Government
of India holds 49% share capital of NSDC, while private sector holds the balance 51% share
capital.
Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT)
DBT is an attempt for changing the mechanism of transferring subsidies. Under the
scheme, subsidies are directly transferred to people through their linked bank accounts.
UN World Drug Report 2022
The World Drugs Report 2022 was recently released by UN Office on Drugs and Crimes. As
per report, legalization of Cannabis has increased its daily use and related health impacts.
Key Finding of the report
The report highlights the expansion of synthetic drugs in new markets, increase in
manufacturing of cocaine, and the gaps in availability of drug treatments.
As per report; around 284 million people worldwide, in age group of 15-64, used
drugs in 2020. Drug uses witnessed an increase of 26 per cent as compared to last
decade.
Young people are using more drugs. Level of use if drugs among young people was
higher than with the previous generation.
In Africa and Latin America, majority of the people aged under 35 are being treated
for drug use disorders.
2 million people globally were injecting drugs. About half of this number suffered
with hepatitis C, 1.4 million with HIV, and 1.2 million with HIV & hepatitis C.
Importance of Galvanizing
World Drugs report emphasizes on the importance of galvanizing international
community, civil society, governments, and all stakeholders for undertaking the urgent
action to protect people. It emphasizes to protect people by tackling illicit drug supply and
strengthening drug use prevention & treatment.
Effects of cannabis legalization
Cannabis legalization in North America have increased its daily use. With the increasing
use, people are facing psychiatric disorders, suicides and hospitalizations. Legalization has
also increased tax revenues.
Growth in drug production and trafficking
Cocaine manufacturing has increased from 11 percent in 2019 to 1,982 tons in 2020.
Cocaine seizures also increased to 1,424 tons in 2020. About 90 per cent of cocaine seized
across the globe, in 2021, was trafficked in containers or by sea. Seizure data suggests
that, trafficking of cocaine is expanding to outside main markets of North America and
Europe. Opium production have increased by seven per cent worldwide, during 2020-2021.
This predominantly due to rise in production in Afghanistan.
On July 4, 2022, Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated the “Digital India Week 2022”.
The event was inaugurated in Gandhinagar, Gujarat.
Key Facts
On the occasion, PM highlighted the conditions of 8-10 years ago.
During the event, he praised the role of digital technology in changing people’s lives.
India has removed the long queues for services like birth certificate, ration,
admissions, bill payments, results and banks, by going online.
Government’s flagship programme Digital India has provided relief to the poor from
corruption.
The Digital India Week 2022 is being organised from July 4 to July 9, 2022.
About Digital India programme
Digital India programme was launched by government with a vision of transforming India
into a knowledge economy and digitally empowered society. In India, e-governance
initiatives took a broad dimension in mid-1990s for wider sectoral applications and
emphasised on citizen-centric services. Important ICT initiatives of government included
land record computerisation, railway computerization, focusing primarily on development
of information systems. Later, several states started individual e-governance projects with
the aim of providing electronic services to citizens.
e-Kranti: National e-Governance Plan 2.0
The National e-Governance Plan (NeGP) was started in 2006. Under the plan, there were
31 Mission Mode Projects, which covered the domains including land records, agriculture,
education, health, police, passports, courts, commercial taxes, municipalities, and
treasuries. 24 Mission Mode Projects have been implemented and has started delivering
envisaged services. Later, government approved “e-Kranti programme”, with the aim of
“Transforming e-Governance for Transforming Governance”. e-Kranti Programme was
approved after considering the loopholes in NeGP.
States’ Start-up Ranking 2021
The department for promotion of industry and internal trade (DPIIT) released third edition
of “States’ Start-up Ranking 2021”, on July 4, 2022.
Which states are best performers?
In terms of developing ‘start-up ecosystem for entrepreneurs’, Gujarat and
Karnataka emerged as the Best Performers among states including NCT of Delhi.
Meghalaya was ranked first among UTs and North-eastern (NE) states.
Gujarat has been recognised as the best performer for third consecutive year.
Kerala, Orissa, Maharashtra, and Telangana were Top Performers among states.
Jammu & Kashmir was ranked as Top Performer, among UTs and NE states.
Assam, Punjab, Tamil Nādu, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh were emerged as
winners in “Leaders’ category” among states.
Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Arunachal Pradesh and Goa emerged as winner in
“Leaders’ category” among UTs and NE states.
This year’s rankings were given on the basis of period from October 1, 2019-July 31,
2021.
Categorisation of the states and UTs
To provide ranking to states and UTs, they have been classified into 5 categories:
1. Best Performers
2. Top Performers
3. Leaders
4. Aspiring Leaders and
5. Emerging Start-up Ecosystems.
Global Start-up ecosystem
India has been ranked at third position, in global start-up ecosystem.
States’ Start-up Ranking Framework
States’ Start-up ranking Framework is an evolved evaluation tool. It was launched with the
aim of strengthening the support of States and UTs, in order to build their start-up
ecosystems holistically. The ranking exercise is conducted by Department for Promotion
of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT). It releases the final report on the basis of
performances of the states in India.
Lisbon Declaration- Highlights
On July 1, 2022, the Lisbon Declaration on ocean conservation was adopted by all the 198
members of United Nations.
Key Facts
On the last day of UN Ocean Conference 2022, member nations committed to follow
innovative and science-based actions on an urgent basis
They recognised that developing countries, specifically least developed countries and
small island developing states, need assistance with capacity building.
They also agreed to work on controlling, reducing and preventing, marine pollution.
Marine pollution includes- Nutrient pollution, Solid waste discharges, Hazardous
substances, Untreated wastewater, Emissions from maritime sector and
Anthropogenic underwater noise.
Financing Solutions
Other pledges that countries took include:
1. Developing and promoting innovative financing solutions, in order to create
sustainable ocean-based economies
2. Expanding nature-based solutions, for conserving and preserving coastal
communities.
Significance of the declaration
Adoption of the draft declaration, sends strong signal of urgently improving the health,
resilience and sustainable use of the ocean. In the final draft of the declaration, countries
regrated for their failure in achieving targets set for 2020. Thereafter, they renewed
commitment to take urgent action and cooperate at sub-regional, regional and global
levels to achieve all targets without undue delay.
Empowering women and girls
Countries also committed to empower women and girls, in order to recognise that; their
participation is crucial in achieving the Sustainable Development Goal 14 and building a
sustainable ocean-based economy.
Fifth session of Intergovernmental conference
The UN Ocean Conference 2022 has set stage for “fifth intergovernmental conference on
international legally binding instrument for conservation and sustainable use of marine
biological diversity” for areas beyond the national jurisdiction. The fifth round of
negotiations for implementing international treaty is scheduled to held from August
15-26, 2022 in New York. It is aimed at protecting biodiversity in Areas Beyond National
Jurisdiction. National Jurisdiction lie outside the exclusive economic zones of countries.
RPF: Operation “NARCOS”
The Railway Protection Force (RPF) recently recovered narcotics products of worth Rs. 7.40
Crore under its “Operation NARCOS”.
What is Operation NARCOS?
The RPF launched the operation NARCOS in the month of June 2022, for bringing
attention to menace of Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances.
It was a month-long pan India drive, launched against smuggling of narcotics
through rail.
RPF, in coordination with the Narcotics Control Bureau, intensified its checks in trains
and at identified black spots across the country. Other law Enforcement Agencies
were also a part of operation, in a bid to target drug peddlers involved in illegal trade
of Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substance.
About Railway Protection Force
The Railway Protection Force is an Armed Force of Union of India. It is a security force
under Indian Railways of Ministry of Railways. Its history dates back to 1882, when several
railway companies appointed their own guards, to protect railway property. It was
declared a statutory force in 1957 through an act of parliament and in 1985 it was declared
an Armed Force of the Union of India.
Initiatives undertaken by RPF
Over time, RFF has undertaken and launched several initiatives for the security of railways.
Some of the initiatives include:
1. Operation AAHT
Under Operation AAHT, special teams are deployed on all long-distance routes or trains.
The team focuses on rescuing victims, especially women and children, from traffickers.
2. Operation Yatri Surakhsha
Under “Operation Yatri Surakhsha”, RPF supports state police to fight against passenger
crime.
3. Meri Saheli Initiative
Meri Saheli Initiative was launched to focus on safety of women passengers. It was
launched in 2020, as a pilot project in South Eastern Railway. Later, it was extended to all
zones.
4. Operation Nanhe Farishte
Operation Nanhe Farishte was launched to save children who are abandoned and found
alone at railway stations. Till date, 1,045 children have been saved.
Varroa Destructor or Mite
Australian authorities have exterminated honeybees in recent weeks, for preventing a
potentially devastating parasitic plague, that is affecting the southeast region Australia.
Key facts
The recent outbreak of the deadly varroa mite has become massive threat to honey
industry of Australia.
It was first spotted at a port near Sydney in June 2022.
Honeybee colonies have been put under lockdown, to limit the outbreak.
About Varroa mite
The Varroa mite, also called Varroa destructor, is a parasitic insect. It attacks and feeds on
honeybees. It is reddish-brown in colour. It is known to kill entire colonies of honeybees.
The insect travel from bee to bee and through beekeeping equipment, like extracted
combs. Mite can feed and live on adult honey bees. But it mainly feed and reproduce on
larvae and pupae in developing brood. This results in to malformation & weakening of
honey bees and transmission of numerous viruses.
Why mite is spreading?
The mite is spreading largely due to sharp decline in number of honey bee colonies across
the world. It has plundered bee colonies worldwide.
Symptoms of spread of mite
As the mite population increases in bee colonies over time, it led to crippled bees, lower
rate of return to colony and impaired flight performance, after foraging and reduced
lifespan.
Outbreak of Varroa destructor in Australia
The Varroa destructor was first detected near the Port of Newcastle in June 2022. Since
then, the insects have spread to more than 400 different sites. More than six million bees
have been destroyed. Since then, similar outbreaks have been identified in at least 9
locations. Varroa mites do not feed on native bees in Australia, but several non-native
species have been affected. Honey industry in country primarily dependent on these nonCurrentnative bees.
Background
Australian government has successfully eradicated similar incursions of mite in 2016, 2019
and 2020.
Anthrax outbreak in Kerala
Health Minister of Kerala, Veena George, recently confirmed the outbreak of Anthrax in
Athirappilly of Thrissur district, after finding several carcasses of wild boar.
Key Points
Anthrax is a serious infectious disease, which is caused by spore-forming bacteria.
It has usually been found in southern states of India. It is less frequently found in
northern states.
The disease has been reported in Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Jammu & Kashmir,
Assam, Orissa and Karnataka.
About Anthrax
Anthrax is also called as woolsorter’s disease or malignant pustule. It is a rare but serious
disease, caused due to rod-shaped bacteria called Bacillus anthracis. These bacteria occur
naturally in soil. As per WHO, Anthrax is a disease of herbivores, affecting wild as well as
domestic animals. It is a zoonotic disease; thus, it is transmissible from animals to
humans. There are some cases of person-to-person transmission. However, it is a rare
phenomenon.
Anthrax infection in animals
Wild and domestic animals can get infected, when they ingest spores in or breathe in
contaminated soil, water or plants. Infected animal shed the bacteria on ground, which
sporulates after getting exposed to air. These spores can persist in soil for decades and
wait till it is taken up by another host. The bacteria subsequently germinates and multiply,
causing to its spread. Herbivorous animals can get infected through contaminated soil
and feed. On the other hand, omnivorous & carnivorous animals get the disease through
contaminated bones, meat, and other feeds
Anthrax infection in humans
Humans get infected with Anthrax disease directly or indirectly from animals or animal
products. They get infected when spores enter the body, through eating contaminated
food, drinking contaminated water, breathing, or through scrapes or cuts in the skin. After
entering the body, spores get activated and start multiplying & spreading in body.
symptoms of Anthrax
Sudden death of one or two animals within the herd of livestock species such as cattle,
sheep or goats is the first sign. They might show signs of high fever. In wildlife animals,
sudden death accompanied by bloody discharge f(rom mouth, nose), bloating, and
absence of clotting of blood are common symptoms.
Forest (Conservation) Rules, 2022
The MoEFCC recently notified Forest (conservation) Rules 2022, under Forest
(conservation) Act, 1980.
About Forest (conservation) Rules 2022
Provisions of Forest (conservation) Rules 2022 include:
1. An advisory committee, a screening committee at State or UT and a regional
empowered committee will be constituted for monitoring purposes.
2. Integrated Regional Office will be set up to examine all the linear projects (Highways
and roads) on land up to 40 hectares and those projects using forest land up to 0.7
canopy density.
3. These rules provide for a fixed time for reviewing each project quickly.
4. States are going to be responsible for settling forest rights of forest dwellers, under
the Forest Rights Act, 2006. They will also allow diversion of forest land.
5. Compensatory afforestation (CA) will now be allowed in other states. If state has
more than two-thirds area under green cover or more than one-third area under
forest cover, then CA would be allowed to be taken in other states/UTs where this
cover is below 20%
Changes rules on penalty
MoEFCC has proposed for removing imprisonment as a penalty for less severe
contraventions. Imprisonment has been replaced with monetary penalty. However,
serious violations of Environment Protection Act (EPA), leading to grievous injury or loss of
life, will be covered under provision of Indian Penal Code.
EPA provisions
It will be in force for penal provisions of single use plastic ban. Under the current
provisions of EPA, violator can be punished with imprisonment up to five years or fine up
to Rs 1,00,000 or both. Environmental Protection Fund will be created to remit the
penalty amount.
About Environmental Protection Act, 1986
It was enacted under Article 253 of the Constitution, and came into force in 1986. The Act
provides for a framework to study, plan, and implement long-term requirements of
environmental safety. It also lay down a system of adequate and speedy response for the
situations threatening the environment.
CoVarScan rapid COVID-19 test
Researchers have developed a rapid Covid-19 test, called “CoVarScan rapid Covid-19 test”.
This test will help in identifying different variants of SARS-CoV-2 in some hours.
CoVarScan rapid Covid-19 test
The CoVarScan test detects the signatures of eight hotspots on SARS-CoV-2 virus.
It was tested on over 4,000 patients’ samples.
This test is as accurate as other methods, available for diagnosing Covid.
It can successfully differentiate between all the variants of SARS-CoV-2.
This test can be used to determine what variants are in community and if any new
variant is emerging, quickly.
Sensitivity of CoVarScan
The CoVarScan Test has sensitivity of 96% and specificity of 99%, as compared to wholeCurrent
genome sequencing.
Which variants can be identified?
The CoVarScan test can identify and differentiate Delta, Lambda, Mu,
and Omicron variants of Covid-19. It can also detect BA.2 version of Omicron. The BA.2
version was once known as “stealth Omicron” as it did not show up on some tests
designed for detecting Omicron strain.
How is this test different from existing tests?
Other tests for Covid-19 generally either detect a fragment of SARS-CoV-2 genetic material
or small molecules which are found on virus’ surface. They don’t provide information on
identify of the variant. They aren’t accurate in detecting some coronavirus variants or they
could miss future strains.
How were variants identified earlier?
Earlier, scientists used “whole-genome sequencing” method, for determining the variant
of Covid-19. This is time-consuming, expensive and rely on sophisticated equipment.
World Unidentified flying objects (UFO) Day
The World Unidentified Flying Objects (UFO) day is observed on July 2, besides June 24,
worldwide to raise awareness among people on planet earth to gather together and
watch skies for UFOs.
Key Points
Main goal of July 2 celebration is to create awareness of “undoubted existence of
UFOs”. The day also seeks to encourage governments to declassify files on UFO
sightings.
If there have been encounters with Extra-terrestrial beings (ETs), hen concerned
countries are encouraged to share information with whole world.
Confusion over dates
Some people celebrate the World UFO Day on June 24 while others on July 2. June 24
marks the day when reporter Kenneth Arnold wrote about UFO. It is considered to be first
widely reported UFO in United States. July 2 marks the 1947 UFO crash in Roswell. On July
2, the balloon debris from Roswell incident were recovered from a ranch near Corona,
New Mexico. On July 8, 1947, Roswell Army Air Field issued a press release on recovering
of a flying disc.
Background
World UFO Day Organisation (WUFODO) declared July 2 as the official World UFO Day.
First World UFO Day
The first World UFO Day was celebrated by UFP researcher Haktan Akdogan in 2001.
Objective of the day
This day is celebrated with the aim of spreading awareness regarding the existence of
intelligent beings and UFOs from outer space. Also, observing this day encourages
governments worldwide to share their knowledge about UFO sightings with the public.
The Hurun India Future Unicorn Index 2022 was released by Hurun Research Institute
recently. As per index, India will have 122 new unicorns in next two to four years.
Key Facts
As per report, Startups, Zepto, Shiprocket, Turtlemint are at the top list of probable
unicorns.
Classification of companies
Hurun India index has classified companies as:
1. Would-be unicorns– Those companies founded after 2000 and valued at least USD 1
billion
2. Gazelles– Those companies, which are likely to become unicorns in following two
years. Gazelles are expected to be worth between USD 500 million and USD 1 billion.
Gazelles pack is led by Shiprocket, which is a five-year-old Logistics Tech start-up.
Shiprocket is followed by Zepto, Turtlemint, Ather Energy and Vivriti Capital. Other
five start-ups in the list include Ninjacart, Rapido, Dunzo, ClearTax, Rapido, and Twin
Health.
3. Cheetahs– Those start-ups that could turn into unicorn in next four years. Cheetahs
pack is led by Pepperfry. It is followed by Juspay and Mswipe Technologies. Pixis,
SUGAR cosmetics, ZestMoney, WayCool, Cuemath, Bluestone, Winzo are other
startups on the list.
State’s Ranking
According to Hurun India’s findings, Bengaluru continues to be start-up capital of
India. It is home to 46 probable Unicorns.
Bengaluru is followed by Delhi NCR with 25 probable unicorns.
Mumbai is at third place, with 16 probable unicorns.
What is a Unicorn company?
A unicorn is a privately held start-up company, with value of more than USD 1 billion. This
term was first published in 2013. It was coined by venture capitalist Aileen Lee. Mythical
animal “Unicorn” was chosen to represent statistical rarity of successful ventures.
Disinvestment of Neelachal Ispat Nigam Limited
On July 4, 2022, strategic disinvestment transaction of Neelachal Ispat Nigam Ltd (NINL)
was completed.
The disinvestment transaction was completed by transferring 93.71 per cent stake of
joint venture partners to Tata Steel Long Products Limited (TSLPL).
Joint Venture partners of NINL had inked share purchase agreement (SPA) with
TSLPL on March 10, 2022. It won the bid for acquisition of 93.71 per cent equity stake
in NINL. It offered a price of Rs 12,100 crore.
This payment has been utilised according to SPA for settlement of dues of
employees, secured financial creditors & sellers and operational creditors, and for
equity of selling shareholders.
In the disinvestment process, two Odisha government PSUs like OMC and IPICOL
respectively got Rs 1,246 crore and Rs 452 crore.
Conditions defined in the SPA
Strategic partners of NINL and six selling shareholders worked for satisfying a set of
conditions that have been defined in the SPA. It includes certification of operational
creditor’s dues, sellers operational & financial dues and employees dues. These conditions
have been met mutually.
Neelachal Ispat Nigam Ltd (NINL)
NINL is a company promoted by Industrial Promotion and Investment Corporation of
Orissa limited (IPICOL), MMTC Ltd, and other government agencies. NINL has its own
captive power plant, for meeting the internal power requirement. It is exporting
substantial quantity of power and is having its own captive iron ore mines. The company
has turned out into India’s largest exporter of saleable pig iron since 2004–2005. LAM coke
and Pig iron produced by NINL has established its acceptance in domestic and
international markets.
Tata Steel Long Products (TSLP) ltd
It is involved in manufacturing high-alloy, value-added steel for diverse industrial use such
as automotive, general engineering, railways, construction & infrastructure, and
agriculture segments.
About Pig iron
Pig iron is commonly called as crude iron. It is an intermediate product of iron industry,
while producing steel. Steel is obtained by smelting iron ore in blast furnace. Carbon
content is very high in Pig iron, typically 3.8–4.7%. Other constituents include silica &
constituents of dross. It is very brittle and not used directly as a material. Its applications
are limited.
Large Hadron Collider (LHC)
On July 5, 2022, the Large Hadron Collider (LHC), world’s most powerful particle collider,
started smashing protons into each other, at levels of energy that did not exist before.
Key Facts
Now, scientists will record and analyse the data. It is likely to throw up evidence of
physics beyond the Standard Model of Particle Physics.
It will explain, how the basic building blocks of matter interact, and governed by four
fundamental forces.
About Large Hadron Collider (LHC)
LHC is a giant & complex machine, that have been built to study about particles,
which are smallest building blocks of things.
It is a 27-km-long track-loop, that has been installed 100 metres below the ground on
Swiss-French border.
In operational state, LHC fires two proton beams inside a superconducting
electromagnets ring, at the speed of light in opposite directions.
Superconducting electromagnets create magnetic field, which in turn keeps the
protons in a tight beam. It guides protons along the way, when they travel through
beam pipes and finally collide.
Before the collision of protons, another type of magnet is used to squeeze proton
particles together, in a bid to increase the chances of collisions.
Why Large Hadron Collider needs to be kept cool?
The powerful electromagnets of LHC carry current equal to bolt of lightning. Thus, they
needs to be kept chilled. LHC uses a liquid helium distribution system, in order to keep the
components of machine ultracold even at minus 271.3 degrees Celsius.
Background
During the first run of LHC, CERN scientists had announced the discovery of Higgs boson
or the God Particle on July 4, 2012. This discovery concluded the long-time search for
‘force-carrying’ subatomic particle. Run 1 of the machine had collision of 20 times. Second
run started in 2015 and carried till 2018.
Uttar Pradesh Mango Mahotsav-2022
Uttar Pradesh Mango Mahotsav-2022 is being held in lucknow, from July 4 to July 7. during
the event, a “Mega cluster of Mangoes” was also inaugurated.
Key Facts
Union Government gave its approval for the Mega cluster of Mangoes and will spend
Rs 100 crore in next five year on it.
Mangoes from the Mega Mango Cluster will be tagged as “Kakori Brand”.
This was announced while inaugurating “Uttar Pradesh Mango Mahotsav-2022” in
Lucknow.
Why will mangoes be called as “Kakori brand”?
Mangoes of the cluster will be tagged as ‘Kakori brand’, in a tribute to heroes of Kakori
incident. This is being done as part of ‘Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav’.
Uttar Pradesh Mango Mahotsav 2022
Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath inaugurated the Uttar Pradesh Mango Mahotsav 2022 on
July 4. It will be organised will July 7. Event will showcase 700 varieties of mangoes and
their by-products. All the products have been taken from districts of UP, Madhya Pradesh,
and Uttarakhand and Madhya Pradesh.
Objectives of Mango Festival
The festival is being organised with the objective of increasing mango production as well
as farmers’ income. This objective will be fulfilled by brining different stakeholders on a
single platform. During the festival, farmers will be briefed on marketing strategies.
Host of the event
Uttar Pradesh Mango Festival is being organised by department of horticulture and food
processing.
Mango Production in India
Mango production across the world have been heavily affected due to constantly
changing weather patterns. Around 20.4 million tonnes of mango production, accounting
for 65% of global mango production, is from India. Among Indian states, Uttar Pradesh is
responsible for 4.5 million tonnes of mango production, accounting for 22% of India’s total
mango production. 13 districts in Uttar Pradesh are having mango belts.
RBI: New guidelines for payment activities
The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) issued new guidelines for payment activities in India.
Guidelines were issued under Section 10 (2) & Section 18 of “Payment and Settlement
Systems Act of 2007”.
What are the new directives?
Non-bank payment system operators (PSOs) will need to take approval of the central
bank before the takeover or acquisition of control, which may or may not change the
management.
PSOs would also need to take approval from central bank, before the sale or transfer
of payment activity to any entity, which is not authorised to undertake such payment
activity.
After this, RBI will review the operations of non-bank PSOs, that are authorised to
operate any payment system.
Information to be provided to RBI
The non-bank PSOs are mandated to inform the RBI within 15 days in following
circumstances:
1. Change in directors or management: In case of acquisition or takeover, non-bank
or transfer PSO are mandated to submit an application to the central bank with
information about the proposed directors and complete details about the new
shareholders.
2. Transfer or Sale of payment activity to an entity, that have been authorised to
undertake similar activity. In this case, seller or transferor non-bank PSO are
mandated to apply to the central bank, in a bid to obtaining prior approval and
minimum appropriate details.
Response from RBI
RBI will respond to applications within 45 days after receiving complete details from both
the entities. This timeline is not applicable to overseas principal under the Money Transfer
Service Scheme. These changes can come into effect after a public notice of some 15 days,
following RBI’s approval.
Payment System Operators (PSOs)
PSOs are institutions, which have been authorized to operate payment system. They
outsource their payment and settlement-related activities for several other entities.
CBSE ‘Pariksha Sangam’ Portal
On July 3, 2022, the Central Board of Secondary Education launched the “Pariksha Sangam
Portal”.
About “Pariksha Sangam Portal”
Pariksha Sangam Portal has been launched rationalize the sample papers, board
examination results, and other details on one window.
This portal will integrate examination-related processes, that will be conducted by
regional offices of schools and Headquarters of the CBSE Board.
This portal will help students in checking the results of Class 10th and Class 12th
board, easily.
It is a one-stop portal for all the activities related to CBSE Board exam.
Three sections of the portal
The Pariksha Sangam portal has been categorized into three main sections:
1. Schools (Ganga)
2. Regional offices (Yamuna), and
3. Head office (Saraswati)
About Schools (Ganga) section
Under the Ganga section, students and other stakeholders can access exam reference
material, information regarding pre-exam & exam activities, post-exam activities, school
DigiLocker, communication, as well as an integrated payment system (IPS).
About Regional offices (Yamuna) section
Under Yamuna section, students can get information regarding RO Dashboards for
Command, E-Sandesh, Control, Historical Repository of Schools and Integrated Payment
Monitoring for Term One & Data Management.
About Head office (Saraswati) section
Under the Saraswati section, students can find information related to Exam Reference
Material, Exam Conduct MIS, Pre-Exam Dates or MIS, Post Exam Data, CMTM, Centralized
LOC Correction etc.
Significance of the portal
The portal will rationalize all the activities related to CBSE 10th and 12th class Board Result
2022. It will streamline latest CBSE news, CBSE circular, sample paper, study material,
question bank, model paper and school results. It will also integrate all other portals of
CBSE such as e-message, board circulars, OASIS, IPS payment system and so on.
India-Australia Critical Minerals Investment Partnership
According to Union Minister for coal & mines (Pralhad Joshi), under “India-Australia
Critical Minerals Investment Partnership”, both the countries will explore investment
opportunities in cobalt and lithium mineral assets.
India and Australia have strengthened cooperation on critical minerals development
projects and supply chains.
India-Australia Critical Minerals Investment Partnership will run for three years.
Both the countries inked an MoU between Khanij Bidesh India Ltd, and Critical
Minerals Facilitation Office (CMFO) of Australia.
What this MoU talks about?
This MoU is aimed at ensuring reliable supplies of Critical and Strategic Minerals to
India.
It includes due diligence in lithium and cobalt mineral assets.
The due diligence process will be funded by CMFO and Indian JV KABIL. Initially, USD
6 million will be funded.
After the identification & completion of due diligence and potential projects, both
sides will explore investment opportunities through different methods in the MoU.
Australian Commitment to the Investment Partnership
Australia will provide USD 5.8 million to the India-Australia Critical Minerals Investment
Partnership. Both the countries are natural partners on critical minerals. They share a
common goal of lowering carbon emissions and increasing the use of renewable energy.
Australia supplies resources and energy to India. Australia has the resources like lithium,
& Cobalt, thorough which it can help India in completing its target of lower emissions.
These resources from Australia would also help India in meeting its increasing demand for
critical minerals in space and defence industries. It would be useful in manufacturing solar
panels, electrical vehicles and batteries.
About critical minerals
Critical minerals are considered as the building blocks of essential modern-day
technologies. They are at the risk of supply chain disruptions.
Application of critical minerals
Critical minerals are used for making mobile phones, batteries, computers, electric
vehicles, and green technologies such as wind turbines & solar panels.
India-Australia Relations
India and Australia share a comprehensive strategic partnership, as they were under
British control. Diplomatic relations are also well established. Both the countries are
member of Commonwealth of Nations. Military ties between both include the joint naval
exercise AUSINDEX, which is held every two years.
State Ranking Index for NFSA
State Ranking Index for National Food Security Act (NFSA) 2022 was released by Central
government recently. In the index, Odisha has emerged as number one state in India.
Odisha’s Ranking
Odisha was ranked first, for bringing resilient food systems in state, in a bid to
optimise the delivery of benefits.
This announcement was made by Union Food Minister Piyush Goyal during a Food &
Nutrition Security Conference of Food ministers.
Odisha received an index score of 0.836.
Ranking of other States
Uttar Pradesh has been ranked second, with index score of 0.797.
Andhra Pradesh has been third, with score of 0.794.
Assessment Framework for Ranking
The assessment framework to rank States and Union Territories was prepared on three
important pillars. These pillars enfold end-to-end implementation of National Food
Security Act (NFSA) via Targeted Public Distribution System (TPDS). The three pillars
include:
1. Coverage, targeting and provisions of the Act
2. Delivery platform and
3. Nutrition initiatives.
Pillar-based ranking of states
In the first pillar (coverage, targeting and provisions of the Act) Odisha has been
ranked at fourth place, with a score of 0.870.
Odisha is ranked behind Jharkhand, UP, Dadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman Diu.
In “Delivery Platform” pillar, Odisha got fourth place, with a score of 0.790. It has
been ranked behind Bihar, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.
Ranking of Special Category States/UTs
Tripura has topped among Special Category States/UTs.
It is followed by Himachal Pradesh and Sikkim.
Conference of Food Ministers on Food & Nutrition Security
The Conference of Food Ministers on Food & Nutrition Security was held on July 5, 2022.
On this day in 2013, National Food Security Act (NFSA) came into existence. Conference
was organised to celebrate the day. During the conference, discussions were held on food
security, nutritional security, crip diversification, best practices & reforms in Public
Distribution System and storage sector.
2022 Fields Medal Winners
On July 5, 2022, the International Mathematical Union (IMU) announced the winners of the
2022 Fields Medals.
Key Facts
It is the highest honour given in the field of mathematics and is awarded to people
aged below 40.
Winners were announced at an award ceremony in Helsinki.
Who are the winners?
IMU announced four winners in total.
Number theorist Maryna Viazovska, from Ukraine, is one of the four winners.
Other winners include:
1. James Maynard: He is a number theorist from Oxford University UK. is famous for
his findings on “spacing of prime numbers”.
2. June Huh: He is specialist in combinatorics from Princeton University, New Jersey. He
transformed the field of geometric combinatorics.
3. Hugo Duminil-Copin- He is a mathematician from France, and is an expert of
probability theory.
Who is Maryna Viazovska?
Maryna Viazovska is a number theorist.
She is grounded at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne (EPFL).
She has become the second woman ever to won this award.
Maryna is famous for her solution on sphere packing problem in eight dimensions.
In such problems, one got to find arrangement of spheres which can fill the largest
portion of a volume.
In three-dimensional arrangement, spheres can be efficiently packed in pyramidical
structure. But in four or more dimensions, less information is available.
She further revealed new techniques for problem of number theory and theory of
symmetries in eight dimensions.
theorist at Princeton University in New Jersey.
Who is Hugo Duminil-Copin?
Duminil-Copin is known for finding several fundamental results on a mathematical model
that reveals about loss of magnetization in iron at a certain temperature.
International Congress of Mathematicians (ICM)
The International Congress of Mathematicians is held every four years. During this event,
the Fields Medals prizes are announced. 2022 congress was scheduled to start in St.
Petersburg in Russia on July 6. However, it was cancelled due to Russian invasion of
Ukraine. It was later scheduled to be held in Helsinki in virtual mode.
World Zoonoses Day 2022
World Zoonoses Day is celebrated on July 6, across the world annually.
Why is World Zoonoses Day is celebrated?
The World Zoonoses Day is celebrated to spread awareness on infectious diseases,
which are collectively called as zoonotic diseases.
It is celebrated in the honour of Louis Pasteur. He was a French biologist. He
administered the first Rabies Vaccine to Joseph Meister on July 6, 1885.
What are Zoonotic Diseases?
Zoonotic diseases originate among animals and infect humans as well. Infections occur via
contact of bodily fluid or bites of the infected animal. Such diseases can be transmitted
from animals to humans naturally and vice versa. It is also called as zoonosis. The disease
is caused due to fungi, virus, bacteria, parasites or prions. Some of the common zoonotic
diseases include Rabies, Ebola, Swine flu, Zika & Ebola viruses, plague, dengue,
chikungunya, Japanese encephalitis and Covid-19. Such diseases are endemic to tropical
regions.
What are the symptoms of Zoonoses?
Symptoms of zoonoses include fever, headache, muscle & joint pain, fatigue and
diarrhoea.
How can Zoonoses be treated?
Viral zoonoses is not that easy to treat. Some of the available treatments include
vaccination, post-exposure sanitisation of wound, serum globulin, antiviral drugs, and
supportive therapy. One can also rely on herbal medicines and dietary polyphenols.
Bacterial zoonoses is treated by consuming antibiotics like aminoglycosides,
fluoroquinolones, macrolides and beta-lactams.
What are the challenges associated with Zoonosis?
Drug resistance is an emerging challenge associated with the Zoonoses. Bacteria become
drug resistance due to improper and repeated use of antibiotics. This could make
zoonosis untreatable in the future.
Italy Marmolada Glacier Collapse
On July 3, 2022 Marmolada Glacier in northern part of Italian Alps collapsed resulting into
killing of seven people.
Highlights
It led to the missing of 14 people, while 26 people got stuck in an avalanche.
Marmolada is the highest peak in the Dolomites range.
Glacier collapse incident is a natural disaster. It can be the direct result of climate
change.
The Marmolada Glacier
Marmolada Glacier is situated on Marmolada Mountain in Trentino district of Italy. This
Glacier a Dolomites section of the Alps. This glacier helped the Australian and Italian
forces during the World War I. Front line among Austrian and Italian forces ran on the
Marmolada Glacier. Austrian soldiers had constructed quarters in glacier tunnels. Thus,
they formed an “ice city” there. Museo della Grande Guerra Museum, associated with the
World War I is located in the valley below Marmolada Glacier.
About Marmolada Mountain
Marmolada Mountain is located in north-eastern Italy. It is regarded as the highest
mountain of the Dolomites. The mountain is located between Trentino and Veneto
borders.
The Dolomites
The Dolomites are also named as Dolomitic Alps or Dolomite Alps or Dolomite Mountains.
These mountains are located in north-eastern Italy. They are a part of Southern Limestone
Alps. It extends from Adige River in the west to Piave Valley in east. The Dolomites were
categorized as “UNESCO World Heritage Sites”, in August 2009.
The Alps
The Alps Mountain range is located in completely in Europe. They are the highest system
of Europe. It spreads across 8 Alpine countries viz., “France, Switzerland, Monaco, Italy,
Liechtenstein, Austria, Germany, and Slovenia” (West to East direction).
Global Liveability Index 2022
The Global Liveability Index 2022 was published by the “Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU),
recently.
The Global Liveability index ranks cities across the globe for their “liveability
quotient”, on the basis of certain criteria.
In the latest index, top 10 world’s most liveable city list is dominated by Western
European countries.
Indian cities have performed poorly this year.
Cities Ranking
Vienna has topped the ranking.
It is followed by Copenhagen, at second position.
Among the least 10 liveable cities, Tehran, Karachi, Dhaka and Lagos have been
listed.
Indian cities
Bengaluru have been ranked at 146th position. It is the least liveable city in India.
Delhi has been placed at 140th
Mumbai has been placed at 141st
For the first time, Chennai, Bengaluru and Ahmedabad have been included to the list.
Chennai is at 142nd and Ahmedabad is at 143rd
Before this year’s index, only Delhi and Mumbai got featured among 173 cities that
are ranked in the index.
Indian cities have got the ideal score of 100.
How are cities ranked?
Cities across the world are ranked on various scales. On this scale, stability, culture and
environment have been given highest weightage of 25 per cent each. Healthcare and
infrastructure are having the weightage of 20 per cent, whereas education having 10 per
cent weightage.
Ease of Living Index
In May 2022, Indian Government had published the “Ease of Living Index”. In this index,
Bengaluru was ranked as the most liveable city among 111 cities. Pune, Ahmedabad,
Chennai and Surat followed Bengaluru in the index. In “million-plus population category”,
49 cities were listed. Out of which, Delhi was ranked at13th place while and Srinagar at the
bottom.
The Global Liveability Index
The Economist Intelligence Unit published “Global Liveability Index” annually. In the
index, 172 global cities are listed for the urban quality of life based on stability, healthcare,
culture, education, environment, and infrastructure.
ARYABHAT-1: Prototype of Analog chipset
IISc researchers recently developed a prototype of an analog chipset called
“ARYABHAT-1”.
Highlights
The team has created a design framework to develop next-generation
analog computing chipsets.
These chipsets may operate faster. It will use less power as compared to digital
processors used in different electronic gadgets.
It has been designed by Pratik Kumar, who is a Ph.D. student at IISc.
About ARYABHAT-1
ARYABHAT-1stands for “Analog Reconfigurable Technology and Bias-scalable
Hardware for AI Tasks”.
Such chipsets can be beneficial for applications based on Artificial Intelligence(AI)
such as object or speech recognising apps including Alexa. It can also be beneficial
for applications requiring very efficient parallel computations.
Digital chips are used in many electronic devices, especially those require computers
because design process is scalable and straightforward.
Benefits of Analog Computing
Analog computing is potentially active to perform as compared to digital computing in
applications which do not call for accurate computations. Analog computing is more
energy-efficient.
Challenges of making analog chips
Multiple technological challenges are associated with building analog chips:
1. Testing and co-designing the Analog processor is challenging, as compared to that of
digital chips. Large-scale digital processors can be developed quickly by compiling
high-level code.
2. Analog chips are difficult to scale as well. They are specially tailored while shifting to
new applications or next generation of technology.
3. It would not be easy to trade-off power and area for the purpose of speed and
accuracy. Though, accuracy can be improved by incorporating additional elements
on same chip, like logic units.
Applications of ARYABHAT
According to researchers, ARYABHAT is capable to be configured with several machine
learning architectures. For instance, with the digital CPUs. It has the potential to function
reliably on different temperature range.
New nominations to Rajya Sabha
On July 6, 2022, four new nominations were made to the Rajya Sabha.
Who have been nominated?
The four nominations include:
1. Ilaiyaraaja, who is the Music maestro from Tamil Nadu.
2. P T Usha, who is a sports icon from Kerala.
3. V Vijayendra Prasad, who is an acclaimed screenwriter from Karnataka.
4. Veerendra Heggade, who is the philanthropist and spiritual leader.
These nominated members have received multiple national and global recognition. They
have an illustrious career. Furthermore, it sends political message as well. All the
nominations were made from south India, indicating that, southern states are main focus
of government for next phase of growth.
Why new nominations were made?
New nominations were made, after the resignation of RCP Singh of JD(U) and Mukhtar
Abbas Naqvi of BJP from Union Cabinet. The terms of both are scheduled to end from
Rajya Sabha on July 8.
About Ilaiyaraaja
Career of Ilaiyaraaja traversed for over five decades. He has composed songs in many
Indian languages and has won numerous awards. He has won “national award” for five
times. He received Padma Bhushan in 2010 and Padma Vibhushan in 2018.
About P T Usha
P T Usha is popular as “Payyoli Express”. She has won 11 medals in Asian Games. In Seoul
Games of 1986, she won four gold. She opened “Usha School of Athletics”, following her
retirement. She has been training over 100 national and international-level athletes.
About V Vijayendra Prasad
He is a famous screenwriter from Telugu Cinema. Popular filmmaker SS Rajamouli is his
son. The screenwriter has worked in Tamil, Kannada and Hindi films. He wrote “Bajrangi
Bhaijaan” in Hindi and the “Baahubali Series”.
About Veerendra Heggade
Since the age of 20, Veerendra Heggade has been positioned as “Dharmadhikari” in
Dharmasthala Temple. He opened the “Rural Development and Self-Employment Training
Institute”, to raise awareness among rural youth about self-employment opportunities.
Nominated Members of Rajya Sabha
In Rajya Sabha, there are a total of 245 members. Out of them, President of India
nominates 12 members, on the recommendation of the Government. Nominations are
made in accordance with Article 80(3) of the Constitution. Nominated member can join a
political party, within six months of taking the nominated seat.
World Kiswahili Language Day
The World Kiswahili Language Day is observed across the world on July 7, annually.
Background
The day is observed following a declaration led by UNESCO member states.
This year marks the 1st observance of this day.
Resolution 71/328 deals with the adoption of “World Kiswahili Language Day”. It was
adopted during 41st session of UNESCO on November 23, 2021.
This general conference proclaimed to celebrate July 7 as World Kiswahili Day,
annually.
Theme of the day
The first World Kiswahili Language Day is being observed worldwide under the theme
‘Kiswahili for peace and prosperity’.
What is the objective of this annual observance?
The World Kiswahili Language Day is being observed with the objective of promoting the
use of Kiswahili language as a tool to promote peace, and enhanced multiculturalism.
How is the day being celebrated?
The World Kiswahili Language Day will include:
1. An official ceremony
2. Symposium on the theme
3. A cultural evening- during the event, rich Kiswahili culture will be showcases. It will
engage stakeholders including Government entities, private sector, International
Organizations, Non-Profit Organizations and academia. Stakeholders will recognise
the international relevance of Kiswahili language.
About Kiswahili language
Kiswahili language is widely spoken in Africa and sub-Saharan Africa. It is the only African
language, to become the official language of African Union. It is also the first African
language that United Nations has recognized in this manner.
Hariyali Mahotsav 2022
Hariyali Mahotsav is set to be organised on July 8, 2022. Event will be held by “Ministry of
Environment, Forest & Climate Change” at Talkatora Stadium, in New Delhi.
Key Facts
Hariyali Mahotsav will be organised under “Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav”.
It will be organised with the objective of raising awareness on significance of trees in
sustaining the life of present generations as well as in secure the life of forthcoming
generations.
Trees are significant for tacking the unfavourable effects of climate change.
About Hariyali Mahotsav
Hariyali Mahotsav is an effective tool of imprinting enthusiasm among masses for
conserving forests and planting trees.
The event complements the initiatives and policies led by government for
environmental conservation.
It is celebrated across India, to recognise the important role played by Forest or
Greenery in bringing the ecological balance and providing several ecosystem
services to the Earth.
Who is organising Hariyali Mahotsav 2022?
Hariyali Mahotsav 2020 will be organized by Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate
Change in association with the State Governments, Police and Schools in Delhi to conduct
plantation drives marking the occasions. To mark the event plantation drives will be held
across India. In the plantation drive, 75 police stations, 75 Nagar Vans across India, 75
Schools in Delhi/NCR and 75 degraded plantation sites across India will get involved, in the
honour of 75 years of Indian Independence.
Varanasi Declaration on Higher Education
On July 7, 2022 Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the “Akhil Bharatiya Shiksha
Samaham” in Varanasi. He will also announce development projects worth Rs 1,774 crore
on the occasion.
Akhil Bharatiya Shiksha Samaham
The Akhil Bharatiya Shiksha Samaham will be held by Union Ministry of Education.
It will be held at international cooperation and convention centre called “Rudraksh”.
The conclave will conclude on July 9, 2022.
During the 3-day conclave, “Varanasi Declaration on Higher Education” will be
adopted.
Conclave is being held as part of capacity building of over 300 academic, institutional
and administrative leaders from nationally important institutes and universities from
across the country.
Panel discussions for higher education
During PM’s visit to Varanasi, Panel will hold discussions on nine themes that have been
identified for higher education as a part of the National Education Policy 2020. The nine
themes include:
1. Multidisciplinary and holistic education
2. Skill development and employability
3. Research, innovation and entrepreneurship
4. Capacity building of teachers for quality education
5. Quality, ranking and accreditation
6. Digital empowerment and online education
7. Equitable and inclusive education
8. Indian knowledge system
9. Internationalisation of higher education.
Exhibition on Initiatives under NEP 2020
On the visit, an exhibition on initiatives launched to implement NEP 2020, is likely to be
held. An exhibition on “technical books in regional languages” will also be held.
Other projects to be inaugurated by PM
Prime minister Modi is likely to lay the foundation stone for 13 projects worth Rs 1,220
crore. He will also inaugurate 30 development projects worth Rs 553.76 crore. All the
projects will be set in motion, at Sampurnanand Sports Stadium in Sigra. These projects
are related to Varanasi Smart City, roads, bridges, sewage and water supply, sports, police,
police and fire safety. Projects related to tourism like development of Sarnath Buddhist
Circuit under World-Bank funded UP pro-poor-tourism development project, will also be
inaugurated.
Akshay Patra Mid-Day Meal kitchen
The Akshay Patra mid-day meal kitchen will also be set into motion by Prime Minister. It
will be opened at LT College. This kitchen has the capacity to cook midday meals for over
100,000 students.
Just Stop Oil climate activists
A group of climate activists, based in United Kingdom, Just Stop Oil has made headlines in
last few months. They are in new for disruptions caused by them, which are created to
catch attention towards their cause.
Highlights
On July 5, just stop oil group stick themselves to the frame of the Last Supper of
Leonardo da Vinci, at the Royal Academy in London.
Country has been witnessing several similar instances at art venues, in past ten days.
What is Just Stop Oil group?
“Just Stop Oil Group” was launched in 2022. It is “a coalition of groups which are working
together to ensure that government make commitment to stop licensing and production
of new fossil fuel. Organisers from climate groups Extinction Rebellion and Insulate Britain
are leading this group. Funding for group activities come via donations. They work on the
principle of “Non-Violent Direct Action”. Non-violent civil resistance is a way followed by
them to “demand their rights, freedom and justice”. Strikes, mass protests, boycotts, and
disruption are the tactics followed by them to withdraw their cooperation from the state.
Protests led by the group
Several protests have been organised by them this year, so that government could
listen them.
It includes a red-carpet arrival at the BAFTAS (The British Academy Film Awards) in
March 2022. They were wearing T-shirts with taglines like ‘Just Stop Oil’ and ‘Just
Look Up’. They chanted and banged drums at BAFTAS.
Apart from that, they tried to tie themselves with goalposts at the Premier League
matches.
Members have been making appeals at art institutions, by sticking themselves to
famous artworks across the country.
Demands of the group
The ‘Just Stop Oil group’ seeks the government to “stop all future licensing and consents
with immediate effect, which government provide for the exploration, development and
production of fossil fuels in country”.
Google Start-up School India initiative
On July 6, 2022 the Start-up School India initiative was launched by Google.
About Google Start-up School India Initiative
The Start-up School India Initiative was set into motion, with the aim of collecting
relevant information on start-up, and building it into a systematic curriculum.
This move will extend help to 10,000 start-ups in Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities.
This programme will be held in virtual mode, for nine-weeks.
It will include fireside chats between Google collaborators and leaders from the
start-up ecosystem.
Topics covered under the initiative
The Google Start-up School India initiative will cover topics including fintech,
language, job search, social media & networking, business-to-consumer e-commerce
and business-to-business e-commerce.
Effective product strategy, designing apps for users in Indian Markets, product user
value, and user acquisition will also be covered in the instructional modules are other
topics to be discussed in the instructional modules of curriculum.
Aim of the initiative
The Start-up School India initiative caters to the early-stage founders with a minimum
viable product. It aims to provide flexibility of virtual curriculum. The initiative further
provides attendees with pick and choose modules. It will provide entrepreneurs the
chances to learn from talk like formalisation of recruitment and what makes a successful
founder.
What is the need of start-up schools?
India is the third largest startup ecosystem worldwide. Even though the number of startups
is huge, 90% of startups got failed in first five years of operation. Start-ups failed due
to no control on financial burn, inefficient feedback loops, absence of leadership, and
improper demand projections. Thus, Start-up School India initiative was designed to align
efforts in order to expand the start-ups.
Former CEO of Government’s think tank NITI Aayog, Amitabh Kant, has been selected as
the India’s new Sherpa for the G-20.
Key Facts
He will replace Piyush Goyal as G-20 Sherpa. He was appointed as G-20 Sherpa in
September 2021.
Amitabh Kant has been appointed, as India is scheduled to assume the G-20
presidency in 2022,
India will take over G20 presidency during December 1, 2022 to November 30, 2023.
Background
In the context of India’s term of G-20 presidency, there was a need for full-time Sherpa.
Reason being this, Amitabh Kant has replaced Piyush Goyal. Other Sherpas for G-20
include Shaktikanta Das, Suresh Prabhu and Montek Singh Ahluwalia.
About Amitabh Kant
Extended term of Amitabh Kant as NITI Aayog CEO was completed in June 2022. He
heading this position for about six years. He is a retired 1980-batch IAS officer from Kerala
cadre. He assumed charges as NITI Aayog CEO in 2016. He has also been the chairman of
Empowered Group-3, which is one among the 11 groups set up by central government for
controlling the spread of Covid-19 pandemic.
Role of Indian Sherpa
In line with India’s presidency to G20, the Sherpa is likely to provide lot of time to several
meetings, which are scheduled to be held in different parts of India.
About G-20
The G-20 forum connects the world’s developed and developing economies together. It
accounts for two-third of global population, 75% of international trade and 85% of the
global GDP. Thus, it is an influential platform for international economic cooperation.
India’s Presidency at G20
While holding the G-20 presidency, India will prepare agenda for the year. It will identify
focus areas & themes, work on outcome documents and conduct discussions. The G-20
Leaders’ Summit is also scheduled to be held in India in 2023, for the first time.
Division of G-20 process
The G-20 process has been categorized into Sherpa track and Finance track. Under the
Sherpa track, around 100 official meetings will be held in the areas related to health,
employment, trade, digital economy, energy, investment & industry, agriculture,
environment & climate, anti-corruption, culture, tourism, education, socio-economic
development, and women empowerment. On the other hand, under Finance track, 40
meetings will be held in areas of international financial architecture, financing for
infrastructure, financial inclusion & sustainable finance, tax matters and climate finance.
Akasa Air gets DGCA’s Air License
The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) gave the “Air Operator Certificate” to
Akasa Air on July 7, 2022.
Key Points
Akasa is a start-up carrier, that has been promoted by ace stock market investor
Rakesh Jhunjhunwala.
It will start giving services in July end.
Akasa Air recently took the delivery of its first Boeing 737 max aircraft on June 21,
2022 in India.
The start-up carrier had ordered 72 ‘737 Max’ aircraft from Boeing in November
2021.
It includes two variants from 737 MAX family, viz., 737-8 and 737-8-200.
Significance of the operator certificate
Receiving the “Air Operator Certificate” is an important milestone. This certificate has
enabled the carrier to open their flights for sale. It has also led to start of commercial
operations.
First crew uniform
The Akasa airline also unveiled the first look of its crew uniform. The uniform focuses to
provide best possible stretch, in order to ensure comfort of the crew over busy flight
schedules. Akasa has become the first Indian airline to introduce the custom trousers and
jackets. Fabric of the cloth has been made by using recycled polyester fabric. Recycled
polyester fabric has been made using pet bottle plastic recovered from marine waste.
Akasa will also provide comfortable sneakers for in-flight crew, considering the aesthetics,
ergonomics, and comfort.
Brand logo
Brand logo for the company was unveiled in December 2021. Logo has been inspired by
element of the sky.
About Akasa Air
Akasa is an Indian low-cost, brand of SNV Aviation Private Limited airline. It is
headquartered in Mumbai, Maharashtra. Vinay Dube is the CEO of Akasa Air. By the end of
2022, he aims to launch 18 aircraft and further aims to add 12-14 aircraft every year.
Chhattisgarh Electric vehicle policy
On July 7, 2022, Government of Chhattisgarh approved its “Electric Vehicle (EV) Policy
2022”.
Highlights
EV policy 2022 was approved with the objective of making Chhattisgarh an EVmanufacturing
hub, reducing environment degradation and creating employment.
Policy was approved during by Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel at the cabinet
meeting.
About EV policy 2022
Chhattisgarh government has made a target to increase registration for electric
vehicles in five years, in a manner that it accounts for 15 per cent of new
registrations of individual or commercial vehicles.
Manufacturers of EV; who are involved in manufacturing EVs, EV battery,
components of EVs, & charging infrastructure; will be given exemptions under the
policy.
Policy has made the establishment of charging infrastructure mandatory in housing
policy. Thus, it will be mandatory to install charging points in residential and
commercial complexes. Charging stations will also be established in government
buildings and private ones.
It ensures training in EVs skills as well as encourages manufacturing related to EV
technology. It also asks the existing automobile manufacturers to expand in EV
manufacturing.
Capital subsidies will be provided to companies involved in manufacturing of EVs, its
components and EV batteries.
Remuneration policy
Chhattisgarh government has further announced to remunerate the state goods and
services tax (SGST) and registration fees by 100%. Remuneration will be provided on the
sale of electric buses and electric goods carriages during the five-year period. SGST
remuneration policy will also be applicable for manufacturing EVs in Chhattisgarh during
this period.
Shinzo Abe: Former Japan PM Assassinated
Former Prime Minister of Japan Shinzo Abe was snuffed on July 8, 2022, while he was
campaigning for the upcoming elections in Japan.
He was assassination in Nara city, in western Japan.
An ex-military man shot him twice with a homemade gun.
The 67-year-old leader got wounds on right side of the neck and left clavicle.
He showed no vital signs when he was rushed to the hospital.
His funeral is likely to held on July 12, after elections.
India is observing national mourning on July 9.
Who was Shinzo Abe?
Shinzo Abe was a Japanese politician. He served as Japanese prime minister and President
of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) during 2006-2007, followed by second tenure during
2012-2020. He was the longest-serving Japanese prime minister in history. He also served
as Chief Cabinet Secretary during 2005-2006 when Junichiro Koizumi was Prime Minister.
In 2012, he was leader of the opposition.
Shinzo Abe was born into a political family. In 1993 election, he was elected to the House
of Representatives. He was confirmed to become the prime minister through a special
session of National Diet. He became the youngest post-war prime minister of Japan. He
was the first prime minister after World War II.
Resignation as prime minister
Shinzo Abe resigned as prime minister, for the second time, in August 2020 due to
resurgence of ulcerative colitis. He formally offered his resignation on September 16 and
Yoshihide Suga became his successor.
Shinzo Abe’s Assassination
Abe was assassinated on July 8, 2022 in Nara City. He was shot dead by a former member
of Japan Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF). He used a homemade firearm, that was
similar to double-barreled shotgun. Former PM was delivering a campaign speech, in
support of fellow LDP party member Kei Sato. Since 1936, he was the 1st former Japanese
Prime Minister to be snuffed.
Cloudburst at Amarnath shrine
On July 8, 2022, a cloudburst near Amarnath shrine in Jammu and Kashmir took life of 15
people and over 40 are missing. Following the cloudburst, Amarnath yatra has been
suspended till further advisory.
Cloudburst has destroyed the community kitchens and tents near the shrine. It was
reported at around 5:30 pm.
Security forces disaster management agencies started the rescue operation
immediately.
Cloudburst is the reason that has been attributed as a cause of death of at
However, according to India Meteorological Department (IMD), sudden rainfall was
not a cloudburst.
IMD Advisory
A special weather advisory is released every year by IMD, for the Yatra. On July 8, daily
forecast for this area was on “yellow alert”, meaning “keep watch”. Even the evening
forecast stated “partly cloudy sky with chances of light rain” for all the routes towards
Amarnath Shrine. No accompanying warning was issued. According to automatic weather
station (AWS) data at the Amarnath cave, no rainfall was reported from 8:30 am to 4:30
pm. Between 4:30 to 5:30 pm, 3 mm rainfall was reported, which increased to 28 mm
between 5:30 pm-6:30 pm.
What is cloudburst?
According to criterion of IMD, if there is a rainfall of 100 mm in one hour, then it is called
as cloudburst.
Was it a flash flood?
As per eyewitness and viral videos, stream between two mountains located at 200-300
metres away, resulted into heavy rainfall. It happened due to rainfall behind the Amarnath
cave. It was a localised cloud over the cave, but not a flash flood. It might be the result of
severe rainfall at a higher altitude than Amarnath cave.
Amarnath Temple
This shrine is located in Jammu and Kashmir, at an altitude of 3,888 m. It is located at a
distance of 141 kms from Srinagar. It is an important part of Hinduism. Amarnath cave is
located near Lidder Valley. It is surrounded by glaciers, snowy mountains, which remains
covered with snow most of the year. Yearly pilgrimage varied between 20 and 60 days.
10th World Peace Forum 2022
Tenth edition of the World Peace Forum 2022 is being organised by Tsinghua University, in
Beijing.
BRICS Cooperation: Opportunities and Challenges
As a part of the World Peace Forum, panel discussion on BRICS Cooperation:
Opportunities and Challenges” was held. India’s Ambassador to China, Pradeep Kumar
Rawat attended the panel discussion. On the occasion, he highlighted that BRICS
countries can greatly contribute to the world, together. According to him, India takes part
in different international events because, India has the potential to make a greater
contribution by actively cooperating with different countries.
Challenges faced by BRICS Countries
BRICS countries faces several challenges including,
1. Uneven economic and social development
2. Poverty
3. Lack of access to education.
Opportunities for BRICS Countries
India takes part in other international organizations like ASEAN. It is a founding member
of ASEAN summit. It was a part in establishment of the Shanghai Cooperation
Organization (SCO). The country has also established mechanisms to slowdown the
process of global climate change. BRICS grouping is a unique international organization. It
accounts for 41% of the world’s population, 25% of world’s GDP and 16% of international
trade. If BRICS countries can work for boosting their GDP and provide a better health care
& education to in line with Sustainable Development Goals, then BRICS countries can
make huge contribution in global prosperity and health.
New Development Bank
Another important contribution by BRICS countries is creation of “New Development
Bank”. India actively supports the development in countries like Uruguay and Bangladesh,
through the development bank.
10th World Peace Forum
It was started in Beijing on July 3, 2022. Over 300 former senior officials, scholars and
diplomatic envoys are taking part in online or offline mode. It is being organised under
the theme “Preserving International Stability: Commonality, Comprehensiveness and
Cooperation,”. The tenth edition of the forum comprises of topics including preservation
of world peace, United Nations, European security order, and world order.
Sikkim- West Bengal Reciprocal Transport Agreement
Sikkim and West Bengal recently agreed for a new Reciprocal Transport Agreement (2022),
highlighting the problems with previous 2007 agreement.
2007 agreement had provided permits for only Gangtok, Pelling & Namchi districts in
Sikkim and Kalimpong, Siliguri & Darjeeling districts in West Bengal. This was
problematic for transporters of both the states.
In the 2007 agreement for goods carriages, different quotas were fixed for
Darjeeling, Jalpaiguri and All Bengal Permit.
Sikkim transporters were also required to get two counter signature permits from
Darjeeling and Jalpaiguri districts.
As a result, transport associations of Sikkim demanded to merge all the quotas and
to issue permits from a single point of State Transport Authority office in Siliguri.
New Reciprocal Transport Agreement (2022)
Demands of the transporters, from West Bengal and Sikkim, have been fulfilled after
15 years.
The new agreement will include ‘All Bengal’ and ‘All Sikkim’ permit.
“All Bengal Permit” and “All Sikkim Permit” will be issued under 2022 agreement.
Though, it does not include restricted and protected areas.
Local tour operators of both the states will help in local sightseeing.
As per new agreement, Counter Signature Permits will be given from a single point
of State Transport Authority in Siliguri. Thus, transporters are not required to go to
Darjeeling and Jalpaiguri separately.
Corridor facility for Sikkim-based commercial vehicles
Commercial vehicles running between Gangtok and Jorethang in South Sikkim crosses a
part of the route in West Bengal. Vehicles running between Rangpo and Melli faces
difficulties in case they don’t have counter signature permits. Thus, under new
agreement, government of West Bengal has agreed to provide a “corridor facility” for
Sikkim-based vehicles without Counter Signature Permits”, running between Rangpo and
Melli in West Bengal.
New discoveries and new records of fauna and flora
In year 2021, India added on 540 species to its faunal database. Thus, total number of
animal species now stands at 1,03,258. 315 taxa were also added on the Indian flora in
2021, taking the number of floral taxa to 55,048.
Out of 540 faunal species, number of newly discovered species were 406 and 134
were new records to India.
In 2021, 13 new genera were also discovered.
Among the new species, 1 species is from mammal, 19 from pisces and 35 reptiles.
315 taxa of flora includes 298 species as well as 17 intraspecific taxa which are new
for Indian flora. Out of total, 204 taxa are new for science and 125 are new
distributional records from the country.
Newly discovered Mammal
Crocidura narcondamica is the newly discovered species of mammal. It is a white-toothed
shrew. It was discovered from Narcondam Island of Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
Newly discovered Reptile
Boiga whitakeri is the newly discovered species of reptiles in 2021. It is also called as
Whitaker’s cat snake. It was discovered from Western Ghats in Tamil Nadu.
Hymenoptera Group
The greatest number of new discoveries belonged to faunal group Hymenoptera. It is an
order of insects, which includes wasps, sawflies, ants and bees. In this group, a total of 80
species were discovered. One new genus was also discovered.
Contributions of scientists
According to Director of Zoological Survey of India (ZSI), Dhriti Banerjee, ZSI scientists
have contributed 68% of animal discoveries in 2021.
India’s contribution to World’s species
With the number of faunal species at 1.03 lakh, India accounts for 6.1% of faunal diversity
worldwide.
Zoological Survey of India (ZSI)
ZSI was established on July 1, 1916 by Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate
Change. It was established as a premier organisation in zoological research & studies for
the promotion of survey, exploration and research of fauna in India.
Mission Kushal Karmi
Mission Kushal Karmi was launched by Deputy Chief Minister of Delhi, Manish Sisodia, on
July 6, 2022.
What is Mission Kushal Karmi?
Mission Kushal Karmi was launched to improve the skills of construction workers.
This mission was launched by Delhi government, in association with the Delhi
Building & Other Construction Workers Welfare Board and Delhi Skill &
Entrepreneurship University (DSEU).
Under this programme, workers will undergo a 15 days special training programme,
which will help them in upskilling.
With the upskilling, this programme will help the workers in increasing their incomes
in future.
It will also benefit the construction companies, as they would be able to hire skilled
workers.
Training will be provided to workers at the place of work by university.
How many workers will be trained?
Under this programme, Delhi government has set the target to train 2 lakh workers every
year. During the training period, government will also compensate for the wage loss.
Government will provide all the construction workers an amount of Rs 4,200 each.
Training by Delhi Skill & Entrepreneurship University
Currently, the university has been running training centres across 3 places. Government
has planned to and more centres in near future. At all the centres, workers will be
provided with excellent training areas.
Objective of the programme
Mission Kushal Karmi programme has been started with the objective of providing on-thejob
skill development training to around 2 lakh registered construction workers in a year.
Workers will be trained for industry demand-driven job roles in construction sector.
Training would be provided for 15 days or 120 hours at their workplaces.
Significance of the Mission Kushal Karmi
Under the programme, productivity of the workers will be enhanced by 40%. It will
enhance product quality by 25 % while reducing the material wastage by 50%.
Programme will enhance the domain skills and soft skills of workers. This will make
them more confident and proficient.
Programme will help in enhancing the worker’s understanding of standard safety
norms. Thus, their work longevity social security will increase.
Gita Gopinath in ‘Wall of former chief economists’
Gita Gopinath recently got featured on “wall of former chief economists” of the
International Monetary Fund (IMF). She is the first woman and second Indian to get this
honour.
The first Indian to get featured on “wall of former chief economists” was Raghuram
Rajan. He served as the Chief Economist and Director of Research of IMF during
2003-2006.
Gita Gopinath was hired as IMF Chief Economist in October 2018. In December 2021,
she got promoted to become IMF’s First Deputy Managing Director.
Miss Gopinath had served as first female chief economist of IMF for three years.
Before her appointment as IMF Chief Economist, she was working as John Zwaanstra
Professor of International Studies and Economics at Harvard University’s economics
department.
She joined Harvard in 2005. Prior to this, she was working as an assistant professor
of economics at Booth School of Business in University of Chicago.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF)
IMF is headquartered in Washington, D.C., as an international financial institution. It
comprises of 190 countries. It was established in 1944 but formally started working on
December 27, 1945 at the Bretton Woods Conference. Initially, there were 29 member
countries. It came into existence with the objective of reconstructing international
monetary system.
MD and Chairwoman of IMF
Chief Economist from Bulgaria, Kristalina Georgieva, is the current managing director
(MD) and Chairwoman of the IMF. She is holding this position since October 1, 2019.
Economist Gita Gopinath got appointed as “First Deputy Managing Director” on January
21, 2022. Miss Gopinath also served as Chief Economist, who got replaced by Pierre-
Olivier Gourinchas on January 24, 2022.
What is Derecho Storm System?
On July 5, 2022, ‘Derecho Storm System’ hit the states of Minnesota, Nebraska, and Illinois
in the United States.
As the Derecho Storm System reached these state, speed of winds reached to around
140 km per hour.
Winds knocked down the power lines as well as trees.
The storm turned the skies into green, which was never witnessed.
About derecho
As per National Weather Service of United States, derecho is a widespread, long-lived,
straight-line windstorm. It is related to the ‘band of fast-moving showers or
thunderstorms”. Its name has been derived from Spanish word ‘la derecha’ meaning
‘straight’ in English. Straight-line storms can be defined as the thunderstorm winds
having no rotation.
Warm-Weather phenomenon
Derecho is a warm-weather phenomenon. It generally occurs during summertime starting
May. Mostly hit in June or July. It is a rare phenomenon, as opposed to other storm
systems like tornadoes or hurricanes.
Which storm is classified as derecho?
A storm having wind gusts of at least 93 km per hour, is classified as derecho. In such
cases, damage area of winds reaches to over 400 km. Gap between two successive wind
damage events should not be greater than 3 hours.
Why did recent derecho in US turned skies green?
Skies are tuned green when light interacts with huge amount of water hold by them,
during severe thunderstorms.
Types of derechos
Derechos are classified into three categories, namely progressive, serial and hybrid:
1. Progressive derecho– It is a summer phenomenon and it related to short line
thunderstorms that travel for hundreds of miles, across a relatively narrow path.
2. Serial derecho– It commonly occurs during spring or fall. It has a wide & long squall
line, which sweeps over large area.
3. Hybrid derecho– It has the features of progressive as well as serial derechos.
Areas of dominance
Derecho mostly commonly occur in central and eastern parts of United States. Derechos
have also been reported in countries like Russia, Germany, Finland, Bulgaria and Poland.
