Press Information Bureau (PIB) IAS UPSC – 1st to 7th March, 2020

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GS-2

Steps taken by the Government for the rehabilitation of Kashmiri migrants

(Topic: Functions and responsibilities of the Union and the States, issues and challenges pertaining to the federal structure)

It has been the endeavour of the Government of India to ensure the safe return of Kashmiri migrants by providing various rehabilitation facilities and to create an environment conducive for their return to the Valley.

Under the Prime Minister’s Development Package, 2015 (PMDP- 2015):

  1. Creation of 3,000 State Government jobs for the Kashmiri migrants at an outlay of Rs. 1,080 crores.    
  2. Construction of 6,000 transit accommodations at an outlay of Rs. 920 crores for accommodating 3000 Kashmiri migrants employed under PMRP- 2008 and for 3000 additional migrants under PMDP-2015. 849 flats are available for accommodation and 560 flats are under construction.

In addition to the above, the Government of India reimburses monthly cash relief to the eligible Kashmiri migrants settled in Jammu.  Since the year 2014, the monthly cash relief has been enhanced twice i.e. from Rs. 6600/- per family to Rs. 10,000/- per family in 2015 and to Rs. 13,000/- per family in 2018.  In addition, dry ration is also provided to these Kashmiri migrants.

In case of Kashmiri migrants settled in Delhi, the Government of India reimburses the expenditure incurred by the Government of NCT of Delhi (GNCTD) on the monthly cash relief of Rs.3250/- per person out of which the share of GNCTD is Rs. 1000/- per person.

Schemes for the welfare and upliftment of every section of the society

(Topic: Government policies for vulnerable sections of the society)

The Government is implementing various schemes for the welfare and upliftment of every section of the society including minorities especially economically weaker & downtrodden sections all over the country. The Ministry in particular implements programmes/schemes for the six (6) centrally notified minority communities namely, Buddhists, Christians, Jains, Muslims, Parsis and Sikhs as under:- 

Ministry of Culture – Updates

  1. Sahitya Akademi, an autonomous organization under Ministry of Culture, encourages the preservation and promotion of languages, especially the unrecognized and tribal languages.
  2. Nomination dossiers of ‘Dholavira: A Harappan City’ and ‘Monuments and Forts of Deccan Sultanate’ have been submitted for inclusion in the World Heritage List for the year 2020

(Read up on: Group of Monuments at Mandu + Bhedaghat (Narmada Valley))

      3. Scheme of Scholarship and Fellowship for Promotion of Art and Culture

(i) ‘Award of Scholarships to Young Artists in Different Cultural Fields’: Up to 400 scholarships (in a Batch Year) are awarded to persons of outstanding promise in the age group of 18-25 years. An amount of Rs. 5,000/- p.m. is given for 2 years for advanced training within India.

(ii) ‘Award of Senior/Junior Fellowships to Outstanding Persons in the Fields of Culture’: Up to 400 Senior/Junior Fellowships (in a Batch Year) are awarded to outstanding persons in the age group above 40 years (Sr.) and 25 to 40 years (Jr.) respectively. An amount of 20,000/-p.m. and Rs. 10,000/- p.m. is given to Senior/Junior Fellows respectively for 2 years for cultural research.

(iii) ‘Tagore National Fellowship for Cultural Research: Up to 25 Scholarships and 15 Fellowships (in a Batch Year) are awarded to outstanding personsin order to invigorate and revitalise the various institutions under the Ministry of Culture (MoC) and other identified cultural institutions in the country, by encouraging scholars/ academicians to affiliate themselves with these institutions to work on projects of mutual interest. An honorarium of Rs. 80,000/- p.m. plus contingencies and Rs. 50,000/-p.m.plus contingencies is given to Fellows and Scholars respectively for 2 years.

      4. Octave:  To promote and propagate the rich cultural heritage of North East region comprising of eight States namely Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Sikkim, Nagaland,  Manipur and Tripura to the rest of India.

      5. Government has taken various measures to promote Sanskrit language

  1. Providing financial assistance to Adarsh Sanskrit Mahavidyalayas / Shodha Sansthans.
  2. Award of merit scholarships to students of Sanskrit Pathasala to College level.
  3. Financial assistance to NGOs / Higher Educational Institutions of Sanskrit for various Research Projects / Programmes.
  4. Retired eminent Sanskrit scholars are engaged under the Shastra Chudamani scheme for teaching. 
  5. Sanskrit is also taught through Non-formal Sanskrit Education (NFSE) programme, by setting up Non-Formal Sanskrit learning centres, in reputed institutions like Indian Institutes Technology, Ayurveda institutions, Modern Colleges and Universities.
  6. Presidential awards for Sanskrit Language are awarded annually to 16 senior scholars and to 5 young scholars.
  7. Financial Assistance for Publication, Reprint of rare Sanskrit books.
  8. Ashtaadashi containing eighteen Projects for sustaining the growth of Sanskrit has been implemented.
  9. Development of Sanskrit Dictionary to school students.
  10. Development of E-content in Sanskrit language for online professional development programme for teachers at secondary stage.
  11. 21-day refresher course for Sanskrit teachers of Andaman and Nicobar Islands at Upper primary stage.
  12. Development of Sanskrit workbook “Abhyasavan Bhava” at Secondary stage.
  13. Development of various e-contents for teachers and students
  14. Ongoing project: Development of compendium of ancient Indian education thoughts in Sanskrit.

Cabinet approves 

MoU between India and Côte d’lvoire for cooperation in the field of Health

Foreign Direct Investment policy on Civil Aviation: The proposed changes in FDI Policy will enable foreign investment by NRIs into M/s Air India Ltd. up to 100%, under automatic route. Above amendment to the FDI Policy are meant to liberalise and simplify the FDI policy to provide ease of doing business in the country.  Leading to largest FDI inflows and thereby contributing to growth of investment, income and employment.

Companies (Second Amendment) Bill, 2019: The Bill would remove criminality under the Act in case of defaults which can be determined objectively and which, otherwise, lack the element of fraud or do not involve larger public interest.  This would also lead to further de-clogging of the criminal justice system in the country. The Bill would also further ease of living for law abiding corporates.

Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs Signs MoU with Amazon for E-Marketing of Products Made by Self Help Groups across the Country

(Topic: Government policies for vulnerable sections of the society)

Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana – National Urban Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NULM) under Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs today signed MoU with Amazon for e marketing of products made by Self Help Groups (SHGs) across the country in urban areas.  

With an underlying narrative of women empowerment, the collaboration aims to provide access to wider customer base for products made by SHGs and strengthening the mission of creating sustainable livelihoods in urban areas. The Government of India is focused on building sustainable public-private partnerships that positively impact every section of society. This collaboration will be instrumental in unleashing the innate entrepreneurial potential of urban women.

About DAY-NULM

A Flagship programme of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs to reduce poverty and vulnerability of the urban poor households by enabling them to access gainful self-employment and skilled wage employment opportunities, resulting in an appreciable improvement in their livelihoods on a sustainable basis, through building strong grassroots level institutions of the poor.

GS-3

Black carbon from agricultural burning & forest fire may influence melting of Gangotri Glacier

(Topic: Environment and Climate change)

Black carbon concentration in the region increases by 400 times during summer, according to a study. The study suggests agricultural burning and forest fire as the reason behind this seasonal increase. This can trigger glacial melt because of the light-absorbing nature of black carbon.

Study: By Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology, (WIHG), an autonomous institution under Department of Science & Technology

Glacier in discussion: Conducted at Chirbasa station near Gangotri Glacier

The seasonal cycle of increase was significantly influenced by the emissions resulting from agriculture burning (in western part of the country), forest fires (along the Himalayan slopes) in summer, and to some extent by the contribution from long-range transport of pollutants in winter, depending the prevailing meteorological conditions.

The Equivalent Black Carbon (EBC) aerosols contribute significantly towards global warming due to its light-absorbing nature. Their presence in the eco-sensitive zone, such as the Himalayan glacier valleys, is a matter of serious concern and needs to be meticulously monitored. However, baseline data on BC is rarely available from most of the glaciated Himalayan region.

Biomethanation of rice straw to solve stubble burning

(Topic: Environment and Climate change)

Flow Diverter Stents Technology for the treatment of Aneurysms of brain

(Topic: New Technology – Medicine)

Flow diverters stents when deployed in the artery in the brain bearing the aneurysms, divert blood flow away from the aneurysm, thus reducing the chances of its rupture from the pressure of blood flow.

Intracranial aneurysm is a localized ballooning, bulging or dilation of arteries in the brain caused by progressive weakening of the inner muscles of the wall of the blood vessels.

Spontaneous rupture of the aneurysm can result in bleeding into the space around the brain resulting condition called a subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH). Subarachnoid hemorrhage can lead to paralysis, coma or death.

The Surgical treatment of an aneurysm involves opening the skull and a clip on the neck of aneurysm, so that it is cut off from the path of blood flow.

The Chitra flow diverter is designed to have better grip on the walls of arteries of complex shapes in order to reduce the risk of migration of the device. The unique design is in its weave also makes this stent resistant to kinking or twisting, when it is placed in tortuous arteries and those with complex shapes. Even a 180 degrees bend does not occlude the lumen of the stent. Portion of the wires is made radio opaque for better visibility in X –Rays and fluoroscopy thus aiding accurate delivery of the diverter in the blood vessel.

Nitinol, a super elastic alloy with shape memory was acquired from National Aero Space Laboratories, Bengaluru (CSIR-NAL). When the device is deployed at the site, it is released from its crimped locked position and assumes the desired and originally designed shape because of the shape memory property of Nitinol. The flow diverter is delivered to the aneurysm in the brain using a delivery system. The delivery system has also been developed by the team

‘GenomeIndia: Cataloguing the Genetic Variation in Indians’ project

(Topic: New Technology – Medicine)

Sanctioned by: Department of Biotechnology (DBT)

Purpose: To do it for total 10,000 individuals representing the country’s diverse population in 3 years. 

The data security and sharing measures for this project will be governed by the rules and regulations formulated by Government of India. The personal information of all individuals consenting to participate in the study is stripped off from any further records in this project. This process of de-identification ensures that the personal information of the participants is not compromised. Additionally, ethical measures are strictly adhered to in order to maintain data security and protection.

Development of new explosive detection device

(Topic: New Technology – Security)

Developed by: DRDO & IISc Bangalore

Device: RaIDer-X

The need: Detection of explosives is a compelling need of the hour. Security agencies are continuously monitoring vulnerable targets with the help of intelligence agencies to thwart the attempts of anti-social elements. 

New and Innovative Measures by the Ministry of Defence

(Topic: Defence and security)

To improve work culture, bring more transparency and accountability and also enhance result orientation which are as under:-

  1. Measures for promoting Probity, Public Accountability and Transparency in defence capital procurements:

    2. Measures undertaken by Services to improve work culture, transparency:

     3. Installation of biometric attendance system

     4. Implementation of IT to monitor workflow, pendency of cases and achievements of results

     5. Performance Management System (PMS) to improve individual performance

A surge in start-ups dealing with defence production and indigenisation of imported equipment

Steps to curb Maoists

(Topic: Defence and security)

No Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) are being withdrawn from Left Wing Extremism theatre. However, depending on dynamic security scenario CAPFs are redeployed from one area to another. 

As per Seventh schedule of Constitution of India, ‘Police’ and ‘Public Order’ are State subjects. However, the Central Government supplements the efforts of the State Governments over a wide range of measures including security, development and ensuring rights & entitlements of local communities.

Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) is supporting the State Governments extensively by deployment of CAPF Battalions, provision of helicopters, sanction of India Reserve Battalions (IRBs)/ Special India Reserve Battalions (SIRBs) etc. Funds are provided under Modernization of Police Force (MPF) Scheme, Security Related Expenditure (SRE) Scheme and Special Infrastructure Scheme (SIS) for modernization and training of State Police.

On development front, apart from flagship schemes of the Central Government, several initiatives have been taken for development of roads, installation of mobile towers, skill development, improving network of banks and post offices, besides strengthening of  health and education facilities. Steadfast implementation of the National Policy and Action Plan-2015 has resulted in consistent decline in both LWE violence and geographical spread of LWE influence

Prelims oriented News:

Gender Parity Index (GPI): Reflect equitable participation of girls in the School system

Nationwide “AYUSH Grid”: Ministry of AYUSH has conceptualized AYUSH GRID Project for digitalization of the entire AYUSH Sector.

The Ministry of AYUSH has developed National Ayurveda Morbidity Codes (NAMC), a comprehensive classification of diseases described in Ayurveda as well as Standardized Ayurveda Terminologies. Under this project, some common disease condition have been identified and accordingly the Proforma and manual of selected disease conditions is being drafted and validated through scientific methods in  phased manner.

Jan aushadhi Diwas: 7th March

Kishori Health Cards: For Adolescent Girls in Angawadi Centres (AWCs) to record the information about the weight, height, Body Mass Index (BMI) along with other services provided under the scheme.

Elephant deaths by train accidents showing a declining trend: A number of measures taken by Zonal Railways in coordination with Ministry of Environment, Forest & Climate Change have resulted in saving of elephants –

Approval for Automated Facial Recognition System by National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB): 

Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana (PMUY)

Women in Defence Forces:

SC has granted permanent commission to the women officers as per their qualification, professional experience, specialization, if any and organization requirement.

India’s rank has gone up from 142 to 63 in 2019 in Ease of doing Business

Since 2014, India’s rank has gone up from 142 to 63 in 2019.

The State Reforms Action Plan prepared by Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) requires States and UTs to have a Single Window System across various Departments with the following features:

Jal Shakti Abhiyan

Time bound campaign with a mission mode approach intended to improve water availability including ground water conditions in the water stressed blocks of 256 districts in India

Law for Rain Water Harvesting: Model Building Bye Laws, 2016, has been issued for guidance of the States/UTs which has a chapter on ‘Rainwater Harvesting’.

Scientists identify bacteria that can replace fertilizers & fungicides in tea plants

Researchers at Institute of Advanced Study in Science and Technology (IASST) Guwahati, an autonomous institute under Department of Science & Technology, have found significant plant-growth-promoting and antifungal activities of endophyticactino bacteria associated with Tea plant and related genera, Eurya to find potent plant growth-promoting strains. Application of endophytic Actinobacteria could reduce chemical inputs in Tea plantation.

The team led by Dr. Debajit Thakur from IASST isolated 46 endophyticactino bacteria (predominantly free-living microorganisms) found in diverse environments that lives within a plant for at least part of its life cycle without causing apparent disease associated with Tea plants and characterized through molecular techniques. 

This research finding confirms that endophyticactino bacteria have the potential to exhibit multiple growth-promoting traits such as IAA production, phosphate solubilization, siderophore production and so on that positively influence tea growth and production and can hence be used in the management and sustainability of Teacrop. 

Tea (Camellia sinensis) plays an important role in the Indian economy as a major portion of the tea produced is exported. However, in the recent years, due to higher demand of chemical residue-free made tea by the importing countries has led to a decline in the export of tea. The present study attempts the use of endophyticactino bacteria having plant beneficial characteristics to reduce and replace the use of chemical inputs in the tea industry.

Per Capita Availability of Water: Water availability per person is dependent on population of the country and for India, per capita water availability in the country is reducing due to increase in population. 

Jeevan Kaushal Curriculum: To upgrade life skills of undergraduate students; covers the courses on communication skills, professional skills, leadership & management skills and universal human values.

Pradhan Mantri Matsya Sampada Yojana (PMMSY): Envisages creation of critical fisheries infrastructure and cold chain facilities in all States/Union Territories to preserve shelf life of fish and reduce its wastage and spoilage. This include construction of cold storages, ice plants, creation of whole sale and retail fish markets, support for acquisition of refrigerated and insulated trucks and live fish vending centres, two and three wheelers vehicles with ice boxes.

Ministry of Jal Shakti has drafted bills namely National Water Framework Bill, River Basin Management (RBM) Bill and Model Bill to ‘Regulate and Control the Development and Management of Ground Water’ for bringing reforms in water sector

The draft RBM Bill proposes optimum development of inter-State rivers by facilitating inter-State coordination ensuring scientific planning of land and water resources taking basin/sub-basin as unit with unified perspectives of water in all its forms (including soil moisture, ground and surface water). The draft RBM Bill has been circulated to all States/Union Territories, concerned Central Government’s Ministries/Departments for pre-legislative consultations.

The National Water Framework Bill provides an overarching national legal framework based on principles for protection, conservation, regulation and management of water as a vital and stressed natural resource, under which legislation and executive action on water can take place at all levels of governance. The draft National Water Framework Bill has been circulated to States/UTs and the concerned Central Ministries for obtaining their views/comments.

National Policy on Biofuels 2018 

Ekam (Entrepreneurship, Knowledge, Awareness, Marketing) Fest: Promote Craftsmanship & Products of Divyang Artisans And Entrepreneurs

The word Ekam also represents the inclusiveness, oneness and unity which appropriately describe the efforts being put in by NHFDC to develop the marketing platform and aggregation of the products through promotion of entrepreneurship, knowledge sharing, Awareness creation and marketing initiatives amongst the Divyangjan.  

Subsidy to Artisans under Solar Charkha Mission

Memorandum of Understanding between Indian Air Force and Savitribai Phule Pune University: As a unique initiative of Indian Air Force, the IAF and Savitribai Phule Pune University entered into an academic collaboration by signing a Memorandum of Understanding to establish a ‘Chair of Excellence’ at Department of Defence & Strategic Studies. To pay tribute to the legend and commemorate the centenary birth year of the MIAF, the IAF has named it as “Marshal of the Air Force Arjan Singh Chair of Excellence”. The Chair will

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