IAS Current Affairs-PIB Summary-11.10.2021


PIB SUMMARY

11.10.2021

 

1. Actor Nedumudi Venu

ü  Real name - Kesavan Venugopal

ü  State - Kerala

ü  He received three National Film Awards and six Kerala State Film Awards for his performances.

 

2. Climate and biodiversity week

ü  It takes place from October 3 to 9, 2021, at Expo 2020 Dubai.

ü  Events and discussions during Climate and Biodiversity Week will focus on mitigating climate change, disaster risk management, advancing the circular economy, protecting vulnerable regions and conservation.

ü  Climate and Biodiversity Week is the first of the 10 Theme Weeks anchoring the Programme for People and Planet, aiming to find solutions for some of the most pressing problems facing our world.

 

3. India’s renewable energy target

ü  India stands at 4th position in the world in terms of installed RE capacity, 5th in solar and 4th in wind in terms of installed capacity.

ü  The total installed renewable energy capacity in India, excluding large hydro, has crossed the mile-stone of 100 GW.

ü  If large hydro is included the installed RE capacity increases to 146 GW.

ü  India has enhanced its ambition to install 450 GW of renewable energy capacity by 2030.

 

4. Nationally determined contributions of India

ü  India’s INDC are to be achieved primarily by 2030. There are -

i.      A total of 40% of the installed capacity for electricity will be from non-fossil fuel sources by 2030.

ii.     To reduce GHG emission per unit GDP by 33 to 35 % below 2005 level by 2030.

iii.   India also promised an additional carbon sink (a means to absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere) of 2.5 to 3 billion tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent through additional forest and tree cover by the year 2030.

 

5. Green Corridor Phase II

ü  Green Freight Corridor-2 is a coastal shipping service launched by Ministry of Shipping.

ü  Its first voyage was launched from Cochin port to Beypore and Azhikkal ports located in north Kerala.

ü  First voyage service was launched in line with ministry’s plans to improve connectivity and synergies between major & non-major ports by promoting coastal trading.

ü  This step is also aiming to -

i.      Create intermodal & sustainable customer solutions,

ii.     Improve use of waterways,

iii.   Cut road & rail traffic and

iv.    Cut logistical expenditures.

 

6. Green Hydrogen

ü  Green hydrogen is produced by electrolysis of water using renewable energy (like Solar, Wind) and has a lower carbon footprint.

ü  Less than 1% of hydrogen produced is green hydrogen.

ü  By 2030, the cost of green hydrogen is expected to compete with that of hydrocarbon fuels (coal, Crude Oil, natural gas).

ü  India will become a net exporter of green hydrogen by 2030 due to its cheap renewable energy tariffs.

ü  Green hydrogen can drive India’s transition to clean energy, combat climate change.

 

7. Corporate Social Responsibility

ü  The term "Corporate Social Responsibility" in general can be referred to as a corporate initiative to assess and take responsibility for the company's effects on the environment and impact on social welfare.

ü  In India, the concept of CSR is governed by clause 135 of the Companies Act, 2013.

ü  India is the first country in the world to mandate CSR spending along with a framework to identify potential CSR activities.

ü  The CSR provisions within the Act is applicable to companies with an annual turnover of 1,000 crore and more, or a net worth of Rs. 500 crore and more, or a net profit of Rs. 5 crore and more.

ü  The Act requires companies to set up a CSR committee which shall recommend a Corporate Social Responsibility Policy to the Board of Directors and also monitor the same from time to time.

ü  The Act encourages companies to spend 2% of their average net profit in the previous three years on CSR activities.

 

8. Prasar Bharti

ü  It is India's largest statutory autonomous public broadcasting agency which was set up in 1997 by an Act of Parliament and comprises Doordarshan Television Network and All India Radio, which were earlier part of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.

ü  Its primary function is to organize and conduct public broadcasting services to inform, educate and entertain the public and to ensure abalanced development of broadcasting on radio and television.

ü  Governing Act - The Prasar Bharati (Broadcasting Corporation of India) Act, 1990.

 

9. Doordarshan

ü  Doordarshan is a part of the Prasar Bharti (India’s largest public broadcaster) and is the largest broadcasting company in India .

ü  It was launched on 15th September 1959 in New Delhi.

ü  In 1965, regular daily transmissions were started by Doordarshan as a part of the All India Radio.

ü  By 1972, TV services were extended to Mumbai and Amritsar up to 1975 only 7 cities across India had TV service and Doordarshan was the only service provider of TV in India.

ü  On 1st April 1976, TV services were separated from radio and the office of the All India Radio and Doordarshan were managed by separate Director Generals in Delhi.

ü  In 1982 Doordarshan came into existence as a national broadcaster and reached all parts of the country.

ü  On 17 Nov, 2014, Doordarshan was re-launched with new theme of pink and purple and accompanied by a new punchline “Desh Ka Apna Channel” (country’s own channel).

 

10. All India Radio

ü  It is a division of Prasar Bharti.

ü  It was established in 1936 and officially known as Akashvani since 1957.

ü  motto – ‘Bahujan Hitaya : Bahujan Sukhaya’

 

11. Bureau of Energy Efficiency

ü  The Government of India set up Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE)on 1st March 2002 under the provisions of the Energy Conservation Act, 2001.

ü  The mission of the Bureau of Energy Efficiency is to assist in developing policies and strategies with a thrust on self-regulation and market principles, within the overall framework of the Energy Conservation Act, 2001 with the primary objective of reducing energy intensity of the Indian economy.

ü  BEE coordinates with designated consumers, designated agencies and other organizations and recognize, identify and utilize the existing resources and infrastructure, in performing the functions assigned to it under the Energy Conservation Act.

ü  The Standards & Labeling Programme is one of the major thrust areas of BEE.

ü  The scheme targets display of energy performance labels on high energy end use equipment & appliances and lays down minimum energy performance standards.

 

12. Energy Conservation Act, 2001

ü  The Energy Conservation (EC) Act was enacted in 2001 with the goal of reducing the energy intensity of Indian economy.

ü  The Act provides regulatory mandates for:

i.      Standards & labeling of equipment and appliances;

ii.     Energy conservation building codes for commercial buildings; and

iii.   Energy consumption norms for energy intensive industries.

 

13. Coal biding in India

ü  Coal mines are auctioned under the provisions of Coal Mines (Special Provisions) Act, 2015 and Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957.

ü  The private players are allowed to mine coal for commercial mining purposes, without any end-use restrictions.The private firms have the option of either gasification of the coal or exporting it.

ü  Successful bidders will obtain leasing rights from State governments to mine a coal block for a certain period.

ü  A revenue-sharing basis is opted for payment,earlier method of paying fixed rupee per tonne was in use.

ü  In the revenue-sharing basis, a percentage of revenue share (final bid) has to be paid to the government on the sale of coal.

 

14. National Coal Index

ü  It is a price index which reflects the change of price level of coal in a particular month relative to the fixed base year.

ü  The base year for the NCI is Financial Year 2017-18.

ü  Prices of coal from all the sales channels of coal, including import, as existing today are taken into account for compiling the NCI.

ü  The amount of revenue share per tonne of coal produced from auctioned blocks would be arrived at using the NCI by means of defined formula.

ü  NCI is composed of a set of five sub-indices:Three for Non Coking Coal and two for Coking Coal.

 

15. Revenue deficit vs Fiscal deficit

Revenue Deficit:

ü  It refers to the excess of government’s revenue expenditure over revenue receipts.

ü  Revenue Deficit = Revenue expenditure – Revenue receipts

ü  The revenue Deficit includes only such transactions that affect the current income and expenditure of the government.

ü  When the government incurs a revenue deficit, it implies that the government is dissaving and is using up the savings of the other sectors of the economy to finance a part of its consumption expenditure.

Fiscal Deficit:

ü  It is the gap between the government’s expenditure requirements and its receipts. This equals the money the government needs to borrow during the year. A surplus arises if receipts are more than expenditure.

ü  Fiscal Deficit = Total expenditure – (Revenue receipts + Non-debt creating capital receipts).

ü  It indicates the total borrowing requirements of the government from all sources.

ü  From the financing side: Gross fiscal deficit = Net borrowing at home + Borrowing from RBI + Borrowing from abroad

ü  The gross fiscal deficit is a key variable in judging the financial health of the public sector and the stability of the economy.

 

16. 15th Finance Commission

ü  The 15th Finance Commission was constituted by the President of India in November 2017, under the chairmanship of NK Singh.

ü  Its recommendations will cover a period of five years from the year 2021-22 to 2025-26.

 

17. Indian Space Association

ü  ISpA will act as a single-window and independent agency on matters related to space technology.

ü  ISpA will be represented by leading domestic and global corporations that have advanced capabilities in space and satellite technologies.

ü  ISpA will undertake Policy Advocacy and engage with all stakeholders in the Indian Space domain, including the Government and its Agencies, to make India self-reliant, technologically advanced and a leading player in the space arena.

ü  ISpA will also work towards building global linkages for the Indian space industry to bring in critical technology and investments into the country to create more high skill jobs.

ü  One of the main goals of the organisation is to supplement the government’s efforts towards making India a global leader in commercial space-based excursions.

 

18. Jaiprakash Narayan

ü  Birth: 11th October, 1902 in Sitabdiara, Bihar.

ü  Influenced By: Marxist ideas in the USA and Gandhian ideology.

ü  In 1929, he joined the Indian National Congress.

ü  He played a key role in the formation of the Congress Socialist Party (1934), a left-wing group within the Congress Party.

ü  In 1948, he left the Congress Party and initiated an anti-Congress Campaign.

ü  In 1952, he formed the Praja Socialist Party (PSP).

ü  In 1954, he devoted his life exclusively to the Bhoodan Yajna Movement, of Vinoba Bhave, which demanded land redistribution to the landless.

ü  In 1959 he argued for a “reconstruction of Indian polity” by means of a four-tier hierarchy of village, district, state, and union councils (Chaukhamba Raj).

ü  Jayaprakash Narayan was posthumously conferred with India's highest civilian award, the Bharat Ratna (1999).

 

19. Nana ji Deshmukh

ü  Birth: 11th October 1916 in Maharashtra’s Hingoli district.

ü  Influenced by: Lokamanya Tilak and his nationalist ideology

ü  He was a leader of Bharatiya Jana Sangh and Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.

ü  He actively participated in Acharya Vinoba Bhave’s Bhoodan.

ü  Deshmukh was the main force behind social activist Jayaprakash Narayan's agitation for total revolution.

ü  He established Chitarkoot Gramoday Vishwavidyalaya in Chitrakoot, India’s first rural University and had served as its Chancellor.

ü  He was one of main architects of the Janata Party.

ü  He was awarded Padma Vibhushan in 1999.

ü  In 2019, the President of India, conferred the Bharat Ratna upon him (posthumously) for his services to the nation.

 

20. NAVIC System

ü  Navigation in Indian Constellation (NavIC) is an Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS), developed by the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO).

ü  IRNSS consists of eight satellites, three satellites in geostationary orbit and five satellites in geosynchronous orbit.

ü  The main objective is to provide reliable position, navigation and timing services over India and its neighbourhood.

ü  It works just like the established and popular U.S. Global Positioning System (GPS) but within a 1,500-km radius over the sub-continent.

ü  It has been certified by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), a global body for coordinating mobile telephony standards.

 

21. North East high density network of railways

ü  Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) has successfully completed the Electrification work of total 649 Route Kilometer (RKM)/ 1294 Tonne Kilometer (TKM) of High-Density Network (HDN) from Katihar to Guwahati.

ü  This great feat will now connect all major cities of the country with Guwahati on seamless Electric Traction.

ü  This is yet another effort by NFR for capital connectivity by Green Transportation.

 

22. North East frontier railway

ü  headquartered in Maligaon, Guwahati in the state of Assam

ü  It was formed on 14 April 1952 by amalgamating two railway systems: the Assam Railway and Oudh and Tirhut Railway.

ü  Later, it was bifurcated into two railway zones on 15 January 1958, the North Eastern Railway and the Northeast Frontier Railway.

 

23. Nine Goddesses of Navratra

I. Shailaputri

II. Brahmacharini

III. Chandraghanta

IV. Kushmanda

V. Skanda Mata

VI. Katyayani

VII. Kaalratri

VIII. Mahagauri

IX. Siddhidatri.

 

24. Line of Actual Control

ü  The Line of Actual Control (LAC) is the demarcation that separates Indian-controlled territory from Chinese-controlled territory.

ü  The LAC is only a concept – it is not agreed upon by the two countries, neither delineated on a map or demarcated on the ground.

ü  India considers the LAC to be 3,488 km long, while the Chinese consider it to be only around 2,000 km.

ü  It is divided into three sectors: the eastern sector which spans Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim (1346 km), the middle sector in Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh (545 km), and the western sector in Ladakh (1597 km).

 

25. Age groups for COVID Vaccine

I. Over 60 year

II. 45 to 59 years

III. 18 to 44 years

IV. Below 18 years

 

26. Weekly positive rate, Daily positive rate, Recovery rate, COVID Test data

ü  Weekly Positivity Rate - 1.53% (less than 3% for last 108 days)

ü  Daily positivity rate - 1.75% (less than 3% for last 42 days)

ü  Recovery Rate - 98.00% (Highest since March 2020)

ü  COVID Test data - 58.36 cr Total Tests conducted so far

 

27. Chushul Moldo border

ü  The Chushul sub-sector lies south of Pangong Tso in eastern Ladakh.

ü  It comprises high, broken mountains and heights of Thatung, Black Top, Helmet Top, Gurung Hill, and Magger Hill besides passes such as Rezang La and Reqin La, the Spanggur Gap, and the Chushul valley.

ü  Moldo sector lies on the Chinese side of Chushul Border.

 

28. Vision plan 2021-2031 for Indian zoos

ü  Released by Ministry of Environment, Forest, and Climate Change

ü  This Vision Plan was launched with the aim of upgrading Indian zoos to global standards.

ü  It also focuses on conserving local birds and animals.

ü  It also mentions 10 pillars of change for Central Zoo Authority (CZA) & Indian zoos.

ü  It sets some specific targets and timelines for achieving the ‘Call to Action’ that will be realized in 10 years.

 

29. Urban Missions of India

ü  Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation (AMRUT)

ü  Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY) – Housing for all (Urban)

ü  Smart Cities Mission (SCM)

ü  Swachh Bharat Mission (SBM)

ü  Heritage City Development and Augmentation Yojana (HRIDAY)

ü  Deen Dayal Antyodaya Yojana – National Urban Livelihood Mission (DAY-NULM)

 

30. UN World Habitat day 2021

ü  In 1985 the United Nations designated the first Monday of October every year as World Habitat Day.

ü  The idea is to reflect on the state of our towns and cities and the basic right of all to adequate shelter.

ü  World Habitat Day was first celebrated in 1986 with the theme “Shelter is My Right”. Nairobi was the host city for the observance that year.

ü  The theme for this year’s World Habitat Day is Accelerating urban action for a carbon-free world.

ü  The theme recognizes that cities are responsible for some 70 percent of global carbon dioxide emissions.

ü  Host city - Yaoundé, Cameroon

 

31. Citrus fruits in India

ü  In India few citrus species are commercially cultivated, which include grape fruit, lemons, limes, sweet oranges, and mandarins.

ü  In India citrus is cultivated over an area of near about 923.2 thousand hectares with an estimated production of 8607.7 thousand metric tonnes.

ü  In Punjab citrus occupies 39.198 hectares with annual production of 734699 MT.

ü  Kinnow occupies 54.9% of the area under citrus.

ü  Citrus performs well in sub-tropical conditions. It is being cultivated through out India.

ü  However, it cannot withstand too low temperature for long period.

ü  Mandarins have adapted to sub-mountainous regions and are being cultivated in Himachal Pradesh, hilly areas of Assam and Satpura hills of Nagpur.

 

32. Tuning of viscosity and elasticity of fluids

ü  Usually the transport of fluids through pipelines involves displacement of a more viscous fluid by a less viscous one.

ü  This creates instabilities at the interface between the fluids which leads to complex patterns of intrusion of the former into the latter.

ü  The complex intrusion pattern results in impurities during the transportation. Hence instabilities need to be removed to ensure smooth transportation of fluids during processing.

ü  Scientists have found that by changing the viscosity of the displacing fluid and the concentration-dependent elasticity of the displaced fluid, the instability can be reduced and the roughness of the interfacial pattern and the efficiency of displacement can be controlled.

ü  The suppression of instabilities leads to an efficient displacement of the more viscous/viscoelastic fluid which is useful in transportation of materials in industries such as food processing, oil recovery and sugar refining.

 

33. V.O. Chidambranar Port

ü  In 2011, Tuticorin Port Trust was renamed as V.O. Chidambaranar Port Trust.

ü  It is one of the 12 major ports in India.

 

34. Lal Bahadur Shastri National Award of Excellence

ü  The award was instituted in 1999 by Lal Bahadur Shastri Institute of Management in memory of India’s second Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri.

ü  It is awarded annually to Indian who is exceptionally outstanding and distinguished business leader, management practitioner, public administrator, educator or institution builder for his/her sustained individual contributions and achievements.

ü  The award consists of cash award of Rs. 5,00,000 plus citation and plaque.

 

35. UN Women

ü  UN Women is the UN entity dedicated to gender equality and the empowerment of women.

ü  In July 2010, the United Nations General Assembly created UN Women, the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women.

ü  It merges and builds on the important work of four previously distinct parts of the UN system, which focused exclusively on gender equality and women’s empowerment:

i.      Division for the Advancement of Women (DAW).

ii.     International Research and Training Institute for the Advancement of Women (INSTRAW).

iii.   Office of the Special Adviser on Gender Issues and Advancement of Women (OSAGI).

iv.    United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM).

 

36. Seed Mini kit Programme

ü  Launched by: Ministry of Agriculture

ü  Seed Minikits consisting of higher yielding varieties of seeds of Pulses and oilseeds were distributed to farmers.

ü  It is wholly funded by the Government of India through the National Food Security Mission.

ü  It will ensure better harvest and better income.

ü  It is instrumental for increasing the seed replacement rate

ü  The distribution is free of cost

ü  The Central Agencies National Seeds Corporation (NCS), NAFED and Gujarat State Seeds Corporation is providing the kits.

 

37. Sandalwood production and trade in India

ü  the country contributed 85% of the world’ sandalwood trade erstwhile. However, lately this has been declining at a fast rate.

ü  Major Growing Areas: In India, sandalwood is mostly grown in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Bihar, Gujarat, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Tamil Nadu.

ü  Globally, India & Australia are the largest growers of sandalwood, while the biggest markets lie in the United States, China, Japan & the Indian domestic market.

 

 

 

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