Daily News Analysis 4th October 2018

Daily News Analysis (Prelims + Mains) – 4th October 2018

General Study – I

Topic

Social empowerment, communalism, regionalism & secularism.

First Regional Conference on ‘Women in Detention and Access to Justice’ in Shimla (4-5 October, 2018)

The Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPR&D), Ministry of Home Affairs is organizing the First Ever Regional Conference at Shimla on ‘Women in Detention and Access to Justice’ in collaboration with the Prison Department, Himachal Pradesh on October 4-5, 2018.

The BPR&D organizes the conferences on newly emerged issues. The Parliamentary Committee on Empowerment of Women on the subject “Women in Detention and Access to Justice” has made several recommendations.

There is a need to deliberate upon some of the recommendations to devise strategies and programs for bettering conditions of Women Prisoners and upholding their Fundamental Rights.

The following themes have been identified for discussions and deliberations

Reproductive Health Rights of Women Prisoners: National and International Legal Norms
Health Needs of Women Prisoners
Health, Skill, Rehabilitation and Reintegration of Women Inmates and Their Children
Prison Reforms, Structural Managerial and Legal Issues with Focus on Women Inmates & Comparison to Global Norms
Neuro-Criminology Program for the Offender
Transforming Prisons.

Expected Outcome of the Congress will be to help in ensuring better implementation of Prison Reform and Rehabilitation Program in order to improve the conditions of Women Inmates and their Access to Justice.

General Study – II

Topic:

Government policies and intervention for development in various Sectors and issues arising out of their design and implementation

Context: No sweeping change

India’s Swachh Bharat Mission is receiving global praise for attempting to close the sanitation gap of nearly 60% of the rural population not having access to a toilet at home in 2014.
The SBM enjoys arguably the highest priority, and a ₹16,400crore fund was raised for it during 2015-17 when a special cess was in force.
The SBM’s Gramin wing declared it has constructed 7 million Individual Household Latrines and raised sanitation access to 94% in rural areas; 5,07,369 villages are now ‘open defecation free’
Besides making sanitation a movement through the provision of well-designed toilets and behaviour change in rural India, the SBM should have a broader vision of what constitutes cleanliness.
The Centre asserts that urban toilet coverage is now 87% of the target, and nearly three fourths of the wards in the country have door to door collection of municipal waste, but the lived experience of the city dweller, especially in the bigger metros, is different
Waste volumes continue to grow as economic growth spurs consumption
The laws on municipal solid waste, protection of water sources and pollution control are just not being enforced.
The official machinery required to enforce legal provisions vigorously, and the infrastructure to manage waste scientifically are inadequate, making it unlikely that there will be significant public health outcomes flowing from high profile cleaning campaigns

General Study – III

Topic:

Conservation and Environmental pollution

Context: Climate Change and Climate Justice

Human beings and nature have a very special relationship. Mother Nature has nurtured and nourished us
The first civilisations were established on the banks of rivers. Societies that live in harmony with nature flourish and prosper.
Today, human society stands at an important crossroads. The path that we take hereon will not only determine our wellbeing but also that of the generations who will inhabit our planet after us.
The imbalances between our greed and necessities have led to grave ecological imbalances. We can either accept this, go ahead with things as if it is business as usual, or we can take corrective actions.
Respect for nature is at the core of India’s traditions. The Atharvaveda contains the Prithvi Sukta, which contains unparalleled knowledge about nature and the environment
The ancients write about the Panch Tatvas – Prithvi (Earth), Vayu (Air), Jal (Water), Agni (Fire), Akash (Sky) – and how our life systems are based on the harmonious functioning of these elements.
Mahatma Gandhi wrote extensively on the environment and even practised a lifestyle where compassion towards the environment was essential. He propounded the Doctrine of Trusteeship, which places the onus on us, the present generation, to ensure that our coming generations inherit a clean planet. He called for sustainable consumption so that the world does not face a resource crunch

Need For Public Awarenes;

We need to talk, write, debate, discuss and deliberate as much as possible on questions relating to the environment. At the same time, it is vital to encourage research and innovation on subjects relating to the environment. This is when more people will know about the pressing challenges of our times and ways to mitigate them.
Proactiveness of 130 crore people of India in SBM, over 85 million households now have access to toilets for the first time. Over 400 million Indians no longer have to defecate in the open.
Sanitation coverage is up from 39% to 95%. These are landmark efforts in the quest of reducing the strain on our natural surroundings.
Proactiveness in the success of the Ujjwala Yojana, which has significantly reduced indoor air pollution due to unhealthy cooking practices that were causing respiratory diseases
India is moving at a quick pace in cleaning its rivers. The Ganga, which is India’s lifeline, had become polluted in several parts. The Namami Gange Mission is changing this historical wrong. Emphasis is being given to proper treatment of sewage.
At the core of our urban development initiatives such as AMRUT and the Smart Cities Mission is the need to balance urban growth with environmental care.
The over 13 crore soil health cards distributed to farmers are helping them make informed decisions that will boost their productivity and improve the health of our land, which helps the coming generations.
Green Skill Development Programme for skilling about seven million youth in environment, forestry, wildlife and climate change sectors by 2021.
The Ujala Yojana has led to the distribution of nearly 31 crore LED bulbs. The costs of LED bulbs have reduced and so have the electricity bills and the CO2 emissions

Climate Justice:

Climate justice is about safeguarding the rights and interests of the poor and marginalised sections of society, who are often the biggest sufferers from the menace of climate change.

Way forward:

The world needs to shift to a paradigm of environmental philosophy that is anchored in environmental consciousness rather than merely in government regulations

Facts for Prelims

Justice Ranjan Gogoi sworn in as Chief Justice of India

According to the Memorandum of Procedure, which governs the appointment of members of the higher judiciary, “appointment to the office of the Chief Justice of India should be of the senior most judge of the Supreme Court considered fit to hold the office”.
President administers the oath to Chief Justice Of India
The constitution has not fixed the tenure of judge of Supreme Court. However it makes following 3 provisions in this regard

He holds the office until he attains the age of 65
He can resign his office by writing to the President
He can be removed from his office by President on the recommendation of Parliament

What is S-400?

Air defence missile system that can take enemies aircraft in the sky from surface itself,
The S-400 is known as Russia’s most advanced long-range Surface to Air missile defence system, capable of destroying cruise, ballistic missiles.

Election Commission moves to secure cyber walls for 2019

Important News:

Election Commission has, for the first time, keeping a strong vigilance over the election process, has brought Cyber Security in focus to avoid any cyber threats which can influence election process.

How Cyber Attack is a threat to election process:

A cyber-attack, irrespective of the actual damage caused, spreads misinformation and can delegitimize a democratic process
Drive will protect its voter registration database and office networks from unauthorized influence and access during the Lok Sabha polls next year.

Key steps taken by Election Commission to secure Election from Cyber Threats:

Launched Cyber Security Regulations– To avoid any unauthorized access, disclosure, duplication, modification, diversion, destruction, loss, misuse or theft of protection information
Appointment of chief information security officer (CISO) and cyber security nodal officer (CSNO) – To implement the regulations and coordinate with electoral officers.
Third-party security audit of all poll-related applications and websites – Provided secured socket layer or SSL, which is a standard security protocol for keeping an internet connection secure
Workshops to train officers in cyber related crime – Three regional workshops (north, south and central India) for poll officers to train them in Cyber Hygiene.
Proposal to recognize elections as ‘critical information’ under the IT Act, 2000 – Under this act Election Infrastructure will be recognized as “critical information infrastructure” (CII), which means infrastructure would be eligible for additional funding and resources.
Action Against Ghost Application – EC has begun identifying ghost applications and started taking them down — applications that mimic EC’s logo.

EC has also noticed that even though the VVPAT machines are not vulnerable to hacking, it’s increasing dependence on digital technology calls for strengthening of safeguards.

International Conference on ‘Recent Developments in Clean and Safe Nuclear Power Generation’

Its inaugurated by Vice President and its organized by the Institution of Engineers (India), in Hyderabad

Country is witnessing an increasing demand for energy and the consumption was only bound to go up further by 4.2 per cent per annum.

Rapid urbanization and industrialization are among the factors that would push energy demand and consumption further.

One of the cheapest sources of energy being produced in India today is by a nuclear power plant (TAPS-1 & 2: 92 paisa per unit).

Electricity generated by the latest Kudankulam nuclear power unit-1, sells for a little over Rs. 3 per unit, which is very competitive.

Indian Railway Stations Development Corporation Limited

Union Cabinet chaired by PM has approved the redevelopment of Railway Stations by Indian Railway Stations Development Corporation Limited (IRSDC) as Nodal Agency and main Project Development Agency, through simplified procedures adapting various business model and for longer lease tenure of up to 99 years.

Redevelopment of railway stations will have a multiplier effect in the economy with increased job creation and improved economic growth.

National Institute of Mental Health Rehabilitation

Union Cabinet chaired by PM has approved National Institute of Mental Health Rehabilitation(NIMHR) in Sehore District (Bhopal-Sehore highway) in Madhya Pradesh

NIMHR will be the first of its kind in the country in the area of mental health rehabilitation.

It will serve as an institution of excellence for capacity building in human resource and research in the area of mental health rehabilitation, and also recommending body suggesting models/protocols for effective rehabilitation of persons with mental illness.

Pradhan Mantri Annadata Aay SanraksHan Abhiyan’ (PM-AASHA)

The Umbrella Scheme consists of three sub-schemes i.e.

Price Support Scheme (PSS),
Price Deficiency Payment Scheme (PDPS) and
Private Procurement & Stockist Scheme (PPSS) on a pilot basis.

Government has decided to give additional guarantee of Rs. 16,550 crore making the total government guarantee Rs. 45,550 crores.

National Mission on GeM

The National Mission on GeM (Government E-Marketplace) was launched by Union Minister of Commerce & Industry and Civil Aviation in September 2018.

Twenty States and UTs joined the Mission which aims at creating awareness about GeM, train buyers and sellers, get them registered on GeM and increase the procurement through GeM.

This drive has been taken up for the promotion of inclusiveness of all sections of categories of sellers and service providers, highlighting and communicating the value addition in joining GeM, achieving cashless, contactless and paperless transactions, increasing overall efficiency and maximising ease of availability of goods and services.

Government e-Marketplace (GeM)

Based on the recommendations of the Group of Secretaries made to Hon’ble Prime Minister, the Government decided that GeM SPV will create a one stop Government e-Marketplace (GeM) to facilitate online procurement of common use Goods & Services required by various Government Departments / Organizations / PSUs.

GeM aims to enhance transparency, efficiency and speed in public procurement. It provides the tools of e-bidding, reverse e-auction and demand aggregation to facilitate the government users, achieve the best value for their money.

The ongoing National Mission has led to an average saving of 25% across categories.

Astra Beyond Visual Range Air-to-Air Missile (BVR-AAM)

Astra is an all-weather beyond-visual-range air-to-air missile developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation, India.

It is the first air-to-air missile developed by India. It features mid-course inertial guidance with terminal active radar homing.

Astra is designed to be capable of engaging targets at varying range and altitudes allowing for engagement of both short-range targets at 20 km (12 mi) and long-range targets up to a distance of 80 km (50 mi).

Astra has been integrated with Indian Air Force’s Sukhoi Su-30MKI and will be integrated with Dassault Mirage 2000and Mikoyan MiG-29 in the future.

Limited series production of Astra missiles began in 2017.

Udyam Abhilasha

On Birth Anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) launches a National Level Entrepreneurship Awareness Campaign, Udyam Abhilasha in 115 Aspirational Districts identified by NITI Aayog in 28 States and reaching to around 15,000 youth.

The campaign would be running parallelly from 3^rd October to 8^thOctober, 2018 across India.

The campaign would create and strengthen cadre of more than 800 trainers to provide entrepreneurship training to the aspiring youths across these districts thus encouraging them to enter the admired segment of entrepreneurs.

About SIDBI

SIDBI is the Principal Financial Institution for the Promotion, Financing, Development and Coordination of the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise (MSME) sector.

SIDBI meets the financial and developmental needs of the MSME sector with a Credit+ approach to make it strong, vibrant and globally competitive.

SIDBI, under its revamped strategy SIDBI 2.0, has adopted the theme of ease of access to MSEs and being Impact Multiplier & Digital Aggregator.

Efforts have been initiated to strengthen the eco system both in setting up and stepping up stages of business cycle. To take the agenda forward, SIDBI has had series of initiatives.

Rafting expedition “Mission Gange”

National Mission for Clean Ganga (NMCG) has partnered with Tata Steel Adventure Foundation (TSAF) to launch a month-long rafting expedition of a team of 40 members which will be led by the first Indian woman to scale Mount Everest Ms. Bachendri Pal.

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