CURRENT AFFAIRS 21 OCTOBER 2019

CURRENT AFFAIRS 

21 OCTOBER 2019

IMPORTANT TOPICS IN THE CONTEXT OF INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS, INDIAN POLITY,ECONOMY AND SOCIETY,ENVIRONMENT  for TODAY TO LOOK AT
1.LINE OF CONTROL(GS-2) CONTEXT: Indian Army hit terror launchpads killing around 10 terrorists, 10 soldiers 2.BY POLLS(GS-2) CONTEXT:Bypolls for two LS constituencies and 51 Assembly seats also to take place simultaneously 3.Metals and Minerals Trading Corporation of India(GS-2,3) CONTEXT:MMTC offers discount on India Gold Coin to mark 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi 4.PM Modi releases book titled 'Bridgital Nation'(GS-2) 5.G20 Okayama Health Ministers' Conference(GS-2) CONTEXT:Dr Harsh Vardhan shares PM Modi's vision for inclusive health at G20 Okayama Health Ministers' Conference 6.Border Roads Organisation (BRO),Col. Chewang Rinchen Setu (GS-2) CONTEXT:Rajnath Singh to inaugurate Col. Chewang Rinchen Setu in Ladakh  7.PRADHAN MANTRI AWAS YOJANA – URBAN(GS-2) CONTEXT:Beneficiaries will occupy PMAY(U) houses by 2021: Puri 8.Indian Penal Code(gs-2) Context:Centre all set to revamp British-era Indian Penal Code 9.Rohingya refugees(gs-3) Context: Rohingya refugees agree to move to island 10.India’s coastal radar chain network and a broad-based  humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HADR) exercise.(gs-2,3) Context:India, Maldives to take forward defence ties

1.LINE OF CONTROL(GS-2)

• CONTEXT: Indian Army hit terror launchpads killing around 10 terrorists, 10 soldiers
• Indian Army has hit many terror launchpads in Pakistan occupied Kashmir killing around 10 terrorists and 10 soldiers. The retaliation came following the calibrated escalation and unprovoked firing on civilians by Pakistan in Tangdhar sector of Jammu and Kashmir last night. 
• Indian troops also targetted Pakistani Army posts which have been actively trying to push terrorists into Indian territory. Indian army used artillery guns to target the terrorist camps trying to push terrorists into Indian Territory. Few launch pads in Neelam valley have been destroyed and also some fatalities were reported.  There has also been cross-border firing along the International Border in Kathua.
• Speaking to reporters in New Delhi, Army Chief General Bipin Rawat said, in the retaliatory action, the Indian Army has caused severe damage to terrorist infrastructure and terrorist camps opposite Tangdhar sector have been destroyed.  

LINE OF CONTROL:

• Originally known as the Cease-fire Line, it was redesignated as the “Line of Control” following the Simla Agreement, which was signed on 3 July 1972.
• The part of Jammu that is under Indian control is known as the state of Jammu and Kashmir. The Pakistani-controlled part is divided into Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit–Baltistan. The northernmost point of the Line of Control is known as NJ9842.
• Another ceasefire line separates the Indian-controlled state of Jammu and Kashmir from the Chinese-controlled area known as Aksai Chin.
• The Line of Control divided Kashmir into two parts and closed the Jehlum valley route.

2.BY POLLS(GS-2)

• CONTEXT:Bypolls for two LS constituencies and 51 Assembly seats also to take place simultaneously
• Bypolls will also take place to two Lok Sabha constituencies and 51 Assembly seats in 17 States tomorrow. The two Lok Sabha seats where by-polls will be held are Samastipur in Bihar and Satara constituency in Maharashtra.
• Assembly constituencies for which by-polls will be held are - 11 seats of Uttar Pradesh, 6 in Gujarat, 5 seats each in Kerala and Bihar, 3 in Sikkim, 4 each of Punjab and Assam, 2 each of Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan and Himachal Pradesh and one seat each in Odisha, Telangana, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Meghalaya, Pudducherry and Arunachal Pradesh.

What is by poll election in India and why by-elections are held?

• Just to remind you, by-election is held with a definite purpose, which is to fill a political office that has become vacant. A member of a legislative assembly often leaves his position vacant on various grounds, especially when he/she becomes inept. It could be the person’s untimely death or a criminal conviction, which makes him ineligible to continue in office.
• In a democracy like India, where political verdicts are people-driven and unpredictability is the norm, by-elections are a necessary enabler for restoring stability. You don’t have to force yourself hard to remember instances wherein by-elections were called because of voting irregularities and myriad other reasons. These elections occur between regularly scheduled elections and give people the opportunity to redeem their situation. If a state has suffered in the hands of an incompetent government in the first phase, it can get back its pie of prosperity by bringing a better alternative to the forefront.
• By-elections have become a commonality in India, partly because of the misuse of provision of a law under the Representation of the People Act that allows a candidate to contest elections from two constituencies. When the candidate wins from both the constituencies, he/she has to vacate one of the seats. This triggers by-election as one of the seats that is rendered vacant. Prominent politicians such as Mulayam Singh and Narendra Modi seem to be all set to contest from two constituencies during the upcoming Lok Sabha polls.
• India has also witnessed several by-elections after an individual decides to shift allegiance and switch party. A very latest example could be seen in Gujarat where seven seats fell vacant after Congress MLAs switched sides and joined BJP. The by-polls for the seven assembly seats will be held on April 30.
• If we go back to 2011, we have another classic instance of by-elections to behold. Trinamool Congress came to power in West Bengal after ending the Left domination of over three decades. At that time, Mamata Banerjee was still an MP in the Lok Sabha. It was mandatory for her to become a member of the state legislature to bag the position of a Chief Minister. One of the MLAs from Bengal had to step down to let her contest from that constituency. This led to a by-election. Simultaneously, after she stepped down from her position as a member of Lok Sabha, the Kolkata (South) parliamentary constituency fell vacant, and this again called for a by-election.
• This format of the election in India comes with a tinge of surprise and a whole lot of changes in the political landscape. It surely makes for a fascinating case study.

3.Metals and Minerals Trading Corporation of India(GS-2,3)

• CONTEXT:MMTC offers discount on India Gold Coin to mark 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi
• The Public sector Metals and Minerals Trading Corporation of India (MMTC) is offering a three per cent discount on the India Gold Coin to mark the celebrations of the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi. 

Metals and Minerals Trading Corporation of India:

• MMTC Ltd., Metals and Minerals Trading Corporation of India, is one of the two highest earners of foreign exchange for India and India's largest public sector trading body. Not only handling the export of primary products such as coal, iron ore, and manufactured agro and industrial products, MMTC also imports important commodities such as ferrous and nonferrous metals for industry, and agricultural fertilizers. MMTC's diverse trade activities cover Third Country Trade, Joint Ventures and Link Deals and all modern forms of international trading. The Company has a vast international trade network, spanning almost in all countries in Asia, Europe, Africa, Oceania, America and also includes a wholly owned international subsidiary in Singapore, MTPL. It is one of the Miniratnas companies.
• MMTC is one of the two highest foreign exchange earner for India (after petroleum refining companies).It is the largest international trading company of India and the first public sector enterprise to be accorded the status of Five Star Export Houses by Government of India for long standing contribution to exports
• Being the largest player in bullion trade, including retailing, MMTC's share was 146 tonnes of gold out of the total import of 600 tonnes of the precious metal in 2008-09.

4.PM Modi releases book titled 'Bridgital Nation'(GS-2)

• CONTEXT:Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said that positivity, creativity and constructive mind-set is essential for fast growing aspirational India. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said that positivity, creativity and constructive mindset can lead to solutions of the problems. Releasing a book titled 'Bridgital Nation' in New Delhi today, Mr Modi said that positivity, optimism and faith in talent and resources is the thought of New India. He said that technology and talent were not a threat but force multiplier. He added that technology is the bridge between aspiration and achievement. 
• The Prime Minister said that the technological interventions have reformed and transformed governance in India in the last five years. He mentioned that through technology the government was able to reach the people and provided them Bank accounts, LPG connection and also health care.
• Mr Modi said that when technology becomes bridge it leads to transparency and targeted Delivery. He said, effective use of technology turns the challenges into opportunities. The Prime Minister said, Government is making extensive use of technology to remove silos. He said that the technology was not the only solution but human intention and right intention was also very important. 
• The book has been authored by Chairman, Tata Sons, N Chandrasekaran and Roopa Purushothaman. Eminent industrialist and philanthropist Ratan Tata was present on the occasion among others. 

5.G20 Okayama Health Ministers' Conference(GS-2)

• CONTEXT:Dr Harsh Vardhan shares PM Modi's vision for inclusive health at G20 Okayama Health Ministers' Conference
• India has highlighted Prime  Minister Narendra Modi's vision of  'Sab Ka Saath - Sab Ka Vikas - Sab Ka Vishwas' for inclusive health along with scheme -- Ayushman Bharat, at the on-going two-day G20 Okayama Health Ministers' Conference in Japan.
• Health and Family Welfare Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan, who represented India at the conference in Okayama City, also highlighted Mr Modi's vision of FIT India Movement and Eat Right campaigns.
• The deliberations of the G20 Health Ministers focused on four major global health issues like the achievement of Universal Health Coverage, response to population ageing, management of health risks and health security management including Anti-Microbial Resistance and its containment. 

G20 Okayama Health Ministers' Conference:

What is G20 Health Ministers’ Meeting?

The first G20 Health Ministers’ Meeting was held in Berlin, Germany, in May 2017, followed by the second meeting in Mar del Plata, Argentina, in October 2018. Thus far, health ministers of the G20 member states have discussed various topics on global health. Under the Japanese presidency, the third G20 Health Ministers’ Meeting will be held this year in Okayama City, Okayama Prefecture. 

Building on previous discussions and commitments in G20, major issues of global health will be discussed. G20 Health Ministers’ Declaration will be finalized during the meeting.

Main Pillars to be discussed

Health has been an important G20 agenda since 2017. Major pillars include “The Achievement of UHC,” “Response to Aging Societies,” and “Health Risk Management and Health Security (Including AMR).”

Participants

G20 member countries

Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, EU, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Republic of Korea, Mexico, Russian Federation, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey, United Kingdom, United States

Invited Guest Countries

Chile, Egypt, Netherlands, Senegal, Singapore, Spain, Thailand, Vietnam

International organizations

World Health Organization (WHO), Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and other organizations

6.Border Roads Organisation (BRO),Col. Chewang Rinchen Setu (GS-2)

• CONTEXT:Rajnath Singh to inaugurate Col. Chewang Rinchen Setu in Ladakh 
• Defence Minister Rajnath Singh will visit Ladakh TODAY.
• He will attend the inaugural ceremony of Col. Chewang Rinchen Setu which has been constructed at an altitude of 14650 feet in the forward area of Ladakh region. This bridge has been built by the Border Roads Organisation (BRO).

• Colonel Chewang Rinchen MVC and Bar, SM (1931 – 1997) was a highly decorated officer in the Indian Army from the Ladakh region of Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir.He was one of only six Indian service personnel to have twice won the Maha Vir Chakra (MVC), the second highest Indian gallantry decoration.

Border Roads Organisation (BRO):

• Functioning under the control of the Ministry of Defence since 2015, the BRO is engaged in road construction to provide connectivity to difficult and inaccessible regions in the border areas of the country.
• It is staffed by officers and troops drawn from the Indian Army’s Corps of Engineers, Electrical and Mechanical Engineers, Army Service Corps, Military Police and army personnel on extra regimental employment.
• Engineering Service and personnel from the General Reserve Engineer Force (GREF) form the parent cadre of the Border Roads Organisation.
• Currently, the organisation maintains operations in twenty-one states, one UT (Andaman and Nicobar Islands), and neighbouring countries such as Afghanistan, Bhutan, Myanmar, and Sri Lanka.
• The BRO operates and maintains over 32,885 kilometres of roads and about 12,200 meters of permanent bridges in the country.

Significance of BRO:

• The Border Roads Organization has played a very important role in both maintenance of security and in the development of border areas. Most of the development in the North Eastern states of India can be attributed to the relentless work done by the BRO. Socio economic development in the most inaccessible nooks and corners of our country are a result of the infrastructural work undertaken by the BRO.
• Apart from its work in India, the BRO has undertaken work in numerous countries thus having contributed immensely towards maintaining friendly and diplomatic relations. The highly-skilled BRO personnel undertook and successfully completed construction of the Delaram-Zaranj Highway in Afghanistan in 2008. The Farkhor and Ayni air bases of Tajikistan were also restored and repaired by the BRO.
• The BRO works in close association with the Indian Army in cases of natural disasters. It is the brave men of the BRO who were responsible for much of the reconstruction work undertaken as a result of the 2004 Tsunami in Tamil Nadu, the 2010 Ladakh flash floods and even during the 2014 Jammu and Kashmir Floods.

7.PRADHAN MANTRI AWAS YOJANA – URBAN(GS-2)

• CONTEXT:Beneficiaries will occupy PMAY(U) houses by 2021: Puri
• The Union Housing and Urban Affairs Minister said the government has so far sanctioned around 90 lakh houses and the number will go up to 1.12 crore houses in six months.
• All the 1.12 crore houses being constructed under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Urban) will be occupied by beneficiaries by early 2021, Union Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Hardeep Singh Puri has said.

PRADHAN MANTRI AWAS YOJANA – URBAN

About PMAY- Urban:

• The Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (Urban) Programme launched by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation (MoHUPA), in Mission mode envisions provision of Housing for All by 2022, when the Nation completes 75 years of its Independence.

Significance of the scheme:

• PMAY-U does offer a huge opportunity for several sectors by setting off a virtuous cycle.
• One crore houses would mean an opportunity for over Rs 2 lakh crore of home loans, and incremental consumption of 80-100 million tonne of cement and 10-15 million tonne of steel.
• The construction opportunity is of about four billion square feet over the life of PMAY-U. And all that would translate into 9-10 crore incremental jobs over the execution period.
• The Mission seeks to address the housing requirement of urban poor including slum dwellers through following programme verticals:
• Slum rehabilitation of Slum Dwellers with participation of private developers using land as a resource.
• Promotion of Affordable Housing for weaker section through credit linked subsidy.
• Affordable Housing in Partnership with Public & Private sectors.
• Subsidy for beneficiary-led individual house construction /enhancement.

Key facts:

• The beneficiaries are poor and people living under EWS and LIG categories in the country.
• The scheme is divided into three phases. In the first phase, a total of 100 cities will be covered from April 2015 to March 2017. In phase two, 200 cities will be covered from April 2017 to March 2019. In the third phase, the leftover cities will be covered from April 2019 to March 2022.
• The government is providing an interest subsidy of 6.5% on housing loans which can be availed by beneficiaries for 15 years from start of loan date.
• The government will grant Rs 1 lakh to all the beneficiaries of the scheme. In addition, Rs 1.5 lakh will be given to all eligible urban poor who want to construct their houses in urban areas or plan to go for renovation in their existing houses. One can also avail loans under this scheme to build toilets in existing houses.

8.Indian Penal Code(gs-2)

• Context:Centre all set to revamp British-era Indian Penal Code
• The Home Ministry is all set to overhaul the Indian Penal Code (IPC) designed by the British. A senior government official said rebooting the code introduced by the British in 1860 was necessary as it is primarily based on the spirit of “master and servant.”
• On September 28, Home Minister Amit Shah while speaking at a function in Delhi had said that the Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPR&D) should work on a proposal to amend various sections of the IPC and the Code of Criminal Procedure (Cr.PC) after seeking suggestions from people across the country.
• He said that in the British era, the police were raised to protect their interests, but now their duty is to “protect the people,” adding that since Independence more than 34,000 policemen across the country lost their lives in the line of duty.

• In 2016, the Home Ministry had proposed insertion of two stricter anti-racial discrimination provisions in the IPC. The two amendments — Section 153A and Section 509A “to deal with racially motivated crimes” received lukewarm response from the States.

Indian Penal Code:

• The initial sketch of the Indian Penal Code was drawn by Lord Macaulay in 1830s, but it was finally drafted in 1860 and came into force in 1862. Prior to that, the final draft of Codes of Civil and Criminal Procedure was ready in 1861. 
• Indian Penal code was inheritated by Pakistan after separation and was later named Pakistan Penal Code. 
• The same was adopted by Bangladesh also. It was also adopted in almost all the British colonies of Asia such as Burma, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Singapore and Brunei. 
• Before 1860, the basis of justice was “The English Criminal Law” which was administered in the Presidency-Towns of Bombay, Calcutta and Madras. 
• The age old penal code and its many articles have become obsolete and needs to be revised. The Malimath Committee of 2003 is related to the issue of reforms in the IPC.


9.Rohingya refugees(gs-3)
Context: Rohingya refugees agree to move to island
Thousands of Rohingya living in Bangladesh refugee camps have agreed to move to an island in the Bay of Bengal, officials said Sunday, despite fears the site is prone to flooding.
Dhaka has long wanted to move 100,000 refugees to the muddy silt islet, saying it would take pressure off the overcrowded border camps where almost a million Rohingya live.
Some 740,000 Rohingya fled Myanmar in August 2017 in the face of a military crackdown, joining 200,000 refugees already in makeshift tent settlements at Cox’s Bazar.


Rohingya refugees:
Who are Rohingyas?


They are an Ethnic group, mostly Muslims. They were not granted full citizenship by Myanmar. They were classified as “resident foreigners or associate citizens”. They speak a dialect of Bengali and not Burmese. Ethnically they are much closer to Indo-Aryan people of India and Bangladesh than to the Sino-Tibetans of the Country.






What’s the issue?


Few years ago, religious and ethnic tensions between the Rohingya Muslims and the Rakhine Buddhists (who make up the majority of the population in Myanmar) escalated into widespread, deadly rioting. Hundreds of thousands were forced to flee. Since then, ongoing violent attacks have forced even more people to leave their homes.
The Myanmar Government says that Rohingya people are not Burmese citizens – but the Rohingya have been living in Myanmar for generations. Today, they are a people with no home or citizenship.
Rohingya people are being widely abused and exploited. They are one of the most persecuted minorities in the world

10.India’s coastal radar chain network and a broad-based humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HADR) exercise.(gs-2,3)

• Context:India, Maldives to take forward defence ties
• With the recent improvement in relations, India and the Maldives will take forward several pending measures to promote defence cooperation in the next few months, diplomatic sources said.
• These include lease of a Dornier aircraft, bringing the Maldives under India’s coastal radar chain network and a broad-based humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HADR) exercise.
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Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) in India’s National Strategy:

• Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) operations have attracted the attention of the global community in recent years. Building capabilities, interoperability and a conceptual framework for participation in these operations is gaining increasing urgency among Indian policymakers. The Indian armed forces have a wide experience of disaster relief operations both at home and abroad, where they have been the core of relief operations. Due to its sub-continental size, geographical location and its vulnerability to disasters, India has kept its forces ready to render assistance at short notice. In the six decades since independence, India has experienced a number of natural and man-made disasters such as floods, earthquakes, famines, industrial accidents etc. At the same time, India has partnered the global community in providing relief in affected regions. As India moves to occupy an important position in the global community, it is in the process of bolstering its capabilities to match the rising expectations. That India would play an important role