CURRENT AFFAIRS 23 OCTOBER 2019

CURRENT AFFAIRS

23 OCTOBER 2019

1.JP Morgan International Council(gs-2,3)

Context:PM meets JP Morgan International Council, discusses vision for making India a $5 trillion economy
PM met with the JP Morgan International Council in New Delhi today. After 2007, this was the first time that the International Council met in India
The International Council comprises of global statesmen like former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, former Australian PM John Howard, former US Secretaries of State Henry Kissinger and Condoleezza Rice, former Secretary of Defence Robert Gates as well as leading figures from the world of business and finance like Jamie Dimon (JP Morgan Chase), Ratan Tata (Tata Group) and leading representatives from global companies like Nestle, Alibaba, Alfa, Iberdola, Kraft Heinz etc.
While welcoming the group to India, Prime Minister discussed his vision for making India a USD 5 trillion economy by 2024. Prime Minister said that the development of world class physical infrastructure and improvements in affordable health-care and providing quality education were some other policy priorities for the Government.

2.Sea lines of communication(gs-2,3)

Context:Rajnath Singh urges Navy to strengthen Coastal Security framework to counter emerging challenges effectively
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh says the Navy has a crucial role to play in the form of safeguarding the Sea Lines of Communication (SLOC) - the economic lifeline to make Indian economy to reach the Five Trillion Dollar mark by 2025.
He was speaking at the Naval Commanders' Conference in New Delhi today. Mr Singh urged the Naval Commanders to continue reviewing procedures and strengthen the Coastal Security framework, so as to counter emerging threats and challenges, effectively. He said the Indian Navy will continue to perform the duty of safeguarding the maritime interests of the nation.
Speaking to media later, Mr Singh said India has never been the aggressor but its armed forces are capable of giving a befitting reply to those who cast an evil eye on it.

3.DHRUV programme(gs-2)

Context:HRD Minister interacts with children for DHRUV programme
Union Minister for Human Resources Development Ramesh Pokhriyal Nishank today interacted with children selected for ambitious DHRUV programme at his residence in New Delhi.
The Minister said, out of 25 crore students in India 60 talented students are selected under this programme. He further said that the government is polishing these bright children with the right orientation to make them shine like the polar stars. He expressed confidence that the whole world will salute the talent of these children. Minister of State for HRD Sanjay Dhotre and other senior officials of HRD ministry were also present on this occasion.
DHRUV is a unique programme to identify talented students and mentor them in the centre of excellence for 14 days so that they can reach their full potential and work for society.

DHRUV programme:

Recently, the Union Human Resource Development Minister has launched the Pradhan Mantri Innovative Learning Programme named ‘DHRUV’.
The objective of the Pradhan Mantri Innovative Learning Programme is to encourage talented students to realize their full potential and henceforth, contribute to society.
The programme is named DHRUV after the Pole Star with the same name. Every student selected under this programme will be called as ‘Dhruv Tara’. The students will thus both shine through their achievements and light a path for others to follow.
The programme will cover two areas namely, Science and Performing Arts.
Overall 60 students will be selected (30 from each area) from across the country.
The students will be broadly from classes 9 to 12 from all schools including government and private.

4.Defence Acquisition Council (DAC)(gs-2,3)

Context:DAC approves procurement of indigenous equipment worth over Rs 3,300 cr for armed forces
Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) has accorded approval for Capital Procurement for the Defence forces amounting to over 3,300 crore rupees of indigenously designed and developed equipment. Maintaining its impetus on the Make in India initiative, the DAC accorded approval for three projects to be indigenously designed, developed and manufactured by the Indian industry.
The projects will be progressed under the Make-II Category and will provide a boost to indigenous research and development in the Private Sector. With this, for the first time the Ministry of Defence has offered complex Military equipment to be designed, developed and manufactured by the Indian private industry.
The first two projects include third-generation Anti-Tank Guided Missiles and the Auxiliary Power Units for the T-72 and T-90 Tanks. The Third-generation Anti-Tank Guided Missiles would provide Fire and Forget and Top Attack capabilities to the troops in an armoured battle. The Auxiliary Power Units would enable incorporation of various upgrades to Fire Control System and Night Fighting capabilities of the Tanks.
The third indigenous project pertains to discrete Electronic Warfare systems for the mountain and High-Altitude terrain, which would be designed and developed by DRDO and manufactured by design cum production partner from the Indian industry.

Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) :

An overarching structure, the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC), under the Defence Minister was constituted for overall guidance of the defence procurement planning process.
The composition of the DAC is as follows:
Defence Minister: Chairman
Minister of State for Defence: Member
Chief of Army Staff: Member
Chief of Naval Staff: Member
Chief of Air Staff: Member
Defence Secretary: Member
Secretary Defence Research & Development: Member
Secretary Defence Production: Member
Chief of Integrated Staff Committees HQ IDS: Member
Director General (Acquisition): Member

5.US India Strategic Partnership Forum(gs-2,3)

Context:India stands for three Ds - Democracy, Demography and Dimaag: PM Modi
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has said that India stands for three Ds - Democracy, Demography and Dimaag. He said, that the target of the government is to ensure Ease of Living. Members of US India Strategic Partnership Forum, USISPF called on the Prime Minister in New Delhi yesterday. It was led by USISPF Chairman, John Chambers.

Mr Modi spoke about the steps taken by the government to ensure ease of doing business like Reduction of corporate tax, labour reforms and the entrepreneurial risk-taking capacity of Indian youth.
The Delegation expressed faith in the vision of the Prime Minister and said that the next five years of India will define the next twenty-five years of the world.
A non-profit organization, USISPF aims at strengthening the India-US strategic partnership in the fields of economic growth, entrepreneurship, employment-creation, and innovation.
Union Minister for Commerce and Industries Piyush Goyal, while addressing the USISPF summit yesterday, said that Indo-US relationship is at their best ever now and trade relations between the two countries have a huge potential which is yet to be tapped. He said India and the US must look at a much larger agreement like a bilateral agreement.

6.HUNAR HAATS(gs-2)

Context:Govt to provide employment to lakhs of craftsmen through Hunar Haat in next 5 yrs: Naqvi
Minister for Minority Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi has said the Government will provide employment opportunities to lakhs of artisans, craftsmen and traditional culinary experts through Hunar Haat in the next the 5 years.
In a statement today, Mr Naqvi said Hunar Haat has proved to be an effective programme to provide employment and employment opportunities to master artisans. More than 2 lakh 50 thousand master artisans, craftsmen and culinary experts have been provided employment opportunities in the last 3 years. These include a large number of women.
The Minister said the next Hunar Haat will be organised at North Central Zone Cultural Centre in Prayagraj from 1st to 10th of next month. All Hunar Haat, to be organised this year and next year will be based on the theme of 'Ek Bharat Shresth Bharat'. Mr Naqvi said his Ministry has decided to organise about 100 'Hunar Haat' in the next five years across the country.

Hunar Haats

Hunar Haatsare organised by Ministry of Minority Affairs under USTTAD (Upgrading the Skills & Training in Traditional Arts/Crafts for Development) scheme.
The USTTAD scheme aims at preserving & promoting the rich heritage of the traditional arts & crafts of the Minority communities. This is one of the flagship programmes of the Ministry.

Significance of Hunar Haats:

Hunar Haats have become a successful mission to provide employment and income generation opportunities with platforms for marketing the products of master artisans, craftsmen and culinary experts belonging to the minority communities.
It envisages at boosting the skill of craftsmen, weavers and artisans who are already engaged in the traditional ancestral work.

7.Universal Immunization Programme(gs-2)

Context:Govt will soon achieve goal of Universal Immunization: Harsh Vardhan
Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan has said, the Government will soon achieve its goal of Universal Immunization of children. The Minister said that, at present, up to 90 per cent of children in India are being given free immunization, but the country's goal is to bring all children under the purview of the Universal Immunization Programme. He was briefing the media in New Delhi today in the run-up to the government's celebration of the Pulse Polio Immunization Programme's Silver Jubilee, which will be held on the 31st of this month.

Universal Immunization Programme:

Ministry/Department : Ministry of Health & Family Welfare
It is a free vaccination program launched by the Union Government in 1985 against vaccine preventable diseases

Under the Universal Immunization Programme (UIP) 7 vaccines are administered. These vaccines are:

Diptheria,
Pertusis,
Tetanus (DPT),
Polio,
Measles,
Bacillus Calmette-Guerin (BCG),
Hepatitis B

4 new vaccines are added later:

Japanese Encephalitis (JE) (in endemic districts)
Rotavirus
Rubella
Polio (injectable)

Mission Indradhanush is the main programme under this.

The Union Ministry of Health & Family Welfare will roll out measles-rubella (MR) vaccine in the Universal Immunisation Programme (UIP) in February 2017

8.Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) (gs-3)

Context:Aviation security regulator BCAS to issue anti-drone regulations within one week
aviation security regulator BCAS will issue anti-drone regulations within a week to counter any rogue drones in the country, a senior official said on Tuesday.
Deputy Director General in the Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) Maheshwar Dayal said, “For anti-drone, we are about to release the specifications in less than a week’s time. It is in the final stages. I think it will be a quantum leap toward secure skies in a very literal sense.”
He was addressing an event called “Smart Safe Secure Skies” organised by industry organisation FICCI and global technology company Thales.

Bureau of Civil Aviation Security (BCAS) :

The Bureau of Civil Aviation Security was initially set up as a Cell in the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) in January 1978 on the recommendation of the Pande Committee constituted in the wake of the hijacking of the Indian Airlines flight on 10th September , 1976. The role of the Cell was to coordinate, monitor, inspect and train personnel in Civil Aviation Security matters. The BCAS was reorganized into an independent department on 1st April , 1987 under the Ministry of Civil Aviation as a sequel to the Kanishka Tragedy in June 1985. The main responsibility of BCAS are lay down standards and measures in respect of security of civil flights at International and domestic airports in India.

Functions

Laying down Aviation Security Standards in accordance with Annex 17 to Chicago Convention of ICAO for airport operators, airlines operators, and their security agencies responsible for implementing AVSEC measures.
Monitoring the implementation of security rules and regulations and carrying out survey of security needs.
Ensure that the persons implementing security controls are appropriately trained and possess all competencies required to perform their duties.
Planning and coordination of Aviation security matters.

Conducting -

Surprise/Dummy checks to test professional efficiency and alertness of security staff.

9.Draft Information Technology [Intermediaries Guidelines (Amendment) Rules] 2018(gs-2)

Context:Court to look into govt. plea for access to WhatsApp chats
The Supreme Court has decided to examine whether social media intermediaries, such as Facebook and WhatsApp, should facilitate the state to access encrypted and private conversations of citizens, purportedly to fi??ght crime and terror. A Bench of Justices Deepak Gupta and Aniruddha Bose on Tuesday transferred to itself several cases pending in various High Courts on the issue and scheduled the hearing for the last week of January 2020 before an appropriate Bench. The court is waiting for the Centre to notify the revised Information Technology Intermediaries Guidelines (Amendment) Rules by January 15. These Rules, said the government, were born out of the present day need to usher in a stricter regime and more cooperation to combat the spread of pornography, sedition, hate, fake news, “antinational activities and terror” online

Draft Information Technology [Intermediaries Guidelines (Amendment) Rules] 2018:

key Features of the Rules

The Intermediary Guidelines Rules, 2011 require intermediaries to prohibit users from hosting certain content on its platform (e.g. obscene content). The Draft Rules prohibit a new category of information, i.e., content which threatens ‘public health or safety’.
Intermediaries must, within 72 hours, provide assistance to any government agency. Further, they must enable tracing of the originator of the information on their platform.
Intermediaries must deploy technology-based automated tools to identify and remove public access to unlawful information. Further, intermediaries with more than fifty lakh users must incorporate a company in India.

Key Issues and Analysis

Intermediaries are required to prohibit publication of content that threatens public health or safety. This may violate the right to free speech under Article 19(1).
Intermediaries are required to deploy automated tools for removing access to unlawful content. This may be contrary to the reasoning of a recent Supreme Court judgement
Intermediaries with more than fifty lakh users must incorporate a company in India. It is unclear as to how this number will be calculated. Therefore, an intermediary will find it difficult to determine if it is required to set up a company in India under this provision.

Intermediaries are entities that store or transmit data on behalf of other persons, and include internet or telecom service providers, and online market places. The Information Technology Act was amended in 2008 to provide exemption to intermediaries from liability for any third party information, among others. Following this, the IT (Intermediary Guidelines) Rules, 2011 were framed under Section 79(2) of the Act to specify the due diligence requirements for intermediaries to claim such exemption.
In 2018, a discussion was raised in Parliament on incidents of violence due to misuse of social media platforms. The Minister of Electronics and Information Technology responded that the Ministry plans to revise the intermediary guidelines to respond to emerging challenges. The Ministry has now released draft amendments to the 2011 Rules, which amend the due diligence requirements for intermediaries

KEY FEATURES

Prohibited Categories: The Rules require each intermediary to publish terms of use. These terms of use are required to prohibit the user from hosting certain content, including content that is grossly harmful or obscene. The Draft Rules prohibit a new category of information which threatens ‘public health or safety’, and includes promotion of cigarettes or tobacco products or consumption of intoxicants including alcohol and nicotine.
Removal of content: Any intermediary must, on receipt of a court order or on being notified by the government, remove access to unlawful content. These are acts related to the sovereignty of India, security, and public order, among others. Such removal must be done by the intermediary within 24 hours. Further, intermediaries must also deploy automated tools to identify and remove public access to unlawful content.
Assistance: Intermediaries must provide assistance to government agencies (based on a lawful order), within 72 hours. Further, they must enable tracing of the originator of the information on its platform.
Registered physical presence: Certain intermediaries must be incorporated in India, under the Companies Act, 2013. These are those with more than fifty lakh users or as notified by the government. They must also have a permanent office in India, and designate persons for coordination with government agencies.

10.NCRB(GS-2,3)

Context: 30% jump in ‘crimes against state’: NCRB

The 2017 Crime in India report, released by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), saw a 30% jump in cases recorded as “offences against the State.” The total number of cases registered in 2017 stood at 9,013 compared to 6,986 cases registered in 2016. The maximum number of these cases were reported from Haryana (2,576), Uttar Pradesh (2,055) and Tamil Nadu (1,802).
While 51 cases of sedition were reported in 2017, there were 24 cases related to imputation and assertions prejudicial to national integration. Under the Official Secrets Act, 18 cases were reported and 901 cases were registered under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.

Context: One in every six missing
children from Bengal: NCRB

One in every six children who go missing in the country is from West Bengal, an analysis of the latest report of the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) points out. According to the report titled Crime In India 2017, released earlier this week, there were 1,19,013 children missing in the country, of which 19,671 (16.5%) were from West Bengal alone

Context: Delhi prisons at 151% capacity,
operating with 50% staff

Delhi prisons have nearly 50% vacant staff posts at various ranks, much below the national average of 68.8%, according to 2017 prison statistics released by the National Crime Records Bureau. The data show that the actual strength of the jail staff?? is 49.8% of the sanctioned strength in Delhi. The Capital’s jails are near the top of the list of understaffed prisons in the country. Jharkhand topped the list at 33.5% while Tripura shared the spot with Delhi

NCRB:

NCRB is nodal agency under Union Home Ministry for authentic source of data on crime on various parameters including accidents, suicides from across all the states of the country and prisons for policy matters and research.
It was established in 1986 as the central police organisation.
It is headquartered in New Delhi.
It is implementing and monitoring agency of Crime & Criminal Tracking Network System (CCTNS), a Mission Mode Project under the National e-Governance Plan of Government.
It also imparts training in Information Technology (IT) and Finger Print Science for Indian Police Officers as well Foreign Police officers.
NCRB publishes 4 annual publications on Crime, Prison Statistics, Accidental Deaths & Suicides and Finger Prints. These publications serve as principal reference points on crime statistics.

11.2019 Ozone Hole is the Smallest on Record Since Its Discovery(gs-1,3)

Abnormal weather patterns in the upper atmosphere over Antarctica dramatically limited ozone depletion in September and October, resulting in the smallest ozone hole observed since 1982, NASA and NOAA scientists reported today.
The annual ozone hole reached its peak extent of 6.3 million square miles (16. 4 million square kilometers) on Sept. 8, and then shrank to less than 3.9 million square miles (10 million square kilometers) for the remainder of September and October, according to NASA and NOAA satellite measurements. During years with normal weather conditions, the ozone hole typically grows to a maximum area of about 8 million square miles in late September or early October.
“It’s great news for ozone in the Southern Hemisphere,” said Paul Newman, chief scientist for Earth Sciences at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. “But it’s important to recognize that what we’re seeing this year is due to warmer stratospheric temperatures. It’s not a sign that atmospheric ozone is suddenly on a fast track to recovery.”
Ozone is a highly reactive molecule comprised of three oxygen atoms that occurs naturally in small amounts. Roughly seven to 25 miles above Earth’s surface, in a layer of the atmosphere called the stratosphere, the ozone layer is a sunscreen, shielding the planet from potentially harmful ultraviolet radiation that can cause skin cancer and cataracts, suppress immune systems and also damage plants.
The Antarctic ozone hole forms during the Southern Hemisphere’s late winter as the returning Sun’s rays start ozone-depleting reactions. These reactions involve chemically active forms of chlorine and bromine derived from man-made compounds. The chemistry that leads to their formation involves chemical reactions that occur on the surfaces of cloud particles that form in cold stratospheric layers, leading ultimately to runaway reactions that destroy ozone molecules. In warmer temperatures fewer polar stratospheric clouds form and they don’t persist as long, limiting the ozone-depletion process..