Current Affairs 15th-17th July 2019
Important Current Affairs
Current Affairs 15th-17th July 2019
The city of Fuzhou (China) will host the 44th session of the World Heritage Committee in 2020
On July 9,2019, In the event of 43rd session of the World Heritage Committee meeting 2019 in Baku, Azerbaijan( June 30 to July 10,2019), the UNESCO(United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) announced that the Chinese city of Fuzhou will host the 44th session of the World Heritage Committee in 2020.
Key points:
i. Tian Xuejun, Chinese Vice Minister of Education was elected as chairman of the 44th session of the committee. The chairman of the 43rd session was Abulfas Garayev.
ii. During the meeting, the committee inscribed a total of 29 new sites on the World Heritage List (one in Africa, 2 in the Arab States, 10 in the Asia Pacific region, 15 in Europe and North America and one in Latin America).
iii. The pink city or Walled City of Jaipur of Rajasthan also featured in the prestigious list, which now features 1,121 sites in 167 countries.
iv. Addition &Removal: The sites of Humberstone and Santa Laura Saltpeter Works, Chile and Birthplace of Jesus: the Church of the Nativity and Pilgrimage Route, Bethlehem, Palestine has been removed & The Islands and Protected Areas of the Gulf of California, Mexico added to the List of World Heritage in Danger.
v. Dilmun Burial Mounds (Bahrain), the ancient Ferrous Metallurgy Sites of Burkina Faso and the iconic site of Babylon (Iraq), the centre of the neo-Babylonian Empire and the site of the Hanging Gardens(Iraq), one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World were also added in the list.
India’s ambitious moon mission, Chandrayaan-2 called off due to a technical glitch
India’s ambitious moon mission, Chandrayaan-2 has been called off due to a technical snag in just 56 minutes and 24 seconds before its scheduled launch. Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) confirmed that the launch had been canceled after a technical snag was detected in one of the launch systems of the GSLVMkIII-M1 (Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle Mark III).
Key points:
i. ISRO aims to touch down on the South Pole of the Moon where no country had gone before and it will announce a new date for the next launch.
ii. GSLVMkIII-M1 is a three-stage vehicle with two solid motor strap-ons (S200), a liquid propellant core stage (L110) and a cryogenic stage (C-25).
iii. Chandrayaan-2 has three modules including an orbiter, a lander (Vikram), and a rover (Pragyan).
iv. Earlier ISRO called off the GSLV D-5 mission due to a leak in the fuel system of the launch vehicle during the filling up of the liquid propellant in 2014.
First-ever image of quantum entanglement “Bell entanglement” unveiled by the physicists of Glasgow University
A team of physicists from the University of Glasgow has taken a photo of a strong form of quantum entanglement called Bell entanglement. It has captured visual evidence of an elusive phenomenon which a baffled Albert Einstein once called “spooky action at a distance”.
Key Points:
i. The photo points out two photons interacting and sharing physical states for a brief instant – an event that occurs regardless of the actual distance between the particles.
ii. This information was published in the paper titled ‘Imaging Bell-type nonlocal behavior’ in the journal Science Advances.
iii. The lead author of the paper is Dr. Paul-Antoine Moreau from the University of Glasgow’s School of Physics and Astronomy.
As per the first comprehensive survey of BSI, India is a home to 1256 species of orchid
The Botanical Survey of India (BSI) in its First Comprehensive Census of Orchids of India stated that the country has 1256 species of orchid or taxa. They belong to 155 genera and 388 species which are endemic to India. The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) had unveiled the details of all species in the publication named “Orchids of India : A Pictorial Guide”.
Key Points:
i. The publication is authored by Paramjit Singh, former director of BSI, A.A. Mao, Director of BSI, scientists S.S. Sprint, S.Okay. Singh, D.Okay. Agarwala and J.S. Jalal.
ii. Arunachal Pradesh with 612 species has the highest number of orchid species, followed by Sikkim with 560 species and Darjeeling, West Bengal with 479.
iii. The entire Orchid Family is listed under Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) stating any trade of wild orchid is banned globally.
iv. They are classified into 3 forms:
- Epiphytic: They are the plants growing on another plants together with rock boulders and sometimes termed lithophyte.
- Terrestrial: They are the plants growing on land and climbers.
- Mycoheterotrophic: They are the plants which derive nutrients from mycorrhizal fungi which are hooked up to the roots of a vascular plant.
vi. Out of the 60% orchids discovered in India, 757 species are epiphytic, 447 are terrestrial and 43 are mycoheterotrophic.
World Youth Skills Day 2019 observed on July 15
World Youth Skills Day (WYSD) was observed on July 15, 2019. It is celebrated to create awareness on the importance of investing in youth skills development. The theme for the year is “Learning to learn for life and work”.
Key Points:
i. The United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) had declared July 15 as WYSD in November 2014. As a part of the celebration, an exhibit entitled “Inspiring youth and improving perception for skills” held between 9-18 July 2019 at the Vienna Café Corridor in the UN Headquarters, New York. It was organized by WorldSkills and UNESCO, in partnership with the Permanent Missions of Sri Lanka and Portugal.
ii. On this occasion, a video campaign was launched where skilled people need to share in a 1-minute video depicting what motivated them to learn a skill, what they learned about themselves in the process, and how they continue to master their skills every day.
WYSD in India
i. On the occasion of WYSD, National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) partnered with Canada-based BetterU to provide opportunities for India’s youth to gain access to learning at affordable prices.
ii. The aim is to integrate NSDC’s current solutions and technologies and collaborate with its partners to strengthen current systems.
iii. The fourth anniversary of the Skill India Mission was also observed with the main function held in New Delhi.
Kartarpur Sahib pilgrim corridor
Context: The second round of talks with Pakistan on the modalities for operationalization of the Kartarpur Sahib Corridor was recently held at Wagah, Pakistan.
Pakistan has agreed in principle to allow visa-free, year-long travel to the Sikh shrine.
Concerns raised by India:
India conveyed its concerns to Pakistan on the possible attempts by individuals and groups to disrupt the Kartarpur Sahib pilgrimage and the possible flooding of the Dera Baba Nanak due to earth-filled embankment road or a causeway proposed by Islamabad.
What is the “Kartarpur Corridor” project?
The corridor – often dubbed as the “Road to Peace” – will connect Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Pakistan’s Kartarpur with Dera Baba Nanak shrine in India’s Gurdaspur district. The construction of the corridor will allow visa-free access to pilgrims from India. The proposal for the corridor has been on the table since 1988, but tense relations between the two countries led to the delay.
Background:
The Union Cabinet has already approved the building and development of the Kartarpur corridor from Dera Baba Nanak in Gurdaspur district to the international border, in order to facilitate pilgrims from India to visit Gurdwara Darbar Sahib Kartarpur on the banks of the Ravi river, in Pakistan, where Shri Guru Nanak Dev ji spent eighteen years.
Implementation:
The Kartarpur corridor will be implemented as an integrated development project with Government of India funding, to provide smooth and easy passage, with all the modern amenities.
The shrine:
- The gurdwara in Kartarpur stands on the bank of the Ravi, about 120 km northeast of Lahore.
- It was here that Guru Nanak assembled a Sikh community and lived for 18 years until his death in 1539.
- The shrine is visible from the Indian side, as Pakistani authorities generally trim the elephant grass that would otherwise obstruct the view.
- Indian Sikhs gather in large numbers for darshan from the Indian side, and binoculars are installed at Gurdwara Dera Baba Nanak.
Why is India opting for overseas bonds?
Context: The government has announced its plans to raise a portion of its gross borrowing from overseas markets. The government and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will reportedly finalise the plans for the overseas issue of sovereign bonds by September. While several commentators have argued that this is a risky move, the government itself is convinced that it will help boost private investment in the country.
What is an overseas bond issue?
A government bond or sovereign bond is a form of debt that the government undertakes wherein it issues bonds with the promise to pay periodic interest payments and also repay the entire face value of the bond on the maturity date. So far, the government has only issued bonds in the domestic market.
What are the benefits of an overseas bond issue?
The government has been arguing that the quantum of its borrowing within India is ‘crowding out’ the private sector. In other words, it is saying that government borrowing is at such a level that there are not enough funds available for the private sector to adequately meet its credit and investment needs.
If the private sector cannot borrow adequately, then it cannot invest as it wants to, and that cripples one major engine of economic growth.
Therefore, borrowing overseas allows the government to raise funds in such a way that there is enough domestic credit available for the private sector.
What are the risks?
- With this, India might follow the path of some Central and South American countries such as Mexico and Brazil. In the 1970s, several of these countries borrowed heavily overseas when the global market was flush with liquidity. But then, when their currencies depreciated sharply a decade later, these countries were in big trouble as they could not repay their debt.
- India is not likely to be viewed as a risky proposition by the international market and so is likely to fetch an attractive rate for the bonds. Cheap and plentiful funds, however, should not encourage the government to borrow too heavily from abroad.
- This would also lead to a quicker increase to its foreign exchange reserves, which would lead to a stronger rupee at a time when it is already appreciating against the dollar. A stronger rupee would encourage imports at a time when the government is trying to curb them, and discourage exports at a time when they are being encouraged.
- On the other hand, a rupee depreciation for whatever external reason would prove even more disastrous as it would make it far more expensive for India to repay its external debt.
- Another problem with an overseas bond issue is that the government would not be able to inflate itself out of trouble. That is, in the domestic market, if the government does ever reach the stage where it is finding it difficult to repay its debt, it can simply print more money, let inflation rise quickly and repay its debt. This is not an option in an overseas bond issue. The Indian government cannot print foreign currency to repay its debt.
Pradhan Mantri Shram Yogi Maan-dhan
Why in News: Around 30 lakh persons enrolled under PM Shram Yogi Maandhan Scheme
The union government notified the eligibility criteria for its mega pension scheme - Pradhan Mantri Shram Yogi Maan-dhan
They announced in the budget 2019 for unorganized sector workers.
People who are at 40 years or already covered under a pension with part contribution by the government are not eligible for the scheme.
Only one spouse will be eligible for family pension in case of demise of the pensioner.
The Government via notification dated February 7, 2019 notified the rules and other criteria for the mega pension scheme announced by the Finance Minister .
The mega pension scheme is known as Pradhan Mantri Shram Yogi Maan-dhan.
About Pradhan Mantri Shram Yogi Maan-dhan
The scheme will come into force from 15 February, 2019
As per the notification the Scheme shall apply to the unorganised workers.
They are working or engaged as home- based workers, street vendors, mid-day meal workers, head loaders, brick kiln workers, cobblers, rag pickers, domestic workers, washermen, rickshaw pullers, landless laborers, own account workers, agricultural workers, construction workers, etc.
To join the mega pension scheme, the monthly income of unorganized worker should not exceed Rs 15,000.
The eligible person should have a savings bank account and Aadhaar number.
The age of workers should not be less than 18 years
They should not more than 40 years of age.
During the years when pension is received by subscriber, if he/she dies, then spouse shall be eligible to receive 50 percent of the pension received by the subscriber.
The Children of the subscriber will not be allowed to receive any pension benefit after his/her death.
The minimum monthly pension assured in the scheme is Rs 3000 which will be paid to the subscriber after attaining the age of 60 years.
Blue flag project
Context: The Union Environment Ministry has selected 12 beaches in India to vie for a ‘Blue Flag’ certification, an international recognition conferred on beaches that meet certain criteria of cleanliness and environmental propriety.
These beaches are at Shivrajpur (Gujarat), Bhogave (Maharashtra), Ghoghla (Diu), Miramar (Goa), Kasarkod and Padubidri (Karnataka), Kappad (Kerala), Eden (Puducherry), Mahabalipuram (Tamil Nadu), Rushikonda (Andhra Pradesh), Golden (Odisha), and Radhanagar (Andaman & Nicobar Islands).
About Blue flag program:
The Blue Flag Programme for beaches and marinas is run by the international, non-governmental, non-profit organization FEE (the Foundation for Environmental Education).
It started in France in 1985 and has been implemented in Europe since 1987, and in areas outside Europe since 2001, when South Africa joined. Japan and South Korea are the only countries in South and southeastern Asia to have Blue Flag beaches. Spain tops the list with 566 such beaches; Greece and France follow with 515 and 395, respectively.
Criteria:
There are nearly 33 criteria that must be met to qualify for a Blue Flag certification, such as the water meeting certain quality standards, having waste disposal facilities, being disabled- friendly, have first aid equipment, and no access to pets in the main areas of the beach. Some criteria are voluntary and some compulsory.
Honey Mission:
Context: Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) has distributed over 1.10 lakh bee-boxes across India in last one and half years under its Honey Mission. This has created over 11,000 new jobs for the farmers, unemployed youths and tribal people; 430 metric tonnes of honey worth Rs 4 crore has been extracted through these bee-boxes only.
About Honey Mission:
It was launched in August 2017. Under this mission KVIC provides beekeepers:
- Practical training about examination of honeybee colonies.
- Acquaintance with apicultural equipments.
- Identification and management of bee enemies and diseases.
- Honey extraction and wax purification.
- Management of bee colonies in spring, summer, monsoon, autumn and winter seasons.
- Loans for setting up processing units, packaging units and labelling units for honey.
Russia Launches Spektr-RG
Context: Spektr-RG is a Russian–German high-energy astrophysics space observatory launched recently. It follows on from the Spektr-R satellite telescope launched in 2011.
About Spektr- RG:
The Spektrum-Röntgen-Gamma mission, also known as Spektr-RG, is a joint project between the Russian space agency, Roscosmos, and the German space agency, DLR.
Position: Spektr-RG will be placed in a stable orbit in space called a Lagrange point (specifically, L2), where the gravitational forces of two large objects — in this case, the sun and the Earth — balance each other out.
This location will allow Spektr-RG to perform its observations while using a minimal amount of fuel.
Objectives: The spacecraft is expected to detect 100,000 galaxy clusters, 3 million supermassive black holes, tens of thousands of star-forming galaxies, the presence of plasma (superheated gas) and many more types of objects.
The observatory includes two X-ray mirror telescopes, called ART-XC and eROSITA.
A key goal of Spektr-RG will be to investigate the mysterious cosmic components referred to as “dark matter” and “dark energy”.
Jan Jagrukta Abhiyaan:
It is a campaign to be launched by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare in Delhi to sensitize and mobilise the community on measures for prevention and control of Vector Borne Diseases (VBDs) like Malaria, Dengue and Chikungunya.
Upliftment of Women of Backward Communities:
National Backward Classes Finance and Development Corporation (NBCFDC), an organization under the aegis of Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment has the following two women specific schemes for targeted women whose annual family income is less than Rs. 3.00 lakh per annum:
- Mahila Samriddhi Yojana: To provide Micro Finance to women entrepreneurs of Backward Classes.
- New Swarnima Scheme for Women: Term Loan to inculcate the spirit of self-dependence among the women of Backward Classes.
Open Acreage Licensing Policy
Context: Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas signs contracts for 32 blocks awarded under Open Acreage Licensing Programme (OALP) Bid Rounds – II & III.
What is Open Acreage Licensing Policy (OALP)?
The OALP, a critical part of the Hydrocarbon Exploration and Licensing Policy, provides uniform licences for exploration and production of all forms of hydrocarbons, enabling contractors to explore conventional as well as unconventional oil and gas resources.
Fields are offered under a revenue-sharing model and throw up marketing and pricing freedom for crude oil and natural gas produced.
- Under the OALP, once an explorer selects areas after evaluating the National Data Repository (NDR) and submits the EoI, it is to be put up for competitive bidding and the entity offering the maximum share of oil and gas to the government is awarded the block.
- NDR has been created to provide explorers’ data on the country’s repositories, allowing them to choose fields according to their capabilities. Data received through the National Seismic Programme, an in-depth study of 26 sedimentary basins, are continuously being added to the NDR.
Background:
The Hydrocarbon Exploration and Licensing Policy (HELP) replacing the erstwhile New Exploration Licensing Policy (NELP) was approved in March 2016 and the Open Acreage Licensing Programme (OALP) along with the National Data Repository (NDR) were launched in June 2017 as the key drivers to accelerate the Exploration and Production (E&P) activities in India.
The main features of HELP are Revenue Sharing Contract, single Licence for exploration and production of conventional as well as unconventional Hydrocarbon resources, marketing & pricing freedom, etc.
What was the need for the new Hydrocarbon Exploration and Licensing Policy (HELP)?
- In 2015-2016, India’s crude oil import dependence rose to 81% from 78.5%. In last five years, India has seen overall decline in exploration and production of conventional resources.
- New Exploration Licensing Policy (NELP) created in 1997 ended the state dominance and created a competitive environment leading to liberalization of oil and gas exploration and production industry. However, it failed to keep the momentum of production growth and attracting the foreign investment.
- Bureaucratic hurdles like multiple approvals and sanctions, cost overruns, and disputes led to some oil majors leaving their awarded blocks and exit from the space.
Google India's 'Internet Saathi' programme to empower rural women
Google India's 'Internet Saathi' programme aimed to empower rural women to use the Internet.
They added two more states namely Punjab and Odisha.
The programme reached 2.6 lakh villages in 20 states.
A pilot project in 2015 along with Tata Trusts, 'Internet Saathi' programme
The main focus is on on educating women on how to use the Internet.
These women impart training to other women in their community and neighbouring villages.
In the four-year journey, trained 70,000 "Internet Saathis" are using the Internet to drive positive change in their communities already benefited over 2.6 crore fellow women.
There are also those who are driving awareness for issues like girl child education, menstrual hygiene and more.
In Punjab, the programme covers around 5,000 villages.
In Odisha, it will cover over 16,000 villages.
Raman Kalyanakrishnan, Head of Strategy at Tata Trusts
The women in rural India are provided with adequate opportunities and knowledge.
This has been made possible through the Internet Saathi programme.
About Google Interview
Google interviewed over 2,500 people across rural India to understand the impact that providing access has on their livelihood.
The study showed that about 70 percent of Internet Saathis are seen as a source of information in their village people are coming to them consistently for answers to help children with schoolwork
Eight in 10 Saathis and their beneficiaries believe people in their village respect them more.
Three in 10 Saathis and two in 10 beneficiaries have set up some form of business. This, in turn, has provided economic growth, with the business often earning between Rs 3,000-Rs 5,000 every month.
The US celebrated the 50th anniversary of Apollo 11 on July 16, 2019
The US celebrated the50th anniversary of Apollo 11 on July 16, 2019. On July 16, 1969, the Apollo 11 crew lifted off in a Huntsville-designed Saturn V rocket for a historic visit to the moon.
Inorder to mark the day, thousands of model rockets have been launched in Huntsville, Alabama. NASA Celebrated 50th Anniversary of Historic Moon Landing with Live TV Broadcast, Events.
Apollo 11:
Launch date: July 16, 1969
Launch site: Kennedy Space Center LC-39A
Landing date: July 20, 1969
Return launch: July 21, 1969
Landing date: July 24, 1969
Landing site: North Pacific Ocean
Crew members: Neil A. Armstrong, Michael Collins, Edwin E. Aldrin, Jr.
Apollo 11 spaceflight was the manned mission to land on the Moon. It was launched on July 16, 1969. Commander Neil Armstrong became the first person to step onto the lunar surface six hours later on July 21. Aldrin joined him 19 minutes later. The astronauts collected 47.5 pounds (21.5 kg) of lunar material to bring back to Earth.