Smuggling in India Report 2019-20 .
Union
Finance Minister releases the Smuggling in India Report 2019-20 which analyses
organised smuggling trends on Gold and Foreign Currency, Narcotic Drugs,
Security, Environment and Commercial Frauds.
The
report has been compiled by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI).
The
Directorate of Revenue Intelligence has detected 412 cases of smuggling
resulting in the seizure of contraband worth ₹1,949 crore in 2019-20.
It
arrested 837 economic offenders and also unearthed 761 complex cases of Customs
duty evasion amounting to ₹2,183 crore.
The
Union Government has introduced a new digital platform called 'CO-WIN' for
COVID-19 vaccine delivery.
There
will be a new mobile app as well with the same name that will allow people to
register for the vaccine.
About the platform:
The
platform will be used for recording vaccine data and will form a database of
healthcare workers too. Presently being all COVID-19 related data necessary for
the delivery of the vaccine is uploaded on the CO-WIN platform.
It
will have separate modules for administrator, registration, vaccination,
beneficiary acknowledgement and reports. Once people start to register for the
app, the platform will upload bulk data on co-morbidity provided by local
authorities.
The
CO-WIN app is not available yet for smartphone users publicly.
The
different modules of the platform cater to the entire process of COVID-19
vaccination starting from registration to verification.
India’s Population with Disabilities .
December
3 is Marked by the UN as International Day of Persons with Disabilities in a
bid to promote a more Inclusive and Accessible world for the differently-abled
and to raise Awareness for their Rights.
Disability in India:
•
About 2.2% of India’s population lives with some kind of physical or mental
disability, as per the National Statistics Office report on disability released
last year.
How are the disabled identified?
•
Until the 2011 census, there were questions on seven kinds of disabilities in
the questionnaire.
•This list of disabilities was expanded to 21 when the Rights of People with Disabilities was introduced in 2016.
•
Accordingly, the 2019 report included questions to identify people with
temporary loss of ability as well as Neurological and Blood Disorders in
addition.
•
The earlier definition included mental retardation and permanent inability to
move, speak, hear and see.
•
Significantly, the revised definition recognizes deformities and injuries of
acid attack victims as disabilities, entitling them to various Relief Measures.
Who are disabled and in what way?
•
Rural men had the highest prevalence of disability in India, according to the
NSO report.
•
A higher proportion of men were disabled in India compared with women, and
disability was more prevalent in rural areas than in urban areas.
•
Inability to move without assistance was the most common disability. More men
experienced locomotor disability than women.
•
These numbers were self-reported. In other words, the respondents were asked if
they experienced any difficulty in performing tasks like moving, talking, etc.
•
Are these measures in line with those from other surveys?
•
The 2011 census estimated that the number of people with disabilities in India
is close to
2.68
crore (or 2.2% of the population) — that is more than the entire population of
Australia.
•
This Number was based on the older definition of disability, yet the proportion
of disabled people in the population is not different from the 2019 NSO report,
which used the expanded definition of disability.
•
Other metrics for evaluating disability have provided different estimates.
• A group of doctors from AIIMS found that alternate questionnaires like the Rapid Assessment of Disability have resulted in a prevalence ranging from 1.6%-43.3%.
How can the Range be so Wide?
•
The proportion of population facing disability becomes bigger as one move from
a narrow definition to a broader one.
•
For instance, if one defines disability as the difficulty in accessing public
services for all kinds of Reasons, even Social or Economic, then the Proportion
goes up.
Why is it Important to Map Disabled
People?
•
Like other disadvantaged groups, the disabled in India are entitled to some
benefits, ranging from reservation in educational institutes to concessions on
railway tickets.
•
To claim these benefits, they have to furnish certificates as proof of
disability.
•
At the macro level, data on the prevalence and type of disability is useful
while making allocations for welfare schemes.
Lebanon Reform, Recovery and Reconstruction Framework (3RF)
.
Lebanon
Reform, Recovery and Reconstruction Framework is part of a comprehensive
people-centered response to the massive explosion on the Port of Beirut in August
2020.
It
has been launched by the European Union, UN and the World Bank for a period of
18-month.
The
3RF aims to help Lebanon achieve three central goals in response to the Beirut
port explosion.
A
people-centered recovery. Construction of critical assets, services, and
infrastructure.
Restore
people's trust in governmental institutions by improving governance.
Bangladesh signs first Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA) since its independence.
Bangladesh
signed its first Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA) with Bhutan allowing duty
free access to a range of goods between the two countries.
This
is the first PTA Bangladesh has signed with any country in the world.
In
1971, Bhutan was the first country in the world, followed by India as the
second, to recognise Bangladesh as an independent country.
The
trade volume between the two countries is approximately 50 million dollars with
7.56 million of export and 42.09 million import into Bangladesh.
Bangladesh
is expected to sign 11 more PTAs and Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) with
countries like Indonesia and Nepal by June next year.
Light Detection and Ranging Survey technique.
National
High-Speed Rail Corporation Limited will be adopting LiDAR technique to conduct
ground survey for the proposed Delhi-Varanasi High Speed Rail corridor.
Light
Detection and Ranging Survey (LiDAR) is a remote sensing technology that uses
light in the form of a pulsed laser to measure ranges(distances) to a target.
These
light pulses are combined with other data recorded by the airborne system to
generate precise, three-dimensional information about the shape of the Earth
and its surface characteristics.
It
is similar to radar and sonar (that use radio and sound waves, respectively).
Jehan Daruvala .
Jehan
Daruvala became the first Indian to win a Formula 2 race during the Sakhir
Grand Prix on Sunday.
A thrilling battle against F2 champion Mick Schumacher and Daniel Ticktum saw the 22-year-old Indian emerge on top in the support race of the season-ending Formula 1 Grand Prix.
FIA Formula 2 Championship:
The
FIA Formula 2 Championship is a second-tier single-seater racing championship
organised by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA).
The
championship was introduced in 2017, following the rebranding of the long-term
Formula One feeder series GP2.
It
is designed to make racing affordable for the teams and to make it an ideal
training ground for life in Formula One.
Malayan Giant Squirrel .
The
Zoological Survey of India (ZSI) has recently projected that numbers of the
Malayan Giant
Squirrel
could decline by 90% in India by 2050, and it could be extinct by then if
urgent steps are not taken.
Highlights:
•
Its Scientific Name is Ratufa bicolor.
•
It is one of the world’s largest squirrel species that has a dark upper body,
pale under parts, and a long, bushy tail.
•
Unlike the nocturnal flying squirrels, giant squirrels are diurnal (active
during the day), but arboreal (tree-dwelling) and herbivorous like the flying
squirrels.
•
India is home to three giant squirrel species and the other two are Indian
Giant Squirrel and Grizzled Giant Squirrel which are found in peninsular India.
•
It is found mostly in evergreen and semi-evergreen forests, from plains to
hills at elevations of 50 m to 1,500 m above sea level.
Malayan
Peninsula, Sumatra, and Java.
•
In India, is found in the forests of Northeast and is currently found in parts
of West
Bengal,
Sikkim, Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, and Nagaland.
•
Of the roughly 1.84 lakh sq km of the squirrel’s range in Asia, about 8.5% is
in India.
•
It is considered to be a forest health indicator species.
•
An indicator species provides information on the overall condition of the
ecosystem and of other species in that ecosystem. They reflect the quality and
changes in environmental conditions as well as aspects of community
composition.
•
Its Conservation Status are IUCN Red List: Near Threatened, CITES: Appendix II
and Wildlife Protection Act, 1972: Schedule I.
No comments:
Post a Comment