Parliament’s Winter Session Cancelled due to COVID 19 pandemic .
Indian
Minister of Parliamentary Affairs has informed that winter session will not be
held in the Parliament view of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The
government also indicated that it will be appropriate to convene the budget
session in January next year.
Sessions
of parliament is the period during which a House meets almost every day
uninterruptedly to manage the business. There are typically three sessions in a
year.
It
is summoned by the President.In general, the sessions are as follows:
1.
Budget session (February to May)
2.
Monsoon session (July to September)
3.
Winter session (November to December)
According
to Article 85, the maximum gap between two sessions of Parliament cannot be
more than six months.
National Hydrology Project.
Recently,
Ministry of Jal Shakti held mid-term review of National Hydrology Project
(NHP).
NHP
was started in 2016 as a Central Sector Scheme for a period of 8 years.
The
project aims at improving the extent, reliability and accessibility of water
resources information and to strengthen capacity of targeted water resource
management institutions in India.
1.
Central and state implementing agencies responsible for surface and/or
groundwater planning and management.
2.
Users of water resource information system.
Prime Minister’s Special Scholarship Scheme .
Extending
support to J&K and Ladakh students, AICTE has decided to release the
instalment of Rs. 20,000/- as maintenance allowance under Prime Minister’s
Special Scholarship Scheme (PMSSS). The decision has been taken to support
& empower students for completing their online studies.
Under
the PMSSS Scheme, the youths of J&K and Ladakh are supported by way of
scholarship in two parts namely the academic fee & maintenance allowance.
AICTE
has already released the entire academic fee for the year 2020-21 to all the
institutions. The maintenance allowance had been fully released as per scheme
guidelines till the end of last academic year 2019-20.
Subsequently
due to COVID-19, the academic institutions across India were closed and only
online classes are going on. Since there is no hostel & mess expenditure involved,
the maintenance allowance was suspended, till such time students physically
join the institutes.
Background:
An
Expert Group was constituted by the Prime Minister for enhancing employment
opportunity among youths of J&K and Ladakh and formulate job opportunities
in public and private sectors.
Subsequently,
Prime Minister’s Special Scholarship Scheme (PMSSS) is being implemented by the
All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), New Delhi.
The
Scheme aims to build the capacities of the youths of J&K and Ladakh by
Educating, Enabling and empowering them to compete in the normal course.
International Migrants day .
United
Every year, the International Migrants Day is celebrated on December 18 by the
United Nations and several other international organizations.
This
year, the International Migrants Day is celebrated under the theme: Reimagining
Human Mobility.
December
18 was chosen because on this date, the International Convention on the
Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of their families
was adopted.
The
resolution to celebrate International Migrants Day was adopted in 1990 during
the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant
Workers and Members of their families.
The
day is celebrated by the United Nations to highlight the contributions made by
the migrants.
According
to UN, there are roughly around 272 million migrants in the world. This
includes 41 million internally displaced persons.
Raja Chari.
Raja
Chari is among the three astronauts selected by the National Aeronautics and
Space Administration (NASA) and the European Space Agency (ESA) to fly to the
International Space Station (ISS) as part of the SpaceX Crew-3 mission.
The
Indian-American will command the mission, while Tom Marsh burn will serve as
pilot and Matthias Maurer as a mission specialist.
A
fourth member will be picked to join the crew on the mission, which is expected
to launch in the fall of 2021.
Who is Raja Chari?
Earlier
this month, he was selected as a team member for NASA’s Artemis programme,
making him eligible for assignments to future lunar missions.
Under
the programme, NASA wants to send the next man and first woman to the Moon by
2024.
India drops two ranks in Human Development Index.
India
dropped two ranks in the United Nations’Human Development Index this year,
standing at 131 out of 189 countries.
However,
if the Index were adjusted to assess the planetary pressures caused by each
nation’s development, India would move up eight places in the ranking, according
to the report.
About:
For
the first time, the United Nations Development Programme introduced a new
metric to reflect the impact caused by each country’s per-capita carbon
emissions and its material footprint, which measures the amount of fossil fuels,
metals and other resources used to make the goods and services it consumes.
The
HDI itself is an assessment of a nation’s health, education and standards of
living. Although this year’s report covers 2019 only, and does not account for
the impact of COVID, it projected that in 2020, global HDI would fall below for
the first time in the three decades since the Index was introduced.
According
to the report published by the United Nations Development Programme on December
15, India’s gross national income per capita fell to $6,681 in 2019 from $6,829
in 2018 on purchasing power parity (PPP) basis.
Purchasing
power parity or PPP is a measurement of prices in different countries that uses
the prices of specific goods to compare the absolute purchasing power of the
countries’ currencies.
US Sanctions Turkey on S-400, Cautions India, Others on
Buying Russian Arms.
United
States imposing sanctions on Turkey for buying the Russian-made S400 Triumf
anti-missile system.
The
US has reiterated its warning to India and other countries about acquiring
equipment from Russia.
India
signed a deal valued at $5.43 billion in 2018 for five units of the S-400
anti-missile system defying the US.
US
has repeatedly tried to dissuade India from by the Russian system, while
dangling the threat of sanctions under CAATSA and the incentive of an
alternative anti-missile system.
The
US has refused to give a blanket exemption for India from the CAATSA, but it
has continued selling arms to India.
What
is the S-400 air defence missile system?
The
S-400 Triumf, (NATO calls it SA-21 Growler), is a mobile, surface-to-air
missile system (SAM) designed by Russia.
It
is the most dangerous operationally deployed modern long-range SAM (MLR SAM) in
the world, considered much ahead of the US-developed Terminal High Altitude
Area Defense system (THAAD).
The
system can engage all types of aerial targets including aircraft, unmanned
aerial vehicles (UAV and ballistic and cruise missiles within the range of
400km, at an altitude of up to 30km.
The
system can track 100 airborne targets and engage six of them simultaneously.
It
represents the fourth generation of long-range Russian SAMs, and the successor
to the S-200 and S-300. The S-400’s mission set and capabilities are roughly
comparable to the famed US Patriot system.
The
S-400 Triumf air defence system integrates a multifunction radar, autonomous
detection and targeting systems, anti-aircraft missile systems, launchers, and
command and control centre. It is capable of firing three types of missiles to
create a layered defence.
The
S-400 is two-times more effective than previous Russian air defence systems and
can be deployed within five minutes. It can also be integrated into the
existing and future air defence units of the Air Force, Army, and the Navy.
The
first S-400 systems became operational in 2007 and is responsible for defending
Moscow. It has been deployed in Syria in 2015, to guard Russian and Syrian
naval and air assets. Russia has also stationed S-400 units in Crimea to strengthen
Russia’s position on the recently annexed peninsula.
Mamallapuram.
Mamallapuram
or Mahabalipuram is known as a historic city and UNESCO World Heritage site is
situated in the state of Tamil Nadu.
It
was one of the major port cities by the 7th century within the Pallava kingdom
and was the second capital of the Pallavas.
King
Narasimha Varman 1 gave the title Mamalla which means ‘the great wrestler’.
Architectural
heritage of Mamallapuram: Shore Temple; Descent of the Ganges/Arjuna’s penance;
PanchaRatha, Varaha Cave etc.
Recently,
Financial Stability and Development Council (FSDC) discussed measures that
could be taken in next budget to accelerate growth while maintaining financial
stability.
It
was setup in 2010 for strengthening and institutionalizing mechanism for:
Maintaining
financial stability,
Enhancing
inter-regulatory coordination and
Promoting
financial sector development.
The
FSDC is chaired by the Union Finance Minister. And the members are the Minister
of State, in charge of Department of Economic Affairs, Heads of all Financial
Sector Regulators (RBI, SEBI, PFRDA, IRDAI, IBBI); Secretaries to various
departments etc.
12th Green Rating for Integrated Habitat Assessment
(GRIHA) Summit.
Indian
Vice President virtually inaugurated the 12th GRIHA (Green Rating for
Integrated Habitat Assessment) Summit, organised by the GRIHA Council from
Hyderabad.
The
Theme of the 12th GRIHA Virtual Summit is Rejuvenating Resilient Habitats.
GRIHA
is the national rating system of India for any completed construction on the
building’senvironmental performance (like energy consumption, waste generation,
renewable energy adoption, among other points).
GRIHA
rating has been acknowledged as the tool to evaluate reduction in emission
intensity through habitats, as part of mitigation strategy for combating
climate change in India’s Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).
It
was developed by The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI).
Indian
Space Research Organisation (ISRO) launches Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle
(PSLV) C-50 carrying CMS-01 communication satellite from the second launch pad
at Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC), in Sriharikota.
This
was only the second lift-off by the PSLV this year.
The
Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) ended 2020 on a high note with its
workhorse - the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) - successfully placing
the communication satellite - CMS-01 - in orbit.
CMS-01
is envisaged to provide services in the extended-C Band of the frequency
spectrum that will cover the Indian mainland, the Andaman and Nicobar and
Lakshadweep Islands.
It
was India’s 42nd communication satellite with a mission life of over seven
years.
PSLV-C50
was the 22nd flight of PSLV in the ‘XL’ configuration (with six strap-on
motors), and the 77th launch vehicle mission from SDSC SHAR, Sriharikota.
Anti-microbial chemical Tridosan.
IIT
Hyderabad Bio Researchers reveal neurotoxic nature of Triclosan an
antimicrobial chemical used in soaps and dental care products.
It
is found that tridosan can cause neurotoxic effects and damage the neurons.
Tridosan
is used as antimicrobial chemicals to increase the shelf life of consumer
products.
It
is added to personal care products, such as hand soaps and cosmetics, and
materials ranging from athleticclothing to food packaging.
US
Food and Drug Administration have imposed a partial ban on its use. However,
India lacks any such regulationso far on the use of triclosan-based products.
The
2030 Asian Games were awarded to Doha on Wednesday and the 2034 event went to
Riyadh after a deal was struck between the rival nations.
The
Qatari capital of Doha beat Saudi Arabian counterpart Riyadh for the 2030 Games
in the vote at the Olympic Council of Asia's general assembly.
The
vote took place amid a bitter and long-running political dispute between Saudi
Arabia and Qatar.
Saudi
Arabia is one of four countries which has imposed a trade and travel boycott on
Qatar since 2017, though there have recently been indications the dispute could
be resolved.
The
OCA reached a deal to vote on the 2030 host but to give the other candidate the
2034 event.
WADA.
The
World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA; French: Agence mondiale antidopage, AMA) is a
foundation initiated by the International Olympic Committee based in Canada to
promote, coordinate and monitor the fight against drugs in sports. The agency's
key activities include scientific research, education, development of
anti-doping capacities, and monitoring of the World Anti-Doping Code, whose
provisions are enforced by the UNESCO International Convention against Doping
in Sport. The aims of the Council of Europe Anti-Doping Convention and the
United States Anti-Doping Agency are also closely aligned with those of WADA.
Worldwide Legal Wildlife Trade Increased by 2,000% Since
1980.
A
report by the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and
Ecosystem
Services
has said that trade in wildlife has become Highly Unsustainable.
•
The international legal wildlife trade has increased500 per cent in value since
2005 and 2,000 per cent since the 1980s.
•
Estimated value of the global illegal trade in wildlife is worth around $7-23
billion per year, equivalent to nearly 25 per cent of the value of the legal
market.
•
North America, Europe and some parts of Asia were net importers and consumers.
•
Countries in South America, Africa, Southeast Asia and Oceania were net
suppliers or had a large domestic trade.
•
In China, a growing wealthy middle class is often the main consumer of fashion
products of wildlife for traditional Chinese medicine or for food.
•
The European Union and the United States were leading consumers of legally
traded wildlife.
•
The US was one of the largest legal importers of Wildlife Globally.
•
CITES had been able to reduce wildlife trade, drive up value of sustainably
traded species and products and promote captive-breeding, ranching or farming
as alternatives to wild capture.
•
Captive breeding might increase consumer demand and put pressure on free-living
populations for founder stock.
Note:
•
Fisheries and forestry resources — were not regulated under CITES.
•
Domestic use and trade of wildlife fell outside the Purview of the Convention.
What
the Report said on Wildlife Farming?
•
Wildlife farming might offer an alternative source for wildlife products and
reduce hunting pressure on free-living populations but it has its negative
sides too.
•
Wildlife farms are stocked repeatedly with wild-caught individuals that are
largely indistinguishable from those that are captive-bred.
•
Record keeping is often lax or non-existent.
•
Enforcement of laws is often poor.
• Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services:
•
It was established in 2012 by 94 governments.
•
Currently it has 137 member countries.
•
It is an independent intergovernmental body established by States to;
•
Strengthen the science-policy interface for biodiversity and ecosystem
services.
•
Conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity.
•
Long-term human well-being and sustainable development.
•
The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) provides secretariat services
to IPBES.
•
India is a member of IPBES since 2012.
Work of IPBES:
•
Assessments: On specific themes (e.g. “Pollinators, Pollination and Food
Production”); methodological issues (e.g. “Scenarios and Modelling); and at
both the regional and global levels (e.g. “Global Assessment of Biodiversity
and Ecosystem Services”).
•
Policy Support: Identifying policy-relevant tools and methodologies,
facilitating their use,and catalyzing their Further Development.
Building
Capacity & Knowledge: Identifying and meeting the priority capacity,
knowledge and data needs of our member States, experts and stakeholders.
•
Communications & Outreach: Ensuring the widest reach and impact of our
work.
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