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(The Gist of PIB) Indian Pharmacopoeia  [JANUARY-2020]

(The Gist of PIB) Indian Pharmacopoeia

 [JANUARY-2020]

Indian Pharmacopoeia

  • Afghanistan has become the first country to formally recognize Indian Pharmacopoeia (IP).

Key highlights:

  • The Indian Pharmacopoeia (IP) is an officially recognized book of standards as per the Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940 and Rules 1945 thereunder.
  • The IP specifies the standards of drugs manufactured and marketed in India in terms of their identity, purity and strength.
  • In order to ensure the quality of medicinal products, the legal and scientific standards are provided by Indian Pharmacopoeia Commission (IPC) in the form of Indian Pharmacopoeia (IP).

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(The Gist of PIB) Ministry of Minority Affairs 2019 report  [JANUARY-2020]

(The Gist of PIB) Ministry of Minority Affairs 2019 report

 [JANUARY-2020]

Ministry of Minority Affairs 2019 report

  • In the year 2019, Ministry of Minority Affairs focussed on educational empowerment of Minorities, especially Muslim girls, and job-oriented skill development of youths belonging to Minority communities.

Key highlights:

Educational Empowerment:

  • In the year 2019 Ministry of Minority Affairs provided “Begum Hazrat Mahal Girls Scholarships” to 3 lakh economically backward girls belonging to the six notified Minority communities.
  • Under the programme to connect Madrasas with formal education, more than 750 teachers including a large number of women teachers, from Madrasas from various states have been trained by the Ministry of Minority Affairs this year.

Skill Development/Employment Opportunities:

  • More than 1.25 lakh youths belonging to Minority communities were provided job-oriented skill development training through “Gharib Nawaz Employment Scheme”, “Seekho aur Kamao”, “Nai Manzil”, “Usttad”, “Nai Roshni” in 2019.
  • The Ministry of Minority Affairs has decided to organise 100 “Hunar Haat” in the next five years across the country to provide market and employment and employment opportunities to master artisans, craftsmen and traditional culinary experts.
  • Under “Pradhan Mantri Jan Vikas Karyakram” (PMJVK) of the Ministry of Minority Affairs, 104 Common Service Centres have been approved across the country.
  • These centres will work as a single-window assistance centre to provide information regarding Central Government and State Governments schemes.
  • India has become the first country in the entire world which has made the entire Haj 2020 process 100 percent digital.
  • Online application, E-Visa, Haj mobile app, “E-MASIHA” health facility have been provided to Indian Muslims going for Hajj.

Waqf:

  • 100 per cent digitisation of Waqf properties across the country has been completed.
  • A programme has been launched for 100 percent Geo tagging and digitalisation of Waqf properties across the country to ensure these properties can be utilised for welfare of the society.
  • A total of 8 Mutawalis were awarded under “Qaumi Waqf Board Taraqiati Scheme” for better management of Waqf properties in their respective state Waqf boards.

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(The Gist of PIB) APEDA  [JANUARY-2020]

(The Gist of PIB) APEDA

 [JANUARY-2020]

APEDA

  • To promote exports from agriculture produce rich regions of India, Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA) is sending the first trial shipment of vegetables by sea route from Varanasi to Dubai.

Key highlights:

  • APEDA is an organization under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India situated at New Delhi.
  • It is responsible for promoting exports of Agriculture and Processed Food Products from India.
  • It was established under the Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority Act passed by the Parliament in 1985.

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(The Gist of PIB) Curtain Raiser: Army Technology Seminar  [JANUARY-2020]

(The Gist of PIB) Curtain Raiser: Army Technology Seminar

 [JANUARY-2020]

Curtain Raiser: Army Technology Seminar

  • ARTECH Seminar was launched in 2016 as part of the overall vision of ‘Make in India’ of Hon’ble Prime Minister and is conducted every year as part of events leading to Army Day celebrations.
  • The seminar is the flagship event of Indian Army which sets the agenda for focus areas of harvesting indigenous capabilities in the Defence sector.

Key highlights:

  • ARTECH platform provides an opportunity to practitioners of military operations, policy makers in the Ministry of Defence, industry and academia to put forth their contemporary Defence related capabilities.
  • It is also a forum for innovators in uniform to showcase their products and offer these to industry to refine & productionise.
  • The fifth edition of ARTECH is being organised by Indian Army on ‘Technologies for Non Contact Warfare’ which will be organised on 23 December 2019 at Manekshaw Centre, Delhi Cantonment.
  • There is a select equipment display planned during the seminar by industry, academia, innovators in uniform and startups, DRDO and DPSUs.

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(The Gist of PIB) Nagpur Resolution  [JANUARY-2020]

(The Gist of PIB) Nagpur Resolution

 [JANUARY-2020]

Nagpur Resolution

  • The ‘Nagpur Resolution- A holistic approach for empowering citizens’ was adopted during the Regional Conference on ‘Improving Public Service Delivery – Role of Governments’, in Nagpur, Maharashtra.

Key highlights:

  • The conference was organised by the Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances (DARPG), Government of India, in collaboration with the Government of Maharashtra.
  • The Conference resolved that Government of India and the State Governments shall collaborate to:
  • empower the citizens through timely updation of citizens charters, implementation of enactments and benchmarking standards for continuous improvement;
  • empower citizens by reduction in timelines of grievance redressal;
  • adopt a holistic approach for improved service delivery through digital platforms;
  • achieve a sense of common identity by exchange of expertise in the areas of Improved Service Delivery between the paired States under the Ek Bharat – Shreshtha Bharat Program;
  • Ensure timely publication of Good Governance Index to identify the quality of governance in 10 sectors especially those pertaining to welfare and infrastructure at the Union, State and District levels.

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(The Gist of PIB) AIS-155  [JANUARY-2020]

(The Gist of PIB) AIS-155

 [JANUARY-2020]

AIS-155

  • The Union Ministry of Road Transport issued a notification regarding Automotive Industry Standards (AIS)-155 in respect of Microdot identifiers if affixed on the motor vehicles and their parts.

Key highlights:

  • This was done through amendment in Rule 92 of the Central Motor vehicles (Fourteenth Amendment) Rules 1989.
  • As per a new notification, the Manufacturers who are affixing microdot identifiers in the motor vehicles and their parts, components, assemblies, sub-assemblies shall conform to Automotive Industry Standards (AIS)-155 as amended from time to time.”

About Microdot Technology:

  • Microdot technology involves spraying the body and parts of the vehicle or any other machine with microscopic dots, which give a unique identification.
  • The microdots and adhesive will become permanent fixtures/affixation which cannot be removed without damaging the asset, that is the vehicle itself.
  • These nearly invisible microdots can only be read physically with a microscope and identified with ultra violet light source.
  • Use of this technology will help check theft of vehicles and also use of fake spare parts.

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(The Gist of Science Reporter) Gel-like Fluid to Prevent Wildfires  [JANUARY-2020]

(The Gist of Science Reporter) Gel-like Fluid to Prevent Wildfires

 [JANUARY-2020]

Gel-like Fluid to Prevent Wildfires

  • Stanford University researchers have developed a cellulose-based gel-like fluid which can be coated over vegetation by spraying through standard agricultural equipment or an aircraft to prevent wildfires.
  • The technology could combat Earth’s oceans — the Mariana Trench -- eats oil.
  • During the study of the collected microbial population samples, researchers found a hydrocarbon-degrading bacteria which was abundant at the bottom of the Mariana Trench.
  • Such microbes could eat compounds similar to those in oil and then could be used for fuel.
  • The study was published in Micro biome.

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(The Gist of Science Reporter) World’s First Land-Based Commercial Coral Farm  [JANUARY-2020]

(The Gist of Science Reporter) World’s First Land-Based Commercial Coral Farm

 [JANUARY-2020]

World’s First Land-Based Commercial Coral Farm

  • Co-founder of Coral Vita, Gator Halpern, developed the world’s first land-based commercial coral farm for resilient reef restoration in the Grand Bahamas.
  • By using micro-fragmenting technology, the founder accelerates coral growth by more than 50 times and increases the speed of coral restoration over months instead of decades.
  • Besides, species diversity can also be increased by this process.

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(The Gist of Science Reporter) World’s Smallest Fossil Monkey  [JANUARY-2020]

(The Gist of Science Reporter) World’s Smallest Fossil Monkey

 [JANUARY-2020]

World’s Smallest Fossil Monkey

  • Uncovered in Amazon Forests A group of scientists led by Duke University has discovered the 18-million year-old remains of the smallest fossil monkey in the Amazon forests based on a single tooth which is twice the size of a pinhead recently unveiled in a riverbank in southeastern Peru.
  • The discovery will bridge the gap to understand monkey evolution.
  • The study has been reported in the Journal of Human Evolution.
  • The animal has been dubbed as “Parvimico materdei” or “tiny monkey from the Mother of God River.”

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(The Gist of Science Reporter) Unique Oil-Eating Bacteria at the Bottom of the Ocean  [JANUARY-2020]

(The Gist of Science Reporter) Unique Oil-Eating Bacteria at the Bottom of the Ocean

 [JANUARY-2020]

Unique Oil-Eating Bacteria at the Bottom of the Ocean

  • Scientists from the University of East Anglia in Norwich, along with researchers from China and Russia have discovered unique bacteria in the deepest part of the largest parrot.
  • The discovery has been recorded in the journal Biology Letters.

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(The Gist of Science Reporter) Goldschmidt Ite — New Mineral in Diamond  [JANUARY-2020]

(The Gist of Science Reporter) Goldschmidt Ite — New Mineral in Diamond

 [JANUARY-2020]

Goldschmidt Ite — New Mineral in Diamond

  • A new and unusual mineral has been discovered by an Alberta student as inclusion in diamond from a volcanic site in South Africa.
  • It was named as Goldschmidt Site in honour of mineralogist Victor Moritz Goldschmidt.
  • According to the study, the mineral is dark green and opaque found about 170 kilometres beneath the Earth’s surface.
  • Goldschmidt It contains a high concentration of niobium, potassium and rare elements.
  • Potassium and niobium are the main components in the mineral which is very rare in the mantle.
  • The research has been published in the American Mineralogist.

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(Free E-book) Weekly Current Affairs Update for IAS Exam VOL-311

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VOL. - 311 (16 January 2020 to 23 January 2020)

Covered Topics:

  • National

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  • Business And Economy

  • Science and Technology

  • Important Article From Various Newspapers

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(The Gist of Science Reporter) New Plastic-eating Bacteria  [JANUARY-2020]

(The Gist of Science Reporter) New Plastic-eating Bacteria

 [JANUARY-2020]

New Plastic-eating Bacteria

  • Researchers from Shiv Nadar University, Greater Noida have discovered two strains of plastic-eating bacteria namely Exiguobacterium sibiricum strain DR11 and Exiguobacterium undae strain DR14 from the wetlands of Greater Noida capable of decomposing polystyrene, the key ingredient of single-use plastic items like disposable plates, cups, cutlery, packaging materials, toys, etc.
  • Due to high molecular weight and long-chain polymer structure polystyrene is quite resistant to degradation and persists in the environment for a longer time.
  • The discovery may be an eco-friendly alternative for plastic waste worldwide.
  • The study has been published in the journal Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) Advances.

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(The Gist of Science Reporter) Fossils of the World’s Largest Parrot ever Recorded  [JANUARY-2020]

(The Gist of Science Reporter) Fossils of the World’s Largest Parrot ever Recorded

 [JANUARY-2020]

Fossils of the World’s Largest Parrot ever Recorded

  • Palaeontologists have found the world’s largest parrot named Heracles inexpectatus in New Zealand.
  • Its name Heracles inexpectatus reflects its Herculean myth-like size & strength and the unexpected nature of the discovery.
  • The giant bird has been estimated to have weighed about seven kilograms, which would have been more than twice as heavy as the kākāpo, the previously known fire-outbreaks in the future.
  • It contains non-toxic substances widely used in food, drugs and agricultural products.
  • The study has been reported in PNAS.

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(The Gist of Science Reporter) Lost Continent Discovered under Europe  [JANUARY-2020]

(The Gist of Science Reporter) Lost Continent Discovered under Europe

 [JANUARY-2020]

Lost Continent Discovered under Europe

  • Geologists have discovered a continent beneath southern Europe long-hidden for nearly 140 millions of years.
  • The continent is called Greater Adria.
  • It’s the size of Greenland and it broke off from North Africa.
  • The study was published in the journal Gondwana Research.

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(The Gist of Science Reporter) New Species of Stiletto Snake  [JANUARY-2020]

(The Gist of Science Reporter) New Species of Stiletto Snake

 [JANUARY-2020]

New Species of Stiletto Snake

• Scientists have found a new species of snake that can deliver a venomous wound even without opening its mouth.
• This skill exclusively belongs to stiletto snakes, as they have long fangs which they can stick in and out of the corners of their mouths, allowing these snakes to attack sideways.
• The newfound species, named as Branch’s stiletto snake (Atractaspis branchi), resides in primary rainforest and rainforest edges of western Liberia and southeastern Guinea. The discovery was published in the journal Zoosystematics and Evolution.

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(The Gist of Science Reporter) Worm with Three Sexes Discovered  [JANUARY-2020]

(The Gist of Science Reporter) Worm with Three Sexes Discovered

 [JANUARY-2020]

Worm with Three Sexes Discovered

  • Researchers at the California Institute of Technology have discovered a new species of nematode with three sexes in Mono Lake in California.
    It can survive a dosage of arsenic 500 times when compared to the dosage deadly to humans and has higher arsenic resistance when compared to other species of worm. Nematodes are either hermaphrodites or males.
  • But, Auanema sp. also includes worms of the female sex.
  • The worm also gives birth to live offspring, an exceptional case in the typically egg-laying nematode world.
  • It carries its young ones in a pouch just like a kangaroo.
  • It can survive easily in highly salty, alkaline waters of Mono Lake. The findings were published in Current Biology.

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Gist of The Hindu: January 2019

Gist of The Hindu: January 2019

Central govt. releases guidelines on HIV interventions in Prisons

  • Government is not only fully funding the HIV/AIDS programme but also increasing the resource envelope in accordance with the programme needs.” This was stated by Smt. Anupriya Patel, Minister of State (Health & Family Welfare) at a function to mark World AIDS Day, 2018 organised by the National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO).
  • Speaking at the event, Smt. Anupriya Patel informed that the HIV/AIDS Programme has focused on more than one million people from high risk group and kept the infection of HIV in control through comprehensive and intense targeted interventions services.
  • “The Programme has also given attention to eliminating mother to child transmission of HIV and Syphilis by 2020. Under the PradhanMantriSurakshitMatritvaAbhiyan complete ante-natal check up facility is provided to all pregnant women across the country, including HIV testing.
  • The Minister further said that in a historic move, the HIV/AIDS (Prevention and Control) Act, 2017 was unanimously passed by the Government and it has also come into force. “This Act provides an enabling environment to HIV affected and infected population where they get a seamless access to services and a comprehensive grievance redressal mechanism with ombudsman at the Centre and Complaints Officer at establishments, she added.
  • Stressing on the need for multi-faceted and multi-sectoral response, Smt Anupriya Patel stated that NACO has signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with 16 key Ministries to augment a comprehensive AIDS response. In addition to this NACO has signed MoUs with more than 250 industries of public and private sectors to mobilize their support.

External affairs minister to co-chair India-UAE joint commission for economic & technical cooperation

  • External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj will co-chair the 12th session of the India-UAE Joint Commission Meeting for Economic and Technical Cooperation with her counterpart Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan in Abu Dhabi during her official visit to the Gulf country from December 3-4.
  • With nearly USD 50 billion bilateral trade, the two countries are one of the largest trade partners for each other and have made robust investments bilaterally. The UAE is the sixth-largest source of Indian oil imports and hosts a 3.3 million-strong Indian community.
  • “We look forward to the visit of the External Affairs Minister to Abu Dhabi to co-chair the India-UAE Joint Commission,” India’s Ambassador to the UAE, Navdeep Singh Suri, said.
  • Mr.Suri said the minister’s visit is an important opportunity to continue the bilateral dialogue at the highest levels of government, to share views on major regional and global issues and to give a further boost to our comprehensive strategic partnership.
  • Meanwhile, the External Affairs Ministry has said that with the exchange of visits at the highest-level in the recent past, the bilateral relationship has been elevated to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.
  • Along with the UAE Foreign Minister, Ms.Swaraj would also inaugurate a Gandhi-Zayed Digital Museum in Abu Dhabi to mark the celebrations of 150 years of Mahatma Gandhi’s birth and centenary celebrations of the birth of Sheikh Zayed, founder of the modern UAE.

Mother’s milk influences rotavirus infection in children

  • By studying the complex interplay between the sugars and microbes in mother’s milk and the baby’s gut microbes, an international team of researchers has tried to understand neonatal rotavirus infection.
  • Rotavirus infection is one of the leading causes of gastroenteritis in children under five years worldwide. Babies in 10 Indian states are immunised against rotavirus.
  • The researchers first investigated whether human milk oligosaccharides (specific sugars in milk) can inhibit infection by a particular strain (G10P11) of rotavirus. In vitro studies were carried out on monkey kidney epithelial cells (MA104 cells).
  • Though mother’s milk sugars should be ideally killing the virus, the researchers found that the oligosaccharides enhanced the infection of cells with this strain of rotavirus.
  • The researchers then repeated the study in a neonatal nursery to validate their lab results. A study group of 181 mother–infant pairs were selected from the Christian Medical College (CMC), Vellore. The sugars and microbiome of breast milk, and baby’s gut microbiome were characterised.
  • They found that oligosaccharides responsible for increased infectivity were “significantly higher” in breast milk where the babies had symptomatic infection.
  • There were also specific differences in the milk microbiome.

Optimal utilisation of demographic dividend crucial for India’s economic growth : Centre

  • India has an advantage of Demographic Dividend like no other country in the World has today with over 60% percent of its youth in the working age group at present”, said Minister of State for Chemicals & Fertilizers, Road Transport & Highways, Shipping, Shri Mansukh L. Mandaviya in a statement.
  • Shri Mandaviya said that in the near future, most of the sectors of Indian economy would require more skilled workforce than the present. It would be both a challenge and an opportunity for India to provide its workforce with required skill sets and knowledge to enable them to contribute substantially to its economic growth.
  • Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modi has identified ‘Skill India’ as a mission to skill India’s youth and ensure optimal utilization of India’s demographic dividend, the Minister added.
  • In this background,the Minister informed that the Department of Chemicals & Petrochemicals, under Ministry of Chemicals & Fertilizers, has made good progress in creating skilled workforce and generating gainful employment for Indian youth through Central Institutes of Plastic Engineering & Technology (CIPETs) across the country.
  • Giving information in this regard, Shri Mandaviya informed that since 2014, there has been a significant jump in the number of CIPET centres in the country from 23 to 39 in 2018. In the field of Plastics Engineering and Technology, CIPET is running long-term and short-term courses, including post-graduate, undergraduate and diploma.

Whatsapp seeks RBI nod to expand its payment services

  • WhatsApp Chief has written to the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), seeking a formal nod to expand payments services to all its 200 million users in India.]
  • The messaging app, which has drawn fire from the government over spread of fake messages on its platform, continues to wait for a regulatory clearance to launch full-fledged payments operations in India, months after its ‘testing’ amassed nearly one million users, and almost two years since it first began discussions with the government on its payments services plans.
  • The development comes at a time when competitors such as Google have forged ahead with their payments offerings.
  • WhatsApp is currently piloting WhatsApp payments, and its Chief Chris Daniels has now written to the RBI urging that a formal approval be granted to take the payments product to all its users in the country.
  • When contacted, a WhatsApp spokesperson said the platform is working closely with the Indian government, National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), and multiple banks, including payment service providers to expand the feature to more people and support the country’s digital economy.
  • WhatsApp has also made a case for scaling up its operations by citing the productivity gains that have accrued to Indian small business as a result of the digital tool, and expressed its deep commitment to the market.
  • WhatsApp’s ambitious payment services’ blueprint has been caught in a bind, over concerns around authentication and its data storage practices. In the past, its home grown rivals have alleged that WhatsApp’s payment platform has security risks for consumers and is not in compliance with the guidelines.

Qatar to quit OPEC from next year

  • Qatar is withdrawing from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) as of January 2019, Saad al-Kaabi, the country’s Energy Minister said on Monday, December 3, 2018.
  • The decision came after Qatar, one of OPEC’s smallest producers but the world’s largest liquefied natural gas exporter, reviewed ways to enhance its role internationally and plan long-term strategy, including focusing on its gas industry, he said.
  • The announcement comes ahead of the meeting by OPEC and its allies including Russia on December 6-7 to discuss cutting supply.The Minister said the decision was not easy as Qatar has been in OPEC for 57 years, but that the country’s impact on OPEC production decisions was small.
  • He stressed that Doha would continue to abide by all its commitments like any other non-OPEC oil producer.
  • The withdrawal decision reflects Qatar’s intent to focus its efforts on developing its natural gas industry, the Minister said, as the Gulf state moves to increase LNG production from 77 million to 110 million tonnes annually.
  • He said the decision was not linked to a political and economic boycott of Qatar imposed since June 2017 by OPEC’s de facto leader Saudi Arabia and three other Arab states.

World Bank unveils USD 200 bn in climate action investment plan

  • The World Bank has unveiled 200 billion US Dollars in climate action investment for 2021 to 2025, adding that this amounts to a doubling of its current five-year funding. The move coincides with a UN climate summit in Katowice.
  • In a statement, the World Bank said, the move represents a significantly ramped up ambition to tackle climate change and sends an important signal to the wider global community to do the same.
  • The statement said the breakdown of 200 billion dollars would comprise approximately 100 billion in direct finance from the World Bank. Around one-third of the remaining funding will come from two World Bank Group agencies with the rest private capital mobilised by the World Bank Group.
  • World Bank senior director for climate change, John Roome said, if the emissions are not reduced, 100 million more people will be living in poverty by 2030.

Number of patents by India up in 2017 : WIPO

  • The number of patents granted by India shot up by 50% in 2017, keeping up a trend of steep increases, according to the UN’s World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO).
  • The patents granted by India increased from 8,248 in 2016 to 12,387 last year, the WIPO’s World Intellectual Property Indicators 2018 report released in Geneva on Monday said.
  • Last year’s number was more than double the 6,022 patents granted in 2015, according to WIPO statistics.Of the patents granted last year, 1,712 went to entities and individuals based in India, and 10,675 to foreigners, according to the WIPO report.
  • The WIPO said that the steep increase in the number was driven by patents granted to foreigners, which accounted for 85% of the total increase.
  • The number of patents given to domestic entities has also shown an increasing trend: In 2016, 1,115 went to domestic individuals or entities and 7,133 to foreigners, and in 2015, 822 were granted to applicants in India and 5,200 to foreigners, the report said.

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Gist of The Hindu: February 2019

Gist of The Hindu: February 2019

JPC clears report on citizenship bill

  • The Joint Parliamentary Committee on the Citizenship Amendment Bill 2016, which proposes citizenship to persecuted minorities barring Muslims from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh, is likely to table its report on January 7 on the penultimate day of the winter session of Parliament as the panel on Monday cleared the report rejecting all amendments moved by the Opposition.
  • The report will clear the decks for the legislation to become a reality. The Bill proposes citizenship to six persecuted minorities - Hindus, Jains, Sikhs, Parsis, Christians and Buddhists — from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh who came to India before 2014.
  • There has been a strong resistance to the Bill in the BJP-ruled Assam as it would pave the way for giving citizenship, mostly to illegal Hindu migrants from Bangladesh, who came to Assam after March 1971, in violation of the agreement in the Assam Accord of 1985. Around 40 lakh people in Assam have been excluded from the final draft of the National Register of Citizens published in July.
  • Rejected amendments include those moved by Trinamool Congress MP Saugata Roy to make the legislation religion- and country-neutral. Mr. Roy said the Bill should not limit itself to six religions. It should instead say that any person who leaves his country due to religious, linguistic and ethnic discrimination should be eligible for Indian citizenship.
  • The committee has cleared an amendment moved by BJP MP Meenakshi Lekhi seeking to drop legal proceedings against six persecuted minorities. The amendment, if accepted, could mean that Bangladeshi Hindus lodged in detention centres in Assam, facing deportation or declared illegal foreigners would get relief.

Nagaland declared disturbed area for 6 more months

  • The entire State of Nagaland has been declared ‘disturbed area’ for six more months, till June-end, under the controversial AFSPA, which empowers security forces to conduct operations anywhere and arrest anyone without any prior notice.
  • In a notification, the Home Ministry said the Central government is of the opinion that the area comprising the whole of State of Nagaland is in such a disturbed and dangerous condition that the use of armed forces in aid of civilian power is necessary.
  • A Home Ministry official said the decision has been taken as killings, loot and extortion have been going on in various parts of the State which necessitated the action. There have bee demands from various organisations in the Northeast as well as in Jammu and Kashmir for repealing the controversial AFSPA, which, they say, gives ‘sweeping powers’ to security forces.
  • The AFSPA has been in force in Nagaland for several decades. It has not been withdrawn even after a framework agreement was signed on August 3, 2015, by the Naga insurgent group NSCN-IM general secretary Thuingaleng Muivah and government interlocutor R.N. Ravi in the presence of Prime Minister NarendraModi.
  • The framework agreement came after over 80 rounds of negotiations spanning 18 years with the first breakthrough in 1997 when the ceasefire agreement was sealed after decades of insurgency in Nagaland.

RBI claims NPA ratios have improved

  • The gross non-performing asset ratio (GNPA) of commercial banks improved to 10.8% in September from 11.5% in March and is set to improve further to 10.3%, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said in its Financial Stability Report on Monday.
  • GNPAs of state-run banks improved to 14.8% in September 2018 from 15.2% in March 2018, while private sector banks’ gross NPAs fell to 3.8% in September 2018 from 4% in March 2018.
  • Under the baseline scenario, the GNPA ratio of all banks may come down to 10.3% by March 2019 from 10.8% in September 2018, the report said. The ratio of restructured standard advances steadily declined in September 2018 to 0.5% following the withdrawal of various restructuring schemes in February 2018.
  • The restrictions imposed on 11 public sector banks under the prompt corrective action (PCA) framework has helped in reducing contagion losses on the banking system in case these lenders fail, the report said.
  • While the Governor acknowledged that some of the cases referred for resolution under the bankruptcy framework have lagged time-lines, he said the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) will strengthen credit discipline.
  • Mr. Das said the shift in credit intermediation from banks to non-banks has given the corporate sector a diverse choice of finance instruments but added non banking finance companies need to be more prudent on risk-taking. He also underlined the need to rebalance excessive credit growth, especially the one funded by short-term liabilities.

New E-com rules a huge blow to big players

  • It was bold a step by the government and a huge blow for the big players in India’s e-commerce market. The new rules announced by the Centre last week have indeed spoilt the year-end party for the likes of Flipkart-Walmart and Amazon.
  • These big players in the e-commerce space are now forced to go into an huddle, and devise a new way out to sustain their business aspirations in India.
  • More than anybody else, these players will be hit hard as they run their enterprises in India on a marketplace model, which does allow them the luxury of having foreign direct investment (FDI).
  • These firms have been said to use a circuitous mechanism to get around the restrictions in a marketplace model. The back-door window is now effectively shut for them.
  • The rules will have immediate cost implications for Walmart-Flipkart, Amazon and the like, who have built up huge inventory (using their group firms to stock up with vendors who sell on their platforms).
  • Further, there could be considerable noise as to how these will hurt job creation in the country. Nevertheless, the fact that very many unreported job losses too have happened with the advent of these marketplace cannot also be wished away. To the extent that these rules are intended to set right a wrong, these are welcome.

Awami league gets landslide victory in Bangladesh elections

  • Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has secured a fourth term with a landslide victory in polls the opposition slammed as “farcical” over claims of vote-rigging, and clashes between rival supporters that killed at least 17 people.
  • Hasina's ruling Awami League party and its allies won 288 seats in the 300-seat parliament, with the main opposition securing only six seats, Election Commission secretary Helal Uddin Ahmed said.
  • Hasina's government had mounted a crackdown on the opposition, an alliance led by the Bangladesh National Party, which urged the country's election commission to void the results.
  • Ms.Hasina (71), has been lauded for boosting economic growth in the poor South Asian nation during her decade in power and for welcoming Rohingya refugees fleeing a military crackdown in neighbouring Myanmar.
  • But critics accuse her of authoritarianism and crippling the opposition -- including arch-rival and BNP leader Khaleda Zia who is serving 17 years in prison on graft charges.
  • A daughter of Bangladesh's first president Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, Hasina was gifted victory in the 2014 election when the BNP boycotted the vote claiming it was not free and fair.
  • Rights groups have since accused her administration of stifling freedom of speech by toughening a draconian anti-press law and the enforced disappearance of dissenters. Pakistan shares information about nuclear installations
  • Pakistan on Tuesday shared with India a list of its nuclear installations and facilities as per the provisions of a bilateral agreement.
  • The list was handed over in accordance with Article-II of the Agreement on Prohibition of Attacks Against Nuclear Installations and Facilities between Pakistan and India, signed on December 31, 1988, the Foreign Office (FO) said in a statement here.
  • Ministry of External Affairs in New Delhi handed over the list of Indian Nuclear Installations and Facilities to a representative of the High Commission of Pakistan at 10:30 hrs (local time), the FO said.
  • The agreement, which was signed on December 31, 1988 and entered into force on January 27, 1991, provides, inter alia, that the two countries inform each other of nuclear installations and facilities to be covered under the agreement on the first of January of every calendar year.
  • “This has been done consecutively since January 1, 1992,” the FO said. The practice of exchanging lists of nuclear installation has endured despite many low in bilateral ties.

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(The Gist of PIB) Good Governance Index  [JANUARY-2020]

(The Gist of PIB) Good Governance Index

 [JANUARY-2020]

Good Governance Index

  • The Minister of Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions launched the ‘Good Governance Index (GGI)’ on the occasion of Good Governance Day.

Key highlights:

  • The Good Governance Index (GGI) is a uniform tool across States to assess the Status of Governance and impact of various interventions taken up by the State Government and UTs.
  • The GGI takes into consideration ten sectors:
  1. Agriculture and Allied Sectors,
  2. Commerce and Industries,
  3. Human Resource Development,
  4. Public Health,
  5. Public Infrastructure and Utilities,
  6. Economic Governance,
  7. Social Welfare and Development,
  8. Judicial and Public Security,
  9. Environment and
  10. Citizen-Centric Governance.
  • These ten Governance Sectors are measured on a total 50 indicators.

The states and UTs are divided into three groups:

  1. Big States,
  2. North-East & Hill States and
  3. UTs
  • The states and UTs are ranked on all indicators separately, at the same time composite ranking is also calculated for these states and UTs under their respective groups based upon these indicators.

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