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Current Affairs for IAS Exams - 04 October 2018

::NATIONAL::

India continues to remain vigilant against all 3 types of polio viruses

Days after the Union Health Ministry ordered an inquiry into the Type-2 polio virus contamination detected in the vials used for immunisation in Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and Telangana and ordered for additional immunisation in the three States, the ministry on Wednesday issued a statement stating that “India was certified polio-free in March 2014 and continues to be so. India continues to remain vigilant against all three types of polioviruses.”
“Recently, type 2 polio vaccine virus was found in some sewage and stool samples. The detection of type 2 vaccine virus indicates that a very robust polio surveillance jointly managed by Union Health Ministry and World Health Organisation is still maintained even though seven years have elapsed since the last wild poliovirus case in the country was reported.
This detection indicated the use of a type 2 poliovirus containing vaccine, despite the fact that the trivalent Oral Polio Vaccine (tOPV) that contained type 2 poliovirus vaccine had been phased out globally, and in India, in April 2016, as a part of the Polio End Game strategy,” said the release.
The ministry further added that it was found that in a few vials of bivalent Oral Polio Vaccine (bOPV) supplied by one manufacturer, there were traces of P2 vaccine.
“The ministry, taking WHO on board, took immediate and comprehensive action. Following the report, the use of all vaccines supplied by this manufacturer was immediately stopped in the country till investigation was completed,” the release said.

New Chief justice of India takes charge

RanjanGogoi was sworn in as the 46th Chief Justice of India on Wednesday, and, his first day after being sworn in promised a lot of change.
Chief Justice Gogoi announced that only “extremely urgent” matters would be allowed to be orally mentioned for out-of-turn hearing. Parameters for mentioning would change, he said.
The courtroom then witnessed a brief exchange between advocate AshwiniUpadhyay and Chief Justice Gogoi while the Bench was dealing with the few PIL pleas listed for the day. The Chief Justice was irked to find that Mr.Upadhyay, dressed in the robes of an advocate, was both the petitioner and the lawyer “assisting” his own counsel. The Chief Justice commented on the lack of decorum. The petition was quickly withdrawn.
Change was introduced on the administrative side when a new subject-wise roster declared that the Chief Justice and his number two judge, Justice Madan B. Lokur, would hear PIL pleas. Justice Lokur would hear those directed to his court by the Chief Justice.
Chief Justice Gogoi said that he would also prioritise the filling of about 5,000 vacancies of judges in lower courts across the country. “We will try to do it in about three to four months,” CJI Gogoi said. Nevertheless, he said filling vacancies alone would not reduce backlog. “The solution is in getting the right man” as a judge.

::ECONOMY::

NGT quizzes NHAI over non maintenance of green cover

The National Green Tribunal on Wednesday came down heavily on the National Highways Authority of India for not maintaining green cover along national highways.
Rapping the NHAI for not implementing the policy to maintain a mandatory green cover along the highways, a Bench headed by NGT chairperson Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel said, “You are befooling everyone. You are not planting trees. All highways have marriage places along the road instead of trees. Why are you allowing construction along the highways?”
Dismissing the NHAI’s contention that its green highway policy is being implemented, the Bench said, “All you have on paper is fraud. All things stated in the affidavit are also false. Big buildings are overlooking the roads. You cannot construct anything within 50 metres.”
The green panel’s observations came following a plea moved by an NGO, Society for Protection of Culture, Heritage, Environment, Traditions and Promotion of National Awareness, that sought execution of an earlier order of the tribunal.
The petitioner NGO was seeking execution of the September 2017 NGT order where the NHAI had assured that its Green Highways (Plantation, Transplantation, Beautification and Maintenance) Policy will be implemented.

Cabinet approves higher MSP for Rabi crops

“Giving a boost to farmers’ income, the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has approved the increase in the Minimum Support Prices (MSPs) for all rabi crops for 2018-19 to be marketed in 2019-20 season,” the government said in a release.
“The farmer friendly initiative will give additional return of Rs. 62,635 crore to the farmers by way of increasing MSP of notified crops to at least 50% return over cost of production and will aid in doubling farmers’ income.”
“With the new umbrella scheme ‘PradhanMantriAnnadataAaySanraksHanAbhiyan’ (PM-AASHA) announced by the government, there is a robust mechanism available to enable farmers realise the MSP in fuller measure,” the government said. “The umbrella scheme consists of three sub-schemes i.e. Price Support Scheme (PSS), Price Deficiency Payment Scheme (PDPS) and Private Procurement & Stockist Scheme (PPSS) on a pilot basis.”
The increase in MSP for rabi crops comes just ahead of the RBI monetary policy announcement.The apex bank, in its August policy statement, had indicated MSP increase among possible factors that could influence its outlook on inflation.
The latest move on MSP could further escalate the concerns of the Reserve Bank over inflation.
“However, there is a considerable uncertainty and the exact impact would depend on the nature and scale of the government’s procurement operations,” the central bank had said its last policy statement.

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::INTERNATIONAL::

UN court tell U.S to ease sanctions upon Iran

The UN’s top court ordered the U.S. on Wednesday to lift sanctions on humanitarian goods for Iran in a stunning setback for U.S. President Donald Trump.The International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague handed Iran a major victory, saying the stinging economic sanctions put Iranian lives at risk.
Mr. Trump reimposed the sanctions in May after pulling out of Iran’s international nuclear deal to the dismay of his allies.But it was unclear whether the judgment will be anything more than symbolic, because both Washington and Tehran have ignored them in the past.
The ICJ judges ruled that the sanctions on some goods breached a 1955 “Treaty of Amity” between Iran and the U.S. that predates Iran’s Islamic Revolution.The court said sanctions on goods “required for humanitarian needs may have a serious detrimental impact on the health and lives of individuals on the territory of Iran.”

U.S. sanctions also had the “potential to endanger civil aviation safety in Iran and the lives of its users.”

Iran dragged the U.S. to the ICJ in July, and during four days of hearings in late August, its lawyers accused Washington of “strangling” its economy.The U.S. criticised the verdict, saying the case was “meritless” and the court had “no jurisdiction”.
“This is a meritless case over which the court has no jurisdiction,” U.S. Ambassador to the Netherlands Pete Hoekstra tweeted, shortly after a ruling at the International Court of Justice.
U.S tells India to forgo S-400 system deal with Russia
The U.S. on Wednesday urged India to forgo its proposed deal to buy the S-400 missile defence system from Russia, warning that the deal could attract American sanctions. New Delhi and Kremlin are expected to announce the deal this week during Russian President Vladimir Putin’s two-day visit to India starting Thursday.
The U.S. administration is required under a domestic law, Countering America’s Adversaries through Sanctions Act, or CAATSA, to impose sanctions on any country that has “significant transactions” with Iran, North Korea or Russia.
President Donald Trump has the power to waive these sanctions for specific countries and specific transactions, and U.S. officials have repeatedly said in the recent past that India should not expect an automatic waiver if it goes ahead with the purchase from Russia.
Meanwhile, Indian sources said India and the U.S. have had extensive consultations on the deal and the decision does not come as a surprise to the Trump administration. “The U.S has been pressing India for scaling down its defence cooperation with Russia, while India has been clear about its intentions regarding the S-400 deal,” an official said.
There is also no specific trigger points mentioned in CAATSA for sanctions, and the administration can delay the decision without announcing any waiver.
The question of presidential waiver arises if and only when the State Department moves ahead with a plan to impose sanctions on India. Sanctions against India are not something that the State Department, Pentagon, White House or the U.S. Congress want.

::SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY::

Japan drops robot on asteroid

A Japanese probe launched a new observation robot towards an asteroid on Wednesday as it pursues a mission to shed light on the origins of the solar system.
The Hayabusa2 probe launched the French-German Mobile Asteroid Surface Scout, or MASCOT, towards the Ryugu asteroid’s surface, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) said.
“It is hugely significant to take data from the surface of an asteroid, we have high expectations for the scientific data,” Hayabusa2 mission manager Makoto Yoshikawa said. The 10-kg box-shaped MASCOT is loaded with sensors. It can take images at multiple wavelengths, investigate minerals with a microscope, gauge surface temperatures and measure magnetic fields.
MASCOT’s launch comes 10 days after the Hayabusa2 dropped a pair of MINERVA-II micro-rovers on the Ryugu asteroid. It was the first time that moving, robotic observation device have been successfully landed on an asteroid.
The rovers will take advantage of Ryugu’s low gravity to jump around on the surface — travelling as far as 15 metres while airborne and staying in the air for as long as 15 minutes — to survey the asteroid’s physical features with cameras and sensors.
The Hayabusa2 is scheduled later this month to deploy an “impactor” that will explode above the asteroid, shooting a two-kilo copper object into it to blast a small crater on the surface.
The probe will then hover over the artificial crater and collect samples using an extended arm.

::SPORTS::

Dvorkovich elected as new president of World chess federation

ArkadyDvorkovich was elected the new president of FIDE (World Chess Federation) at the General Assembly here on Wednesday. He takes over from fellow Russian KirsanIlyumzhinov who was ousted in July.
The other office-bearers include :Deputy President: BacharKouatly; General Secretary: SewaEnyonamFumey; Vice-Presidents: MahirMammedov& Julio Granda Zuniga; Treasurer: Zhu Chen.