Current Affairs for IAS Exams - 06 February 2021

::NATIONAL::

One District One ProductScheme

One District One Product (ODOP) is an initiative which is seen as a transformational step forward towards realizing the true potential of a district, fuel economic growth and generate employment and rural entrepreneurship, taking us to the goal of AtmaNirbhar Bharat.
Under this, Department of Commerce through Directorate General of Foreign Trade is engaging with State andCentral government agencies to promote One District One Product.

Objectives

Convert each District of the country into an Export Hub by identifying products with export potential in the district,
Addressing bottlenecks for exporting these products,
Supporting local exporters/manufacturers to scale up manufacturing,
Find potential buyers outside India,
Promoting manufacturing & services industry in the District and generate employment.
For this District Export Promotion Committee (DEPC) have been constituted in all Districts of India, except inWest Bengal.

Vembanad lake

Prime Minister in hisMann kiBaathas lauded a Kerala farmer for solely cleaning the lake.

About Vembanad:

It is the largest lake in Kerala and the longest Lake in India.
Vallam Kali is a Snake Boat Race held every year in Vembanad Lake.
It is part of the list of wetlands of international importance under Ramsar Convention.
Kumarakom Bird Sanctuary is located on the east coast of the lake.

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::INTERNATIONAL::

Five S’ vision

The Indian Ocean Region (IOR) Defence Ministers’ Conclave began with a keynote address from Raksha Mantri Shri Rajnath Singh on 4th February on the sidelines of Aero India 2021 in Bengaluru.
As the largest nation in the IOR region with a vast coast line of 7500 Kms, India has an active role to play for peaceful and prosperous co-existence of all countries.
SAGAR - Security and Growth for All in the Region is the theme of Indian Ocean Policy as outlined by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi in 2015.
India’s approach and vision to tackle global challenges was highlighted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s dynamic five ‘S’ vision - Samman (Respect), Samvaad (Dialogue), Sahyog (Cooperation), Shanti (Peace) and Samriddhi (Prosperity).

Proud Boys

Canada has announced that it will be designating the US-based far-right group ‘Proud Boys’ as a terrorist entity in an attempt to crack down on “ideologically motivated violent extremism” in the country.
With this, the all-male neo-fascist group will be added to a lengthy list of international terrorist organisations, that includes ISIS, Al Qaeda and al-Shabab.

Background:

The Proud Boys grabbed headlines worldwide last year during the first presidential debate between then-President Donald Trump and his Democratic contender Biden.
Trump was widely criticised for calling on the group to “stand back and stand by”, when he was asked specifically to condemn white supremacist and militia groups.

Who are the Proud Boys?

The all-male neo-fascist group was founded in 2016 by Vice Media co-founder and Canadian-British right-wing activist Gavin McInnes.
According to the Southern Poverty Law Centre, the Proud Boys are known for their “anti-Muslim and misogynistic rhetoric” and have been classified as an ‘extremist group’.
To be inducted into the fold, a Proud Boy must first proclaim that he is a “a Western chauvinist who refuses to apologise for creating the modern world”.
According to the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), the group is also known for anti-transgender, anti-immigration and anti-Semitic views.

::ECONOMY::

Kalam Program for Intellectual Property Literacy and Awareness Campaign

The Government has launched Kalam Program for Intellectual Property Literacy and Awareness Campaign (KAPILA) for Intellectual Property Literacy and creating patent awareness on 15th October, 2020.
So far, total 46,556 users have been registered for KAPILA.

The objectives of the scheme include:

creating awareness regarding Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) in Higher Education Institutions (HEIs),
enabling of IP protection of inventions originating from faculty and students of HEIs,
development of Credit Course on IPR,
training program on IPR for faculty and students of HEIs and sensitization and development of vibrant IP filing system.

::SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY::

Square Kilometre Array Observatory project

A global collaboration for the world’s largest radio telescope took formal shape with the constitution of an Intergovernmental Council.
The Square Kilometre Array Observatory (SKAO) project, spanning two continents and involving the participation of 20 countries, is expected to be ready for carrying out observations towards the end of this decade.

About:

The Square Kilometre Array (SKA) is not a single telescope but will be an array of antennas strategically designed and set up in South Africa and Australia. It is proposed to be built in two phases, with an estimated 1.8 billion euros required for phase-I, planned over the next ten years.
It will allow astronomers to look deeper into the universe and unravel secrets about its evolution.
Among its goals are: studying the universe and its evolution, the origin and evolution of cosmic magnetism, and dark energy and evolution of galaxies.
Scientists are also optimistic that the SKA will be able to detect very weak extra-terrestrial signals and search for molecules that support life.
The telescope in South Africa will have 197 dishes, each 15 metres in diameter, and will be located in the Karoo region. Of these, 64 dishes are on site and are at present operated by the South African Radio Astronomy Observatory.
The telescope in Australia will have 1,31,072 antennas, each measuring 2 m high. They will be installed on the campus of the Murchison Radio-astronomy Observatory operated by the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation.
Started in 2014, the design and engineering took six years to complete, with science and policy proposals coming from over 1,000 scientists, and more than 500 engineers representing 20-plus countries who deliberated over three decades.
India is participating in SKAO through the Department of Atomic Energy (DAE) and the Department of Science and Technology (DST). India will also contribute towards building digital hardware for the SKA low-frequency receiver systems, some parts of the receiver for the SKA mid-frequency telescopes along with parts of the data processing units.

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