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Current Affairs for IAS Exams - 06 September 2019

::NATIONAL::

Govt. begins campaigning for Eat right India movement

“It’s time for India to eat right,” said Health Minister Harsh Vardhan on Thursday, kick-starting POSHAN Maah 2019 with a year-long social and mass media campaign on the Eat Right India movement.
Leading with a tweet-a-day focusing on a weekly theme of eating right for the next 365 days, Dr.Vardhan also launched the new Eat Right India logo that represents a healthy plate, an online eat right quiz and online course for frontline health workers.
Stating that the country is in need of a movement on preventive health for all in the backdrop of the increasing burden of non-communicable diseases including diabetes, hypertension and heart diseases, widespread deficiencies of vitamins and minerals and rampant food-borne illnesses, Dr.Vardhan said: “The Eat Right India movement is a crucial preventive healthcare measure to trigger social and behavioural change through a judicious mix of regulatory measures, combined with soft interventions for ensuring awareness and capacity building of food businesses and citizens alike.”
The Minister said Eat Right India takes a holistic approach to food habits that promote health and sustainability. “Launching this movement on this platform with the support of stakeholders such as the World Health Organization (WHO), along with Ministers and delegates from South East Asian countries, is a landmark event,” noted the Minister.

Study reveals one-third of traffickers as women or neighbours

A recent study conducted on the profile of persons accused in trafficking in almost 200 cases in West Bengal and Andhra Pradesh has revealed that one-third of them are women.
In the study, Ms.Sen analysed documents such as chargesheets, FIRS and police general diaries related to 198 human trafficking cases registered between 2008 and 2018. Of the 429 people whose names appeared as accused in these 198 cases, only in 30 were the accused family members, including from the extended family.
“There was a belief in some people that in many cases family members are involved in trafficking. That does not hold true in this research. In most cases, if the survivors are asked they will say Didi (sister) took them from their village. But on a more detailed inquiry, it will be revealed that the accused is not a relative but a neighbour or an acquaintance,” SubhasreeRaptan, programme manager of GGBK said.
The largest group of the traffickers (34%, or 148) were neighbours, while 31% were completely unknown to the survivors, the study said.
Ms.Raptan highlighted that in many cases of trafficking, survivors were not told that they were entitled to victim compensation from public prosecutors representing their case in courts.
The last published report of the National Crime Record Bureau for 2016 recorded 8,132 cases of human trafficking in the country, of which 3,579 cases (around 44%) were from West Bengal alone.

::ECONOMY::

Govt. plans to revive auto sector through sops and incentives

Offering some solace to the crisis-hit auto industry, Road Transport and Highways Minister NitinGadkari on Thursday assured ‘full’ support from the government to help overcome the free fall in vehicle sales. He said the Centre was looking at steps, including export sops and GST incentives, to help create demand in the sector.
The Minister also clarified that the government did not intend to ban ICE (internal combustion engine) powered vehicles.
He, however, added that the government would promote the use of alternative fuels and electric vehicles to tackle issues of a high crude oil import bill and pollution. Thursday’s statement comes as a relief for the industry, given that it was Mr.Gadkari who had in 2017 asked car makers to move to electric or they would be “bulldozed” into doing it.
Any decision on GST on automobiles would be taken up for discussion at the upcoming meeting of the GST Council on September 20. However, the industry is seeking an early solution as they fear that customers would defer purchases anticipating further reduction in prices.
Mr.Gadkari also said that his Ministry would award 68 road projects worth about ₹5 lakh crore in the next three months, which, in turn, would help generate demand for commercial vehicles.

Finance ministry gives guidelines to PSB’s on CGM appointment

The Finance Ministry has decided to fix a cut-off mark in terms of total business of public sector banks (PSBs) to create the position of chief general managers (CGMs).
Last week, Finance Minister NirmalaSitharaman had said PSBs will now have the position of CGM which was thus far available only to the State Bank of India.
Post merger, the total business of PNB-OBC-UBI pack will be close to ₹18 lakh crore, the Canara and Syndicate combine, over ₹15 lakh crore and Union Bank-Corporation Bank-Andhra Bank, ₹14.6 lakh crore.
Indian Bank and Allahabad Bank combine had a total business of ₹8.08 lakh crore as on March 31, 2019. A bank can appoint a maximum of one CGM for four general managers (GMs), the Ministry said.
Candidates with two years of experience as general managers will be eligible to become CGM, the Ministry said in a communication, adding 50% relaxation would be possible if the board approves the proposal. Eligible candidates must have two years of residual service, it said.
“The process of promotion to the post of CGM may be on the lines of the extant process for promotion to the post of GMs in nationalised banks, which is done by a selection committee comprising MD & CEO, government nominee director, RBI nominee director and two outside experts,” the communication said.

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::INTERNATIONAL::

U.S backs India’s move to designate terrorists under new law

The U.S. has backed India’s move to declare JeM chief MasoodAzhar and three others as terrorists individually under a new anti-terror law.
Besides Azhar, India on Wednesday declared Mumbai terror attack accused Zaki-ur-Rehman-Lakhvi, fugitive gangster DawoodIbrahim, and Lashkar-e-Taiba founder Hafiz Saeed as individual terrorists.
The decision to declare all four of them as terrorists has been taken nearly a month after Parliament approved a crucial amendment to the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Amendment (UAPA) Act, 1967.
The four are the first to be declared terrorists under the new law, an official at the Union Home Ministry said in New Delhi.
According to the UAPA, earlier only a group could be declared as terrorist.The amendments made in the Act allows the government to declare even an individual as terrorist.These four are involved in terrorist attacks in India and have been designated as global terrorists under United Nations.
The US Department of the Treasury has designated Saeed, 2008 Mumbai terror attacks mastermind, as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist, and the US, since 2012, has offered a USD 10 million reward for information that brings the JuD chief to justice.

North Korea wants to reduce UN presence in its territory

North Korea wants the number of U.N. international staff in the country reduced by the end of the year over what it claims is the politicisation of aid by parties hostile to its government, but the United Nations says the mission’s current “light footprint” is vital.
Kim Chang Min, secretary general of North Korea’s National Coordinating Committee, said in a letter to the U.N. resident coordinator in North Korea that in recent years “U.N. supported programs failed to bring the results as desired due to the politicization of U.N. assistance by hostile forces.”
“U.N. operations already have a light footprint on the ground and continued capacity at current levels is vital for ensuring continued U.N. support for critical food security, water, nutrition programming as well as mobilizing resources,” he said.
Mr. Kim’s letter to U.N. coordinator Tapan Mishra, a copy of which was obtained Thursday by , says North Korea values its collaboration with U.N. agencies and appreciates Mishra’s efforts “to reactivate U.N. support in the DPRK.”
North Korea had initially told the United Nations it was sending a Cabinet-level minister to the General Assembly meeting that starts Sept. 24. But the latest updated speakers list downgrades its participation to the “chief of delegation,” which usually means the country’s U.N. ambassador though it could also be an even lower ranking government official.

::SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY::

WHO South East region aims to eliminate measles & rubella by 2023

Member-countries of the World Health Organisation (WHO) South-East Asia Region have resolved to eliminate highly infectious childhood killer diseases measles and rubella by 2023.
Measles elimination and rubella control has been a regional flagship priority since 2014. Bhutan, DPR Korea, Maldives, Sri Lanka and Timor-Leste have eliminated measles and Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Timor-Leste have controlled rubella.
To achieve the new targets, the member-countries resolved to strengthen the immunisation systems for increasing and sustaining high level of population immunity against the two diseases at both the national and sub-national levels.
The resolution calls for ensuring a highly sensitive laboratory supported case-based surveillance system – better evidence for appropriate planning and response. It also emphasises on preparedness for outbreak response activities.
All countries pledged to mobilise political, societal and financial support to ensure the interruption of transmission of indigenous measles and rubella virus by 2023.

::SPORTS::

India loses to Oman in worldcup qualifier match

Indian captain Sunil Chhetri found it difficult to accept while coach Igor Stimac called it a “shame” after they lost to Oman despite taking lead in their 2022 FIFA World Cup Qualifications opening fixture, in Guwahati on Thursday.
Chhetri’s splendid first-half strike went in vain as India surrendered a one-goal advantage to lose the home-leg game 1-2.
India will next travel to Doha to face world Cup hosts Qatar in their next qualifier on September 10, with Afghanistan and Bangladesh being the other two teams that make up Group E.