Current Affairs for IAS Exams - 09 September 2022

::NATIONAL::

103rd Constitutional Amendment

A Constitution Bench led by Chief Justice of India U.U. Lalit on September 8, 2022 finalised three cardinal issues for examining whether the 103rd Constitutional Amendment.

About:

It provides 10% quota to economically weaker sections (EWS) of the society in government jobs and educational institutions, violates the Basic Structure of the Constitution.
The challenge to the 103rd Constitutional Amendment was referred to a five-judge Bench in August 2020.
The three-judge Bench, which had referred the case to the larger Bench, had refused to stay the implementation of the amendment.
Economic reservation was introduced in the Constitution by amending Articles 15 and 16 and adding clauses empowering the State governments in the country to provide reservation on the basis of economic backwardness.

The court would examine whether the amendment breaches the Basic Structure by:
1. permitting the state to make special provisions, including reservation, based on economic criteria;
2. allowing the state to make special provisions in relation to admissions to private unaided institutions,

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Urban Employment Guarantee Scheme

Rajasthan to roll out urban employment guarantee scheme (UEG) from September 9.

Key highlights of UEG scheme:

People from age groups of 18 to 60 are eligible for the scheme.
Payments will be made in bank accounts of beneficiary within 15 days.

Need for UEG scheme:

As per Periodic Labour Force Survey 2019-20, higher unemployment rate (7%) in urban areas as compared to rural areas (4%).
Growing distress among the urban poor.
Prevalence of low-wage, poor quality, informal work in Indian towns and cities.
Rising urban population.

Challenges associated with UEG scheme:

Lack of National level Legal Work Guarantee Scheme for urban areas like MGNREGA.

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::INTERNATIONAL::

Operation London Bridge

Queen Elizabeth II’s death kicked off Operation London Bridge, a detailed plan, put in place in the 1960s, which meticulously lists the procedures that roll out moments after her death and culminate with her funeral 10 days later.

About:

Operation London Bridge (also known by its code phrase London Bridge is Down) is the name of a funeral plan for Queen Elizabeth II.
The plan includes the announcement of her death, the period of official mourning, and the details of her state funeral. The plan was first created in the 1960s and revised many times in the years before her death in 2022.
As well as Operation London Bridge, there is an additional plan called Operation Unicorn, which details what would happen if the Queen were to die in Scotland.
Running concurrently with Operation London Bridge is Operation Spring Tide, which addresses the accession of King Charles III to the throne and his first trip to the countries of the UK.

Gogra-Hotsprings area

India and China’s troops begin disengagementfrom Patrolling Point (PP) 15 in Gogra-HotSprings in eastern Ladakh.

About:

Earlier, China had refused to pull back its troopsfrom Hot Springs and Gogra Post which, alongwith Depsang Plains, remain the friction pointsbetween the two sides.
PP15 is located in an area known as Hot Springs,while PP17A is near an area called the Gograpost.

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::ECONOMY::

UNDP’s human development index

India ranked 132nd among 191 countries and territories on the 2021 Human Development Index (HDI), showed a report by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) released.

About:

Human development globally has stalled for the first time in 32 years.
Around 90% of countries registered a decline in their HDI value due to COVID-19, the war in Ukraine and environmental challenges.
Global life expectancy dropped from 72.8 years in 2019 to 71.4 years in 2021.

Report on India:

India ranked 132nd, down from 131st among 189 countries and territories in 2020.
Sri Lanka (73rd), China (79th), Bangladesh (129th), and Bhutan (127th).
The mean years of schooling for females declined from 12.6 to 11.9 years in the corresponding period.

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::SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY::

Spent Nuclear Fuel

The Supreme Court has said the problem of storing spent nuclear fuel from the Kudankulam nuclear power plant has to be “worked out”, possibly with the help of experts from the Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) and officials at the highest level in the Tamil Nadu government.

About:

Spent nuclear fuel, occasionally called used nuclear fuel, is nuclear fuel that has been irradiated in a nuclear reactor (usually at a nuclear power plant).
It is no longer useful in sustaining a nuclear reaction in an ordinary thermal reactor and depending on its point along the nuclear fuel cycle, it may have considerably different isotopic constituents.

Key highlights:

The Supreme Court asked Tamil Nadu government to come clear on the time schedule for the completion of public hearings by the State regarding the construction of an Away From Reactor (AFR) facility at the Kudankulam plant.
The Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd. (NPCIL) had sought an extension till July 2026 for the construction of the AFR facility. In 2018, the court had given the Corporation time till April 30, 2022.

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