Current Affairs for IAS Exams - 12 March 2021

::NATIONAL::

The government has asked common people to register as cyber crime volunteers to help check posts against the sovereignty of the nation, on child and women abuse and attempts to disturb the law and order situation.
The project known as Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C) is an initiative of the Union Ministry. It was started in militancy-hit Jammu and Kashmir last week where the police issued a circular asking citizens to register themselves as volunteers.

About:

It is affiliated to Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA).
I4C is a 7-pronged scheme to deal with all types of cybercrimes in a comprehensive and coordinated manner.
These are National Cyber Crime Threat Analytics Unit, National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal, National Cyber Crime Training Centre, Cyber Crime Ecosystem Management Unit, National Cyber Crime Research and Innovation Centre, National Cyber Crime Forensic Laboratory Ecosystem and Platform for Joint Cyber Crime Investigation Team.
Recently MHA notified I4C to act as a nodal point for cyber volunteers to report anti-national activities.

The Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, replied to the motion of thanks on the President’s address to Parliament, in the Lok Sabha.

About:

Article 87 provides for special address by President at commencement of first session after each general election to Lok Sabha. Its commencement of the first session of each year to both Houses.
This address constitutes the policies and programmes of the Government the preceding year and ensuing year.
Then this address is discussed in both the Houses on a motion called the Motion of Thanks.
Motion is put to vote and it must be passed in the House, otherwise, it amounts to the defeat of government.

With the goal to enable talented innovative students and start-ups from Australia and India to address common national issues through innovative technology solutions, AIM and Australia’s national science agency (CSIRO) kick started the India-Australia Circular Economy (I-ACE) Hackathon, 2021.
I-ACE is supported by the Australian Department of Industry, Science, Energy and Resources (DISER), AIM Atal Incubation Centre network, and various domain experts.
A ‘circular economy’ model, which employs not only waste management, but reuse, recycling and responsible manufacture can support the development of new industries and jobs, reducing emissions and increasing efficient use of natural resources.

The four key themes for the hackathon are as follows:

Security concerns around Saudi Arabia's oil fields have pushed Brent crude price to above $70 per barrel mark.
Brent crude price is international benchmark price used by OPEC, while West Texas Intermediate (WTI) is a benchmark for US oil prices.
While Brent crude is extracted from North Sea, WTI is usually extracted from US oil fields in Texas,Louisiana, and North Dakota.
Sulfur content of both is well under 1%, making them both sweet crude. They are also less dense making them easier to refine and more attractive to petroleum product producers.

The Prime Minister initiated a scheme for development of commercial organic farming in the region during 2015 which later became to be known as “Mission Organic Value Chain Development for North Eastern Region” (MOVCDNER).
The scheme started with an average annual allocation of Rs. 134 crore during last five years has so far covered 74,880 ha area.
To double the impact the allocation has now increased to Rs. 200 crore per year with a target to cover additional 1.00 lakh ha area under 200 new FPOs over a period of 3-year period.
The scheme besides growing and value adding the traditional crops is also aiming to bring in high-value crops under contract farming models.
Transformation of farmer clusters into Farmer Producer Companies (FPCs) empowering the growers with institutional mechanisms, collective production and processing strength for quality and quantity and ensures emergence of new breed of organic agri-enterprises.

A recent study found Lantana camara, a tropical American shrub, has invaded more than 40% of India’s tiger range.
Lantana is one of the world’s ten worst invasive species.
It competes with native plants for space and resources, and also alters the nutrient cycle in the soil.
It can tolerate high temperature and moisture.
If eaten, the leaves can induce allergies on the muzzles of animals. In some cases, extensive feeding on lantana has led to diarrhoea, liver failure, and even the animal’s death.

The Jagannath Temple in Puri will no longer remain closed on Sundays for sanitisation.

About:

It is located in Odisha, it is one of the 4 Dhamas (others are Dwarika, Badrinath and Rameswar).
Lord Jagannath, Devi Subhadra and elder brother Balabhadra are the main deities carved out of wood.
It was constructed in Kalinga architecture by Ananta Varman Chodaganga Deva of the Ganga Dynasty in the 12th century.
The main temple is constructed in such a way that no shadow of the temple falls on the ground at anytime of the day.
Rath Yatra and Bahuda Yatra are the main festivals.