Current Affairs for IAS Exams - 13 August 2018

::NATIONAL::

Supreme court worried about children in jails

A committee headed by a retired judge of the Supreme Court will be formed to tackle the issue of children living in prisons merely because their mothers are convicts.
The order came after Supreme Court’s amicus curiae and advocate GauravAgarwal submitted a report showing that there were 18 jails exclusively for women. Plus there are separate areas for women in other jails, but there is a huge lack of space for women inmates.
The court said the Centre should issue a notification on the setting up of the committee, highlighting the importance of prison reforms and the fundamental right to life and dignity of the prisoners.
The court ordered training manuals to be circulated to the Directors-General of Prisons and Secretaries of Prison Department in each State government/ Union Territory.
The court advised the Centre that criminals sentenced to imprisonment for six months or a year should be allocated social service duties rather than be sent to further choke the already overflowing prisons.

UIDAI to sensitise people on biometric data sharing

After TRAI chief’s Aadhaar dare ignited a debate on the security of the 12-digit number, the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) is planning a user outreach to sensitise people to the dos and don’ts of sharing their biometric identifier.
The UIDAI intends to draw a parallel between the Aadhaar number and other personal information such as PAN (Permanent Account Number) and bank account number to caution users against placing such details in the public domain, particularly on digital platforms.
It is necessary to inform people that they should use Aadhaar freely, without fear, and a detailed FAQ (frequently asked questions) will be issued,” Ajay BhushanPandey, CEO of UIDAI, said.
Cautioning people against publicising their Aadhaar number, the UIDAI, however, says it can be given freely for proving one’s identity and for transaction purposes, just like one gives bank account or other details for a specific purpose.
The UIDAI has also outlined the responsibilities of banks and other user organisations in carrying out the required checks in this regard.

::ECONOMY::

FICCI survey shows more banks tightening credit standards

A survey conducted by FICCI and Indian Banks’ Association (IBA) showed more respondents claiming they had tightened credit standards during January-June 2018, the period in which survey was conducted.
A total of 22 public sector, private sector and foreign banks participated in the survey, which is conducted twice a year. These banks together represent 64% of the banking industry, as classified by asset size. This round has been conducted at a time when NPAs have shot past the Rs. 10-lakh croremark and continue to rise.
The survey noted that with stressed assets rising, banks have generally adopted a cautious approach in lending, to prevent fresh slippages.
At the same time, most participating banks agreed that the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) had made the recovery process faster and improved the recovery position of banks.
To improve the resolution rate, bankers suggested strengthening of the judiciary, enhancing capacity, empowerment of local level government officials, among other suggestions.

Relaxation of transhipment norms has reduced diversion to foreign ports

Relaxing of norms for transshipment by the government has not only helped India arrest a sizeable chunk of its container cargo going to ports like Colombo, Singapore and Jebel Ali but also forced a few foreign ports to cut rates, Shipping Secretary Gopal Krishna said.
India has been trying hard to arrest the diversion of container cargo to transshipment hubs at foreign ports. In May, the Centre relaxed cabotage norms allowing foreign ships, chartered by Indian citizens or firms, to ply on local routes for transshipment purposes.
Container Shipping Lines Associationchairman Deepak Tewari said: “The policy reform has been very encouraging for container shiplines and we are confident [of taking] the 16,543 TEU volumes recorded in July to 2,00,000 TEUs within 6-8 months.” The figures of transshipment within India are as low as 3,583 TEUs.
Had there been no relaxation, of the 16,543 TEUs, India would have lost 41% to Colombo, 22% to Singapore, 11% to Port Klang and 26% to others, CSLA estimated.

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::INTERNATIONAL::

Texas eyes better partnership with India

Expansion of trade ties with India was his top priority in office, Texas Governor Gregg Abbott told a gathering of the State’s business leaders on Saturday.
“Texas and India aligning economically will be enormously beneficial for both,” Mr. Abbott said in his keynote address at the annual meeting of the Indo-American Chamber of Commerce of Greater Houston (IACCGH).
India has started importing crude and natural gas from America this year, and Texas, as the country’s petroleum hub, stands to benefit.
Petroleum imports from America hasbegan to reduce India’s trade surplus with it, partially blunting an irritant for the Donald Trump administration.
Mr. Abbott thanked Mahindra for setting up Mahindra’s North American headquarters in Texas and donating $1.5 million for relief after the State was struck by hurricane last year.

Pakistan Parliament to start maiden session soon

Pakistan’s newly-elected Parliament is meeting on Monday for the first time to start the process of transition and handing over powers to the new government.
According to law, the Speaker of the previous assembly, AyazSadiq, will administer the oath to the new lawmakers, followed by election of the Speaker and the Deputy Speaker. After the election of the new Speaker, the outgoing Speaker will give him the oath and hand over charge of the new house.
Prime Minister-in-waiting Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) emerged as the single largest party with 116 seats in the July 25 election. Its tally increased to 125 after nine independent members joined it.
The actual strength of PTI will be reduced to 152 because Mr. Khan won on five seats but will have to vacate four seats before taking the oath. Two other PTI leaders won on two seats each and will vacate the additional seats.

::SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY::

NASA launches parker solar probe

NASA on Sunday launched a $1.5 billion spacecraft toward the Sun on a historic mission to protect the earth by unveiling the mysteries of dangerous solar storms.
The unmanned spacecraft’s mission is to get closer than any human-made object ever to the centre of our solar system, plunging into the Sun’s atmosphere, known as the corona, during a seven-year mission.
The probe is guarded by an ultra-powerful heat shield that can endure unprecedented levels of heat, and radiation.
Knowing more about the solar wind and space storms will also help protect future deep space explorers as they journey toward the Moon or Mars. The spacecraft is protected from melting during its close shave with the Sun by a heat shield just 4.5 inches thick.
The spacecraft is the only NASA probe in history to be named after a living person 91-year-old solar physicist Eugene Parker, who first described the solar wind in 1958.

Researchers find AI can adjust dosage to cancer patients

MIT researchers have developed an artificial intelligence (AI) system that can help reduce toxic chemotherapy dosing for the most aggressive form of brain cancer, potentially improving the quality of life for patients.
Medical professionals generally administer maximum safe drug doses to shrink the tumour as much as possible. However, these strong pharmaceuticals still cause debilitating side effects in patients.
Powered by a “self-learning” machine-learning technique, the model looks at treatment regimens currently in use, and iteratively adjusts the doses.
Eventually, it finds an optimal treatment plan, with the lowest possible potency and frequency of doses that should still reduce tumour sizes to a degree comparable to that of traditional regimens.

::SPORTS::

Virajmadappa wins Asian golf title

Despite turning professional barely two seasons ago, VirajMadappa walked the KGA course with the confidence of a past master.
The maiden Asian Tour title also made him richer by $63,000. Madappa became the youngest Indian to win on the Asian Tour, beating the record held by GaganjeetBhullar who won the Indonesia Invitational when he was 21.