::NATIONAL::

Centre along with Assam seek for re verification of sample NRC

•  The Centre and the State of Assam on Tuesday made an urgent mention before the Chief Justice of India for an extension of the deadline for final publication of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) for the State from July 31, 2019 to a “future date”.
•  In identical but separate applications, the Centre and Assam urged the court for more time to conduct a “sample re-verification process” in relation to names included in the draft NRC published on July 30, 2018.
•  They said a 20% sample re-verification of names included in the draft NRC of July 30 should be conducted in districts bordering Bangladesh and a 10% sample re-verification should be held in the remaining districts of Assam.
•  Both the Centre and the State said the re-verification exercise should be conducted by Class 1 officers of the State government from other districts who have knowledge and experience of handling the process of enquiry/investigation.
•  The applications further sought an order that the sample re-verification should be undertaken at a place different from where the NRC exercise happened. The Assam government agreed that this would cut out the possibility of local influences, bias/threat, etc.
•  The draft NRC list, published on July 30, 2018, had included 2,89,83,677 persons as Indian citizens but found 40,70,707 persons ineligible. The Centre said re-verification should be done for both inclusions and exclusions.

NGT asks states & UT’s to report on biomedical waste generation

•  The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has directed all States and Union Territories to furnish a report on the amount of biomedical waste generated and asked them to set up common treatment and disposal facilities, if not done yet.
•  A Bench headed by NGT Chairperson Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel directed the District Magistrates across States to monitor compliance of the biomedical waste management rules, twice a month.
•  Stating that a District Environment Plan needs to be in place across the country, the green panel further said that the plan can be operated by district committees comprising representatives from the respective panchayats, local bodies, regional officers and State pollution control boards.
•  “We place on record our disapproval of the inaction of States in furnishing the inventory studies as well as for incomplete inventories. The States which have not yet constituted state-level advisory committee may also do so within two months. The action plans and their execution must be carried out having regard to the key performance indicators,” the Bench said.
•  The Bench warned States of imposing environmental compensation if the orders are not complied with.

::ECONOMY::

CEA urges for demographic changes & banking infrastructure to help savings grow

•  The demographic change India is going through, coupled with the banking infrastructure being put in place, stands to greatly increase savings in the country, Chief Economic Adviser Krishnamurthy Subramanian said on Tuesday.
•  Mr. Subramanian also said India needs to move out of the mindset of being apologetic for profit, as long as they are legally obtained.
•  As life expectancy increases, people realise that they must begin saving by at least 40 years because they will live for much longer now.
•  “And, as people have fewer children, they will realise they need to save because their children might not be able to take care of them,” Mr. Subramanian added. This shift will be enabled by the Jan Dhan Yojana, which is creating the necessary banking infrastructure, especially in rural India.
•  The CEA also spoke about the importance of digitisation in the banking space and how it stands to greatly increase the reach of savings and credit instruments. However, he added that this digitisation needs to be accompanied by greater digital literacy.
•  “I don’t know why people are apologetic about profits,” Mr. Subramanian said. “If you are working within the law and are helping the economy grow, then profits are good!”

Market experts conclude auto sector to face a volatile year

•  Tyre major MRF Ltd. expects the current year to be a tumultuous one for the auto sector on account of various regulatory changes and the switch over to BS-VI norms.
•  The Indian automotive industry is at an inflection point where both opportunities and challenges abound in equal measure. The coming year will be witness to several landmark disruptions and changes in the auto industry which will shape the direction of future events in the industry, MRF said.
•  Asserting that these short-term hiccups would have to be factored in by automobile firms and tyre manufacturers, he said that the uncertainty over the next six months would be further compounded by low consumer sentiments, resulting in inventory build-up and all OE (original equipment) manufacturers aligning production in line with demand.
•  While anticipating an increase in scooter prices (due to BS-VI norms), volatile fuel prices and rising insurance costs, the company said that there could be some uncertainties around how the complete impact of BS-VI norms will play out during the next fiscal year.
•  Compliance with BS-VI norms will require higher investment by automakers in technology to upgrade vehicles in stock and in making new vehicles. This will also mean significantly reduced launches till the new norms come into force, effective April 1, 2020, MRF said.

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::INTERNATIONAL::

North Korea warns U.S-South Koreas mock drills might affect nuclear talks

•  North Korea on Tuesday said looming US-South Korea military drills could impact the proposed resumption of nuclear talks between Pyongyang and Washington, and hinted that it could reconsider its moratorium on nuclear testing.
•  It was the first statement from Pyongyang on the talks since US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un agreed to their resumption at an impromptu meeting in the Demilitarized Zone in June, after months of deadlock between the two sides.
•  The joint drills have been held for years but were scaled down to facilitate dialogue with North Korea after Trump's historic first summit with Kim in Singapore last year.

Srilanka accuses international drug dealers over easter attacks

•  Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena has asserted that international drug dealers were behind the Easter Sunday attacks as he continued with his anti-drug drive.
•  Addressing a programme in Nuwara Eliya on Monday, Mr Sirisena said drug barons carried out the attack to discredit him and discourage his anti-narcotics drive.
•  He said, illegal drug trafficking is the simplest and the easiest way to destroy a country but added that he will not be deterred.
•  The comments came as the President has taken a tough stand against drug traffickers and ordered death penalty be implemented for four accused but the matter has been stayed by court amidst opposition by some political parties and international organizations.
•  Investigations so far have revealed that the Easter Sunday attacks were carried out by local fundamentalist groups though ISIS had claimed responsibility for it.
•  Over 260 people, including 45 foreigners, were killed in coordinated attacks on churches and hotels across the country.

::SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY::

NGT asks CPCB to close down polluting industries

•  Stating that economic development cannot take place at the cost of public health, the National Green Tribunal (NGT) has directed the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) to shut down all polluting industries in “critically polluted” and “severely polluted” areas within three months.
•  A Bench headed by NGT Chairperson Justice Adarsh Kumar Goel directed the apex pollution control board to assess the quantum of compensation to be recovered from polluting units for the period of last five years, in coordination with the respective State pollution control boards.
•  The Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change was directed to take requisite steps for the enforcement of the action plans.
•  The directions came after the NGT took cognisance of a media report which stated that the CPCB was ranking 88 industrial clusters across the country based on their pollution levels.
•  The NGT, however, clarified that non-polluting industries will not be affected by this order.

::SPORTS::

India bags gold at ISSF Junior world cup

•  India bagged two Gold and one Silver medal in the Women's 10-metre Air Rifle event at the International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF) Junior World Cup in Suhl, Germany.
•  In the Individual section of the category, Elavenil Valarivan claimed the top honours with a total score of 251.6, while another Indian Mehuli Ghosh settled for a Silver with 250.2 points.
•  India also clinched a Gold in the team section by creating a junior world record.

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