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Current Affairs for IAS Exams - 22 March 2021

::NATIONAL::

National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority (NPPA) has fixed the price of 81 medicines, including off-patent anti-diabetic drugs, helping to pass on the the benefits of patent expiry to patients.
NPPA has fixed the retail price of ‘insulin human injection, 200IU/ml’ and ‘70% isophane insulin human suspension + 30% insulin human injection 200IU/ml’ produced by Wockhardt Ltd at ₹106.65 per ml each (excluding GST) and Prasugrel Hydrochloride 10 mg + Aspirin 75 mg capsule by Torrent Pharmaceuticals Ltd at ₹20.16 per capsule (excluding GST) with effect from March 17.
These decisions were taken at the 84th meeting of the authority, which was held on March 10.Prices effective April 1
The decision was taken because the five-year price exemption given to these medicines on account of indigenous R&D got over recently.
The pharma pricing authority also fixed the retail prices of 76 new drugs to be launched by existing manufacturers, including off-patent anti-diabetic drugs, allowing due benefit of patent expiry to the patients.

The Defence Ministry sealed a deal with state-run Bharat Dynamics Ltd (BDL) to acquire 4,960 anti-tank guided missiles at a cost of ₹ 1,188 crore for the Indian Army.
The missiles, having a range of 1,850 metres, can be fired from ground as well as vehicle-based launchers and their induction is planned to be completed in three years.
The Ministry of Defence signed a contract with defence public sector undertaking Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL) for supply of 4,960 MILAN-2T anti-tank guided missiles to Indian Army.

The Philippines government has claimed that around 220 Chinese boats have been spotted at a reef in the South China Sea waters controlled by Manila.
It urged China to recall the boats saying the presence of the vessels violated Manila's maritime rights by encroaching into the Philippines' sovereign territory.
The boats are believed to be manned by Chinese maritime militia personnel.
The boats were spotted on March 7 at the Whitsun Reef, which Manila calls the Julian Felipe Reef.

About:

Whitsun Reef is a reef at the northeast extreme limit of the Union Banks in the Spratly Islands of the South China Sea.
It is the largest reef of the Union Banks.
The reef is V-shaped with an area of about 10 km.

The United Nations observes March 21 as the International Day of Forests.
The theme of the International Day of Forests for 2021 is “Forest restoration: a path to recovery and well-being”.

Key highlights:

The United Nations General Assembly proclaimed March 21 as the International Day of Forests (IDF) in 2012.
The Day celebrates and raises awareness of the importance of all types of forests. On this day, countries are encouraged to undertake local, national and international efforts to organize activities involving forests and trees, such as tree-planting campaigns.
The Day is celebrated by the United Nations Forum on Forests and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), in collaboration with governments, the Collaborative Partnership on Forests and other relevant organisations in the field.
The theme for each year is chosen by the Collaborative Partnership on Forests. The theme for 2021 is “Forest restoration: a path to recovery and well-being”.

The Labour Bureau has signed a service level agreement with Broadcast Engineering Consultants India Ltd (BECIL) for providing technical and manpower support for conducting all India surveys, including on migrant workers.
The signing of the agreement marks the beginning of a new era in the field of IT-enabled surveys.
The Labour Bureau is an attached office of the Ministry of Labour & Employment.
The surveys to be undertaken by Bureau will be integrated with the technology provided by the BECIL, which will substantially reduce the time taken for completion of surveys by at least 30-40 per cent.

Helium is colourless, odourless, tasteless, inert and a noble gas. It finds many applications, mainly in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scans, in rockets and in nuclear reactors.
Dutch physicist Kamerlingh Onnes liquefied Helium by cooling the gas to -270 degrees Celsius.
The U.S. became the most important exporter of helium across the world. It was soon realised that U.S. was also the biggest store house of helium.
The U.S., now, is planning to switch off export of helium from 2021. Qatar is a possible exporter but acute political and diplomatic wrangles have made Qatar unreliable.