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Current Affairs a for IAS Exams - 22 APRIL 2019

Current Affairs for IAS Exams - 22 APRIL 2019

::NATIONAL::

Northern army commander calls for comprehensive politico-military strategy for Kashmir

There is anger, alienation and growing radicalisation in the Kashmir valley and we need an empathetic approach towards the population and a clearly defined political objective," former Northern Army Commander Lt. Gen. Hooda who led the 2016 surgical strikes after the Uri terror attack said.
In this regard, he said the internal situation in Kashmir and cross border terrorism from Pakistan “need to be tackled with equal emphasis.” He stated that one surgical strike will not change Pakistan’s behaviour and it needs a long term strategy.
Terming the rise of China the biggest threat to India, Lt. Gen .Hooda said that strategic rivalry is a reality and it cannot be overcome by increasing trade. “We felt that we must clearly enunciate our core interests to China. And our core interests are the sanctity of our borders, our worries about terrorism, and our strategic interests in South Asia and the Indian Ocean, he said.
In this regard, pending the resolution of our border, we are getting nowhere, he observed and added, “We should at least push for defining the Line of Actual Control (LAC) because that is one thing that would prevent us from having incidents like Chumar and Doklam and so on.”
On the contours of the document, Lt. Gen. Hooda said it is based on five basic tenets which are assuming rightful place in global affairs, achieving a secure neighbourhood, resolution of internal conflicts, protecting our people and strengthening our capabilities.
With the overall geopolitical situation, the document identified weaknesses in national security which need to be addressed. Among them he referred to weakness along the LAC in terms of infrastructure development despite claims and the border management in Manipur with Myanmar which he said was poor.

Union ministry moots regional language labels for medicines

In order to counter fake, sub-standard and expired drugs, the Union Health Ministry has said Hindi and regional language will be used in the tendering process.
The Drugs Technical Advisory Board (DTAB) recently recommended that government procurement agencies should take necessary steps in the tendering process to include the regional language, along with English, on the label of iron tablets and polio drops in government programmes.
Since last year, the government has been working on ensuring the most stringent quality control for both the products which directly affect almost all the children born in India.
“DTAB, in a meeting held early last year, considered the proposal to amend Rule 96 of the Drugs and Cosmetics Rules, 1945 for labelling of iron tablets and polio drops distributed to the children under government programmes with name and expiry date in Hindi also,’’ noted the minutes of the 82nd DTAB meeting.
The Board then constituted a sub-committee under the chairmanship of Dr. R.N. Tandon, honorary secretary general, IMA, New Delhi to examine and give recommendations to streamline the labelling requirements of drugs so as to provide the requisite information to the consumer.

::ECONOMY::

FPI’s bring in huge capital to Indian markets in April

Foreign investors have pumped in a net sum of 11,096 crore rupees into the Indian capital markets in April so far, driven by global and domestic factors.
Foreign portfolio investors (FPI) were net buyers for the previous two months as well, infusing a net sum of 11,182 crore rupees in February and 45,981 crore rupees in March.
As per depositories data, FPIs invested a net amount of 13,308.78 crore rupees in equities and pulled out 2,212.08 crore rupees from the debt segment during April 1-12, taking the total net investment to 11,096.70 crore rupees.
Experts say this positive rally since February is largely due to the rising confidence in having a stable government post elections.
The fear of economic slowdown in the developed world has also increased prospects of foreign money in the Indian market, analysts said.

AYUSH ministry to expand cooperation in research with CSIR

A Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was signed between the Ministry of AYUSH and Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), New Delhi today for cooperation in research and education in areas of traditional systems of medicine and its integration with modern science.
Speaking on the occasion, Secretary stated in due cognition of the growing interest of traditional medicines worldwide, there is a need of multipronged and innovative approaches for the acceptance of this science.
He said that the combination of traditional healthcare and modern basic science has a huge possibility to do innovative and path-breaking researches which can be used for the explanation of various basic concepts.
DG, CSIR appreciated the ongoing projects and programmes between the two organizations. He stated that enhancing the collaboration through joint R&D efforts ranging from fundamental science to validation and thereafter product development, will significantly help in the growth of the Indian contributions to this important sector, not only nationally but internationally as well.
Futuristic efforts of this inter-ministerial cooperation shall include pursuit of Data mining & analytics and Artificial Intelligence to enable and facilitate concepts such as “Traditional knowledge inspired drug discovery and development” and “Food as Medicine”.

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::INTERNATIONAL::

Zelensky wins Ukranian presidential elections

In Ukraine, comedian and political newcomer VolodymyrZelensky has apparently secured a landslide victory in the Presidential election. Exit polls indicated that he is going to take 73 per cent of the votes while incumbent Petro Poroshenko securing 25 per cent.
The ballots were yet to be counted by Ukraine's Central Election Commission, but the exit polls coincided with the official results after the first round of elections which were held three weeks ago.
Zelensky's only previous political role has been playing the President on television. Forty-one-year-old leader victory will open a new chapter in the history of a country that has gone through two popular uprisings in the last 20 years.
Georgian Prime Minister MamukaBakhtadze voiced that Ukrainians have made a peaceful and democratic decision by supporting Zelenskiy. European Council, Donald Tusk and NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg also congratulated Mr Zelenskiy.

INTERPOL to provide assistance to Srilanka in blast probe

The Interpol has said it is ready to offer full support to the Sri Lankan authorities in investigating the country's deadliest terror attack.
Interpol Secretary General Jurgen Stock, in a Twitter message,2 said, Interpol can deploy an Incident Response Team at the request of a member country to provide on-site support during a crisis situation. Paris-based Interpol is an organisation which facilitates worldwide police cooperation.
Meanwhile Prime Minister RanilWickremesinghe has said, the government had intelligence inputs about such attacks and it will look into why adequate precautions were not taken.
In a late night statement, Mr Wickremesinghe said the names of suspects that have come up are local, but investigators will look into whether they had any overseas links.
Meanwhile, curfew imposed across the country since last afternoon has been lifted. Schools are closed till tomorrow while Universities have been instructed to close down till further notice
Meanwhile, police curfew has been lifted since morning but security vigil remains to avoid recurrence of such incidents. Governments have urged calm and patience among people to avoid any religious disturbances.

::SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY::

Home ministry distributes sexual assault evidence collection kits

Over 3,100 special kits for collecting blood and semen samples, besides other evidence, to carry out immediate investigation into sexual assault cases have been distributed among the States and Union Territories by the Ministry of Home Affairs, officials said on Sunday.
The Sexual Assault Evidence Collection Kits (SAECK) or ‘rape investigation kits’ are designed to carry out immediate medico-legal investigation and aid in furnishing evidence in sexual assault and rap cases.
The MHA has procured 3,120 SAECK and distributed to the States and Union Territories, a senior MHA official said.
Each kit comprises essential items that will aid in furnishing evidence such as blood and semen samples in sexual assault and rape cases, helping the prosecution to gather evidence.
The kits are expected to help law enforcement agencies to ensure effective probe in a timely manner for better prosecution and conviction in sexual assault cases, the official said. The kits contain instructions on collection of evidence from the crime scene.

::SPORTS::

Indian athletes get a good start in Asian athletic championship

Indian athletes won five medals on the opening day of the Asian Athletics Championships in Doha. Javelin thrower Annu Rani and 3000-meter steeple chaser Avinash Sable won the silver medals yesterday.
Quartermiler M P Poovamma, 5000-meter runner ParulChoudhary and 10000-meter runner GavitMurali Kumar bagged a bronze each on a day which saw sprint sensation Hima Das suffer a lower back spasm during her 400m heat.