Current Affairs for IAS Exams - 25 December 2020

::NATIONAL::

Post Matric Scholarship tostudents belonging toScheduled Castes

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs has approved major and transformatory changes in the Centrally Sponsored Scheme ‘Post Matric Scholarship to students belonging to Scheduled Castes (PMS-SC)’ to benefit more than four crore SC students in the next five years so that they can successfully complete their higher education.
The Cabinet has approved a total investment of Rs 59,048 crore of which the Central Government would spend Rs 35,534 crore (60%) and the balance would be spent by the state governments. This replaces the existing ‘committed liability’ system and brings greater involvement of the Central government in this crucial scheme.

About:

The Post Matric Scholarship Scheme for SCs allows students to pursue any post-matric course starting from class XI and onwards, with the government meeting the cost of education.
This initiative is to boost the GER (Higher Education) of SCs up to the national standards within the five year period.
The focus of the scheme would be on enrolling the poorest students, timely payments, comprehensive accountability, continuous monitoring and total transparency.
A campaign will be launched to enroll the students, from the poorest households passing the Class X, in the higher education courses of their choice. It is estimated that 1.36 crore such poorest students, who are currently not continuing their education beyond Class X standards would be brought into the higher education system in the next five years.
The scheme will be run on an online platform with robust cybersecurity measures that would assure transparency, accountability, efficiency, and timely delivery of the assistance without any delays.
The states will undertake fool-proof verification of the eligibility, caste status, Aadhar identification and bank account details on the online portal.
Transfer of financial assistance to the students under the scheme shall be on DBT mode, and preferably using the Aadhar Enabled Payment System. Starting from 2021-22, the Central share (60%) in the scheme would be released on DBT mode directly into the bank accounts of the students as per fixed time schedule, after ensuring that the concerned State Government has released their share.

F/A-18 Super Hornet fighter jets

Boeing on Monday announced the successful demonstration of the compatibility of its F/A-18 Super Hornet fighter jets with the Indian Navy’s aircraft carriers as part of its pitch for the Navy’s fighter procurement.
The demonstrations, which were held in coordination with U.S. Navy on a shore-based facility at the Naval Air Station Patuxent river in Maryland, U.S., show that the F/A-18 Super Hornet would do well with the Indian Navy’s Short Takeoff but Arrested Recovery (STOBAR) system and validate earlier simulation studies done over the last two years, a senior company official said.
The F/A-18 Block III Super Hornet would not only provide superior war-fighting capability to the Indian Navy but also create opportunities for cooperation in naval aviation between the U.S. and India.

‘Force multiplier’

The ability of F/A-18 to interface with the Navy’s P-8I as a “force multiplier” and also with other platforms under induction.
The Navy has contracted 24 Lockheed MH-60R multi-role helicopters with deliveries to begin next year.

DRDO’s offer

The Indian Navy currently evaluates responses from aircraft manufacturers received in response to a Request for Information (RFI) floated in 2017 for 57 twin-engine deck-based fighters. However, with the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) recently offering to develop a twin-engine deck-based jet, the Navy is in the process of cutting down the number of fighters from 57 to around 36.
The Navy’s sole carrier in service INS Vikramaditya and the under-construction indigenous Aircraft Carrier (IAC)-I Vikrant both have a ski-jump with a STOBAR mechanism.

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::INTERNATIONAL::

Shaheen-IX

China’s doublespeak has once again been exposed.
It has justified its ongoing joint air exercise "Shaheen-IX" with Pakistan, even though it had expressed apprehensions about India’s "Malabar exercise" last month.
Chinese defended "Shaheen-IX" exercise with Pakistan air force as a routine arrangement, which experts believe is reflective of a larger strategic posture towards India.
The Air Forces of China and Pakistan are holding their annual exercise "Shaheen-IX" since 9th December in Pakistan’s southern Sindh province near Indian border.
India recently hosted the Malabar 2020 naval exercise with the U.S., Japan and Australia. Commenting on the Malabar exercise, Chinese Foreign Ministry had said it hoped that the relevant countries’ military exercise could be conducive to regional peace and stability, instead of working in the opposite way.
A Chinese state media had termed the Malabar naval drill as an ill-intentioned attempt to corner China. India had categorically stated that the orientation of Malabar exercise had been towards a free, open, inclusive Indo-Pacific as well as a rule-based international order.

Economy

FASTag to be mandatory for all vehicles in country from new year

Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari has announced that FASTag is being made mandatory for all vehicles in the country from new year.
FASTagwill be enforced from 1st of January, 2021.
It is useful for the commuters as they will not need to stop at toll plazas for cash payments.
It will also save time and fuel.
The steps for ensuring the availability of FASTag at multiple channels are being made through physical locations and also through online mechanisms so that the citizens are able to have them affixed to their vehicles within the next two months at their convenience.

About:

Four banks together issued nearly a lakh FASTags, launched in 2016.
Over 34 lakh FASTags were issued in 2018.
The Ministry had issued a notification last month making FASTag mandatory by 1st of January 2021 in old vehicles also sold before 1st December, 2017.

Science and Technology

Firefly bird diverter

The Ministry of Environment Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) along with the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) India has come up with a unique initiative a “firefly bird diverter” for overhead power lines in areas where Great Indian Bustard (GIB) populations are found in the wild. GIB is one of the most critically threatened species in India, with less than 150 birds left in the wild.

Key highlights:

A report by the Ministry, submitted to the National Green Tribunal in 2019, pointed out that power lines, especially high-voltage transmission lines with multiple overhead wires, are the most important current threat for GIBs in the Thar region, and are causing unsustainably high mortality in about 15% of their population.
The firefly detectors have been installed along two stretches of approximately 6.5 km, selected between Chacha to Dholiya villages in the Pokhran tehsil after ground surveys and due consultations with the Rajasthan Forest Department.
A total of 1,813 firefly bird diverters are being installed in this stretch — a model that has been endorsed by experts from the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Species Survival Commission’s (SSC) Bustard Specialist Group.
The diverters are called fireflies because they look like fireflies from a distance, shining on power lines in the night.
The selected stretch is opposite the Pokhran Field Firing Range, which offers a safe habitat to a breeding population of GIBs outside the Desert National Park Sanctuary in Jaisalmer.

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Sports

FIFA provides breakdown of expanded 2023 Women’s World Cup field

CONCACAF will have four direct berths for the expanded Women’s World Cup in 2023, and two more teams from the region will have a chance to join them via a 10-team playoff tournament.
The United States, Canada, and Jamaica represented the confederation covering North and Central America and the Caribbean at the 24-team World Cup in France last year. A fourth CONCACAF country, Panama, had a chance to qualify, but lost 5-1 to Argentina on aggregate in a home-and-away CONCACAF-CONMEBOL playoff.
FIFA released the breakdown for the 32-team women’s tournament on Thursday. Europe (UEFA) will get 11 direct slots, while Asia (AFC) gets six and Africa (CAF), like CONCACAF, gets four. South America (CONMEBOL) gets three and Oceania (OFC) one.
Host Australia and New Zealand automatically qualify, with their slots taken directly from the quotas allocated to their confederations.
The 2019 World Cup field featured nine teams from Europe, including host France, five from Asia, three from Africa and CONCACAF, two from South America, one from Oceania and the winner of the CONCACAF-CONMEBOL playoff.