Current Affairs for IAS Exams - 27 June 2018


Current Affairs for IAS Exams - 27 June 2018


::NATIONAL::

Use of BSF to counter wildlife smuggling

  • In a first, the Border Security Force (BSF) has signed a memorandum of understating with the Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) to check trans-border smuggling of wildlife in the country.
  • As part of the agreement signed last week, WCS, a Bengaluru-based NGO, will help in capacity building of the troops deployed along the border and help them identify the wildlife that are smuggled.
  • There are also plans for starting a mobile application for identification of wildlife by the personnel and also come up with a 24-hour helpline which the forces can use to get more information about the wildlife seized.

15th India-Australia Joint Ministerial Commission held

  • The 15th India-Australia Joint Ministerial Commission (JMC) was held on 25thJune 2018, in Canberra, Australia. The meeting was jointly chaired by Minister of Commerce & Industry and Civil Aviation, Suresh Prabhu and Australian Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment Steven Ciobo.
  • Length on ways to increase two-way investment flows between the two countries. In this regard, both sides agreed to have greater collaboration between Austrade,the Australian Trade and Investment Commissionand Invest-India,which is the National Investment Promotion and Facilitation Agency of India.The talks culminated in the signing of an MoU between Austrade and Invest-India in order to facilitate bilateral investment flows.
  • Investment opportunities in various infrastructure projects such as industrial corridors, ports, smart cities, airports and railway projects were highlighted by him. This was followed by further presentations by Invest-India and Delhi-Mumbai Industrial Corridor Development Corporation (DMICDC) on details of specific investment projects that Australian Superfunds may invest in.

India ranked most unsafe by a research foundation

  • India has been ranked as the most dangerous country out of the world’s 10 worst countries for women, behind Afghanistan, Pakistan and Somalia, according to a poll conducted by the Thomson Reuters Foundation.
  • The findings are based on perceptions of experts on women’s issues.on three of the topic questions — the risk of sexual violence and harassment against women, the danger women face from cultural, tribal and traditional practices, and the country where women are most in danger of human trafficking including forced labour, sex slavery and domestic servitude.
  • India was followed by Afghanistan, Syria, Somalia, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Democratic Republic of Congo, Yemen, Nigeria and the U.S. — in that order.

::INTERNATIONAL::

U.K Brexit bill gets passed

  • A Bill enacting Britain’s decision to leave the European Union (E.U.) has become law after months of debate.
  • The Bill transfers decades of European law onto British statute books in a bid to avoid any legal disruption.
  • The government had a tough time getting the Bill through Parliament and was forced to concede some power to lawmakers over the final Brexit deal agreed with Brussels.

U.S. top court upholds travel ban of trump administration

  • The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday upheld President Donald Trump’s controversial ban on travellers from five mostly Muslim countries, in a major victory for the Republican leader after a tortuous legal battle.
  • In a majority opinion written by Chief Justice John Roberts, the court ruled 5-4 that the most recent version of the ban, which the administration claims is justified by national security concerns, was valid.
  • The government has set forth a sufficient national security justification to survive a rational basis review. We express no view on the soundness of the policy.
  • The version of the ban at issue was the third iteration, and applies to travellers from North Korea and five mainly Muslim nations — Iran, Libya, Somalia, Syria and Yemen — or about 150 million people.

China to go for 2+1 talks to include India in its relation with Nepal

  • The spirit of the Wuhan informal summit echoed strongly last week during the visit of Nepal Prime Minister K.P. Oli to Beijing, with China proposing a new dialogue mechanism that would also involve India.
  • This is different from a trilateral mechanism. Under the Chinese proposal, China and India can jointly conduct a dialogue with a third regional country. The two-plus one formulation is flexible and can be applied to any other country in South Asia.
  • During Mr. Oli’s visit, the Chinese side made its intent clear to engage deeply with Nepal, and develop special ties with its Himalayan neighbor.
  • Besides, bringing India on board is essential for enhanced regional connectivity, including a trans-Himalayan corridor through Nepal.

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::SCIENCE::

Uranium contamination in groundwater

  • Widespread uranium contamination in groundwater across India was reported by a study conducted by ‘environmental ,science& technology letters’.Drinking such water can damage one’s kidneys.
  • The World Health Organization prescribes 30 mcg/l as an upper limit. Unfortunately, the residents of the regions surveyed were using the contaminated wells as their main source of drinking water. These findings highlight a major gap in India’s water-quality monitoring.
  • The health effects of drinking uranium-tainted water merit special attention. A few small animal and human studies have found that the heavy metal damages the kidneys. The studies indicate that this is a chemical effect, rather than a radiological one, even though uranium is radioactive. But the chronic effects of uranium consumption are still unknown.

::ECONOMY::

SEBI to open commodities to MFs.

  • The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) is gearing up to usher the next set of reforms in the commodity market by allowing mutual funds to participate in the segment while also actively considering allowing derivatives on commodity indices.
  • A SEBI committee is separately looking into the issue of physical settlement for commodity derivative contracts. This comes two months after the regulator made it mandatory for stock derivatives to move to the physical settlement mechanism in a phased manner.

::SPORTS::

India beats Kenya